Chapter 9 – Just One Season

「This is the first time I’ve felt this way. With Sally…」

Eloise paused, pen in hand, her face serious as she rested her chin. 

After a moment of hesitation, she wrote the second sentence.

「I feel like I’ve grown distant from Sally.」

The past few days, when no words were exchanged after saying goodnight in the darkened sisters’ bedroom, were so strange.

Since they started talking, there hadn’t been such a thing, so it was indeed an unfamiliar occurrence.

‘My sister must have a lot on her mind. She’s facing a completely new life.’

‘She must be excited but equally fearful. So, she wouldn’t want to talk…’

“Haa.”

Eloise, who had stopped thinking, let out a thin sigh.

It was a ridiculous excuse from the start. Sarah was always a woman of few words.

Sarah, who had been mature from a young age, always listened to Eloise’s stories with a gentle smile.

It was naturally Eloise who would call out to her sister several times every night as she was about to fall asleep.

So the diminished conversations between the sisters clearly meant something – Eloise was the one avoiding her sister.

Afraid that her impure desire to stand by that man’s side instead of her sister might be caught.

She had become quite adept at feigning an excited expression as if she was looking forward to her sister’s wedding whenever it was mentioned during meals.

It was utterly despicable.

On the other hand, Sarah was no different than usual. She was always quiet and serene.

Despite the impending sudden marriage, her face, lost in thought, appeared happier than ever.

‘Marriage can’t be just a source of joy. It’s a leap into a completely unfamiliar world.’

So, there could only be one reason Sarah appeared happy. The belief that she could overcome any hardship as long as she was with him.

Eloise’s heart ached as if it were being squeezed every time she reflected on the fact that this was a happiness that would never come to her.

It was sad but inevitable. No one would make her feel such emotions. Except for Ansel Blaine.

Some people criticized that the daughter of the Bailey family had caught a man beyond her means.

But Eloise thought it was fortunate that he was not just suitable but an exceptional person.

If her sister had been engaged to an unremarkable man, though it’s questionable if their mother would have allowed it, the obligation of marrying for the family’s future would have fallen entirely on her, the second daughter.

More than anything, even if she received a proposal that even Mrs. Fulham would admire, Eloise had no intention of accepting it.

She knew it was a childish thought, but she genuinely did not want to become anyone’s wife.

Unless it was him…

Eloise, who had closed her eyes in distress, shut her diary.

‘What on earth am I thinking?’

The strange thing wasn’t the quiet night but her own heart.

Eloise can only hope that Sarah never learns of these feelings, and if she does, that she will pretend not to know.

* * *

“Ansel, would you like some more tea?”

Mrs. Bailey’s gentle voice was heard. Her tone was as soft-spoken as one would expect from the gracious lady of a noble household.

“Make yourself comfortable. You’re practically family now, so there’s no need to be so formal.”

Eloise couldn’t quite hear Ansel’s response, as his voice was very low.

Eloise found it amusing to see herself straining her ears like a mouse, holding her breath in the kitchen.

To be precise, it was amusing to see herself, who had excused herself to help Mrs. Hearst with the laundry, but was now standing blankly in front of the stairs leading to the basement…

Eloise sank down helplessly and swallowed a sigh.

“How foolish.”

Ansel had returned to the Bailey household not long after his passionate proposal that had set Maybury ablaze.

Like a man determined to prove his ardent love, the handsome suitor had visited the Bailey home several times a week since his first visit.

While it was true he was staying at Longfield all summer, his frequent visits were quite extraordinary given his social standing.

As an engaged couple, it would have been unremarkable for him to invite Sarah to spend the summer with him at Fairmont House, yet he chose to come to this old dwelling instead. The reason was obvious.

‘…He knows that my sister feels uncomfortable in that grand estate.’

Even when he visited his fiancée’s house, he didn’t do anything grand.

His purpose was simply a short conversation with Sarah.

Today, it had somehow turned into a tea time with the lady, but usually, Ansel would quietly meet with his fiancée and then leave.

For a couple about to be married, their interactions were hardly passionate or dramatic, but Eloise could immediately tell that this was also a consideration for her sister.

After all, her sister is quite shy. No matter how soon she will become a wife, he is willingly accommodating her pace.

And after the marriage, they will create their own rhythm on the stage meant for just the two of them.

Step by step, slowly and tenderly.

How beautiful would that dance be? Surely, it would be so enchanting that one couldn’t take their eyes off it.

Thinking that way made Eloise’s heart ache once again.

“It must be terribly dull compared to the capital, are you truly alright with staying here? It will be different from just spending a season and then returning.”

At that, Mrs. Bailey asked, and for the first time, his response was heard.

It was strangely deep and clear, as if whispering right next to her.

“You have no idea how long I’ve dreamed of living here.”

“Oh, Ansel…”

Mrs. Bailey sighed. Although she did not make a sound, Eloise felt the same.

Sarah said nothing, but Eloise could vividly imagine the expression on her sister’s face.

Sally, whose pearl-like fair face would be blushing with a shy smile.

And how sweetly the color of Ansel’s gaze must be shining as he looks at her.

They were indeed a pair that matched so well it was almost tearful.

This is what love that transcends the barriers of social status looks like, enough for anyone to understand.

Eloise has never wished to eavesdrop on the conversations her sister and Ansel share in the empty library. After all, she already knows.

She knew that those words would be softer and more fragrant than any fine poem or song.

It’s better not to witness their moments together.

To be precise, it was more dangerous to see Ansel alone than to see the beautiful couple together. Facing him was extremely harmful to Eloise.

Looking at him, who had grown into a perfect man, invariably stirred her heart.

The fragments of memories from his childhood and the unspoken words tangled in her mind, causing her distress.

So, she couldn’t greet him with a calm face.

It would be a lie to say it didn’t matter, given that she had loved him for so long and he had become her beloved sister’s fiancé. So, it was ultimately a matter of time.

After the wedding, she would eventually accept everything. Although her sister’s absence would be unbearably lonely for a while, life would go on.

So, she had to endure the pain.

‘At least this childish method of avoiding him is something.’

There were less than three months until her sister’s wedding anyway. Just one season.

Eloise, who had organized her thoughts, stood up with a sniffle. Her steps toward the basement were quite resolute.

“Mrs. Hearst!”

It was some time later that she realized life doesn’t always go as planned.

* * *

It was during the precarious yet peaceful days. As time flowed slowly but surely, summer gradually ripened.

On that bright summer day, Eloise was the only one on the first floor by coincidence.

The reason being Mr. Bailey had left on a long journey to fulfill his role as the head of the family, and Mrs. Bailey and the eldest daughter had gone to town to pick up ordered fabrics.

Mrs. Hearst, exhausted from a battle with the ducks, was taking a nap, and Eloise was pressing the worn keys of the piano with a listless expression.

“I’m sad, my love. You are too cruel.”

Her song layered over the piano playing was subtly off-key. It was even half a beat slower than the actual playing. It was truly a mess, but Eloise didn’t mind.

After all, there was no one to hear it, and it was simply a way to alleviate her boredom.

“You left me so arrogantly…”

But the playing soon came to a halt. It was because of the sudden sound of hoofbeats.

As her fingertips, which had been pressing the keys, paused, a knock on the door was heard.

Eloise felt the hair on her body stand on end.

It was only natural that the memory of a certain dawn, which had been fading smoothly, vividly resurfaced.

‘Of all times, when I’m alone…’

She could feel a faint sweat on her palms, but Eloise tried to remain composed.

‘Since he had come just yesterday, it might not be him standing outside the door now.’

It could be a guest of her mother, or someone from Fairmont House, or perhaps…

However, the moment the unknown visitor knocked on the door again, Eloise’s thoughts dissipated weakly.

In truth, she could tell everything just from the neat footsteps and the knock. She had been desperately denying it.

“…Yes.”

When she stood in front of the door, Eloise could already smell his scent.

The refreshing fragrance revealed its presence clearly in the soft summer air.

Cool and slightly bitter bergamot. And the gentle smell of herbs… Now, it was hard to tell if this was an illusion or not.

Her trembling hand carefully unlocked the latch. After what felt like an eternity, the door opened, and the familiar scent grew stronger. Eloise’s vision darkened.

“An…”

The man’s scent, which she had come to recognize even in her dreams since that dawn, made her body lose strength.

She couldn’t simply collapse like a fool, so she somehow managed to stand on her two feet, but she couldn’t bear to look him in the eye.

She was so close that she could reach out and touch his face. There was no way she could put on a nonchalant expression…

In the shadow cast by his shoulders, Eloise couldn’t bring herself to lift her gaze from his shiny black shoes.

Pathetically, even the man’s feet before her were beautiful.

At that moment, a deep, dream-like voice resonated from above her head.

“Eloise.”