~Tahlia.

It was a most ironic turn of events that my week of isolation would come to an end on the very day we hosted the most robust social gathering of the year. My father had invited all the wealthiest and most influential families in Silverport to partake of a delectable feast in honor of his birthday. If my life were a book, I should not have to labor long to establish the idea this night would be no insignificant tea party on the front porch. On the contrary, a night like tonight could vastly change a lady's life, for better or worse.

It would also be a matter readily understood that the reputation of the Paige family as a whole could be significantly improved or downgraded depending on how we presented ourselves during this gathering. As such, our service staff had begun at the crack of dawn to perform a deep cleaning of the entire mansion, clearly aiming to give the place an even more pristine shine than usual.

However, it wasn't only for our staff to prepare; far from it. Mother and Father both led separate expeditions to prepare us for the evening, with Father taking all his sons to get fresh clothes and haircuts for the occasion, and Mother doing the same for me and her.

By the time me and my mother returned late that afternoon, we'd both had our hair expertly twisted into elegant braids, with little flowers and bows woven in for decoration, and makeup to accentuate and beautify our facial features. We'd also purchased new dresses. While my mother flaunted a dress bathing her in glittering crimson hues, I'd picked out a charming gown in a soft pink, which I'd pair with a cardigan of bolder color I already owned. And of course, I'd wear matching shoes.

Of course, time is always a paradox when one waits for something as I awaited the arrival of our first guests. Seconds dragged on like minutes, and minutes crawled on almost reluctantly, as if time itself had grown weary of our plans. But nonetheless, the doorbell finally chimed, and our servants ushered in the first family to arrive.

Namely, the Profit family had arrived, a clan of bankers, investors, and stock traders who essentially represented the richest of the rich in Silverport. I greeted each member of the family graciously as they passed me, while noting an oddity among them. Every Profit seemed remarkably old or remarkably young; they all wore crowns of silvery hair or toddled along with the assistance of hired aids. Scarcely three of them appeared capable of bearing children, yet children they had in abundance.

Not long after came the Wraths, who owned most of the shipping and distribution infrastructure in the city. Quite contrary to their name, they showed themselves to be the kindest and gracious souls one could meet. I especially found myself excited to greet Delilah Wrath, a member of their clan only a couple years older than myself whose company I'd enjoyed greatly the last time our families met. Her chief quality in my eyes was a talent for telling stories, making even mundane occurrences sound like epic adventures.

And then the Abrams arrived. Predictably, Keene attached himself to me the moment we locked eyes, and I gave him a modest hug in greeting. Given our close friendship with the Abrams, formality gave way to familiarity when we welcomed them into our home.

At any rate, when all our guests had arrived, or else, individuals' absences had been explained away, we gathered in the massive dining hall, prayed over the food, and started into feasting. I most certainly quirked a brow upon glancing up at the stage in the back of the room and spotting only six musicians there, but of course, with all of Steelfort's most powerful men and women around me, that thought quickly saw itself out the door. Not only that, but nothing outweighed food in importance.

The dishes on the table were so numerous and diverse it would take three plates full to even try a little of everything. Needless to say, that fact led to some very difficult decisions in choosing what I'd eat. Ultimately, I settled on three cuts of different meats, accompanied by a mound of mashed potatoes, a dinner roll, and a little custard.

As it turned out, having less musicians on the stage didn't diminish the brilliance of their work when they started in. The three trumpeters of the group drew a massive smile to my father's face with a fanfare of the happy birthday song, leading gracefully into his favorite song, an old tune called "Breathless Eyes".

If my life were a book, the author would likely have skipped over much of the happenings during dinner, especially since eating is far more exciting to do than to read about, and most readers would find the social lives of the upper class rather boring in comparison with their own. Even I could sympathize with that viewpoint, as much of the table's talk ended out being little more than the men of each family boasting of the various luxuries they'd recently purchased with their vast riches. Delilah told an entertaining anecdote here and there, and Keene's cutting remarks amused me greatly, but their contributions were few and far between.

By and by, dinner came to an end, and we reconvened in the ballroom. Whereas over our meal, the ever-changing ensembles had played exciting pieces at higher tempos, they now favored a slower repertoire more appropriate for dancing. I watched from the sidelines with Delilah and Keene as everybody split into pairs and began swaying in time with the music on the dance floor. My parents in particular appeared utterly in love as they held one another close. Their noses nearly touched as they moved with the beat.

"I really ought to find a partner. We all make ourselves out to be standoffish, standing here." Delilah remarked, offering her hand to Keene, "Shall we?"

Keene narrowed his eyes, gave a mischievous grin, and denied her with a shake of his head. "I don't much like this song; I'll wait to hop in."

Delilah shrugged and flipped her black locks over her shoulder. "Your loss, Mr. Abrams."

Keene and I watched Delilah strut off without a word exchanged between us. She approached one of his cousins whose entire personality revolved around the expensive car he drove, and after a brief exchange between the two, Delilah came away just alone as when she'd left us. Eventually, she found herself a partner in one of her own relatives, but obviously her motives were anything but romantic with him.

"What a night." Keene said, drawing my attention back from Delilah. "Even the Profits looked pretty impressed by the food, from what I could tell."

"That is high praise there." I replied, "It seems we've provided a worthy gathering indeed this year."

"Definitely. The only questionable aspect is the music. Why's the band so fractured tonight?"

"I'd been wondering the same thing! I do enjoy what I've been hearing, but they have yet to perform a single piece as a unified band. It's as if the director is ignoring his duties."

"He must be." Keene agreed, "This feels like we've walked into any old club."

"True ... but as I often hear the musicians say, the show must go on."

Keene chuckled, and that was the end of our dialogue for a while. We simply stood to the side of the ballroom and listened to a melancholy ballad played by a towering trombonist. When the baritone saxophonist of the group joined in with some rumbling harmonies, my mind momentarily wandered, and I realized I hadn't yet seen Declan play. Over the course of the night, I'd seen most of the members of the band take a turn playing with the piano, bass, and drums, but not him.

A few minutes passed, and the current song came to an end. Then, as if to quell any fears I may have had, a new ensemble took to the bandstand, including Declan on saxophone, and a serious-faced trumpeter I hadn't remembered seeing before. With so many faces in the crowd on the dance floor, I couldn't be surprised when Declan's eyes never found my own. He simply raised the mouthpiece to his lips and blew.

I only needed to hear a few notes to recognize the piece the new ensemble had picked, a touching song called "A Bit More Than Friends". As could be expected, Declan played the melody beautifully, pulling off all the octave jumps with ease and increasing my enjoyment of the song just by sounding so delightful.

Keene snatched me out of my trance with a tap on the shoulder. With a smirk on his lips, he leaned near my ear. "Now this song, I actually like." he said, "Will you dance with me?"

I grinned. "Better than standing over here, I suppose. Why not?"

So Keene took my hand, and we stepped onto the dancing floor. As one would expect between two friends, he rested his hands on my shoulders, I planted mine midway down his torso, and a good deal of space intervened between our bodies as we stepped in sync to the beat. All the while, we exchanged lighthearted remarks as we had been before.

But then Keene's face shifted to be somewhat more serious, and he stared more deeply into my eyes. Naturally, I grew rather curious and asked for the reason of his change.

"It's ... difficult to put into words."

"And I find that difficult to believe." I jested, "You've always been outspoken. An open book."

"We all have our moments, it seems." Keene appeared to ponder a while before speaking again. "Well, let me put it this way: I very much enjoy spending time with you, and I can say with confidence that you feel the same way in reverse."

I gave Keene a nod of reassurance, but beyond that, gave no further reply.

"As I thought. After all, we spend much time together. And I'm sure you're as aware as I that with increased age come increased responsibilities, and a great many expectations. Finding a spouse and raising a family, for instance."

"Yes, of course..." I muttered, "If you're eyeing one of the other ladies here, by all means, dance with her. Far me it from me to withhold you from—"

"You're not understanding me, Tahlia." Keene said earnestly, "I'm ... well, I'm already dancing with the one I've been eyeing."

Growing flustered, I stepped back a couple paces and blinked hard. "You've been eyeing me? Since when?"

"Since ... I'm not even sure; it's been some time. But—"

"Keene, have you been pretending to be my friend all this time simply so you could—"

Keene shook his head vigorously. "No, nothing like that! I never intended any deceit, but simply came very gradually to this conclusion. I apologize profusely if you feel in any way betrayed. That was never my intention."

"I ... I truly have no idea what to say here. You couldn't have surprised me more if you tried."

"I'm really sorry."

I stuttered for a while before finally finding apt words. "So, you suddenly want to court your best friend. Is that what you're saying?"

"Essentially, yes."

"And have you asked my father for his permission already?"

Keene bit his lip. "I'm not supposed to speak one way or the other on that."

"Which means you have, if there is some stipulation placed upon you other than your own."

"If that's what you think."

I sighed deeply and kneaded my forehead. "Well, surely you couldn't be expecting an answer from me right here and right now. I'll need to think and pray on this."

"I understand. No pressure."

"Oh, but there is pressure." I snapped, "You'd best go dance with one of the Wrath girls or some such, because you're doing yourself no favors here."

Keene turned to leave me with a helpless look on his face. I stared blankly and watched him walk off, all while Declan played the notes that went along with a lyric I knew all too well. It fit my current dilemma with uncomfortable accuracy.

"I guess what I'm trying to say, 'cause I can't pretend, is I'd like to be a bit more than friends."

* * * * * 

A/N: Well, that turn of events would be enough to rock anyone's world, I think! Definitely one predicament I'm glad I don't have to deal with. 😂

But speaking of rocking someone's world, you mind rocking mine with a vote and some comments? Just a thought. 😏🤣

Anyways, random question: Are you more someone who likes to watch the sun rise, or set? 

(I need to go out of my way more to see either, but I think I'd have to go for sunrise personally. I'm not even a "morning person" by nature, but I'm pretty disciplined and wake up early every day. There is something beautiful about the stillness and newness of a morning just seeing its rising sun.) 

That said, the day after this update goes out is Christmas Eve of 2021, so hope you all have happy holidays! Don't overeat or drink too much, but enjoy yourselves thoroughly, and I'll see you next week for one last update before the new year!