This is a story of fiction; if you have any comments please feel free to email me at Heather_Alexander3@Hotmail.com.

 

Arranged Marriage

by

Heather Alexander

 

The shuttlecraft arrived at the spaceport on Antaris 4. Paul stepped off the shuttle and walked down the hallway towards customs. He saw his reflection on the panel of the hallway wall, he was dressed in a short navy wrap skirt, white silk blouse, light coloured tights, navy sling back high heels, a navy single breasted jacket as well as a navy shoulder bag. He picked up his luggage.

The reason that he was wearing those clothes was because in the Antaris system, men wear the skirts and dresses, law prohibits them from wearing trousers. The Antaris system was colonised by a group of extreme feminists and their male supporters, here women rule.

The women own property and titles are passed through the female line; women hold all the senior positions in business and politics. Men can only work in certain occupations and only till they get married, after that they can only work with the permission of their wife, which normal doesn't come. So they stay at home and look after the children that they are expected to have.

After Paul had passed through customs he left the spaceport and got into a car, which drove him to the address, that he had been given before he left his home. The car pulled up at the address, he got out of the car and went and knocked on the door of the house.

A woman opened the door she invited him inside "Mr Drake we have been expecting you" the woman said. She showed Paul up to his room "how do you feel?" she asked.

"I suppose I feel like every new young husband how is brought to his new home for the first time" he replied, the women left the room. Paul unpacked his clothes and put them away. His room was quite large with a great view of the back garden he noticed that there was a swimming pool. He took off his cloths and put on a red swimsuit and a pair of flip-flops and picked up a towel and went down to the pool. He took off the flip-flops and threw the towel down on the sun bed and next to the pool and dived into the water. The water was cool against his skin, he swam for a few lengths then he got out and picked up the towel and dried off his body. Lying down on the sun bed he wanted to relax.

One of the maid's came out "would you like anything?" he said.

"Yes could you bring me a sandwich and a glass of still mineral water?" Paul replied.

"Right away" the maid said and went back inside the house. Paul felt the sun's warmth against his bare skin, he closed his eyes and he was back on his home planet of Antaris 2. Laying out in the garden with the sounds of the birds in the trees his only company. He remembered those lazy days as the best days of his life. He suddenly remembered his wedding day, he hadn't even been interdicted to his new wife but since that was the custom among the higher classes of Antaris society.

He stood there running his hands down the sides of his figure-hugging white satin wedding dress. His mother looked at him and said: "Your beautiful."

"Mum I don't even know her," he replied.

"Don't worry your going to be very pleased with the choice that I made for you," she said. "And don't say anything about not letting you fall in love for yourself, you young people and your rejection of the traditional values".

He took her arm and she led him out to the limo that would take them to where the ceremony would take place. Following in the other car were his two brothers dressed in red groomsmen dresses and his 3-year-old nephew as the flower boy.

The limo pulled up outside the ceremonial hall and they got out, he again took his mothers arm and they walked into the hall.

Paul first set eyes on his new wife, as he reached the front of the passageway between menders of his family. She was standing on the right as he reached the end of the passageway. He looked across at her she looked almost board. The ceremony lasted only a few minutes then he was now Mr Caroline Drake.

After the reception they went to the honeymoon suite of the Grande Excelsior hotel. He slipped off his wedding dress and lay on the bed seductively. She just looked at him "let's get one thing clear I don't love you. I only married you to confirm y deal with your mother. First thing tomorrow you're going to my home on Antaris 4. Do you understand?" she said.

"Yes" he replied and turned over so that he took up less than half the bed. They sleep in the same bed but she did not touch him.

True to her word in the morning he was packed and put on the first shuttle to Antaris 4 and his new life.

  

  

  

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