Reaping Me Softly

Chapter 22 - She’s Not Alone

The day didn't end up well. Her expectations were far from what happened and she felt bad a little because of it. His mother definitely hated her for the reason that her son, Simeon, has chosen another path, following Lia. She can't blame her though... The fact that she was partly the reason why Simeon neglected his first choice was enough for his mother to criticize her.

However, Lia cannot control his heart. No one can.

She didn't know him back then. If ever, she would convince Simeon not to follow her desires profession. Unfortunately, it was too late for her now.

"Don't overthink what happened earlier, Lia. We left, so might as well leave the bad memories behind, will you?"

Simeon handed her the bottle of water.

"We didn't even inform them that we're leaving... Also, I didn't get to taste her food," she said sadly just to lighten up the mood.

Simeon looks pissed. She could tell by how his forehead knotted, even his jaw clenched in annoyance. That led them to leave without bidding goodbye to his family.

They just left after explaining his side, then brought her to the shore. She didn't bother to ask anything and just go with him hoping that his face would lit up but he was still annoyed.

"What about the bet? I guess it has to be postponed, eh?"

"Disregard that, Lia. No bet or anything," he replied seriously.

Her lips formed into the thin line.

“Still pissed?” she asked slowly. “What should I do to calm you down?”

She bit the side of her cheek.

The confidence to ask him that... She doesn’t even know how to woo a man to take his annoying feeling gone. But there’s no harm in trying. She wanted to make the bad memory vanish in his mind, too. Even for a while.

The aesthetic place made her want to relax but Simeon was ruining her mood.

The high sky above the vasty blue wild waves. Her eyes were glued to the salty water that comes back, then leave after touching the shore. They were sitting on the large rock and as the big wave slapped the pitch, a briny drizzle showered her legs.

“We should relax after what happened, Simeon. You brought us here for what? For the ocean to laugh at how ugly you look like whenever your forehead meets?” She looked at him.

“What?” His frown deepened. "I'm not pissed, Lia. Just annoyed."

"The difference?" She rolled her eyes and chose to stare at the ocean. "If you keep being like that, we should just go home. This place is too beautiful for your tantrums, Simeon. Don't ruin my mood."

"Fine, I'm sorry..." she heard him sighed deeply. "I just don't like what happened earlier, Lia. Today was supposed to be a good day but because of my mother..."

She hushed him. "I don't like the tone of your voice, babe. Don't blame anyone... The damage has been done and we cannot replay and replace what happened anymore, so let's just move forward, okay? We can't undo anything and the best thing to do now was relax. Today is our first day, in case you forgot."

Lia never imagined this. Just like some other normal teenagers, she dreamt of her first day as a taken to be romantic. A day free from disaster, and unfortunate events. Free from stress, and overthinking. Yet today ended up far from what she imagined.

Although she really didn't expect that much.

She has doubts that his mother might not like her, and it grows when she knows that she came from a fixed marriage family and that she might end up like them, too. Her little hope totally shattered into pieces when she brutally told her about Simeon, choosing another path because of her.

She was not mad, or even annoyed at her honestly. Lia actually liked it. At least she was not deprived from knowing the truth.

“And I think it was my right to know it, right?” her voice was low. “But anyway, let’s forget it. Let’s just enjoy the rest of the day, Simeon. Time flies so fast and we only have one more week left to be together. I mean, my parents will be back in one week so...”

Thinking about their comeback made her heart saddened.

One week... She’d leave her unit... That means more lies and sneaky date with him once her parents come back from their trip.

“A week...” he uttered.

“Hmm... We’ll have a hard time doing these things again. Dating, movie marathon, studying and eating together, be with each other almost everyday. We will not do those things often but rarely. Might take weeks...”

She shrugged, trying to let out a small smile.

“There’s our phone. Let’s just think that we’re in a long distance relationship if that’s the case.”

She chuckled. “Brave enough to handle a long distance relationship? You might find someone near you, though. A woman who’s free from the leash of her parents.”

Simeon scoffed at her remarks:

“Don’t think like that, baby...” He took her hands. “It will always be you, Lia. From the start, until my last remaining breath. You will always be the owner of my heart.”

Her heart melted. She was sure that Simeon loves her more. She wanted to fight for their relationship but there were a lot of existing uncertainties.

She likes him more than anything. Her feelings were deep enough to continue their relationship.

But for some reason, she was scared. A lot of things brought a lot of fear.

Her parents... She know what they are capable of doing once they found out. They would break them apart, force her to get married with someone she doesn’t love, if she disobeyed them, they’d do something not just to her, but to Simeon, too.

She can’t bear that to happen.

“What should I do?” Her lips quivered in fear. “I love you, Simeon... I love you. I am willing to spend the rest of my life with you but I don’t have the rights to choose.”

Fresh tears started to fall in her cheeks. The tip of her nose turned red, her shoulders dropped in every sob. Simeon sneaked his arm behind her head, then pulled her closer for a tight hug.

“I thought you wanted us to relax?” he whispered in her ear while rubbing her hair. “Why are you crying now, hmm? Is that your new way of relaxing? Should I cry, too?”

“I hate you...”

“Shh. Just cry, baby. I swear this in front of the vast ocean, underneath the blue sky, you’ll never be alone in this battle, Lia. I can’t promise that you’ll never cry for the same reason but mark my words, I’ll be there.”

She sniffed and clutched his shirt tightly.

“Can we just run together?” she said in a low voice. “I’ll go with you wherever you want, baby. We’ll run away from everyone... and be together without minding anything.”

“That we can’t do, Lia...” she felt him kissed her hair. “Running away is just a temporary solution. It will never be the answer to our problems, baby.”

Shaking her head, she pulled away from the hug.

“Then, what? They will force me to someone, Simeon! They will do everything to break us apart!” she shouted in frustration. “Who knows? When they come back, they might just announce my engagement. You don’t want that to happen, do you?”

She knows that her parents business trips was not just the usual one! There were times when they come back from their trip, they introduced her to a white dude but obviously, it was not successful.

She’s afraid that they might be home with their hands full.

Honestly, her parent’s operation in looking for someone to marry her has not been in good situation. They always failed to talk with the other party.

But this time, if they convinced whoever their target family, it would be the end of her freedom.

“Let’s not totally ruin this day, baby...” He took a deep breath. “Please... let’s forget everything for a while now. Just this time...”

She didn’t take her eyes off him. Tiredness was visible in his slant eyes, begging.

“How about tomorrow? Eventually, we would still worry this tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and so on until we get tired that we’ll choose to part ways.”

“No, no... No, Lia! Don’t think of that way!” He shouted and cupped her face. “No one is parting ways, okay? Between us, no one will let go whatever it takes.”

“There’s a lot of uncertainties in this relationship...”

“We just started for Pete’s sake!”

Lia stood up on the large rock and face the body of ocean. She harshly wipe the tears on her cheeks. Her skirt was swaying in the air, and her body bravely fight the big bold waves as it slaps the hard surface.

She spread her arms wide in the air, raising her head, watching the sky as tears after tears fell on her cheeks.

“Why did You give me a parents like them?!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. “I should have just born in a poor family! A family full of love and support despite the poor situation! Why did You give me to someone who cares nothing but money and reputation?!”

Her voice became hoarse. She felt weak and vulnerable at this time. If she could just change her parents at birth, she would. Even her fate... If changing the destiny is what it takes to be free, she would but there’s no way that she could.

“Baby...” Simeon stood up beside her and pulled her again for a hug. “Stop, Lia. You’ll just lose your voice.”

“I just don’t understand it, Simeon. My family has not learned anything from their experience. And now they want me to follow their steps... It’s absurd, Simeon. They want me to suffer...”

She sobbed hard as she hid her face in between the crook of his neck.

“It’s unfair... So unfair, Simeon! Why can’t they give me the happiness that I want?!”

“Shh... Just cry, Lia. Just cry...”

“Crying do nothing in our situation.”

“But it helps you emotionally.”

She closed her eyes. “It’s tiring... My heart is too tired to take all these problems.”

“You are not alone...” he whispered softly.