Chapter Two: The Price of Peace
1347 Words
Fatelyn looked at the folded piece of paper in her hand—the marriage certificate. Her name was printed next to Sebastian’s.
It felt strange and unreal, like she had signed up for someone else’s life in exchange for a little bit of freedom.
But she had made her decision.
And she wasn’t the type of person to back out of her words.
She thought about the night before she decided to accept Grandma Emily's offer. Her brother-in-law, Joel, drunk again as he shamelessly shouted in the living room while her sister tried to calm him down.
“She’s not even family!” he barked without minding that she could hear every painful words from him. "I’m the one paying the bills, all mortgages and we’ve got an extra mouth to feed! You think your sister’s two thousand dollars even makes a dent? She's freeloading!”
Fatelyn had been in her room, keeping her silence and pretending not to hear. Pretending it didn’t hurt. But it did.
Every word. Every bottle and cans rolling on the floor after he throw it carelessly.
But despite the ill treatment she got from her brother-in-law, she didn’t blame her sister, not even for a bit.
She just hates the life they ended up living.
That’s when she knew she had to go.
But she couldn’t leave her sister worried. Getting married was the only way to put her mind at ease.
If she was someone else’s responsibility, maybe the arguments would stop.
So here she was—married to a man she barely knew.
Fatelyn was about to take a cab home but he insisted, so she gave in and settled herself inside his gray sedan.
In the middle of their trip, Sebastian placed the documents on his side without looking at her.
Fatelyn did the same without saying much, not until he mentioned the keys from Grandma Emily.
"That’s for the apartment. It’s in Brooklyn Heights—fifteen minutes by jeep or e-bike from your flowershop.”
She blinked in surprise. “How’d you know about my small business?”
“My grandma talks a lot.”
“Oh.”
Sebastian continued speaking like he was reading off a checklist about her. Trying his luck to hide how he did a background check on her.
"If you’ve got a driver’s license, I can help with a down payment for a car. Monthly payment’s on you. You’ll need it eventually.”
She shook her head. “I'm using an e-bike. I just replaced the batteries recently and it works fine now."
He nodded. “Okay then. Just letting you know that I’m busy with work. A lot of late nights and sometimes I travel locally and internationally. Don’t expect me home often.”
She nodded back. “I understand.”
“I’ll send household money every month on the fifteenth. We’ll keep this marriage a secret for now because it's easier that way."
Fatelyn tried to smile despite the fact that his words meant that she'll become his hidden wife for an unknown period of time.
“Okay. That’s fine. Um...Sebastian, are we splitting the bills?”
His expression darkens as he turned to her. “You think I can’t afford to take care of a wife?”
It seemed like she got misunderstood.
“No,” she said quickly. “It’s just...I don’t want to be a burden to you. My sister’s husband kept talking like I was leeching off them, so I think it feels better to pull my weight."
Sebastian was quiet for a moment before he spoke. “Then forget about those shitty issues. I’m not your brother-in-law.”
His words may sounds blunt but they comforted her.
“Alright," she smiled sweetly. Thank you.”
He's about to speak again when his phone started ringing. “I’ve got to get back to the office," Sebastian said with a deep breath. "Can I transfer you to a cab? I’ll pay for the fare."
“I'm fine. You can drop me here,” she replied. “You don’t have to worry about me."
He silently reached into his wallet and handed her two crisp hundred dollar bills. Fatelyn hesitated and tried to stop him.
“I can manage—”
“Take it," he insisted again.
She tried to ignore him for a while but in the end he gave her no choice but to accept the money.
In the nearest waiting shed, Sebastian's car went ahead and leave her behind like nothing had happened.
Outside the Quinn's Domain, Grandma Emily was waiting near the black MPV with hands on her hips.
“Where’s Fatelyn?” she asked while raising an eyebrow at him.
He stared at her grandmother blankly. “She’s on her way to the apartment. I gave her money to transfer on a cab. Something came up before my meeting.”
Grandma Emily stared at him with too much disappoinment. “You just got married and you leave her on the street alone like that? You should've at least brought her to your apartment like a decent husband!”
“Grandma, I married her like you wanted. That’s already more than you could’ve hoped for,” Sebastian said as he released a faint breath. “But don’t expect me to change everything overnight. I’ll see what she’s really like. If she’s lying or pretending, I’m not staying in this marriage.”
Grandma Emily narrowed her eyes, the smile on her lips was gone food good.
“Divorce isn’t an option in this family!”
“We’ll see,” he muttered.
After finishing a part of his hectic schedule, a black Rolls Royce and two luxury sedans waited on the domain's lobby as a part of his instructions.
Later on, Sebastian stepped out and handed the MPV keys to a bodyguard.
“Take Grandma home."
“I’m not going anywhere!” the old lady snapped and tried to stop her grandson's men. “I want to spend time with my new granddaughter-in-law!”
But Sebastian had already slipped into his Rolls Royce and driven away.
“Ruthless boy!” she grumbled while staring at the direction where he went. “You’ll eat your words one day when you fall for her...just you wait.”
Back in the cab, Fatelyn stared out the window as they passed busy streets. She touched the envelope on her side and traced the edges of the paper inside— her marriage certificate.
Until her phone buzzed.
“Hello?” she answered.
“Darling, it’s Grandma Emily.”
Fatelyn smiled slightly. “Hi, Grandma.”
The old woman beamed on the other end of the line. “That’s more like it! Not ‘Grandma Emily’ anymore. Just Grandma, we’re family now."
Fatelyn nodded even though Grandma couldn’t see her. “Okay...Grandma.”
“Hmm. Listen, Darling. Please don't mind Sebastian. He’s always like that. Stubborn as a rock and cold as ice but deep down he’s a good boy. Just give him time, okay?"
“I’m fine. Really,” Fatelyn said. “I get it. He’s busy. It’s not like this marriage is real anyway.”
“Don’t say that,” Grandma Emily scolded. “Marriage is marriage. No matter how it starts, it’s real once the paper’s signed. You’re his wife now and if he ever makes you cry, you tell me and I’ll deal with him.”
Fatelyn chuckled for the first time. “Thank you, Grandma.”
“Have you had lunch yet?”
“Not yet. I’ll grab something as I arrived at the apartment.”
“I stocked the fridge at Sebastian’s place. Cook something warm and take some rest. You deserve it.”
Does she really deserves everything?
That made her realized this was the first place she’d ever live alone.
No sister.
No brother-in-law.
No shouting.
No beer bottles on the floor.
Just silence and maybe peace.
She took a deep breath at the thought.
What comes next with a loveless marriage?
Maybe, just maybe, it was a new beginning with her stranger husband.
- Writer
