Chapter 5: I'm not impressed

"A-Aiden?"

What the fuck is going on?!

"Why didn't you wear the gown we bought for you to wear today, my dear?" Mr. Salvador inquired. "When Mama saw it, she said it'll look good on you!"

"Sorry, but I don't like wearing things given by strangers."

Mr. Salvador nodded twice with a smile still on his face. "I see."

His expression is such a huge contrast to his son beside him who looked like he didn't want to be there either. He doesn't! I mean, me? His bride? This is just a prank pulled by one of those television shows, right?

Silence enveloped the room, just the three of us staring at one another before I clapped my hands slowly. I got up and laughed loudly.

"Alright, this is good! You got me there! This prank? It's really good but you just played it on the wrong person." I smiled. "Maybe you guys should've played it... well, I don't know—on one of his fans, I guess? Not on some busy individual looking for a job?"

"Miss Skylar, I know that you're busy looking for a new role to play, but this is very important to me. To us." Mr. Salvador gestured to him and his son. "Can you just stay and listen to me? Por favor?"

Well... I can't leave while they're here and those bodyguards around.

Heaving a sigh, I sat back and nodded dejectedly. "Fine... I'll hear what you have to say." Since I have no other choice.

"Alright then!" he clapped his hand, pleased to hear my response. "Since yesterday's audition for Aiden's wife was a total success—Mama choosing you as the best candidate for this role, Miss Skylar, let's discuss what you have to do."

"Is there no other better candidate for this?" There is no way I'm going to get married this early—I never even had a boyfriend yet—flings I've tried but never the real deal. "I'm sure that there are a lot of other women who'd be fitting for the role."

Cause I'll never be fit for a rich man's wife. It'll be his doom.

Mr. Salvador laughed so loud that it echoed around the place. I fought the urge to wince and cover my ears. "There's no need to worry about that, my dear. Mama picked you for a good reason and I trust her judgment. After all, she was the one who picked my wife, Angela. I remember that time when I first met her. She was indeed very beautiful—"

"You're already off the course of our conversation."

Mr. Salvador and I turned to the man whom I thought wasn't going to speak. Aiden Salvador merely stared ahead of him, never meeting my eyes. It sort of pissed me off. Am I some kind of plague he needs to avoid? Am I that ugly to him?

Then, as if he read my mind, his cold, gray eyes met mine. I went still and just stared back at him with wide eyes. W-what? Did I speak my thoughts aloud?

"Miss Skylar, to be direct... I don't know why Mama insisted Aiden get married." He paused before continuing, "Of course, I wanted to have grandchildren but that's all up to my son. To appease the old woman, I did what I was told to do, and when she saw you...well..." he scratched his head. "Here we are." He then smiled.

So this is all happening because of Mr. Salvador's mother? How scary is she to make these two men follow what she wants? Are Spanish women that scary? Gaze landing on Aiden once again, I raised an eyebrow. Isn't he going to object to this? It's his future we're talking about here yet he doesn't have a thing to say? I thought he had a girlfriend...

"Leandro, is the girl already here?"

W-who was that? Thinking it was a ghost, I followed where the two men's eyes were staring at. From the doorway, an old woman emerged along with a black Doberman at her side. At the sight of the dog, I couldn't help but smile at how it seemed to follow her around. Alex would like this dog. Its coat is so shiny; even I want to pet it! It even sat next to the old woman's legs when she took her seat. Putting her cane aside, she gazed at me for a moment before her lips broke out into a smile. Lines and wrinkles on her face are now very defined. Her gray eyes twinkled like her silver hair.

"Hello, Elise. So pleased to meet you. My name's Catherine Salvador, Leandro's mother."

Wait... she's American?

"P-pleased to meet you as well, Mrs. Salvador—"

"No, call me Mama, my dear." Catherine smiled. "After all, you'll be marrying my grandson."

Oh god... Is this happening? I instantly shot up from my seat, shocking the old woman and Mr. Salvador. "W-why should I marry Aiden? Why me, a poor woman whom you all look down upon, marry him? I'm not the one for him and there's no way I'm putting my acting career aside just to get married. I'm so young and my mother wouldn't even agree to this!"

Catherine's expression changed from a surprised to an amused one. "Oh? Is that what's worrying you, Elise?" she chuckled lightly. "Don't worry, my dear. I'll call and ask your mother about this. I'm sure she'll hear out my reasons and maybe, she will agree—"

"No! You will not call or bother my mother with such silly things!" The thought of her receiving a call from Catherine saying that I'd be marrying her son would probably make her faint. "I don't want anything from you guys. I don't want to be involved with you or any rich families here in Devont City. Why can't you all leave us alone?"

Hurt washed over Catherine Salvador's face and it made guilt sip into me. Slowly sitting back down, I mentally cursed. Fuck, here I go again... why can't I just stop yelling? About to say my apologies, I stopped short when Aiden stood up from his seat. Still looks very passive like his marriage doesn't concern him.

"Can you leave us alone for a moment?" he requested. When his grandmother didn't follow her son out, Aiden turned to her. "You too, Grandma."

She heaved a sigh as she stood up, took her cane, and left. All that remained was me, Aiden, and the dog who looked tired. Silence occupied the room, staying for a few seconds until silence left once Aiden started to speak.

"Miss Skylar, I apologize for my family's behavior today. Trust me; it's a lot worse when we're all here together."

What? Does that mean that there are more Salvadors under this house? My eyes went wide at the wild thought that entered my mind and almost laughed. Are the bodyguards Salvadors as well?

"Okay... there's no need to apologize, Mr., uh..." Oh god, should I call him Mr. Salvador as well? Or mini Salvador? Fuck... Head starting to ache, Aiden stared at me for a few minutes until he shook his head at me.

"Just call me Aiden, Miss Skylar."

I frowned at how informal it was but it was better. He's probably the same age as me. "Okay, Aiden. But may I ask why you want me to call you by your first name?"

"Because I want to leave a good impression on you."

"A good impression..." I echoed. "Huh." Okay, this is new. Why on earth would he even try and leave a good impression on me?

He nodded. "Yes. Anyway, if you were wondering this whole time, I don't want to get married. It's too early for me and you too said the same thing earlier."

"Yes! Of course, it's too early for me; I'm only twenty-two!"

"Yes, I can see that. You seem... pretty immature back there."

"I-immature?" I squeaked. This man did not just call me immature—I'm going to punch him! Standing up, my purposeful steps towards him grew little as I just stared up at him.

What the hell... Why is he so tall? It was all I could think about as I stared up at Aiden Salvador whose height is probably around six feet or a few inches higher than that. And here I am, just a puny insect he could easily squash. An insect who is supposed to marry him.

"What's wrong, Miss Skylar? Why are you red all of a sudden? Are you sick?"

I instantly turned to hide my irritation and embarrassment. "N-nothing! Don't mind me, just continue talking." I cursed silently at how my voice went a pitch higher. I better get out of this house as fast as I could. Can I leave now?

"As you wish. Miss Skylar, I'll do everything in my power to convince Grandma to let this go. If you've been paying attention to those annoying tabloids, I have a girlfriend."

So that rumor of them breaking up was all that it was—just an empty rumor.

"That's good to hear!" I grinned. "Marry your girlfriend instead! Why have your grandmother and father arranged such an audition when you have a girlfriend? Seriously, you just made those women line up for nothing."

"Really? It wasn't my intention to make them line up. It was just a mistake made by my grandmother."

"Yes, I know that." You don't have to explain everything to me. "Since that's what you and I want—after you convince your grandmother that we're not getting married—I shouldn't worry about anything else... right?"

"Yes, Miss Skylar."

Finally. I can go home now. "Okay! Now that we got those things out of the way and cleared the air, I'll be heading home now." Or maybe head straight back to the theater in case there's another audition to be held today. "It was good negotiating with you, Aiden."

Just about to walk past him, he grabbed me by the shoulder. "Wait, Miss Skylar. I still have something to do."

"Hm? What is it?"

He held a hand up, signaling for me to wait. He grabbed something from his pocket and pulled it out. It was his wallet. I stared at him silently while he fished out a thick wad of dollars. "I don't know how much you want but I'll give you more. Just name the price for keeping this a secret."

"What the fu—why should I accept it?" I gestured at the dollars in his hands. He's treating money like it's just a giveaway. "And keep this a secret? Are you paying me to shut up?"

Why on earth would he think I'd spread whatever conversation we had today—oh right... for me not to blabber around and 'ruin' the Salvadors' reputation! Oh my god, how could I even forget about that?

"This is your payment to keep all the secrets to yourself. If we find out anything leaked to the media concerning today, we will file—"

Enraged, I pushed his hand back, the dollars close to his chest. Right where it should be. "Do you think I need that money? Why don't you just wipe it with your tears because I won't accept it." I smiled up at him, every word dripping with venom. Chin up, I continued my way out before I stopped in my tracks and faced him again.

"And about what you said earlier? The one how you want to leave a good impression on me?" I laughed and turned my back.

"I'm not impressed."

Those were the three words I left the man as I proudly walked out of the room only to hide behind a wall to sigh in relief. Oh god, I thought I'd almost die in there. Now is the time to escape this suffocating mansion.

Avoiding the bodyguards who were with Mr. Salvador all the time and the ones who 'kidnapped' me, I ran out of the house and to the garden. Not stopping to admire how it was beautifully kept, I stared up at the gate. Can I possibly climb over this thing? Biting my lip, I started climbing up the gate. Almost crying out in panic when my foot almost got stuck, I successfully got to the other side. Yelling at my victorious attempt.

Yes! I'll finally get home—

"Guards! Miss Skylar is missing!" The sound of Mr. Salvador's booming voice mixed with Catherine's worried tone made my spine go straight. Removing my shoes, I immediately ran away. Eyes scanning for any sign of a taxi.

Oh fuck, I need to get out of here! Those Salvadors are insane! Didn't Aiden explain to them? Fuck this shit...

Running barefoot was harder than it looked in movies. It was indeed painful. After putting my shoes on, I continued to run. Why are there no taxis in this area?! Where on earth is the exit? How do I get back to the city?

Even after five minutes of running around, I still couldn't find a taxi. Residents around the area that happened to pass by me stared at me like I was crazy. I feel like I'm going to go insane if I don't leave this place soon. This area of Devont is full of rich families! At the thought of it, I froze. What if he's here—

A car's honk snapped me out of my thoughts. Turning around, I narrowed my eyes at a red Lamborghini behind me. The sight of it almost made me spit out my soul in surprise. "W-who owns such an expensive car—"

The sleek vehicle drove up beside me and the next thing I knew, the windows rolled down to reveal the driver. It was Aiden Salvador himself.

"W-what are you doing here?" I demanded, thinking that Mr. Salvador's bodyguards were close by to drag me back to the mansion. "Are you going to bring me back to that awful mansion? I swear I'm going to burn the place down."

"You're an arsonist now, Miss Skylar?"

Rolling my eyes, I crossed my arms on my chest. "What do you want? Are you just wasting my time?"

"Let me give you a ride back to the city. Better act quick or Father's going to be here any minute and drag you back to the man—"

He didn't have to say more. I heaved a tired sigh and sat down next to him, completely exhausted. "Just drop me off where I could ride a taxi."

The ride was smooth and silent. I have to say, the car was indeed nice but it was sold at such an eye-popping price I slowly started cursing why I couldn't afford it.

"Here we are."

Back to the city, I hurriedly got out of the car. "Thank you... for driving me back here."

"No problem, Miss Skylar."

Then, reminded of what he did earlier back at the mansion, I made a face. "However... I'm still not impressed."