Claim Me Captain! I'm Addicted to You!-Chapter 398: With Marriage In Mind

Vicky’s POV

The second Dad opened his mouth, the whole table froze like someone pressed pause on reality. My fork was still in my hand, mid-air. Everyone’s eyes were suddenly on me.

Nick’s widening, Liam’s brows shooting up, Mom already massaging her temples.

"Why does everyone look surprised?" Dad said, almost offended, before turning his judging gaze toward me. "Seems like you didn’t tell your brothers and your mother, huh? Now I look like the bad guy here."

I wanted the earth to swallow me whole. Right here. Right now.

"Dad, I thought you gave up this idea a long time ago?" Nick said, disbelief coloring his voice.

"You can’t force her to marry someone you like," Liam added, shaking his head. "Dad, you’re better than this..."

Dad sighed. Loudly. Dramatically. And then he glared at me like I was the problem.

I rolled my eyes, though inside my chest, my heart was pounding so hard it hurt. Because he had dragged this into the open in front of everyone... including the last person I wanted to hear it.

My gaze slipped, unwillingly, stupidly, toward Oliver.

He wasn’t even looking at me. He was staring at the grilled pork on his plate like it had suddenly become the meaning of life.

I swallowed hard and cleared my throat. "Dad didn’t force me. It was my decision."

Several reactions happened at once:

"What?" Liam’s voice cracked.

Nick let out a humorless laugh. "Is this a prank? It’s a good one."

No. No, it wasn’t. And their disbelief was a knife twisting deeper.

I took a shaky breath. "Dad was joking about the part where he already found a man for me to marry. It’s not going to happen in an instant, you know. But... he wasn’t joking about introducing me to someone. His friend’s son came back from overseas, and Dad asked if it was okay to introduce us. I... didn’t see a problem with it, so I said yes."

There. I said it. Out loud. And it felt like ripping off my own skin.

Dad lifted a hand. "Let’s clarify that, Vicky... You agreed to meet him. And he agreed to meet you. With marriage in mind. Don’t leave that part."

I wanted to strangle him. With the ladle mom was still holding.

"Yes," I said through clenched teeth. "We both know it’s a blind date our fathers arranged, with marriage in mind."

"Happy now?" I rolled my eyes again!

Dad beamed with both thumbs up, proud like he just announced a scholarship award.

My stomach twisted.

I looked at Oliver again. I shouldn’t have. I knew I shouldn’t have—but I did.

He was still sitting there, shoulders relaxed, expression blank. Not a flicker. Not a twitch. Like, none of this mattered. Like, I didn’t matter.

My chest tightened painfully.

Because I knew that look.

It was the same expression someone wears when they’re trying very, very hard not to feel anything at all.

And it hurt.

It hurt so much I had to hold my breath just to keep from breaking.

I let out a breath I’d been holding for too long, forcing my voice to stay steady. "I actually... googled him," I began, trying to sound casual, "and stalked his socials. He seems like a great guy. So yeah... if everything works out, I’ll marry him."

Nick’s eyebrow shot up, his tone sharp with that familiar overprotective bite. "Just like that? You’ll marry some guy you don’t even love?"

"Yes, Nick. Just like that." I lifted my glass and took a slow sip, hoping the cold could numb the heat building behind my ribs.

"But you don’t love him." He wasn’t even hiding his frustration now.

I forced a small smile—one I’d mastered through years of pretending. "Sorry, bro... but not everyone gets to end up with the love of their life."

My eyes flicked to Mom. She gave me a soft, knowing look—lips pressed together, head tilted slightly. Supportive. Sad. Quiet. The kind of look that said she understood even the things I wasn’t brave enough to say out loud.

I swallowed hard and pushed through. "Unlike you and Georgia... some people like me are okay with arranged marriage. If I can’t find a partner for my heart, then I’ll choose a partner who matches my goals. My pocket. My future. It’s still a win-win situation for both of us."

A shadow flickered in my peripheral vision.

Oliver.

Jaw clenched. Shoulders stiff. Staring at his plate like it held all the answers he could never say out loud. The way his fingers curled slightly, like he was fighting the urge to reach for something he wasn’t allowed to claim.

Or reach for me.

Wendy placed a plate in front of me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "Honestly? That’s a good choice, Vicky. Arranged marriages work in so many other countries. Shared goals build strong foundations. You’ll be fine, dear. You are smart and we know that you will not do something without thinking about it a thousand times."

I nodded, my throat tight. "Thanks, Wendy. I thought so too. And hey, there’s divorce anyway, right? If it turns out bad, I can just dump him."

I let out a laugh I hoped sounded light.

Only a few chuckles followed—Evelyn, Wendy, Nora, and Dad.

Everyone else... tense. Awkward. Like the entire table was holding its breath.

Like they could all feel the crack in the air between me and Oliver—silent, forbidden, and slowly shattering.

Dad clapped his hands once, satisfied. "Well! That’s settled then. I guess the next good news will be coming from Liam, right, son?"

I blinked, grateful for the shift—grateful that everyone’s eyes left me, even just for a heartbeat. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

But before my attention moved with theirs, I risked one more glance at Oliver.

And that was my mistake.

Because the moment our eyes met, just for a second, I saw it.

The hurt.

The anger.

The resignation.

And deeper than all of that... the exact same love I wasn’t allowed to choose.

It hit me so hard I had to look away before my chest gave me away.

I exhaled shakily into my glass.

Loving someone you can’t have shouldn’t feel like dying one slow breath at a time.

But it did...