Chapter 4 C4

Ella sat on her bed with swollen teary-red eyes. She had cried all through the night, thinking about the fate that was about to befall her.

It was her wedding day, a day that was supposed to be the happiest day of her life, but she was in no way excited about it. In fact, it was far from what she had envisioned her big day was going to feel or look like.

She had always dreamt about how she would have butterflies in her belly whenever she thought about meeting and getting married to the love of her life, and how they would be crazy about each other.

She had thought that getting married would be her escape route; the only ticket she had to escape the claws of her overbearing parents, but that ticket had gone up in flames all of a sudden.

The realization that she was being shipped off in marriage to an unknown old man hurt so much that she started crying again.

"Please stop crying, Ella. You'll ruin your makeup." Karen, her best friend, gently wiped her tears with a soft cloth.

"But I don't even want this, Karen. I don't want to do this." She replied, crying more.

"I know this more than anyone, Ella. I know how difficult this is for you, and I'm so sorry that this is happening, especially knowing that this marriage might ruin all your big dreams." Karen said, trying so hard to fight back her own tears as she spoke.

The door suddenly opened and Bella walked in, all dressed and glammed up.

"Don't tell me you're not ready yet." She said rudely. "What have you been doing for hours?" She hissed.

"Just shut up, Bella!" Karen snapped at her. "What is wrong with you? Why are you so mean? She is your sister for crying out loud."

"Oh, please. I wasn't talking to you." Bella replied curtly, her eyes almost piercing into Karen's soul.

Karen tried to move closer to Bella, but Ella quickly pulled her back. "Please, just leave her alone." Ella pleaded with her best friend.

"Just wait until mum and dad finds out that you're still not ready." Bella said, turning to face Ella.

The door opened again.

"What!" Mrs Bailey exclaimed as she stormed into the room, all dressed up and ready to go. "You're still wasting time here? Do you think we have got all day?" She questioned angrily.

"I'm sorry, mum. I'm almost through." Ella apologized, while Karen did a little retouching to her almost-ruined makeup.

"We don't have all day. Get dressed and come downstairs immediately." She ordered, and immediately left with Bella, who gave Karen an annoying look before leaving.

Ella quickly got up and grabbed her wedding dress. It was a plain white silk dress with no elaborate designs or embellishments.

Karen's eyes lightened up, dazzled by her best friend's beauty in the dress.

"I'm sorry, I know this is not the best of days, but you look so stunning." She complimented her, "and don't worry, you'll be totally fine. Just be positive." She tried to cheer her up, and pulled her into a warm embrace.

"Ella!!!" Her mother's voice pierced through the silence and they both rushed out of the room.

"Get into the car, we're running late." She yelled as Ella approached them.

Soon they were on their way to the courthouse, where the wedding was going to be held.

*******

COURT HOUSE

As they arrived at the court house, it was empty. No one was in sight except the wedding officiant, who welcomed them. They then began to wait for the groom.

"But why is he taking too long? He ought to be here waiting for her, and not the other way round." Bella complained, angrily.

"Just keep your mouth shut. You know nothing." Her mother snapped at her, and she rolled her eyes at her.

Seconds turned into minutes and minutes rolled into hours, yet, there was no sign of the groom, or any member of his family.

The ceremony was supposed to start by 8am, but the time was now 12pm, yet, no one showed up.

"Do you think he changed his mind?" Mrs Bailey whispered to her husband, "or what could be keeping him?"

"I have no idea. I just hope they don't disappoint us." He replied, getting worried too, as they kept glancing at the door at intervals.

Ella, on the other hand, was beginning to feel a bit relieved. Deep down, she was so happy that no one had shown up yet, but she didn't show it.

Seeing as time was far spent, the officiant approached them, "We might have to reschedule for a later da-" He stopped mid-sentence as the door suddenly opened.

Everyone's head snapped towards the door. Ella's heart skipped a beat.

A young well-dressed man walked in, and they all looked surprised.

"Is he the one? Is he the one we've been waiting for?" Bella whispered to her mum. "I thought you said he was an old man?"

"I don't know. Just keep quiet. We have never seen the groom. We were hoping to meet him today." She whispered to her daughter.

"Good day, everyone. I'm sorry I'm late. I had to finish up with some important assignments." The young man apologized to them.

"It's fine. Since the groom is here now, we can start." The officiant said to him.

"Oh no. I'm not the groom." He revealed, and their jaws dropped.

"You mean, you're not the groom?" Bella asked, surprised, but happy that he wasn't the groom.

"No, I'm not. I'm Sam Benson. I'm the groom's personal assistant." He answered politely, his hands behind his back.

"So, where is the groom?" Bella asked impatiently. "We've been here for hours. What the hell is this!"

"Language, Bella!" Her mum shunned her, and Sam smiled slightly.

"Unfortunately, he won't be present today. I'm standing in for him." Sam stated, and Ella couldn't believe her ears.

"We can get to signing the marriage agreement and certificate. I'll sign the groom's part with his seal." He said further, but Ella shook her head in disagreement.

"I do not approve of this. I won't do it." She protested, and Bella scoffed.

"I don't care what anyone says, I won't agree to-"

She was still protesting when her father slapped her hard across the face, to the shock of Karen and Sam.

"Idiot! Do you think you have a choice here?" Mr Bailey hissed. "You'll sign the documents immediately without complaining." He ordered, and she held onto her face, nodding slowly, while Bella chuckled mockingly.

The officiant cleared his throat, calling their attention. "I guess we can go straight to why we are here now then."

"Please go ahead." Mr Bailey said, and hissed as he took his seat.

Since the groom wasn't present, there was no exchange of vows or rings. In a few minutes, they were done with signing every necessary document, and the Baileys' joy knew no bounds. They didn't even wait to bid Ella farewell, or wish her well before they left the courthouse, leaving her with Sam and Karen.

"We need to leave now, ma'am." Sam said to her, checking his wrist watch for the time, and with teary eyes, she bade her best friend goodbye, and left with Sam.

*******

The drive to the Gibsons' residence was a long and silent one. Ella didn't utter a single word throughout the trip. All she could think about was how her life was about to be turned upside down.

After about an hour and forty minutes, they arrived at her new home.

"We're here, ma'am." Sam announced to her, but she was still lost in her thoughts.

He tapped her gently, and she snapped out of it.

"I'm sorry, I had a lot on my mind." She apologized.

"It's fine, ma'am. I just wanted to tell you that we are home now." Sam answered, with a slight smile.

"Oh, thank you." She replied, faking a smile.

The car's door was opened for her by one of the guards, and she stepped out of the car gently. It was then she noticed how gigantic the house was. Every single thing was in the right place, having the right proportion and right designs.

"Oh my goodness." Her jaw dropped, "this is magnificent." She said, looking up at how high the main building was.

Sam let her take in her surroundings for a short while before saying, "We should go in."

She nodded and they both walked in, but Ella could have sworn that she saw some of the guards whispering to each other about her.

"He is waiting for you upstairs." Sam said, pointing upwards as they got into the living room.

"Your bags will be brought up soon." He added, and turned around, leaving.

As she made her way upstairs, her heart began to beat fast, because she didn't know what to expect. Is this how she was going to become a wife to an old man? This was definitely not what she had planned for herself, but what could she do when she had no way to fight for herself.

As she stood in front of the door, and held the door knob, she closed her eyes and held her breath. She silently counted to three, and opened the door.

She slowly walked into the room, but there was no one in view.

As her eyes scanned the room, the cool breeze blew the curtains open, and she soon noticed the back of a man, sitting on a chair on the balcony.

Seeing as the man didn't budge, she cleared her throat loudly to get his attention, and she did get his attention, because he turned his head to the side, but didn't turn backwards to look at her.

"Am I in the wrong room?" She thought to herself, as her eyes scanned the room once more.

She thought to approach him, since he was just sitting there silently, not saying or doing anything to acknowledge her presence.

As she approached him, he slowly turned to face her.

The whirring sound of his chair filled the room, and her gaze fell on the man sitting in the chair.

Her jaw dropped, her eyes widening in shock as she was met with the most unexpected sight. Her mind struggled to process what she was seeing, but her body reacted instinctively, freezing her in one spot.

And then, everything went black...