Alice refused to look at me. She would avoid my eye during meal times, skirt around me in the whole, and requested that I keep my distance from Rebecca until I had sorted myself out. I wasn't entirely sure what she meant by that, and I had no intention of asking. All I wanted was to get through the supper with Marlows unscathed.

The approaching supper had spent the house into a tailspin. The servants were ordered to sweep and mop the floors, dust every surface, and ensure everything was spotless. I had never seen them so busy and I was certain that they did not put as much effort into cleaning when the Seabrooks would visit. Father wanted everything to go smoothly, and that included me.

The afternoon of the supper, he had sent George up to me to act as a valet. Since George's arrival, Father had said that he would act as a valet when the opportunity arrived, and it seemed as though that time had come. He wanted me to look like a respectable gentleman, something I was not capable of doing myself. At least I didn't have to worry about making myself look presentable.

"Will you stop fidgeting, Master Nate? You'll crease your shirt," George said.

"I cannot help it. This collar is choking me."

"You're going to have to tolerate it for a few hours." He tugged on my bowtie, somehow managing to push my collar further into my neck. "If it chokes you to death, at least you won't have to deal with another supper."

"So, there is an upside to this monstrosity?"

George laughed. "Just keep still."

"I'm being genuine. Do you think I can get out of more suppers if my collar strangles me to death?"

"If you don't keep still, I'll be the one strangling you."

With a slight raise of his eyebrows, I knew George to be serious, so I stopped wriggling. The collar still dug into my throat, the jacket made me feel uncomfortably warm and sweaty, and I had so much pomade in my hair that it wasn't going to move for a week. There was so much involved in a simple supper that I wondered if any of it was worth it. Surely no one would be comfortable this evening.

Still, I had promised George and Father that I would sit through the supper and not say anything untoward. I had to get through this supper if we stood any chance of mending our already fractured relationship. George was right about me dealing with too many things I couldn't control. This supper was something I had control over.

"Right," George said, "I think that is as good as we are going to get you."

"That's not a compliment, is it?"

"It can be anything you want it to be, Master Nate."

"Alright, not a compliment."

George laughed, straightening my bowtie. "How are you feeling about this supper?"

"Terrified that it is all going to go wrong and this—" I tugged on my collar "—isn't helping, neither is the heat."

"Try not to drink too much wine if you can help it. It will only make you warmer. There should be some lemonade going up to the table, so stick to that."

"Yes, sir," I mumbled.

"Just keep a cool head and all will be fine."

"It's the cool part I'm going to struggle with."

George chuckled to himself and started to clean the room, leaving me to fuss with my tie and dangle myself out the window. The heat turned stifling at the wrong time. I could feel the sweat running down my back when I was standing still, and the collar wasn't helping matters. It would be a long supper if the heat continued and failed to die down during supper.

I was already worried about the supper; the idea of sitting across from Father, Mrs Marlow, and Clara Marlow for several hours terrified me. The heat was another obstacle that I didn't need, nor did I want to face. It made everyone irritable, including me, and it would make the entire situation all the more uncomfortable for everyone involved.

It was going to be a long night, and I was not looking forward to it.

I had agreed to be on my best behaviour for supper and I couldn't let the heat, my clothing, or my emotions get in the way. George had been trying to help me with my emotions for several days, but I didn't feel any better off. There were still far too many things swirling through my head to find a way to deal with them all, but I would have to ignore them if I were to get through supper.

George said that it wouldn't be a good idea to ignore everything, but for the time being, I had no other choice. I would deal with it all once supper was through.

"Right, you're not going to be needed for another half an hour," George said, looking at his watch. "So stay up here and get your bearings. You want a clear head before the Marlows arrive."

"If I live that long." I stepped away from the window and tugged on the collar once again.

"Enough about the collar, Master Nate. You're going to have to grin and bear it. For now, you need to keep your head level and try to distract yourself with the food. The more you eat, the less likely you are to have to talk."

"Now that is a plan I can get behind."

"I knew you would like it." George laughed. "I'll come and fetch you soon."

"Very well, thank you, George."

With a small smile and a slight nod of his head, George left me alone with the collar still cutting into my throat and the heat somehow getting worse. The day had already felt longer, and it was only going to get worse with the rising heat.

I crossed back to the window, opening it as far as I could. Even that couldn't make a dent in the heat. Outside, a sleepy silence covered the trees around our property. There was no breeze to shake the leaves in the trees, the birds had fallen silent in raging heat, and even the flies seemed to have fallen quiet. The heat affected everything.

As I looked out the window, I wondered what Rebecca would be doing whilst we ate downstairs. Father had been clear, to Alice more than me, that we weren't to mention her out of fear of upsetting Mrs Marlow. I didn't think that would be possible given her blasé attitude when it came to mentioning Lily and her obsession with a partnership between myself and Clara. Still, I had promised Father I would be on my best behaviour, and I had to follow through with that.

Someone knocked lightly on the door and I stood up, knowing full well it was George. He opened the door a little and stepped inside.

"Your father is requesting your presence, Master Nate."

"How do I look?"

"Like a gentleman." He smiled. "Not get a move on before the Marlow's carriage gets here."

I straightened my jacket a little. "You can be really bossy when you want to be."

"If I weren't, Master Nate, you would never get anything done."

"Fair enough."

I laughed and stepped past George, readjusting my jacket and shirt once again to make sure they were straight. Father would criticise anything, even a singular hair out of place, and that couldn't happen.

George remained standing on the upstairs landing, watching me as I slowly climbed the stairs to the parlour. Even if my relationship with Father remained strained, I was grateful to have George as a friend and confidant. He had believed me about Rebecca, helped me with Joseph, and was the only person I trusted to know how I was feeling. Without him, things would have been far worse.

A veil of silence had fallen over the house. Not even the servants, who were still setting up the dining room, made a single squeak. The nervous tension oozed out of the walls and the floorboards, and an uncomfortable sensation settled over the entire house. It felt like the house was holding its breath, waiting for the imminent eruption that this supper was likely to cause.

I shuffled into the parlour, where everyone else had already assembled. I was the last one to arrive. Father glared at me as though it were my fault I had been the last one and not simply because my bedroom was furthest away from the stairs. That, and I had taken my time in descending the stairs. I didn't want to give Father too much time to scrutinise me.

Alice perched on the edge of the settee, resting her hands on her lap. She had changed into a pale pink dress, some of her hair had been tied back with a similar coloured ribbon, but the rest of her hair flowed down her back. She didn't look at me. Mother sat beside her in a dress of deep red, her hair secured in a knot at the base of her neck. She offered me a slight smile as I stepped into the room.

Father remained his usual imposing figure. He stood by the window, peering out over the grounds and waiting for the Marlow's carriage to appear. There was not a hair out of place, a wrinkle in his jacket, or a piece of lint on his trousers. Father meant business with this supper and he was determined to play the part of the respectable gentleman.

I lingered by the door, not wanting to step further into the room for fear of doing something wrong. The atmosphere felt thicker in the parlour than it did in the hallway and I was already too warm to sit under Father's glare once he tore his eyes away from the window. I tugged on my collar.

"You know my expectations of you with this supper tonight, don't you, Nathaniel?" Father said, not looking away from the window.

"Yes, sir." My voice stuck in my throat, and I chewed on the inside of my cheek.

"Good. I won't have anything disrupting tonight and I won't have our family name disrespected in front of our guests, either. This supper is important for all of us and it is imperative that it all goes according to plan. Nothing can ruin this. Nothing."

"I understand, sir."

"If you do anything to disrupt this meal, I will send you to your grandmother's before the week is out. Do you understand?"

"Perfectly, sir."

Father said nothing more. He turned back to the window and continued to stare out across the yellowing grass and fading light. The palms of my hands grew sweaty, and I wiped them on the back of my trousers to try to remove the sensation, but it didn't work. Somehow, the heat grew worse. The hallway seemed to shrink in size. My heart beat rapidly in my chest.

Alice glanced at me, a small fleeting glance that I almost missed. A look of concern flashed across her face, but it disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared. I fought the urge to go running back up to my room. All I wanted to do was return to the comfort of my bedroom and sit on the window seat reading one of my books, but life had other ideas.

I tried to use the techniques George had been talking me through to keep my emotions in check when around Father. He had told me to ground myself in the room and, at that moment, use what was around me to centre myself as best as I could. I closed my eyes and took a deep, shaky breath to try to steady my heart rate.

From the kitchens, the smell of supper wafted into the hallway. Lamb, vegetables, salmon. I listened to the sound of the servants moving upstairs, their footsteps breaking through the veil of silence. I felt the rough fabric of my trousers under my fingers and the sweat dripping down my back during the stifling heat. My mouth tasted of blood from where I had chewed on my cheek.

My heart rate slowed. I opened my eyes and glanced around the room, hoping no one had seen me, but they were all too busy staring at nothing to care about what I was doing.

At the window, Father's body stiffened a little more. I looked through the glass, watching as a carriage emerged up the gravel. The carriage was led by two chestnut-coloured horses that reminded me of Lightning. I watched as the carriage circled the gravel for a moment before it came to a stop; the driver climbing down to open the door.

Father turned away from the window and walked across the parlour. I stepped out of the way, but he didn't move.

"Remember, Nathaniel, I want your best behaviour this evening," he said.

"I understand, sir."

"You better."

He stalked past me, approaching the front door as it was opened by one of the servants. Mother and Alice followed. The three of them stepped over the threshold and into the warm summer air. I took a deep breath and followed them all.

There would be no turning back.

~~~

A/N - We're back with a brand new chapter! There are about 12 chapters left of this story so make sure you're still around for the next twelve weeks! I'm excited!

Questions!

Do you think Nate will last the supper? Is his father being too harsh?

Comment below!

First Published - March 14th, 2023