*Ms Tamara*
Tamara rushed into the house, rain pouring outside and she soaked from the precipitation, from head to toe.
Closing the door behind her, she allowed herself to rest against it, giving herself a moment's worth of break.
With that, Ms Hope rushed into the hallway and gasped. "Child! We must get you dry, otherwise, you'll become ill!!".
With that, her sisters, right behind Ms Hope, also rushed into the hallway.
"Where were you, Tamara?" Ruth inquired as they all hurdled around Tamara before helping her up the steps and into her room.
To her sister's question, at first, Tamara sniffled. "I went for a walk and then the rain caught me...".
A loud bang of thunder was heard right after Tamara finished speaking.
"I'll go and prepare some tea!" Ms Hope exclaimed just as she turned and rushed out the door and down toward the kitchen.
"We must get you changed first before getting you to bed," Eileen spoke out as she turned to begin searching for Tamara's clothes. Agath and their mother, Ann-Marie, joined her, all while Gertrude stayed with Ruth beside Tamara as they helped her get out of her wet clothes.
Ann-Marie turned, facing Tamara. "I think it might be better for you to hop into a warm shower, sweetheart. It'll help you warm up...". She paused, turning to the rest of her girls. "I'll separate her clothes, you girls go and help Ms Hope cook up some soup as well for Tamara.".
With that, her sisters rushed downstairs all while Tamara made her way, with the bare layers of clothes she had left on herself, to the bathroom. There, when she entered and clothes the door behind her, she allowed her wet clothes to drape and fall down to her feet.
Shivering, she quickly hopped into the shower, closing the curtain before she turned on the water. When warm enough, she allowed for it to trickle down her body, in turn curing the coldness away.
There was a knock on the door. "Tamara, it's me...". She heard her mother's voice. "I'll leave your clean clothes here.".
"Thank you, mama...".
With that, the door closed, leaving Tamara with her few minutes of relaxation.
After her shower and getting dressed up, Tamara made her way back into the room. But despite the warmth of the shower, the coldness had a way of getting back to her. Once more, her body began to shiver ever so slightly.
Following her body's urges, she went beneath the sheets of her bed. Once there, her gaze redirected toward her window.
The rain looked as though it had no intention of stopping any time soon.
"How are you feeling, sweetheart?" her mother's voice pulled Tamara out of her trance. Turning her head, she spotted her mother by the doorway of her room.
"Just a bit cold, Mama..." Tamara replied.
To her answer, Ann-Marie couldn't help but offer her a sheepish smile. "Your sisters and Ms Hope will be coming up to give you some remedies. Hopefully you won't get sick.".
"I wasn't out in the rain for all that long, Mama.".
"You don't need all too long to get sick when out in the cold rain, Tamara. You were drenched.".
Just then, Eileen appeared around the corner. "The soup will be ready in a few minutes and so will the tea...".
With a slight smile, Ann-Marie took a step back. "If you need anything, Tamara, tell us.". And with that, just before leaving, she approached Tamara and gave her forehead a kiss.
Leaving the two sisters in the room, alone, Eileen approached Tamara before sitting on one side of her bed.
"It's him?... Isn't it?" Eileen inquired, keeping her eyes on Tamara. And as a result, Tamara froze in her place.
"Hm?... W-what do you mean, Eileen?".
'What does she know that I don't?' Tamara couldn't help but as herself.
But, what Tamara expected the least was to see a small smile appear on her sister's face. "Using such harsh words, it didn't take me long to determine that it was him...".
'Harsh words?...'. And then it hit Tamara like a ton of bricks. Before Tamara could have made an utterance, Eileen pulled out the page Tamara had crumbled up from behind her back.
"It sounds to me as if you deeply dislike him, Tamara," Eileen further elaborated.
"You're not wrong..." Tamara responded. She hadn't told Eileen, nor any of her sisters as a matter of fact, about what happened on the night of Diana's party. Tamara thought it would be better off dug down, down deep in the midst of her memories.
"Abigail told us he isn't the one for talking though, Tamara," Eileen began. "I don't think you should go so severely on him.".
Eileen's words caused Tamara's blood to boil. After all the things he had said to her and only 'going severely on him' simply wouldn't do for her. He'd be lucky if she was to let him off only on that. But she knew she had to regain her composure and fast, otherwise, Eileen will notice that something was off.
"I don't know, Eileen..." Tamara spoke up. "I really don't know... but I know one thing for sure.".
To her words, Eileen inquired, "And what's that?".
"You'll never, ever see me in the same room as 'Lord' Theodore Baraville...".
"Tamara!... You can't speak such words nor can you think of such, mainly because it's more than likely that you'll see him everywhere you go.". Tamara sensed a wave of wariness in Eileen's voice.
"I said what I said, Eileen...".
And as Eileen responded, she let out a rush of air through her lips. "You are going to have to... learn how to live alongside people you dislike. You will see them, but you don't have to interact with them, Tamara...". A brief pause followed Eileen's words. "For all we care, he might get married soon and will move out somewhere. And if he stays, well maybe his future wife would be able to change something within him.".
Tamara parted her lips to respond, but all her words got stuck in her throat. Slowly, they began to form a lump in her throat.
But swallowing down the lump and clearing her throat, Tamara went on to say, "I sure hope so...". The lump in her throat failed to recede.