It was a few hours past midnight Hubert had lost track of the time. He hadn't been able to sleep really. The nerves kept him up. His thoughts were running around in circles. Thoughts about how this was going to go terribly. His adoptive father demanded to meet Pascal. In his own words he "wanted to meet the girl who is better than the president's daughter." Hubert had been trying to avoid the problem at any cost. Eventually Garret Oswell saw through his verbal gymnastics and he just slipped a note under Hubert's door. It simply said. "Next week. Bring your girl to breakfast." It was blunt but amazingly effective.
Hubert talked it over with Pascal, she seemed to be okay with it, but she had never met the man. Pascal was supposed to come early in the morning for breakfast. But as Hubert laid on his bed staring at the ceiling he heard a knock on his door. He went and opened his door but there was no one there. He heard another knock. This confused him greatly as he held the door open. He tried to make sense of the scene. He thought it to be impossible but he slowly turned around and looked out the balcony door. He saw Pascal standing out there. He was stunned. She enthusiastically waved at him. He slowly waved back. He went and opened the door.
"Hiya Hu." Pascal said.
As she walked by him she skillfully placed a kiss on his cheek and then fell onto his bed.
"This is a real comfy bed you got here." She said nonchalantly.
"P-Pascal!" he said. "What are you doing here?"
She looked confused. "Isn't breakfast tomorrow?" She asked.
"Yes, but but you were supposed to come in the morning!" Hubert exclaimed.
"I don't do mornings Hu. So I thought it would be easier if I just slept here" Pascal said.
Hubert scratched his head, trying to figure a way out of this delicate situation. Mr. Oswell would not like it if he found out that Pascal slept here. In his room. He would not like that not one bit.
Pascal pointed at the poster on Hubert's wall. "I like your Starfish Ranger poster." She said.
"Never mind that." Hubert said quickly.
"How did you even get up here? I'm on the second floor!" Hubert said.
"I climbed it." She said simply.
"Of course you did." He said
"Well look." Hubert started. "We need to get to some sleep. We need to be up early tomorrow."
"Alrighty." Pascal slipped under the sheets and patted the side of the bed gesturing for Hubert to lie down.
Hubert sighed. "I shall be sleeping on the floor."
Pascal made a pouty face.
"Trust me." He said. "We'll get more sleep this way."
That was a couple of hours ago. Hubert had gotten a few fleeting moments of sleep in between. But Pascal's snoring was very distracting. Hubert closed his eyes for what seemed like only a moment. But when he awoke he saw Pascal. She was naked. Hubert still thought he was dreaming. She was bending over to pick something off the floor. He saw the way her pale skin glowed and hummed in the morning light. He saw her pick something off the floor. It looked like a dress. Hubert found this hard to believe because Pascal never wore dresses. She moved around too much to be able to wear dresses. She turned around. Hubert almost gasped because he can never get over how beautiful she is. She slipped the dress over head. It went all the way down to her knees; it was solid dark blue and modestly cut.
Pascal looked down at where Hubert was.
"Good morning Hu!" She said cheerfully.
Hubert sat up.
"Good morning Pascal." He said.
"How long have you been up for?" she said.
"I-I just woke up." He said.
Pascal leaned forward with a smirk.
"That was a test! And you failed!" She exclaimed.
"What?" Hubert said.
"I saw you! You were watching me change!" she said.
"I'm sorry it just happened." He said.
"No silly! It's okay. I just want us to be comfortable with each other. I mean we've already had sex. Nothing else should be awkward." She said.
"O-ok" Hubert said.
"So" Pascal did a twirl. "How do I look?" she said.
"Radiant as always" he said.
"awe aren't you sweet this morning" she said.
"But I must ask, Why the dress?" he said.
Pascal looked downward and fiddled with her hair
"Do you not like this one? Because ya know I brought other ones" she said.
"No No! It's not that I was just wondering why you're wearing a dress. You don't usually wear dresses." Hubert paused.
"In fact I don't ever remember you owning a dress." He said.
"Well these aren't mine exactly. I borrowed them from Cheria. We had to refit them obviously. But yeah." She said.
"Pascal dear, you haven't answered my initial question" he said.
"Which was?" she asked.
"Why are you wearing a dress?" he asked.
"Oh… yeah" she said.
"Well I didn't want to embarrass you in front of Mr. Oswell. Because he probably isn't going to like me or anything and I wanted to look nice for you. And yeah." She said.
"Pascal." He said.
Hubert moved forward off the floor and embraced her.
"Pascal I love you. And that all that matters. I don't give a damn about what my adoptive father thinks of you. I just want you to be you. Okay?" He said.
Pascal smiled.
"Alrighty I was hoping you would say something like that." She said.
"Wait. Was this another test?" Hubert asked.
"No no nothing so devious." Pascal said with a smirk.
"Sure" Hubert said.
"I can't wait to get out of this thing. I miss having pockets." She said.
She gave a pondering look.
"I should really invent a dress with pockets." She said
"Maybe later right now we should get changed and get to breakfast." He said.
"Alrighty." She said.
She started to pull the dress over her head.
"Wait wait. Pascal I'm going to go in the bathroom and change" he said.
"Why? I thought we already talked about this." She said.
"We did. But If you start changing right now we're going to be late for breakfast" he said.
Pascal laughed. They went into their separate rooms and changed into their regular outfits. They met back outside. Pascal gestured toward the door and started to walk toward it. Hubert grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back.
"What's up Hu?" she asked
"Well. Um. Could you climb out the window and come back in. Because Garret wouldn't be too happy if he knew we slept in the same room." He said.
"Oh yeah. I see where you're coming from Hu. Sure thing." She said.
Pascal walked out the balcony door and hopped over the railing, waving to Hubert as she did so.
"I'm in love with a crazy woman." Hubert muttered.
Hubert walked down the stairs to the kitchen. He took a deep breath, even though it didn't help. He felt his body tense as he saw Garret Oswell sitting at the table. Mr. Oswell didn't even look up at him. It was always like this. Even more so sense Hubert rejected the proposal. Hubert sat down at the chair and they waited in silence. Hubert glanced at the clock. He heard the knock at the door and he started to get up.
"Sit down boy, that's why we have servants" Mr. Oswell said.
Hubert sat back down. The maid rushed to go open the door. Hubert didn't recognize this girl, she must be new. There have been so many maids that have gone in and out of this house that Hubert had stopped trying to remember their names. He heard the door open. Pascal immediately started a conversation with the maid. They were laughing by the time they reached the main hall. Hubert heard Garret mutter.
"Really talking with the servants." He muttered and shook his head.
Garret looked up and saw Pascal standing infront of him with a big smile on her face.
"Hello! You must be Mr. Oswell. I'm Pascal! It's nice to finally meet you; Hubert's told me so much about you!" Pascal said.
Pascal extended for a handshake but Oswell simply ignored it. She slowly lowered her hand. Mr. Oswell didn't say anything to Pascal but simply looked over at Hubert.
"It seems you either picked a girl so poor that she doesn't have a family name or one that is rude enough to not give it in her introductions." Garret said.
"Well actually I'm an Americian. So that's the reason I don't have a last name." Pascal said.
"Sit down girl. I wasn't talking to you" He said.
Pascal sat down next to Hubert. They were sitting opposite from Mr. Oswell. Pascal could see how tense Hubert seemed. She put a reassuring hand on his thigh.
"So Mr. Oswell what was Hu like.. I mean what was Hubert like when he was a little kid?
Mr. Oswell just kept his gaze on Hubert.
"Boy do you remember when you first got here. You kept on complaining about the heat. And how the other children kept bullying you. Or when you locked yourself in your room and wouldn't come out until we brought Asbel here." He said.
Hubert glared directly Mr. Oswell and Mr. Oswell smiled coolly back. Meanwhile Pascal fidgeted uncomfortably in her chair, smiling awkwardly; trying to find a way to dissolve the tension that suffocated the room. Thankfully the food came out at that exact moment. Pascal's eyes light up as she saw the dish and Hubert smiled. It was banana pancakes. Hubert had specially requested them to try and lighten what he knew would be a tense breakfast. The maid smiled as she put Pascal's plate in front of her. Hubert smiled as he saw that she was eating enthusiastically.
"I also see boy, that you also picked a girl who eats like a pig" Garret said.
Pascal stopped eating. She calmly swallowed her food and put the fork on the table. She started to walk away, her motions stiff. Then she started to run out the door. Mr. Oswell didn't even look up.
"Just when I was starting to have fun." He said.
Hubert was shaking. Hubert stood up from the table and grabbed him by the collar.
"What are you going to do boy. Hit me?" He said.
"You'd like that wouldn't you. You bitter bitter man. Let me make myself very clear. After this day we will no longer have any contact. I will do everything in my power to make sure that you will die a bitter man. But you already seem to be doing a pretty good job yourself. I came here this morning with the slim hope that this might not be a childish retaliation. I was wrong, instead you made a fool of yourself infront of the smartest scientist in the world. You never gave her half a chance. You make me sick." Hubert said.
Hubert threw Garret Oswell out of his chair and out of his life.
Hubert ran quickly out of the house trying desperately to find Pascal. He saw her sitting on a bench by the fountain in the main square. He rushed over her.
"Pascal!" he shouted.
She looked up, tears streaking her face. Hubert grabbed her and picked her up; hugging her tightly. She buried her head into his shoulder. She was crying pretty hard now. Her breath wild and fast paced as if she couldn't get enough air. Hubert rubbed her back.
"Shush it's going to be okay now." He said softly.
She took a deep breath, trying to stabilize herself. Pascal looked up at him. Her eyes all red and puffy, her nose leaking.
"I-I- I'm sorry Hu." She managed.
"Don't be. It's not your fault at all dear." He said.
"Y-yes it is." She said. She took a deep breath again.
"I-I forgot my lessons." She said.
"Your lessons?" Hubert asked.
"I-I had Cheria and Richard teach me how to eat properly." She said.
"Oh. Pascal. Shhh. It's ok."
They held each other closely for awhile. They didn't know how long. They just held each other until they felt like they were better. Pascal slipped out of the embrace and sat back on the bench.
"How did you live and still live with that guy Hu?" she asked.
"I mostly just read comic books and focused on the military" Hubert answered honestly.
"And I'm not living with him anymore. I told him off…after you left." He said.
"Oh?" Pascal said. She tilted her head in interest.
"Do you have a place to stay?" She asked.
"Well um I was going to go ask Asbel…" Hubert said.
"Don't be silly. You'll stay at my place." Pascal said.
She held his hand tightly.
"Though I probably won't get any work done when you there." She said with a laugh.