Amanda woke up in a new bedroom. THE new bedroom. Looking over beside her, there was the gut she didn't know that she was supposed to marry. ' Oh my goodness. ' Amanda thought as she squinted because of the sunlight passing through the glass windows. She didn't know that her "marriage lessons" were about to start now. She couldn't have any spare time any longer. She can't even get out of the house. But it's a nice thing that the house was beautiful and had everything she wanted in a house.

Amanda wanted to stand up, but she couldn't. She was still sleep deprived, and she still wanted to sleep. Silently, she hoped that the stranger beside her knew how to cook, because she couldn't. Now, she had to wait for him to wake up.

Something didn't feel right. Felix fidgetted and stirred in his sleep, wondering why the mattress felt different from usual. Eventually his annoyance caused him to stir and he opened an eye...then balked and sat upright. There was someone lying next to him in the bed. His eyes darted around the room and suddenly realisation began to dawn...marriage training. What a ridiculous concept...how he had been talked into it he'd never know. But then, he couldn't really ever remember being asked his opinion.

With a grunt he slid out of bed and looked at the sleeping girl. Well, she was pretty, he'd say that much for her. And so far he was getting along with her just fine...but that was because she was still asleep. She hadn't demanded anything of him, asked him to change his ways of doing things, nagged him about what he wasn't doing. Oh man this was going to be a drag. He'd seen his guys friends in relationships, and he knew the way it went. In the beginning it was all, like, "wow look at me I've got this really hot girlfriend isn't she wonderful", and then within a few months it was like "man she's killing me she always wants to know where I am and sorry but I can't come out tonight because she wants to spend some time together..."

He took a deep breath. This wasn't a problem that was going to go away. In three months, this was a girl he was supposed to marry. Right now, he didn't even know her name. Perhaps it was out of courtesy that whoever had put them in the house had allowed him to fall asleep in a t-shirt and shorts...he supposed that putting them together in bed naked would have seemed a little forward! Thank god for small mercies.

While she was still asleep, he walked over to the wadrobe and began to orientate himself with where everything was. He located his clothes, and put on some loose fitting jeans and a button shirt. Smart casual, enough to make a decent first impression, but not so much as to seem like he was trying to impress. After all, if he set too high a standard at the start, then she'd always expect him to carry on at that level.

Chris had slept fitfully, trying to figure out a way to escape from this hell. What had his parents been thinking?! They didn't even consider his plans for joining the police academy, just shoving him in here with...her. Many attempts to run away or convince his parents had failed and so he tried to face his fate with as much dignity as his spite would allow. He was awake now, as the morning sun shone down upon them, but he refused to open his eyes and accept the reality. Perhaps being stuck in a house with a girl would have been okay if he had any say in the matter. But no, his parents had just ignored him.

Uncomfortable minutes passed as he became aware of her being awake. Was she staring at him? Kinda creepy if she was but he didn't want to open his eyes to check, not just yet. It would mean syncing his schedule with hers and he refused to let any part of him become near her. He would prove to his parents that this was a mistake, a disaster never to be repeated. Just become someone lived together didn't mean they would grow to love each other. Both of them had been wronged.

Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore. "Aren't you going to get up or something?" He asked, annoyed and keeping his eyes shut. "We're not connected to the hip, you know."

Briton had a nice dream that night. She dreamed she was on a boat. Haha, on a boat... She grinned even as she slept at the song reference and curled up on her side. Anyways, she dreamed she was on a sailboat, floating off into the blue ocean. Alone, where no one could find her. Just her and the waves and the salt air. She was probably having this nice dream because the bed was so comfy... Just like floating on a cloud... No, hold up. Wait a minute. Her bed was not comfy. It wasn't comfy at all, especially since last month when her brother was jumping on it and bent the metal framework.

She sat up in the bed quickly, her hands braced out beside her as she observed her surroundings in a panic. Then, her eyes finally landed on her new housemate. And the reason she was in this house and in a different bed suddenly dawned on her and her panicked expression gradually faded into an "Oh damn it" one. She slowly slinked back under the covers, hoping he hadn't noticed her embarrassing little episode.

"I'm on a boat," she silently whispered to herself as she huddled up under the blanket, willing herself back asleep. "A boat, a boat, a boat..."

She couldn't go back to sleep. But if she laid there long enough, surely he'd think she was sleeping... or died from shock. And then when the paramedics arrived, she'd jump off of the stretcher as soon as it was outside of the house's gate and run away to a foreign country. Ironic, she thought, that I'm contemplating running off to a foreign country to escape an arranged marriage. Isn't it usually the other way around?

Seriously, what kind of parents do I have? Do they realize just how awkward and wrong this is? I'm only seventeen for god's sake. Not some old maid that has no choice but an arranged marriage.

She continued silently cursing her parents and planning how she would escape as she hid underneath the cover, pretending to be asleep, waiting for retreating footsteps to tell her it was okay to go out.

Felix was right in the middle of trying to do something with his hair in the mirrored wadrobe doors when the figure on the bed jolted upright and nearly made him jump out of his skin. He leaned in towards the mirror and quickly tried to rectify the error the surprise had caused him to make with his hair, then looked back over towards the bed. This time, all he saw was a still mound under the blanket. Really? Really? What, was she just gonna hibernate her way through this ordeal. Actually, on second thought, that arrangement doesn't sound like such a bad idea...gives me the house to myself.

He made a chyeah noise with his mouth and shook his head, pulling on some socks and pulling apart two slats of the venetian blinds with his fingers, looking outside and seeing that the sun was already pretty much up. Not that they could go far outside anyway. Just the balcony and the yard. Well why not, eh? If they're gonna sling a ball-and-chain on you, why not put you in prison as well? Go the whole hog.

He sighed and turned back to the bad. She still hadn't moved. A frown crossed his face. What, was she really so horrified with him that she couldn't bare to take a second look? Because pretty face or no prety face, it wasn't like she was making the best first impression either right about now.

"Hey cupcake, I been thinking we don't talk enough." he said sarcastically to the girl he knew full well he'd never met before in his life. He continued in an equally facaetious tone. "I was just gonna go put some coffee on, so maybe it'd be a good idea if you joined me, y'know, tell me what's on your mind, what's going on in your life, maybe tell me your name? Who knows where the conversation could go."

From underneath the covers, Briton could hear her new roomie bustling around, the sound of the blinds crinkling, and was able to see the light flicker in through the sheets. Then he began to speak to her. Apparently she wasn’t as good of an actress as she had thought.

“Look cupcake,” he had said. He just called me cupcake? Since when did I look like a pastry? Then something and something another about not talking enough, obviously, because she had been asleep, and coffee. Hmm… coffee. Sounded pretty good, along with some French toast.

She peaked a little out from under the blankets. At least he was dressed decent enough. Briton had on her tank top and her pajama pants, which was just fine with her for now. It wasn’t like she was going anywhere any time soon. She sat up.

“Well, first of all, my name is not cupcake. My name is Briton, Brit, thanks for asking.” She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, thinking she probably should put it up in a ponytail. She stood up and walked over to the dresser where there was a box with hair bands in it and swept her hair up and secured it with one. “So,” she said as she headed out the door and for the kitchen, “let’s get some coffee.” She called from the hallway. “And oh, are you for or against French toast?” Not that it mattered, because she was going to make it anyways.

He suddenly talked to her and it surprised her. " Well, I don't know how to cook, and its morning. And I was hoping that you did. Or else, I would prepare some noodles " Amanda said as she played with her fingers. It was just their first day and he already seemed to hate her. Not like she wanted it to end this way either.

" By the way, my name is Amanda. What's yours? " she asked in a cheerful voice. There was no use in sulking all day just because of him anyway. She just hated the fact that she was forced to live and someday marry a guy who was a complete stranger to her. It's just not right.

" And I'll just take a tour of this new house, so I don't get lost " Amanda said softly. It was partly true that she wanted to roam the new house, but mainly, it was just an excuse to get away from him.

' Did I do something wrong? Why does he hate me already? ' Amanda thought as she left the room.

Chris sat up and stared at her, a judging look on his face. "You're how old and you don't know how to cook? Hmph," he grunted, laying back down on the bed with his arms folded behind his head. "Some wife you're turning out to be." This was it; if he was as cruel as he could be this first day it would ruin all of their plans. He really didn't have anything against her (except that cheerful tone, perhaps...ugh) but he didn't want his parents to be right.

"I'm Chris," he mumbled, waving her away when she said she was going to tour the house. Whatever. The place was probably nice. He could tell that by the way the room was decorated. Probably had a nice yard too...no! He closed his eyes and moaned, pushing his palms against his forehead. No! He would not like any of it! That was what they wanted.

Sighing, he got out of bed and looked around until he found the bathroom. There he used the toilet then showered. Yes, everything was very nice, just like he had suspected. He allowed himself a glimmer of hope that the fridge would be full of interesting things to eat. Once dressed in shorts and a t-shirt, he headed down and began to get things out in the kitchen. Omelettes sounded good. He wondered if she had any allergies as he rooted through the shelves for veggies.

As Amanda took a tour of the house, she saw that there was a pool outside. There was also a library where she can practically live in, a dining room for two people, a living room and everything else that a couple would need. ' Great, everything has been arranged. ' Amanda thought as she opened the door to the library. It was big and it had a lot of books inside. She sat down on one of the chairs and realized that there were no computers. No connection.They also had no phone, cellphone. No anything that can be used for communications outside.

When she looked up at the ceiling, she noticed a small camera had been placed on the corner. ' So that's how they will know if we'll be alright or not. ' Amanda thought as she sighed. Now, she had to look for Chris to tell him her latest discovery about the cameras.

Hoping that he would be cooking, she went to the kitchen. " Chris? " she called out.

Briton...it was a slightly punchier sounding name than he'd have imagined for her. As hard as he tried not to make any assumptions about what his new fiancee was like, it was difficult not to fill in the blanks with the worst his imagination could concoct.

"Good to know." he mumbled, nodding and turning away to pull out a few drawers and see what was in each. He couldn't deny that they'd been provided with everything they'd need, and everything was neatly organised. The problem he had was that it was all organised by someone else. There wasn't a hint of his personal touch on a single thing in the room, and he couldn't imagine the rest of the house was going to be any different. It was like being in a hotel...only whenever he'd been in a hotel before it had been for less than three months, with people he knew and with people he wasn't expected to marry at the end.

He glanced across at Brit as she emerged from bed and pulled up her hair, taking a moment to look her over as she reached up. Well, if we're limiting ourselves to appearance, she's certainly not a bad choice. Not a bad choice at all. Which only suggests that there's got to be a major catch somewhere. He tried to imagine what it could be. Vegetarian? Tidy-freak? Uber-religious? All features which he respected just fine in most people, but not things he relished having to live with day to day.

He was still picking through drawers and other containers when she made for the door. So coffee was a go, at least that meant she wasn't one of these daily-detox girls who lived on a diet of mineral water and rice-cakes. He caught up with her in the hallways and followed her through to the kitche,...which was one of the most stylish rooms he'd ever seen in his life. It looked so good he couldn't imagine anyone having the heart to actually mess it up by cooking in it.

"If you're making, then I'm for." he said nonchalantly, opening the fridge and perusing the selection. As anticipated, there was pretty much everything in there they could want. They certainly wouldn't be going hungry. After that it took a couple of tries to find the right cupboard where the coffee was kept, but before long he was filling up a cafetiere for two. He left it brewing on the side counter and walked up to the patio door which overlooked the yard and the pool area. For now, the excitement of the lush new pad was enough to keep his attitude sweet.

"So," he said, still looking out of the window, "level with me, what's your feeling on this whole situation?"

“Hmm,” Brit thought about what to say as she made the French toast. It wasn’t hard, everything she needed was there, but it was just the matter of finding it. She mixed up the eggs, milk, and cinnamon in a bowl and dipped the bread in there before plopping them down on the skillet and listening to them simmer. If I'm making, he had said. Well that is just fine. She’d rather eat her own, decent cooking after a little work than be lazy and get served something inedible anyways. Not saying that he couldn’t cook, but assuming… She leaned against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. As she did so, her attention was drawn to something moving in the corner of the other side of the room. She narrowed her eyes and focused on it.

No way is that a camera, she thought. How… how ridiculous!

She flipped the toast over with a spatula. “It feels like I’m on one of those stupid, reality T.V. shows,” she answered, “and they never gave me a choice as to whether I wanted to be on it or not. Only difference is, this is something that is supposed to affect my entire life. As you can imagine, I’m not too happy about it.”

She took the food off of the skillet and plated them. “Well, I can guess that you’re not too happy about this either… ‘person who asked for my name but never gave me theirs’?”

Chris had been chopping up some bell peppers when he heard Amanda call out his name. "Yeah?" He answered, calling over his shoulder. Since he had started preparing something his mood had improved somewhat. It was fun and distracting from his current situation. Later he planned to try and see what he could find in the way of being able to work out and stay in shape for the police academy. As a young boy, he had troubles with his weight and had been teased cruelly about it. Once in high school he began to slim down and, with the help of a rigid exercise schedule, his body had turned lean and strong. There was always that fear, in the back of his mind, that he could go back to the way he was so he learned how to cook healthy foods and kept up a strict schedule for exercising.

He reached for a tomato and started to dice it up as he waited for her to find him. "In the kitchen," he called out, in case she couldn't hear exactly where his answer came from. The house seemed so stark and open; nothing personal decorated anywhere. Perhaps he could do something about that. An mischievous thought crossed his mind; he wondered if there was any paint to be found. Nothing says "up yours" to parents than destroying a beautiful home. Though...they would both have to live with it afterwords...hmm. He was starting to double think his methods.

Felix looked back at her and followed here gaze up to the camera up high in the corner of the room. Really? Seriously? Where else where cameras in the house? And who the hell was watching? However, since Brit didn't make direct reference to them, he chose to act like the had noticed they were there either. Perhaps he would have a clumsy incident later on with a ladder or something...

He hesitated before answering her. Sure, she'd been blunt about her feelings and he wasn't offended, but if this was a girl he was gonna have to live with for the next three months (hah...and the rest!!) then he needed to be a little careful about what he said. From what he'd heard about women, any criticism of the situation he was in with her could be construed as a criticism of her personally, and he could do without the earache right about now.

"Well it's like you say..." he grumbled, plodding back over to the cafetiere and locating two mugs to pour the coffee into, "...nobody gave me a choice either. And it's Felix by the way. Guess with our whole lives ahead of us you'd'a found out eventually."

He placed one mug off coffee on the counter near her, and took a few steps back to lean against the opposite counter facing her, taking a sip of coffee whilst he pondered where to go from here.

"Alright let me tell you what I think..." he said cautiously, "...we gotta live together for three months. Nobody's said we gotta be on top of each other the whole time or spend every waking hour together. Maybe we can just figure out how to spend the days doing our own thing, have a little chit chat every now and then just to keep things cozy, but have some idea where the other is likely to be so we can stay out of each other's hair. And you know, if anyone asks we'll just pass it off as foster a 'healthy interdependence'."

He looked up to the ceiling and tried to hear how that sounded now that he'd said it out loud.

"So, like, imagine if you were here by yourself. What would you spend the morning doing?"

Amanda went to the kitchen and found Chris preparing. " Are you aware that there are cameras here? I feel like my privacy has been violated. But besides, there's a pool outside! And also a big library " Amanda told him with mixed emotions. If there were cameras everywhere, then they would be observed. Which would mean that they will be observed. And that they should not do anything stupid. She knows that she wouldn't, but how about Chris? He probably hated the idea. Hated everything that has been planned.

" And don't you dare do anything stupid " Amanda added as she went out through the glass sliding doors.

Chris looked at her skepticly until he saw a camera out of the corner of his eye, mounted on the ceiling and monitoring the activities of the kitchen. "What the..." Not only had they been shoved into this house without their permission but now someone was watching them?! What the hell?! Chris flicked off the camera, knife in hand. Whoever it was, they were now in for it. He wondered how many antics he could do. What if they saw something serious? Would they come in? What if he started wrecking things? Would someone stop him?

" And don't you dare do anything stupid " Amanda added as she went out through the glass sliding doors. Chris gave her back the "what, me?" look as she left the kitchen, though secretly wondering how she could have known what he had been thinking. Bah, he was putting too much thought into this. All he had to do was not like her, that's it. It wasn't like he needed to be crude or distructive. In fact, it might go on his record if he started tearing the house apart. This made him stop cutting and look again at the cameras, worried. This was a private affair, right? It must just be their parents watching...right? Chills ran up his spine. Maybe later he would try and find a way to disconnect the cameras. Maybe even Amanda could help him; she had a stake in their privacy as well.

The backyard was wide and filled with flowers. Looking back inside the glass doors, she saw Chris flick off the camera with a knife in his hand. She immediately ran back inside. " I just told you not to do anything stupid! Who knows what will happen if we turn off all their cameras? Maybe they'll send us to live in a jail or something. I know that you hate the idea of living with me, but its not like we can do anything about it " Amanda told him as she pointed towards the camera. She sighed. ' There goes my control ' she thought as she buried her face in her hands.

" Look, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say it " Amanda said as she just placed the plates on the tables, having nothing to do. ' Great, Amanda. First day of living together and you make him hate you more ' she thought. She was really guilty about what she had just said to him, but she couldn't stop herself.

Chris had stopped chopping up the last of the vegetables and just stared at Amanda as she set the dishes. Jail?! Really?! He had to bite his tongue to keep from saying anything mean. Like they would go to jail for flicking someone off. Hell, he would have been in jail a long time ago if that was the case. He began to chuckle at the thought, breaking eggs open into a bowl. He realized that his laugh may have sounded creepy so he cleared his throat. "Sorry," he began. "I'm just a little stressed, you know? First I'm stuck here with...well...and then there's the cameras! It's like some messed-up big brother movie or something." He went to add the veggies but stopped. "Oh, you allergic to anything? Kinda don't want to kill you..." It was the truth; he didn't really hate her. He just hated the situation they both were in.

" I'm not allergic to anything, thanks for asking " Amanda told him as she placed the glasses on the table and filled them with juice she found inside the fridge. " And thanks for not wanting to kill me right now. " she added in a soft whisper. " I do understand that you're stressed, though I don't see the reason why you need to be stressed. Is there something you want to do rather than this? Do you have a girlfriend outside who's waiting for you? Or do you just hate me? " Amanda asked him, she didn't mean to be so straight-forward, she just didn't want having fights inside the house, the fact that they're living in one house wouldn't allow that. And she didn't want things to be awkward between them.

Chris poured one omelet out onto the pan and couldn't tell if the sizzling was coming from the pan or inside his head. "Something I'd rather be doing?!" He choked, turning around and glaring at her. "Yeah, there's a whole lot of things I'd rather be dong. One," he lifted up a finger. "Sleeping in my own room and bed. Two," he added another finger on his hand. "Being able to go where I want to go, when I want to go. Three," another finger lifted. "Making my own choices, including who I want to spend time with. So yeah, I'd rather be doing something...anything else than this. Nothing against you." He went back to next to the stove, ready to flip the eggs over. "I'm sure you're a lovely person. And I'm sorry if I've hurt your feelings. I just...don't like or want to be forced to be close to you. Sorry." He glared down at the stove, turning the fluffy egg mass over with a practiced flip of the wrist.

" I know how you feel. It's just that if you're mad about this situation, you don't have to bring me into this. " Amanda said in her defense. She had to calm down, or else, she would say something against her will. " And its not like I also want to be forced to be close to you " she added softly. She kept on looking around the house to hide her nervousness. Yes, she was feeling nervous. She had never been alone with a guy before. Before, even her friends called her a "loner". Maybe that was why she had been chosen to participate in the marriage training thing. But she was quite sure that her parents didn't know about that. Unless, her friends had been spying for her parents.

Chris sighed and continued to cook without saying anything. Of course now he felt bad for being cold towards the girl; she has just as much control over this situation as he did. He just thought it would be easier to make this whole thing work not out if they hated each other. But she had a point. If they were going to be stuck together there was no reason for them to not at least be civil to each other. He set one omelet aside on a plate and began cooking the other. "So...what are you interested in?" The boy was attempting to be friendly. "You seemed pretty excited about the pool and library. Did you happen to see a treadmill or something like that around?" Since this was his omelet, he reached over for the hot sauce he had found earlier and began to pour it on. He had a love of things spicy that not many others could tolerate. It wasn't the sauce that he usually liked and he wondered how much his parents had been involved in choosing the food within the house.

Felix?... She had once had a cat named Felix. Of course, saying this aloud would have probably been offensive, but she just couldn’t help it if that was the first thing that came to her mind. Good ole Felix…

“If I was here by myself?” Brit repeated his question, as she reached for a top cupboard and got out the syrup. She poured it onto her French toast and got a fork out of the drawer. Mmm, the smell of French toast and freshly made coffee… “We’ll,” she continued, as she picked up her mug and took a sip, “I’d probably be doing this… mind you, you wouldn’t be here, because like you said I’d be by myself. But I’d probably make myself breakfast, enjoy the pool for a bit… Then find a way to get out of here,” she took a sip again, “I’m not really much of a homebody.”

Thinking about it again, she shivered. She’d really be stuck in the house all this time? Backyard, balcony, house, backyard, balcony, house, that’s the scenery she had to enjoy? She’d definitely end up going stir-crazy.

“Of course, I guess getting out of here isn’t an option…” she pointed towards the camera and rolled her eyes. “So I guess I’m just going to have to enjoy that pool a whole lot.”

Plus side, her house hadn’t had a pool and she had always thought it would be great to have one right in the backyard that she could go to any time she wanted. Downside, she now had a pool but it’s the only thing she could think of wanting to do and would probably ruin her love of swimming forever…

Nodding slowly, Felix glanced back out onto the patio and pool area again. Well he's haphazardly given her first refusal, and she had indirectly claimed that area for morning times...which kinda sucked because he'd hoped to get out there himself, do a bit of swimming, practice a bit of capoeira on the decking.

But hell, when they were both prisoner in this place, was it any wonder they both had their eye on the outside area; the closest either of them could get to freedom. He leaned over and took the syrup when Brit was done with it. At least this was something he could get used to; he wasn't normally someone to make a real breakfast himself, but if someone else was making, he was more than happy to eat it.

"I'm pretty sure you're gonna have to find something else to pass the time too," he grunted, "unless you wanna prune up in the water day after day. But hey it's cool, you called it. You can do your thing out there in the mornings, I'll crash somewhere with some video games and stay out of your way. Then we can swap round or something."

He swallowed the last piece of his toast and picked up his mug, raising it in a 'making a toast' kind of gestures.

"See?" he said, "We're the picture of domestic harmony already. Stay out of each other's hair, tow the line, get along fine. How does that sound?"

With that he took a few steps towards the hallway, ready to go in search of a living room, or to generally see what other amenities the house had.

Amanda was pretty surprised to hear that Chris was actually asking her what she was interested in. Looking up at him, she answered, " Yes, I love swimming and reading books. I also like eating fruits since they are healthy...and they don't need to be cooked. What about you? And since you asked me about treadmills, I did see a little space like a small gym beside the library since the walls were made of glass. "

It was actually nice to be friends with people since all her life, she had been with her friends and her parents were kind of protective of her. " And, I'm sorry that I can't cook. Even as a young girl, I wasn't allowed to cook since they thought that I would just blow up the whole kitchen " Amanda added.

Chris finished cooking and placed the spicy omelet on one plate before handing her the other. "Dig in," he mumbled before heading to the table to eat. It was good to hear she had some healthy habits...quiet ones at that. Perhaps they could just stay out of each others hair for the rest of the time. Plus there was a gym, which suited him just fine. "I wanna be a policeman," he began, nibbling a little on the food to taste it. "I have a tryout for the police academy in three months, two days after we're suppose to get mar...out." He had almost said married but the word sickened him. Chris decided to call the day "getting out" instead. Three more months until they got out.

He glanced over to the kitchen with a frown. "Everyone should know how to cook," he stated. "How about I teach you? I mean, we got all this food and time. That way you will be able to survive on your own once we...get out."