At that moment, Alex was ecstatic that this day has finally come,
but something was off. Alex
couldn't quite put her finger on it but it didn't feel right, the way she
always imagined. Somehow it all seemed too....perfect. She felt her hand squeezed by Matt and looked into his
face. His creamy complexion, his dreamy eyes, his handsome smile…she shook her
head internally, trying to shut that suspicion off. This is Matt, the love of her life.
“Yes!” Alex exclaimed and jumped in Matt’s arms. He put the very beautiful and expensive ring on her hand and kissed her, full on the mouth. “Oh Matt…I love you.”
“I love you babe…or should I say…mrs. Matt Gonzales?” Alex laughed and hugged him again.
“Oh this is such exciting news! I can’t wait to tell my parents…oh they will be so happy! Oh…my parents.” Suddenly, Alex remembered, they’re waiting for her and perhaps maybe they won’t be as glad about this news.
“Babe no…that’s the thing, we need to leave...now.”
Alex was struck back by this: “…What? What do you mean? Where?”
“Babe, I can’t be here for more than 24 hours because of Rune…I have to take him back; you know the visa policy. And besides, I’m taking a temporary leave from my job, up to six months maybe. That’s why I came here. So I could bring you with me.”
Alex laughed nervously. “I can’t just…leave everything and come with you…can I?”
“Oh of course you can! It can all be arranged overseas you know that. You can work overseas, at the office in Dubai.”
“Dubai!! You expect me to move to Dubai with you? Are you absolutely out of your mind?”
Matt smiled, that warm sweet smile of his and took Alex’s hands in his. “Alex…don’t you love me? Don’t you want to marry me? And most importantly, don’t you want to help me find Rune’s mother?”
Alex looked down, pondering this.
“You know I wouldn’t have asked you if there was any other way for this to work out. I’m taking a 6-month leave and moving to…yes, Dubai, to help this little boy and work full-time at our school. You know that school is falling apart without help. I can’t just sit back and let all our hard work go to waste.”
Alex looked up at Matt again. Am I really considering this? Am I really willing to leave everything behind because of him? “I need to think about this.”
Matt took Alex’s face in his hands. “You know I would give all the time in the world for you, but in this case, I can’t. Alex, I have to leave by 5am sharp tomorrow morning…in a few hours that is.”
Alex looked down at her watch and was shocked to see it’s already past midnight.
“…I don’t want to rush you. I know this is all too much, but this is just how the situation is. I wish that I could just stay here, with you, and plan our wedding, but I cant. If I don’t go back to Dubai with Rune, who knows where they will take him. I’ve already risked his life and mine taking him here with me.” Matt looked at Alex, stepped back, and let go of her hands.
“I think you should go home and really think this over. I will be at the airport 3. I hope…I mean, if I see you there, then I will be the happiest man on earth and we can start our life together right at the airport and if you don’t…” Matt stopped there and opened the roof door that leads to downstairs, waiting for Alex.
Alex didn’t say anything else and walked out of the door. She got a ride from a taxi to her house and didn’t even realize it when she was there and the driver had to call on her several times to get her attention. She paid him and closed the cab door.
Alex was still in shock. On the one hand, on her finger, was the most beautiful ring signifying her engagement to the love of her life. Yet, with it, came all kinds of doubts and fears. With all those emotions, she walked into her house, hoping her parents were already asleep.
“You made it!” Maddy exclaimed when Alex walked into the door. She was sitting on the couch with her parents, watching a sitcom.
“Oh wow you guys are still up? I’m so sorry to keep you up this whole time! Don’t you guys have a flight tomorrow morning though?” Alex asked as she was taking off her shoes at the door. She always liked removing her shoes when she entered her house, especially if her shoes were actually boots. She reached into the closet next to her and pulled out her slippers.
“Actually…we need to speak with you. Can you just…join us here for a second?” Maximus urged Alex.
“Sure,” Alex responded, though starting to feel the nerves coming back. She touched her engagement ring that she kept in her pocket. She decided she would rather surprise them with the news after they left to Missouri.
Alex joined them on the couch and smiled expectantly.
“Although tonight did not go as we expected…we are still glad we met your boyfriend. He seems like a nice guy. But the thing is…after what we witnessed in the past week, we, your mother sister and I think that perhaps it may be a better idea if you come back home with us.”
Alex laughed at this. She didn’t mean to; it just came out. “What!? What do you mean home? I am home! This is my home…”
It was Marilyn’s turn now. She took her daughter’s hands in hers. “Honey we know you are very independent, and we can see all that you’ve done and you’ve managed to prove to us that you really are mature now. But honey you have to think about your health too. It seems like life has too much stress for you here and we feel that if you come back home with us, all this stress will be gone and then you wouldn’t be forced to—” Maximus nudged Marilyn at that point and she fell quiet.
“I wouldn’t be forced to what mom?” Alex asked looking from her mother to her father. “That I wouldn’t be forced to turn into my Mandala? Well you are wrong! Because the very reason I have been abusing my Mandala this past week was precisely the opposite of what you just said! Life is good here for me, but you guys…”
It was Maddy’s turn to speak now: “We guys what? We came and ruined it all for you? All we wanted was to spend a little family time together! Are we really that horrible that you are forced to mask your true self with us all the time? Ever thought maybe that’s all on you?”
“Don’t even get me started Maddy! This is all your fault!” Alex said.
“My fault?” Maddy stood up to raise her volume this time.
“Ok stop it you two! We don’t want to fight!” Maximus said to stop the fight between the two sister.
But emotions were already running high and it was too late to try to change the mood.
“No, I’m going to talk because guess what dad? It’s your fault actually! You’re the one who brought Maddy along and put this whole thing into motion!” Alex got up too and turned to leave the crowd.
Alex got up too and turned to leave the crowd.
“Oh where do you think you’re going?” Maddy ran after her and turned her sister around with her hand on her shoulder.
“Let me go! I don’t want to stay for one more minute of this chat!” Alex screamed.
“Well guess what! You have to! This is what life is all about! You have to stay and talk and fight if you have to but you can’t just run away from all of this and hide behind your precious ‘Mandala’” yelled Maddy.
The pressure was running high at this moment. Maximus looked scared, like he didn’t want the fight heat up anymore, afraid of what might come out of it.
“At least I am trying to deal with it somehow! At least I’m willing to go into my Mandala so that maybe I won’t hurt anyone in the process!”
“Oh yeah I forgot! You have lost the ability to live like a normal human being where you are forced to make the hard or perhaps really easy choices because you haven’t been under the sun for too long!” Maddy said as she crossed her arms.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Alex asked, slowly, afraid she already knew the answer to her own question.
“Ok guys it’s not really important is it? Let’s just all be calm here okay? Maddy honey, maybe you should get your luggage ready for tomorrow morning don’t you?” Maximus asked as she approached her daughters and put his hand on Maddy’s shoulder.
But Maddy pushed her father’s hand away and finally said the thing everyone was so worried to hear: “I know what you did with Fred. He told me everything because guess what Alex? Even Fred had the guts to face his true fear and be an honest man with me because he knew I deserved it! And I know Fred slept with many other women in the process too but I just couldn’t believe that you would be one of those women! Of all the times I took your side and had your back…is this how you repay me?”
Alex couldn’t talk anymore. That definitely stopped her in her track. She didn’t have anything to say. She wondered whether Fred was really the one who told Maddy the truth or if she found out another way. Knowing Fred, he probably flaunted it too only to piss Maddy off more. Alex was truly ashamed. In a way, she felt relieved that this whole thing is finally out in the open, but at the same time, it felt horrible…much much worse than
she expected it for herself. As her tears streamed down her face, she suddenly knew what she had to do: she had to go to Dubai with Matt.
There was no other way, Maddy decided. She could never face her family again. But as these thoughts went through her head, she heard her father speak again: “Alex. The truth is, we’ve known about your…history with Fred for a while now and we decided not to even bring it up. We figured it was probably not you and it was your Mandala. We came here as a family to try and see what we could do to help you quit. But then, without us even having that conversation with you, it seems like all of that was taken care of on its own. And now, we don’t want to leave you alone here. All that is in the past and we…Maddy even…we have forgiven you, knowing that it wasn’t really you who did the deed in the first place.”
Alex frowned and shook her head. But she couldn’t even get the words out, to try to explain to her family that it wasn’t her Mandala that has done any of those bad stuff but that it was actually herself, her “true” self that Maddy and her family keep insisting is the good one.
“Yes!” Alex exclaimed and jumped in Matt’s arms. He put the very beautiful and expensive ring on her hand and kissed her, full on the mouth. “Oh Matt…I love you.”
“I love you babe…or should I say…mrs. Matt Gonzales?” Alex laughed and hugged him again.
“Oh this is such exciting news! I can’t wait to tell my parents…oh they will be so happy! Oh…my parents.” Suddenly, Alex remembered, they’re waiting for her and perhaps maybe they won’t be as glad about this news.
“Babe no…that’s the thing, we need to leave...now.”
Alex was struck back by this: “…What? What do you mean? Where?”
“Babe, I can’t be here for more than 24 hours because of Rune…I have to take him back; you know the visa policy. And besides, I’m taking a temporary leave from my job, up to six months maybe. That’s why I came here. So I could bring you with me.”
Alex laughed nervously. “I can’t just…leave everything and come with you…can I?”
“Oh of course you can! It can all be arranged overseas you know that. You can work overseas, at the office in Dubai.”
“Dubai!! You expect me to move to Dubai with you? Are you absolutely out of your mind?”
Matt smiled, that warm sweet smile of his and took Alex’s hands in his. “Alex…don’t you love me? Don’t you want to marry me? And most importantly, don’t you want to help me find Rune’s mother?”
Alex looked down, pondering this.
“You know I wouldn’t have asked you if there was any other way for this to work out. I’m taking a 6-month leave and moving to…yes, Dubai, to help this little boy and work full-time at our school. You know that school is falling apart without help. I can’t just sit back and let all our hard work go to waste.”
Alex looked up at Matt again. Am I really considering this? Am I really willing to leave everything behind because of him? “I need to think about this.”
Matt took Alex’s face in his hands. “You know I would give all the time in the world for you, but in this case, I can’t. Alex, I have to leave by 5am sharp tomorrow morning…in a few hours that is.”
Alex looked down at her watch and was shocked to see it’s already past midnight.
“…I don’t want to rush you. I know this is all too much, but this is just how the situation is. I wish that I could just stay here, with you, and plan our wedding, but I cant. If I don’t go back to Dubai with Rune, who knows where they will take him. I’ve already risked his life and mine taking him here with me.” Matt looked at Alex, stepped back, and let go of her hands.
“I think you should go home and really think this over. I will be at the airport 3. I hope…I mean, if I see you there, then I will be the happiest man on earth and we can start our life together right at the airport and if you don’t…” Matt stopped there and opened the roof door that leads to downstairs, waiting for Alex.
Alex didn’t say anything else and walked out of the door. She got a ride from a taxi to her house and didn’t even realize it when she was there and the driver had to call on her several times to get her attention. She paid him and closed the cab door.
Alex was still in shock. On the one hand, on her finger, was the most beautiful ring signifying her engagement to the love of her life. Yet, with it, came all kinds of doubts and fears. With all those emotions, she walked into her house, hoping her parents were already asleep.
“You made it!” Maddy exclaimed when Alex walked into the door. She was sitting on the couch with her parents, watching a sitcom.
“Oh wow you guys are still up? I’m so sorry to keep you up this whole time! Don’t you guys have a flight tomorrow morning though?” Alex asked as she was taking off her shoes at the door. She always liked removing her shoes when she entered her house, especially if her shoes were actually boots. She reached into the closet next to her and pulled out her slippers.
“Actually…we need to speak with you. Can you just…join us here for a second?” Maximus urged Alex.
“Sure,” Alex responded, though starting to feel the nerves coming back. She touched her engagement ring that she kept in her pocket. She decided she would rather surprise them with the news after they left to Missouri.
Alex joined them on the couch and smiled expectantly.
“Although tonight did not go as we expected…we are still glad we met your boyfriend. He seems like a nice guy. But the thing is…after what we witnessed in the past week, we, your mother sister and I think that perhaps it may be a better idea if you come back home with us.”
Alex laughed at this. She didn’t mean to; it just came out. “What!? What do you mean home? I am home! This is my home…”
It was Marilyn’s turn now. She took her daughter’s hands in hers. “Honey we know you are very independent, and we can see all that you’ve done and you’ve managed to prove to us that you really are mature now. But honey you have to think about your health too. It seems like life has too much stress for you here and we feel that if you come back home with us, all this stress will be gone and then you wouldn’t be forced to—” Maximus nudged Marilyn at that point and she fell quiet.
“I wouldn’t be forced to what mom?” Alex asked looking from her mother to her father. “That I wouldn’t be forced to turn into my Mandala? Well you are wrong! Because the very reason I have been abusing my Mandala this past week was precisely the opposite of what you just said! Life is good here for me, but you guys…”
It was Maddy’s turn to speak now: “We guys what? We came and ruined it all for you? All we wanted was to spend a little family time together! Are we really that horrible that you are forced to mask your true self with us all the time? Ever thought maybe that’s all on you?”
“Don’t even get me started Maddy! This is all your fault!” Alex said.
“My fault?” Maddy stood up to raise her volume this time.
“Ok stop it you two! We don’t want to fight!” Maximus said to stop the fight between the two sister.
But emotions were already running high and it was too late to try to change the mood.
“No, I’m going to talk because guess what dad? It’s your fault actually! You’re the one who brought Maddy along and put this whole thing into motion!” Alex got up too and turned to leave the crowd.
Alex got up too and turned to leave the crowd.
“Oh where do you think you’re going?” Maddy ran after her and turned her sister around with her hand on her shoulder.
“Let me go! I don’t want to stay for one more minute of this chat!” Alex screamed.
“Well guess what! You have to! This is what life is all about! You have to stay and talk and fight if you have to but you can’t just run away from all of this and hide behind your precious ‘Mandala’” yelled Maddy.
The pressure was running high at this moment. Maximus looked scared, like he didn’t want the fight heat up anymore, afraid of what might come out of it.
“At least I am trying to deal with it somehow! At least I’m willing to go into my Mandala so that maybe I won’t hurt anyone in the process!”
“Oh yeah I forgot! You have lost the ability to live like a normal human being where you are forced to make the hard or perhaps really easy choices because you haven’t been under the sun for too long!” Maddy said as she crossed her arms.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Alex asked, slowly, afraid she already knew the answer to her own question.
“Ok guys it’s not really important is it? Let’s just all be calm here okay? Maddy honey, maybe you should get your luggage ready for tomorrow morning don’t you?” Maximus asked as she approached her daughters and put his hand on Maddy’s shoulder.
But Maddy pushed her father’s hand away and finally said the thing everyone was so worried to hear: “I know what you did with Fred. He told me everything because guess what Alex? Even Fred had the guts to face his true fear and be an honest man with me because he knew I deserved it! And I know Fred slept with many other women in the process too but I just couldn’t believe that you would be one of those women! Of all the times I took your side and had your back…is this how you repay me?”
Alex couldn’t talk anymore. That definitely stopped her in her track. She didn’t have anything to say. She wondered whether Fred was really the one who told Maddy the truth or if she found out another way. Knowing Fred, he probably flaunted it too only to piss Maddy off more. Alex was truly ashamed. In a way, she felt relieved that this whole thing is finally out in the open, but at the same time, it felt horrible…much much worse than
she expected it for herself. As her tears streamed down her face, she suddenly knew what she had to do: she had to go to Dubai with Matt.
There was no other way, Maddy decided. She could never face her family again. But as these thoughts went through her head, she heard her father speak again: “Alex. The truth is, we’ve known about your…history with Fred for a while now and we decided not to even bring it up. We figured it was probably not you and it was your Mandala. We came here as a family to try and see what we could do to help you quit. But then, without us even having that conversation with you, it seems like all of that was taken care of on its own. And now, we don’t want to leave you alone here. All that is in the past and we…Maddy even…we have forgiven you, knowing that it wasn’t really you who did the deed in the first place.”
Alex frowned and shook her head. But she couldn’t even get the words out, to try to explain to her family that it wasn’t her Mandala that has done any of those bad stuff but that it was actually herself, her “true” self that Maddy and her family keep insisting is the good one.
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