Amy kept smoothing the front of her dress even though it wasn't wrinkled at all. Her parents said she didn't need to be nervous, but how could she not be? She was about to meet Alexander Miller, the guy she was "supposed" to marry. The whole arranged-marriage thing still felt unreal, like it was happening to someone else.
When the door opened, Amy stood up fast.
Alexander walked in with a straight posture and a calm face. He was dressed neatly, like he took everything seriously. He gave a small nod toward Amy and her parents.
"Hello," he said quietly.
His voice wasn't rude, but it wasn't warm either. Just… there.
Amy smiled anyway. "Hi. I'm Amy."
He nodded again. "Amy."
They sat across from each other in the living room. Amy tried to start the conversation, because the silence was getting awkward.
"So… um, how was your drive here?"
"Fine."
She waited for more, but that was it.
"Oh. Good," she said, trying not to sound disappointed. "Do you like reading? My mom said you like books."
"Yes."
Another one-word answer.
Amy blinked, unsure what to say next. She gave him another smile, hoping he'd relax a little. Maybe he was just nervous too. The whole situation was a lot for her, so she guessed it might be overwhelming for him as well.
"What kind of books?" she tried again.
"History," he said. "Mostly."
At least that was a full sentence.
His expression stayed serious, and he didn't look at her for long, just quick glances before looking back down at his hands. Amy found herself studying him more. He wasn't cold exactly… just quiet. Reserved. Like someone who didn't talk a lot unless he really had something to say.
Her parents kept asking him polite questions, and he answered every single one properly, but always with the shortest response possible. No rambling. No smiling. No jokes.
But he wasn't unfriendly. Just controlled. Soft-spoken. Careful.
Amy's mom nudged her gently and whispered, "He's very polite."
Amy nodded. She agreed. He was polite. Just… shy. She was almost sure of it.
When the meeting finally ended, Alexander stood up and gave Amy a small bow of his head.
"It was nice meeting you," he said.
"You too," she answered, feeling a tiny spark of hope that maybe he'd warmed up a bit.
But he didn't add anything else. No follow-up. No "see you soon." Nothing.
He simply turned, thanked her parents, and left with the same calm, unreadable expression he had walked in with.
Amy exhaled slowly after the door closed.
Her dad said, "He seems like a good man."
Amy nodded, hugging her arms around herself. "Yeah. He just… doesn't talk much."
Her mom smiled. "Some people take time to open up."
Amy hoped that was true. She told herself that he would get comfortable eventually, that his quiet answers were just nerves. After all, it was only their first meeting.
She didn't know then that Alexander Miller would always speak that way.
Short. Controlled. Polite.
And never enough for her to understand what he really felt.