He took a sip; the cold refreshment soothed his throat as it went down. The woman then handed a glass of water to her husband and resumed her seat. Only the sound of the water sloshing about in Mr. Blue’s glass could be heard during a bout of uncomfortable silence.
“Well, I’ll get right to it. I’m here because I love your daughter.” The parents’ facial expressions drew a bit more solemn. “Addison has told me how much you both mean to her. I think that’s great. I, uh, know that things have not always been good, but things are better now and I wanted to make sure, since she loves you both so much I paid you both a visit. You hadn’t met me yet, so with you seeing me in person and talking to me, I am hopeful it make a difference.” He took a deep breath then continued. “I’ve decided to do this without her knowledge, as I explained to you on the phone. The reason being that I love Addison so much, that I want to marry her. I plan to ask her to marry me, but first, I wanted to come here and request for your daughter’s hand in marriage.”
“We don’t know you,” the father said sternly before setting the glass of water down and clasping his hands over his lap. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, Aiden, that’s rare in this day and age, but one visit is not going to make me feel okay about you marrying my daughter. It’s not personal, either, so please don’t be insulted but it’s just that I have to be honest.” Aiden nodded in understanding, determined not to respond and play it cool at this act of resistance. “After what we’ve been through it would take years, quite frankly, for us to be okay with Addison walking down the aisle again. I know though that that’s not realistic.” He chuckled sadly.
“I understand your concerns, Mr. Blue. But Addison is smart. I think you can trust her on this.”
“Yes, she’s a smart woman, a beautiful driven young lady. Any man in his right mind would want to court and marry my daughter as far as I’m concerned. Furthermore, I can’t tell Addison who to marry and commit to, but, in my opinion, she’s too trusting and leaps before she looks. She wears her heart on her sleeve and it has always led to trouble.”
Aiden could see a wave of sorrow come over the man’s face. He couldn’t fault him for being protective of his children and apparently, this Daniel guy had done a real number on not just Addison, but the entire family. He took a sip of his water and gathered his thoughts.
“I can only imagine how badly you feel about what happened to Addison with her ex-husband, Daniel. I’m not Daniel though, Mr. Blue. He and I are two totally different men and though the past should be a lesson to us all, this also means that just as you are not the same as many of your peers, neither am I. I don’t know the man, but I know from what has been shared that he and I are like night and day. For one, I come from humble beginnings.”
“Yes, Addison has told us quite a bit about you,” her mother spoke up. The lady’s voice was just as commanding as her husband’s, but her facial expression was softer. “We don’t judge people by their economic status. We understand what you do for a living. Addison told us a little about your background and your aspirations to move up the corporate ladder. She says you’re brilliant and quite resourceful. She also said that you’ve got a knack for working with people. That’s good, but how you treat our daughter and how you conduct yourself is what we care about most, Aiden. Now, I agree with my husband that we are a bit uneasy and gun-shy where it pertains to Addison, all of our daughters actually, especially when it comes to such things. You and Addison have only been dating for a few months but she basically described a whirlwind romance. That’s fine; sometimes that works, but where I differ with Jim is that I do in fact trust Addison’s judgement. When she married Daniel, she was quite young and na?ve, and everyone makes mistakes.” The woman took another sip of her drink that was there upon his arrival. She held it tight as if needing it desperately. “So, I do want to hear more about you. I have a few questions to get the ball rolling.”
“Of course, yes, ask me whatever you want.” Setting his glass down on the table between them, he gave the woman his undivided attention.
“Thank you. First, please tell us what you love about our daughter. Secondly, what you think you can bring to the table, and lastly, why you wish to marry her.”
Clearing his throat, he began, “I love Addison, Mrs. Blue, because she reminded me of who I am.” Emotions he’d suppressed welled within him. “I am going to be real with you. I was going through quite a hurdle when she and I first met. I wasn’t the problem, but I had a family situation that was wreaking havoc in my life. It was stressful and causing me problems. Look, I am not going to beat around the bush and I don’t know if you’ll look down on me for this, but I can’t change anything about it and I won’t apologize for it either. My mother is an alcoholic, okay?” Addison’s mother sported an unreadable expression, almost as though he’d hadn’t said anything important at all. Her husband looked much the same way, and he wasn’t sure what to make of this. But, he’d keep going. Besides, he’d already peeled back the ugly layers. There was no turning back.
“And your father?” the man asked.
“And my father? Well, I don’t know him, Mr. Blue.” This time, he did see a reaction. It wasn’t exaggerated or over the top, but it was a definite look of concern. “I have a brother who I am very close to. I’ve got great friends from all walks of life. I’m college educated and goal-oriented. Most importantly though, I try to treat people right. I like to make people laugh and have a good time.” At this, Mrs. Blue smiled. “Addison came to me looking for work so she could start fresh after not finding much success searching on her own. The more she and I talked… she came into the office, we spoke on the phone… the stronger our connection became and yeah, it did happen fast.”
“Addison explained that when she initially went out with you, she wasn’t searching for another life partner, just a friend, but yes, she too admitted she soon saw you as so much more.”
“I obviously totally agree. I don’t think either one of us knew what hit us. We weren’t opposed to a relationship obviously, but it just happened in a way neither of us expected. I couldn’t stop thinking about her. I didn’t know it at the time, but I came to her looking for love, Mr. and Mrs. Blue, and we both got more than we ever bargained for. In her, I see a friend to me… one who loved me enough to show me that I was worth more than I gave myself credit for. I can’t stand selfishness in people. It ticks me off. But your daughter taught me that it was okay to be selfish when it came to my own wellbeing. Addison is… she’s just, so good to me and for me. She’s funny, she’s determined. She’s a great listener, too.”