Summer in Silvercrest City was a real scorcher. Even in the morning, one'd be drenched in sweat.
Outside City Hall, Victoria Gonzalez was fanning herself with a tiny fan, scanning the entrance like she was looking for someone.
"I must be out of my mind to marry a guy I've never even met!" Victoria muttered, smacking her forehead. She let out a deep sigh, watching newlyweds come and go.
This whole mess started a week ago. On her way to a job interview, Victoria saw an old man who had fallen. Even though she was in a rush, Victoria's kind heart couldn't ignore him. She took him to the hospital, missing her interview in the process.
But Victoria didn't mind. She started visiting the old man regularly. The old man, David Jones, was super grateful and treated her like his own granddaughter, which made Victoria feel really close to him.
One day, David called her to his bedside and said, "My grandson just got back from abroad. I want you two to meet."
Victoria froze for a second. Then it hit her—David wanted her to marry his grandson. At first, Victoria wanted to say no, but then David showed her a photo of his grandson. The guy was drop-dead gorgeous, and she hesitated.
David, reading her mind, said, "My grandson isn't just a pretty face. He's hardworking and ambitious. He has a car and a house, no loans, and some savings. He's a catch."
"Why is a guy like that still single?" Victoria asked, raising an eyebrow. She thought a guy that perfect should have women lining up. If he didn't, maybe he had some issues, like impotence.
David saw her skeptical look and rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, he's perfectly healthy. He's just a workaholic. Now that he's back, I want to set him up!"
"Oh, got it," Victoria said, smiling awkwardly.
'David's a good guy, so his grandson should be too. Plus, I really need a new place to stay!' Victoria thought. She'd been crashing at her best friend Sophia Brown's place.
But Sophia had a boyfriend, and it was getting awkward. Victoria needed to move out ASAP. Listening to Sophia's nightly activities was pure torture.
Finally, after David's relentless persuasion, Victoria caved and agreed to marry his grandson. After all, if it didn't work out, there was always divorce.
Just then, a small car covered in pink Hello Kitty decals pulled into the City Hall parking lot.
Victoria wondered which girl owned the car, but then Michael Jones stepped out of the driver's seat. She glanced at the photo in her hand and then at the man in black getting out of the car. No way her future husband liked cute stuff like that.
Michael cursed his assistant in his head. He'd asked that idiot Joseph Miller to find him a cheap car, and this was what he got.
Michael quickly spotted Victoria standing at the entrance. She was easy to find since everyone else was in pairs, and she was the only one alone.
"Are you Ms. Gonzalez?" Michael asked as he walked up.
Victoria nodded, a bit dumbstruck. Michael looked even better in person than in the photo, with a cool vibe about him.
'I can't believe a guy like Michael would drive a Hello Kitty car,' Victoria thought.
Michael noticed her eyes drifting to the car behind him and quickly blocked her view, pulling her into City Hall. "Let's get the marriage paperwork done first and then tell David the good news."
With the registration form in hand, Victoria slowly filled in her information, hesitating and occasionally glancing at Michael.
'He's gonna be my husband soon. I hope he's a good guy. I don't want to get divorced right away,' Victoria sighed inwardly.
After filling out his form, Michael suddenly looked up at Victoria. Noticing her gaze fixed on his face, Michael touched his face and asked, "Is there something on my face?"
"Yeah, elegance and handsomeness," Victoria joked. He was about to be her husband, so a bit of teasing was totally fine.
To her surprise, Michael blushed slightly. "Aren't you done yet?" Michael quickly changed the subject.
'What a clumsy way to change the subject. Blushing from a little teasing, could Michael still be a virgin?' Victoria's heart raced as she found a hint of cuteness in him.
"I'm done." Victoria handed her form to Michael.
Taking the form, Michael suddenly looked seriously at Victoria and asked, "Have you really thought this through? Are you sure you want to marry me today? Marriage is sacred. This isn't child's play."
'Does he think I'm joking?' Victoria felt a pang of resentment, and her good impression of Michael instantly dropped.
In a cold tone, Victoria said, "Mr. Jones, if you have any objections to this marriage, it's not too late to back out now."
Michael quickly shook his head, looking nervous. "No, I just worry you might not be able to accept it. Since you have no objections, I'm relieved." Then he suddenly smiled and turned to submit the application form.
'Did he just smile at me? He looks even better when he smiles.' Victoria's heart raced again. She had pegged Michael as the serious, cold type, but here he was, grinning over a simple form.
Ten minutes later, Victoria and Michael, now holding their marriage license, arrived at the parking lot.
"You can drive this car home. I still have to go to work, and my colleague will come to pick me up. By the way, do you have a driver's license?" Michael handed the car keys to Victoria. He was done with this car. Not only was it embarrassing, but his legs were too long to fit comfortably in the driver's seat.
"Don't underestimate me; I've had my license for five years!" Victoria rolled her eyes, took the car keys, and skillfully started the car.
"Maybe you can pick me up from work in the future." Michael smiled again, quickly hiding it. After giving Victoria the address of their new home, he turned and left.
"He is such a strange person. Does smiling for an extra second drain his life force?" Victoria muttered as she drove towards their new home.
After Michael told Victoria where his house was, she initially planned to navigate there, but halfway through, she changed direction and headed to Sophia's house. When she arrived, she saw Sophia and her cousin Ryan Martin.
"Victoria, did you go out job hunting again?" Sophia asked. Victoria nodded awkwardly, then shook her head. She didn't know how to explain it to Sophia.
If she had told Sophia in the morning that she was going to get married, and to someone she didn't even know, Sophia would have thought she was crazy.
"What do you mean by nodding and shaking your head?" Sophia was confused, but Ryan noticed something.
"Victoria, what's this? A marriage license? Are you getting married?" Ryan's scream almost shattered Victoria and Sophia's eardrums. Victoria was surprised at how sharp Ryan's voice was for a man.
Before Victoria could reply, Sophia let out another sharp exclamation. "Victoria! When did this happen? When did you start dating this man? Why didn't I know? You've kept this from me so well! Are we even best friends?" Sophia's barrage of questions made Victoria cover her ears in pain.
"Actually, we just met and got married. We've only known each other for a little over a month," Victoria said awkwardly.
"You dare to get married after just a month? And you didn't even tell me. Do you not love him at all?" Sophia looked at Victoria suspiciously.
Victoria pointed at the photo on the marriage documents and said, "Who says I don't love him? Look at his face. He's so handsome! And he's not just tall; he has an eight-pack. And that butt is perky."
At that moment, Michael, who had just arrived at the office, sneezed and felt an inexplicable itch on his butt. "Mr. Jones, the senior staff are already in your office waiting for you," Joseph said, handing Michael a folder.
Michael nodded and walked into the elevator. Suddenly, he remembered something and looked at Joseph. "Was it you who picked that Hello Kitty car for me? I'll deal with you later."
Joseph rolled his eyes and smiled wryly without arguing. 'You specifically said you wanted a cute car as a gift for your new wife and that it shouldn't be too expensive. Do you know how much time I spent finding that car? I even didn't sleep well last night,' Joseph thought, silently cursing Michael's ungratefulness.
Meanwhile, after Victoria finished talking about Michael's good points, Sophia hadn't said anything, but Ryan spoke up first.
"Victoria, I didn't expect you to be so shallow. If you like handsome guys, I can do it too. I'm also a handsome guy!" Ryan said, looking at Victoria with a resentful expression.
Victoria stared at Ryan for three seconds, then pulled a candy from her pocket and slapped it into his hand. "Take this and go play somewhere else," Victoria said impatiently, treating Ryan like a child.
Ryan unwrapped the candy and crunched it loudly in his mouth. He continued to look at Victoria with a resentful expression, but Victoria completely ignored him.
"I'm here today to move my stuff to my new home. Finally, I won't have to listen to you and your boyfriend's nightly activities anymore," Victoria said excitedly, running to her bedroom and pulling out a large suitcase. She had already packed her things.
Sophia, who had initially wanted to persuade Victoria, blushed at her words and didn't try to stop her anymore.
"Victoria, if you find Sophia's place too noisy, you can stay at my place. I have a three-story villa, and you can choose any room you like," Ryan said again, with a hint of pride on his face.
Victoria rolled her eyes and threw another candy at him. "Stop treating me like a child!" Ryan complained loudly.