CHAPTER 27: WILL YOU MARRY ME?

Three months later.

Baby Jacob is growing fast. He was adorably cute. His cheeks looked chubby like dumplings and he is now three months old.

"Oohs aahhw..." Baby Jacob was cooing, making baby sounds, smiling, while interacting with his mother.

Naomi can’t get enough of her son. "I love you so much, my son," she said, kissing his tiny feet and gazing into his big eyes. Her love for her son radiates through her eyes. She loves being a mother to baby Jacob. The feeling is gloriously satisfying and rewarding.

"I’ll take care of Jacob. You can have your shower now," Alpha Maxwell told Naomi.

Naomi went to the bathroom for a quick shower.

Twenty minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom door, feeling refreshed.

Baby Jacob was crying.

"What happened?" she asked.

"I think he needs to be fed now," he replied.

"OK, I will breastfeed him." Naomi gets into the bed and makes herself comfortable.

Alpha Maxwell gently places baby Jacob in her arms.

Naomi was breastfeeding her son while Alpha Maxwell settled beside her, holding the TV’s remote control, ready to find a good documentary to watch.

But before he could find anything worthy of watching, Zero spoke. "Guys, I have something important to tell you. I need your full attention," he said.

The couple looked up at the ceiling.

"Bring it on, Zero. We are listening," Naomi said.

Zero continued: "You have been here for more than a year. The outside world has almost forgotten your existence. It’s about time you left this place and returned to your family..."

The news exploded in the couple’s ears like a bomb, shattering their peace of mind.

They don’t know how to react. They were speechless.

They are excited to go home but also apprehensive about facing the unpredictable world outside.

Zero asked, "What? No jumping up and down because of extreme happiness? You are finally going home. Aren’t you excited to regain your freedom and leave this forsaken place for good?"

The couple was still dumbfounded.

The surge of emotions overwhelmed them.

"Honestly, I don’t know what to say," Naomi said. The truth is that she was getting so used to the walls of this windowless room that she already considered it her second home. So many memories took place in this room. Because of this room, a lovely family was created out of captivity.

She looked at her companion beside her. Alpha Maxwell was staring at the TV screen in complete silence. "Did you hear the good news? Why are you not saying anything? Are you okay?" she asked, nudging him with her elbow.

"I’m fine. I’m processing the good news in my brain right now," he replied calmly.

Zero asked, "Aren’t you going to say anything guys?"

Naomi raised her head. "Um, we are happy of course!"

"I’m happy for you two. Finally after a long wait, you will go home next month. Congratulations!" Zero said.

Naomi glanced at the calendar. "Oh my, we only have two weeks left in this room!" she exclaimed, shocked.

Alpha Maxwell took a deep breath. "Anything else we need to know?" He asked, as a multitude of thoughts flooded his mind. He couldn’t concentrate.

Zero dropped another explosive bomb. "The management wants to know if you guys want to get married here in the facility? The President wants you to get married before you leave this place. He can make it possible, guys! Isn’t that an amazing news?"

Stunned, the couple looked at each other, shocked by the unexpected offer.

They were unable to utter a single word. Lots of things swirling in their heads at that moment.

Alpha Maxwell was the first to speak. "Sweetie, will you marry me here in the facility?"

Tears of happiness filled Naomi’s eyes. "Yessss!"

Zero was thrilled. "Wow, I’m glad you will be married here and all the staff will be your witnesses. Awesome! We are happy for you guys! I will inform the management of your wish to get married. We will have lavish preparations, of course. It’s going to be a memorable event we will never forget."

The couple looked at each other. Astonishment flashed in their eyes.

"Are you sure we are tying the knot here?" Naomi finally asked. "I said yes on the spur of the moment. But is it legal? I’m shocked," she said, still reeling from the magnitude of everything that had happened.

"Why not? Our love story while in captivity deserves a happy ending. I don’t mind marrying you here. We have beautiful memories here that will last a lifetime. We met here, and we fell in love with each other. Then you got pregnant and finally gave birth to our beloved son Jacob. And now we are going to get married. All happening in the same place. It’s like a lifetime journey. Our love story is truly amazing, right?" Alpha Maxwell said, kissing her cheeks sweetly.

Naomi nodded her head. "Yeah, our love story is nothing but ordinary. It’s unbelievable, surreal and absurd in so many ways," she said breathlessly. "I sometimes think we are living in a fantasy. I’m afraid I will wake up one day and realize this is all a dream, not real," she said nervously.

"I understand your fear and apprehension, sweetie. But this adorable baby boy, busy drinking your milk is a living testimony to our love. Everything that occurs in this room is real. Our love is real. Our son is real. We are both real. And we are going to leave this place soon with our son. I’m excited to go home," Alpha Maxwell said, planting a kiss on her head.

"Our impending freedom, and then the wedding? Gosh, two good news in just one day. I still have a hard time processing everything. We’ve been waiting for this for a long time. It’s like a century has passed, so many things have happened to us in this windowless room," Naomi stated, completely mystified.

"Yeah, but our love is stronger than ever before. With our love, we can face anything and everything, so let’s enjoy the wedding, and whatever it is that they are planning for us. OK? Let’s just stop worrying. Let’s just go with the flow," Alpha Maxwell said, trying to put her mind at ease.

"OK, you are right. We are leaving this place next month, so let’s just savor our last days here," Naomi replied with a smile.

Zero spoke, "Guys, sorry to disturb your private conversation. The management has already set up the wedding which will take place this coming Saturday. All staff will attend the wedding. Naomi you are going to wear a real wedding gown and Alpha Maxwell will wear a tuxedo. In a moment, we will be sending you a wedding magazine to choose the design of your wedding attire and then a tape measure so you can give us your body measurement."

Naomi grinned, amused. "Really? You are not joking right?" she asked.

"Actually I’m serious. There will be a wedding cake, delicious food and drinks for everyone to enjoy. It will be a real wedding with a minister officiating the wedding ceremony. Guys, we are going to give you the wedding that you deserve so that when you leave this place and encounter difficulties outside you will remember the wedding vows you made to each other," Zero elaborated further.

Alpha Maxwell smiled. "Will the president attend the wedding?" he asked.

"They will attend the wedding in a secured room. Women will wear white dresses while men will wear suits. I’m going to attend too. Everyone will be wearing face masks for security reasons," Zero said.

"Interesting!" Alpha Maxwell blurted. He was about to lash out at Zero but he realized that they were going to be freed soon. He doesn’t want to give them any reasons to change their minds. He must not do anything that might anger them, resulting in him and Naomi being unable to leave next month. He will just behave for the sake of freedom. He can’t wait to go home and put his life back on track.

"Guys, I just want you to know that we are never your enemies. Things happen for a good reason. Baby Jacob is the greatest by-product of your sweet love that blossoms beautifully in this room. You have created a beautiful family here. We all hope that you will keep loving each other outside and will stay strong for each other," Zero said.

Alpha Maxwell finally snapped. "Do you want us to just forget what you did to us? You kidnapped us against our will, and it was illegal. You have put us in this situation, giving us no option to object. Now you are trying to pacify us by giving us a wedding ceremony as a farewell gift to appease our anger? Is this wedding shenanigan meant to offset the severity of the crime you subjected us to?" Alpha Maxwell snarled.

A few seconds of tense silence enveloped the room.

Then Zero spoke, "What happened has already happened. We can’t change our past. The only thing we can do is move on forward and do better in the future. The fate of your love story depends on what you do after you go home. Will you reconcile with your old love and forget about each other? Or fight anyone to protect the love you had for each other? Which is it gonna be? Just remember, whatever your decision is, baby Jacob’s well-being must always be your top priority. I have said my piece. That’s all."

Alpha Maxwell fell silent. No use antagonizing Zero. He is, after all, just an employee receiving orders from the mastermind.

Naomi bit her lip, bothered by Zero’s speech. Will Alpha Maxwell choose his old lover and forget about her?

The room was enveloped in silence.

After a tense silence, the rectangular opening delivered a package.

Alpha Maxwell stood up and picked up the wedding magazine and tape measure. He put it on the bed.

"Are you still willing to marry me?" Naomi asked anxiously.

Alpha Maxwell doesn’t want to dampen Naomi’s enthusiasm about their upcoming fake wedding. He kissed her lips. "Yes of course! The wedding will continue. I will marry you," he said reassuringly.

Naomi smiled and picked up the magazine. She began browsing the endless wedding gown designs to choose from.

After a few minutes of browsing, she chose a simple and elegant long sleeve flowing white gown with lace detailing.

Alpha Maxwell also chose a three-piece black suit as his wedding attire.

After they finished taking the body measurement, Naomi put the magazine and measurement back in the rectangular opening in the wall.

Done, the couple looked at each other in amazement.

"We are going to get married soon and it feels surreal!" Naomi blurted. "I still can’t believe it!" she added, shaking her head.

Alpha Maxwell’s eyes gleamed. "Yeah, me too. I feel like this is just Zero’s way of playing a prank on us because we are leaving this place soon. What do you think?"

"Maybe you are right," Naomi agreed, no longer believing the wedding was real.

The couple resumed their daily routine in the windowless room, spending quality time with their son.