Thread: Secrets and Lies (Sync & Mali)

He led them both after hooking her arm under his and soon the chaotic noise of the ballroom--what felt and sounded chaotic to her that is--began to fade and the soft chirps of crickets in the summer night air, the sounds of the babbling water fountain in the gardens near by and the silence of the night calmed her nerves. All activity and source for her mangled nerves was inside, likely growing in impatience as her mother would soon realize she wouldnt find her so easily and outside was just calm serenity, much like what she felt when she went out onto the balcony an hour into the night. Looking up to him as he continued his explanations, she could only smile. Leave it to a man to defend what most women would find a bore. Not that she found it boring entirely but sitting around listening to monotone voices of judgment as they discussed whose business was bigger, more profitable and more wealthy, she felt a sense of dread. But he seemed to genuinely think there were so some redeeming areas of the entire conversation which was good for him. Although the day a woman could sit in with the men to discuss business like that would be a day she wished to see and also be part of. You may not think it dreadful but I would think it dreadful just to be in a room with men of high caliber as those with you. Then again, Ive never sit in one of those conversations with men but I would admit that it would be a fine treat to play witness to. The night was beautiful, a starry night that wasnt hindered by the forced light of buildings about. She could see the twinkles and even back west where she had been the past four years, she would look to the sky and honestly miss how it looked from her home rather there. It was better viewed out in the west, for industrialization was a new concept there and not easily done within a fortnight. No, that took years. But being that she had spent her entire life looking up to the stars to give her strength and guidance, there was no better feeling than looking up at it again but from home. That was the strange thing. No matter her ill feelings and thoughts about New England high society, home was home. And she had missed hers greatly. Now that she was back, perhaps she hadnt missed it as much as she thought! Silence ebbed around them but it was natural. And she took the time to simply enjoy her surroundings while simultaneously enjoying her company, even sidling herself a little closer to Mr. Hawthorne and squeezing his arm with hers, as if to convey a small message of delight from this simple walk alone. Glancing up to him as the silence was broken by the mesmerizing baritone of his voice, she smiled faintly, taking some comfort in what he said. I appreciate that. Though I still must insist that if that talk can be heard and at a public function no less, regardless of what the content of said talk was, it can still cast an ugly light over the family name. And considering what I had done the last thing my family needs is a more tarnished reputation of their own doing and not just by extension of my wrong doing. She countered, her voice soft but filled with the courage of her convictions. As for that...my mother believes it to be imperative that I put myself out there to all available suitors who are not yet persuaded by the rumors of my reputation and past and if they are, well I apparently have no reason to be so selective, neither do I have the right. She prefaced. His name is Mr. Fitzwilliam Abernathy and he is perhaps the most pompous man I have met tonight, even after the several inappropriate propositions given to me. She laughed lightly. I told my mother I do not wish to be near that man, a man who thinks the way to a womans heart is comparing her lack of beauty to that of one with grander beauty, shes essentially unable to be compared truly. She shrugged her shoulders, aware of how forthcoming she was being. Glancing up, she stopped their casual stroll to face him. My apologies Mr. Hawthorne. Sometimes I forget that I shant be too willing to disclose my ills. Have I been too forward?