Capítulo 22: Some things are best kept secret.
Shaking the still asleep man awake, "James! JAMES!" Wolfgang shouted.
Startled, "HUH...WHAT?!" James nearly jumped off the bed, he opened his tired eyes to find an angry looking Wolfgang standing by the edge of the bed.
"Goodness...why are you yelling?!"
"It's night! It's dark outside you bloody idiot!"
Surprised, "Wait, what?!" James stood-up in a hurry, "We fell asleep until the night came!" Wolfgang said.
Sighing, "I'm sorry Wolf, I was quite exhausted..." James replied.
"What do we tell the girls?! There is no way we can come up with an excuse cunning enough to tell them especially Safa..."
"We can say we were outside and we have just returned!"
"None of the other servants saw us leave...and besides we don't seem as if we were outside."
"Damn it..."
"Maybe we should tell the girls the truth? It's not like they would hate us or anything!" Wolfgang suggested, "But..."
"James, Safa is smart enough to figure things on her own, and besides...we aren't doing anything wrong...we're experimenting, she is a scientist, she would understand."
"People's hearts aren't for experiments!...She wouldn't understand if I end-up breaking you heart Wolf." James replied.
"Why are you so certain you would break my heart?" Wolfgang asked.
"I'm not a good man...must I say it out loud?" James replied.
"James, Is this because of all the things I said to you that day? Are you feeling insecure?"
"No...you were right in every word you said, I'm horrible enough but there's more you don't know about me, I'm afraid that if you do, your love would turn into hatred."
Chuckling, "Now who is dramatic? Try me? What do you think would make me hate you?" Wolfgang asked.
"I cannot tell you." James replied.
"Well we're all allowed our secrets, as long as you haven't killed anyone or ruined someone's life, I think I can get past anything." Wolf said with a smile.
Smiling back, "I wish I can trust your words." James replied.
"Are you calling me a liar?"
"No wolf, I'm the liar."
Confused, Wolfgang looked at James then asked, "You didn't murder anyone, did you?!"
"No!...but..." James hesitated.
"But what?"
"Wolf, I cannot..."
"Give me a hint then!"
Sighing, "Fine, I...carry someone else's secret that may or may not have ruined an innocent person's life, and if their life isn't ruined already, if I were to reveal that secret now...it would definitely ruin it." James replied biting his lip nervously.
Worried, "Someone else's secret?...why did you agree to keep that secret, did you help ruin the life of that person?" Wolfgang asked.
"Not before I became aware of the secret... Believe me, I had no choice but to agree to keeping the secret at the time, as a way to protect that innocent person from further damage..." James explained.
"Do you plan on letting that person know what you're hiding?" Wolfgang asked.
"I don't think I could...that person is quite dear to me, we have a good relationship so I would only be tearing us apart if I do tell the truth, and I'm scared of losing that person." James replied.
Wolfgang could see James's hands shaking as he spoke, "You think that person deserves to know the secret, don't you?"
James looked at him with anxious wide eyes, "Judging by how you're reacting...it has been a long while since you came across this secret." Wolfgang said.
"Wolf, I... can't...not now."
"I understand, but just know...I am here for you, if you ever decided to tell me your secret."
"Thank you..." James said, "However...I can't promise you that if your secret turned out to be something I'm deeply against, that I would be as understanding as I am now." Wolfgang replied.
Nodding, "I understand." James said.
"Now come, we need to go find the girls, I'm sure Clara is bored to tears of hearing Safa talk about her favorite books." Wolfgang joked.
"Clara would probably be enjoying herself, she likes to read...Father taught her." James replied.
There was something about the way James said his words that made Wolfgang pause to look at him.
"You mean your father, the late Lord Teaton, he taught Clara how to read?" Wolfgang asked.
Nervous, "Ah...yes, she came from Southwark, from a really poor family, she didn't know how to read...Clara never mentioned that?" James replied.
"I remember her telling me about Southwark but the illiterate part was new, what a funny coincidence!
When I came to work for the late Lord Vega, I was illiterate as well, I also spoke only few words of English, I learned everything here." Wolfgang said smiling.
"Pardon my ignorance but I never pictured you would be illiterate." James replied.
"You rich folks take everything for granted, you get fed, dressed and educated from your early childhood, us commoners start worrying about making a living before we say our first words as children." Wolfgang said.
"I'm sorry that you had to struggle...you, Clara... just anyone in your shoes." James replied.
"As a man who knew poverty first hand, I can understand why you were so desperate and afraid of losing your wealth to the point that you proposed to Safa...no wonder rich people mostly marry rich, it's a difficult world even for those with means." Wolfgang said.
Smiling, "You know, out of all the noble qualities that you have, do you know what charms me the most Wolf?" James asked as he grabbed Wolfgang's hand in his.
"What are you talking about... James?" Wolfgang asked back blushing.
"Your compassion Wolf, the way you sympathize with others, worry for them, care about their wellbeing." James said bringing Wolfgang's hand close to his lips.
Wolfgang's heart skipped a beat as James planted a gentle kiss on the back of his hand, "James..."
Chuckling, "Let's go and see if our girls even realized we were gone all this time." James said before he slowly let go of Wolfgang's hand.
...Few minutes later...
"And here are the sword wielders, hah!" Safa joked as soon as she spotted her two male friends shame walking into the dinning room.
"Safa, I can explain." Wolfgang said nervously.
"No need to explain! Whatever you two do together is none of my business." Safa replied, making both Wolfgang and James sigh in relief, "But!" She said while glancing at Clara who was sitting beside her and was giggling the whole time, "If you break Wolfie's heart, you are a dead man James." Safa added making both gentlemen blush in embarrassment.
"SAFA!" Wolfgang shouted, "What? You thought I would not realize that my two gentlemen friends are becoming strangely closer to one another?" She said.
"I may have helped decipher the code! I noticed the changes First!" Clara said proudly, "I forgot, you are the relationship expert." Wolfgang replied sighing.
"Not an expert, just an enthusiast." Clara said, "Well feel free to gloat, you caught us like the genius ladies you are." James replied smiling.
"Come, join us for the food, all the servants have left by now, so we can be completely ourselves." Safa said, "Oh and by the way, Denver is in the drawing room, he is already fed and fast asleep." She added.
The two men then quickly went to sit next to each other and across from the girls.
"You seem quite delighted today Safa." Wolfgang noted, "I had a lovely time with Clara today, you were right I did need a lady friend." Safa replied smiling at Clara.
Clara smiled back, "Yes! We bonded today!"
"As for us, we slept together today." James said bluntly, both girl stopped and looked at him with shocked expressions.
"JAMES!" Wolfgang shouted, "What?!" A confused James asked.
"You Slept...together?!" Safa uttered in disbelief.
Embarrassed, "He meant innocently! James and I shared a bed, we did not do anything...we were just tired and ended-up falling asleep on the same bed." Wolfgang explained.
Disappointed, "I see." Clara said, "Why are you disappointed?!" Wolfgang asked her.
"I thought men are always eager to do indecent things." Safa said making him blush deeply.
"You act as if women don't crave these things!" Wolfgang replied.
"We do... it's just that we are usually better at controling ourselves." Clara said, usually when she says things like this, James would laugh or say something but Clara was starting to feel worried, as James seemed out of it as he focused on eating his food without paying attention to Their conversation.
"Can we not talk about These things!" Wolfgang said, "Then What do you wish we talk about?" Safa asked.
"What did you and Clara do all day?" He asked back.
"We conversed about various subjects, we read books together and even went the gallery room." Safa replied.
Surprised, "Oh, you really did bond today!" Wolfgang said, he turned to Clara and asked her, "Did you enjoy yourself today?"
But he didn't get a response, Clara was anxiously watching James, she too was no longer paying attention to the conversation.
Noticing, "Clara, is everything alright?" Safa asked.
"Huh?...yes!" Clara replied, she kept her eyes on James and Wolfgang realized she was worried about him, he turned to his side to see how James was doing and found the man aimlessly stabbing his food with the fork.
Wolfgang secretly bumped his leg against James's to grab his attention, "Huh? Oh?...were you talking to me?" James asked.
"I never thought I would witness a day where the James is lost in thoughts." Safa said with one eyebrow high, she skeptically eyed James as he chuckled nervously in response.
"Heh, I...I just feel a bit too tired today, nothing that more rest wouldn't cure." James replied.
"Are you sure?" Clara asked rather seriously, "Yes! Don't worry about me Clara dear, I'll be alright." James replied smiling.
...An hour later...
In the kitchen, "Thank you for your help again Clara." Wolfgang said, "I know how dreadful doing the dishes can be all by yourself, and since you and Safa are kind enough to let us stay tonight as well, this is the least I can do." She replied.
Smiling, "You know, James has told me something earlier, you and I usually talk about anything but you never told me you were illiterate." Wolfgang said.
Clara chuckled, "I thought you would draw that conclusion on your own, I mean I'm a girl from Southwark London, one of the poorest areas in the country, what were the chances that I knew how to read or write!" She replied.
"Ah, you're right... sometimes I forget to use my head to think." Wolfgang said sheepishly, "You are quite the intelligent woman Clara, you should be proud of yourself." He added.
"Thank you!" She replied happily.
Suddenly, "Clara, can I ask you a bit of a personal question?" Wolfgang's tone became serious it made Clara feel anxious all of the sudden.
"What do you want to know?" She said.
"Were you close to James's father, you never spoke about him before, didn't he die a year after your employment?" Wolfgang asked.
Dumbfounded, "Ah...yes, he did died just a year after...he fell ill all of the sudden, the late Lord Teaton was kind to me, probably because I was quite young compared to the rest of the Maids." Clara replied.
"James said that his father was the one who taught you how to read."
"Yes...he was proud that I was able to read on my own in less than a year."
"Was James Also as kind as his father?" Wolfgang asked.
"Yes...he continued to treat me with kindness even after his father, the late Lord Teaton passed away." Clara replied, "But why are you suddenly curious...about the late Lord?" She asked.
Smiling, "Just wished to know more about James, It's nice knowing that he inherited his kindness from his father." Wolfgang lied, making Clara smile as well.
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QW_JiHi Fun fact: From a historical perspective, literacy levels for the world population have risen drastically in the last couple of centuries. While only one in ten people in the world could read and write in 1820, today, the share has reversed, with only one in ten remaining illiterate..
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