DINING WITH THE DEVIL; SHE USES A SHORT SPOON

"Dad, no! I cannot marry him.

You cannot force this on me.

I have done absolutely everything you have asked of me, but this, this is too much.

My entire life is on the line here!" Diane responded nervously.

"Why are you being so unreasonable? You cannot have me asking Vanessa, your younger sister.

How the fuck do you want us to pay up the debt? Do you want us to lose the company?

You need to get your act together because you are marrying Alexander McQueen." Declan commanded in a placating tone. He didn't for once consider Diane's emotions.

To Declan, that was the best decision that Diane would ever think of.

"Please, Dad, do not do this.

I will work at the company day and night if it means paying off the debt," Diane vowed.

She scrubbed the ground with her knees and made it seem like she wanted to faint.

She looks sadly into her father's eyes, hoping to soften his hardened heart a bit.

Leaning forward, Declan rested his hand on Diane's shoulder as though he wanted to give her a listening ear. "Sweetheart, I love you, but you must do this for our family; you must not be selfish. All you have to do is marry the man and our problems are over,"

Upon hearing him speak, Diane tossed her Father's arms on her shoulder and shook her head disdainfully. She was lost for words at his attitude.

Ignoring her tears, he walked out of his office, leaving Diane kneeling on the floor in despair.

Diane stood up and dried her tears.

She knew her father too well.

She's damn certain that he won't listen to her even if she cried her eyes out.

She loved the company and would do anything to assist them in their financial crises, but was she willing to sacrifice her happiness for it? That's her most difficult challenge at the moment.

She sobs hard on the floor as she considers the number of workers who will lose their jobs, the vast majority of whom have families to support.

Amidst Diane's tears, her mother

Antonia walks into the office.

She called Diane's attention, but the latter failed to respond.

She was engrossed in deep thought and wasn't even aware that someone had walked inside.

It took another powerful yell to rejuvenate Diane's lost soul.

"Oh, mother.

You're here." Diane sighed in fatigue.

Antonia pats Diane on the back, and says, "I know it is hard, but try to heed your father's words

He wants the best for the company and will go to any length to achieve it."

Diana could not believe what she heard. She was disappointed in her mother.

She thought her mother was going to take her side. But clearly, she was mistaken.

She was stunned, and she realized it was time to follow in her father's footsteps.

______

"Where are you, Maggie? I have been calling your phone for over an hour now.

You need to get over to my house right away, I have a lot to tell you," Diane screamed her lungs out after pacing around her room.

She leaves yet another voicemail, hoping her best friend will come to her rescue with some knowledge of her current situation.

Suddenly, different cars drove through her driveway.

Glancing out the window to see what was going on, surveying the scene, her eye caught a sharp hazel eye staring intensely at her.

She jerked back, closing her curtains to avoid any interactions.

"Diane! Diane!" Vanessa called out after rushing into Diane's room. She seemed so excited as though she wanted to divulge important news.

"Hey, girl.

Take a chill pill.

If you keep acting this way, you're going to break your bones," Diane made an upraised arm to calm her sister's nerves.

She hasn't seen her sister before.

"Well you were not responding to your name, so I had to scream," Vanessa shrugged and itched her head.

"Daddy asked you to dress up and come downstairs immediately. He has guests he wants you to meet. Please hurry. Don't keep him waiting for too long," Vanessa disclosed after scanning the four corners of Diane's room.

She left afterward and slammed the door so hard that it nearly got pulled off the ground.

Taking a deep breath, Diane wonders why she is being summoned. "I just hope it's worth it. Because right now, I just want to be left alone."

Her instincts continue to irritate her.

They keep telling her that it has to do with the damn arranged marriage.

It didn't take too long for her to debunk its possibility wholeheartedly. Although, it thugs her heart.

No matter how hard she tries to deny it, the truth still comes back to haunt her.

"Why cannot he simply reject me and say no to the marriage?" Diane thought loudly to herself!

"Or should I make him hate me at first sight? Oh, no, I can't, my family and father's company depend on this," Diane soliloquized to herself. She's almost choking on her words,

She did not notice she was crying until the tears melted on her tongue, tasting the salty liquid.

She immediately wiped it away and went into her small, white tiled, three-quarter bathroom.

She always wondered why her room was compacted, and every other room was airy.

She was getting dressed when she heard a loud bang on her door.

"Coming, I will be right there!"

She lied just to avoid getting into more trouble.

"No need to dress up Diane, our guest is gone. He doesn't have the luxury of time or keep waiting for you anymore," Declan yelled at the door. He demonstrated his rage as though Diane could hear him.

In normal circumstances, it could have been one of the next news ever. She never wanted to entertain the guests anyway.

But after a thorough observation, she realized how agitated it would make her Father Feel.

She couldn't utter a word as she waited for her Father to be gone. Slowly, she peeped through the tiny hole at the door to satisfy her curiosity.

Luckily for her, her father was nowhere to be found.

Diane slowly unlocks the door, looking down at the floor; she suddenly sees her Father.

It turned out that he was hiding behind the door because he knew she was gonna show up.

All she had to do was remain silent and let him vent his rage on her. She could feel her father's gaze all over her.

Suddenly, he brought her head up with his finger, softly grazing her cheeks, and said in a low tone, "You made it difficult for me to love you."

"You know, sometimes you are just too difficult, but it is all good because you will not be my problem anymore.

Your wedding date is set.

In the next couple of days, you'd be married off to Alexander McQueen.

So get ready, do not worry about anything, just be good and ready for a husband."

After disseminating the information, Declan turned around and walked away as though nothing happened.

Diane was taken aback.

She stood at the door for long enough after her father had left her horrifying sight.

Diane jolted as she felt a presence beside her on the bed. "Oh, wonderful heavens! Maggie, I am glad you are here." She embraced her best friend while whimpering on her shoulder.

"Oh, my darling, what is the difficulty?

Sorry I took so long to show up.

I'm here now. You can tell me anything." Maggie asked nicely after wiping off Diane's tears.

Devastated and broken, Diane wept like a child. It became too difficult for her to speak. The words became too heavy to come out of her lips.

-------

"It is not that bad, Diane.

Alexander might be a good catch.

I heard he is stinking rich and good-looking.

I guess that's a plus for you," Maggie teases Diane after listening to her explanation.

"That wasn't funny, girl,"

Diane smirked. She wondered why Maggie would decide to joke with a delicate situation like that.

"I guess I should just do this for my family and everyone goes home happy.

But what about my happiness? Why is no one even putting that into consideration?" Diane lamented again. She raised her voice at Maggie even when she shouldn't have.

"So, what are you going to do about it anyway? Have you decided yet?" Maggie asked. She looked more clueless than Diane.

"Like seriously, girl?

If I had a solution, you wouldn't be here.

Don't you have any ideas in your head? Fucking think of something,"

Diane raged. She was disappointed that her best friend couldn't come through for her.

Chewing her nails to rack her brain, Maggie faced the ground a thousand times and stared at the ceiling to count its invisible stars.

"If I want to be honest with you, this may seem a bit too difficult for you. You know why?

You are practically being monitored by your Dad.

I bet he won't leave you until your wedding day. I heard him discuss that with your mother," Maggie made the shocking news.

Despite speaking in a low tone, she ensured that she rushed to peep outside to be certain that no one was approaching in their direction.

"What the fuck! He cannot do that to me; that is absurd." Diane screamed as she tossed off the bed.

Her ears have heard enough. She felt like donating them to charity.

"I have to leave; it is getting late. If I ever get the chance, I will see you tomorrow." Maggie said as she grabbed her bed.

Due to the house arrest imposed on Diane, she couldn't see Maggie off to the exit door.

Until Maggie's departure, Diane was unable to stop thinking about how she could maneuver her way out of the mess she found herself.

"Or should I run away from home?" She asked herself rhetorically as the voice echoed back to her.

Despite her throbbing headache, Diane yawned and stretched on her bed when she heard her phone buzzing. She had previously set it to silent.

The last thing she wanted for herself was to avoid speaking to anyone.

She needed some time to rest her troubled mind. She slid to answer the call, only to discover it was a private number.

"Who uses private numbers these days?" she said loudly and irritably.

"Be ready at five Diane." she heard a deep, soothing voice speak to her over the phone.

No matter how hard she tried, she still found it quite difficult to trace the person behind the voice.

Before she could inquire who she was talking to, the caller terminated the call from the other end.

This got Diane more scared than ever before. Worse of it all, the line became unreachable when Diane tried returning the calls.

"How could that have happened?

I guess it might have been a wrong number, He mentioned my name. And now, that's the most crazy part of it all," Diane pondered. She still can't get the situation off her head.

In the process of trying to uncover the mystery caller, Vanessa stormed inside her room without knocking.

"Vanessa, you evil bitch.

You had the guts to let yourself in without waiting for my consent?

This is my bedroom. You cannot just come in whenever you feel like," Diane cried, glaring at her sister and feeling very disgruntled about her behavior.

"I could have lectured you about what a bedroom should look like. But on the contrary, that's not the reason I'm here,"

Vanessa spoke in a soft tone after narrowing her eyes around the room as though she were searching for a lost item.

"I heard you are going to have your wedding dress fitted today.

We also both know that you don't love Alexander. You only wanted him for his money.

If not, why would you put up with this sham of a marriage?" Vanessa verbally attacked Diane with the heavy accusation.

Diane recalls the phone call and looks at her sister in utmost confusion, saying, "Oh, that is what it was all about now?

Do you think I would be locked up if it was truly my will to marry Alexander?"

"You always end up with the good ones, so I do not care!

If you keep doing this, I will make you regret marrying him," Vanessa threatened Diane.

Her eyes darkened as she turned to face Diane fully. "I will not let that happen again.

You're going to have to get rid of me first. This is no empty threat. I meant every damn word I just uttered,"

Diane gulped the insult with her saliva.

That was the least she could do. She couldn't imagine herself fighting with her kid sister because of a man.

With blood in her eyes, Diane watched as Vanessa vanished from her room, slamming the door behind her.

Diane is quite aware of her sister's resentment towards her but not to that extent of issuing a threat. The thought of that freaks Diane out.

Each time Vanessa goes to Diane's room, she always sees brand-new shoes and purses in designer boxes.

She had no problem with all the nice things her sister got, but she was angry at her dad for never getting her anything.

They were freaking wealthy, but she wondered where all the money went, and it was definitely not to her or her mother.

Diane was sick of spending her days at home and wanted to discuss with her father the possibility of returning to work.

She said in a low voice, "Dad, I want to talk to you about something important."

She knocked gently on her father's fading brown door and continued to think about it, until her knuckles began to hurt from the pain.

She began to wonder if her father was actually inside, but where could he have gone so early?

Suddenly, she heard footsteps behind her.

"Why are you standing there gawking, Diane? Don't you have a wedding to prepare yourself for?" A voice spoke from inside.

The moment Diane heard the voice, she knew it was her father's tone.

"Dad, I was wondering if I could come to work today." She stated bluntly.

"I am sick of sitting around doing nothing." She added with a bit of uncertainty. She wasn't certain if her Father would grant her request.

"Believe me, if I could, you would not be here," Declan said, dashing her hopes.

"But now it is beyond my control, your only job is to take care of your body and glow yourself up.

You just have to look beautiful enough until your wedding day." Her Father further stated.

Immediately after hearing her Father speak, she became sober.

She felt tears running down her cheeks as she looked at her father disgustedly. She felt suffocated and rushed to her room.

"And again, get ready for your dress fitting at five o'clock." She heard her father say this aloud.

She wanted to ruin this day in numerous ways, but she knew she was not brave enough to take the chance.

She still remembers her 19th birthday, when she returned home from college and her father beat the living daylights out of her by asking for a cake to celebrate.

He said she did not deserve to be celebrated, and even if she did, why would he waste so much money on her?

He always emphasized on the money he spent on her tuition and complained that it was enough.

Meanwhile, Diana attends a public university, but she never heard him lament about Vanessa's private university fees.

Diane's comfort movie was 'Stranger Things', a Netflix series, which she watched while lying in bed.

It was the only thing she could do to restore the happiness and confidence that was stolen from her.

"Oh, I need to eat something. I have been snacking all day, and it is making me weak and hungry." She said while gesturing to the kitchen.

She intends to make a quick lunch. But when she opens the cabinet door, she only sees a pack of spaghetti, some ingredients, instant noodles, and a bag of rice.

She is relieved to see something she can prepare. She opened the cabinet door beneath the kitchen sink searching for some tomato paste and saw several bottles of vodka. She became mentally disoriented.

She had to shut the door after realizing her dad was an alcoholic, but she never thought he would leave it open this much.

Since she was an only child and never had a place in a kitchen.

She could not handle it until she went to college and had a housemate who knew practically everything about cooking and food that she learnt from her.

The only thing she became an expert at was making spaghetti since it was her favorite.

After reminiscing about the past, Diane realizes how much she has missed her flatmate and how long it has been since she last spoke with her.

A black SUV pulls up to Diane's driveway.

While devouring her meal like a prey, she smiled in satisfaction.

"Good evening, do you by chance know Miss Diane?" She jolted as she heard the undertone voice.

She caught a glimpse of a man when she lifted her head.

She failed to respond and continued feasting on her meal like it's nobody's business.

"Would you mind telling me why you want to see Diane? You haven't even introduced yourself to me yet," Diane probed the mystery man.

She still wasn't comfortable with his presence, hence her reluctance to introduce herself to him.

She wanted to ensure that she doesn't get kidnapped by a black-suited, dreamily handsome man.

She had always imagined herself being abducted by a dashing, hot, blue-eyed man.

Of course, she had a thing for blue-eyed men; they were the hottest, she thought.

"Excuse me? I hate to interrupt your quiet time, but I must admit, I find your attitude rather disgusting.

I've been standing here for over twenty minutes, and you haven't even responded to me yet" The man cried.

The silent treatment was starting to mess with his head and he wasn't loving every bit of it.

The only reason he hasn't pounced on Diane was due to what was at stake.

"Okay!

I apologize for yelling," the man apologized after a deep breath.

It took him a while to realize his mistake.

"I was asked to come pick Diane up by 5pm today," he added.

Upon hearing about 5pm, Diane's nostrils stood up, and her brows furrowed together. She realized how important the presence of the man meant to her.

"Oops. I'm Diane.

I am guessing your Boss is Alexander, right? Can you please tell him that I'm not interested in seeing him?

I've got other indispensable things to do with my time," Diane turned down the invitation in the cold. The man didn't even see that coming.

"I'm afraid that won't be possible, ma'am.

You just have to come with me. I don't want to do something stupid," The man ordered. His tone was starting to get thick. He was done tolerating Diane's naughtiness.

Diane was speechless. She thought she could discharge the man with her attitude, but she was mistaken. The man came prepared for her.

Alexander already briefed him about Diane's stubbornness and what he should expect when he gets to her house.

"Do not be rude to me. I'm a woman.

I ought to be treated with respect and dignity," Diane demanded.

When she realized that the man wasn't looking in her direction, her tone changed. "I'll be back. Just stay right here. I need a couple of minutes to get dressed,"

The city is bright as ever.

Diane admired the beauty of nature and the people around.

Most especially the bright light shining through the night and the buzzing of music coming from stores and the wonderful atmosphere.

She darted her head from the tinted window of the car to the strange man behind the wheel.

She feels he could actually strangle her and bury her body in his backyard and no one would know.

That was how wild her imaginations were, she stared at him long.

"Are you always this tough?

You need to loosen up a bit.

Gosh," Diane snarled.

She did that to spark a conversation between them.

"Don't even start with that shit right now. I have no intention of speaking to you.

I'm only here to do my Job," the driver smirked as he dashed Diane's hope of ever getting familiar.

Diane sighed in disbelief and widened her mouth astonishingly in a fly catching position. It took her a while to realize that.

Words failed her to express how disappointed she was at the man. A thousand things she wants to do to the man.

None of them were good. If executed, she's mostly likely to spend the rest of her life in jail.

For that reason, she decided to hold on to her rage and let it go.

She's getting married to a stranger the next day, and she doesn't feel like it.

To her, it was just a normal day. She doesn't even feel excited about it a bit.

Regretfully, it reminded her so much about her escapades with her ex-boyfriend.

"Oh no," she blurted out.

It took her a while to realize where she was.

She looked sideways and pretended not to have uttered anything. Suddenly, she felt a gaze on her.

The driver stared at her disgustingly as though she were oozing.

Immediately she noticed it, she glanced at the other end.

"I wonder what tomorrow holds for me," she thought to herself. This time, with a very low tone just to ensure no one hears her.

She continued, "I wish I could just disappear into thin air."

The thought of running away from everyone crossed her mind, but she had no idea on how to go about it.

She's afraid of being caught and punished by her ruthless Father who wouldn't spare her for a second.

The car eventually came to a halt, and she got out to walk towards a store she had no idea existed.

The architectural design was excellent. She came to a halt when she realized that the driver was following her like a puppet. This made it difficult for her to escape.

They made the purchase of the wedding gown and returned to the car. Suddenly, a mystery man showed up in the person of Lucas Pascal. He happens to be Alexander's best friend.

"Good evening, Mr. Pascal, my name is Sydney, and I am your friend's personal driver.

I believe you are here for the dress fitting. Mr. Alexander already informed us of your arrival.

He selected the dress and made the payment," the driver disclosed. That was the moment Diane found out about his name.

"Get the dress and get her to wear it. Let's know if it's her actual size," Lucas ordered while pointing at Diane.

Diane was lost in thought.

She was mesmerized by the perfectly carved and shiny figurines, fascinated by the dress simplicity yet classy, angelic nature.

It screamed wealth, and she knew it was way out of her league, so she stood shriveled until she felt a tap on her shoulder.

It was the slim lady with fringe; she noticed her name tag, 'Sydney'

She had a keen sense of fashion and knew a fashionista when she saw one.

"Hello, Miss Diane, please accompany me," she heard Sydney say with a plastered smile.

They already returned to the boutique the wedding gown was bought from.

Diane walked into the most beautiful room, more like a hall. It was the hall of dreams.

If this was not an arranged marriage, maybe she could have been happier.

Standing in front of a giant sized gold designed mirror, she took the dress handed to her and tried it.

Turning towards the mirror, she trailed her hand softly across her sides, feeling the softness of the white silk material.

The long V shaped tail swept the floor as she turned, her hooded veil covered her completely

She smiled to herself.

Alexander had outdone himself, and while she had never met him, this would undoubtedly create a good impression, so she thought.

"It is beautiful," she murmured, turning to Sydney to get his opinion.

The moment she saw her face and could read body language, she may have known Sydney was green-eyed, so she simply shrugged when asked if he liked the gown on her.

As she waved goodbye, she noticed the majority of the staff staring at her covetously

If eyes could kill, she would be long dead.

She hastened her steps and walked towards the car while Sydney counted his steps.

"Finally, I am home.

It was becoming suffocating,"

Diane jumped for Joy as they arrived at her Father's mansion.

"Lucas! That is my name, and I will see you tomorrow." Lucas said.

It turned out to be his last statement.

Diane chuckled when she heard him and turned around to wave as he drove away quickly.

What a rollercoaster she's had.