"Meylene, darling!" Called Aunt Ellie from the other side of the road.
"Fancy seeing you here Aunt Ellie. How are the cousins?" I ask. My little cousins have never really been a topic of interest but I could not seem to think of anything else to ask.
"Oh they are very good. They are growing quickly, they might be as big as you when you next see them!" She said enthusiastically. I could only imagine those little beasts being my heighth. They are bad enough being small, why must they get bigger? I laughed slightly, still playing the roll of a niece that is actually interested in her cousins.
"And Uncle Henry as well?" Father already told me about him, so this was a pointless question.
"Oh he is away right now dear. He will be back shortly though. I will be sure to keep you updated."
"Okay Aunt Ellie. It was nice seeing you here but I'm afraid I must be going now." Finally, my escape.
"Okay dear, well i will talk to you shortly." I waved goodbye to her as I began walking back home.
Once i entered the garden i stopped to look around. There, in the corner of the garden were the roses i had planted. They had finally grown!
I rushed over and bent down and placed one in my hand, pulling it gently to my nose. It smelled, well, like a rose. I giggled in excitement. I'd never had a particularly green thumb, so this was new to me and I was excited about it. I picked the rose and held it gently in my hand so the petals would not fall off.
The sweet smell of tea and scones filled my nose the second I opened the door. Of course, father always had tea and scones at three o'clock in the
afternoon.
I slipped my slip ons off at the door. The rug at the entrance was soft under my bare feet. I shivered slightly when my feet hit the cold hard wood floor.
"Father," I called, "I'm home." I walked into the family room to find my father, nothing but a mess of light brown hair on the table.
"Meylene," he sat up, face red and eyes swollen. "Please, come sit." I went over to the red chair next to his and sat down. Something was obviously wrong, but I wasn't sure I wanted to know what it was. My heart began to sink as I looked into his blue eyes, full of pain.
"Meylene," he began, "my sweet, sweet daughter. You know I love you more than anything in the world. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me and your mother being gone," he took a deep breath. "Well, it is almost bearable as long as I have you. But, as you know dear, profit has been incredibly low lately." I should have known this would be about money. "Lord Vander is a very rich man dear, and his son has no wife. I have arranged your marriage to Lord Vanders son."
"What!" I exclaimed in terror. "You did what! Why- how could you be so stupid as to give my hand in marriage to a complete stranger!"
"We need the money Meylene." I could feel my face getting redder and redder as my resentment grew.
"I cannot, I will not marry that man!" He stood, pushing his chair back off the gold rug in the process.
"The date has already been set. There's absolutely nothing you can do about it." Then he left, ending the conversation.
How could he do this? Lord Vander is a terrible man. He has been nothing but cruel to the people of our village. He laughed at my mother death as if it were some sort of joke. His son is likely just the same. He may even be worse. I do not even know this persons name and I am expected marry him? It is not fair. Nothing about this is fair.
I stand and march up the stairs to my room where I throw myself on the bed, waiting for the tears to come. I hate this boy. I hate him even more than I hate his father. I hate him simply for being alive, even if that is rude. That is the truth.
