Road Trip

Chapter 2

When Jihan received a call from her mother telling her to come down to their private estate on the South for a short spontaneous break, she all but willingly cleared all of her schedule for the whole week, squealing like a cute little kid in her lavish office located in the big city.

“Mom, you’re a life saver! You have no idea how much I needed a break!”

‘That’s why I called for you, honey. Your dad’s working you too much. Now go home so you could pack, we need a mother-daughter bonding again soon!’

 “I know, right!” Jihan gushed on the phone with her mom while she gathered all her stuff so she could leave the office early to pack.

‘Oh, by the way, you don’t need to inform the board about your trip, I’ve already fixed everything.’

The overly excited girl smiled wider and thanked her mom with aegyo, earning her a soft giggle from the lady on the other line.

‘Be careful on the road, okay?’

“Yes mom,” she said as she exited her office, waving goodbye to her secretary. “I’ll see you in two days. Love you!”

‘Love you too! Bye!’

“Bye!”

With a spring in her step, Jihan skipped towards the elevator, smiling widely to herself.

 

—–

 

‘Surprise! You’re getting married!’

“What?!”

‘You’re getting married! Isn’t it exciting?!’

“Daddy, are you crazy?!”

‘Of course not, sweetie! I’m perfectly well!’

Jihan stared at the screen of her laptop, dumbfounded, not because her weird father was showing his nonexistent biceps, but because of the maddening news.

Her father had been out of the country for half a year now, gone tropical country hopping, looking for potential business locations to expand their corporate empire. She had been all for it; didn’t mind that her dad had to appoint her as temporary CEO, doubling her workload.

“Daddy, you can’t just go and drop this on me! This is so out of the blue!”

‘What are you talking about? I’ve already talked to your mother about this! It was her idea!’

Jihan's head whipped towards the couch where her mom sat a while ago, eyes widening when she had realized that the old lady wasn’t there anymore. The door creaked and she saw her mom slipping out before slamming the door shut.

“Mom! Come back here!”

She slapped her forehead and groaned, finally realizing that the spontaneous break that her mom had offered was nothing but a dirty plan.

That’s why she had been so jumpy ever since I arrived this afternoon, Jihan thought.

‘—and she is really cute! Really petite! I’m sure you’ll like her! My best friend showed me a picture—’

Jihan didn’t bother listening more and just closed the laptop lid, ending her conversation with her dad abruptly. She groaned some more and stood up, heading out to where her mom would be hiding—in the kitchen.

 

—–

 

She was right.