Harold’s cabin in the woods, 1748
Pt. 2. of the love story
It has been a week since Harold and Florence met and both of them keep thinking about the interacion they had that followed the decision to walk off together towards his cabin. Harold was sitting on the bed in the morning, watching out of the window towards the infamous creek. He recalls how he was so deep in conversation with Florence that he almost forgot about the creek and she almost feel victim to it. Thankfully Harolld grabbed her by the arm when he realized she lost her balance. Suddenly they were in an embrace. Having not known eachother yet, they felt the embrace was awkward so the pulled away as quickly as they could and Florence felt embarrased she almost fell. Once he saw her become red in the face Harold knew she wasn’t blushing because of the embrace, but because she felt stupid for not noticing it and reacting accordingly or swiftly enough to avoid it. In order to make her feel less embarrased about it he tried to comfort her.
“I wish I had the same abillity to hide and stay hidden like this creek does. Would’ve done me well in the service.” He chuckled and she smiled, feeling a bit relieved.
“When I first walked through this land I actually did fall in the creek and it soaked the back of my pants. It looked like I didn’t know how to use the privy.” The way he said it made her laugh.
He softly took hold of her and said “Try not to laugh so hard, we’re so close to the edge we might fall in.” Smiling away, she nodded, and withouth a word the walked to a safer path.
“I wonder why you don’t know about the creek since it’s right outside your land.”
“Well in order to get to what is now your estate, I wouldn’t exactly jump the fence like we did just now. I’d enter at the entrance of the house. Why are you buying your house so close to yours?”
“Oh I didn’t get the house, I’ve only earned the land. I suppose I could build something on this land, but I find your home more charming. It reminds me of a home I used to admire. It was a lot more humble than your manor, but somehow your very big manor gives me the feeling the humble house of my father’s employers used to give me.”
Florence was confused by this. “You were allowed into the home of your father’s employer? On more than one occasion?”
“Yes … My father’s employer had but one son, and they were cut off from society. When I was young it was my job to entertain the young boy and not make him feel as lonely. The family made me feel as if I was part of their family as well. I was lucky enough to know the love of two father, two mother and a brother due to it.”
“That sounds like a perfect childhood.”
“What can I say but agree with you. It was a perfect childhood. I actually have the family to thank for my wealth now. See, when I was young they would host card games. It would be for a few shillings or less than that. In order to teach us how to properly use our money, and basic mathematics, the family would give us a montly amount of money, and then we would have to gamble with the family. It’s because of these early lessons I could outplay your neighbor and win all this.” He gestured to the woods. It doesn’t look like much, but it’s still land, and land earns money.
“Good for you, Mr. Brantley, to give credit where credit is due.” She smiled as she placed her hand underneath his, telling him she trust him enough to link her hand with his.
For a few seconds nobody uttered a word, only the crinkling of their footsteps on the leaves and the grass could be heard. To avoid awkward silence, Harold mentioned the creek.
“I was hoping to build a bridge over the creek so nobody could fall so easily in it, but half of it is on your land.” He said.
“What stopped you?”
“I realized half of it is on your land and I couldn’t start building something withouth the permission of your father. Then I also realized I probably shouldn’t walk over the creek since it leads to the back of your family house and that would surely stirr gossip.” They chuckled.
“Well, if I had the authority, I’d allow it.” She smiled, knowing that statement is true. “We could build one together?” She joked. She never did manual labor in her life and to a rich landowner this would also be a joke, but Harold didn’t see it like that. No, he took it seriously.
“I would take you up on that offer, Miss, but considering you’re selling the house, I fear it might be taken down if the new owner is somebody other than myself … Which mostly likely will happen.”
“Why do you think that?” She asked as they reached the cabin. She stopped in front of him until he answered the question.
“It is your father’s decision? I could tell he didn’t like me. I knew those rumors would cause me to not be able to buy the house, but no matter, I still have this land here to build mine.” She turned around to look at a small cabin around barren land.
“You haven’t started to build anything.”
“Yes, I still left a little bit of hope towards buying your house, and I was postponing the build until I actually have to.”
Harold and Florence stood outside the cabin not knowing what to do next.
Suddenly she spoke “Will you not invite me in?” She asked.
“What unchaperoned?” He asked, suddenly coming into his head they were alone surrounded by a thich patch of trees, with too much privacy for your, unmarried teenagers.
"Well … " His words made her realize it too, except it felt more dreadful to her, being a woman.
He realized she must feel unnerved and wanted to make her feel comfortable in his presence. He turned his head towards her house and said. “Look Miss Cropper. I can make out your manor from the clearing in the trees.” He noted. She looked over and he noted. “I bet if you ran fast you could reach it in under a minute.” Which statement she mocked. “No you couldn’t.”
“I could.”
“Well I know you could. In trousers. But I couldn’t, in this wide dress and those shoes that make my feet ache even when resting.”
“Forgive me. I should’ve realized you’re limited by your fashion.”
While she was calculating how long it would take her to run over it wearing her dress and heels and corset, Harold was thiking hard.
“Miss. Cropper?”
“Hmm?”
“Have you heard of a the game of hand-in-cap?”
“How could I not, I’ve played it once.”
“Then you know what it’s about?”
“Of course, it’s about making two items equal, if one is of a lower value either it’s value is increased or the value of the other item is decreased so it’s an equal trade.” Harold smiled.
“Then you understand what I’m proposing.” She realized what he meant, and couldn’t stop a smile from spreading on her face. He entered his cabin withouth a word and came out shortly after with male shoes with a heel and clean bandages. She smiled and asked “What is this supposed to repressent.”
“Well, the heels, which are apparently also popular with men, are meant to slow me down just as yours do, and the bandages that would restrict my breathing just as your undergarments do.” She laughed at his idea.
She laughed. “Are you laughing at me?” He asked, not offended, on the verge of laughing with her.
“Oh yes. I’ve never met a man who would so decidedly put themself in a bandage corset. I must tell you though, I’m not wearing a corset.” She made it sound dirty deliberately to get a reaction out of him, which she was given as his eyes went wide with realization.
“I’m wearing stays.” He laughed at her final reveal.
“Well it’s the same, isn’t it?”
“A bit less restrictive.”
“I was afraid my bandages might be less restrictive than a corset would be, never wearing one myself, so I’m glad you told me.” He opened the door to his cabin. “Would you be so kind as to allow me a bit of privacy while I put these bandages on?” She nodded.
When he walked out in shiny, blue, fancy heeled shoes she laughed at the notion of wearing it outdoors in such circumstances. It was unusual and that’s what made it funny.
They started the race and within a minute they reached the broken bit of fence and jumped over it. Harold was heading towards the place they came from, but she stopped him, saying “Harold, no! Over here.” She changed her course and he followed until they reached the servants entrance. She was the first to reach it and proudly shouted.
“Heh I win!” She put her arms up in victory while he smiled proudly at her. She then softly hit his shoulder, which was more like a nudge.
“What was that for?” He asked.
“You let me win.” She noticed.
“Now how could you figure that out?”
“Are you telling me that if I had male garments, I, a woman who hasn’t exercised a day in her life except just now, would outrun a soldier whose been training hard for days?”
“That’s where you’re wrong Miss. In the army I made myself a promise not to run faster than anybody, because I didn’t want to leave anybody behind. I didn’t intend to break the promise now.”
She blushed again, but this time she wasn’t embarrased. Again they were silent, but this time it wasn’t awkward and they enjoyed the silence. Underneath the arch of the door they were standing, breathing heavily from running so fast while gazing into each other’s eyes. Even though they weren’t in any embrace and they didn’t touch each other, like that did acidentally in the woods, their pierced each other with their gaze, which felt more private and sensual than anything that happened before. Who knows if they would’ve embraced each other had it not been for the maid who oppened the door. When this happened they were both flustered and with a rushed goodbye she escaped inside, while he trotted off towards his cabin.
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