Heartbeat || Short Story (Part Two)
The memorial service of Edward Wylds had just ended and everyone was starting to leave. The service had taken so long to organise, as family members and friends had to travel from near and far to get together for the occasion. Jasmine and Charlotte left together. They went back to the Wyld's house for tea and cake and to look through old photos of Edward, and share old memories. The sun was starting to set when Jasmine finally got up and headed home.
It had now been four weeks since she had found out about the passing of Edward yet to Jasmine it didn't feel like it had fully sunk in. To her it still seemed like a nightmare and that any moment she would see Edward walk down the road or into her house and surprise her. She dreamed of this happening so much, yet deep down she knew it never would.
Everyone around her was letting her have all the time she needed. Everyone, that is, except her father.
A couple days later, Jasmine got home from working with her mother, to find a young man in the living room with her father.
"Oh, I didn't know we were having guests over this evening, mother went over to Mrs. Henderson's house to help look after the twins while she is out running some errands." Jasmine said.
The young man stood up with a smile, and shook Jasmine's hand, "My name is Chris Rogues. I must say, you look more beautiful then your father described. I am so glad to finally be able to meet you."
Jasmine stepped back, feeling a little uncomfortable, and she looked at her father to see if he would say anything but all he did was give her a side hug and turned his attention back to his guest. Jasmine stood to the side, awkwardly for a moment or two, then went upstairs to freshen up for dinner.
She came back downstairs to her mother setting the table and Chris in the living room still talking to her father.
"Mother, have you ever met this Chris before? I didn't know we were having any guests tonight."
"It was a big surprise to me too. I'm sure he was just passing through and decided to pop in to say hello to your father."
But Jasmine wasn't so sure. Yes, her father knew this young man somehow but there must be another reason than this stranger just passing through. Why else would he have made that comment when shaking her hand. What had father been saying to Chris about her?
Soon they were all sitting around the table eating dinner. Jasmine didn't talk. She just listened to the other three talk while she ate.
The next day, after work, Jasmine was surprised to see Chris was over again. And for the weeks that followed Chris seemed to be spending more and more time over at their house. Jasmine tried to express her concerns about this with her mother but her mother felt that her daughter was reading too much into it.
One afternoon, when Jasmine came home before her mother, her father asked her into the living room.
"I need to talk to you, Jasmine."
"Yes, father." Jasmine answered, sitting down beside her father.
"What do you think of Chris Rogues?"
Jasmine was afraid of this.
"He seems like a nice young man, but I don't really know him."
"Well, he has no wife and is not engaged to anyone and as you have lost your young man, I think you two should get married."
Jasmine sat there, her mouth open wide, staring at her father.
"But father, I can't marry him."
"Why not? You are old enough to be married and start a family of your own and Chris has really taken a liking to you."
" I have said very little more to Chris than a hello and a how are you, and you are expecting me to just marry him? Father, I can't"
Jasmine got up from her seat, and headed over to the door.
"Jasmine, it was not a question. You and Chris shall get married. I've decided."
Jasmine couldn't take this anymore. She ran for the front door, her tears making her vision a little blurry. She opened the door and was down the path in a second. She didn't know where she was going but she had to be away from her father. She didn't want to be at home.
Not looking where she was going, she bumped into her mother who was on her way home.
"Jasmine, What's going on? What happened?"
"It's father." Jasmine sobbed, "He wants me to marry Chris. No, he says I have to marry Chris. I have no choice."
"I am sure that's not true." her mother said, "Come on, love, come back home with me. We'll talk about this."
"No, I don't want to be here right now. I'm going to see Charlotte."
"Well, you go off then and I'll talk to your father."
Jasmine, wiped away her tears, gave her mother a hug and continued on to Charlotte's.
Meanwhile. Lucille went inside to talk to her husband.
"I'm home, dear."
"In the living room." came her husband's reply.
Lucille went into the living room and pulled up a seat to where her husband sat.
"We need to talk about our Jasmine."
"What about Jasmine?"
"I just bumped into her on my way home. She told me you are going to make her marry Chris."
"He is a good match for her. He comes from a good background and a wealthy family. I'm good friends with his father. Chris is perfect for our Jasmine."
"But, really, who she marries should be her decision, don't you think."
"She'll make a bad choice. At her age she doesn't know what's good for her."
"Dear, she's almost 22 years old. I was a couple years younger than her when I married you." Lucille smiled, "And I think I made a good choice."
Her husband sighed, and stood up. He paced up and down the living room in silence.
"Sit down, and let's talk this over."
"I have already made my mind up. Jasmine will marry Chris. My mind cannot be changed."
He looked at his wife. There were tears in her eyes.
"My mind cannot be changed." he repeated, with a nod of his head, then he left the living room and into his office, shutting the door behind him.
Jasmine had no choice in the matter and her mother couldn't get through to her husband either.
The dress had been ordered, the dress Jasmine had wanted when she got married to Edward, the wedding plans were being planned. Jasmine had no other choice but to let all this happen around her and she couldn't say a thing.
Jasmine prayed that some miracle would happen, and Edward would be home safe and sound. Maybe he wasn't dead. Maybe he was just missing in action and he would find a way to come back home to her. Then everything would be back to how it was. Her father couldn't make her marry someone else if Edward was here. Would he?
Jasmine sat with Charlotte, in the kitchen of Charlotte's family home, baking apple pies for a church event.
"Father really wants me to marry Chris. He's already planning the wedding. And he's ordered the dress, the one I showed you after I got engaged to Edward. It's like he hasn't thought about me or my feelings once." Jasmine complained to her best friend, "I don't believe this is happening."
"I do agree all this is happening rather quickly, but I'm sure he only wants the best for you."
"I can't marry Chris. I can't marry anyone. I'm not ready yet."
The wedding was planned to happen a month from then. As the days passed Jasmine felt more and more sick and depressed. She wished all this was a dream, but it wasn't.
Chris didn't seem to aware of all this, and seemed to really care about her. Jasmine wished she could just tell him the truth but she knew she couldn't. Chris visited almost every day and when he couldn't be there he sent flowers and chocolates over to her.
"I can't do this." Jasmine said to Charlotte one Sunday afternoon, as they shared a box of chocolates that Chris had sent Jasmine, in her kitchen.
They both sat in silence for a moment.
"The wedding is in just a little over a week away. The preparations are all in place. The wedding dress will be ready to be picked up any day yet. It's happening so quickly. I don't understand my father's hurry."
Just then Jasmine's mother entered the kitchen.
"I just received a message from your older brother, Jasmine. He is coming home on the next train tomorrow with your cousins Max and Rowan and apparently he has a surprise for you, as you have not been feeling yourself latley. None of them would tell me what it was." her mother said, pouring herself a cup of tea, "I won't be able to pick them up, so do you think you could make time tomorrow to get them."
To be continued.....
What do you think so far?
What do you think is going to happen next...
It had now been four weeks since she had found out about the passing of Edward yet to Jasmine it didn't feel like it had fully sunk in. To her it still seemed like a nightmare and that any moment she would see Edward walk down the road or into her house and surprise her. She dreamed of this happening so much, yet deep down she knew it never would.
Everyone around her was letting her have all the time she needed. Everyone, that is, except her father.
A couple days later, Jasmine got home from working with her mother, to find a young man in the living room with her father.
"Oh, I didn't know we were having guests over this evening, mother went over to Mrs. Henderson's house to help look after the twins while she is out running some errands." Jasmine said.
The young man stood up with a smile, and shook Jasmine's hand, "My name is Chris Rogues. I must say, you look more beautiful then your father described. I am so glad to finally be able to meet you."
Jasmine stepped back, feeling a little uncomfortable, and she looked at her father to see if he would say anything but all he did was give her a side hug and turned his attention back to his guest. Jasmine stood to the side, awkwardly for a moment or two, then went upstairs to freshen up for dinner.
She came back downstairs to her mother setting the table and Chris in the living room still talking to her father.
"Mother, have you ever met this Chris before? I didn't know we were having any guests tonight."
"It was a big surprise to me too. I'm sure he was just passing through and decided to pop in to say hello to your father."
But Jasmine wasn't so sure. Yes, her father knew this young man somehow but there must be another reason than this stranger just passing through. Why else would he have made that comment when shaking her hand. What had father been saying to Chris about her?
Soon they were all sitting around the table eating dinner. Jasmine didn't talk. She just listened to the other three talk while she ate.
The next day, after work, Jasmine was surprised to see Chris was over again. And for the weeks that followed Chris seemed to be spending more and more time over at their house. Jasmine tried to express her concerns about this with her mother but her mother felt that her daughter was reading too much into it.
One afternoon, when Jasmine came home before her mother, her father asked her into the living room.
"I need to talk to you, Jasmine."
"Yes, father." Jasmine answered, sitting down beside her father.
"What do you think of Chris Rogues?"
Jasmine was afraid of this.
"He seems like a nice young man, but I don't really know him."
"Well, he has no wife and is not engaged to anyone and as you have lost your young man, I think you two should get married."
Jasmine sat there, her mouth open wide, staring at her father.
"But father, I can't marry him."
"Why not? You are old enough to be married and start a family of your own and Chris has really taken a liking to you."
" I have said very little more to Chris than a hello and a how are you, and you are expecting me to just marry him? Father, I can't"
Jasmine got up from her seat, and headed over to the door.
"Jasmine, it was not a question. You and Chris shall get married. I've decided."
Jasmine couldn't take this anymore. She ran for the front door, her tears making her vision a little blurry. She opened the door and was down the path in a second. She didn't know where she was going but she had to be away from her father. She didn't want to be at home.
Not looking where she was going, she bumped into her mother who was on her way home.
"Jasmine, What's going on? What happened?"
"It's father." Jasmine sobbed, "He wants me to marry Chris. No, he says I have to marry Chris. I have no choice."
"I am sure that's not true." her mother said, "Come on, love, come back home with me. We'll talk about this."
"No, I don't want to be here right now. I'm going to see Charlotte."
"Well, you go off then and I'll talk to your father."
Jasmine, wiped away her tears, gave her mother a hug and continued on to Charlotte's.
Meanwhile. Lucille went inside to talk to her husband.
"I'm home, dear."
"In the living room." came her husband's reply.
Lucille went into the living room and pulled up a seat to where her husband sat.
"We need to talk about our Jasmine."
"What about Jasmine?"
"I just bumped into her on my way home. She told me you are going to make her marry Chris."
"He is a good match for her. He comes from a good background and a wealthy family. I'm good friends with his father. Chris is perfect for our Jasmine."
"But, really, who she marries should be her decision, don't you think."
"She'll make a bad choice. At her age she doesn't know what's good for her."
"Dear, she's almost 22 years old. I was a couple years younger than her when I married you." Lucille smiled, "And I think I made a good choice."
Her husband sighed, and stood up. He paced up and down the living room in silence.
"Sit down, and let's talk this over."
"I have already made my mind up. Jasmine will marry Chris. My mind cannot be changed."
He looked at his wife. There were tears in her eyes.
"My mind cannot be changed." he repeated, with a nod of his head, then he left the living room and into his office, shutting the door behind him.
Jasmine had no choice in the matter and her mother couldn't get through to her husband either.
The dress had been ordered, the dress Jasmine had wanted when she got married to Edward, the wedding plans were being planned. Jasmine had no other choice but to let all this happen around her and she couldn't say a thing.
Jasmine prayed that some miracle would happen, and Edward would be home safe and sound. Maybe he wasn't dead. Maybe he was just missing in action and he would find a way to come back home to her. Then everything would be back to how it was. Her father couldn't make her marry someone else if Edward was here. Would he?
Jasmine sat with Charlotte, in the kitchen of Charlotte's family home, baking apple pies for a church event.
"Father really wants me to marry Chris. He's already planning the wedding. And he's ordered the dress, the one I showed you after I got engaged to Edward. It's like he hasn't thought about me or my feelings once." Jasmine complained to her best friend, "I don't believe this is happening."
"I do agree all this is happening rather quickly, but I'm sure he only wants the best for you."
"I can't marry Chris. I can't marry anyone. I'm not ready yet."
The wedding was planned to happen a month from then. As the days passed Jasmine felt more and more sick and depressed. She wished all this was a dream, but it wasn't.
Chris didn't seem to aware of all this, and seemed to really care about her. Jasmine wished she could just tell him the truth but she knew she couldn't. Chris visited almost every day and when he couldn't be there he sent flowers and chocolates over to her.
"I can't do this." Jasmine said to Charlotte one Sunday afternoon, as they shared a box of chocolates that Chris had sent Jasmine, in her kitchen.
They both sat in silence for a moment.
"The wedding is in just a little over a week away. The preparations are all in place. The wedding dress will be ready to be picked up any day yet. It's happening so quickly. I don't understand my father's hurry."
Just then Jasmine's mother entered the kitchen.
"I just received a message from your older brother, Jasmine. He is coming home on the next train tomorrow with your cousins Max and Rowan and apparently he has a surprise for you, as you have not been feeling yourself latley. None of them would tell me what it was." her mother said, pouring herself a cup of tea, "I won't be able to pick them up, so do you think you could make time tomorrow to get them."
To be continued.....
What do you think so far?
What do you think is going to happen next...
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