��Sarah?�� Danica breathed out, a wide smile spread across her lips and she shifted her gaze to the well-suited man, who looked like the older version of Troy, just the difference was that Stephen Kingston got green eyes, while both of his children got blue eyes of Sarah. His hair was chestnut, the same as Troy��s and Gabrielle��s was ginger hair as Sarah��s. ��Stephen?��
Sarah and Stephen gave a smile at each other before Sarah engulfed Danica into a warm hug at the doorstep. ��How are you, love?�� Sarah asked, caressing Danica��s hair. ��You look as stunning as usual.��
��I am fine now since I saw you and Stephen. I am very happy,�� she replied and freed herself from the hug. Then she gave a hug to Stephen, who returned it.
Danica had a nice bonding with Troy��s parents. They have always supported and adored her. Moreover, Troy��s mother and Danica��s father were best friends and became famous chefs at the same time. They did plenty of cooking competitions as a pair. Danica��s mother and Troy��s father were business partners. Stephen ran the Kingston Fashion, so when Larisa Waylon said that she wanted to establish her business, Stephen helped her. The two families were really close friends.
��Mom, Dad?�� Troy uttered as he got downstairs to tell Danica that it was a prank. ��What a pleasant surprise!��
After Troy hugged his parents, they made the servants take their luggage to the guest room and decided to sit in the living room with Danica and Troy. Danica ordered a maid to bring fresh orange juice for them.
She sat next to Sarah while Troy was sitting beside his father.
��I see, a lot has changed this summer,�� Stephen commented. ��I was wondering by next summer, what if I find my children married already?��
��Steph,�� Sarah spoke, narrowing her eyes in Stephen��s direction. ��I am one-hundred percent sure that my children won��t marry without us. I don��t know about you, but they will surely include me, right?�� She looked at Danica with hopeful eyes.
��Marriage?�� Danica uttered, feeling nervous at the thought of it. She was young, so was Troy, Gabrielle, and Trevor. Danica didn��t want to get married until she was fully settled with a fixed job or maybe a business. She wanted to have a career at first before starting a family. She had to secure Aziel��s future too.
Sensing Danica��s nervousness, Troy said, ��Of course, we will inform the two of you. But for now, marriage is off-topic.��
��Okay, but we saw your live proposal on WhyNTube, Troy. After seeing that, we came to a conclusion,�� Sarah started speaking and others remained quiet, waiting for her to continue, which she did. ��Gabrielle and Trevor, Troy and Danica, these two couples shall be married on the same day, whenever y��all decide to marry, you can. But the timing shall be the same so that we can be the happiest parents alive in the world.��
��This is a nice idea,�� Danica said, thinking about her and Gabrielle walking down the aisle together as a dual wedding. It would really be a perfect grand dual wedding.
��I know, right?�� Sarah gazed at Danica, her eyes glinting in happiness.
Troy and Stephen shared a look before Troy cleared his throat, saying, ��Okay, so I think, Mom and Dad should freshen up at first and take some rest as they came from a journey.��
___
Danica was in her room, checking her emails to find whether any of those seemed important. It was almost evening already. When her eyes fell on one specific email, a gasp escaped her lips.
Her senior year would start soon, so she had to go back to New Jersey after two days. Aziel��s school would start after a week, she got mail for that as well. She had to leave once again, her heart clenched at that thought. It was her last year, so she could return after her university ended and stay with Troy forever. But the problem was, would Troy agree to be in a long-distance relationship for now?
She got up from the chair and took faint steps towards Troy��s room. She knocked for a while and when no sound was heard, she got in, only to find the room empty.
She texted Troy immediately.
Danica: Where are you?
He replied at that instant.
Troy: Studio.
Danica rushed to the studio and waited at the resting room, not wanting to interrupt his video shooting. She was quite worried about how she should break the news to him. Once Troy was done shooting the video, he entered the resting room and pulled her into a kiss.
��What��s wrong?�� he asked Danica after their kiss, seeing her tensed.
She glanced at his handsome face, wondering how she would break the news to him. ��Troy, I received an email.��
��Which is��?�� he trailed off, waiting for her to speak.
She sucked in a deep breath and let out, ��My classes shall start soon. I have to return to New Jersey after two days.��
Troy��s grip tightened over Danica��s waist. He asked intimidatingly, ��So, what do you suggest?��
��I will return to California along with Aziel after my senior year in Princeton ends,�� she said. Even though her heart was aching and she wished that this summer vacation should never come to an end, she had to choose a path. ��Till then, let��s do a long-distance relationship.��
Placing his thumb over her chin, he mumbled, ��That��s not happening, love. I won't agree to a long-distance relationship.��
��But Troy, what else can h���� she was interrupted by Troy, who freed her from his grip.
��Do whatever you want, Dani. Book the tickets, go away. Don��t worry about me,�� he declared, knowing he couldn't stop her. He couldn't be as selfish as to hold her back, neither could he be as selfless as to be happy at the moment. He was sad and angry at the same time.
��Then what about our relationship?�� she asked, her voice trembling at that point. She didn't want to hurt him anymore, yet she knew that she had hurt him with this news.
Closing his eyes, Troy said, ��I waited three years for you. Waiting for one more year might work.�� With that, he got out of the room, leaving Danica alone.
A tear slid through Danica��s eyes at the thought of not having any contact with Troy for another year, now that everything was going smoothly. She had to complete her education though.
With shaky hands, she took her phone and booked two tickets for New Jersey, leaving the future of their relationship over the hands of fate.
