Amara Nicholas:
I was in my room when I heard a knock on the door. I walked up to the door, pulled it open, and saw my mother's maid, Agnes, smiling at me.
Agnes was dressed in a long blue gown; she had light skin and was a young lady, about my height. I am 24 years old. I was wearing a long blue nightgown too, as it was already nighttime, around 11 p.m. on the 31st of December.
We were waiting for the crossover celebration to begin, and I had pulled my hair into a bun shortly after drying it from taking a bath in my bathroom.
“What do you want, Agnes?” I asked, looking at her face, and she smiled back at me.
“Good evening, Amara. If you have a moment, your father sent for you downstairs,” Agnes informed me. I sighed and replied, “But we just finished having our dinner in the dining room. What does my father want to say to me again? I am not interested in the New Year celebration.”
Agnes smiled faintly at me and replied, “I don't know, but he's downstairs with your mom, and the guests have all gone outside, preparing for the fireworks.”
“Hmm, okay. Tell my father I will be downstairs soon. Let me go and ease myself; I'm coming,” I told Agnes, and she turned and left my corridor.
I sighed, went back into my restroom to relieve myself, got out, and went downstairs to the living room of my father's enormous white mansion .We live on the outskirts of the city, precisely in the countryside. It could also be referred to as a village or sparsely populated area, as my father is a chief there and into agricultural farm produce.
I am more like a princess at home. My mother is the center of admiration, and my people love me, as my mother taught me to be kind and helpful to those around us. We were preparing for the cross-over night to a brand-new year, and I didn't know how to feel about it.
I am the only child of my parents. I am still single, and my parents aren't pressuring me to get married. My father is an understanding man, but after a few bachelors have come to ask for my hand in marriage, even my crush, Charles Wilfred, my father refused.
His reason, I do not know, but my mother assured me that my father wanted the best for me and he couldn't just give me away to any male suitor who might treat me poorly in the future. I understood and sighed, going downstairs to the living room.
We live in a standard duplex house surrounded by many trees and gardens.
My father's mansion was fenced, and now that the celebration was ongoing, we had many visitors, and the guest rooms were packed with my cousins and aunts around.
I finally walked into the living room, and Agnes stepped out again and told me, “Your dad requested that you meet him in his office.”
“Okay,” I said, then went to my father's home office to see him. I suspected what he had to tell me was private so that none of our relatives would eavesdrop on our conversation.
I finally arrived at the front of my father's home office. I knocked gently and heard my father's response in a calm voice, “Come inside.”
I quietly pushed the office door open and walked into the enormous office, which had two guest seats and also a set of four blue couches.
There, my parents sat on a blue couch, and my father smiled at me and said, “Come, Amara, come have your seat before the fireworks start. Your mother and I have something important to say to you.”
“Okay, Dad,” I replied, walking into the office, and shortly after, I was seated on another blue couch across from my parents. My mother was clad in a red night dress, and my dad wore a white garment and black trousers, the latter visible because he was sitting on the same blue couch as my mother.
My dad smiled at me and said, “Amara, it has come to the point that your mother and I need to inform you about an arrangement. We have been keeping it from you, but now is the time to inform you about our decision. Well, I am sure you're familiar with my friend, Mr. Joshua Briggs."
I smiled and replied, “Yes, Dad. I know him; he lives in the city and visits here sometimes.”
“Good. Well, you are married to his only son, Darlington Briggs, and you will be going to the city tomorrow to live with him,” my father informed me.
I gasped, “What? Dad, I don't understand. How can I be married to your friend's son? When? I cannot remember getting married to any man, or did I have a memory loss?”
I stared at my parents in shock. How did I get married without remembering it and also wishing to settle down and have my home? My father sighed, and my mother smiled understandingly at me.
“It was an arrangement I made with Mr. Joshua Briggs a long time ago. You are not officially married to Darlington Briggs yet, but you will have to live with him to see if you both can be compatible and become a true couple,” my father explained.
“Dad, I do not understand what you are saying. Do you mean I will visit them, or am I already married to the man you're saying is your best friend's son? And doing what married couples do with him?” I asked my father, wanting to understand him better.
“Amara, like I said, you are married to Darlington Briggs, and you should be a good lady to him when you finally get to their house. You don't have to worry about anything; Mr. Joshua has paid all that is necessary for your hand in marriage for his son. So Darlington Briggs is your husband while you're his wife now. The only difference is that Darlington didn't come down here to marry you officially, and you didn't wear a wedding dress to walk down the aisle with him. But you are his wife by our traditional custom,” my father emphasized.
“Hmm, Dad, I cannot marry a man that I don't know. I can't go to the city to be with him. Mom?” I looked at my mother, wanting to hear her response about all these arrangements.
She sighed and said, “Amara, calm down. It is for your good.”
“How, Mom? I cannot go to the city to live with a man I'm not familiar with, Dad. I do not like the bustling lives of city people. I want to remain here, where there's no noise and wild lifestyle,” I protested, wanting my father to change his mind about these sudden arrangements.
“I can understand your complaint, my daughter, but I trust Mr. Joshua's son to take care of you, so you're going to the city tomorrow,” my father finalized.
Amara Nicholas;"Dad, I don't want to go to the city. I don't want to marry a city man," I protested, tears gathering in my eyes.My father stood up from the blue couch. He is a very tall man with dark skin, unlike me and my mother, who are both light-skinned.My father sighed and said, "Amara, we are not disowning you as our daughter. You will always be our daughter, but you must start your own life and family to give your mother and me grandchildren. We do not want you to leave us, but we cannot trust all these people here to look after you. So, your mother and I decided that you should go to the city, where you will be genuinely loved, not by greedy people who may be pretending with you to gain favor from us.""Dad!" Tears flowed freely from my eyes like a waterfall, and my mother stood up and walked up to me."You don't have to cry. I can assure you that the Briggs family are good people, and Mr. Joshua Briggs is my childhood friend. You will be treated well when you get to their f
Amara Nicholas;We got into my bedroom, which was very large, and my mother accompanied me to pack some of my things. She didn't want me to carry all my belongings, reminding me that the Briggs family was wealthy and I didn't need to stress about arranging and packing everything I owned.We finished packing all the boxes around 1 a.m., and my mother was exhausted. She stretched, yawned, and told me, "I have to go back to my room to meet your father. Good night, my princess.""Okay, Mom, but I'm still not happy about this marriage. Can't you speak to my father about it again?" I asked, looking at her with my blue, shining eyes, glimmering with hope that she might agree."No, Amara. I want you to marry and give me a grandchild. I can't speak to your father about this again. Don't worry, when you get to the city, I will call you from time to time to see how you're doing," my mother told me, and hot tears streamed freely from my eyes.I don't know why I wasn't happy about getting married a
Amara Nicholas;My mom arrived in my bedroom looking radiant in her long white night dress. She smelled fresh like a rose, and she entered my room with Agnes, who greeted me warmly, "Good morning, Amara. I brought your tea and bread.""Thank you," I told Agnes, accepting the teacup from her hand. I walked up to my chair in my room, sat down, and drank my tea while eating the bread.My mom looked out the window, then returned to me and said, "Hurry up. The driver is already here, and why haven't you done your makeup? You know you'll see your husband in the city, so you should look your best when you eventually meet him."I pouted my pink lips as I finished drinking my tea. I didn't intend to please the man I might be married to, and my mom said, "Agnes, get me my makeup box from my room.""No, Mom. There's no need for that. I don't need to pretend in front of my husband. I'm perfectly okay like this, the way I am. If I pretend with him, what if I can't keep up the act and live the fake
Amara Nicholas;"Ah!" I screamed, almost causing the driver to have an accident. I was so shocked to see the face of the man I am married to."What's the problem, my lady? Are you alright?" Mr. Timothy asked with concern as he slowed down and gazed at me cautiously through the car's rearview mirror."I'm sorry, sir. You can continue driving; I was just shocked to see my husband's face online," I said nervously. Mr. Timothy smiled understandingly, and I made a mental note not to scream out so foolishly again.The drive continued, and I looked again at the face of the man who was about to become my husband—Darlington Briggs.I had seen him before when I got into the university. We crossed paths once, and I mistakenly stepped on him while walking with my friend, Esther Peters.Esther was an accountant; she was seductive and never failed to notice all the handsome and well-to-do guys in the university.I wondered how a rich girl like Esther could be so easily swayed by money, as she wasn't
Darlington Briggs;I woke up in my bedroom to the fresh start of a brand new day—New Year's Day. I was so excited because I wanted to go downstairs to inform my parents that I had officially decided to get married this year and had made up my mind to settle down with Jenna Colton.Jenna has been my love for five years. I met her through her elder brother, Bruce, who was my best friend in school.We studied the same business course, and we live in Country Z, in the heart of the city. The Colton family is also a wealthy and well-known family here.Jenna has a successful career as an actress. She is also a model and has been featured as the face of many brands.I know that she has undergone a lot of surgeries to enhance her beauty, but I still love her nonetheless.I love Jenna very much, and I didn't regret my decision to propose to her last weekend.My father didn't react to my posts, and to make matters worse, I can't seem to find him online again after the news of my engagement to Jen
Darlington Briggs;I immediately rose from the black couch and stared at my father in shock."Whose wife, Dad?" I asked, wanting to be sure, and my father stood up too, saying, "Darlington, I have told you that you cannot marry Jenna. The reason I married my best friend's daughter to you is that she's well-mannered and not a corrupt young woman like Jenna Colton.""Dad... I cannot believe you're saying this. I am the one marrying Jenna, not you! What gives you the right to think you can decide my life like this and impose a woman on me to marry?" "That's enough, Darlington! I won't have you disrespecting me in this house. What an elder sees from sitting down, even if you climb the tallest tree, you still cannot see. Jenna is a corrupt woman and wouldn't make a good wife for you. Don't you see how she looks with her artificial body? Do you think she will want to settle down and give you children? I am very certain she's cheating on you with her colleagues. Forget about Jenna and end wh
Darlington Briggs;How would you feel if your parents imposed a spouse on you—someone you haven't met before?I watched my father walk away, climbing the stairs, and he went back to his room, exiting our view."Mother," I said, gazing back at her, struggling to comprehend the news my father had just shared about my impending marriage, like a piece of a document signed on an agreement."Calm down, Darlington. You will not marry Amara Nicholas, not while I am here," my mother said, and my younger sister laughed, making me glare at her."What's so funny, Samara?" my mother asked before I could. "Just because your father didn't marry you off like that, right? That's why you are shamelessly laughing at your older brother, right?""No, Mother."Our mother looked displeased at Samara, who coughed and apologized, "Mom, I'm sorry. But this is very funny. How can our dad arrange for Darlington to marry without his consent or knowing about it, and now his wife is already coming here? Hahaha!""Sa
Darlington Briggs;After my breakfast with my mother and my sister ended, I stood up from the dining chair and prepared to leave our family house."Darlington, where are you going to?" my mother asked me with a worried look on her face.I assured her, "Mom, I am just going out; I will be back soon.""Okay, my son. But don't you think it is best not to inform Jenna? She may overreact; let me handle everything for you. Then later, you can share the news with her about how your father wanted to force you to marry a lowlife."I sighed."Alright, Mom. I won't inform Jenna about it, but I feel like leaving this house right now. I don't want to be here when that woman arrives," I said with a hint of frustration."It's okay. Just be safe out there," my mother assured me."Sure, Mom. I'm not a kid; I'll be fine. Take care," I said, hugging my mother. Though I was taller than her and Samara, they are my family, and their happiness matters to me.Well, I cannot say the same about my dad. Most chi