Travelling Hearts

Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Going Home

I shifted uneasily on my sit. I was holding Jack’s hands but I couldn’t seem to find comfort on his warmth. My every muscle felt agitated, panic filling my chest. For the hundredth time, I opened my mouth and Jack silenced me.

“You’ll be fine,” he said with a dazzling smile. I was lost for a moment, his smiles wreaking havoc in my already chaotic mind, but I shook my head and dwelled on the fact that was looming for me.

As promised, I was to meet his parents- Mr. and Mrs. Rayleigh. I twitched again at the thought as the car drove up a mountain and stopped in front of a mansion. I gaped at the sight of his house, the beauty of the surroundings momentarily ignored as I faced a man and woman dressed in formal clothes. They were holding hands, and I saw the resemblance between Jack and the man. He was a tall, strong man. His eyes, the shade of the ocean on a perfect sunny day, is full of kindness; his thin lips as red as a blooming rose, and his hair, a shade of red near orange.

“Son!” he said in a cheerful voice, as Jack dragged me along with him. He hugged each of his parents, and no one seemed to notice me. I fidgeted, hiding behind Jack, when suddenly his mother asked who I am.

“Ah, mom, dad. This is Hannah- my girlfriend,” he said in a proud voice and I saw his mother’s eyes assess me. Jack’s father hugged me, but his mother only smiled reservedly.

“Let’s get inside then. You must be so tired,” Mrs. Rayleigh said; leading us inside their mansion. I fell behind them, and let Jack have his moment with his parents.

The house-er-mansion was as elegant-looking as the outside. The floor was a polished black marble and the wall was colored ivy green. Tapestries hung on the wall, and a Persian rug was laid on the center. There was a sleek, black grand piano placed on one corner, and porcelain vases adorned the corners of the house. Every material on the lounge area screamed money, and it made our house look like an ordinary place; even with the fact that our family was one of the owners of the most successful business in Minnesota.

“How’d you two met?” his mother asked, breaking the silence as we were having our dinner.

Jack smiled and answered, “We met at London. We were checked in on the same hotel and she helped me catch the elevator as it was closing.”

A bewildered look crossed his mother’s face and Jack added, “But we became close at Paris. I met her again at a sidewalk and since then, we never parted.”

I grimaced at the thought of our meeting. His mother assessed me again, and I squirmed under her gaze. I could feel that his mother didn’t like me, but Jack seems to be oblivious at that fact.

“It was such a fate then, eh?” his father interrupted and I was again grateful on the man. His father smiled and winked at me, and I could tell he saw the tension between his wife and me.

We went upstairs to his bedroom, and I could not help myself but gape at the beauty of the place. The windows were huge enough to view the beauty of the cliff and the lapping of the waves. I sat on the bed in silence when Jack suddenly put his arms around me, and I visibly eased at his touch.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, and I blushed. How easy for him to read me.

“Nothing,” I answered. And then before I could stop myself, I added, “Your mother does not like me.”

He only laughed at me, and I internally pinched myself for being so talkative.

“Mom always acts like that. She’s a tough woman but when you get to know her, I’m sure you’ll get along well with her,” he said as he kissed my hair.

I dismissed my feeling, and then kissed him back. It won’t go anywhere if I insist on telling him what I felt under his mother’s gaze, so instead of arguing, we hugged each other, feeling the slow fading of the butterflies that swarmed on my stomach, and fell asleep.

I awoke; heard the muffled hushed tones outside Jack’s room. I went to the door, and laid my ears on the keyhole.

“I tell you, Jack. That girl is no good for you! You should leave her now before it’s too late!” Jack’s mother said.

I froze, straining to hear more backstab from his mother.

“No mom. I know Hannah for how many months now, and I love her!” Jack said in an angry voice.

“Love! Love won’t take you anywhere Jack! You just met that girl in a sidewalk, and you tell me you love her? What’s wrong with you?” his mother said in an angrier tone.

“So, that must be why you don’t love dad. You just married him because of his money,” Jack said in a cold voice.

“How dare you!” his mother shouted, not even remembering to keep her voice down. “That’s what that girl is doing to you! She’s poisoned your mind! Oh Jack. My son!” his mother cried.

I couldn’t handle it anymore. With my heart thrumming loudly against my ribs, I grabbed my things, and opened the door; both of them freezing at my sudden appearance.

“Thank you for letting me stay. I should get going,” I said in a cold voice, although what I wanted was to cry. I ran past the stairs, ignoring Jack’s call, only to meet his father below.

“I’m sorry, dear,” he said, his eyes sad and I only nodded. I didn’t dare tell his father how much I like him for the fear that I break down in front of him, and so I ran outside. His father stopped him from reaching me, and I ran down the slope; Jack’s shout fading with every distance I put between us.

I stopped at the foot of the mountain, only to find myself sobbing uncontrollably. The grief surrounded me, and I didn’t care where I was, or that people were looking at me. Suddenly, my liver ached and I fell on my feet. How unlucky of me. I sobbed louder, the pain, the sadness, and the emptiness lulling me into unconsciousness.