Dinner

At the long silver dining table, two families gathered: the Stones and the Prestons (mayor). The table was filled with a variety of dishes, desserts, fruits, and fine wines. A few servers stood nearby, ready to assist if anything was needed. The dining room itself was almost as grand as the ballroom from the party days before, all dark wood and gold trim, with a chandelier hanging low enough that its light caught every glass and piece of silverware on the table.

At one end of the table sat Mr. Stone with his wife next to him, both dressed in the finest outfits. Opposite them were Mr. Preston and his wife, not falling short of their own dresses too. Nick and Arlen sat close together beside their mother, while Cade and his younger brother, Mark, were seated next to each other. The seating arrangement placed Cade and Arlen directly across from one another, close enough that neither could pretend not to notice the other, no matter how hard they tried.

A hush fell over the table as they silently agreed on proper table manners. The clinking of utensils filled the air as spoons, forks, and knives jostled for attention. Both families were having dinner that marked an important step in a marriage arrangement.

Cade found it hard to believe what was happening. He could hardly touch his food, only sipping wine and fiddling with his plate. When his dad had called to say they would be dining with the Prestons, he didn't question it because he never imagined it would be about a marriage proposal. He began having a second thought when he entered and saw how pleased his parents looked.

He never thought Arlen would agree to such an arrangement, yet here they were.

Cade looked at Arlen in a way that he knew would make the man uneasy. He was eager to understand why Arlen had agreed to the marriage. Cade wanted to know what made Arlen choose to put them both through this craziness. If Arlen had refused, they wouldn't be in this situation.

But Arlen felt the same way. He barely touched his food and kept his gaze fixed on his plate. He believed that if he tried to swallow, it would just be stuck in his throat. After crying so much, his stomach was tight with anxiety, ready to explode at any moment. He had told Max he would be late and stayed home, feeling heartbroken. When he informed his dad about agreeing to the marriage, his father sounded pleased and called it a great decision.

But it wasn't great at all. Saying yes to the marriage meant he would have to often see a man whose stare felt like it could kill him. Arlen didn't need any physical third eye to see Cade's eyes locked onto him; they were filled with questions.

But Arlen had questions of his own too. Cade had been the one who first agreed to the marriage; why did he say yes? There was no reason for Arlen to explain himself when Cade had already given in first. If Cade had said no, they wouldn't be having this stupid dinner. Arlen was confused about why the Italian restaurant project was so important that Cade would actually agree to marry him, especially since Cade didn't even want to have any conversation with him and was aware he was dating someone else.

Arlen felt like screaming at Cade to find out what his issue was, but instead, he just sipped his water.

Meanwhile, Nick happily enjoyed his meal. The whole situation felt like a scene from a funny movie he had seen the week before. Cade and Arlen getting married? He almost burst out laughing. When his dad first mentioned the dinner, Nick thought it was some kind of joke, which was typical for his dad. So, he called his brother Arlen to check. To his surprise, what he thought was a prank turned out to be true. When he asked Arlen why he agreed to this marriage, Arlen gave an explanation that Justin had suggested.

Nick couldn't understand why Justin would allow Arlen to marry Cade. Surely Justin knew that Cade had feelings for him, right? But that wasn't the main question. Why would Justin want Arlen to marry anyone other than himself? Nick was convinced that if he were in Justin's position, he wouldn't approve of such a thing. At that moment, Nick started doubting Justin's feelings for his brother. He made a mental note to keep a closer eye on Justin going forward, a quiet decision he didn't plan on sharing with Arlen just yet, not until he had something more concrete than a bad feeling.

Dylan, Cade's fourteen-year-old brother, was mostly quiet. He didn't fully understand why they were there, but it didn't bother him. He just wanted to go home and play video games with his friends. Every so often he glanced between his brother and the pale, tense boy across the table, wondering privately if this was what adults meant when they talked about boring grown-up business, and hoping dinner would end soon so he could escape back to his room.

"Don't you like the food?" Arlen heard his mother ask. He looked up, thinking she was talking to him, but she wasn't. Her gaze was on Cade.

"The food is good; I just feel a bit full since I ate earlier," Cade lied, sipping some wine.

"Oh, then you can have dessert. Lia mentioned you enjoy banana cake," Arlen's mother said.

Cade glanced at his mom as she continued to smile encouragingly. He knew she wanted him to stop frowning and put on a smile, but he wasn't going to do that. This dinner was nothing to be happy about.

He turned his attention back to Arlen's mom. "I'll have some," he said, and one of the servers came over to dish out a piece for him. At least having his favorite flavor of cake would help him cope with the uncomfortable atmosphere. He looked at Arlen, who was still staring at the plate of untouched food in front of him.

"I've informed the reporters that we will be holding a press conference to announce something big," Mr. Stone said, taking a sip of his wine before adding, "The press conference is set for tomorrow morning."

Both Cade and Arlen looked up in surprise. They didn't expect it to be this quick.

Mr. Preston dabbed at his mouth with his napkin, explaining, "Mr. Alfredo knows about this decision, but he won't be attending the press conference."

Both men seemed pleased that their children had agreed to the marriage. They were surprised it had gone so smoothly, especially with Arlen. Mr. Preston had expected Arlen to finally open up about his relationship with Justin and possibly fight the idea. However, Arlen called him that same day to say he would marry Cade. Mr. Preston was surprised but happy; he felt relieved to have succeeded in getting rid of Justin and was excited about becoming in-laws with one of his close friends. He hadn't expected the plan to work quite this cleanly, and some small, cautious part of him wondered if he'd been too hasty to celebrate, though he pushed the thought aside in favor of enjoying his wine.

"The engagement will take place this weekend."

"This weekend?" Arlen asked, taken aback. He thought it would take longer, though today was Monday, weekend was just a few days away. Everything seemed to be happening too quickly.

"Yes, this weekend. On Saturday," Mr. Stone confirmed. "We've been preparing ever since you both agreed to it. Don't worry; we'll manage all the arrangements." Arlen merely nodded in response. He wasn't at the slightest concerned about how challenging the preparations might be; he just wished they weren't rushing into an engagement with Cade so soon.

"But don't you think we'll need more time to prepare? Weekend is really close," Cade said. He needed a moment to come up with a plan to get out of this tricky situation, especially since being engaged would make it harder to back out.

"Not really, especially since we hired the best event planner and of course, have the funds to take care of everything. It'll all work out, so don't worry," Arlen's dad replied.

"I'll take care of the rings. My jeweler creates the best custom designs," Cade's mom chimed in enthusiastically.

"I'll manage the suits and stylist," Arlen's mom added, and both women shared a laugh.

Cade and Arlen didn't find anything funny at all.

While their parents excitedly discussed tasks to ensure the engagement went off without a hitch, Cade and Arlen were focused on finding ways to end it. And of course, they didn't fail to silently blame each other for agreeing to the arranged marriage. Neither of them touched their dessert. By the time the servers began clearing the table, both had resigned themselves to the same quiet, uneasy thought: whatever plan they came up with would have to work fast, because the mothers, at least, were already treating the wedding as good as done.