"I promise to always protect you. Stop crying." Hearing this from Carlos made Alex cry more, not because she was moved with these words but because she can't believe how this man still tries to pretend that he is concerned about her even without his parents and granny. She realized that he really can't be serious and she shouldn't trust him.
Alex let go from him. He went back to his seat opposite to Alex's and stared at her, again smiling.
"Do you feel better now?" He asked.
Alex didn't answer. She sipped her coffee and grabbed at bite of the cake in front of her. She wanted to run away from him but she doesn't have the energy to do so. She is now very confused and she doesn't have any idea what to do with her problems. How can she tell her granny that she really can't marry this man. Aside from she is a lesbian, she also cannot accept to be spending more time with a human as selfisha and insensitive as him.
"Let's get married. You have three months before your graduation. We have enough time to get to know each other so we won't look awkward in front of our families. We can stay married for two to three years. Then after that, if you don't fall in love with me, which I think is quite impossible, we can have a divorce, if you still want to get a divorce." He said without any look of hesitation on his face. Alex thought that he is not only selfish but also a narcissist.
"I don't want to get married with you. I'd rather die than to be married with someone like you." Alex said with determination which makes Carlos surprised.
"Are you sure about that? How about your grandma?" Carlos asked.
"It's already none of your business."
Carlos was quiet for a moment. He lost the smile on his face and tried to analyze the situation.
"Look, I know I was harsh on you sometimes. Maybe, I've gone too far. But we both know that we don't have a choice but to accept this marriage. I promise I won't get in the way with whatever you want to do. You can meet girls even we are already married. You can even meet boys if you want to. We can support each other. Let's start from the beginning, okay? Can we be friends?" Carlos said who is now looking serious. Alex is now satisfied. She can finally talk to him in a serious manner.
"I'll think about it." Alex answered.
"You don't have a choice. We're stuck to each other whether we like it or not. Luckily, it's not forever." Carlos
Alex realized that he is right. They actually don't have a choice.
"Are you okay now? Can we enjoy our coffee and cakes now?" Carlos asked. He is smiling again like nothing happened.
"We can enjoy our coffee while talking. We have to set some terms on this agreement." Alex
"Like what? Ah, yeah. You're not allowed to touch me." Carlos said confidently.
"What the heck! I never dreamed of touching a man, especially you." Alex
"You're still a woman. I'm sure you have some hidden desires. I might not be able to control myself if you start seducing me."
"I think I should be the one worried from you and not the other way around. You look like a sex offender to me. Your the type of man who would grab on every opportunity you can have to get laid." Alex
"Excuse me? I'm choosy. But I have to admit that you are my standard. Big butt, nice boobs.."
Alex slapped him on his head before he could continue what he wanted to say. "Stop it. You're disgusting."
"Haven't you had a crush with a man before? I have some lesbian friends and you are quite different from them. In their case, they look really masculine and tough, but you, you look very feminine to me. For me, you're just a woman who is hiding her weakness so you decided to be a lesbian. I know my charms will work on you. Actually, it's already working." He winked to Alex after then he smiled sweetly.
Alex couldn't help but laugh to what she heard. She can't believe how confident Carlos is for thinking all women, including her, would fall for him. He is cute, funny and not boring to be with, but she is Alex Lopez, the famous Alex who is being chased by many women in her school. She is known to be the charming varsity player who would never ever have a relationship with a man.
"If you really like me, then I guess you have to start courting me now. I warn you though, you might have a hard time. I'm not easy to get, you know." Carlos continued.
"Stop it! Anyway, talking about rules. Let's make some and this time, I need serious rules. First, no touching!" Alex
"Unless of course you touch me first." Carlos
"That won't happen so forget about it. Second, no lies. If you have a plan to do something or maybe something that you want to tell my granny or your grandpa, you have to tell me first. Our stories should always match."
Carlos started eating cakes. He started to look bored but Alex didn't care.
"Third, we should never sleep in the same room. If ever we have to put a show, you sleep on the floor and I sleep on the bed." Alex
"You're also a man, right? Don't you think that is unfair? It should be alternate." Carlos demanded.
"Okay! Fourth, we won't tell anyone about this. I mean, we can get married secretly. I have a reputation to protect and if they found our that I am married, no woman would choose to go out with me anymore." Alex
"Do you think that's possible? I'm sure your granny will announce to everyone about your marriage. And our families are not the common type, if you know what I mean. They wouldn't agree for us to have a simple wedding celebration. They might even invite the whole town for that event." Carlos explained.
"I already thought about that. We can ask them to make this as simple as possible. We can tell them that we don't need a big celebration now. We'll have a civil wedding and only our close relatives would know. We can tell them we can have the grand celebration after I graduate university. I'm sure they will listen to us." Alex
"Your call. I will just follow whatever you want." Carlos said.
"Finally, we should respect each other's privacy. You can do whatever you want and so am I. We can meet anyone we want, have a date, go anywhere and the other should never interrupt that. You can meet as many women you want, have sex with them, the hell I care. And I can do the same thing. I guess that's fair enough, right?" Alex
"What if I want to have sex with you? You will be my wife and that is one of your responsibilities. Or what if you want to do it with me? Can we sometimes break those rules?" Carlos asked.
"Never. It will never happen. Serious consequences will be the effect of breaking any rule. I will put everything in writing tomorrow and we both should affix our signatures." Alex said firmly.
"Okay. I think it is now set. We can tell our families about our decision tomorrow. I'm sure they will be very happy." Carlos
"I have a question. Why does your grandpa want you to get married with me? Don't you have a sibling? Does he also do that to them?" Alex asked.
"I have an older brother. Regarding your last question, the answer is no. My older bro can choose whatever he wants to do with his life. He is now an engineer. My family loves him so much." Alex could sense sadness from his tone now. She didn't ask more questions.
"You will get to know me more once you meet my family. I'm sure they would be happy to tell you who they think I am." He said looking serious.
Alex became more curious to know about him because of what he said. Maybe he is the black sheep of his family she thought.