It's finally the day Rio is going to meet Karma's parents, and she can't say that she feels confident, especially considering her usual demeanor as an entrepreneur. However, all she wants is for his parents to have a good impression of her, knowing that they don't seem to like her much.
As they sit in the car, preparing themselves to look presentable, Rio prays for a good day or at least hopes it won't rain. Fidgeting with her fingers, Karma notices her alarm and the nervousness surrounding her. Slowly, it begins to disappear as Karma touches her hands, causing her to look at him.
"Don't worry. If anything happens, always remember, I'll fight for us, for you." he says to her with a calm tone, melting away all the negative thoughts Rio was having.
"I know, and I'll do my best for them to like me." she replies, giving him a reassuring smile. Karma smiles back at her, taking her hands towards his lips, kissing them, and leaning in to kiss her lips too. Rio returns the gesture, and the two smile at each other.
Karma exits the car first and opens Rio's door like a gentleman. Rio appreciates the gesture and admires the mansion of the Akabane family. It's not overly huge, but it clearly belongs to a wealthy family. They walk towards the door, and Karma rings the bell. Rio corrects her posture while Karma smiles at his girlfriend.
The door opens, revealing John, the butler of the Akabane family for 20 years. His face remains nonchalant as he observes Rio, impressed that his young master has finally brought a girl to the mansion. He greets them both and leads them to the dining hall where the owner of the mansion awaits.
"Greetings, master and mistress. Young master has arrived with his guest." he announces, and both adults embrace their son. Karma taps them and gestures for them to sit. Rio carefully takes her seat beside Karma while observing her surroundings.
Every part of the house seems filled with luxury. It's a reminder that you can't judge a mansion solely by its physical appearance. Rio is amazed by the interior decorations and the neat designs on the walls. It's simple yet screams elegance, and she appreciates the ambiance of their house. But the true test of their relationship is about to unfold.
"So, how did the two of you get to know each other?" Karma's father asks, looking at Rio. Karma is about to answer the question, but his father stops him. "Not you, son, but her."
Rio is stunned by the statement and looks at him. "We were classmates in middle school, and though we were separated during high school, we met again during college, where we started to get to know each other deeply."
Karma's father remained silent, but he seemed satisfied to hear the answer. "I see, the right age for being in a relationship."
The two smiled at each other upon hearing the old man's response, but the woman showed no sign of satisfaction. Instead, she sat there, listening to their conversation.
Until a new topic was brought up.
"Do you believe you deserve to be my son's partner?" Karma put his cup down and glared at his mother, while his father scanned the room. Rio could only look at her boyfriend's mother, who sipped her wine elegantly.
She exhaled and gulped before answering the question. "I believe I deserve your son, madam. I am the type of person who always prioritizes my work before anything else. To achieve my goals, I must be responsible in my duties and maintain a balance in my personal life. Furthermore, I believe I am the only one who can challenge Karma in anything. He's not easy to get along with, but once you know his true nature, he's just a boy who deserves love. And I believe that girl should be me, because I can give him the love he deserves."
Mrs. Akabane still harbored doubts about this girl who had suddenly captured their dear son's attention. How could a commoner harbor such feelings for him when he was born rich and handsome, with every girl vying for his attention? Yet he had chosen this simple, albeit not elegantly looking girl before her.
Disbelief was indeed the right reaction, but respecting one's own child's decision was a must, though it remained questionable in the Akabane family household.
Despite Rio's answer, they still wished to test her intentions towards their son. So, Mr. Akabane came up with an idea that would pique their interest and reveal her true colors, determining whether she truly deserved to be with Karma or not.
"Rio, do you know how to play billiards, my dear?" Karma's father asked with enthusiasm. Without hesitation, Rio replied 'yes' to him.
"Wonderful, shall we go then?" He asked again, and the two replied with a nod.
Rio felt quite nervous about the idea of playing billiards, fearing her skills might falter and she wouldn't be able to pocket the balls. She had played a lot in the past, back when her family had a billiards business and she was still a little girl.
Being nervous was an understatement, but Karma's father had already underestimated her. He smirked, and they all headed to the garden where the billiard table was located a few feet away. Mr. Akabane gently led his wife with his hand on her waist. Karma and Rio walked behind them, with Karma reassuring his girlfriend that she would slay the game and she didn't need to worry, even though it was quite obvious that they were testing her.
"Don't worry, Rio. Remember I'm always gonna be by your side, okay?" Karma kissed her on the cheek, and Rio smiled at him.
"Okay, I can do this. I mean, I've been playing this game since I was five." They laughed and arrived at the area where the maids were preparing their equipment and arranging the balls in the middle.
The butler handed Mr. Akabane two cue sticks. The red color signified the dragon symbol on it, marking it as one of the most expensive cue sticks. On the other hand, the black cue stick was not as flashy as the red one, but it was a popular choice.
"Here, what do you want to choose between these two?" He asked her, curious about which cue stick she would pick. Many looked at her, expecting her to pick the red one, as there was a saying that choosing new ones can lead to victory. However, not many knew that old ones can lead to championship as their skills are passed down.
Rio examined the two sticks in front of her. She kept looking at the red one, but she ultimately picked the black one. Mr. Akabane smirked and asked her, "Why didn't you pick the red one?" She looked at him and smiled.
"I like black."
It was a simple answer, yet it amused them. Mrs. Akabane was taken aback, as were the others, but Karma could only chuckle on the side. She had assumed that the girl would be fascinated by glittery and shiny things, but she was wrong. Rio chose black not because it was obvious that many used it, but because she genuinely liked the color. How peculiar.
"So, who would like to go first?" Karma asked.
"I think it's always ladies first." his father answered him.
"But I think the golden-age should go first, since they have already experienced a lot. It should be a sign of respect to always let them go first." Rio replied while wiping the blue chalk on the tip of her cue stick.
The older Mr. Akabane smiled at her and positioned himself to disassemble the balls. "Very well."
He struck his stick towards the white ball, hitting the other colors and various numbers. He stood up and looked at her, "Rules, 8 ball pool. Meaning if I shot the solid, I would go solid, then you go stripes."
Rio nodded and was about to go to the other side of the table.
"But on one condition, I want a match with you only." Mr. Akabane said, and Rio gave him a shocked look. Her boyfriend's father wanted to challenge her to a game of billiards.
After his statement, all the maids and the butler left to let them enjoy the game.
"Game on then, sir." she replied and made a shot. Number 4 solid directly went inside the pocket, leading Rio to continue to strike. Damn, she was good.
After many rounds of the game, Karma's phone rang, and he quickly signaled Rio that he would answer the call. She nodded at him, and he went a bit far away from them.
Mrs. Akabane noticed this and decided to make her move by questioning the girl's life or investigating her intentions with her son.
As they were playing the game, Mrs. Akabane slowly went closer to her.
"So, Rio was it? Tell me about your life, the way you live, the water you used, the environment you came from, and your intentions with my son." she said straight out of the bucket, not wasting any sugar.
Mr. Akabane could only sigh at the side while putting his stick aside.
Rio looked at her, offended and hurt. How could she develop such thoughts about her? She wasn't any endangered species to them. All she wanted was for them to respect their love for each other, but it seems like it won't be so easy to get their side.
She exhaled and went to the white ball, positioning her cue stick, and her target ball directly went into one of the pockets. She stood up and said, "You may think I have bad intentions toward him because I am not like those fancy girls you always see a lot of in your surroundings."
Rio continued while playing, "Sure, I was born poor, but we weren't that poor. We lived comfortably, and my parents have stable jobs but aren't the same as yours. But you don't have the position to question me like that since you don't know what I've been through my whole life. I may not be pretty and skinny like other girls, but he chose to be with me, and I am happy that he's always with me, even though I'm sad about my life, but he always encourages me to continue life."
As she was talking, Karma's parents listened to her attentively while watching her shoot every ball into the pockets. She's almost winning without making any mistakes yet.
"I am very much aware that you think I don't deserve your son, and I think you're right about that."
Even though she agreed with them, what kept her fighting for him was the love they grew with each other.
"But still, Karma chooses me over anything. He even asked me to marry him in the future." This statement made Karma's parents stiffen.
"I also wanted you to know that when he marries the woman that is enough for you and having your grandkids roam around here was because of me, a poor, not so pretty and not the kind of person like you."
Mr. Akabane slowly took the stick from her hand. Rio turned around and took her bag, signaling that she wanted to go, but before she could do so, she turned around one last time and said to them.
"Oh, please don't forget that you're also hurting another parent's child. I know that you are only protecting your own, but please, don't hurt other people's daughters because as much as you love your child, there are also people doing the same thing. I hope you won't do the same thing as me when Karma brings another lucky girl."
And with that, she walked away, leaving two adults filled with guilt in their chests. However, despite the guilt they felt, Mrs. Akabane quickly brushed it away.
"Well, it clearly shows that she doesn't deserve our Karma. She's not like one of us, and I don't think she can handle all the social gatherings we have," she said, standing up and drinking the wine that was on the table.
Mr. Akabane looked at his wife in disbelief. "Karma is going to be mad at this move you made."
"Oh, please. It's not like you didn't help, and besides, you also had the same idea as me when he said he was going to bring a girl," she retorted. With these words, Mr. Akabane felt attacked. His wife was right; he was also judging the girl because of the way she is, but he felt guilty for what they did to her.
They belittled her, and the fact that they caused pain to someone else's daughter made him feel even guiltier.
After some time, Karma arrived back looking for Rio, but she was nowhere in sight. He looked at his parents and asked them, "Where's Rio?" Curiosity and worry were evident in his tone.
His father could tell from the expression on his face, but his mother turned a blind eye. "She left for good, Karma," his mother replied with a nonchalant tone.
'What?' He thought to himself.
"What do you mean, left for good? Mother, what do you mean by that?" His expression hardened as he grew angry at their antics. He was aware that they were testing her, but he didn't know it would come to this, and worse, he wasn't by her side to defend her.
"Yes," his mother continued, looking at him. "She left you because she's not worthy to be with you."
Karma's face showed horror, anger, and a range of emotions he couldn't explain. He couldn't believe that Rio would just leave because of that. Then he thought of an idea: his parents forced her to leave him because of their differences. But that didn't mean they could separate them just because of status.
"I don't believe you. Rio will never leave me. It's probably because you forced her to leave my side. How can you do this to me-" His words were cut off by his mother.
"We did not! She left because that was her decision."
His eyes widened, and his hands hardened as he buried his fingers into his palms. "You're lying!!!"
As he was about to shout at his mother, his father stopped him before any damage could be done. He looked at them with anger in his eyes. "I can't believe you're my parents."
He left without looking back at them, his parents only able to watch their son running toward the gate while it was raining hard.
Karma asked his butler where his love had headed, but the answer he received shattered his heart. His love left him, not because she didn't love him anymore, but because she just loved him too much. In disbelief, he went to his car and drove to God knows where. As he was driving, he cried his eyes out and almost hit a tree, almost causing him to meet his end. Oh, dear.
Karma leaned back from exhaustion and noticed a paper on the side of his car, a small paper with Rio's signature on it. He took the paper and carefully opened it. His eyes widened as he examined the paper in his hands.
"Hi Karma, my love,
I know it's hard to believe that I left you. But I didn't leave because I don't love you anymore, but because I know for sure that I'll never be good enough for you, for your parents. You deserve someone else better, Karma, a girl who is more charming, pretty, and confident than me. I love you, but I can't have you when the world is always against us. I'm sorry and thank you for everything you did for me. I will never forget the moments we had together; our memories will always be engraved in my mind and hold a special place in my heart.
Goodbye, to our past,
Goodbye, to our regrets,
Goodbye, to what I feel,
Goodbye, I can go on without you,
Goodbye, to our love,
Goodbye, to promises I've left,
Goodbye, I don't have regrets anymore,
And finally, I will forget it.
I love you, but goodbye, Karma.
From Rio, you once love."
He read and re-read it again, still unable to believe she left without even saying goodbye to him or telling him in person how much she loves him. Karma really wants to save their relationship because he can't live without her. She was like his other half, his sunshine, his battery charge-she was everything to him.
And now, she's gone because society doesn't want them to be together due to their differences. As much as he wants to chase her, he respects her decision, even though it hurts him like hell.