London, United Kingdom
July 1851

It was an unusually sunny day in London, and as such, Jane took it upon herself to spend her afternoon walking the grounds of Hyde park in the company of her dear friend Bess. Of course, they were not alone; it would have been absurdly improper for two young girls to be in such a public place unaccompanied. They were joined by Jane's governess, Ms. Hill, and Jane had a feeling that this was the her grandmother's way of spying on her. But regardless, Jane was determined to make the day a wonderful one, and she would not let her grandmother's prying eyes interfere with it.

Jane and Bess were situated on the North banks of Serpentine Lake, a blanket sprawled beneath them over the soft, green grass. The sunlight shined on the water before them, glittering brightly and reflecting onto the stone bridge that spanned the width of the lake. Huge lime trees stood tall above them, swaying in the light breeze and providing respite from the harsh rays of the sun.

Jane listened intently as her young friend went on and on about all the grand parties she had been attending, though admittedly, she talked more of the men at these gatherings than much of anything else. Bess, with her mischievious tendencies and youthful beauty was rarely left unpursued by such men, and thus, these experiences became her preferred topic of conversation.

Jane enjoyed hearing the excitement in her friend's narratives, wishing that she herself still had the same level of enthusiasm when it came to encounters with the men in her life. Jane knew the intentions of James Hale, and she knew it was only a matter of time before he made an offer. She should be elated that such a rich, handsome man should show such interest in her; however, given his volatile nature, Jane found that instead of joy, she was consumed by anxiety over the whole matter.

Thus, as Bess chattered on about two young officers who had quarreled over which one of them was to have the first dance of the evening with her, Jane was pleased to have such a distraction from the complications of her own life. Jane listened, staring absentmindedly at the glittering lake in front of her and cherishing the feeling of the warm breeze against her fair cheeks.

Jane watched as people passed them on the gravel pathway that lined the lake, taking in their dress and the way they spoke to their walking partners with great interest. She loved watching people conduct their everyday lives; to her, it was fascinating to see the way people acted when they thought no one was watching, simply because it was typically indicative of their true character.

Though she resented the thought, Jane found herself wondering what James might be doing, had she the opportunity to observe him in his natural attitude. She knew his reputation though, and assumed that he would probably spend his time in a tavern drinking his days away with less-than-honorable strangers as his companions.

Frustrated with herself that James should occupy her thoughts, Jane fixed her attention on Bess once more, glancing back to where her governess sat carefully attending to her needlework in the shade of the great lime tree above them. As she stole her glances, Jane's eye was captured by a young man in the grass not ten meters from where she sat. She recognized him immediately as Mr. Harold Sinclair.

She could not explain it, or even really recognize that it was there, but when she laid her eyes on him, Jane had a strange feeling in her stomach that she had never known before. She didn't know what the feeling meant, but she knew that she liked it, and it brought a smile to her lips.

Harry, as he preferred her to address him, had his back against the trunk of a tree with his knees pulled up to his chest. His fingers were threaded through the green grass beneath him, absentmindedly pulling at it while keeping his focus on the book in front of him. Jane watched from afar as Harry furrowed his brows in concentration, his eyes studying the page in front of him with intensity and interest. She tried not to stare, but Jane found that despite her efforts, her attention kept returning to the handsome boy reading in the shade.

A gust of wind suddenly blew through the park, rustling the tree branches above and disturbing the pages of Harry's book. He struggled to keep the pages from turning violently, and thus, closed the book abruptly, lifting his gaze and almost immediately finding his attention seized by the young girl not too far from him.

When his eyes found her, he could have sworn that she had been looking at him, though he could not be sure. The possibility of her interest pleased him, and with this thought in mind, Harry smiled, gathered himself and strode confidently over to the place where Jane sat.

Of course, she had seen him stand, and immediately, she felt her cheeks redden with excitement. As she fluffed her skirts and straightened her back, Bess stopped her story and looked at her flustered friend with curiosity.

"Jane, are you-" Bess began, looking behind her to see what could possibly be the reason for Jane's sudden change in composure, but fell silent as she caught sight of the handsome gentleman making his way towards them. Turning quickly around, Bess eyed Jane quizzically and observed that the elder girl, whom she looked up to, seemed to possess the look of a woman in love.

Bess scoffed to herself and wondered why Jane would concern herself with such an irrelevant man. Harry was handsome, there was no doubt about that, but he had no title and an insignificant fortune, so it made no sense that Jane should care about seeing him. Bess knew the two to be somewhat more than acquaintances, maybe even friends, but she could not fathom why Jane might consider pursuing it further.

Despite Bess's obvious signs of confusion, Jane did not notice her friend's questioning looks. She simply smiled nervously as Harry approached them, her eyes shining brightly in the sunlight, much like the lake nearby. The tale end of his black waistcoat billowed behind him as he walked, and the soft, white fabric of his thin shirt clung to his defined chest, making Jane nearly forget how to breathe. She watched the way his rich, brown hair bounced with every step, and found that her heart was beating so fast that it seemed to be bouncing as well.

Jane pretended to be discussing something with Bess when Harry finally approached them, but when he bowed his head politely towards her, she ceased speaking altogether. With his enchanting green eyes focused on her, she found that the rational thought which she normally employed seemed to vanish in an instant.

"Ladies," Harry greeted them simply, clasping his hands around his book with a pleasant smile. At the sound of his voice, Jane's governess sitting near them raised her beady little eyes to watch the encounter. If there was one thing for certain, it was that the whole of this conversation would be repeated to Regina; however, given that Jane only had eyes for Harry, this fact escaped her entirely.

Jane addressed Harry kindly and then introduced her to Bess once again before inviting him to sit with them.

Bess glared at her friend, completely incredulous to Jane's confusing actions and interrupted Harry before he could reply, "No, Jane. You promised we would take a stroll about the park before we left."

Jane stole a glance at Harry amidst her companion's lack of politeness and saw that there was the slightest expression of hurt in his eyes. Naturally, it frustrated Jane that Bess would act so unkindly in front of Harry, a man whom she admired greatly, so she turned her attention back to him.

Looking sympathetically at Harry, Jane conceded to her friend's sudden declaration, but remained constant in her invitation, "I'm afraid she's right, Harry. I did promise to walk with her, though you are more than welcome to join us."

Jane turned her face to Bess now, completely oblivious to the fact that Bess was trying to get rid of Harry, "You don't mind, do you?"

Bess repressed an exasperated sigh and nodded in consent with a forced smile, "Of course not."

Harry helped both of the girls from the ground, Jane thanking him ardently while Bess gave him a curt not of appreciation. Jane's governess stood as well and followed closely behind the trio after gathering the blanket on which they had been reclining.

Jane began the conversation and generally only directed her questions towards Harry. This frustrated Bess even further, seeing as how in her mind, Jane had no business inviting Harry to join in on their morning activities. With Jane's impending engagement to James Hale, Bess knew how improper it would seem for Jane to be spending time with another man without the permission or supervision of her grandparents. Though Bess was undoubtedly one to pursue adventure and all things careless, one thing she shied away from was scandal, and Jane seemed to be walking towards that line rather rapidly.

Thus, Bess walked beside them in bitterness for several minutes before abandoning the conversation altogether to walk alongside the nosy governess who trailed behind them. Neither Jane nor Harry seemed to notice her absence, seeing as how they were already so deep into conversation.

"He's an American astronomer," Harry was saying, describing to Jane in great detail the contents of the book he was reading. "He's particularly brilliant because he includes the mathematical aspects of planetary orbits and earth's gravitational field; it's quite fascinating."

Jane watched him with admiration as he spoke so passionately about the mysteries of outer space. She enjoyed the childish enthusiasm in his voice; it was a side to him that she had seen glimpses of, but never before had she seen Harry so relaxed and so willing to speak.

Though Jane was delighted to hear of Harry's interests, she couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed. Jane knew the constellations like the back of her hand, but knowledge of the science behind them was denied her. She had learned basic arithmetic, but because she was only a woman, most of her education was focused on the art of managing a household. So, in the presence of Harry's vast intelligence, Jane felt that she was an unworthy conversational companion.

"I must confess I don't really understand all the science," Jane said timidly, fixing her eyes on a tree in the distance. "But I love finding the constellations at night."

Harry smiled, pleased with Jane's interest on the subject, "You do?"

Surprised, Jane turned her face to look at Harry and found him watching her intently, evidently looking forward to her response. Jane looked ahead once more, unsure of what kind of answer Harry was expecting.

"Yes," Jane admitted, feeling some strange sensation in her chest as Harry's gaze remained fixated on her. "The stars are nice here, but there are too many lights to see them all. Back home, the sky is so dark that you can see everything up there."

"I quite agree," Harry nodded and looked back down to his book for just a moment. "You'll have to show me the best place for star gazing when we go to Newcastle in September."

Harry's words nearly made Jane stop in her tracks, but she was quick to recover from her initial shock before Bess or Ms. Hill took notice. Wide eyed, Jane struggled to reply, and eventually, she gave up in trying to say anything at all.

The idea of star gazing with Harry sounded pleasant to her, but this was not the reason for her sudden hesitation. Several years before, it was a habit of Jane's to sneak into the fields to look up at the constellations; but as one might imagine, once her grandmother discovered this rather reckless hobby, Jane was forbidden from ever doing it again lest she be severely punished. Given that Jane had no fancy to discover exactly what her grandmother meant by severely punished, she generally followed this new rule, save for when Regina stayed in town without her.

Harry, noticing Jane's sudden odd behavior, felt that he had overstepped and began to amend his mistake, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude. That would be-"

"You're not intruding," Jane interrupted adamantly, earning a very taken aback response from Harry. Jane glanced behind her, seeing that their other two walking companions were far enough behind them for her to remain unheard. Jane spoke lowly, not wishing to take any chances of Ms. Hill overhearing her next words, "I just- I'm not allowed to go star gazing anymore, so I can't."

Harry gasped and questioned Jane a little too loudly, "Not allowed to go star gazing?"

Jane shushed him and begged him to keep quiet, telling him of her spying governess.

Harry looked at her skeptically, but nonetheless lowered his voice, "Why on earth not?"

Jane shrugged, letting the full extent of her annoyance shine through her normally put-together demeanor, "I honestly have no idea. It's ridiculous."

With a frown, Harry eyes returned to the book in his hand and stared at it thoughtfully for several moments. Suddenly, Harry extended the book out to her, "Here."

Confused, Jane looked at Harry with her eyebrows furrowed together, "What? No, Harry, don't be silly."

"Just take it," Harry urged, adding a smile to his concentrated facial expression. "If you can't look at the stars, you should at least get to learn about them... if you want."

Why would he care if I get to look at stars? Jane wondered, trying desperately to ignore the warm, fuzzy feeling inside her that Harry's kindness had inspired.

The two of them stopped in front the bridge that spanned the pretty, blue lake and turned to face each other. Jane smiled at Harry's words and hesitantly took the book from his extended hand.

Nervously, Jane ran her finger along the worn spine of the book and looked up to a very content-looking Harry, "Thank you."

Just then, Bess and Ms. Hill approached them, announcing that it was time for Jane to return to her lessons. And thus, Jane and Harry parted ways, each having gained something from the day's encounter. For Jane, it was Harry's book about the stars, but for Harry, he gained something far more precious. Though he knew it not, he had certainly left with an ever-growing piece of Jane's heart.

***

bruh, so sorry that took so long (I feel like I say that every time, so I'm sorry for that too lol) Anyway, this scene was cute to me. Also, I literally outlined the next like fifteen chapters to be ready lol

MY HARRY CONCERT IS TOMORROW IM GOING TO PEE MYSELF

Thanks for reading and please vote if you can!! ily
-kate🖤