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In the morning, Shania arrived at school with a beaming smile on her face, looking so delightful as always. She spotted Cherry who was walking ahead, but Carol was not with her.

Shania walked up to her right away, and the two of them exchanged greetings and chit chatted. As they made their way down the path of the school to their classroom, they were surprised to see Carol standing atop them. She was waiting for them on the second story of the school building.

Carol was fatigued, and she had been standing there looking like she was about to fall asleep. She had large dark bags under her eyes, and she appeared to be on the verge of snoozing unintentionally.

“Hey Carol!” Shania shouted, waving their hands just so Carol would be able to notice them.

When Carol heard their voice, her sleepiness faded away and she waved back at them.

Shania and Cherry arrived at where Carol was standing just under a minute later. “Carol, you’re taking on too much responsibility for a student. It’s as if the only thing you ever did was study. Did you even get a chance to get some good rest?” Cherry asked, her expression showing concern as she clearly noticed how tired Carol appeared to be when they got to take a closer look at her.

“Of course!” Carol laughed it off. “But to be honest, I think College is the hardest part. There was a lot of school work, and I still have to finish my thesis as soon as possible.” She said while looking so disappointed, complaining about how hard College life was.

“You’re right, but you should take it slow. Don’t ever forget to give yourself some rest. You need energy, you know,” Shania joined in, patting Carol’s shoulder.

“You said that because you are a daughter of a wealthy family who doesn’t have too many problems, and all you have to do is focus on your studies. But for me, I’m struggling on making money as well as studying. I’ve always wanted to finish school just so I could get a degree, but I still have to work double time to support myself,” upset, Carol replied.

Every afternoon, she always headed to her part time job, and that was the reason why she always ended up going to school looking so exhausted. Therefore, hearing her friend saying something to her like give yourself a rest made her so upset because she always knew that she doesn’t have time to rest.

“Okay, I am so sorry. I said that as a friend. I just want you to know that we are always here to help you,” Shania was feeling sorry for saying something that offended Carol. She doesn’t mean anything insulting from her words; she just wanted to comfort her friend.

“I am sorry too for getting upset so easily, but I swear I am fine so you don’t have to worry,” Carol replied. She then started to smile brightly at them and gave them a warm hug. “Thank you girls,” she added.

In the middle of their moment, the bell rang. It was a sign that classes would be starting soon.

“It’s fine, we understand you. The bell rang so I guess we should go now. We’ll see each other later, okay?” Cheery stated.

“Yeah, see you girls,” Carol bid her goodbyes, and the three of them headed to their respective classes.

~

In a different place, Brandon, whose mind has wandered off across the vast, stared blankly into nothingness. There were a lot of things going on inside his head. It occurred to him that the girl at the hotel that night might be familiar to him, and thought that maybe he had seen her somewhere before.

Brandon’s thoughts were interrupted when his father arrived.

“Oh you’re here,” his father, William, said. Walking towards where Brandon was sitting. “About last night, I’m sorry for what I did,” He added. The tone of his voice shows guilt and regret.

“For what? About how you slap me straight to my face, or about how you destroyed my life?” Brandon didn’t bother looking at him even for a slightest moment. He was mad at him for controlling his life and making it miserable.

“Hey, listen. That marriage of yours is our last option. As you know, you need to have a mate as soon as possible,” William explained, not knowing that he’s making things more difficult for Brandon.

“As if I care!” Brandon shouted. He was now looking at him with eyes full of anger. “You are only thinking about your throne. You never felt sorry at all! The throne is so important to you that you are willing to do everything even if it means ruining your son’s life!” Brandon’s loud voice had filled the room.

Yet, his father was still as calm as he always was. He looked at Brandon deeply as if he was a wild animal ready to bite. Then it became quiet all of a sudden.

William took a deep sigh. “I was only thinking about the throne? Brandon, before your grandmother passed away, she told me that I should take good care of you so you can only walk on paths with no pebbles in the future.” His voice was so serious that Brandon couldn’t even argue back. “Think about it, son. Hales are a good household, and I knew that from the very beginning, their daughter is perfectly matched for you. Trust me, you’ll definitely like her. I was only doing this for you!”

Brandon then thought about it. He always believed that his father was the most vicious of all, but after hearing what he said, he had realized something. Things slowly made sense to him.

Since he was a child, he was already told about arranged marriage and that he must do it in the near future. But he never thought that it would be this sooner. Brandon doesn’t have a serious relationship with someone anyway, so he thought that maybe he could give it a try. Thinking about marriage had somehow made him excited for some reason.

“Fine dad. I will marry that girl even though I don’t know anything about her,” he answered after a long calculation in his mind.

“I’m glad you made up your mind. You made the right choice. Don’t worry, you will meet her soon.”

Later on, the telephone rang. There will be an event this coming Saturday for the celebration of the world’s top ranking models.

“Yes?” Brandon answered the telephone.

“Brandon, congratulations! We got on top among all the best models abroad,” his manager said in excitement.

“Well, that’s good news,” Brandon’s mixed feelings before was now replaced with amazement.

“Indeed, so we have to celebrate for it. Especially for you because it was your success as a model,”

“Okay then, so when would be the celebration?” Brandon asked.

“Uhmm, I guess this Saturday.” His manager replied.

“Okay then, I will invite some of my friends.”

“Yeah sure. Okay good bye for now, I still have to finalize everything for our deal.” His manager then cut off the call.

Brandon faced his father who was patiently waiting for him to end the call. “Dad, we will be having a celebration this coming Saturday. And please invite the Hale family, especially the girl I’ll be marrying to. I want to meet them.”

“I heard, you are one of the top ranking models around the globe. I guess that’s what the celebration was all about, Congratulations,” his father smiled widely as he patted Brandon’s back. “Don’t worry, son. I will talk to them right away. I’m glad you understand, Brandon.” He was happy with the thoughts that Brandon trusted him on something like marriage.

Since William was true to his word, he really called them immediately for a party invitation. But, the problem was they still hadn’t told their daughter about the fixed marriage and that they needed time.

“Hello, yes good day! We already talked to our son about the fixed marriage, and he agreed to it,” his father explained on the phone. He was full of delight, and was relieved at the same time. “Actually, he also wanted to meet your daughter for the coming celebration just so he could introduce himself properly,”

“That’s great news! But, the thing is we still have no courage in telling our daughter about the fixed marriage. However, we will make sure to tell her soon. And may I ask? When is this event?” Shania’s father, Bruce, asked in a doubtful tone. He was worried that his daughter might decline the marriage.

“This coming Saturday. It was actually a celebration for my son, Brandon, because he got the top place with the best designer and model abroad. By the way, Brandon was a model and I knew for sure that there would be a lot of models attending the party,” It was a bait. He already knew that their daughter admired models, and he told them that so their daughter would surely attend the said party.

“Really? Congratulations on your son’s success! And I guess my daughter couldn’t say no to such an invitation knowing that there would be different models attending,” Shania’s mother, Georgia, got in the conversation. Her voice was so loud because she was very excited as well.

They ended the call in a formal way after the agreement. William grinned and nodded at him, saying that everything was already set.

Meanwhile, when Shania came back home, she was directly informed about the party invitation. She was excited with the thought that she would meet various models in the party, not knowing anything about the fixed marriage. While looking at her, Georgia was thinking that it would be good for her to meet Brandon first before telling her about the marriage situation. In that, there would be a higher possibility that Shania might agree.

“Mom, can I invite my friends?” Shania pleasantly asked, with a pleading eyes.

Georgia couldn’t resist her daughter’s cuteness. “Of course, darling,” she replied as she held her hands.

The celebration had come after a long wait. Shania, together with Carol and Cherry, walked together inside the party hall. It was so big and elegant. There were a lot of big chandeliers in the ceiling, and the room was dazzling aesthetically.

Shania and her friends’ eyes sparkled as soon as they saw one of the known models of the industry. They became more excited when they recognized another one known model ahead of them. They were so glad that they attended the party.

A minute later, Shania shivers as she feels that she is about to pee. She hurriedly then went roaming around the back of the hall to look for a restroom but she still couldn’t find it.

“Oh my God! Where’s the restroom for goodness sake? With all these doors, I still couldn’t find it,” Shania was walking weirdly as she opened each door in the corridor.

She led her way to the second floor and opened another door. She was hoping that maybe this was the right door now. But as soon as she opened it, she was shocked when she saw a man with no clothes on, standing in front of a mirror. Shania’s cheeks turned red as she blushed, and then she started screaming.

“What the heck are you doing?!” Shania immediately covered her eyes with her hands.

Brandon was a little surprised when he heard a girl shouting. He then took a towel and covered his lower body faster than he could.

“Hey! This is my room. This is a private area, and guests are not allowed in here!” Brandon shouted back. “Are you peeking at me? Are you a pervert?” Brandon unbelievably said.

“WH… WHAAT? Of course not! I was looking for a restroom! I was lost, and the restroom was nowhere to be found,” she honestly explained so she wouldn’t be called a pervert. She slowly removed her hands from covering her eyes when she noticed that the man’s private part was already covered with a towel.

“Ha! You think I would believe that? I knew you were just making an excuse after being caught peeping on someone who was naked. Tell me, you like my body do you?” Proudly, Brandon responded sarcastically. He was smirking and his expression was either mad or irritated.

Shania was flustered with what he said. She was embarrassed to death, and her cheeks turned red even more. She was ashamed and mad because he didn’t believe her. “You’re crazy!” She shouted again, and then ran out of the room as fast as she could. She looked for the stairs she took a while ago so that she could go back to where her friends were.

“Goodness! I thought I was going to die there! That was mind blowing. Glad I was away now from that perverted bastard!” Shania said while holding her chest, trying to catch her breath.

“Shania!” Cherry called out. “Where have you been?” She asked.

“You won’t believe it. I passed through the scariest place,” She sighed, recalling what she saw earlier.

“What are you talking about?” Cherry was confused. She doesn’t know what Shania was trying to say.

“It was nothing. By the way, do you know where the restroom is?”

“Yeah, let’s go there,” Cherry pointed out the left side of the hall. Shania was shocked when she noticed that it was just near them. How come I didn’t find it? She pondered in her thoughts. They then headed together to the restroom.

A little later, they head back to their table. Shania, Cherry, and Carol started enjoying the elegant party. They ate a lot of food, and were so satisfied.

After a couple of minutes, Shania’s mother called her. So she then led her way towards them.

“Hey, mom!”

“Hello, honey,” Georgia replied.

Shania was confused as to why her mom was smiling so big. She also cleared her strangled hair so sweetly. Does she need something from me? Shania asked in her thoughts.

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