Samuel stared at the clock in the classroom, it was half two which meant he only had half an hour left.

stifling a yawn, he tried to focus on what teacher was saying, but his mind kept wandering. He would be graduating high school and in two weeks he'd be turning eighteen. He hadn't decided yet if he should be excited or worried.

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He ran a hand through his short brown hair. Where most of his friends and peers were excited to be eighteen because it meant freedom and 'being an adult' Samuel felt an unusual burden about it.

Eighteen didn't mean freedom for him, it actually signaled the end of his freedom thanks to his parents. Once he turned eighteen or perhaps after he graduated, he'd be stepping into an arranged marriage. His parents didn't try to hide it from him as they thought it would be better for him to know early on so it didn't shock him so badly when he was 18.

He had thought about it a lot growing, what kind of person would this girl be, would she want to be with him, what did it mean for his life after that and so on. No matter how much he thought about it though, he couldn't be upset with his parents because he understood the circumstances. Besides, they were always very good to him and his younger siblings and made sure they couldn't want for anything as long as it was in their capabilities.

Samuel had his own dreams he wanted to follow, such as getting into college and becoming a mathematician. He hadn't given up on this dream yet because he did consider the fact that maybe whoever this girl was wouldn't have a problem with him going to college..After all, they'd both only be 18 with plenty of time to get used to each other before deciding on kids and such.

He didn't realize how much he had spaced out until he felt an eraser hit the back of his head seconds before the bell went off.

"Dude, I was trying to get your attention for the last five minutes." His best friend Roger huffed as he approached the others desk, already having packed his school stuff before the teacher dismissed.

"Sorry I've been a bit distracted." Samuel apologized as he started putting his books and other things back into his backpack.

"Really I couldn't tell at all." the other replied sarcastically. "Got marriage on your mind?" he asked as they walked out of the classroom after everyone else had already left. Roger was the only friend he had let in on the secret and only because the guy wouldn't stop bothering about why he never had a girlfriend or seemed interested.

They made an odd pair of friends for anyone who saw them. Samuel was the charming studious looking type while Roger was the jock who played running back for the schools football team and looked every bit the jock type but cared a bit more about studying than others around.

"Well I only have two weeks left at most before I'll be meeting her." Samuel replied with a sigh.

"Maybe we should throw you a special after graduation party. You know maybe inviting some friends, some ladies, I even know where to get some alcohol." He smirked at the end of his offer.

"You know my parents would never allow it. I don't mind some kind of graduation celebration but keep it pg.13 otherwise my parents will ban me from ever going out again even if my future partner doesn't care."

"What they don't know, can't hurt them." Roger offered causing Samuel to give him a wry smile. If only he knew the full truth of the situation, he might think different.

"Nice try, but let's keep it to bowling and dinner with some friends, preferably respectable friends."

"You offend me, all my friends are respectable fellows even if you don't know them." He rolled his eyes at the jock, they both knew that was debatable, but Roger liked to pretend they were decent people since they were nice to him and never got him in trouble.

"Right, keep thinking that. I need to get home so call me later and try to change my mind. You only got a few days left to do it." He shouted at the other as he stepped into the car and shut the door and as the other gave him a wave in response.