Balance: Benedict Bridgerton's Tale

Chapter 1: Unfold

He had to take the risk of someone recognising him, not that he expected it, but just to be sure. Benedict quickly got dressed, grabbed his shoes, and then stood on the landing to hear if anyone was downstairs. Fortunately, he heard nothing or no-one, so he went downstairs, reassured. Benedict was almost at the exit of the sewing shop when out of nowhere a girl, no woman, came out of one of the rooms.

They were both suprised to encounter each other but she even more so because she dropped a dress from her hands, which undoubtedly should not have fallen on the floor... She looked at the garment as at him and quickly picked it up.

"Apologies, I didn't mean to startle you." Benedict said apologetically.

She didn't say anything for a long time and then mumbled "not to worry Sir" while staring at the ground.

"Excuse me" she said after a little while as she went to the shop without looking at him and draped the dress on a mannequin. Benedict turned and looked at how carefully she wrapped the dress around the mannequin and then smoothed it over and he did not know why but the whole thing fascinated him.

He walked towards the door and then stood in the opening.

"Did you sew that?" he asked, not knowing why again but wanting to know anyway. Again, she looked at him slightly startled, obviously not expecting his question.

"Yes sir..." she said while reverting her gaze back to the ornately decorated light blue dress.

"Very nice... Although I don't know much about dresses. Well, my sisters commission theirs here but um... that's ... certainly a... nice dress" he stammered.

What in God's name was wrong with him? Sharing details like that and besides... why was he talking to her at all, he had to leave.

She whispered a brief thank you, her eyes still directed towards him but towards the dress.

"Well, um, good night," he said, but then he noticed something that should have struck him a long time ago. She had a few feathers stuck in her hair, which she apparently hadn't realised until now.

"Oh..." Ben laughed after a couple of moments and he pointed to her... "You have something in your hair, some little feathers" upon which she furiously tried to remove the things from her hair, but it refused to budge.

"Wait, hold still... I'll get it "he said taking a few steps forward, but she retreated and flinched so badly he halted in his movement, staring at him in utter fright and taking short, irregular breaths.

A second later, she raced past him and hid in one of the sewing rooms. Benedict had to listen carefully, but he heard it just as well, she was crying.

He walked slowly in the direction of where the sound came from and opened the door very carefully and saw her sitting and crying over some sort of desk.

She was so wrapped up in her own emotions that she didn't hear him, so in order not to startle her he cleared his throat. Her tearful, but beautiful brown-greenish eyes Benedict noted, looked up at her instantly and she immediately stood up and wiped her tears.

"Are you alright?" he asked to which she declined to give a comment, but she clearly wasn't as she stood there trembling. The atmosphere was tense, very tense and both wanted to get out of the shop at that moment, yet Benedict found that out of the two, he could not move.