CHAPTER 3
1195 Words
“Thump… Thump… Thump…”
The only sound that echoes through the empty Coffee house in the scorching afternoon is my rock-solid head hitting the wall of the coffee house repeatedly.
“You are going to create a fracture in your skull if you continue with that.”
Ella, the only coworker at work with me in the afternoon, and my only friend, points out the obvious fact as she takes a wooden stool as sits beside where I am constituting my nonsense.
She look at me with a bewildered smile on her face as she tries so hard not to find my situation funny. The way she raises her eyebrow at me makes her look so cute like a Barbie in a black shirt and skirt, if that is even a thing.
“You’re not helping, Ella.” I sigh as I stop my weird act, I can begin to feel a headache coming.
“What do you want me to say to this?”
“I don’t know, something production?”
“Uh, I think you can already guess what I will tell you.”
Ella says seriously, making me stop with my little self-pity and turning my attention to her fully.
“What is that?”
“I’d say you go through with the marriage deal.”
She says casually, making me give her the most shocked expression I could muster, while she just responds with a shrug and a raised eyebrow as she asks the most obvious question.
“What?”
“Are listening to your advice, Ella?”
“Yes, what is wrong with it?”
“He is a total stranger and a complete weirdo! That is what is wrong!”
I give her the most obvious reason why the proposal I got three days ago is just a big NO for me. But again, Ella is never the type to relent easily, she looks at me with another determined expression to defend the weird rich guy.
“Sarah love, did you just call Harrison Coker a weirdo?”
“Isn’t he? Who else proposes to a girl the minute he meets her?”
“Oh, you cannot be more wrong, baby girl. A rich man can do just that anytime he wants to. He is freaking rich!”
Ella states the obvious while I just roll my eyes at her.
“Being rich doesn’t give him the liberty to be unreasonable!”
“I don’t know why you are not jumping at this chance. Any lady in your shoes would do just that if faced with the option.”
Ella says seriously as she balances well on the stool while adjusting herself to rest on the wall beside me.
“So you would accept the proposal if you were in my shoe?”
“Why not? It’s a free ticket out of poverty.”
She says nonchalantly while looking far away into the empty café. I just stare at her with my mouth slightly ajar as I wonder how she can reach that kind of conclusion causally.
“Money shouldn’t be the only determining factor here, you know?” I say to her.
“Um, what else should be considered, darling?”
“Love! No one should marry without love!”
I exclaim with the most obvious answer while she just looks at me with a smile on her face that says “You are being delusional!”
“Why are you worrying about love? It’s not like you have been in any relationship before!” She jokes.
“Ouch!”
She bursts out into laughter as this goes on, while I just look at her like she doesn’t understand the gravity of what is really happening. I know I may not what love is, but I do know what loveless means.
“You’re not helping, Ella.” I sigh, getting my friend to be serious about my situation.
“Okay, jokes aside. I think you shouldn’t let this chance slip you by, Sarah. You need the financial support the guy will provide for you. I know his proposal may sound dubious, but rather than rejecting it abruptly, why not meet with him to understand why he is interested in marrying you? For all we know, he may have a tangible reason for that. He may not be as unreasonable as you assume him to be. It can end up being a win-win situation for the both of you.”
Ella says to me tenderheartedly as every word that comes out of her mouth just lunches me into deep thought. What if she is right? I need as much financial support as I can get right now.
I am approaching the due date for the payment of my final tuition gradually. Just this morning before I left the house, I saw I notice from the bank to my Mother about the loan she got just because she wants to give me the best life.
“And again, that man is an eye candy!”
Ella says flirtatiously as she rubs my forearm slowly and playfully, making me give her the weirdest smile I could muster. I know she is just trying to get me not to think too much about the situation, and I appreciate it, but I just cannot help but agree with what she just said.
The Harrison guy is really beautiful. Ever since I set my eyes on him, I cannot help just agree with the fact that he is charming. His chiseled features which seem to have been sculpted by an artist’s careful hand embody a rare combination of rugged masculinity and refined elegance. His deeply set, piercing eyes are the color of polished emeralds, capturing the essence of mystery and allure.
His strong jawline boasts a perfection of well-maintained personal hygiene with how clean they are, giving him an air of respected sophistication. Beneath a mane of chestnut hair that falls in soft waves, his forehead is broad and unblemished, a canvas that highlights his intellectual prowess. As he watched me the other day, strands of hair occasionally fall over his forehead, lending a touch of boyish charm to his otherwise mature and distinguished appearance.
As he said the absurd proposal to me, I still cannot help but admire his rich baritone voice as it resonated with confidence and charisma. The more I think about him, the more I agree with Ella, but I am not going to let her know that, or I will not hear the end of it.
“Still, everything seems conflicting. What if…”
I am stopped midway from expressing my thought to my friend when the bell attached to the doorway of the café rings, signaling that a customer had just walked in. I instantly get up and walk out of the corner I am with my friend to attend to the customer.
“Welcome to…”
Again, I am forced to stop my sentence midway when my eyes locate his polished emerald pair of eyes as he stands confidently in the middle of the café with another handsome-looking young man beside him.
“Mr. Harrison?”
- Writer
