In this chapter, we find out more about Spinelli's feelings for TJ and Spinelli's feelings for Byron. Thanks to cherryakabebe, Rockthis and Jayla Starlight for reviewing. Hopefully there'll be more reviews (hint hint). Enjoy DD
The Truth
TJ returned home with a heavy heart. He couldn't believe it. Spinelli was getting married. To another guy. Which meant that she had no feelings for TJ. He would only ever be a friend to her. Spinelli loved Byron now, so much they were to be husband and wife.
TJ wished and wished and wished he could get over Spinelli, but he couldn't, no matter how much he tried. Spinelli might have found someone she loved and was happy with. But TJ just couldn't. There was no other girl like Spinelli, and he didn't want to be with anyone else. Spinelli was the only one in his heart.
Ashley and Byron were also at home. And Ashley was also feeling miserable.
"So, I notice you were with that guy from TV who thinks he's funny." Byron said. "What's his name again?"
"TJ Detweiler. And he doesn't think he's funny. He is funny."
"Are you kidding? Ashley, his show sucks. You can't possibly like that sort of stuff."
"TJ's my best friend."
Byron raised his eyebrows. "I don't trust him, Ashley."
"What do you mean, you don't trust him?"
"Exactly that."
"But"-
"I saw the way he was looking at you, Ashley. It's pretty obvious he has a little more than friendship on his mind."
"Byron, me and TJ are just friends. Nothing more than that."
"Well, just to be safe, I don't want you to see him."
"WHAT?! But that's so unfair! You were flirting with all the other girls tonight, just like you do every other time we go out, and you don't even let me talk to my best friend?!"
"Life is unfair, Ashley. Deal with it." Byron said, and he stormed out.
Spinelli burst into tears. Ever since she started dating Byron, her tough rep had slowly but surely crumbled. She never used to cry. Or maybe it was nothing to do with her rep. Maybe it was because she was happy before Byron came along.
Spinelli sighed as she remembered exactly why she couldn't dump him.
"Pookie, can we talk to you?" Flo Spinelli asked her thirteen-year-old daughter.
"Sure mom, but be quick. Wrestling starts in five minutes," Spinelli replied. She had no idea that what her parents were about to tell her would change her life forever.
"You see, sweetie…" Bob Spinelli began. "There's always been an ancient tradition in our family where we arrange marriages for our children."
"Marriage? That's great Dad, but I'm thirteen. I'm not even old enough to get married yet."
Flo sighed. "Not yet, but one day you will be. And the point is, we've already arranged a marriage for you."
"But I don't even want to get married!" Spinelli protested. This was a lie- there was one guy she wanted to marry, the same guy who she'd been in love with since kindergarten. But she didn't want to marry someone her parents picked out for her.
"Well, you're going to have to, aren't you?" Flo said sharply, sick of her daughter's protesting.
"What, just because it's some dumb family tradition?"
"We believe it's the best way for you to find a good partner and keep the family line going." Bob explained more gently. "There are a lot of dodgy guys out there, Ashley. Ones who'll hurt you, treat you bad, break your heart."
"No worries, Dad. If anyone breaks my heart, I'll break their face!" Spinelli said. She couldn't believe the cheek of her dad. Telling her she couldn't take on a guy! Ha. She'd show him.
"It's not like that." Bob said. "We've already got the whole thing arranged. The deal's been on since you were a baby."
"Deals can be unarranged." Spinelli pointed out. She thought that was pretty obvious.
"Well, the last eight generations of this family have had to do it, why should you be any different?" Flo said. Her marriage to Bob was arranged, and you never caught her complaining.
"BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO MARRY SOME JERK I'VE NEVER MET!!" Spinelli roared.
"Calm down, pookie." Bob said soothingly. "You have met him- but you were just a couple of months old, so you won't remember it. And if it makes you feel any better, we can contact his parents, and arrange for you to meet him again this weekend. You might like him."
Spinelli protested all week, but no one would listen to her. She couldn't tell any of her friends. If she told anyone, her secret would become their school's latest gossip, and everyone would ridicule Spinelli and say that her parents had made her have an arranged marriage because she was too ugly to get a guy for herself. She could imagine the Ashleys squealing with laughter about the matter.
There was one person she trusted entirely and wanted to tell more than anyone else. But sadly, that was also the person who she was in love with. It would hurt too much to tell him.
The week went on, and on Thursday, Flo took Spinelli to the mall to look for a dress.
"Why do I have to wear a dress anyway?" Spinelli asked Flo for the thousandth time.
"Because this is an important date." Flo said.
Four hours later, after trying on every dress in the mall, which was torture for Spinelli, Flo had found the 'perfect' dress.
Spinelli thought it was hideous.
Not only was it a dress.
It was a pink dress.
And it was the most ghastly thing Spinelli had ever seen.
Friday came and went and the big day, Saturday, arrived, quicker than Spinelli would have liked. She would have preferred it if Saturday had never rolled around.
Bob and Flo, Spinelli's parents, had spent the whole morning cleaning the house from top to bottom. Spinelli had never seen it looking so clean. Then they had rushed up the stairs to change into their best clothes and sat on the sofa together, feeling a range of different emotions. In Bob's case, excitement, in Flo's case, nerves, and in Spinelli's case, anger.
They were all thinking different thoughts: Bob was thinking, My little girl's going to meet the guy she's gonna marry! I can't wait!
Flo was thinking, I do hope his parents like us. Is the house clean enough? Maybe I should polish the stairs again…
And Spinelli was thinking, What a waste of my time. This guy's gonna be such an idiot. Why did I have to be part of a family with dumb traditions like this?
But all their thoughts were interrupted by the chime of the doorbell…
"They're here," Flo said.
Well done, Mom. You're a genius, Spinelli thought bitterly.
"I'll go let them in," Bob said, getting up from the sofa. He opened the door to find the well-dressed family of three standing on the doorstep.
Spinelli couldn't see anything from the living room. She could just hear her dad's voice and some unfamiliar voices.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Spinelli."
"Oh, please, do call me Bob."
"Could you get me a coffee, please?"
"Sure. How do you like it, Mrs. Marshall?"
"Oh, please, do call me Karen. Two sugars, no milk."
"OK, what about you, Mr. Marshall?"
"Oh, please, do call me Paul. And I'm fine, thanks."
"Good, now let's go in, my wife and daughter are dying to meet you!"
Spinelli made a sick face. She would rather die than meet the loser her parents had picked out for her to marry and his family.
"Hi, Mrs. Spinelli."
"Oh, please, do call me Flo."
"Look at Ashley!" Karen Marshall cooed. "What a grown-up girl! You were still in diapers when I last saw you, Ashley."
"Oh, please, do call me Spinelli." Spinelli said, using the same tone as the four adults- false and overly sweet. She couldn't stand people who called her Ashley.
"This is Byron, our son." Paul Marshall said, gesturing towards a guy who nodded in Spinelli's direction. Spinelli was pleasantly surprised, he was quite hot, apart from his hair, which was styled into a quiff, which, in Spinelli's opinion, looked ridiculous. Apart from the hair, he wasn't unfortunate looking, but Spinelli still couldn't picture living the rest of her life with him.
"Oh. Hi." Spinelli said, in a tone of voice that made it clear that she was not happy about this arrangement.
Byron, on the other hand, was looking very interested in Spinelli.
"Byron, Ashley, why don't you go into the back yard and get to know each other a little more?" Flo said.
Karen nodded. "After all, you will be spending the rest of your lives together."
The four adults howled with laughter like it was the most hilarious joke in the world. Which it really wasn't. Sulking, Spinelli showed Byron to the back yard.
"Not bad," Byron said critically. "Ours is about twice the size of this. We have a gardener who waters all our plants three times a week. We grow our own apples."
"Good for you," Spinelli said, hoping to get it into his thick skull that she didn't care how rich he was or how big his back yard was.
They talked for a few hours. Byron was OK, but he had no charisma, no charm, and Spinelli didn't feel any chemistry between them.
"So- I guess that seeing as we're getting married and everything, we should start dating." Byron said, towards the end of his visit. "Y'know- just to get used to each other and all."
"Whatever," Spinelli said.
"Great! So you're my girlfriend now," Byron said, and he kissed Spinelli on the lips.
It was only Spinelli's second kiss, so she wasn't exactly experienced, but she still knew it was the grossest thing ever. Not at all like her first kiss, which happened in fourth grade, and was possibly the best thing that had ever happened to her.
Spinelli sighed. Why did she come from a family where arranged marriages were a family tradition?
Why couldn't she just marry whoever she wanted? Did her parents not trust her to make the right decision? Did they think she was stupid? Why couldn't she just be happy?
There was only one way she would be happy.
If she could be with TJ Detweiler.