The Marriage Agreement

Glenn's apartment

I arrived at my apartment about 15 minutes later. In the elevator there was no conversation between us, I mean between Aileen and me. When we arrived at the apartment door, I opened the door using the access card and entered the door code.

Creak!

"Come in," I ordered.

She followed my order, followed by me then I closed the door.

Slam!

Actually she did not want to comply with my wish to return to my apartment. She asked to return to her rented house. But, I didn't obey her. I stubbornly continued to drive the car to my apartment. As a result, Aileen couldn't help but follow me to my apartment.

Aileen stood in the middle of the room, while I walked towards my bedroom to get a piece of paper, then returned to Aileen who was still standing.

"She seems a self-aware type," I thought to myself.

"Sit down," I said.

Without a word, Aileen sat in the corner on the long sofa, while I sat on the single sofa and put the paper I brought on the table. She glanced at me with a questioning face, causing me to sigh and start explaining what I wanted.

"I'm going to make a marriage contract," I said and she quickly interrupted what I was trying to explain.

"What? I said I didn't want to take this marriage seriously-"

"That's why I made a marriage agreement. Please, if someone is explaining, then listen it first, after that you can ask questions." I immediately interrupted what she was protesting.

Huh, she was still a kid. Her behavior could make people feel like riding a rollercoaster. Sometimes she could be sweet but she could also make people angry like this. I had only known her for less than a day. But, she managed to make me lose my composure.

"She is really dangerous," I thought breathlessly.

"Ok, then explain what you mean, Mr. Glenn," Aileen said after we were silent.

"Look, the paper is still blank. You can write down any conditions you want to this marriage. Think of it like a contract marriage and I will honor everything you want. Didn't you say, that you need money to pay off your debts?" I explained at length, leaving her speechless and looked at me with a strange face.

But whatever, I didn't care as long as her conditions put forward were within a reasonable threshold.

"You mean, we're currently in a marital status but a contract?" Aileen asked me and I responded by nodding. and confirmed what she said.

"Just so you know, I don't want to marry you. If it was not for Mom, got it? " I answered frankly.

I saw her pursed her lips, and looked at me with wide eyes. I didn't know what she was thinking, but what was clear was that my ears suddenly became itchy like someone had cursed me.

"You know Uncle. You are handsome but it seems that your lips need to be hit! The one who should say I don't want to marry you is me, not Uncle. You are so annoying," Aileen said and glared at me.

"What! You're calling me Uncle again! Geez kid, why are you making it so difficult. Now enough, don't say much more, and just write down what will be your conditions. I will pay your debt, as compensation," I replied.

I was almost consumed by emotion. Therefore I ended this pointless conversation, and continued the matter of our contract marriage.

"Don't call me a kid. You will regret it if one day the woman who you call as a kid can conquer you, Uncle. Tsk, fine, give me the paper, let me write down my conditions for this contract marriage," Aileen mocked sarcastically, then grabbed the paper and pen that was on top table.

I just mumbled at what she said. Then looked at her intensively as she focused on writing on the paper with occasional mumbling and then went back to writing.

"I just hope her conditions aren't weird," I thought to myself.

It took her a long time to finish writing the conditions for our contract marriage. I chose to leave her for a moment, and walked towards the kitchen to quench my thirst. I took mineral water with a bottle that was still sealed and I immediately drank it until the remaining half of its contents.

"Huft... Today is been a tiring day. I think doing a lot of paperwork is better instead of running into trouble like this," I grumbled with a tired sigh.

Finishing with my thirst, I took the rest of the drink and headed back to Aileen, who I hoped that has completed her conditions.

"Are you finished?" I asked as I walked to the sofa and sat back down.

"Yes , you can read it," Aileen answered with her hand holding out a sheet of paper that was no longer blank.

"Hmm."

I took the paper she gave me and started to read wha was written in neat handwriting, as well as the numbers that were in order. Suddenly she asked.

"Why didn't you bring a drink for me too?"

Hearing her question, I turned my face from the paper to Aileen's face, which showed an annoyed face but looked cute in my eyes. I snorted, then looked at her with a crooked smile on my lips.

"You can grab it by yourself. You have legs, do you?" I asked in an annoyed tone, reaping a grumble from her who stood up and left with stomping her feet.

"Huh, you are not romantic at all. How can you have a girlfriend."

Ouch!

Something unseen pierced my heart and silenced me, before cursing the kid's damn lips, which could always silence me.

"Damn, so what if I'm not romantic. How can she mock in such a casual tone," I thought annoyed.

I focused back on the conditions she wrote and nodded, when I saw her conditions that weren't too difficult for me.

"No sleep in one bed, I agree. No skinship, I agree. Free to roam and go home at any time, hum no, I don't agree. She can't be late home. Next..."

There were conditions that I crossed out and added what I thought was important. Then, I also wrote down my terms and her obligations that should be complied with.

Not long after, Aileen came back from the kitchen with a can of soft drinks. Luckily I still had soft drinks in the fridge. Although not as much beer, which I liked to consume to accompany my evening.

"Have you finished?" Aileen asked while drinking her drink.

"Hmmm," I mumbled and handed her the revision paper I had been writing.

Aileen took the paper from me, read it for a while then as usual, she always protested whatever she thought was inappropriate. It seemed that I started to notice her bad habits.

"Why can't I come home late?" Aileen asked when I changed the terms from her.

"This is my apartment. It's only natural for you to obey me," I replied in a calm tone.

"But I need entertainment," she protested disapprovingly.

"You know is not good for a woman hanging around late at night," I explained and also tried to advise her.

"At least not eight o'clock, why not ten o'clock." Aileen offered and was still not giving up.

I shook my head and stared at her sharply as the meaning that I didn't want my conditions to be rejected by her. Aileen took a shaky breath, before nodding with pouting lips again.

"You're so childish," I snorted.

Then she went back to reading the agreement, sentence by sentence, when she finished she looked back at me and put the paper on the table.

"I've read it. I think it's fair enough. Until you find a woman who you really love, I will be your contract wife," Aileen said and looked at me seriously.

Seeing Aileen looked like this, she looked like a real woman. But sadly, she always acted like a kid and that irritated me.

"Of course you don't have to worry. I don't like kids" I replied, and started another fight.

"Be careful with what you say. You know, this woman that you think of as a kid is the woman you might fall in love with. Remember that, Uncle."

I could only smile sarcastically at Aileen. However, when I remembered there was something else I needed to do, I put an end to this pointless quarrel.

"Btw, first of all, what is your surname and where are you from?" I asked her and she looked at me with a sudden change of face.

"What's with that expression?" I thought suspiciously.

"I.... I...."

To be continued.