I forced myself to start walking towards the dining room. However, the closer I got, the more I noticed something felt... strange. It bothered me the entire walk down the hall. As I entered the dining room, I finally realized what it was. Silence.
Usually, the dining room was full of conversation. Jack making small talk, Arthur talking about his pictures. It was fun, lighthearted. But this?
Thomas and Mr. Weston still sat across from each other, but the atmosphere was completely different. It was the same choking tension I felt in the entranceway earlier. They didn’t speak, they didn’t even look at each other. They just sat there silently, picking at their food.
Neither of them noticed me as I entered. I saw a pl
I sat at the table for a while, staring down at the keys. After what felt like forever, I finally picked them up and turned them over in my hand. They shone faintly in the morning light.How long had Thomas been debating about giving these to me? When was the moment he finally thought I was trustworthy enough to handle them? I could understand why he was so hesitant. After all, just look at my background.Poor finances, an unstable job history over a mile long, absolutely no previous experience with caretaking. He really must have been at his most desperate when he hired me. I certainly wouldn’t have hired me. Not with a track record like that. Especially if it was to take care of someone I loved.I remembered the soft way Thomas spoke when he looked into the garden a moment ago. Yes, Thomas definitely l
Our “conversation” started off about as well as expected. He leaned forward in his chair and looked over my body slowly. Again. I hated it.When Jack looked at me, it was always with love and admiration. Hell, even Arthur looked at me with an artistic appreciation, if nothing else. But Victor? The way he stared at me felt cheap and disgusting. I tried to cover myself with my arms as if that would somehow lessen the intensity of his gaze.It didn’t. However, it did amuse him enough to get him to stop staring at me that way. He sat back in the chair again and chuckled softly.“Alright, Anna, let’s-”"Ms. Walton."
Again, silence slowly filled the space between us. He sat with his arms crossed, glaring at the ground. I did the same, only looking up occasionally to see if he’d moved at all. He never did."Ms. Walton?" A voice crackled from across the room.There is a god! I jumped up and ran over to the intercom, happy to have something to fill the silence in the air."Yes, chef?""Lunch will be ready soon.""Thank you, we'll be down in a minute.”I highly doubted we’d be any more talkative at lunch than we were now, but at least there I’d have something to do besides just staring of
I wasn't even sure what to say. Victor knew about Mr. Weston's condition? For how long? And how? I had a million-and-one questions to ask, but one stood out to me more than all the others."Does Thomas know?""No," he mumbled, "and I'd like to keep it that way. Look, I know we’re not exactly buddies here, but could you do me a favor and not tell him?"I didn’t know what to do. On the one hand, it seemed like Victor really didn’t want Thomas to find out about this. On the other, wasn’t this exactly the kind of thing Thomas should know about? After all, he was his caretaker.But not for long though. In a few days, I&rsquo
They say you never have a second chance at a first impression, and partly, that's true. I was still upset about our “introduction” this morning, but at the same time, I felt like it mattered a lot less now than it did before.First impressions don't change, but maybe they could be forgotten over time. With enough effort and understanding from both sides, maybe those bad impressions could be overwritten and new memories could take their place. At least, I was hoping that would be the case with Victor.I took him to the fireplace again when we reached the room. Somehow, going there didn't seem as upsetting now. As I sat down, I tried thinking of some questions. One came to mind, but I wasn't sure if I really wanted an answer to it."Victor, you said you remember things from the other personalities..." I tr
A firm stance on the nature of our relationship. That’s what I needed to make. But how could I make a “firm stance” on something that was shaky at best?We didn't exactly have a "typical" relationship. This wasn't your basic "we're from two different worlds" or "love triangle" kind of situation. His "world" was several different worlds, and I'd say this relationship was shaped a lot more like a web than it was a "triangle." Maybe that's why I felt so trapped right now."What’s the big deal?" Victor huffed, crossing his arms. "I remember enough about you to know you've done things like this before. So what's the problem?""The problem is you're sick."
What could I do? What could I say? How do you even respond to something like that? Make him second in my heart? Even if I was dealing with two separate men that would be an insane request. I wasn’t denying that I had feelings for Victor, but another relationship? I was having enough trouble with the one I was currently in. Which was, technically, with him anyway. How the hell do you date the same guy separately? That thought didn’t even make sense. "Ms. Walton?" A voice crackled. Although happy to be saved by the bell, I was more confused than I was relieved. Wasn’t it still a little soon for dinner? Did I lose track of time?
My body felt refreshed when I woke up. I suppose I hadn't really had any "proper release" since that first night with Jack, and I'd suffered through several teasing experiences since then. If nothing else was true, Victor certainly did seem to know his way around a woman's body. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.I looked over at Mr. Weston. He was still fast asleep. I guess he was just as drained from our "conversation" yesterday as I was. His sleeping face was peaceful. I had the strong urge to lean over and kiss him.I wanted to treat him like a real lover more than anything. I wanted to be sweet and tender towards him. I wanted to hold him, and kiss him, and spend all day wrapped in his arms.But I couldn’t. He would probably be someone new today. Someone who