The Royal Contract

While many women would take almost an hour to prepare just to look at least half-decent. Although she might not be so vain, she still took longer than him to prepare for the day.

“Shall we go?” He broke in her thoughts as he stood in front of her, ready to leave.

Now, it would seem that she was the one that was not prepared yet. At least, she had changed into her pair of jeans and shirt. She grabbed the hair bond lying on top of the dresser and ran her fingers through her hair to tie it in one ponytail.

“Just give me a second.” She said as she dashed into the vanity mirror to fix herself.

She could see the smirk on his lips as if he just had made another point. She would admit, she could not beat him when it came to how much time was spent picking up the clothes to wear and how long she stayed inside the bathroom.

With a quick dabbed of powder on her cheeks, a slight application of lipstick on her lips, she was done. All that was left to do was put shoes on her feet and her phone in her bag.

.....

“Done.” She announced, hanging her bag on her shoulders as she moved closer to him.

Suddenly, her hands covered her mouth, and her eyes had gone wide. “I forgot all about breakfast.” She looked at him, realizing that in her haste and excitement. She actually forgot to prepare something to eat.

This day was starting to turn into a disaster for her, but she was not giving up. She could still turn this situation into something productive, positive, and fun.

If he would see it that way once he learned what she had planned for today. She tried to open up to him earlier, but she decided to do it later.

“Never mind. We can grab something on the way.” He told her, seeing that she was serious about going to this meeting.

He was too busy earlier with his thoughts to put much weight on her plans. He finally stopped fooling around and wished he had cooperated with her sooner.

Although he still had no idea of who she was seeing and why. But he would just tag along if that was what would make her happy. Besides, it must be something important if she was this excited about it.

“Again, where are we going?” He finally asked, curious about their unexpected trip downtown. “And, who are we meeting again?”

She talked about it earlier when she walked out of the bathroom after her shower, but he was not paying attention. He was still sleepy, and his mind was floating somewhere else.

He did not get the chance to ask again as he started fooling around. Then, she became irritated by his immature actions. And the rest was history.

“This time, let it be my surprise.” She answered him, withholding the information from him.

It was her form of penalizing him for not taking her seriously. She had wanted to talk about it, but she stopped when she noticed that he was not listening. Now, he had no option but to wonder who and where they were going.

After almost an hour, including the traffic and other circumstances, they finally arrived in a fancy tall building covered with mostly glasses.

He recognized it as one of the leading architecture firms in the city. Now, he was curious about the reason for their visit. He should have really paid attention earlier.

After a few minutes, they were quickly shown to a large conference room and offered some refreshments, which they both declined.

“Can I venture a guess that this has something to do with our dream house?” He whispered near her ears as they sat side by side on the long elongated table.

It was the only plausible explanation he could think of on why they were sitting in this office, waiting for an architect to meet with them.

Or else, she might have another house being built somewhere else, outside the city. But he doubted that possibility. He would assume that this was about his gift to her.

He wondered if she did not like his plans about the house and wanted something changed in it. Or she just wanted to redo everything. Whatever it was, he would be willing to compromise. After all, the house was hers.

“Your guess is correct. Now, would you listen to my proposal?” She asked him, turning to him. She took a deep breath, gathering a slight momentum to get the words out of her mouth.

She remembered looking up in the sky earlier, then the house immediately occupied her mind. She could not stop thinking about it. Then, something popped up in her thoughts.

It was beautiful according to the plans he had shown her. An ideal home for a starting family like theirs. She actually loved it, at least the idea of it.

It had a good neighborhood and would be excellent for kids if they finally had one or more. It was a good place for raising a child.

“I am listening.” This time, he had his full attention, turning to face her. He was not making the same mistake twice.

Luckily, he had married a wonderful and understanding wife who always put up with his mischief. Something that he would be eternally grateful for.

But he was bracing himself for what she had to say. Judging from her facial expression, it could be anything. It might be good or not.

“I think the house is perfect. Your design is just what I imagined my house would be when I was young.” She started to explain.

She remembered describing her dream house to her mother. It was not a fairy tale castle but still a big manor with many rooms and a massive garden.

Somehow, she had described the house, which was the same as what her father had built for her mother. The one that she had grown up with.

“But...” He did hear the hesitation in her voice. “You can tell me if you don’t like it. I will not mind because I only want you to be happy with our new home.”

She loved it, but there was something else that she was reluctant to tell him. He could tell from her eyes that there was something more.

He had bought the land and its dilapidated house way before he had met her. Then, he had abandoned the construction until now.

He felt that he should provide her a decent home where they could build their family. Therefore, he had hired someone to proceed with the plan.

“I love the idea, but it is not what I want for us.” She finally said it, casting her eyes down to her lap, afraid to look at his face. “It is not the home I envisioned now for us, and if ever we will have kids.”

She could tell that he had put a lot of effort into this. She felt terrible that she did not share the same view as him, but she had to be honest with him about it. She could not lie to him about how she felt.

After careful deliberation about it, she could not accept his gift despite how beautiful the house would be. It was not a place where she would like to raise their family.

For her, it was just a big house, not a home.