Enforced (Book 1)

Chapter 28

A few weeks later, Acer and I were on our seventh date. The past few had gone fine. "When do I get to meet your family?" I asked.

"Today." Acer replied, "We've been getting to know each other for weeks, so I'm pretty sure you're ready to meet your future in laws."

  "Yes, I am ready." I said.

I'd hung out with Acer every few days for the past two weeks. After every date and every day that I didn't spend time with Acer, I was spending time with Benjamin. Acer was an okay guy. Nothing like Benjamin, but he was still relatively nice. He did seem to have a bit of a temper, but it was never directed towards me. I'd never be truly happy with him, but at least I wasn't marrying a creep.

Over the past two weeks I had gotten to know Acer a lot better. In fact Acer did most of the talking each time we were together. Today was no exception; he talked the whole way to his house. He lived on Jenny's street. "Here it is." Acer said when we reached his house. It looked familiar, probably because I had walked passed it a hundred times to get to Jenny's house.

I began to get nervous. I fidgeted with my dress and hair. He took my hands in his, "You look fine."

I smiled at him and took a deep breath and said, "I'm ready." He opened the door and walked me in.

I was immediately greeted by his father. "You must be Bethany!" he said, beaming. He extended his hand, "Jim." He introduced himself.

I nodded and shook his hand, "Nice to meet you."

"You as well." he replied.

"Dad?" said Acer, "Where's mom?"

"Downstairs." He replied, "Cecilia!" he called, "Acer's fiancée is here to meet you!"

A woman's voice replied, "One moment!" A crash followed her words. It sounded like something had fallen. Acer's mom came upstairs rubbing her hand. "Nice to meet you, sweet heart."

"You as well." I replied. I looked up at Acer, "Didn't you say that you had a brother?" I asked.

Acer looked at his mom and she said, "Oh, honey, Acer's brother is really shy. He doesn't really like to meet new people."

"But I'm going to be his sister in law someday. I would really love to meet him." I replied.

Acer's mom looked at Acer and his father, a slightly worried expression on her face. I looked at Acer as well and he nodded at his mom and gestured his head downstairs. Cecilia walked back downstairs.

I could hear her whisper to Acer's younger brother, "Clean up your face! Quickly, Acer's fiancée is here to meet you!"

I heard the boy utter a muffled protest, "Please, I don't want her to see me like this. I can't meet her for the first time looking like this." I had to listen hard in order to hear what was being said.

"Damn it, get your ass downstairs and meet her or else!" she ordered.

"Yes ma'am." He replied reluctantly. "I'm sorry."

I looked up at Acer again hoping he would assure me that the crash I heard hadn't been his brother getting injured. And I really hoped that Acer's mother wasn't rubbing her hand because she had been the one to injure him. Acer's mom came back upstairs followed by Acer's brother a few minutes later.

He ran into his bedroom door and got a bloody nose. He is a clumsy boy." Acer's mother announced as they ascended the stairs.   

His face was covered in a bloody towel; he has shaggy brown hair that covered his eyes He was skinny, but he was also toned, and he was of average height. He looked older than he sounded pleading with his mom.

He stared at the ground until his mom kicked at him and told him to look up at me. He slowly raised his head and had a horrifying realization.

Acer's brother, the boy with the bloodied face, the boy who, I assume, had just been hit in the mouth by his own mother, was Benjamin. My Benjamin.

I felt as if the air in my lungs had exploded out of my body and I couldn't get any more back into my chest. I couldn't breathe. I thought I was going to pass out right there on Benjamin's floor.

Acer looked down at me nervously. I looked up at him and out of the corner of my eye I saw Acer's mom elbow Benjamin harshly in the ribs. He extended his hand towards me. "I'm Benjamin." He said quietly.

I took his familiar hand in mine, the hand I knew as well as my own, "Bethany." I managed to choke out. He let my hand go slowly. I was doing all that I could to hold back the tears threatening to come bursting out of my eyes at any moment.

Benjamin looked at me apologetically, then he looked down at the floor, embarrassed, ashamed.

Acer's mom looked at Benjamin, "Go get us something to drink." Benjamin nodded and went towards the kitchen. I took a seat near Acer at the table across from his parents, but I kept myself a few inches from him. As hard as I was trying to keep the tears in my eyes, I was trying to will myself to stay put. I wanted to sprint out of this house and never come back. The only two things keeping me there was the fear of what would happen if I left, and more importantly, the hope that I was wrong about Benjamin's mom hitting him.

Benjamin walked in with four glasses of sparkling cider and sat them all down in front of us. No one in his family thanked him or even looked at him.

I thanked him when he sat mine down in front of me. After he served all of us he made a move to go back downstairs. "Excuse me, Benjamin?" he turned around and looked at me painfully, he looked broken, he clearly did not want to be sitting in this room with us. He wanted to be as far away as possible. As did I. "I'd like to get to know you too, how about you pour yourself a glass and come sit with us?"

Benjamin looked at his mother and his mother looked at Acer. "Are you sure, honey? Benjamin isn't used to being around people." Acer replied.

"I'm positive." I spoke through clenched teeth.

Acer looked at Benjamin with daggers shooting out of his eyes, "As long as he's on his best behavior."

"I'm sure he will be." I replied, "He seems to me like a perfect gentlemen."

"You heard her," Benjamin's mom said, "Pour yourself a glass and come sit with us." Benjamin went into the kitchen and grabbed a small glass and filled it only a quarter if the way up, and came back into the dining area. After standing there for a moment he decided to sit at the end of the table so he wouldn't be sitting directly next to any of us.

We sat and chatted for about thirty minutes, but it felt like hours to me. All three members of Benjamin's family shot warning glances at him any time he opened his mouth, so he stopped talking. The only time he spoke at all in the first place was when I directed a question toward him. And even then, Benjamin's family glared at him when he answered.

I did my best to only look at Benjamin when it was appropriate. After a while Acer said the words I had been dreading, "Well now that we've met each other's families, I think we can start discussing wedding plans."

"No!" I yelped. Acer's mother and father looked at me, confused. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Benjamin jerk his head up to look at me. He'd been looking at the floor.

"Uh, I mean, I actually forgot, I'm supposed to eat lunch with my dad today. I'm actually running late." I said, looking at my watch. "I'm sorry to leave so early and on such short notice, it was a pleasure to meet you guys."

Acer appeared confused, but still leaned in and gave me a kiss goodbye. I was repulsed. I looked at Benjamin, he looked sick.

I just couldn't stay there any longer. I apologized again and practically sprinted out of Acer's house.