Derek shut the amber colored wooden door behind him as he exited the Duke's study. He stomped on his way back, carrying his displeased self quickly on his feet, dismal and cold.
He was lost in his thoughts. The servants who greeted him in the hallway looked similar to the paintings which were plastered on the walls in his eyes. They were like the countless trees that passed as the carriage moves forward, monotonous and ignored after a few seconds of interest.
"Derek!" he heard someone call his name from behind and stopped in his track. In this mansion, there were only few who could call him by name, and he recognized the voice too well to ignore it.
"Hah! Caught you!" the commander huffed, trying to fulfilling his need for air. He had rushed to meet Derek who had left the study sulkily.
"What happened?" Derek asked, running his hands through his hairs. They were still wet but his mood had changed from what it was a while ago. He was concerned about what was urgent enough to make the commander rush to him, breathless.
"I had something to tell you." he said, grasping Derek's shoulder with a pat, "It was I who decided which troops would go to the south. It had nothing to do with Leonard, whatsoever."
"Wait, wait…So, are you telling me that you colluded with him in this and now you're here to announce it to me?" Derek's hands were folded on his chest and he was glaring right at Fredrick.
"No, idiot! All I'm saying is that…I don't know why Leonard lied but don't hate him for something he didn't do. Your brother cares about you more than you think." Fredrick stared back at Derek; his eyes determined not to blink first.
"Indeed." Derek let out a bitter laugh, "The Duke has never failed to make evident his concern for me, someone who shares only half of his blood and used to live in the gutters before being adopted. And I'm sure that he did everything with my best interest in his mind. After all, Winterns love doing charity for the poor."
Derek had lost his house, his mother and his unborn siblings to the Winterns, all on a single, cursed night. To survive in this mansion was more difficult to him than living in the slums. The more he thought about it, the more he came to hate the Winterns.
His eyes grew bloodshot and were like a window to the demons sealed inside him.
Fredrick knew that if he didn't stop Derek now, whole house would have to suffer his rampage.
"What's the matter with you?" His hands which were on Derek's shoulders shook him mercilessly, "Don't take your frustration out on me. Come talk to me once you're calm." Fredrick noticed Derek's breath getting ragged in fury. At once, he decided to flee rather than fight.
On his way out, he nudged two servants who were arranging flowers in vases along the hallway, and the three of them then escaped together, afraid of being caught up in the hurricane if it came to befall the mansion.
Fredrick had left as quickly as he came. Other servants who were working on the opposite end of the hallway from them, took the hint and took off on their own. Derek's wrath was not something unknown to them.
When Derek broke out of his trance and was breathing regularly, the commander had already disappeared from his sight. Not only that but the entire hallway which bustled with busy servants previously, was now as empty as some deserted alley. He didn't come face to face with another soul on his way to his room.
He was thankful for that though. He didn't know what face to make if he met someone. When he reached his room, there were voices coming from inside and one of them belonged to Hansel.
Was someone bullying Hansel in his absence? Flames of fury in Derek's mind, which had calmed down a little, raged once again. He wanted to see who was daring enough to pick on his people.
Clack!
Derek pushed the handle to open the door. As soon as he walked in, the entire ruckus quietened down in a split second. Derek had expected there to be at least four to five people, owing to all the noise which was coming from the room, but in fact there were only two.
One was Hansel, as Derek knew, and the other was the Old Butler. 'Why was he in his room, again?' Derek was irritated. Both of them had stopped in midst of their action as if a black cat had crossed their path and now gawked at him with wide eyes.
Hansel was red, clutching the sheets Derek had wrapped him in before leaving, close to his chest and the butler was pulling it away from him from the opposite end. It was like a mini tug of war going on inside his room.
"What is happening over here?" Derek asked, obviously irritated that he still couldn't attain peace even though he was in his own room.
"Sir." The Old Butler bowed at once, loosening his grip on the sheet. Hansel took advantage of it and pulled the rest of it towards him, out of the range of the butler. He won the tug of war!
"I thought of serving afternoon refreshments to the young sir and prepared the assortment of snacks that he would like." the Old Butler began explaining, "But while serving the tea, due to this servant's mistake, it got spilled on the blanket. I just wanted to replace the blanket for the young sir's comfort but he refuses to part from it."
Derek looked at the sheet. There was really a large stain similar to the colour of a honey-lemon tea. Although it was no big issue to get it replaced, Hansel was naked underneath and he was not someone accustomed to others seeing his body. There was no way Hansel would give in willingly.
"I…I told him I'd do it on my own but he wouldn't listen." Hansel muttered in a hardly audible voice, but both Derek and the Old Butler heard him.
"There's no way I can let the Second Young Master's guest do such menial tasks. And as I've told you sir, I absolutely don't mind your state of undress…"
"Enough! Just leave already!" Derek told the butler, irritated that all this ruckus was made over nothing. "I'll call for someone if I want it replaced."
Derek made it clear. He didn't want to deal with anything that was taxing on his brain anymore. He was tired enough already.
The butler bowed and left. Although he would have liked to tell Derek many things, his subtly red eyes that looked tired and disheartened, discouraged him. The old man left without so much as a squeak from his shoes.
Now that Derek was alone with Hansel in the room, he kicked out from his shoes and drank a glass of water kept on the bedside table.
"You look drained." Hansel spoke, watching Derek impatiently gulp water down his throat.
Fwump!!
Keeping the glass down, Derek collapsed on Hansel, who was sitting on the bed, still clutching the sheets. Hansel saw Derek fall down as if he had no life and immediately caught him in his arms. He was scared out of his wits to do anything.
But blood started flowing again in his body when Derek moved, burrowing his face into Hansel's chest. He was seeking solace. Even though he was still tired, at least his irritation had faded away as soon as Hansel wrapped his arms around him.
"Hey!" Derek looked up, meeting Hansel's eyes which were obviously relieved that Derek hadn't collapsed in reality. Derek snuggled up to him again as he spoke, "Comfort me!"