Dangerous Games

SOMETHING LOST, NOTHING GAINED

Samuel sat on the window seat, reading a new book to pass the time. He was spending some time in his parent's home because he didn't have a lot of things to do. A sharp knock on his door broke his attention, and he set the book down.

"Yeah?"

Giovanna walked into the room, dressed in her usual home fit made up of shorts and a crop top. "Mom wants to see you. She is in her office?"

"Sure."

She closed the door, and he groaned, shuffling into his slides and walking out of the room towards his mother's office. The room was first for his father, and he worked there often. His father liked to carve and paint. He wasn't one to brag about his skills and would always shake off most compliments and praise. In Samuel's eyes, his artworks were phenomenal; one of his paintings of Samuel's first car hung in his apartment.

After his mother gifted his father a small cabin at the back of the house for him to work in, she reconstructed the study for herself. That gift was probably one of the nicest things he had seen his mother do for his father.

"Mom?" she looked up from her desk as he took his seat. "Giovanna said you wanted to see me."

She stayed seated, pulling files together and closing the folder before she moved to sit on the chair next to his. "This is going to be a bit of an awkward conversation, but I will try and be straightforward. Peter and I spoke some days ago. He said you told him you were purchasing a ring?"

Samuel shrugged, rubbing his palm against his trousers. "Well, Peter is a snitch, and yes, I went to buy a ring. I was... I am planning to propose to Flora sometime soon."

His mother only smiled, but something felt off about her temperament. Samuel nervously sat in the chair, shuffling to find a spot that suited him. "I have to say that I am glad you want to take a step towards marriage. Most guys your age don't see the point."

"Most guys my age are sometimes scared that it wouldn't work out."

"True."

"Plus, I am not that young, mom. I am almost thirty. I think it's about time I start thinking of other parts of my life outside work. Flora and I have been together a while, and I think we are ready for that."

"I am glad you have put a lot of thought into this. That's mature of you. That said, there is no other easier way to say it. You can't marry Flora."

Samuel couldn't choke down his laughter no matter how hard he tried; it burst out of him. His mom lifted a cursory brow, and he coughed into his hand, trying to stifle the rest of his amusement, to no avail. Between chuckles and snorts, he apologized to his mother and thrust his face between his hands as he tried to get himself under control.

Once he calmed down, he reclined against the chair, a hand across his chest. His mother looked at him impassively, waiting for his monetary outburst to come to a complete stop. Samuel apologized again and sat straighter.

His relationship with his mother wasn't the easiest, but he had never heard her say something as ridiculous to him as what he just heard.

"I won't even bother telling you how ridiculous I find that particular statement you made. I respect you very much, mother, but who I want to spend the rest of my life with is a decision that would be taken solely by me."

Her expression didn't change. She only handed Samuel the folder she held and encouraged him to read through every word, which he did. By the time he closed the folder, he felt like life was sucked out of him, and everything he lost was absorbed by his mother because she was already smiling.

She knew without him voicing it that she had an ace, and Samuel didn't need to wait long for her to start laying down her cards.

"I understand you want to get married to her and believe me, I respect it. I can't let it happen. You have a choice. You can end your relationship with Flora, cordially, or marry her while she is in jail."