Loving Arrangement

Chapter 1: Happy Birthday

Ashley smiled as she looked at herself in the mirror. She had on Terran clothes. White tennis shoes, a blue and white plaid skirt, a white tank top and a yellow sweater. Her light brown hair was curled with a jeweled headband in her hair. "How do I look?" she asked Cassie, her best friend on Earth.

"You look amazing as usual, Carlos isn't going to be able to keep his eyes off you," Cassie replied.

Ashley laughed. "Shall we, birthday girl?" Cassie asked.

"Absolutely," She replied.

They left Cassie's apartment, heading towards the park where Cassie's boyfriend, TJ, and Ashley's boyfriend, Carlos, were waiting for them.

Reaching the park, she smiled as Carlos walked over. "Wow! You look beautiful!" he exclaimed, his arms around her waist.

"Well thank you," she answered, before he kissed her.

Ashley kissed him back, her arms moving around his neck. "Come on, we don't have all day," TJ quipped as he and Cassie sat down at the picnic table. There were gifts covering the table top and a sheet cake that had 'Happy Birthday, Ashley!' written in yellow frosting. There were seventeen yellow and white candles covering the top. Cassie took out a lighter, lighting the candles as Ashley and Carlos walked over to the table.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Ashley! Happy birthday to you!" her friends sang to her.

"Make a wish, Beautiful," Carlos told her.

Ashley closed her eyes, resting her hands on the table. Leaning forward, she blew out her candles. "What did you wish for?" Carlos asked. Ashley couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"I can't tell you or it won't come true," she teased him, playfully shoving her boyfriend.

Carlos kissed her cheek as she started cutting the cake. She made sure to hand him a corner piece before cutting another piece for TJ. "Do you really have to return home today?" Cassie asked. She let out a sigh as she handed Cassie her plate.

"Unfortunately," Ashley replied, "Apparently my mother has big, exciting news for me."

"Well you'll have to tell me what it is," Cassie said smiling.

"Yeah, I'm sure it's just another useless trip to another galaxy," Ashley replied, rolling her eyes a little.

One thing her mother wasn't good at, was figuring out the difference between exciting and just regular politics. Ashley cut a piece of cake and handed it to Cassie before she started opening the gifts they had given her.

When she reached Carlos's gift, she reached into a yellow gift bag that had carnations all over it removing a ring box. Ashley looked at her boyfriend in disbelief before she opened it and revealed a ring. "Carlos…" she said softly.

"It's a promise ring," Carlos answered.

The ring was a silver band; the stone was a sapphire in the shape of a small heart. Carlos took the ring from the box and sat up on the picnic table holding her hand. He slid the ring onto her finger and Ashley smiled at him. "It's beautiful, thank you," she answered, standing up to hug him. Carlos kissed her back, kissing her shoulder and her neck.

"I love you," he murmured.

"I love you too," she answered.

She looked at the ring with a smile on her face as he held her close. They sat back down to enjoy the rest of her birthday celebration, Ashley leaned back against Carlos's chest as they smiled and laughed throughout the rest of the afternoon.

Evening fell on Earth, which meant it was nearing morning at home in the Vica Galaxy on her home planet of Ola. Ashley let out a sigh as she hit a few buttons on the transporter in her hand and she disappeared out of the room she had in Cassie's apartment.

Arriving back in her room, Ashley immediately changed out of her Terran clothes, slipping into a flowing pale blue dress that had a Grecian design. A broach held the shoulders up. She fixed her hair so it hung down around her shoulders, her curls were now gone. "Ashley, are you home, dear?" Meranda called to her.

"I'm home!" Ashley answered.

Meranda opened the door, a smile gracing her features. "Happy birthday, my sweet girl," she told her, embracing her. Ashley went rigid, her mother was anything but a doting mother. Now that her mother was embracing her, she wasn't sure what to expect and that scared her more than the "surprise" her parents had in store for her.

"Thanks, mother," Ashley replied, slowly hugging her back.

Merenda released her and smiled brightly at her. "Come, your father and I have been anxious to see you," Meranda insisted, pulling Ashley from her room.

"Well that's a surprise," Ashley replied.

"Your father is always happy to see you," Meranda scolded her.

Ashley's shoulders hunched a little and her eyes went to the floor. They walked through the halls, their heels clicking across the marble floor. They stopped in front of a golden door and Meranda opened it a crack. "Fernando, darling, Ashley is home," she told her husband.

"Let her in," her father said firmly.

They entered the study and Ashley stood in the middle of the study. She stared at her father's large mahogany desk as he was finishing his work. He finally put his work down and looked up. She was startled when he gave her a smile as he stood up from his chair. Fernando walked over to Ashley. "Happy birthday," he told her, embracing her. Again she went rigid but hugged him back slowly.

"Thank you," Ashley replied stiffly.

Meranda was beaming. Ashley stepped out of her father's embrace and looked between her parents. "So what is this big, exciting surprise?" Ashley asked as she sat down in one of the large chairs in her father's study.

"Oh, my sweet girl, you are so lucky!" Meranda replied.

Ashley frowned. "Lucky?" she asked. Meranda sat down in a seat across from her.

"Your father had to do a lot of negotiating, this was a year's worth of work," Meranda insisted.

Meranda looked towards Fernando. "Well?" she asked her husband. Fernando sat next to his daughter. He cleared his throat as his back straightened and looked over at her.

"You know how we have been working for an alliance with the Karova System," he stated.

"Of course," she replied.

"Well, the good news is we came to agreement," Fernando told her.

Ashley gasped a smile gracing her features. "Father, that is wonderful," she answered, "Years of work finally paying off."

"It has," he agreed.

"What are we trading with them?" Ashley asked.

"That's the best part, dear, we don't have to trade anything," Meranda replied.

Ashley frowned. "Then…how…" she started to say.

"They have a son that's only a year older than you," Meranda stated.

"Meranda," Fernando said firmly to his wife.

Meranda was silent, but Ashley could see that her mother was so anxious she was practically bouncing. "As your mother stated, they have a son. King Ajax and Queen Hecuba and I have come to agreement that we will combine our alliances through both of you," Fernando stated simply. Ashley stared at her parents in disbelief. Pure dread suddenly coursed through her veins and she felt ice cold.

"This is a joke right?" Ashley asked.

Meranda looked at her daughter, her excited smile was replaced with confusion. "Why would this be a joke, Ashley?" she asked incredulously.

"You're just…you're just going to marry me off to some stranger?" Ashley demanded.

"As betrothals go," Fernando replied.

"But…Carlos…" Ashley started to say.

"Honestly, Ashley, did you actually think we would've approved of that union?" Meranda demanded.

"Think of it this way, Ashley, you are building a future for Ola and the Vica Galaxy," Fernando answered.

"By selling me like a common slave!" Ashley snapped.

"Will you stop being so overdramatic?" Meranda demanded.

Hot tears pressed against her eyes as she got up from the chair. Without saying another word, she rushed out of the study.

Ashley was back in her chambers, she leaned against the door as the tears started to fall. Sliding down the door, she put her head in her hands as she started crying.

Two days later on Earth, Ashley was sitting on a swing in the park when Carlos walked up to her. "Hey, we haven't heard from you in a couple of days, are you okay?" he asked.

"No, not really," she replied as she kept swinging.

Carlos noticed the tear stains on her cheeks. "Hey, what's the matter?" he asked as he crouched in front of her. Ashley stopped swinging and held onto his hands.

"We can't be together anymore," she told him in a rush and the tears started falling again.

"What? Why not?" he asked.

"Oh gods…" she sobbed, her hands over her face, "My parents…"

Ashley sniffled and looked at him. "My parents have arranged for me to marry someone else," she replied.

"They can't do that!" he insisted.

"They can and they did," she replied.

Carlos stood up, dragging his fingers through his hair. Then he turned around to look at her again. "Then why don't we just leave? Elope? They can't force you to marry someone if you're already married," he commented. Ashley couldn't help but smile a little.

"My love, my parents can have the marriage annulled because there's an engagement already in place," she replied.

Carlos just stared at her as she stood up. "They can't make you do this, this is…this isn't fair!" he exclaimed, unable to find another argument. Ashley shook her head slowly, resting her hands on his chest.

"It's not," she agreed.

"So…this is it? I'll never see you again?" he asked.

Ashley felt the tears press against her eyes again. "I would like to think I would come back," she answered. Ashley rested her head on his chest. "Just hold me, please," she begged him. Immediately, his arms around her as she buried her face into his chest, sniffling. "I love you," she told him.

"I love you, I will forever," he replied as she cried.