2 - Proposal
It's been a week since I last saw him, but he keeps bugging my mind. I can still remember his face and his smirk, which captivated me the most.
Denver Velasquez.
His name didn't leave my mind as I stared at the ceiling of my room. I don't know why I feel this sudden attraction towards him. He has the looks and charisma, that's the first. He's a gentleman, I think. And most of all, he's sociable, the opposite of me.
It was so sudden that I felt this way towards him. In all the guys I've met, he's different. He knows a lot of people, while I only know a few; he's outrageous, while I'm not. I even felt intimidated when he looked directly at me. His gray orbs were tantalizing.
I don't like a person easily; it takes a lot of time for that. But Denver Velasquez was different. He already captivated my eyes the moment our eyes met.
I'm confused. Is that considered a 'crush'? I didn't feel like this before. He's the first guy who I think like this. I never fully attached myself to guys throughout my life. Whenever I talk to guys my age, I always talk to them casually.
Whatever this feeling I have, I should refrain from it, or else it might destroy me.
I heard a knock on my door. I abruptly get out of my bed and open it. I saw my mother glaring furiously at me. She scanned my whole body, from head to toe, before she roamed her eyes to my room.
I looked down when I met her brown eyes. It's scary for me. It has the authority when she looks back at you. She looks intimidating with her red lipstick and red dress. She still looks young even though she's in her late forties.
And I admit, whenever she's in front of me, I feel scared. Not just because of her aura, but also because of her hurtful words towards me whenever we see each other.
“Mom,” I mumbled when I saw her holding something. I saw the logo of our University on a paper containing my grades for this quarter.
“What's this, Sharmienne?!” She shouted and crumpled the paper into a ball before she threw it at my face. “You have failing grades, again?!”
I sighed and didn't let myself talk. I'm just looking down as I'm hearing the same lines again, just like what she always says to me.
“You're always neglecting your responsibilities. You always lock yourself inside your room. What are you doing inside? Huh?! Are you hiding something from us?!”
“I'm sorry...”
“Why can't you be like your older sister? She's the best in her class! She's responsible, unlike you...”
I sighed as I heard this again. I'm not Carmienne, Mom. I want to tell her that so she will stop comparing me to her.
“I'll do better.”
It was almost a whisper, but she heard that. I look up only to see her furious face. Her brown eyes never dared to give me a soft stare. She has always been angry at me. I don't know why I've always been the unwanted one. She always sees my older sister as the best in everything. Carmienne is her favorite.
“Why don't you change your life, Sharmienne? Locking yourself in this room won't help you.” I just nod at her. She fixed herself and left my room. I sighed deeply as I followed her with a look.
I respect my mother so much. Even though I feel that she's been treating me unfairly. She's been like this since I was a child. I always see how she treats my sister so dearly, but when it comes to me, she's harsh.
She sees me as the misfortune of this family. She expected to only bear one child, but then, unexpected things happened. Two years after Carmienne was born, I came into life.
My mom's always been vocal to me. She doesn't want me to live. She always tells me how she wishes I had never existed. How she intended to just abort me before. How she always drinks liquor and smokes just so I won't survive.
But she never told me the reason why she tried doing all of that. I've been longing to know. I tried to ask her, but she would hurt me afterwards.
And my father was always the one defending and protecting me. But even he never told me about why my mother hated me so much. He never dared to tell me their past. He's always diverting the topic. I was always curious why my mother's been like this to me. Since then, I never dared talk back to her. I tried to, but my love for her surpasses that. I'm waiting for her to tell me, and that's what keeps me living.
I've been in my bed for hours, and I tried to get back to sleep, but my mind is already clouded with thoughts. Whenever this happens, I always go to my sister's room to seek comfort.
I sighed and got up again. I bring my notepad with me before I go to the room next to mine. It's still six in the evening, and maybe she's still awake. Maybe.
My sister is what I consider my best friend. She's like my comfort whenever I am not in the right state. She's always been there for me. That's why I can't just hate her. Even though I always feel envy whenever our mother compares us, I didn't let that negative feeling eat me.
I knocked on her door, but no one responded. I tried to open it, but it's also locked. I sighed and was about to leave when I saw someone on the staircase. I gasped when I saw Denver. What is he doing here?
He's wearing a blue fitted jeans and black long sleeves. He was a meter away from me. He still doesn't see me. He roamed his eyes around until his eyes darted to my room. He looks up to it.
His side view profile looks firm and dominating. His Adam's apple is visible, and his nose has its exact pointy shape. His thick eyebrows were slightly creased, and his jawline was showing. This man is so handsome.
“This is your room?”
I blinked twice when I heard his voice. He was looking down at me because he was taller than me. He's like 6 feet tall, while I'm just 5'4''.
“H-huh?”
He chuckled before he crossed his arms. He smiled nonchalantly as he stared at me with his gray eyes.
“I'm looking for Carmienne,” he said.
“S-she's asleep.”
I looked down when his gaze was getting intimidating. Why do I feel this sudden thud of my heart when he's near? I can't explain this feeling.
“I see.” He chuckles.
I gasped when he grabbed my hand and pulled me towards him. He pinned me to the door of my room and moved closer to me. I can feel his minty fresh breath on my skin.
“D-denver...”
He held my chin up and let me look up to him. His face was so close that I almost hitched on my breath.
“You know my name, but I don't know yours yet.” He stared into my eyes. I wanted to avoid my gaze, but he kept moving forward. “Why can't you keep eye contact with me, young lady?”
I hold his hand and remove it from my chin. I tried to push him away, but I don't have enough strength to do that. He smirked and was about to move closer when we heard my sister's voice.
“Who are you?!”
That's when Denver moved away from me. I gasped for air and held my notepad close to my chest as I leaned my back on the wall. I felt my sister hold my wrist while she covered me from Denver.
“You must be Carmienne—”
“Who are you?!” My sister asked again, with a loud voice.
“Chill, woman...” Denver chuckled and looked at me. “I'm just asking your sister.”
“What did he do to you, Sharmienne?” I felt my sister glance at me. I didn't say anything and just shook my head.
“Sharmienne!” I flinched when I heard her voice again. I looked up to her, and she was fuming mad.
“N-nothing, Carms. He didn't do anything.” I assured her. “He's just looking for you.”
“What?” she uttered before glancing at Denver again.
“Mrs. Golieza asked me to look for you,” he said boredly. “Follow me. Both of you.”
I held onto my sister's hand as he took a step to follow Denver. Whenever our mom asked us to go downstairs, it was always important. We seldom do family bonding, so it's rare for times like this.
“Carmienne is our best choice, Mrs. Velasquez.” We heard my mom's voice.
We have visitors as we go downstairs. Our parents were both sitting side by side as they talked with two familiar faces. It was Mr. and Mrs. Velasquez. My eyes widened when I saw Denver gaze at me. He was waiting on the two-seater sofa next to his parents.
“Hija, you're here!”
It was Mrs. Velasquez. I can feel the glee as she even stood up and went in my direction. She kissed both of my cheeks and hugged me. She didn't even look at my sister.
“M-mrs. Velasquez.”
“Oh, who's this beautiful lady with you, Sharmienne?” she asked and glanced at my sister. “You're Carmienne?”
“Yes, ma'am,” my sister answered.
“Please take your seats.” I heard my mother's voice. I diverted my eyes to her who's glaring at me. I was about to sit next to Carmienne when Mrs. Velasquez pulled me towards Denver. I agape when I heard Denver's low chuckles as soon as I sat beside him.
“You look good together, hija.” Mrs. Velasquez said and sat back in her seat. I saw my father smile at me. My mom's just looking at me with her usual look, while Carmienne looks confused, the same like me.
“As I've said earlier, we're here for your proposal. In exchange for our help...” Mrs. Velasquez stopped when she glanced at me. “You'll let Sharmienne marry our son.”