Tangled Fate

Mutually

Richard Daniel sat at the dinner table with his parents, Robert and Elizabeth . The air was tense, and an unusual silence hung in the room. Richard was a carefree guy who focused on his job and family, and he could not help but sense that something important was about to be disclosed . He observed his parents, trying to read their expressions for any hints of what was to come . His father, Robert, cleared his throat, and his mother, Elizabeth, took a deep breath, gathering her thoughts before she began to speak .

" Richard," Elizabeth finally said, her voice quivering slightly, " we need to talk to you about something of great importance. "

Richard put down his fork, his curiosity piqued . "Sure, Mom, Dad . What is going on?"

Robert hesitated for a moment before he spoke, " You know Nora Joel, my business partner's daughter, right? "

Richard nodded. He had met Nora a few times at social events and business gatherings. She seemed nice, but they never had a chance to get to know each other beyond surface level conversations . Richard was surprised that his parents would bring up Nora, considering their business ties were not something he thought would concern him .

" Well, Richard," Elizabeth continued, " Nora's father and I have been discussing something with great seriousness over the past few months . You see, he has expressed a desire to form a deeper bond between our families . "

Richard's brow furrowed, not fully understanding what his mother was implying. "A deeper bond? What do you mean, Mom? "

Elizabeth took another deep breath, her eyes filled with both apprehension and hope.

" Nora's father and us have decided that it would be best for our families if you and Nora were to be betrothed . "

"Betrothed? !!! " Richard exclaimed, almost choking on his words . The news hit him like a sudden gust of wind, completely catching him off guard . He never expected his parents to talk about arranged marriages, especially not with someone he barely knew .

"I understand that this might be a lot to take

in, " Robert interjected gently, trying to ease the tension . "But this is a tradition that has been followed in our families for generations. It is not about force; it is about fostering stronger bonds and ensuring the prosperity and stability of both families ."

Richard's mind was reeling, and he struggled to find the right words . He respected his parents and their beliefs, but the idea of being betrothed to someone he barely knew was unsettling . His carefree nature rebelled against the notion of being tied to someone in such a way .

"Dad, Mom," he finally managed to say, "I appreciate your honesty and your consideration for our family's tradition, but I can not just agree to something like this without fully understanding and exploring my feelings ."

Elizabeth and Robert exchanged glances, understanding their son's point of view. "Richard," Elizabeth said gently, "we do not want you to feel pressured into anything. We only wanted to let you know about this possibility and see how you felt about it ."

"I understand," Richard replied, feeling relieved that his parents were not forcing him into anything . "But I need time to think about it, to get to know Nora better, and to see if there could be a genuine connection between us ."

"We respect your decision," Robert said warmly . "Take all the time you need, and know that we have made the best decision for you ."

The weight of the situation fell right on Richard's shoulders . He knew he had his parents' support, and that has always meant the world to him, but in this scenario, it is totally different, marriage decision should be made by him and not his parents, Over the next few days, Richard spent time contemplating his parents' proposal and his feelings about it .

Richard mind was divided into fulfilling the wish of his parents and doing marriage when he is ready to .

" I am not even ready for all of this marriage talk, why should I be with a woman because of business bond and alliance " Richard thought aloud, he made up his mind to talk to his parents which he did .

" Mom! Dad!! What if she does not like me ? What if I do not like her " Richard was saying to his parents when his mother interrupted and assured him he will like her and she will like him .

Richard visited the Joel's to meet Nora, the Joel's were happy and at the same time surprised to see him as they ushered him to the sitting room .

" Hi Richard! How are you doing? " Mr and Mrs Joel asked together, Richard replied he was fine and asked of Nora .

Nora!!! Mrs Joel shouted as she approached Nora's room " A visitor is here to see you " Amelia said when she entered her room .

" Who? " She asked her mother but Amelia didn't reply that but insisted she comes outside and see for herself .

Nora positioned herself on her wheel chair and moved herself to who visited her

" Hi ", Nora said mildly as she asked who Richard is, " I am Richard and I came to see you ", Richard said as he introduced himself and purpose of visiting .

Mr and Mrs Joel signalled to one another and excused the duo .

"Did your parents tell you the same thing too?" Nora asked Richard with curiosity, " yes and I feel we have to convince them out of them out of this thought, I am not even ready for marriage as I have so many things to tick off my boxes " Nora nodded in agreement as she stated she also do have things to tick off her boxes as well .

The duo agreed to call on their parents for a meeting to take their mind off the Idea of matchmaking them with the reason of them not being attracted to one another .

The duo set up a date to set up the meeting with their parents .

" We should meet with them during the weekend " Richard initiated and Nora agreed .

"I will take my leave now, discuss the meeting plan with your parents and I will also do the same with mine" Richard said as he stood up to take his leave . " Let me have your digits " Richard added, Nora nodded her head as she brought out her phone and they exchanged numbers, " saved " they both said simultaneously and chuckled afterwards. Richard walked towards the door and Nora bade him goodbye .

Mom! Dad!! Nora shouted her mom and dad's as she made her way toward their room .

"On my way darling !! Mrs Joel replied as she and her husband walked toward Nora" .

" I want to talk to you, I and Richard agreed to set up a between our family and his as we will like to discuss important things with you" Nora said anticipating replies from her parents but her speech was followed by silence .

" We already met with the Daniels, I see no reason why we should meet with them again, meeting them changes nothing " Mr Joel stated authoritatively and walked out .

Nora got confused and her mother noticed, " I will talk to him about it so we will do what you want". Nora's face brightened up as her mother said that, ''thank you mom'' Nora appreciated her mom .

" It is not easy for her to accept all of this just like that, we need to make it easier for her to digest by doing all she wants '' Mr Joel reached out to the Daniels to set up the meeting to satisfy their children's wish and for them to use the avenue to let them know the betrothal decision is final .

The Daniels and Joels finalized the meeting decision and they agreed with their children to meet at the Joel's mansion.

The Joels made preparations to host the Daniels