Marriage?

Chapter 2 – Marriage?

I stood in front of my parents’ house with my twins pressed close to my sides, my fingers gripping their small hands like they might disappear if I let go. They looked so happy to be here. This was the first time they would see their grandparents. As for me? I wasn’t happy. I was scared.

Everything looked the same, the same way I walked out of it. Nothing had changed except me. I didn’t look like the eighteen-year-old who walked out those gates.

Before I could gather the courage to knock again, the door flew open.

“Jesus…” I whispered.

My mother froze when she saw us. Her eyes went from me to the twins, then back to me again. For a second, I thought she would yell. Or turn us away.

Instead, she screamed.

“My babies!”

She rushed forward so fast I barely had time to react. She dropped to her knees and pulled Liam and Luna into her arms, hugging them tightly as what looked like tears streamed down her face.

“Look at you,” she cried. “Look at these beautiful children!”

The twins stiffened at first, confused, then slowly relaxed into her embrace.

I just stood there. I was stunned.

“Mary!” my mother shouted over her shoulder. “Where are you?”

Maid footsteps followed immediately. One of them rushed forward.

“Take them upstairs,” my mother said firmly. “Feed them. Food, chocolates, cakes,whatever they want.”

“We didn’t come for food, I—” I started.

She turned to me sharply. “They’re hungry. Let them eat.”

Did the kids look hungry? I was ashamed, but I just smiled.

The maid gently lifted Luna while another carried Liam. My twins looked back at me, like they were asking for permission.

“It’s okay,” I said softly. “Go.”

They nodded and disappeared upstairs.

I still hadn’t moved when my mother grabbed my arms and led me indoors.

“Alia,” she hugged me, and I found myself in her arms. My mother and I were not best friends, but when my dad chased me out of the house, she just cried. She didn’t plead for me to stay. She just kept crying and did nothing else.

“We haven’t seen each other for three years. Did you move from your sister’s house?”

“Yes, it’s a long story.”

I stayed with my sister until the twins were four. It was a tough time, but I had to endure it for the twins. My mother would come visiting and act like I was invisible. The twins knew she was their grandmother, but she always treated us like visitors until I decided I was going to give them a home and not my sister’s house, where we lived like prisoners.

“Alice told me you left.”

“Yes.”

I walked in slowly, half-expecting someone to shout at me. To remind me I wasn’t welcome. To tell me to leave.

None of that happened.

Instead, my mother guided me to the dining table. Food was already set, like they were expecting me. What exactly was going on?

“Sit,” she said. “You need to eat.”

I obeyed, my body acting before my brain could catch up. I hadn’t eaten properly in days. My hands trembled as I picked up the spoon.

As I ate, I kept waiting for it,my mom nagging about how I ruined the perfect life they had planned for me. None of it came. She just watched me with a smile on her face. Something was off. Or did they change? Did all these years of my absence make them yearn for me? Was it because of the twins?

The front door opened.

I looked up.

My father walked in.

For a second, the room went quiet. My heart started pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears.

Then he smiled.

“Alia,” he said warmly. “You’re here.”

I stared at him. Even him? I could understand my mother’s sudden kindness, but my father?

He walked closer. “We’ve been meaning to ask your sister to invite you over. Truly.”

I almost choked.

Invite me? Now it was making sense. This was already planned before I even came here.

These were the same people who cut me off at eighteen. The same people who ignored my calls. The same people who checked on me once a year just to be sure I hadn’t died.

Where was this love coming from?

I set my spoon down slowly.

“Is… is everything okay?” I asked carefully.

My parents exchanged a look. I knew them. It wouldn’t take long,they would spill.

My mother smiled. “How old are you now?”

“Twenty-five,” I replied.

Her eyes lit up. “Why aren’t you married yet?”

I blinked, unsure of how to respond.

My father cleared his throat. “We have a suitor for you.”

My mother leaned forward eagerly before I could respond. “He is rich. Handsome. You’ll like him.”

I laughed. I couldn’t stop myself.

The sound came out so disbelieving. “You’re joking, right?”

They weren’t.

My father continued, “His father is my close friend. I told him I have a daughter abroad, and his son is interested in marrying you.”

Abroad… now this made perfect sense. Why they welcomed me. The reason they welcomed me with open arms, even the twins. They had been plotting for years.

I scoffed. “So now I’m abroad?”

They had disowned me for seven years, and suddenly I was a successful daughter living overseas.

The absurdity of it all made my chest ache.

My mother’s smile faded. She reached for my hand.

“Alia,” she said softly, “look at your children.”

My heart tightened.

“They are thin,” she continued. “Malnourished. You are struggling.”

“I—” my voice broke. “I’m trying.”

“We know,” my father said. “That’s why this marriage will help you. We are doing this for you, for the twins. Alice told us how you are struggling.”

“Oh, she did…” I frowned.

My mother squeezed my hand. “You need him. Your children need him. We can’t help you unless you help yourself. You look so tired.”

I swallowed. My mind replayed every misfortune, every struggle, all I had gone through and my children had gone through the same. I felt like a bad mother. I thought about how their eyes beamed with excitement when my mother talked about all they could eat. I couldn’t give them that.

“They need stability,” my mother pressed. “A home. Education. A future.”

My throat felt tight as I whispered, “They need a father figure…”

Her face brightened instantly, like her plan was working.

“Oh yes, but he doesn’t know you’re a single mother yet.”

My heart skipped.

“How could you guys miss that part?”

She continued casually, “Be a good wife to him. We’ll take care of the twins. They’ll stay here. Go to good schools. Live comfortably.”

My father nodded. “With time, he will love you. And when he does, he will accept the children too.”

A perfect family.

I sat there in silence, my mind spinning.

My children would be safe.

Fed.

Educated.

They wouldn’t sleep hungry again.

I had walked into this house homeless.

And a few hours later, I was being offered a way out.

I closed my eyes.

“I will marry him.”

“Perfect! He has been dying to meet you “