C20 Three Month Deadline.

David had heard his phone ring incessantly. So, he picked it up right after getting out the shower only to see the face of a stunned Iris who was obviously staring at him. He had just gotten out of the shower and even his hair was still dripping wet that a few droplets trailed down the side of his nose and travelled down the corner of his lips.

“What is it?” he asked when he realised Iris had not said a word to him since he picked up the phone. Was there a point in calling someone just to blankly stare at them? David wondered and patiently waited for her to say something.

“Iris,” David called her, and she seemed to come back to her senses. She blinked her blue eyes before a smile appeared on her face.

“Did you just come out of the shower?” she asked him as she looked at his exposed neckline and collar bones.

“Mmmh,” David answered as he nonchalantly walked to his room. It was chilly in the living room.

“When are you going to visit my new place? It’s more secure than where I stayed before,” she asked and found herself looking at the white ceiling of his house. He had put down his phone to go do something else.

“All the more reason I should not go,” he said, and he appeared on the screen once more. This time, he was wearing a robe so whatever view she had been enjoying from before had become obstructed. How disappointing!

“I really have no hope, right?” she asked, and David fell silent. He was not sure of how to answer her. He was interested in her, maybe not as much as she was in him. But at the same time, he felt it was inappropriate because of their age gap.

He did not want to hold back such a young and beautiful girl because of his own desires. When he thought of how she would be 28 when he turned forty, it really felt wrong.

“Since you remained silent, I’ll take that as I still have hope. I’ll just have to work harder,” she said, and David only pursed his lips together as he looked at the girl on his phone screen.

“I won’t keep you for long, I’m sure you are busy. I have an early day tomorrow, so I’ll go to sleep first, good night David,” she said with a smile, but it did not carry the usual radiance it did. It looked like he had really disappointed her.

“Good night, Iris,” David said, and they ended the call. The smile on Iris’s face fell as soon as the call ended, and she sighed deeply as she threw herself on the bed.

Why was it so hard? She was very confident in the beginning, but she was having doubts about herself. Especially since she had not seen David in a long time. She was also feeling quite frustrated because her efforts were all one-sided and although David was not indifferent nor was he disinterested in her, he still was not making any moves.

Iris sighed again before burying herself in her covers. She was going to sleep first and think about it after she finished filming.

*

David was also feeling quite conflicted himself. His actions had been leading her on from the start. But he felt very drawn to her. Her confidence and her boldness were what moved him the most. If he had been like her when he was her age, maybe he would not have been in such a farce of a marriage in the first place.

As he sat in his study to resume work, his phone rang again. This time it was his mother. His eyebrows wrinkled as he picked up his phone.

“Yes?” he asked as he wanted her to get straight to the point,

“My son! How are you doing? Are you taking care of yourself?” she asked him.

“Mmmh,” he replied. Most people would get dissuaded when they got such non-committal responses, but his mother could carry an entire conversation even if you don’t make a single sound.

“How is work?” she asked him.

“Busy,” he answered as he flipped a page of the document sitting in front of him.

“Don’t just work all day, you should go out to mingle with people,” his mother said, and he sighed. He knew this was a prelude to her nagging.

“Your wife passed away, but are you intending to stay single for the rest of your life? You don’t even have a child yet! Who is going to take care of the business when you are old and grey? Who is going to take care of you?!” she continued. David pressed at his temples as he felt he was having a headache.

“I was talking to one of my friends a few days ago and she has a beautiful daughter, she is a career woman and only twenty-nine, I told her you will go and meet her, so tomorrow meet her for lunch I’ll send you the details,” his mother said, her voice sounding serious. In all honesty, he was not interested at all.

“Mother, I’ll just adopt a child, I don’t need to go on blind dates,” David said. It was the longest sentence he had spoken through the entire phone call.

“Adopt?! You dare to adopt, but you don’t dare to have your own? Are you planning on staying single for the rest of your life?” she asked, and he sighed again. This is why he avoided talking to his mother. It has been a month now since she started nagging him about dating.

“If I marry, it’ll be someone I want,” he said with no space for arguments.

“I didn’t ask you to marry the girl, I asked you to meet her, if you like her, you can marry her. If you don’t, I’ll introduce you to someone else,” she said and he was rendered speechless.

“I’ll send you the details, so go see her, okay?” she said, her tone turning gentle.

“I know I won’t be interested, there’s no need. I don’t have the time,” David said. He had to avoid going because if he goes once, his mother will have him meeting women become part of his work schedule.

“How do you know? Do you have someone you like?” she asked, and David fell silent. Even if he liked her, he was hesitant about tying her to himself.

“Since nothing is holding you back, then go and meet her,” his mother said.

“I’ll find someone in six months, okay?” he tried to negotiate. Even if he did not find anyone, he would have some reprieve for at least half a year before the nagging resumed.

“No, two weeks,” his mother argued, and he was speechless. What kind of bargaining was this?

“Six months,” he insisted, but his mother was stuck on two weeks.

“How can I find someone in two weeks?” he asked. She was being unreasonable.

“I can find one for you by then if you listen to me,” she said, and he sighed again.

“Four months, hm? That should be okay, right?” he asked.

“Two weeks,” she said. She still felt it was too long.

“Three months,” he bargained.

“Okay, in three months I want to see her,” his mother said and ended the call. He felt like she had played him! In all these years as a successful businessman, he has never met such an unreasonable person.

He had never been in such a passive situation before. It felt new and ridiculous at the same time. As a person who made demands, he finally experienced how it felt like being on the other side.