Branson was out wandering the grounds after dinner that evening, and as if by chance, he stumbled across Sybil.
"Sybil! I mean, Milady." He shouted.
"It's alright Tom. You know you can call me that." She looked at him as she wandered over.
"I guess you can call me Tom!" They both giggled at the thought of calling each other by their given names. As they stood standing so close to each other, neither of them had the confidence to say what the both wanted to say, what the both knew they both wanted to say.
"I never asked Tom, are you going to join the army?" She stood there, nervous that he would reply yes but his answer was a relief.
"You know I couldn't fight in the English army, I would only want to fight in the Irish army. To fight for England isn't something I can do."
"Well, that's good then." He wandered what she meant. Could she possibly mean it?
"I don't know what I'd do if you never came back." Her voice shaking and her heart pounding, she moved even closer to him.
"I couldn't bare being away from you that long." He said. She looked up and gazed into his eyes before letting out a sweet smile. "Surely you must know how I feel about you." Her smile lit up as she heard him finally speak the words she had been longing to hear for so long. He didn't care what society said. He didn't care what the consequences may be. Her shining smile was a good enough answer for him. He put him hands on her hips, and pulled her so close before placing his lips on hers. They locked lips and in that moment, they were the only two people in the world. Her family inside, the staff, Downton didn't matter. All that mattered was how they felt about each other.
But deep down, they realised that it could never last.
