Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

Past

There was a silence as Vitalio’s family consumed the meal in front of them. Only the soft sound of the plates and cutlery was heard.

The kids for a reason were not comfortable. Their father Sergio wasn’t always around for dinner and breakfast, and whenever he was, he made it compulsory for them to eat together because he's got to pick on their mistakes or announce how he had planned their life for them.

And his victim for today was his youngest child, Maria. She couldn't focus on the food in front of her, as her father always made her panic whenever he was near.

The way he looked at her with those judgemental eyes scared her—if only she could escape from him.

“Maria.” He called and everyone stopped eating and stared at her.

“Yes, father.” Maria answered as she gulped her saliva nervously.

“How has school been lately? You will be graduating from high school in two weeks. Any new things I should know?”

Maria stared at her father, shocked. That wasn't what she was expecting. He had never been interested in their academics, so for him to ask…

“Liam Wayne, how is he in school?” He added.

“Liam…..” Maria stuttered after her father and received a dejected stare from him. “Well, he is fine, good, and healthy” Maria replied with a nervous smile and drank from the cup in front of her.

Liam Wayne was her classmate and a douchebag as he took pride in the girls he fucked in class, shared nudes around with his friends, and mostly got away with it because his father was a wealthy merchant and a scum who doesn't care about his son upbringings.

Maria hated him with passion and it scared her when her father asked about Liam.

“That is nice then. You should get ready for tomorrow. He will be coming over with his father to discuss your engagement.”

The cup in Maria dropped immediately as fear took over. This was what she had been avoiding.

Engagement. Marriage, especially with Liam Wayne.

Sergio glared at her with a look of rejection and Maria looked to her mom for help.

“Honey,” Victoria called and Sergio glanced at her, his face a bit softened. “Why the rush? Maria is just eighteen. Still young and not in college. Why don't we wait a bit?”

“It doesn't mean. We got married at this age and look at us. We care for each other.”

Maria wanted to scream. "Care, not love!"

This wasn't what she wanted. Marriage, at least in the TV shows she watched, was supposed to be a beautiful thing between two people who loved, respected, trusted, and admired each other. Not just care alone.

How could she love someone she loathed?

“But honey,” Victoria interrupted again while Sergio grunted.

“It’s just an engagement, Victoria. She can get married when she’s twenty and in college. For now, it’s just an engagement. Emily got engaged at eighteen, and she’s done a good job so far.” Sergio praised his first daughter, who beamed at the mention of her name.

Not even finished with college, and he was doing this to her? Maria glanced at her mother again, and the look Victoria gave her said she agreed with him.

Maria chuckled bitterly, feeling betrayed by her mother, by everyone. She couldn’t believe her whole life would be over before it even started.

She stood up and stormed away from the dinner table without any interference from her father.

As soon as she entered her room, Maria collapsed on her bed, her heart heavy with disappointment. She had always thought she had more time. Since Emily was already engaged and her aunt was married, she believed her father wouldn’t pressure her much. How wrong she had been. The realization made her feel so stupid.

She would never get the life she had dreamed of. “Everything is ruined,” she sobbed, punching her bed in frustration.

A knock echoed on her door, but she didn’t answer, hoping whoever it was would go away.

Instead, the door opened, and a tall boy with black hair and deep-tanned skin stepped into the room.

“Look who’s crying. The ugly duckling,” a voice teased, and Maria rolled her eyes as she sat up on the bed.

“I’m not ugly,” they both said at the same time, and Maria couldn’t help but laugh.

“Does Billy know you’re here? I don’t want you to get into trouble, Shaun,” Maria said with concern for her friend and bodyguard.

“I’ll be fine,” he assured her as he moved closer and sat on the bed. “But I don’t think you are. I saw you walk out of dinner. What happened?”

Maria bit her lip, pondering whether to tell him or not. He had been her friend since they were little, despite it being forbidden. She knew the consequences if her father found out about their friendship, but she wanted to be selfish. Shaun was the only one she could trust with things no one in her family knew about.

“I’m getting engaged to Liam Wayne,” she blurted out, and the smile on Shaun’s face vanished instantly. He gulped and took a deep breath.

“Why? I mean, you’re just eighteen. It’s too... soon,” he stuttered, while Maria nodded in response.

“I know, but my father has already decided. My whole life is over. He’s going to monitor me even more, and that stupid Liam will think he has some entitlement over me. Most importantly, I won’t get to see you again. I’m doomed,” Maria exclaimed, a bit exaggeratedly.

Shaun couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He knew this day would come eventually, but he had hoped it was far in the future. He had hoped there would be more time—time to express himself, to let her know about his feelings, how much he wanted more than just friendship. His confession was over before it could even begin.

This couldn’t be happening. There had to be a way. He couldn’t just lose Maria like this. He would rather die than see her live as another man’s wife.

“Let’s run away,” he said impulsively.

“What?” Maria stopped talking and stared at him. She ran to the door, checking outside to see if anyone had heard or was passing by.

When she was certain they were alone, she walked back to him. “Are you insane?” she asked, smacking Shaun lightly on the head. He winced, but there was no playfulness in his expression.

“I know you’re joking, but you can’t joke about things like that, especially when my father is home.”

“I’m not joking. Let’s run away,” he repeated, and Maria stared at him, speechless.

She could tell he was serious, and as tempting as it was, they couldn’t.

“Shaun...”

“I know.” He stood up and held her hands gently. “But you can’t just sit here and do nothing. You hate Liam. He’s a jerk who secretly films girls and posts videos. You hate people like that. If you marry him, you’ll never get the freedom you want.”

“And running away is no different. They’ll find us. The last thing I want is for my best friend to suffer because of me.”

“I don’t care, as long as you’re with me. Don’t you want to see the world? You’ve always talked about a lot of things, visiting a lot of places. You can’t do that if you marry Liam. You’ll rot away in his house.”

Maria gasped and cut in. “This is insane, Shaun.”

“No, what’s insane is you getting engaged,” he almost yelled but quickly lowered his voice. “We’re just eighteen. Marriage shouldn’t even be on our minds right now. We should be living like normal kids.”

“But we’re not normal, Shaun. My father is part of a powerful crime family. He sells drugs, kills people, and forces others into sex slavery. He’s involved in all sorts of terrible things. And you... you’re the boy who cleans up his messes,” she said, her voice heavy with sadness.

“We’re not normal. We’ll never be,” she added, stepping away from him.

Shaun bit his lip and headed to the door. “You’re right. We’re not. But that doesn’t mean we can’t try. If you change your mind, you know where to find me.” He left the room, leaving Maria restless and tormented by his words.