Chapter 2 – A Duck Cannot Be a Mate for a Swan

Eventually, on a day when she overslept a little. That day was exceptionally clear.

After finishing lunch, Eloise rolled up her sleeves, saying she would feed the ducks to shake off her drowsiness.

“Eat slowly, guys. There’s plenty.”

Eloise scattered the golden grains diligently, saying words that her father might say during dinner time.

Her movements were as lively as if she were dancing a waltz.

This was clearly one of Mrs. Hearst’s routines, but Eloise, who had adored the ducks since she was young, often helped her.

Mrs. Bailey couldn’t stand her grown daughter mingling with the ducks, and to soothe her mother’s mood, Sarah willingly opened the piano cover as always.

It was during such a peaceful afternoon.

“Eloise!”

Amid the elegant melody flowing out of the window and the quacking of the ducks, a faint voice was heard.

“……Archie?”

Eloise, unable to hide her delight, turned her head towards the sound.

Under the dazzling summer sunlight, her flushed cheeks were as rosy as ripe apples.

“Why are you here? It’s not even Sunday yet.”

“Should I go back then?”

The man, wiping the sweat off his nose with the back of his hand, smiled broadly. The dimples on his sunburnt cheeks were innocent. Naturally, Eloise smiled back at him.

“What? That’s not what I meant!”

Seeing that he showed no sign of coming over, Eloise, who scattered the remaining feed in her hands in all directions, quietly slipped out from among the ducks.

“Careful, Elsie. Don’t fall…”

Archibald muttered blankly as he watched her flaxen hair and simple poplin dress flutter in the early summer breeze.

Eloise Bailey seemed to not have changed at all from her days as a small, young girl, yet also seemed completely different.

‘When did time pass like this?’

While he was lost in such thoughts, Eloise, who had approached closely, stopped dead while fixing her wind-tousled hair.

Archibald Hicks was her long-time childhood friend, but before that, he was a servant of Fairmont House. She suddenly remembered this fact.

Fairmont House was located in Longfield, not far from Maybury.

The owner of that grand mansion was the Earl of Huntington, and his only grandson was Ansel Blaine.

A beautiful guest who visited Longfield every summer to spend time with his grandfather.

Only when she heard the news of his return did Eloise’s summer truly begin.

From the summer she first met him until now, over a dozen years later, nothing had changed.

For the young Bailey sisters, the busiest season was undoubtedly summer.

Guests from the capital would leave before the hot season even ended.

So, the few weeks he stayed were spent more enjoyably and busily than any other season.

He was the one who made them eagerly await the hot summer and ultimately fall in love with that season.

Even though it had been years since she last spent time with Ansel, Eloise couldn’t help but feel excited when the season of roses came to Maybury.

It happened without fail.

“Archie, don’t tell me you guys…”

“I just called out because I was passing by. I happened to see you.”

“…What?”

Eloise, who had intended to ask about Ansel—whether he had returned, even though they no longer exchanged greetings—asked back with a slightly disappointed tone.

“Why are you passing by here?”

“Running an errand.”

“…Nonsense. I won’t get in your way, so go ahead. See you at church on Sunday.”

As she was about to turn away, Archibald’s calm voice stopped her again.

“Are you curious if the young master has returned?”

“….”

“You liked young master Ansel, didn’t you?”

Her eyes, bluer than the summer sky, widened as if she had heard something she shouldn’t have.

“Archie.”

She should have laughed it off as usual, asking why he was suddenly saying such nonsense.

But Eloise missed that chance.

“When you were young, you used to hang out without any reservations, but now you’ve grown distant because of your feelings. Am I wrong?”

“…”

Eloise found Archibald’s sudden statements unfamiliar and could only move her lips without saying anything.

She was at a loss for words because he was right.

However, there was a more decisive reason why she had grown distant from Ansel Blaine.

“That’s because of the gap between him and us. When we were kids, we didn’t know any better, but now…”

“…”

“Anyway, you and I are still friends, aren’t we? Isn’t that enough?”

She playfully tapped his flat chest, but Archibald didn’t back down.

“The reason you can stay friends with me is because you don’t have feelings for me, unlike with the young master, Elsie.”

“…Archie, what are you trying to say?”

“But the young master’s heart was with your older sister.”

At that moment, Eloise involuntarily recalled an event from ten years ago.

The summer when the Earl’s grandson turned fourteen, it wasn’t Ansel who came to Longfield, but his letter.

On the back of the pure white envelope was only the address of the Bailey household and her sister’s name.

Sarah, who usually didn’t show her emotions, couldn’t hide her joy upon receiving that letter.

Of course, Eloise wasn’t surprised. She had noticed her sister’s feelings long ago.

‘What does it say?’

When she asked in a nonchalant voice, she received this reply.

‘His handwriting is very beautiful, Eloise. And the sentences are very elegant and courteous. Just like an adult’s letter…

But it seems he can’t come back until next year. He’s going abroad.’

Eloise vividly remembered Sarah’s face showing rare sadness as she said that.

A little later, after regaining her composure, she added:

‘He kindly mentioned your well-being too.’

By then, the relationship between Eloise and him had already started to become awkward.

It wasn’t just because she realized that mingling freely with a man was not ladylike, but also because she could no longer ignore the fact that Ansel’s background made him someone beyond her reach.

So Eloise resisted the urge to snatch the letter immediately.

There might have been secret stories meant only for the two of them in the letter. More than anything, she didn’t want her futile feelings for him to be discovered, so Eloise didn’t bother to ask how he inquired about her well-being.

Thus, it remained her secret that she spent sleepless nights imagining the sentences Ansel might have written for her.

Shortly after that, Eloise saw the letter again in her room.

To be precise, it was placed on top of Sarah’s small drawer, likely because her sister had taken it out to read multiple times and then forgotten to put it back in.

And before she realized it, Eloise found herself reading it, even before she could think that she shouldn’t be peeking.

It was a straightforward letter. With polite greetings, updates on his life, and the news that he would be studying abroad for two years due to his excellent grades, all written in neat handwriting.

She found out much later that he was attending the most prestigious private school in the capital at that time.

‘P.S. Please convey my regards to Miss Eloise Bailey as well.’

The greeting he left for her was just one sentence.

Thinking that her sister didn’t show her the letter to avoid disappointing her, Eloise felt a sense of futility… yet she was overwhelmingly happy.

Perhaps it was because his handwriting was so incredibly beautiful.

However, along with her happiness, the guilt of having secretly read the letter grew, and she soon confessed the truth to her sister.

‘I’m sorry! I read the letter. I saw it lying there and couldn’t help it… He really seems to like you.’

When she said that, Sarah smiled brightly and told her it was alright.

Her cheeks, tinged like they had been brushed with rose-colored paint, and her smile, which seemed to be enveloped in pure happiness, were incredibly beautiful.

Eloise felt relieved but also tormented at the same time.

After all, there had been many moments between Ansel and Sarah during their childhood.

Even if they weren’t grand, they were pretty and special events that sparkled like jewels in a small box.

Eloise knew about those events as well as the people involved.

Because to her, each one of them was a bittersweet memory.

But it wasn’t just her who couldn’t be with the Earl’s grandson.

The same was true for her sister, who was said to be the most beautiful in Maybury.

A duck cannot be a match for a swan. It was a natural law.

Having finished her thoughts, Eloise let her shoulders drop helplessly.

“I know. But no matter what, our family can’t be connected with him. So it’s all futile…”

“The young master will be coming to Longfield soon.”

At that moment, Archibald abruptly cut in. Despite his oddly flushed face, his tone remained calm.

“And he’ll be bringing some surprising news.”

“What do you mean?”

“That’s all I can tell you for now. See you next time.”

He reached out with his sun-tanned hand and ruffled his fine, wheat-colored curly hair.

Then he strode off in the direction he had come from.

“Archie! You said you were just passing by? What about your errand…?”

Archibald’s pace had always been quick, both in the past and now.

Left alone in an instant, Eloise turned around with a sigh of resignation.

As she adjusted the sack of duck feed she was carrying, she thought,

‘Well, I don’t think it will be anything surprising. Unless it’s news of a marriage.’