"Aiden , what am I supposed to do?" Grace Li mumbled, her face buried in her arms, sounding like a lost little girl.
Aiden Thompson raised his hand and pulled her tightly into his arms. "What you need to do is trust me. I promise, I'll handle everything. I'll do whatever it takes to get my parents to accept you, and you don't need to worry about my dad being affected by me. As for whether we'll be happy together, that's up to us. You have to believe in me. I can't deal with the idea that, while I'm fighting for us, you'd just give up on me."
Grace Li, always the practical one, had gone through all the pros and cons and decided she wasn't right for Aiden Thompson. But she'd ignored how Aiden felt. He was trying so hard, but now she was saying she wanted to give up. It was like two soldiers guarding a fortress—one was still fighting hard while the other was thinking about retreating. It was painful.
Grace Li thought to herself—love isn't like other things. You can't break it down logically. Love, by nature, isn't rational.
Grace Li quietly rested her head against his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Aiden, can you give me just a little more time?"
Aiden Thompson kissed the top of her head. "Yeah, okay."
**
Aiden Thompson showed up at the office right on time at 9 AM the next day. He was dressed in a new outfit—he had stayed over at Grace Li's place, and he didn't take a single thing from his bag there.
Vera Thompson spotted him and, curious as always, followed him into his office, closing the door behind her.
"Stayed out all night and still managed to get here so early? You some kind of superhero?"
Aiden Thompson kept his expression serious. "All thanks to you."
Her tone hinted he was blaming her. Vera Thompson crossed her arms. "Well, you should be thanking me. You know, Mom wanted to go see her, but I said I'd take on the bad guy role. I didn't say anything too crazy to your precious girlfriend, so you oughta be grateful."
Aiden Thompson flipped through a document on his desk, uninterested. "Stay out of my business with her from now on."
Vera Thompson leaned on his desk, amused. "I swear, now I feel like I've done something wrong here."
Aiden Thompson looked up, eyes sharp. "You did do something wrong. You nearly made my girlfriend decide to leave me. You almost got away with it."
"Oh?" Vera Thompson jumped on the word "almost." "So, you two haven't broken up yet?"
"Disappointed?"
"Nope. Why would I be disappointed? Actually, I should be happy," Vera Thompson said, giving him a teasing smile. "You keep working on it. I actually get along with Grace Li. If she ever comes over to our place, I'll never be bored again."
"If she marries me, she'll be my wife. It's not your business."
"Eh," Vera smirked. "We'll see who wins. Who knows, I might end up being best friends with her, and you still won't have her."
Aiden Thompson wasn't in the mood to argue over something so petty. "I need you to do something for me."
Vera Thompson instinctively asked, "What?"
"I want to have a serious talk with Mom and Dad tonight, at home."
"What can I do to help?"
"I don't want them to know ahead of time. You need to set it up. Also, tell Dr. Johnson, our family doctor, to be on standby near the house between 8 and 9 PM. If anything goes down, he needs to be able to get here fast."
Vera Thompson frowned. This sounded like Aiden Thompson was planning something big. "Dad just got out of the hospital. Can't you wait a little longer?"
"Don't worry. I'm just covering all my bases. I'll be careful."
Vera Thompson still wasn't convinced. "Aiden Thompson, I really think it'd be better to wait until after the shareholders' meeting."
"No," Aiden Thompson said firmly. "There are some things I need to say to them."
Aiden Thompson was stubborn, just like Rex Thompson, and Vera Thompson had the same strong-willed nature. The three of them were pretty similar in that way.
In the end, she relented. "Alright, but I gotta warn you—don't go too far."
"I know."
"Okay, I'll let you know once I've set everything up."
"Thanks."
**
Aiden Thompson sat in the family activity room at home, and Rex and Mabel Thompson were also there. During dinner, Vera Thompson had mentioned a new and super fun version of Monopoly she'd found, and suggested they all play together.
The Thompson family's activity room was spacious and cozy, with a large coffee table in the center surrounded by soft sofas. Bookshelves on the walls were filled with a variety of books, magazines, and family photos.
Vera Thompson quickly set up the Monopoly game and, with a grin, said, "Mom, Dad, Aiden, this game is awesome! We've never really played it seriously before, so let's make tonight fun!"
Mabel Thompson looked intrigued. "Sounds like a blast, let's get started. I'm excited!"
Rex Thompson nodded, but glanced at Aiden Thompson. He was sharp and immediately noticed that this game might be more complicated than expected.
Vera turned to Rex. "Dad, I know you'll love this game. It'll probably remind you of playing games when you were younger."
Rex Thompson chuckled. "Let's hope. Just don't pull out any of your weird ideas."
Aiden Thompson wasn't really in the mood to play. He set down his game piece and said, "Mom, Dad, there's something I need to talk to you both about."
Rex and Mabel Thompson both turned to look at him. Mabel saw his serious expression and probably guessed what was coming. She knew this conversation might turn into another argument between father and son. Quickly, she said, "Aiden, we're finally having a family game night. Can't it wait until later?"
Rex Thompson casually set down his game piece. "Let him talk, it's been on his mind."
Aiden gave them a little warning. "What I'm about to say might upset you, Dad. If it makes you uncomfortable, I'll stop right away."
Rex Thompson grunted, "Stop dragging it out, just say it."
Aiden Thompson liked sitting on the balcony with Grace Li, talking openly about his feelings, but he realized he'd never really done that with his family. So, today, he decided to give it a shot.
He looked at his parents and began slowly. "Last year, after the fight with you, Dad, I left home and went to New York. While I was there, I met someone. She's taught me a lot—about how to handle people, work, and even family relationships. She told me that even though sometimes her parents' actions hurt her, they're still the ones who care most about her. They want the best for her, and she really values her family. When I heard that, I thought of you guys. You're my closest family, and I know you want the best for me. So, if we don't always see eye to eye, we should communicate instead of letting things blow up."
"The person I'm talking about is my girlfriend, Grace Li. She used to be my boss. She's rational and mature, and I'm with her because I want to spend my life with her, not because of a whim. When I met her, I only had enough money to cover two months' rent, and she made more than me. She had no idea who I really was, so you don't need to worry about her being after my money. In fact, though she comes from a modest family, she's worked really hard and built a solid life for herself. She's not any different from those trust fund kids. We've been living together for seven or eight months now, and we get along really well. Our values align. I'm sure she's the one I want to be with."
After Aiden finished, Rex Thompson scoffed. "That sounds nice, but I looked into her. She's older than you, comes from a regular family, and her parents are just regular workers. She's not a good match for you."
Aiden Thompson remained calm. "I'm an adult. I have the right to choose my partner. I want to be with someone I like. But just because she's a few years older and comes from a regular background, you're completely dismissing her. I'm your son, not a puppet. If you want to control my life, what's left for me to decide?"
Rex Thompson grunted, "What's that supposed to mean? You think we're trying to control you? We're just telling you from experience, we hope you'll find the right person. Is that wrong? Look at your sister—she didn't listen to us, and her marriage turned into a mess. You really want to make the same mistake?"
Aiden shook his head. "That's not the same thing. It's like saying you shouldn't fly just because there's a slight risk of an accident."
He kept his tone calm, trying to avoid escalating the situation. He knew that if he lost his temper, Rex would get defensive. Staying cool helped lower the chances of conflict. "I'm an adult. I can take responsibility for my own decisions."
Mabel Thompson, who had been silent until now, spoke up. "Aiden, you're too close to it. Right now, she seems fine, but women age faster than men. In a few years, you'll understand why we're worried. We're not trying to control you, we just don't want you to make a mistake. We've already compromised once with your sister. We don't want to see you make the same one."
At that point, Vera Thompson spoke up. "Mom, I've met Grace Li. She's really great. I know you may not trust my judgment, but you haven't even met her, and you're already judging her. That's not fair to Aiden."
Rex Thompson's face tightened. "You two, did you plan this? One of you says one thing, the other agrees—it's like I can't catch a break!"
Seeing his dad's frustration, Aiden knew defending Grace Li too much wasn't going to help. His parents had already made up their minds that he was making a mistake. So, he changed tactics. "Dad, we're both stubborn. Since neither of us can convince the other, why don't we meet halfway?"
Rex raised an eyebrow. "Meet halfway? How?"
"I started a venture capital firm with Grace Li in New York. We planned to grow the company and build a life together. Running the family business wasn't in my plan. I'm willing to step back and follow your lead on business matters, but in my personal life, you need to respect my decision."
Rex scoffed. "You think I'm the only one who can run the family business?"
"If you have a better candidate, I'm all for it."
"What if I don't agree?" Rex's face turned red with anger. "You going to run off again like last time?"
Aiden Thompson kept his eyes on his father, watching his body language carefully. He held back the urge to argue and took a deep breath. "No. Like I said, I'm an adult now. I won't just leave without considering how you feel. And Grace Li wouldn't support me doing that either. That's why I'm trying to talk it out with you."
After a pause, Aiden added, "I'm not asking for an immediate decision. If you don't agree today, I'll keep working on it."
Rex Thompson's chest rose and fell with a sigh, but he didn't explode. Aiden saw that as a small victory. The conversation could drag on, but it was getting late, and the family doctor was on standby outside. He decided to wrap things up.
"We don't need to make a decision tonight. It's late, Dad. You should get some rest," Aiden said, standing up. "I've got some work to handle."
Rex Thompson opened his mouth to say something but, seeing Aiden turning to leave, he just sighed in resignation.
This kid... there's no winning with him!