Chapter's song: Prom Dress - mxmtoon
I Knew You Were Trouble - Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox, Tia Simone
All of London is Here Tonight - Finding Neverland
Careless Whisper (Acoustic ver.) - Annapantsu
Angelica brushed her silky raven hair as she stared at her reflection in the dressing table mirror after a long and well-scented bath that almost made her fingers wrinkle if her mother hadn't called for her to get dressed so many times, which she only did when Eliza gave her ultimatum.
She slowly stopped the action with her hand, feeling quite lightheaded and zoning out of her own thoughts, her eyes boring into nowhere specific in the mirror. She got herself startled when noticed she had been holding the brush frozen mid-air for who knows how long. Blinking a couple of times and shaking her head, she placed the brush down.
Bashfully looking up at her reflection again, Angelica slowly turned her face to the side to check her profile, doing the same to the opposite side before resting her chin on her palm with a loud whine.
"Gosh, look at my nose. Do I really look like this when people see my profile? And why couldn't I have green eyes like Frances? Mine are so boring... Just like two mud puddles." She thought, "What about my hair? All my cousins have such amazing hair, but me? Of course I had to stick with this super straight oily thing that only a thousand pins can hold a hairstyle up there- Ok, Violetta also has straight hair but not only she is blonde but her hair is super long too! And she also has blue eyes! How can I even compete?!"
She groaned at herself, balling her hands into fists and pressing them against her eyes.
"I guess I kinda get why he likes her more than me..." She murmured even if it pained her heart.
Angelica did notice how Georges would always act differently around her. It was in the way his eyes linger on her a moment longer than appropriate with those sweet eyes only he possessed. How he listens to her babble on and on about the fantasy books she had read with a soft smile, attentively listening and speaking at the right moments, instigating her into talking more. Or it was in the way she catches him smiling at her for absolutely no reason when he thinks she isn't looking.
She was amazed about how he always managed to grab her and guide her body back to balance whenever she tripped over something while she carefreely waltzed around, babbling about something unimportant, which happened more often than Angelica liked to admit.
Therefore, slowly, day by day, she found herself getting intoxicated by the idea of Georges longing for her. But he wouldn't. He liked Violetta after all. At least their friendship was good enough to fill that hole in her heart, this until Angelica started to feel replaced when Georges began to sneak away with the blonde without explanations. That annoying and strange discontent grew more each passing day in her chest until she exploded.
A series of knocks interrupted her thoughts, an irritated voice following, "Angie, come on! Are you ready or what?!"
The girl grumbled in response, "Noooo...!"
"We are gonna be late this way! Come on, hurry up!" Philip replied from the other side of the door.
"I don't want to go anymore!" Angelica responded.
"What? Why?!" He asked in shock, his sister never declined a party invitation before. Much less her first Spring Ball.
The mere thought of dancing in front of a crowd made her stomach give a twist. She had never bothered about it before, but now, she couldn't stop but imagine everyone staring and whispering things about her, saying how much of a bad dancer she was. Everyone always said she was a great dancer... But what if it was just another pity lie to make her feel good?
"I don't feel like going anymore, that's all! Just go ahead and have fun!" She crossed her arms over the table, hiding her face between them. "And don't forget to tell Theo she looks stunning!" She lifted her head to shout that last piece of advice at her brother before returning to the previous position.
About a minute later, there was another knock before the door was slowly opened, "Angie, are you alright?" Her mother kindly asked as she closed the door behind herself and walked across the room toward her daughter.
"I'm fine, I just don't want to go to the ball anymore," Angelica responded, still with her face buried in her arms.
"Why not, sweetie? You always loved attending parties..." Eliza said caressing the girl's back.
"This time is different, mom... I don't even have a pair!" Angelica cried.
"How not? Didn't Georges ask you after that boy... Tch- What was his name again? Marcus..?" Eliza tried to remember the boy's name at all costs.
"Matthew," Angelica corrected, her voice sounding muffled.
"Yes, that one. After Matthew said he couldn't be your pair anymore?" Eliza continued without waiting for a reply, "Georges was so sweet in doing that, why are you saying such a thing now?"
"Because he replaced me and didn't even bother in saying anything to me!" She cried again, "That's just not fair, mom! Violetta is so much prettier than me..."
"Wait, you mean the Seabury girl?"
"YEeees~" Angelica whined.
"But that makes no sense, dear," Eliza chuckled lightly, rubbing her daughter's back once again, "Why would he do such a thing? That doesn't sound like Georges at all, does it?"
"No, but-"
"And if he didn't say anything to you about taking another girl to the ball, it's probably because there's nothing to talk about."
"Maybe, but..."
"And that thing about her being prettier than you..." Eliza sighed and took the brush from the dressing table, beginning to brush her daughter's hair, "You both are beautiful, Ange. Each in your own way. And if you can't see how beautiful you really are... Well, I guess at least Georges can."
"How can you know?" Angelica quietly asked, lifting her face a little from behind her arms so her eyes could look at her mother's reflection.
"Because he looks at you the same way your father used to look at me when we were your age," She answered with a fond smile, sounding as if she was reliving the memory while telling that.
"But dad... Messed up." The girl struggled into finding the right words to describe what her father did.
"Everyone does, sweetie," Eliza pulled Angelica's hair, separating some of it into sections skillfully, "Some worst than others, but still. You can't run from love just because you're scared of it."
"I'm not scared..." Angelica whined.
"I know," Eliza replied and then reached for a tiny box filled with pins, "You're just insecure about it. And I more than anyone know how dense you can be." She chuckled. "But tell me. You like him, don't you?"
"Of course I do," She responded bluntly.
"No, I mean in a romantic way," Eliza says with a kind smile, taking the sections of hair and putting them into place at the opposite side of the girl's head with the help of a comb.
"Oh," Angelica mumbled, making her mother chuckle lightly. "I don't know, mom. You know I am not good at this... I get a crush on a boy but when he comes to talk with me I don't know if he is flirting or not and I don't know how to react! And then when he shows up with some other girl I get heartbroken but soon I'm crushing on someone else and it all repeats in an endless loop! Georges is great and perhaps he might like me, I think I've seen some signs but it can just be my head imagining things again!" She fastly babbles and then sighs to catch her breath. "I just don't understand how this thing works..."
"Well... Does Georges make you feel special?"
Angelica hesitated as her mother put more hairpins in her head, mumbling at last, "I don't know..."
Eliza hummed thoughtfully as she opened a drawer of the dressing table and searched for a shiny hair accessory to give the final touch, "Then why don't you take tonight to find out?"
"But what if he likes Violetta and not me? Why would I even go?"
"Becaaause..." Eliza extended the word as she finished fixing her daughter's hair, "You should not waste a party staying in your room wondering what would have happened if you had attended that ball." The girl sat back in her chair, looking at the reflection of her smiling mother in contrast with her own troubled face, hesitating in answering anything.
Eliza widened her eyes as an idea popped in her mind and then began to pat her apron pockets, "Ok then, let's... Aha!" She pulled out a simple coin from her pocket. "Let's solve this issue in the simplest way. Heads, it's yes. Tails, no."
"Are we really going to decide with a coin?" Angelica asked quite insecure.
"Don't you want to have the challenge of having your fate in the hands of luck?" Elizabeth replied with a smirk, knowing exactly how to push her daughter to jump into things.
"Alright, throw it already," Angelica turned around in the chair and the woman threw the coin up in the air, then covered the back of her hand where the coin landed. She slowly lifted her hand, and the girl withered instantly at the result, her shoulders slumping as she quietly said, "... No."
"Well... You already have your answer. You will go!" The woman nodded and headed to her daughter's closet.
"What?! But the coin said tail!" Angelica said in confusion while her mother searched the many colorful dresses.
"And you clearly didn't get the answer you wanted! Meaning that you already knew what you wanted, Angie."
The girl stood in silence, taking in what had just happened while fiddling with her nails as her mother placed the coral dress they ordered for that special date over the bed. She then questions with shiny hopeful eyes, "You really think he likes me?"
Eliza smiles at her once again, grabbing both her daughter's arms and rubbing them softly, "I'm sure he does. You just need to make up your mind and decide what you want, Angie."
...
Violetta felt dread pooling inside her stomach when stood before the doors to enter the large ballroom many other people passed by without paying her any mind. She heard lots of chattering, laughs, and eventually some glasses clinking in toasts. Her rose dress fitted onto her like a glove, it was soft to the touch and the skirt moved as if it was underwater. Violetta's hand would occasionally reach up to touch the fresh flowers added last minute to her bodice the night before.
She finally had an occasion to use a party dress, but she didn't want to walk through those doors and face John Todd. Face anyone in her first public apparition after what happened. What would Alfred say? Or even Georges, after doing as she requested and declining Todd's invitation in her place. But above all, she could only think of Chris.
Just a few days ago, Violetta left her job with a silly smile on her face as she headed towards the spot Chris would meet her. Both were certain that were each other's partners for the ball after their last conversation, but Chris still wanted to be a gentleman and make a formal invitation. Violetta found it incredibly sweet how he wanted to do everything according to the book just to please her and her beliefs, never once overstepping her boundaries.
The fountain indicating the center of the park always had people around. Some old people fed the ducks, children played tag with their mothers not too far away, and a few couples strolled together in their own little worlds. Violetta sat at the edge of the fountain in visible excitement, nibbling her lips anxiously as she looked around in search of Chris. The sun would set any moment then and it was the perfect setting for a romantic proposition.
She gasped in surprise when felt a pair of hands covering her eyes from behind, reaching up to touch them with a giggle, "I was already wondering when you would show up!"
"Am I late?" The voice made Violetta's muscles tense and her smile wither, taking her a second to ride over the shock and turn around to find John Todd with an innocent smile on display. "Good evening, dear. How was your day?"
"He-hello, John..." Violetta stuttered, scooting away to create a bigger distance between them. "What- Are you doing here?"
"I couldn't wait for a second more to find you after having such an amazing meeting with your father," He answered with an even bigger smile, fishing for something inside his pocket.
"M-My father? Wha-What did you-" The words got trapped inside her throat when Todd grabbed her hand and knelt down in front of her. Violetta's eyes almost jumped out of her skull at the action and couldn't bring her muscles to move as the scene unfolded.
"Violetta Seabury, would you give me the biggest pleasure in life by becoming my wife?"
The girl stared in terrifying awe at the sparkly ring, still unable to find her own voice as she saw the people around gasping and beaming in bliss by being present in such a romantic moment, commenting with each other about what was happening and the shock at the realization it was the president's son over there. Violetta was too overwhelmed to notice the ring slipping on her finger, its weight finally triggering her back to reality.
"I know. You must have run out of words to respond," Todd chuckled and brought her hand to his lips, but Violetta pulled it harshly back before he could touch her skin. She stared down at the ring before beginning to take it out with shaky hands as the man stood up, apparently unfazed by her reaction. "But you don't have to worry about it, dear. Your father already answered it for you. He pledged your hand to me just this afternoon."
Violetta stopped her actions when that sentence reached her ears, and hesitantly looked up at the man looming over her. She humidified her lips, her breathing becoming shallow and fast, her throat as dry as ever before, and the girl found it extremely hard to remember how to form words.
Todd let out a good-natured chuckle and sat beside her, taking her hands in his and leaning in, his lips brushing against her ear as he whispered, "And just in case you think in saying no... I suppose people will be thrilled to hear about the Laurens and Lee affair..."
The breath that already was so hard to find suddenly hitched in her throat. Violetta felt as if he had thrust his hand inside her chest and squished her heart before fixing his posture once again, just like nothing had just happened, a soft smile still on his lips for the show he had been playing for the crowd. He knew she wouldn't go against her father's wishes, and by the mere chance she would, being under the eyes of so many people would do the trick.
"Well? What do you say, dear?" He instigated. He wanted to hear her say it. Violetta nodded her head slowly, her eyes avoiding his, and her jaw tensed to not spill any tears. "Words, please? And you're supposed to be happy, dearest. It's a special day after all."
She breathed in deeply, swallowing the tears even if a single rebel one rolled down her cheek, and then forced a smile the best she could, her voice sounding fragile when agreed, "Yes... Yes, I will marry you."
People around clapped and Todd smiled wide. Violetta couldn't bear looking at his face for another second, but turning away her heart shattered into a thousand pieces.
Not far from where they stood, Chris stared at her with empty eyes. In his hands, he had a beautiful bouquet of champagne roses. Alfred clearly had helped him pick her favorite flowers. The beautiful bouquet, however, was dropped to the ground soundlessly in a defeated gesture. Chris's mouth hung slightly open, but no sound came out of it before he stormed away from where he had just come.
"Chris!" Violetta shouted as she jumped up to her feet, ready to run after him, but felt a tight grip on her wrist preventing her from doing so.
Violetta's eyes watered at the memory of the boy's crushed expression when saw her accept the proposal and wiped the still non-existing tears away. She couldn't do that. She managed to hide from everybody for four days, but she wasn't ready just yet. She turned around in her heels, determined to leave, but gasped when saw the one and only John Payne Todd walking up the staircase, opening a smile at the sight of her.
"Hello, my dear. Such perfect timing, no?"
"Yes. Just perfect." She timidly replied, noticing how he was measuring her whole body up and down. Her face blushed wildly and she crossed her left arm around her torso, "Ahm..."
"What is this that you're wearing?" He questioned with a smirk.
"I, uhm... Made it myself," She grabbed both sides of her skirt and unhumorously chuckled. "Did you, ahm... Not like it?"
"Oh, the precise opposite, I absolutely adored it," His smile seemed to grow into something almost predatory and it made Violetta's insides twist, but she wasn't sure if it was in an uncomfortable or in an exciting way as he stepped even closer and whispered in a low husky tone only for her to hear, "You'll definitely be the prettiest one today. Did you do it on purpose? Just to make me feel jealous at how every man will look at you tonight?"
He brushed part of her hair back, the light touch of his fingers on her neck causing a shiver to run over her body, and once again there was that sensation in her stomach. It was something completely new, but she felt quite giddy at him saying those things even despite herself.
Violetta looked down at what she was wearing and wondered aloud, her heart speeding up at the sudden embarrassment she felt, "I-Is it too flashy then...? I didn't-"
"It is perfect," He touched her chin and made her meet his eyes, "You should definitely wear dresses like this more often... Or maybe not. There's a chance I wouldn't be able to hold myself back until our wedding day."
The implications behind what he said made Violetta widen her eyes with a small gasp and pull back, heart hammering in her ears. She still wasn't told what happens on the wedding night, she only knew that the couple became one and made love, and after that, they were to be devoted to each other forever. But the idea of doing that with John Todd didn't feel right.
"Shall we, my dear?" He offered his arm, still having that odd glint in his eyes. For an instant, Violetta considered denying it, but then hesitantly placed her hand on his forearm. He rested his free hand over hers and then led her inside.
Violetta gasped in awe when entered the ballroom. The decoration was flawless, with more crystals, flowers, and lit candlesticks than she had ever seen before. Practically everyone's eyes were on them as they walked in, but Todd quickly found some acquaintances and got drowned in conversation.
He presented Violetta as his fiancée, but she was left completely out of place and ignored in that circle of rich men no longer after that. Violetta looked around and her eyes met with Theodosia' at the other side of the room, the girl chatted with the twins as they drank some punch. Theo waved and beckoned at her, Violetta's smile weakening when met Frances' questioning gaze.
She moved towards them, but as soon as her fingers started slipping from Todd's hold, the hand placed on hers gave it a squeeze, "What is it, dear?"
"I... Just wanted to get some punch," She whispered back, eying in the direction where her friends stood. Todd looks at them and hums, meeting a murderous stare from Frances but smirking at her in reply.
"Just give me a moment and we will fetch you a glass, alright?" He said and Violetta nodded. Her friends looked at her expectantly, but she shrugged, apologetically smiling at them before turning around.
"I don't like that," Frances grumbled.
"What do you mean?" Stephan asked, taking a sip from his drink.
"Vi and Todd. What does he want with her?" His sister explained. "Just a few days ago she asked Georges to talk with Todd and say she wouldn't come to the ball with him. And now she somehow is engaged to him?"
"I also have a bad feeling... I know that face all too well." Theodosia mentioned, noticing Violetta's forceful smile and her uneasy posture. The whole scene remembered of herself when she had to hang around with Joseph Alston. "I'll try to talk with her later, ask if there's something wrong."
"Todd is involved. Surely it has something wrong." Frances replied sharply, then took a sip from her glass to hide her searching eyes.
She finally spotted Alfred on the opposite side of the room. He looked dashing with his hair pulled back for the occasion. The undercut he had been growing back finally mixing up with the rest of his hair, but his posture seemed anxious with his arms crossed against his chest, the exchange of his weight from a foot to the other, and jaw tense in an attempt to hold himself from doing anything reckless, eyes fixated on Violetta.
When their eyes finally met, Frances lifted her eyebrows in a silent question and glanced at Todd. Alfred simply shook his head and looked away in frustration. He didn't know about any of that. Frances wanted to talk to him and understand what was going on, but everything she thought would draw attention to them.
The low rumble of people murmuring spread from the entrance to the rest of the large ballroom, girls huffing in annoyance while men fixed their cravats and gulped at the sight of Mary Jefferson walking in with her typical smirk and chin lifted up, just as she did when walked in any place. Acting as if that wasn't her first public apparition in weeks, which was extremely uncharacteristic and people actually began to worry about her whereabouts. But there she was as striking as ever.
"Well, look who is still alive," Theodosia joked when her friend approached her but then her face dropped to somewhere between annoyed and concerned, "But where have you been!? You totally disappeared!"
"Sorry, Theo. I have been busy with- Stuff, lately."
"Stuff, uh?" Theo cocked an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "I've heard that one before and it usually means sleeping with someone."
"It's true this time. I had to supervise the moving to my new house," Mary explained with a cocky smile, making Theodosia gasp.
"Is it true then? You're living on your own?"
"I will even hold a cocktail party to celebrate," Her smile faltered when she looked at Stephan, "And I want you guys there." The boy sipped from his drink lazily, turning away and completely ignoring Mary.
Theodosia's lips became flat as she felt the tension between the two and clicked her tongue awkwardly, "I suppose I have to... Ahm... Yeah." She then left them alone, Frances already long gone as soon as Mary approached their group.
There was an awkward silence between them for a moment. Mary looks at Stephan's fancy suit and hair neatly tied into a bun, expressing her thoughts almost immediately to try and break the ice, "You look really handsome tonight, Steph." He continued ignoring her presence. "I know we haven't really talked since that day," Mary began, ignoring Stephan's snicker at her phrasing once they didn't talk at all since their last argument. "But I am sorry. I didn't mean what I said, okay?"
He drank from his glass again, his shoulders visibly tense while still looking elsewhere and pretending Mary wasn't there, but his feet bounded to the ground prevented him from walking away even if he really wanted to avoid that conversation.
"Uhm, I am kind of trying to apologize over here so I would really appreciate it if you could at least look at me?"
"Yes, you did." He mumbled, making Mary close her mouth as she was about to retort his affirmation, and he then continued, finally turning to face her with furrowed eyebrows. "And then you simply left when we needed you. When I needed you."
"What are you even talking about?" She asked with a low chuckle.
"I don't do- socializing, I don't do speeches, I don't- manage to even look at people in the eye, and I saw my closest friend turn her back on me when I showed I couldn't do those things! How do you think I felt?!" He bursts out, taking enough care not to be loud and drag unwanted attention. He took a deep breath before continuing. "Journalists coming up to me, asking thousands of questions, never leaving me alone for a goddammed second, and Susan suddenly deciding to confess her feelings for me all at the same time, and I didn't know what to do! I am not a flirt, I don't know what I even did to make her like me in the first place. And it wasn't as if I could ask anyone for advice without dying of embarrassment first, but the only person I could trust disappeared!"
"You give yourself much less credit than you deserve, you know? Yes, I didn't see much, but I did see you giving Susan that necklace for her birthday and she loved it. You're doing great. Just keep being yourself."
"Don't you see that is the problem? Sooner or later I'll screw it all up and-"
"I'm gonna stop you right there. Self-pity really doesn't match your looks," Mary motioned at Stephan's outfit and he scoffed, crossing his arms. "You wanted my advice, didn't you? Stop worrying so much."
"It is easy for you to say," Stephan practically hissed at her.
"You really think so?" She hissed back, scrunching up her nose, "I also have my problems to deal with, Stephan. Why do you think I disappeared? I needed time to myself, to process everything that was going on and all I want right now is have my friends back. Can you understand that I regret what I did and want your forgiveness, damn it?!"
Mary clenched her jaw in anticipation as her friend stared back into her eyes in utter silence. Both knew they were hard to open up to people, and in such a short conversation, they expressed things neither wanted to admit they were struggling with.
Stephan averted his gaze and gave a short shrug, "Well... Is it nice at least?"
"Uh?" Mary asked in confusion.
"Your new house," He looked up at her with a faint smile, trying to lighten up the mood.
"Oh. Yeah, I really like it."
"But what was wrong with your family's house? Why did you move?"
"I wanted a bigger place," She bluntly responded with a shrug. "I admit, it is not perfect, but on the good side you won't need to climb three flights of stairs to deliver my books anymore," She joked.
"What do you mean with that?"
"That now my lab is in the shed in the backyard?" She replied as if it was obvious.
"No, I mean... What... Happened to Tesla? Wasn't it going to change everything? Did... The meeting did not go as expected?" He asked carefully.
"It didn't happen and neither will. As I just said, I really do regret what I did and that also includes starting this whole mess."
"What? But Mary, you're just one step away from-"
"I already made up my mind, Stephan. And there's nothing you can say that will change it." He sighed, knowing by her sharp tone that she meant what she said. "Anyway..." Mary said in a much lighter tone, grabbing a glass of champagne from the table near them, raising it at Stephan, "This is still a party!"
He smiled at her, also lifting his glass before both took a sip. Mary's eyes met with Jason's on the opposite side of the room and he smiled at her, seeming to be happy to see her again, to which she responded with a provocative glance that made the boy blush, trying to hide it with his own glass.
"And I need to get rid of two weeks of delay," She nibbles her bottom lip.
"I still don't get what you see in him, though. Honestly." Stephan commented quite intrigued.
"It's just for fun, Steph. Nothing serious," Mary chuckled, "Jason is easy to mess with. And I find his stature pretty cute. Not to mention the fact that he always tries to play the tough guy but gets all submissive as soon as I-"
"I-I-I DON'T WANNA HEAR IT, please, spare me the details. Please." Stephan closes his eyes tightly with a grimace, his entire face turning pink and making his friend laugh at him.
"Don't worry. I would never want to pollute that innocent mind of yours..." She picks on his chubby cheek while speaking in a baby voice, retreating her hand before Stephan could slap it away.
"Yeah, sure." He grumbled with a roll of his eyes, already used to Mary casually talking about such explicit things without any concern.
Mary's humorous smile turns into a cocky grin as she notices something behind Stephan's shoulder, motioning with her head as she sang, "Well, I wish you good luck with your pair..."
Stephan turned around to find Susan walking into the ballroom, looking around in amazement at the place, being her very first time in such an event, until she locked eyes with him and waved with a big shiny smile. She was dressed in a beautiful violet dress that showed much more cleavage than she usually did, but most especially, she was wearing the necklace Stephan gave her.
He felt his throat suddenly grow dry and rubbed his palms against his pants to get rid of the sweat. He couldn't look elsewhere, widened eyes fixated on Susan in pure wonder and heart pounding fast.
Mary patted his back with a teasing grin, "Go get her, lover boy."
"Ma-MARY!" He complained, growing even more flustered, but she simply giggled and shrugged, walking away into the crowd.
...
Violetta felt her heart stop for a second when Alfred approached the small group she had been forced to stand by. John Todd's grip on her hand suddenly tightened warningly, making a chill run down her spine and straightening her posture as he smiled politely at the boy she considered a brother.
"Excuse me, but I really need to talk with Violetta." Alfred tried his best to be polite at that moment, even if his true wish was to jump onto Todd's throat and it was easy to say by the way his jaw was so tense.
"I'm sure that whatever you have to tell her you can say in front of me too," Todd responded with a smug smile.
"Well, that's what you think. Vi, let's go," Alfred motioned at his friend but she was petrified. He lightly furrowed his eyebrows and called again when she hesitated, "Vi?"
"I- will be right back..." Her voice came out stiffy as she tremulously smiled the best she could, her shaky hand pulling away from his grip before Alfred practically whisked her away, neither of them stopping until reaching an empty veranda to talk in private.
"Alright, what the hell is going on?" He asked as soon as they reached the outside.
"Alfred, please understand... I had no choice," Violetta said with tears already tingling her eyes.
"No, I don't understand! Everything was going fine with you and Chris. He told me that when came to pick up the flowers the other day, and now out of nowhere you accept-"
"He knows!" She interrupts him, voice cracking even with such a short sentence, but it managed to shut him and make him look at her attentively. "Todd knows about you and Frances," She whispers in guilty.
Alfred stared back at her with lips apart in shock until he said, "He what? H-How does he even know? And what does it have to deal with you?"
"He..." Violetta took a deep breath in to prevent her voice from cracking again, "I don't know. But he said that if I didn't accept his proposal he would spread the word... I couldn't let this happen to you two, Al. Not when I could do something to avoid it. I couldn't risk it-" Her voice broke eventually and Alfred hugged her before she could start crying.
"It's okay... It's gonna be okay..." He then grumbled in annoyance, "God, Vi. It really had to be him out of all people?"
"I'm sorry..." Violetta mumbled after a moment of silence, making Alfred sigh.
"It's not your fault."
"It may be. Perhaps he saw me delivering some of the letters o-or even followed me when we did that picnic, or-"
"Hey," Alfred pulled away from the hug, holding her arms and looking straight at her eyes, "Don't blame yourself. We all knew it had a chance to happen sooner or later. We just didn't expect it would be him to find out..."
Violetta looked down in shame, compressing her lips tightly. She was about to apologize again but Alfred was faster, "I promise Vi, you won't have to stay with him, ok? I'm going to talk this out with Frances and we will sort something out."
She opened her mouth but another voice spoke first, "Do I interrupt?" Todd innocently asked, standing by the doorway with a plain smile. Alfred locked his jaw and straightened himself up at the sound of his voice, scowling at the man, but Todd's smile didn't falter.
"What do you think? We were talking and you simply walked in." Alfred held back a curse at the end for the sake of Violetta.
"Oh. Then I don't. Great! Violetta dear, if you allow me..." He bowed and extended his hand toward her.
The girl looked at Alfred with big eyes and he shook his head, but glancing back at Todd, she felt a shiver run over her body by the way his cold eyes burned holes into her, and so mouthed "Sorry" at her friend before placing her hand over Todd's.
He began taking her away, but suddenly stopped, turning his head to direct his next sentence at Alfred, "I hope not to see you at our wedding. It would certainly ruin the mood."
"There is not going to be any wedding." Alfred firmly stated, scowling at the other man.
Todd humidified his lips as he turned around further to face Alfred, his expression as plain as ever and speaking in a menacing low voice, "Threaten me again and see where your little love story ends, Romeo."
Alfred's hands balled into fists beside his body as his scowl deepened, but he said nothing in return as Todd walked Violetta away. He turned his back at them and hit the stone handrail with a growl, cursing at the wind to try and calm himself down.
"Where are you taking me?" Violetta quietly asked as she was taken across the ballroom.
"We, my dear, are going to open the dance," He responded and Violetta widened her eyes in horror, stopping to walk, but Todd didn't stop, so she was obligated to follow.
"John, please, no- I really don't want to." She complained while trying to pin her feet to the ground, but the man pulled her towards the center of the dance floor either way, then placed his hand at the small of her back with a smirk anyone would find extremely charming, but now Violetta found nothing else than menacing.
"Don't be shy, dear. Besides, weren't you the one who wanted to leave my friends?"
"I-It wasn't like that, I-" Violetta felt every pair of eyes in that ballroom glued on her. They were the only two people in the center of the room and she gulped nervously, "I don't dance, Todd. I-"
"Nonsense. Everyone dances, my dear. It's the bare basics."
"I-It indeed is, but I had just a few classes as a child and dropped them to learn the guitar-"
"Perhaps you should have given attention to what was truly important, and not to frivolous hobbies then."
Violetta's heart speeds up when suddenly hears the musicians start to play. She pleads one more time at him, her nervousness making her breathe her sentence out, "Please- I don't want to do this with all those people watching."
"You just have to do what I say, and it all will be fine." He bluntly replied and the girl couldn't bring herself to look up and meet his eyes as he took the first step, Violetta matching it. "Up at me," He ordered and she did as requested hesitantly, her entire body stiffening even more at the dark look in his eyes. That made him smile as he continued to lead her around.
Violetta felt her heart beating hard against her chest, Todd's eyes glittering with a maliciousness she never noticed before and making her eyes switch places, but never landing on a spot for long as she was turned around. She glanced at all the people looking at them. Some smiled, some chuckled and whispered about how she clearly had no ability in dancing, and some thankfully weren't paying any attention. At last, a few couples joined the dance as well so Violetta could share some of the overwhelming attention.
The music started to speed up and the girl, who was already struggling to keep up with Todd's movements since the beginning, now couldn't even take her eyes out of her feet. "Todd, slow down, I can't-"
Violetta tried to blink the dizziness away after another spin and return to the tempo of the music, however, she didn't have enough time and her feet slipped. Todd's hand wasn't where it was supposed to be to grab her, and the girl yelped before falling in a loud and ungracious way.
The music stopped completely and the entire room became dead silent.
Some watchers gasped, and while others held in their snickers by covering their mouths, a few didn't give a damn about politeness, and their laughs echoed in the saloon.
Violetta stumbled back to her feet with tears blurring her vision and ran away, quietly apologizing when bumping against someone's shoulders in her rush to get out as the music returned, in an attempt to make the party continue on.
The girl pushed the doors open with a sob and rushed down the stairs while holding onto her skirt, but one of the borrowed shoes from Abigail slips from her foot in the run and makes Violetta stumble for the second time in the night, falling in her butt and sliding a few steps lower. She took in a shaky breath before hiding her face behind crossed arms over her knees, letting the tears flow freely.
One of the doors opened and Violetta reacted by hugging herself tighter, trying to shrink and disappear. She couldn't control another sob as the steps echoed, coming closer and closer to her. The person stopped a few steps away for a moment before finally approaching her.
A hesitant touch at her shoulder made her bite her lip forcefully, "Hey..." Chris murmured crouching down two steps below her, his thick eyebrows furrowed in concern, "Are you ok?"
Violetta hesitated but then shook her head with a whimper.
"Yeah, I thought so..." He murmured again and both stood in pure silence, just hearing the muffled noises of the ball behind them.
Christopher wasn't going to attend the ball at all after he witnessed Violetta accepting Todd's proposal. He was completely crushed and blamed himself for the outcome. It only happened because he was never brave enough, either to confront his father or to simply ask Violetta to the ball before it was too late. It was thanks to Alfred that Chris ended up showing to the party last minute after incessantly trying to convince him during the past three days.
"You look stunning tonight, did anybody tell you that?" He chuckled to try to lift her mood.
"No, I don't-" Sniffed once again, "I made a complete fool of myself since the moment I came in dressed like- This..." Her voice cracked, sucking in a shaky breath through her mouth as she let her head fall back with the face completely stained with tears. Feeling unable to face Christopher, she stared up at the beautifully painted ceiling before mumbling. "This is... Super exaggerated anyway, what was I thinking? If that didn't call enough attention already, I also had to- Gosh, I'm so stupid. Why I had not to know how to dance? That's just the basics, everyone knows how to do that, I-"
"Stop saying that," Chris reprimanded her, "You're great just the way you are, including not knowing how to dance and yet being able to make amazing dresses exactly like the one you are wearing right now, Vi." She inhaled and kept it inside her lungs for a couple of seconds before letting it out through her lips. "It doesn't matter what Todd had told you. You are definitely the most beautiful girl. Wearing this or any other dress."
Chris finally cast his look down at the dress once he hadn't done that yet, and a tiny smile played on his lips when he noticed the adorns around her bodice. Fresh champagne roses.
He chuckled quietly, "Are those the flowers I...?" He didn't finish the question, but Violetta compressed her lips and hummed in agreement, her cheeks flushing red. "It's a nice touch."
"... I wanted..." She started to say in a fragile voice but gave up, and Chris didn't push to know what she meant. Violetta had picked the bouquet from the ground after he left it behind. She stared at them at her bedside table until falling asleep and then finally decided to sew them on the dress last minute. She wanted to feel a bit closer to Chris that night, hoping it would somehow give her some strength.
"Yeah, but you're missing a piece, Cinderella." He joked and showed the shoe in his hand, making the girl blush harder. "May I?" He asked with a soft smile and she compressed her lips tight once again before slowly lifting the hem of the skirt just enough to stick her bare foot out hesitantly.
Chris gently touched her foot before fitting the shoe back into place. Violetta trapped in her breath as he did so, feeling electric sparks running in her skin and her entire body heating up, that small act feeling so intimate to her.
"There." He said in a low tone and looked up to meet her ocean blue eyes. They looked at each other intensely. A million thoughts passing by both their minds. So much they wanted to tell each other but neither did, until Chris whispered without a hint of hesitation, "I'm' n love with you, Violetta."
Violetta's lips parted in a small gasp, eyes immediately watering up again, and she then shook her head as she sorrowfully whispered, "Chris... Don't..."
"I'm sorry." Christopher shrugged with a sad smile, his own eyes also glittering with tears. "I know you're- Engaged now..." He struggled with the word for a moment. "But this entire time I've been trying to tell you this. I know it's too late, but I wanna know... What did I do wrong?" He sighed in defeat, shoulders slumping down.
"What does he have that I don't? I know he has the money and the status but you never seemed to care about any of those. So forgive me, but I can't understand why you- Why he-... He doesn't deserve you, Vi. He's such a horrible person while you- You are the kindest, sweetest, and the most openhearted person I ever knew. You are way too good for me too, I have conscience of that, but- Losing you for Todd..." His voice cracked, tears threatening to fall, "Please tell me that you were forced onto this. That you are not actually in love with him... Please..." He trailed off.
"Chris-" Violetta leaned forward to grab his hand. She humidified her lips before speaking again, her voice sounding fragile once she knew that couldn't speak any louder or else the tears would start flowing again. "It has absolutely nothing to do with you... Nothing."
She gave a brief pause, feeling a big lump forming in her throat by the look of the boy's sad eyes. She couldn't find the proper words. And so she slowly leaned in, placing her lips in a tender kiss to Chris' cheek, fresh tears spilling from her eyes when they shut. She lingered in there for a moment too long, feeling her lips trembling when pulled back and whispered at him, "Please forgive me... But I can't do this..."
"Vi-" He called but the girl quickly stood up, concealing a sob as she climbed down the rest of the staircase, trying to wipe the tears away from her face as she left the building.