Page 10 of Goodbye To Tomorrow

Later that night after leaving Gracen's place, I burst into my parents’ vast sitting room for the second time in a day. The look on my face wasn't anything close to what it had been some hours before.

Rose came rushing in from the kitchen; the swinging door slamming against its frame. The sound echoed through the house as the maid greeted me with a surprised look on her face.

"Mr. Jiraiya.”

"Where is father?" I thundered, stopping whatever dialogue might come next.

The shock on Rose’s weathered face switched immediately to a look of concern. Her mouth remained open, but nothing was said.

I wasn’t in the mood to stop and explain things to Rose. I headed in the direction of the stairs in quick movement. Just then, swift footsteps filled the air. My mother came rushing down from the second-floor landing. She had a troubled look on her face.

"What's wrong Jiraiya?" She enquired; a visible look of concern mottled her face. "We weren't expecting you again so soon. I thought I heard you shouting. "

I stopped in my stride.

"Where is father, mother?" I asked, paying no mind to the questions asked or the troubled expression on her face.

"Is anything the matter?" She asked again, trying to understand what was going on.

Just as I was about to speak further, a voice came from the upper level staircase.

"You can't marry her!" The voice said calmly, albeit sternly.

"And why is that, father? Is it because of your domineering nature— a habit which you have refused to let go or overcome—or because you are just too unhappy yourself to want to see your only son happy?" I thundered in protest.

"I don’t give a damn about ruining your happiness if happiness is with that bimbo. You can't marry her and that’s that!” My father said again in his thunderous and, at the same time, demanding voice.

"You see that, mother? You see?" I asked, turning my gaze towards my mother with my arms swung wide apart, gesturing my cluelessness about my father's behavior.

"Why do you have to be so damn overbearing? I don’t see how the hell you put up with him all these years mother, father has always wanted to have his way on things that don’t concern him. But this time, it's not going to happen. I won't let it." I shouted turning my gaze back to my father, who had remained on the top landing of the stairs.

“Listen for a minute Son, you have—"

"You heard what I said before, father? I won't let you stop my happiness!" I said in exasperation, cutting him off.

“Calm down Son. Your father doesn’t..." my mother started to say but my father cut her short before she had it all out.

“Shut up Martha!” He roared.

“Oh Lord!” Rose muttered behind me. She was visibly shocked and concerned; this was the first time she had ever seen me out of control. I had always been a charming and obedient young man whenever I was around her.

"Jiraiya, you just need to calm down and let's talk this over," my mother suggested calmly, trying to douse the tension in the room.

"No disrespect but there is nothing to talk about mother." I stated in protest.

"You know I’m right don't you? How he treats you; he chooses what you wear, places you go, people you meet, and the food you eat? It's inherent in him; it's his nature," I added shaking my head from side to side.

"We’ve put up with this attitude for so long. But I'm no longer having any of it! I had to go through all the unhealthy existence of schooling in that despicable boarding school as a child and you called that the perfect upbringing. As if that weren’t enough, you only came visiting once in two months when other children had their parents come visit them at least twice a month."

“Please, don’t Jiraiya. My problems with your father don’t concern you,” my mother had a pleading look in her eyes.

Something must really be terribly wrong with mother to defend a beast of a man like my father, I thought to myself as I stood there, confused and angry. I had lied to Gracen when I said my parents were cool. I had done it so she wouldn't worry.

"And look how you turned out, Son." My father cut me to shreds in his rant.

"Yeah, I own one of the top real estate firms in the country and I get involved in a variety of charity events. It doesn't change the fact that I am not happy with your behavior towards Gracen! And you have made it so with your uncompromising ways," I responded in my rebuttals. "Nothing that I ever do is grand enough for you.”

"Son, she is a model for Christ’s sake. How can any decent young lady even choose that as a profession? Don't you see the pictures?" My father asked, trying to spark some sense of reasoning from me.

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