Enforced (Book 1)

Chapter 2

Jennifer has been one of my closest friends since I was twelve and she was ten. It was March and we lived in one of the northern most districts, so it was pretty cold. I dug through my closet and found a pair of black leggings, a purple top, a black cardigan and a pair of black booties. I laid them all out on my bed along with my winter coat. Then I sat down in my bean bag chair in only my bra and underwear and did my make-up. I didn't put much on though, because it was no longer considered proper for girls to layer their face with make-up. It is considered trashy and unladylike, but that didn't stop me from putting a little bit on. When I was done with my make-up I put my clothes on and straightened my long, wavy dark brown hair.

When I was finished, I left my room. I walked downstairs and my mother stopped me with a hand on my shoulder just before I got out of the door. "Have fun, sweetie."

"Thanks mother. I will." I replied, and walked outside. Jenny lived on Carson Street. Carson street was a very affluent area, which huge, luxurious homes. It was five miles from my house so I hopped on the shuttle. The shuttle stopped about a block from Jenny's house. I grabbed my things and walked to Jenny's house where I met up with Marcy.

"Hey." She said.

"Hey," I replied.

"Ready to go in?"

"Let's do it." I said.

We rang the doorbell and we were immediately buzzed in. We walked down her long hallway and placed her gifts on the table with all of her other presents. Jenny called us over right away. She was sitting on the couch with the other party guests. "Hey, Marcy! Hi, Bethany! Come sit!"

We did as she said. Marcy and I said hi to all of our friends. Jennifer sat patiently waiting for someone to turn the attention back toward her. "So Jenny," Marcy said, "are you excited for your big day?"

"Hell, yeah I am!" Jenny replied, "Thank God Tom and I were engaged before that forced marriage bullshit!"

I looked down angrily. "We are all married here right?" she continued, "Well, except Margaret and Bethany."

Margaret is only thirteen and her parents are even wealthier than Jennifer's, so she got anything and everything she wanted. So, all she had to do was pick a boy and her parents would pay his parents to have their son marry her. I, on the other hand, would not be so lucky. My father is awfully strict and my mother will just agree with anything my father says out of fear. So I am the only one who won't get to pick the man I will spend the rest of my life with. I am the only one will have an arranged, or rather, forced marriage. I will be the only one without a choice in the matter.

"Yeah. And I know what you're getting at. We are the only ones who will have a forced marriage. Do you really think I will agree with my dad's choice and give my consent? And when I don't do you think my dad will care? Plus if you don't obey Richardson's laws, somehow you wind up dead. My dad agrees with every one of Richardson's laws.

Margaret's parents will give her whatever or whoever she wants. So yeah, I will be the only one here who doesn't get to choose her own husband." I said.

I stopped talking and I saw my friends were looking at me with sympathetic eyes. Great. I thought, now I'm being pitied. I hate being pitied. Marcy knew that about me, so she diverted the attention away from me and onto herself. She grabbed her plate of food and dropped it onto the floor.

"Shit." She said. "I just spilled my food all over your white carpet, Jenny!" Jennifer ran into her cleaning closet and grabbed the carpet cleaner, as she was cleaning up the carpet I mouthed a quick "thank you" to Marcy who nodded in return.

After the mess was cleaned up we all ate and when we were done we began playing truth or dare, a cliché we all play into when we get together. "Truth or dare Melinda?" asked Marcy.