All of us became alerted as we heard tires incoming to the porch. Dylan looked at me as though he heard robbers or something breaking in. "Ah! That must be my mother," his dad said as he walked to the main door in the welcome hall. Kizzy and his mom gave me a huge smile as waited for her arrival inside, and only I could feel my pulse rising and cold sweat forming on my forehead.
"Oh! Richard, sorry that I am late. Where is everyone?" I heard her grandma's voice from the hall. "They are inside, mom!" his father returned. "Is she here too?" She asked, lowering her voice. Now everyone in the room turned their eyes towards me as I smiled at them nervously.
"Yes, mom! She seems nice. Please be good to her. Dylan is doing his best, you know," His father was lowered too, but we could hear them just fine, which I am pretty sure they were not being aware of yet. "We should all move to the dining hall, right, mom?" Dylan quickly started the conversation knowing the damage was done already, and it was better if they had less silence in the room when grandma and his dad were talking.
"Yes, of course! Dylan, I will check if the table is all set. Kizzy, could you come with me?" His mom said and started walking to the extended room at the end of the living room, followed by Kizzy, who smiled at me as she left the room. I looked at Dylan, panic-stricken. He quickly stands up and sits next to me.
"It is going to be alright, trust me," Dylan assured me. Before I could say anything, we heard two footsteps approaching us fast, so we stood up from our seats in anticipation. In a few seconds, his grandma and his dad walk in straight towards us.
"Hello Megan, it is nice to see you again," she said, as she took my hand and shook it softly. She was in her queen demeanor as always, adorned in a beautiful velvet full-sleeved dress along with a neckpiece was worth dying for; I have never seen anyone of her age wearing something like that look this stunning in my entire life.
"It is good to see you too, Dr. Hill," I returned with the utmost respect. She smiled arrogance still flashed on her face, which made me regret every word I uttered from my mouth to her. She took Dylan in her arms as though he was still a child and kissed him lovingly, "You look more and more handsome every day, but do something about those grays." She teased with a smile, which he returned with laughter.
"Well, doctors with a few grays are taken more seriously, gran. You must know that well!" Dylan said, to which she pulled his cheek. "Alright, so let's head to the table, shall we? Or is your wife still having a bad time serving food for her family, which is the only task she has?" I wondered how could someone flip so quickly in a moment. She was just being all nice a few minutes ago, and now she is talking like a total bitch.
But I understood that for some reason, she disliked Dylan's mom, who was the nicest person I have ever met in my life. I could draw the straight conclusion that Dylan inherited his nature from his mom and looks from his handsome dad, which is like a genetic lottery in itself.
"Oh, mom! She can't be more perfect in the things she does. It is all ready. Let's go to the dining hall," dad said as he took her hand and lead her into the dining area. Dylan smiled at me as though he was guilty of something, "Don't mind all that she is like that with almost all the women in the house. But she somehow likes Kizzy," whispered to me as we walked behind grandma and dad.
"Oh, granny!" I heard Kizzy's voice erupt like a volcano as soon as we arrived in the dining hall, who ran to her and broke into a teddy bear hug. "Oh, Kizzy dear!" she said as she hugged her granddaughter to her chest and looked at Richard and said, "I am so glad your children turned out so good after all." I looked at Dylan at her comment, and he smiled, showing his little guilt that his life wasn't that near perfect as she thought it was, and only we both knew it.
Kizzy took granny and made her sit on the head of the family's seat, which Richard gladly approved. I could read the dynamics of this family. Almost all decisions of this family were up to that woman. And nobody dared to lift one finger against her. Richard and Shaelin sat on the left side of the table next to grandma. Kizzy sat next to Dylan and me, who were on the right side of the table.
A few servants walked in to serve the dishes, which brought a weird smile to grandma's face. The first course was a corn soup, which Kizzy called out to be granny's favorite; it indeed was delicious. "This is so nice, mom!" I said as I tasted it, looking at his mom, who was sitting just opposite of me.
She smiled at me in response, gave me a gentle nod. "So, Shaelin! The girl calls you 'mom' now?" I heard grandma's thunderous voice questioning his mom as our exchange happens. Dylan and Kizzy look at her in shock. "Mom, she has a name. And of course, why can't she call her mom? She is Dylan's mom after all," Richard advocated for me, making me feel how much I missed having a caring father in my life.
She ignored Richard's words and continued to drink her soup. But then she looks at me for a moment before bringing her next point to the table, and I knew this woman knew how to bring chaos even amid complete calm. "We shouldn't give people a lot of freedom before we know them truly. And also, we shouldn't get attached to things or people so quickly. That is a sign of weakness," grandma said, looking at Dylan with her piercing eyes.
"Gran, you said you liked Megan. If you didn't, why did you even plan for this dinner? If this is what you were planning, I wouldn't have brought her here to get insulted in front of everyone," Dylan said as he stopped drinking the soup and pushed it aside with a sulking face. I tapped his hand to ask him to calm down. Granny looked at him this time her eyes were softer than before, "Dyl! You are like a dove. You're such a sweet, naive soul. That's why I wish to protect you. Being born in a family like this is a boon and a curse at the same time, son!"
"I think we should move to the next course," Richard interjected and gestured the servant to start serving the next course of the meal. Dylan was silent, and his face expressed disappointment at his grandmother's behavior, which everyone in the room was aware of but, because of the fear for granny, nobody said anything for the next few minutes.
"What are you planning to do on the anniversary, Richard?" grandma asked after enduring that long pause in the conversation. He looked at her and then at his wife with a smile and said, "We are still planning, mom. But so far, we have decided to host it in the dad's mansion, which will belong to Dylan soon. Right, son?" I knew from his words that he was trying hard to cheer him up, but granny was amused, not even a little bit.
"Ah! About that, Kizzy told me that Dylan and Megan just met a few days ago. And she retreated the moment she heard about getting married to him. Even I have noticed her face when I talked about becoming a Hills girl. Don't you think it is still a little early to decide if the mansion will go to him or not?" As soon as granny finishes her sentence, Dylan drops his spoon back on his plate. He closes his fist, trying to control his anger for the woman who was being ridiculous at the moment only because he loved and respected her more than anything.
Kizzy became a little uneasy as she heard her name being mentioned almost, making her look like a spy of some kind. "Gran, what I meant is they are still getting to know each other. But I am sure they are super serious about each other, I do not doubt that." Granny throws a hard look at her, which makes her shut her mouth right away.
"Dylan is in his prime youth, and I still remember him a few years ago, yelling at everyone that he is never going to have anyone in his life again. If Megan is just another woman he is just sexually attracted to and is playing us to get that estate, then I am not falling for that, Dylan Hill!" She raises her voice as she looks at Dylan, her eyes so sharp that it could cut through iron effortlessly.
"Grandma Hill, I apologize for talking in the middle of your family matters, but I think it is not his fault that he had to go through so much in his early youth. He became a good person because of that, and no, he isn't with me because he is just physically attracted to me. I love him because of who I am with him. I have said this to Kizzy when she was home, and I said this to you as well at the charity, but I believe you have disregarded that I have never felt this loved and cared for in my entire family. You believe it or not. I felt like I was home after so long when I stepped in here and met his parents."
As soon as I finished, I saw that everyone was staring at me in awe; his mom was almost in tears. For some reason, his grandma stopped bickering anymore. Dylan looked at me wide-eyed for several moments with a smile that I have never seen on his face before, and we continued to eat in silence for a few more minutes.
To be continued...