"Fuck," Anthony muttered, looking at the time on his pocket watch.
He had fallen asleep at the club again after spending the past night gambling substantially and drinking heavily.
He looked at the time, silently groaning when realized he had to be home in twenty minutes.
He had promised his mother that he would have breakfast with his family this morning.
And after canceling twice already, both times as a result of being too hungover to attend, his mother grew impatient, "Anthony, if this family is not a priority for you, then simply tell us. No point in getting our hopes up, is there?"
It had been around a year since Anthony moved away to his new bachelor estate and since then, he barely saw his siblings.
That was the case up until the season began, and he had to chaperone Daphne. He had only seen his family a handful of times since the end of the season.
He ran out of the club, his hair ruffled, and his clothes in complete disarray.
He reeked of alcohol, hoping that he could bathe and change his clothes before his mother caught sight of him.
He pushed the doors open as he exited the club.
He was looking down, fixing his clothes to preserve what dignity he had left, when he heard a loud thud.
"My god, watch where you're going," he heard a voice groan.
Anthony looked up to see a girl slumped on the ground, having been pushed down by the doors.
Anthony looked her up and down: her hair was disheveled, her face was muddy and her clothes were torn and scruffy.
She was clearly a person of lower-class.
"Hello? I was talking to you," the girl scoffed at Anthony, who continued to button his shirt.
She stood up, brushing away the dirt from her clothes. "A 'sorry' would be great, you know?" she huffed.
Anthony shook his head, his headache pounding more by the second and mumbled a basically inaudible "sorry."
He began to walk away, seeing he was already in a rush and didn't want to waste anymore time.
As he walked away, he heard "I'm not surprised. You lords think all you can do is push people around, without another thought. I don't know why I'm shocked, the lot of you are all pricks anyways."
"Excuse me?," Anthony said, whipping his head around. Who was this girl and how dare she talk to him with such insult?
"I'm sorry, did I hurt your feelings?" the girl muttered sarcastically.
Anthony walked over to her, anger in his eyes, momentarily forgetting that he had to be home any minute, "look I don't know who you are, but I am a Viscount, and seeing you are just a ..... well what looks like a maid, optimistically speaking, that is, I suggest you address me with some respect," he demanded as he turned back once more.
"No," he heard the voice say behind him.
No?
That wasn't a word he heard often.
"I truly do not give a shit about who you think you are and what your title is. Where I come from, atleast some men have the decency to treat women with some consideration. I guess I can't say the same for men of this ton."
"Well, I don't care where you came from," Anthony spat, getting increasingly annoyed by the second. "You are in London now, and let me gift you a courtesy by introducing myself. I am the Viscount Bridgerton, and you will address me as such."
"Look Badgerton, I wouldn't give a fuck if you were the King himself."
Anthony was taken aback at the young girl's words, he never had even heard a women speak so brashly like that.
She was talking as if she was a gentleman at his club, consumed with whisky.
"Look here you wench," Anthony marched towards her fast, as he grabbed her wrist aggressively, "I-", but before he could say another word, she punched him in the face with her fist.
"What the fuck!!" Anthony screamed, wincing as held his cheek in pain.
"Oh shit", the girl whispered to herself, not realizing the repercussions of her actions.
She thought he was going to hurt her, she was only acting instinctively.
But seeing the way he fell to knees, shrieking in pain, he certainly wouldn't understand that.
She thought about helping him up, but she knew there was a big chance that he would call the guards and have her arrested anyway.
So she did what she did best: she ran away, as fast and as far as she could.
Leavind behind, the Viscount Bridgerton, stumbled on the floor just as she was when they first encountered.
~~~~~~~
Short chapter, but I hoped you liked :)
Im not exactly sure where im going with the story, im trying to stay true to the era while adding some modern aspects.
Please vote ✨✨ & comment, and new chapters will be up soon :)
Violet Knightly 🌚
17/01/21