Ania reached for Matthew's hand and pulled him out of the library and to the front door. "Hey don't go so fast," Matthew panted, "I'm still recovering."
Ania's face dropped, "I am so sorry! I didn't mean to I just forgot."
Matthew chuckled, "It doesn't hurt that bad, just need you to slow down and I need to put on my shoes."
"Oh yeah." Ania replied sheepishly, digging her foot into the ground clasping her hands behind her back. "Silly Human!" she giggled.
Matt put on his sneakers, realizing how wrong they looked with his outfit, they were comfortable he was never going to let them throw them away! When they had walked a decent away from the house he paused and took off the jacket, it was too hot for that and untucked his shirt and loosened the buttons around his knees, he felt like he was suffocating. He put the jacket neatly on a tree limb, he would come back for it later.
Ania watched him pursing her lips trying desperately not to laugh. She understood, when she had been alive and in the summer they too would do the same thing when they left the watchful gaze of their parents.
After he set everything nice as not to get it dirty, thus began the tour of the estate and man was it was HUGE. Much of it was forests and fields and they didn't spend too much time there. Ania just pointed it out so he would know. Ania took him to the garden, that had seen better days "Emmy says we'll make this into a proper garden like how it once was!"
Ania took him on a tour of the cemetery, 'as one does' Matt thought to himself. "Emmy is buried in there, the giant tomb in the middle." Ania pointed out.
The orchard was the second to last stop on their tour. She showed him her favorite swing, "maybe we can come back here later and take turns pushing each other?" Ania noted, but there was a hint of pleading in her voice.
The last thing on the tour was a creek, specifically, it was the deepest and widest part on the property, Ania knew, she spent a full day going from one length of the stream to the other. "I figured you would want to cool off, your a sweating!" She laughed pointed to his sweat marks.
"Yeah, its hot, could really use some AC."
"AC?" Ania asked unsure of what he was talking about.
"Yeah, air conditioning, ya know to cool off!" Matt responded shrugging his shoulders at the last bit.
Ania giggled, "Well you can get some AC, if you jump in the creek, there is even a rope you can use to jump in!"
Now it was Matt's turn to laugh, "Thats not was AC means." He was going to explain further and shook his head, it didn't matter, not really. He really wanted some AC to cool off however, the creek would have to do.
Matthew desperately wanted to jump in the water, but if he came back soaking wet with dirty clothes, he knew Gregory was going to flip! He sat thinking for a bit and further stripped leaving only this underwear on. He hardly considered them underwear, it was like wearing two sets of pants! He sighed he was in a different world!
Ania came back over from the water and when she saw him in his drawers, her eyes went wide and she turned her face to the side. Matthew went to the water and stuck his feet in, the cool water felt good, he went towards the middle of the creek where it was about chest deep and squatted down. "You coming slow poke!" He called out to Ania that forgot her embarrassment and came running over. She could vaguely feel the current running past her.
Matthew was smiling like an idiot and she too returned his smile. A feeling welled in her chest she felt like she was with Pawel and Sylwia, she didn't realize how badly she missed the feelings of having siblings.
Matthew splashed water at her, "Earth to Ania? Whatcha day dreaming about?"
Ania returned the splash, "Nothing, nothing much." Ania had a look of ease written on her face. She hadn't been this relaxed in a long time. "Feels good, nice and cool!"
"Mm." Matthew agreed. Very good.
They stayed in the creek for a while. Matthew used the rope to swing into the creek. Then they went to an open field, so he could dry off before he put the clothes back on. The thought of putting the itchy hot clothes back on was not appealing, but he didn't doubt that Gregory would be disappointed in him if he came back even in the underwear. Maybe he could ask for new clothes? He could convince Gregory and Emmeline that these clothes were weird and they would buy him new ones? He would definitely ask and use his big blue eyes if necessary.
Ania fixed his collar and buttons in an attempt to make him presentable. And they headed back to the house. Ania held his hand and began to skip. "I can teach you how to skip if you don't know how?"
Matthew blushed, he just shrugged his shoulders. He was experiencing all kinds of new things.
***
Earlier when Emmeline watched them leave from the front door, she had a mix of emotions. She was happy to see Matthew happy, but she also realized that he had joined her in her gilded cage. He was stuck the same as her. Her heart sank for him and she hoped it would be years before he would feel the pressure of being stuck unable to escape the estate.