Chapter 1
Olivia Chen bites her lip as she fights the urge to speak her mind.
She knows better than to speak up in these situations, but her mouth still yearns to defend herself, and every time, she has to physically restrain the words from falling.
Her mother is at it again, and it’s getting tiresome.
But she isn’t about to go all Edward Scissorhands on her family ties just because they come with an extra side of meddling.
Though secretly, she wishes she could use a metaphorical duct tape to silence her mother’s never-ending rants. This woman who bears a striking resemblance to her. Only a couple of years older.
Despite being 56, her mother appears to be no older than 35. Her jet-black, shoulder-length hair is still vibrant and graceful. It’s difficult to say if it’s thanks to her Asian genes, happy marriage, or a secret only she knows, but her face and skin appear eternally youthful.
The only flaw in this woman’s seemingly perfect life is her single, thirty-year-old daughter, Olivia.
“You’re not getting any younger, Liv,” her mother says, stirring the pot as if she has no choice but to make a potion of herbs that could slow down time and help her daughter’s cause.
It’s not like Olivia doesn’t have a boyfriend. People who listen to her mother assume she doesn’t, but she does, and she’s had him for twelve years.
Any day now, Luca will ask her to marry him, and her mother will regret all the time she spent in the kitchen telling her daughter how little time she has left.
“I know how old I am, Mom,” Olivia responds dryly. No one pays more attention to her age than she does.
She’s thirty years old, and it feels like everyone she knows at this age is already happily married with children, and then there’s her.
It didn’t bother her much in the beginning; after all, she met Luca when she was eighteen, and their connection was instantaneous. They were inseparable. Olivia was known as the “relationship queen” while her friends navigated the waters of singlehood.
But as the years passed, one by one, her friends began to date, get boyfriends, and eventually marry and start families. Now, she’s the only one in her friend group without a husband or children.
And it hurts a little. Actually, a lot. Because while she tries not to compare, the reality is that she had the boyfriend first, and she’s still in that same wonderful relationship, albeit unmarried, twelve years later.
As her friends began to marry a few years ago, she couldn’t help but think about the idea of marriage herself. She had always wanted to be a mother, and it would be nice to start a family with Luca.
They’re both stable and doing well right now. As far as she knows, he doesn’t have a secret hideout where he keeps anti-child pamphlets. In fact, he likes children. He interacts with them all the time.
But what is she to do if he’s not popping the question?
There were multiple times when she thought he was about to ask, only to find out it was just an intimate dinner at a fine restaurant complete with candles and flowers— gestures that Luca routinely made to show her how much he cared for her.
“Your clock is ticking.”
“I know that.”
They’re both aware of it. Her sister married at the age of twenty-eight but remained childless even after seven rounds of IVF. So, she understands her mother’s concerns, and who can blame her for feeling the same way? What if she, too, struggles to conceive?
“You should maybe hint at it to him,” her mother says while she resumes stirring the pot on the fire.
And she wonders why her mother always cooks something every time they have this conversation. It’s almost like a jab to her person, like her mother is using the kitchen as a backdrop to display her achievements as a mother.
“Twelve years is a long time to date someone without knowing if they will marry you.” Her mother drops the wisdom bomb.
Olivia agrees with her mother but doesn’t dare nod to communicate the fact because she understands Luca.
Unlike a traditional degree, finishing medical school, completing the residency program, and establishing himself as a successful surgeon took time. It wasn’t until last year that he could purchase his own apartment.
So, in reality, things are progressing, just at a different rate than her friends.
“You should talk to him and tell him you’re ready for marriage,” her mother says again.
“I’m not going to pressure him into marriage,” she huffs.
“Pressuring him into marriage is not the idea I’m trying to communicate,” her mother brings the pot down from the cooker.
“What I’m saying is, if he hasn’t decided in all the twelve years you’ve spent together that he can start a family with you, he has no business hanging on to you. And you should let him go.”
Olivia isn’t sure she’ll be able to break up with Luca. Twelve years is a long time. Perhaps they should just have a child and then marry later? Being unmarried with a child doesn’t worry her. She can do that as long as he agrees to the part of them having a child together.
They love each other, and as far as she knows, love conquers all.
She’s going to talk to Luca, she decides, and they’re going to decide about their future. By God, she hopes it will be a good decision.
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Thank you for reading. Let me know what you think ;)
21 Aug 2023. 10:15 pm AEST.
