Capítulo 3: EM - 3
After saying goodbye to the old man, whom I finally knew was named Matthew Anderson, I left the room.
"The meeting was held on the 40th floor," said the man I was following. "You're on the wrong floor."
"Yes, I think here."
"I'm Jackson Thompson. You can call me Jack." The man held out his hand. His face was crystal clear. In Korea, it is called handsome Oppa, if he deserves to be called handsome brother. Good grief! I'm thinking what the hell.
"I'm Reina Williams. Just Rei." I shook his hand. My goodness, his palms were warm and soft. I hurriedly let go of his position, afraid to fall asleep.
"Come on, let's go down."
Besides being handsome, Jack was friendly. He couldn't stop smiling. I, who incidentally is sociable, feel that I have met the right opponent.
Arriving on the 40th floor I saw Uncle Michael. Uncle Michael is Papa's assistant in the office. He then immediately approached me.
"Miss Reina, it's finally here. Mr. Williams was worried you wouldn't come," he said.
"Yes, sorry for being late, Uncle. This is the document."
As Uncle Michael checked the documents I brought with him, he nodded. "Yes, that's right, Miss. Thank you for being escorted. Uh, Mr. Thompson too?"
Jack smiled. "I met Reina by chance. Has the meeting started?"
"Just getting started, sir. Then let's just go in, sir."
"Reina, you should be careful when you go home," said Jack looking at me. Oh my god. His gaze makes me melt.
"I-yes. Then I'll excuse myself."
In the elevator, I couldn't stop smiling to myself like a crazy person who was reoccurring. Remember how handsome Jack was and how kind he was. Even though he's an executive, he's not arrogant at all. Luckily I got to know him.
***
Busy morning. Today is Jane's wedding day. And the procession will be held in a hotel ballroom in Washington.
I'm also pretty dressed up for the event. Looking at myself in the mirror while fixing my little bun. I wore the same Bridesmaids dress as my cousins.
I was fixing my lipstick when the furor broke out. Mom suddenly opened my bedroom door.
"Reina, is Jane here?"
"Nothing, Mom."
"Oh my God! Where exactly is she?"
"Jane isn't in her room?"
"Nothing! Your sister disappeared."
What?!!
My eyes bulged until they felt like they were about to pop out of place. How can the bride-to-be disappear?
"Your papa and uncles are trying to find her." Mama's tears flowed.
I grabbed my mom's shoulder and sat her on the edge of the bed. I want mama to calm down. Because she looks so shocked.
"Did you get a call?"
"She doesn't have a cell phone."
"I try to call Jane's friends."
Mama nodded letting me call her friends I knew. No, they don't know where Jane is. They have come to the ballroom where the wedding ceremony is.
Finally, I got dizzy. How could Jane play hide and seek at such an important event? In a few hours, the wedding ceremony will begin. Everyone panics. Mama kept crying. My papa and uncles couldn't find Jane either. Fix she ran away.
"Why would she do this to us? She shouldn't be doing this in the hours leading up to her wedding." Papa seemed to be holding back his anger.
It wasn't that Jane loved Mark very much. Why did she even run away on her wedding day? I swear, I'm confused.
"She lied to us. So rude. She doesn't care about her parents at all. If she doesn't agree to be married, it shouldn't be like this."
My father's brothers tried to calm him down. I grew confused. What's going on? Was Jane forced into marriage? That's not possible. Jane looked fine yesterday. There was no sign that she was sad because she was forced to marry.
***
My confusion has been cleared. We had a family meeting afterward. Papa contacted the groom's side to postpone the event a few hours. It turns out that Jane is not married to her boyfriend, but she is an arranged marriage. And what shocks me even more, now I'm sitting in silence here staring at my mother who keeps on wailing begging my heart to take Jane's place.
How can I do that? Replacing any position I would gladly accept. But married? Good grief! This is not a game.
The groom does not want the event to be postponed. They still want the wedding to take place. And what shocked me when they were told that Jane was missing, they even asked me to marry, as a substitute for the bride.
"Papa is also confused. Papa doesn't want to sacrifice you. Papa did this too with Jane's approval. She had agreed, but she disappeared on her wedding day. If only I had no debt with them. I don't want to do this. But what I didn't expect was how they would know that I had another daughter besides Jane?"
Papa's company is in danger of going bankrupt. This marriage is papa's attempt to save the company. If there weren't tens of thousands of employees who depended on the company for a living, papa wouldn't want to do this conditional marriage.
I can't bear to see papa's sad face. The man who had always been wise and strong was now fragile. Papa seemed helpless with the fate that befell our family. If there wasn't this tragedy, Mama and Papa definitely wouldn't have told me they were going through a tough time.
I was born full of parental love. All my wishes were never disobeyed by them. Even when I decided to study in California, papa reluctantly allowed it. Papa and Mama are kind and loving parents. Seeing them desperate like this, I hurt. The business that papa has built for decades with his hard work has been on the verge of collapse. That's a big blow for papa.
All right, it's an emergency. As a child who might be able to help them, there was no way I could let my parents fall.
"Papa, Mama, I want to marry in place of Jane," I finally decided. Papa looked at me in disbelief.
"Reina, I'm not forcing you to do this. If you don't agree, I will never force you."
The sacrifices that I have made are not comparable to the sacrifices that Mama and Papa have made so far.
"It does not matter. I'm okay."
"Reina, I'm sorry. Now you are the victim of our negligence." Mama cried again.
"Mama and Papa, don't feel guilty. Think of this as my dedication as a child to my parents who have always loved me."
I can not stand it. Tears fell from my eyes as my mother hugged me tightly.
"Forgive us, Baby. Forgive us."
Papa looked up to see us hugging each other tightly. I'm sure daddy was devastated. But there is no other choice. I'm sure Jane also had a hard time agreeing to marry someone she didn't love. I'm not like Jane who has someone. I am free to determine my path without thinking about the feelings of others.
Estado de energía semanal
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