Chapter 28
A week has passed after I took care of the sick Leo and now, he's okay as ever. Nothing to worry about, dear readers.
Right after that night, before the whole household got the chance to wake up, I immediately went straight to my room and changed.
Leo was still fast asleep when I woke up and when I checked his temperature, it is somehow okay. By the time I reached my room, Martha was still asleep.
Thank goodness. In case you're wondering, I failed to catch Leo's cold which is good news.
The following days after that, Leo didn't leave his room, it was me who went to his and took care of him. Alternating between feeding him and reading him a book until he fell asleep.
"I better get going, Martha," I uttered as I straightened the beautiful yet simple gown Martha gave me earlier, saying she grew out of gowns like this, probably because of her age.
Actually, the balloon skirt is in the color of pink and the top is a simple white long sleeve, tucked-in, of course. Martha then gave me a black ribbon, telling me to tie it around the neck.
Martha even insisted on letting me borrow one of her favorite gowns that she cannot fit in anymore but I quickly decline because first, it's too pretty and second, I am overly overdressed in where I am going to if ever I chose to wear it.
However, of course, I still gave my gratitude to Judy because the dress is just so dam pretty. The roses make me wanna cry and hug the dress all day long.
To tell you the truth, I badly want to spend my whole salary on new gowns since I am getting a bit embarrassed borrowing one to Judy and now, receiving hand-me-downs from Judy.
But then, my pride isn't really worth to sacrifice the happiness of the poor orphans in London.
That is why as soon as I received my salary a while ago, tightly sealed in an envelope, I went straight to the bathroom to bathe.
"Be careful, my child," replied Martha, not looking up from what she is doing.
Martha's counting her money at the bed since she'll send them all to her family later. According to what Martha told me, her family now lives in the province, her sons are a bunch of farmers while her only daughter set off to marry a clerk or something.
Now, she has dozens of grandchildren, waiting for her money since life was really rough.
As soon as I left the room, one thing I noticed was how busy the staff are. Many maids are carrying huge boxes and such. I bet the kitchen is packed, I can visualize Chef Florentino screaming at the top of his lungs.
Perhaps there's going to be a massive ball later tonight.
Well, thank goodness for this day off since I don't really want to involve myself at such event, to be frank.
I just don't like parties, I mean, I don't have the will to socialize and also because I suck at it.
I then hailed a carriage and went straight to the town to buy gifts for the children.
I spent all my salary in warm blankets, jackets, and food for the children since winter is coming.
The footman then helped me carry all the boxes to the carriage, insisting that it would not cost any since helping me will be like helping the children as well.
With that, after half an hour, we finally reached the orphanage. As soon as I set foot on the orphanage, I cannot help myself from pitying the children.
I mean, the orphanage is pretty small considering there are about three dozens children here.
The plants outside the orphanage are all dead, I then signal the footman to just drop all the box to the side in which he happily did.
I then brush off whatever dust is in my clothes and knocked three times to the old wooden door.
After a minute, an old lady, probably around 65 or so, greeted me.
"You must be Miss Wright,"
"Yes, and you must be Missis Green,"
"Pleasure to meet such a beautiful lady. To be honest, I didn't realize that the lady whom I am writing to in the letter is a very young lady," she replied, smiling, wrinkles in the side of his mouth and eyes are evident.
I just smiled at her, I mean, I don't know what else to say. Look, I am not good at socializing, okay?
"Well, do come in, make yourself at home," uttered Missis Green as she smoothens the side of her bun and her apron.
When we got inside, Missis Green instructed me to sit at the old sofa in which I don't really mind.
missis Green then went to the kitchen and perhaps, make a tea?
There was silence after that, I just let my eyes wander around the room.
The sofa is old, and the room is painted in white in which the paint is slowly getting erased due to time. There are a couple of photographs hang in the wall.
I was about to say something when the door suddenly opened and there stood Leo, the boxes in his arm.
My mouth hangs at the sight of him, I mean, what is he doing here? And how did he know I am here?
"What brought you here, Mister Finley?" I asked, my eyes wide.
Leo then placed the boxes beside the door, "You should probably get the boxes first before entering the orphanage, Clem. This neighborhood is not exactly rich,"
He then raised his brow at me, perhaps, challenging me.
"I-i just forgot, okay? I panicked," I replied, rolling my eyes heavenwards which earned me a chuckle from him.
"You panicked?" He laughed as he removed his black top hat from his head and hang it in the back of the door, following his coat.
"What are you doing here, anyway?" My arms crossed.
"I saw you at the market a while ago carrying these boxes and of course, that made me curious so I decided to follow you and who would've thought that our soon to be murderer Miss Clementine Wright is in an orphanage right now to help," he replied,smiling as he took a seat beside me.
"Very funny, Mister Finley. Do you want me to murder you right now?"
Leo was about to answer when we heard the sound of Missis Green's footsteps.
"Oh, and you must be?" Missis Green asked as soon as she saw Leo sitting beside me.
Leo then rose from his seat and bow, "I am Leo Finley, Miss Wright's..."
"Paramour?" Missis Green cut in which made me blush and I seriously don't want to look at Leo because there's a hundred percent he is too.
"Oh no, Missis Green. Mister Finley is just a friend of mine who happened to be helping me get the boxes inside the orphanage, that's all," I said, smiling at her, Missis Green then raised her brow.
"Well, make yourselves comfortable, I'll just fetch the children," Missis Green responded. She then placed the tea to the table in front of us and went straight upstairs.
But before she could finally leave us, she stopped in the middle of the stairs and look back at us, or...at Leo.
"By any chance, are you the son of Missis Rosaline Finley?",asked Missis Green, her hands behind her.
"Yes, Ma'am," answered Leo which earned him a huge smile from Missis Green, "Your mother used to visit here very often together with her friend when they used to be alive. Tell you, she was a very, very bright woman with a heart made of gold,"
Leo just nods at her and as soon as Missis Green left, Leo sat beside me again, staring ahead, saying nothing. Probably affected at what he heard.
I mean, of all orphanage, Leo's and Augustus' mothers used to go here when they were still alive. What a coincidence.
"I just miss my mother, that's all," Leo murmured when I gently pat him in his back.
I was about to say something when we were greeted by the loud sounds of children raising towards us which made Leo and I laughed.
The next thing we know, we are totally surrounded by dozens of children. One boy probably around six or seven has his arms around my neck and is sitting at my lap, the same thing goes with Leo.
Looking around the children, I've noticed that all are boys, not a single girl can be found, I wonder why. I'll just ask Leo later.
All the boys are dressed in old clothes and most of them are thin. Oh, if only I have the money to feed them all.
"You're so beautiful," exclaimed the boy as he played with my hair.
"Missis Green said I could marry a pretty lady someday," hollered the other blond boy which made me laugh.
"Why, thank you, Sir. You are a handsome boy as well," I replied to the first boy who is sitting at my lap and I thought he'll smile at my reply but instead, he frowns.
"Yes, with that charming smile, you can get all the pretty ladies," I replied to the second boy squeezing himself between Leo and me.
When I turned to look at Leo, he was staring at me and the boys as a boy has his arms around him and is probably talking to him and waiting for his answer.
When he noticed that I am looking at him, he immediately blushed and diverted his attention to the poor kid which made me chuckle.
"Am not a boy, lady. I am a man now," responded the boy sitting at the lap, still frowning.
I was about to laugh but he seems really serious about it so I decided to ride in with him. "Well, what's your name, Sir?"
"My name's Thomas and I am five years old," answered the boy.
"well, what about you?" I asked the second boy who has his fingers to my hair.
"I am Oliver and I am older than Thomas. I am six years old," he answered which made me chuckle but made Thomas frown.
" Well, a pleasure to meet such handsome men like you two. My name's Clementine Wright," I replied but the boys don't seem really interested at my name. Instead, he is quite happy at the fact I just called him a handsome man. What a kid.
Then, a kid sitting at the floor tugged my skirt which caught my attention, the kid was perhaps around four to six years old. He was thin, like the others and this kid has green eyes and messy black hair.
"What's your name, Sir?" I asked, smiling as I let the kid on my lap playing with my hair.
"My name's Harry, missy," the kid answered and I was about to respond when he rose from the ground and walked behind the sofa, behind me and whispered something that brought redness to both my cheeks.
"Is the man beside you your husband, missy?" He said to my ears, thinking it is a form of whispering buy in truth, his voice is loud and since I am only sitting beside Leo, he heard it, of course.
"Oh no, he's not," I answered, blushing as I messed the kid's hair which made him chuckle.
"Before Mama put me to this place, Mama used to have men around her, kissing her in the neck," the kid said out loud.
That made my blushing worse and that also made Leo cough.
Missis Green, who was sitting at the chair next to the stairs then decided to intervene, "that's enough, Harry,"
With that, Harry decided to go back to his previous position and that is on the ground, tugging my skirt.
"Children, please stand in the corner, Miss Wright and I, along with Mister Finley here will just arrange the gifts for you all," Missis Green exclaimed and in just one snap, all the children are standing over the corner, their hands behind them.
After that, the three of us prepared the warm blankets, jackets, and food for each one of them. After a few minutes, we began distributing the presents which rewarded me and Leo a hug from every kid.
"Why are there no girls?" I whispered to Leo while the children are all busy at the boxes, each one picking for their own blankets and jackets.
"There is rarely orphanage here that accepts girls because girls usually go to other places and trust me. You wouldn't want to know," Leo answered, shrugging.
"try me, Mister Finley, I do want to know,"
"Clementine, usually, young girls work at such an early age and their job includes pleasuring you know who,"
With that, I cannot help myself from looking at him wide-eyed. You mean, young girls work as a prostitute?
"That is horrible," I whispered, I am just at loss for words. I can't imagine the pain these girls are going through.
"Indeed," replied Leo, giving me a sad smile.
Right after the children got their very own blankets and jacket in which they are already wearing now, they proceeded to eat the packed meals we've bought.
"Tell me, where the bloody hell did you get this money to buy all these?" Leo answered me as we helped Missis Green prepare the very long wooden table for the children.
"Let's just say I saved up all my salary for the past few months for these," I answered as I place the white plate in front of me. The plates have a design of flowers around it and few of them have a crack or two.
Leo just nod at my reply and we focused on our job, right after a minute, Missis Green called the children that it is time for breakfast.
The breakfast wasn't really much of a big deal but I guess it is kind of a big deal to these orphans especially in the Victorian Era where life was indeed, rough.
The breakfast menu includes a glass of milk for each, pancakes in which they very much enjoyed, and bread.
"It's been months since the children ate such delicious food," said Missis Green, her hands behind her, a huge smile planted on her face as she scans the happy children.
Leo and I then helped the children cut their pancakes, looking at Leo, he looks way too serious at cutting the pancake. Heck, he doesn't even have a smile on his face. He looks as if he's ready to murder the pancake.
Thank goodness the children are not scared of him, other than that, he is great.
After breakfast, I told the children to sit on the ground around me as I fetch a kid-friendly book at their shelf.
Leo then stood on the corner, arms crossed and have this smile on his face that makes me wanna roll my eyes which I know will reward me a chuckle from him.
"Have any of you read this?" I asked the children as I wave a copy of Grimm's Fairy Tale to them in which they all shook their head.
"We don't know how to read, missy," hollered the kid followed by a pout.
Oh, how stupid of me to think that not everyone back then is literate. Remind me to come back here and try to you know, teach them how to.
"Well, today's your lucky day because I will tell you a scary tale about a soldier who married a beautiful princess," I began as I ran my fingertips over the page.
"Beware, children, this one's not perfect for soft-hearted for this is a horror story," as soon as I said that, a kid jumped into my lap which somehow made me chuckle.
"Once upon a time, there was a young soldier who fell desperately in love to a beautiful young princess but the thing is, the princess has a curse. That as soon as she dies, her husband shall be buried with her as well and because the soldier loves her so much, he still agrees to marry her despite the curse not knowing she will die sooner than he expected..."
The children all have their hands on their chin, listening very careful at my words and the kid on my lap has his hand around my neck and his head my shoulder.
Meanwhile, Leo was still standing in the very corner, staring at me, raising his brow as I read. Probably judging my choice of the tale to tell since I should choose a more child-friendly story.
After I finished the story, all the children are asking me questions, whether the princess exists in real life and indeed, it is my fault that they're horrified right now.
So, I decided to tell them another tale, a lighter one but since it is from Grimm's Fairy Tale, it is still somehow twisted.
"Now, buckle up, children for I will now tell you another tale entitled 'Rapunzel'"
By that, the children are all jumping for joy for the story ended with a happy ending, unlike my 1st tale.
After the storytelling, Leo suggested that we all should play a game, well, excluding me and Missis Green for it seems that we have no clue on what they'll play.
Leo created a ball made up of a tightly wadded piece of cloth that would serve as a ball to kick around, obviously.
The whole time they were all laughing and playing, Missis Green and I were just watching them, sometimes laughing at them.
As soon as they're all finished playing, they all now look like a madman. They have three buttons opened and are sweating to death. Their trousers, face, hand, and feet since they were barefoot are all covered in mud.
I just laughed at the sight of them but not Missis Green who at first are horrified at it but after a few seconds, she just laughed it all off.
It's already beginning to get dark so we should probably go home, "Now, children, do say goodbye to Miss Wright and Mister Finley here for a very great day we had,"
Missis Green only instructed the children to just bid us goodbye by greeting us since they are all covered in mud, she doesn't want me to be covered as well.
But to her surprise and to my delight, the children came running towards me to reward me a very tight hug in which I returned as well.
"We will miss you, sissy," uttered a kid whose face can barely be seen for he is covered in mud which made Leo chuckle for he covered in mud as well but only to his chest.
"And I will miss you too, kiddo, don't worry, I'll come back soon," as soon as I have enough money...
"Children, look what you've done to Miss Wright's clothes!" Exclaimed Missis Green as soon as they finished hugging me.
Missis Green then began tugging the children back to her, "Forgive me for this, Miss Wright,"
I just waved at her, "Oh, it's fine, nothing to worry about, Missis Green," but that still doesn't ease Missis Green's stress.
As Leo and I were about to walk away to fetch a carriage, three kids run towards us, Leo then carried the kid to his arms while the two tugged my skirt.
"Please come back with Mister as well, missy. He seems really good at all," said the other kid whose clothes are all covered in mud.
When I looked up over Leo, he is just smiling and raised his brow at me when he realized I am looking at him.
"Sure thing, fella. Now, get yourselves a bath because bad odor doesn't attract pretty ladies," I whispered to them as I winked and with that, they are off inside the orphanage.
That made Leo and I chuckled. While waiting on the carriage to pass by, I tugged Leo in his dirty sleeve, "I just want to say thank you for helping me with the kids. I know this may sound cliche but I couldn't do this without you,"
My little speech only made Leo smile, he then raised his brow, "That's all for thank you?"
I just stared at him, his playful brown eyes, his freckles, his thick brows, pointed nose, his messy jet-black hair, his unbuttoned polo, his kinda tight fitting slacks, and shoes that are all covered in mud.
I mean, he's good looking but not that handsome but for an unknown reason, I find myself tiptoeing and planting a kiss on the tip of his nose.
With that, I entered the carriage, my mouth shut as I stared at him outside, his mouth opened and eyes wide, his cheeks and neck in the color of red.
After a few seconds, he entered the carriage as well and for the whole trip to the manor, we were just quiet but every minute or so, we catch ourselves staring at each other than diverting our gazes outside.
Indeed, it was one awkward trip and I want to slap myself for being so bold. I mean, sure, it's not a kiss in the lips but still, why do I have to be the one to make the first move?
Remember, Clementine, this is Victorian Era where meek girls are worshipped. Goodness, gracious.
I was lost in my thoughts to the point I didn't realize we reached the manor and that's when I realized that indeed, there is a ball going on but I can tell it still hasn't started yet.
Due to how awkward our journey was, I raced towards the manor and left Leo in the carriage.
The household is pretty much very busy, there are musicians inside the house, carriages are all lined up outside.
While on my way to my room to change my clothes and helped the staff in preparation for the ball, a maid poked me, "Mister Douglas is waiting for you at his office,"
I gave her a confused look, "Why on earth would he wait for me knowing he has a party that is going to start any minute now?"
The maid replied me a shrug and went off. With that, I have no choice but to proceed upstairs despite how dirty my clothes are.
We wouldn't want my employer waiting, right?
Hiiii! Sorry for taking so long to update. Anyways, hope you guys are having a great week.