The Girl Who Loved Ham

By the time I got back to my room, breakfast had already been served and ate by the rest of the people, but I don't really care, I don't really have an appetite anymore. I walk over to my bed, sitting on the edge of it and stare at my interlaced hands resting upon my lap.

I knew that something was going to happen. I figured none of these men would want me, especially since up until a few short weeks ago, they were expecting to have Claire as their potential bride.

"What a disappointment I must be for them." It falls out of my mouth in a sigh as I throw myself back, laying on the bed. The ceiling is long pillars of dark wood sprawling from wall-to-wall. The pillars seem very large and hefty, and I wonder how many people it took to build it.

I bet there were a lot of people who had to hold that up, while others had to make it stay. Now that I think about it, was this castle built by our people, or was it something that survived in the war?

I pull myself up, back into a seated position as my eyes wander to other intricate designs in the room. Standing, I immediately start walking towards the walls, touching the wallpaper. It is dark red, with small, intricately painting yellow and pink flowers. I touch the center of the flower, and you can barely see the petals over the edge of my finger. I run my hands along the wall as I walk around the room a little more. I wander and find myself already at the edge of the room. Turning I walk again, noting the different furniture against the walls. A chair perched near the window, a small little table, and the bookcase sit on the wall near the bathroom. The wall leading up to the door that Bronson and McQueen guard is barren, but on the other side stands a large dresser. On the wall above the dresser is a small mirror, one which I only see the top of my shoulders and my face. I look away and find myself right back to the bed, which has a tiny table with drawers on either side. Last but not least, the wall with the large doors that learn to the patio outside, and a desk right beside it. All the wooden things in the room, match the color of the wooden beams on the ceiling, and the cloth used on the chair, or the large blanket in the bed, match the red color of the wall paper.

     Even the expensive quality of this room is too extravagant for me. I feel like I am running everything just by touching it. I grab hold of the sheets, grabbing them and begin yanking the large blanket off the bed. I have only stayed in it one night, surely they can still fix it. I pull and pull at the heavy blanket until it is on the very edge of the bed, so far that my my body won't touch it. When I place the sheets back, I see dark smudges where I had just pulled. Raising a brow, I lean forward to examine it closer.

     "How strange." I mutter as I scratch at it and the smudge becomes darker. I drop the sheet and it gently falls from my hands. I look at them, and sure enough my hands are smeared with something dark brown, almost like mud. "Strange indeed... Did they get dirty from the wall paper?" Glancing at paper, I see small smears of brown. "Hmm." I walk away and go into the bathroom to wash my hands.

     I turn the knobs to where a slightly warm water flows through. Sticking my hands inside, I scratch and scrub at the smudges for a bit until the darker spots are gone. After that, I grab some soap and scrub at the smudges again. The water from my hands has a slight tinge of brown to it as it flows down the shiny drain. I dry my hands with a plush towel, watching it closely to make sure it doesn't get dirty. Once dry, I examine my palms, then flip my hands around to look at the back of my hands. Clean.

Leaving the bathroom, I look over to the wallpaper, and the faint smudges from before are no where to be seen. What the heck? Leaning down, I look at the paper closely to see not sort of the brown smudge that was there before. Stepping away, I walk over to the bed, reaching for the sheet.

*knock knock*

Jumping, I pull my hand from the sheet. I take a few steps back before turning completely and walking to the door. Opening it a young girl with a silver cart and short red hair bows her head.

"Good morning Miss," her voice is very soft, almost as if she it too terrified to raise her voice. "Mr. Sebastian believed it too be inappropriate for you to go without a proper breakfast, so he has requested for the cooks to make you one." I have to strain to hear her at times, and at the end she takes in a sharp breath, as if she had been trying to say it all in one go. "May I bring this in?"

"Of course." I say and step aside as she pushes it in. Her head only slightly raises from her bow position while her eyes stay firmly planted on what is in front of her cart. Once inside, she steps away from her place and uncovers the food on the cart, then curtesy's again.

"Does this suits your palate this morning miss?" She asks, head still down and voice still soft. "I do apologize that it is so simple." On the plate is fluffy yellow eggs, with flecks of green on top, a slice of toast, and some kind pink circular thing.

"It's looks great." I say as she nods and I glance to the corner with the big chair. "I think that is the only place I have to sit and eat." I mutter as I look around. Nodding, the pushes the cart to the area and I follow. "Oh I could have carried that!"

"Unthinkable." She states as I nod and sit down. From the side of the cart, she pulls out a small foldable table and opens it, placing it in front of me. She sets the plate on top and then leans down opening up something and pulling out metal kettles. "Coffee or tea?"

"Oh..." I look at the steam coming from the little spout and shake my head. "No I am okay." Nodding, she places the objects back and holds her hands in front of her as she stares ahead. I take a bite of eggs, chewing silently. This is so awkward. My eyes look at the pink thing and I poke it with my fork. "What is this?" Looking up, I see as her eyes widen with surprise before clearing her face.

"It is ham." She says and I nod as I slowly cut it. "It is very delicious. Quite possible the best type of meat there is in my opinion... my mom told me if I ate too much I would get fat, so I don't get to eat it often." I watch as her eyes go from serious to something with a twinkle. "If I were here, in this thing, I would eat all the ham they have." I can't help but smile and she immediately takes note, fixing her face to a stern expression. "Ahem. I mean, I hope it suits your taste." I nod as I take a bit and a sweet yet salty flavor from the ham's grease sends a jolt of happiness in my body. I take note of how intently she watches and once down chewing, I give her a smile.

"It is very good." I say, and almost with relief, she bows her head, a small smile against her lips.

Since it isn't much food, I soon have eaten everything and watch as she begins to push the cart out of the room. "Oh!" I call and she stops looking at me. "What is your name?" With a nod, she pulls her hands from the cart and does a very deep courtesy.

"I apologize for not telling you sooner." She says and lowers her head more. "My name is Rosalind. I am a room service helper. I bring food to the rooms of the girls if they have to miss a meal due to sickness or various other reasons." She raises her head and places her hand over her heart. "I look forward to working for you Miss." With that, she pushes her way out of the room, the door closing behind her. Is it my imagination, or is she simply too young to be working yet?

About an hour before lunch, another knock comes from my door. Behind it, Reena stands with a bright smile and two bulky guards standing behind her. "Hello!" She cheers and I nod as she scratches at a very tight braid on her head. "Do you mind if I come in?" Her head tilts slightly and her voice is higher than normal. Her eyes are slightly narrow, as if she is saying, 'open this door or else'. I comply and she walks in as the two guards stand outside with Bronson and McQueen. Once in, she shuts the door and immediately her posture relaxes as she walks about the room. "Why on earth do they have you in this room?" She asks as she walks around.

"What do you mean?" I ask looking around also at the rather grand scale of the room. I watch as she narrows her face and opens her mouth a few times, trying to decide if she should say it or not.

"It doesn't really matter." She says as she looks at the window and her eyes shine. "You have a view of the ocean which, in my opinion, makes the best view in the entire place!" Walking over, she pulls at the curtain looking outside with a smile sprawled on her face. "Who cares who has a princess's room and what not." She mutters just enough that I can hear, but I don't really sense an malice in that. "That's all they were talking about this entire morning." In an instant she drops the curtain and turns to look at me. "Hey where were you this morning anyway?"

Oh boy. I hadn't thought about what I would need to say about this morning. I figure what ever happened needs to be kept in secret. What do I say? Do I just tell her I didn't feel well? Yes m, but that would only work if the boys do not eat with us still. If they eat with us, me being sick will not excuse their absence. What should I say?

"I did not feel very well." I say, hoping that will suffice in the excuse.

"Oh that makes sense." She says and she smiles as she sits in the end of my bed. Thank goodness, it really worked. I hardly let out a sigh of relief before she jumped of the bed, a mix of worry and horror on her face.!"You are feeling better now right? If not I can leave!" Her eyes are wide, as she peers at my face

"I feel fine." I say and she relaxes a bit, sitting back down on the edge of the bed. "I hope this does not sound rude, but why did you come here?" Her gaze meets mine and I hope that my voice did not too rude or uneasy, the way I truly feel. My heart sinks as she slowly stands, a slightly sad expression on her face. "I'm sorry. I'm not used to people being so... kind to me." So I am suspicious of you, would be what I would say, but I feel it more harsh than what I said earlier.

"Do not apologize." She says as she fixes her dress, not meeting my gaze. "I figured you would be very timid when I found out you would be here." Her eyes raise and a small smile creeps onto her face. "To be completely honest, I come with a mixed agenda of sorts." She shrugs as she walks towards me and begins to pace around me slowly. "The first was to see why you did not come this morning." She holds up her index finger and then a second finger pops up. "The second was to see if you have been given a tour."

"A tour?" I ask and she nods stopping in front of me.

"You did not come in at the same time we did, so I wasn't sure if they had given you a tour of the place yet." Her smile is wide as I shake my head. "Wonderful! I could take you on one!"

"You already know the place well enough to give me a tour?" My eyebrows wave and she takes in a breath thinking for a split second.

"No but our guards know this place well! I am sure they will be happy to assist me!" She cheers and leans forward. "Would you like to see the place you will be living at for who knows how long?" She twists her arms in front of her as she stares at me.

For me to feel so unsure about her almost feels... wrong. She has been nice to me, yet I don't wish to trust her. She isn't the only one, I don't trust Charlie, Sicily, Cora, nor anyone else so far who has met me with kindness. I wish not to go. In fact, I would be perfectly content to never speak to anyone unless I have to.

I take a breath as I mull around the words I should use to decline her offer when I think about something Joe has told me. "Promise you'll give it a try Juny... promise me."

Perhaps Joe was not simply talking about trying only for the sake of romance. Perhaps he was also talking about potential friendships I could get as well.

     "Okay." I say and she meets me with a blank stare. "I would love to take you up on your offer for a tour." My lips twitch as I smile.

     "Really?" She whispers and I nod. Immediately her face bursts with a huge smile as she grabs my shoulders. "Oh how wonderful!" She squeals as she peers into my eyes. "I will tell my guards immediately and we shall go at once!"

      "At once?" I ask as she laughs pulling her hands away, a flash of something smudged on her hands catches me eyes. "Wait! You have something on your hands."

     "What?" She asks peering at them and I also peer at them. Nothing. She raises and eyebrow and I shrug as my cheeks grow hot.

     "Must have been a shadow." I mutter as she nods and laughs once more.

     "What was I doing?" She says clicking her tongue then clapping. "Yes! Let's go and tell our guards!" She says as she marches to the door placing her hand on the knob.

     "Why must we go now?" I ask and she stops looking over her shoulder at me.

     "Well, lunch is going to be soon and I won't get much time with you after that." She says plainly, and I assume she could read the confused look on my face since she takes in a breath to speak again. "Well, we will eat lunch with the boys, and then we will go to our marriage counseling." She shrugs it off, either not seeing or choosing to ignore my next confused face as she flys open the door. "Ohhhh Lealand and Bertram....." her sing song voice echoes in the hall outside as I slowly follow behind.

***

Hello all! I just wanted to inform you that there will be NO updates next week! Upcoming studies will take precedence, but the next chapter will be updated on the 9th! See you all then!

Sincerely,

P&P