Chapter Text
17 September 2012
Louisa entered the enormous room that has been decorated thoughtfully within inch of space by the room designers her mother hired four months prior to the event. She never understood why for some people good deed had to be made public in such an opulent manner and while she tried to hide herself from the unwanted attention from distant family members who would be reminded that they were related only if money were involved, she felt like the disgraced daughter that fell from the high pedestal she was placed since the day she was born.
When one of her cousins spotted her, she suddenly turned on her heels bumping into the broad back of a man.
“Sorry!” she squeaked, wide brown eyes settling on the beautiful face of a much taller than her man.
At the same time she heard another male voice calling her name, and panicking, she threw her right arm around his waist and grabbed his right hand with her left.
“Dance with me.” She hissed, making him move with her, losing themselves among the other couples dancing and out of her cousin’s sight.
23 November 2013
Holding tightly the envelope in her hand, Louisa was still sitting in the back of the car, looking straight in front of her without seeing anything. Her lower lip was trembling and she knew there was no way out of the situation. The only thing she could hope for was her mother not finding out.
“We’re here, Miss.” David – her personal diver – said, watching her in the rearview mirror. During the last few months she and Tom had met at his house, enjoying the benefits of their friendship. Yet here she was – after doing the last thing she was supposed to do in this kind of a relationship – holding a piece of paper that would change their lives. A piece of paper she suddenly shoved into her pocket.
“Thank you, David.” She whispered, and gathering all the courage she could muster, opened the car’s door and stepped in the chilly night, wrapping her wool cardigan around her body and walking quickly to Tom’s door, knocking lightly.
She knew he was home – the lights were on and she called him to let him now she would be visiting. When he opened the door, he had a small smile playing on his thin lips.
“Hello, darling.” She said, hugging her and planting a quick kiss on her cheek.
Entering his warm home, Louisa felt her cheeks heat up remembering what exactly happened when she was last here, three weeks ago.
“We need to talk!” they both said at the same time, while walking towards the living room. Looking at each other, they started laughing, yet Louisa’s heart already started pounding faster.
“You first, I’m in no hurry.” She said, brushing her hair out of her eyes as she sat on the leather couch, thankful for the few minutes delay in telling him the truth.
Tom took a deep breath of air and sat next to her, grabbing both of her hands and rubbing soothing circles on the back of her hand. As much as she tried not to let him know how anxious she actually was, she tried to continue smiling as if nothing was wrong.
“I met someone…”
He kept talking, but she couldn’t hear anymore. The emptiness surrounded her, and despite the warmth in the house, she felt like the temperature dropped below zero. She kept her eyes on his face, looking at the sheer happiness on his face as he talked about the woman he started dating in the short time they haven’t seen each other. And suddenly she remembered the wrinkled paper she shoved in her pocket.
She knew that it would erase that look of happiness off of his face. And she knew she couldn’t do that even if he had every right to know. She couldn’t take away his happy moments. And it wasn’t for the little bean that was growing inside her, but for the fact that she shouldn’t have fallen for him.
She knew he would drop everything because of the news she brought him, but she also knew that asking him to love her the way she loved him was impossible and she wasn’t that selfish.
While he continued to rub her hands and kept describing her. Fighting back her tears, she swallowed heavily and managed a small smile.
“What was your news?” he asked, still smiling and seemingly oblivious to the look of pure pain in her eyes.
“I… Erm, I wanted to tell you that I managed to get that job at the Louvre.” She said quickly, remembering telling him about the offer the museum made her – a job she declined a week earlier. It’s not that she needed a job, and she didn’t think this would happen. Maybe her father would still be able to pull a few strings and she could actually move to Paris and keep away from him for a while.
“Really? That is brilliant, darling!” he beamed, dragging her in for another tight hug. “We need to celebrate this!”
“Oh, I really can’t.” she said as quickly as she managed, looking for an explanation. “I’m leaving in the morning and I still haven’t packed much.”
She could see his smile dropping a little, before an understanding expression showed on his face.
“But you’ll still call and visit, right?” he asked when she sat up from her spot, smiling as best as she could.
“Only if you do the same.” She said in a teasing voice, knowing that it won’t happen for a while.
He laughed his adorable laugh, throwing his head back and assuring her he’d call every day. Hugging him again, Louisa fought back her tears away, willing them to not start sliding down her cheeks until she was in the safety of the car.
“I’m going to miss you, old man.” She said again in her teasing voice, taking a slight dig at the fact that he was much older than she was.
“Well, kid, make sure to call me as often as possible.” He kissed her forehead, and with a last glance at his handsome face, she was out the door and hurrying towards the car still parked in front of the house.
Careful not to slam the door too hard after she slid inside, she furiously wiped her eyes, thinking about what to do next, before breaking down.
“Back home, Miss?” David asked, worry obvious in his voice.
“Take the long way.” She whimpered, not able to hold back anymore, her body trembling under the powerful, heart-breaking sobs as the car started moving.
She never noticed the paper wasn’t in her pocket anymore.
“We’re here, Miss.” The driver’s words reminded painfully of the evening events. He drove around for a while, waiting for her to stop crying before they arrived at the manor she lived in.
“Thank you.” She whispered, dabbing at her eyes again, grabbing her handbag and praying everybody in the house went to sleep early.
Entering through the front door, feeling like a teenager sneaking out once again, she managed to tip-toe towards the stairs, quietly touching the smooth wooden surface of the railing when the light surrounded her and heard her mother clearing her voice behind.