1 Choose One

Bzzz, bzzz…

A sudden buzzing noise reverberated through one of the Phoenix University's male dormitory rooms, disrupting the restful morning. The room was compact and tidy, but the air was stale as if no one had opened its sole window for days.

The buzzing noise came from a nondescript phone vibrating at the top of a nightstand, inevitably annoying to the point of waking the only resident of that unit—'a youthful man' who was sleeping soundly on a bed next to it.

"Mhmm…"

Unwillingly he sat up and looked around with his groggy eyes to find the source of sound which was preventing him from continuing his beauty sleep. Realizing it was only his phone, his head slumped back onto the pillow. He lazily reached out and turned the alarm off through the side button, intending on going back to sleep again.

But sadly, it proved to be a futile attempt. His phone vibrated once again, making him realize that it wasn't an alarm, rather a call. He had no choice but to sit up and take the call, given the fact only a few closed ones had his personal phone number. Out of those, his mother was the one.

Seeing that it was her, he subconsciously fixed his messy brown hair by combing back the scattered strands with his fingers before he accepted the call.

"Hi, Mom…" he said weakly, his voice was still hoarse from sleep.

He had no inkling what the call was about, but out of instinct, he pulled the phone away at a safe distance from his ear before his mom could even speak. He could predict what would happen next so he quickly pulled the phone away to save himself from the pain.

If his mom knew what he was thinking about, she would have smacked him across the head.

"Ryan! How long do you plan to sleep?! It's past noon already!" His mom shouted. It hit his ears hard, even though he was at a distance.

"Mom… My classes are late tod—"

Ryan wanted to respond, but his mom's barrage of words was like firing bullets, not giving him a chance to counter.

"I don't have time for your excuses! How old Are You? Twenty-three already! You will finish your studies this year, yet you still act like a child. No wonder you have no girlfriend. Why don't you spend more time on—"

His mother went on scolding him. Even added insult to his injuries by criticizing him upon his current relationship status.

Despite having cheerful looks, Ryan was single for the reasons even he could not justify. His cute dimples and clear blue eyes were more than sufficient to attract the opposite sex. However, his uncontrollable reaction to them was weird enough to push any sane girl away.

Being aware of his mother's nagging tendencies, he no longer tried to argue with her, or else he would never get to return back to sleep. This was not the first time he got a call from her with similar concerns anyway.

"Mom, aside from that, anything important you called for?" Ryan asked, going straight to the point. He was really in the mood to doze off again.

He expected another barrage of complaints from her, but his mother seemed to be gracious today and ordered, "Quick, check the email I have sent you!"

"Now?" he replied after a soundless yawn, knowing exactly what answer he would get.

"Yes! Right now!" his mother shouted back, living to his expectations.

"Okay, okay, I am doing it now. Give me a second," Ryan calmed her down and immediately put her on speaker while he quickly switched over to his mailbox on the phone. He knew his ears would hate him for that later, but he couldn't get away with it.

It didn't take him long to spot his mom's email as it was the most recent one in his inbox. He opened it with a tap. To his surprise, it was empty aside from having three files attached to it.

Each had a different female name. The title of the attachment being: Emma, Jennie, and Lisa.

Randomly tapping on one of them, it shocked him to discover a picture of a beautiful woman with a detailed personal description of herself. With just a scan, he now knew her measurements, her qualifications, likes, and whatnot. Everything he would want to know about her was there.

Before he voiced out the inevitable question to his mother, he could not help but check out the other two attachments and observed their similar profiles. What they all had in common was that all three women were varying levels of beauties and had graduated from the best universities in the country.

Ryan had calmed down, but thinking about it, he still did not get why on earth was she showing those profiles to him so early in the morning. "What are these…?"

"Did you check the files already? Perfect!" His mom got excited. "Tell mommy which one you choose."

"Huh? Choose for what?" Ryan got more confused, but then he recovered and laughed instead. "Don't tell me you joined the mafia and I am helping you choose your next target?"

His mother did not appreciate his sense of humor at all and scolded him at once.

"Idiot, definitely not! Just pick the one you like the most!"

"Okay, tell me, is it kidnapping or a simple mobbing? I can't blindly pick anyone like that," Ryan continued to troll her, finding it quite amusing.

She did not take it well and directly warned, "If you continue to spurt nonsense, I will drive over to your dorm and beat your ass! We are not kidnapping the girls! Those are your girlfriend candidates!"

"Pfft!" Ryan burst out laughing to the point he would have spilled and choked on water if he was drinking any. It was the last thing he would want his mother to say. Maybe he misheard her? He repeated to confirm, "Girlfriend candidates?"

He thought she would shout again but his mother called out to him in a sugary sweet voice instead, "Yes, exactly. Your mother took care of everything as she knows you are struggling to find a girlfriend. You are welcome."

He stopped laughing. All alarms in his brain lit up, instantly alerting of something being wrong.

His mom was never this sweet to him.

"I can sense your scheme from a mile away. What are you planning? Who are those girls and why are you suddenly asking me to find a girlfriend?" Ryan questioned, feeling that she was not being honest. There must be some ulterior motives hidden behind this, and the prime reason was not something as simple as wanting his son to have a partner. He gave her an ultimatum. "If you don't tell me, I am hanging up."

"Wait! Don't!" his mom called out anxiously. "I would tell you anyway after you make your pick. Why are you being so impatient?"

"Tell me what's going on. I will not pick anyone until you spill the beans," he placed a condition, leaving his no with no other choice.

"All right, the truth is your grandma called yesterday. She said she will come back to our hometown next week, on Valentine's Day to be exact. She wants to meet all of her grandsons along with their second halves."

"Your mother, who left ten years ago?" Ryan tried to recall the face of this estranged grandma. "Let me guess, you told her I have a girlfriend. Am I right?"

He knew his mother well enough to know he had guessed the truth correctly. She also instantly admitted, "I did! Karen already said that both of her boys have wives. How could I say you don't even have a girlfriend after your grandma brought it up?"

'She would rather jump off the building than to admit aunt got it better.' he thought.

"Anyway, that's not all. There is a reason she is coming back. She wants to pass on the ownership of her company to one of her grandsons and the meeting next week, will determine who gets it."

His mom's explanation was explosive news.

"Wait, what? Really? But doesn't her company deal with cosmetics and fashion? I don't think any of us will be fit to lead it."

Being in the know about their skills, Ryan knew the company would not do well in either his or his two cousins' hands. He was the youngest amongst the three of them and was studying Business and Management at Phoenix University. He had theoretical knowledge on how to manage a company, but the competitive world of fashion takes special skills to manage.

About aunt Karen's sons, both led their own various companies, though both in different industries. One dealt with car dealerships, another with real estate. They didn't have the practical skills which were required to thrive in the fashion industry.

"That's exactly why your grandma wants to see your wives instead! She plans on choosing her successor out of your lovers!" His mom finally revealed the objective of her grandma.

Listening to it, Ryan shrugged with indifference. "Well, too bad. I don't even have a girlfriend, much less a wife. Seems like I am out of the race."

His mom was not an amiable person to take his disavow well as she immediately added, "Therefore I am here to help you! We can't let my ugly sister win! I already found you, three decent candidates. You just need to pick one. It shouldn't be that hard, right?"

Ryan would have been glad to know that his mother wanted to help him. Not only that, she even found gorgeous and highly competent girls. Anyone sane person wouldn't reject them, in short, they all were outstanding… However; he found one major flaw in her plan.

"Won't I be obliged to live with that girl for the rest of my life then? You expect me to decide on such a big matter merely in a week?? It's not possible, mom."

Ryan would rather let this opportunity pass than to get stuck with someone he had no feelings for. Who knows what personalities these 'girlfriends candidates' could have?

His mom did not answer him but tried another antic. She changed her approach, playing on his emotions instead.

"So you'll give up and let Karen win? Is that how you want to repay me for all those years I've been raising you? Can't you just try meeting any of the girls I asked you? They'll really make a good wife. Maybe you would fall in love at first sight? You shouldn't say no before you even try to meet at least one of them… Please, Ryan, do this for mom."

"You and your silly competition with Auntie…" With a helpless sigh, Ryan collapsed back on his bed. How could he come up with the heart to reject his mom when she was begging him like that. "Fine, I will give it a try. You won't stop nagging me if I don't anyway. But just know that if I can't like any of them, we are done with this."

His mother seemed to be satisfied with the response as she quickly exclaimed, "Great! Pick one now and we can meet her tomorrow! I will wait for your call then! If you get to win this, we will be rich!" She couldn't wait to get rich and brag in front of her cousin!

"Is that so?" Ryan could feel a headache, already regretting that he agreed to it.

"Of course! Your grandma's brand is one of the best in the world! You wouldn't understand even if I told you, so just know that you have to do your best to grab this golden opportunity. Call me when you have made your choice!" His mom explained further and then immediately hung up on him, not giving him a chance to raise a question anymore.

"Damn!" Cursed Ryan. "I have always known grandma was rich but 'best in the world' is a whole different level." He suddenly had a bitter feeling for it.

He barely remembered his grandma's face as it had been a long time since she left Phoenix City. Ten years ago, she left the country with her paltry sum, and now she was suddenly coming back, planning to give her world-class company away. It's such a dramatic turn of events that no one in his family could have ever imagined.

"I guess this week will be interesting."