Hi Guys and welcome back to Class Vs Character! So, a bit of a shorter chapter today, but it sets up what's coming next, so I hope you enjoy!


Two weeks passed on the estate with ease and prosperity. After their argument, James' and Kendall's relationship strengthened to a whole new level, mostly a physical level with the two of them finding themselves spending a lot of nights together, but they also bonded further on an emotional level as well. With his discussions with Carlos going well, Kendall also found himself opening up to James about some things, and just like the brunet had promised there was no judgement and very little coddling.

James was careful not to show how protective he was, allowing Kendall space when he spoke, and it was only when Kendall would initiate something that James would then proceed. If the stories did prove one thing however, it was how much James truly loved Kendall, realising how strong the blond was to go through all of this and still remain the same person after and James often reminded Kendall of that.

As for Kendall, he was still having some night terrors but after talking about his experiences, he found that they were decreasing in frequency and that he could cope better when he had them. When he did, Kendall knew it was also best to talk about them, rather than to keep them bottled up, allowing him and James build the new bond they now shared.

As for life generally on the estate, everything had mostly returned to normal. With the loss of Bitters, there was some debate as to whether they should employ someone else to take his position as Head of the Household or whether Lucy should continue to hold it. This debate was quickly put to rest however, when they realised how well Lucy had adapted to it over the short period she had held it, and it was clear to them all that there was no one else better suited for the job. At least that was what the Diamond family had said out loud, but during this discussion, James knew the main reason they let Lucy remain. No one wanted to tell her that she was being demoted back to her original position.

Carlos, Dak and Kendall returned to work after a couple of days of being home, with the three of them starting whether or not James approved of it, so in the end, he just let them do what they wanted, making life easier for everyone. Carlos and Logan's relationship had also begun to flourish, with the two of them making excuses to see each other. Logan's visits to Lakefield Estate became a lot more frequent, and yet he spent a decreasing amount of time during them with James. Of course, James and Kendall were aware of there relationship, as was Camille, who constantly bugged Carlos until he told her about it. Everyone was convinced that Jennifer knew as well, as she would cover for Carlos when Logan was round, allowing the two of them to spend time together.

So, two weeks had passed, and everything was looking up for Lakefield Estate, with the sunny skies shining over them. Everyone knew that something was going to change however, when one day a dark storm cloud began to make its way over them all.


James woke up that morning to the rain hitting his window, and a groan escaped his mouth when he saw it. The week had been lovely, so while he knew that they were probably overdue for a storm, it didn't stop the fact that he enjoyed the hot weather. There was that, and the fact that his room was cold anyway, and this cold weather only made it worse. Still, the brunet shook that off as he made his way to the shower and began to get ready for the day. Twenty minutes later, and James was walking down the stairs when he was greeted with his mother, who seemed to be moving a plant pot from one table to another.

"Morning mum" he said, snapping her out of her thoughts as she turned to him.

"Morning Sweetie. Where do you think this looks best?" she asked, causing James to shrug.

"Not sure. I guess it's nice in front of the window. Why?" he asked, causing her to place the plant pot down before she turned to him once again.

"Your father got a phone call early this morning. It turns out that the Griffins are coming round for some lunch. Apparently, Mr Griffin has an interesting business proposition and he wanted to discuss it with your father before he looked for other to invest" she replied, causing James to tense up. The Griffin's, one of his father's business partners, and possibly the family that James hated the most. "I know sweetie" Brooke continued, patting him twice on the shoulder in some support. "I'm guessing you'll be able to tell everyone for me. I'm sure they'll know what they need to do" she finished, patting him on the shoulder once more before finally walking away.

When she left, James must have stood on the stairs for a further two minutes, trying to process the information he was given, before he finally found the power to move again. And boy was that movement quick. The brunet sprinted down the stairs, and into the kitchen, essentially barging the door open, causing everyone to stare at him as he stood there panting. No one said anything, as the brunet tried to gain his breath, but when he finally spoke up, his voice seemed loud and worrisome.

"The Griffin's are coming round" he spoke clearly, causing everyone to tense up in the room, with the result of Jennifer even dropping an oven tray on the floor.

"What?" Lucy asked, finally snapping out of her daze.

"The Griffin's are coming round today. My father got a phone call early this morning, saying Griffin wanted to meet my father for an important business deal" James replied, causing everyone to let out a sigh.

"Wait, this could be good. We don't know for sure that she will be here" Camille spoke up, causing Dak to roll his eyes.

"Oh please, we all know she will be. Whenever James is involved, so is she" Dak replied, causing James to rub his hands over his face.

"I'm so sorry to drop this on you at the last minute" he continued, now walking into the kitchen and bending down on the floor so he could help pick up the baked goods from the floor.

"It's ok, it's not your fault you were only told this morning" Carlos replied, as he pulled another tray out of the oven and moved the stuff onto a plate before placing it on the table.

"Still, I know how demanding it is on all of you when she comes round, and I hate putting it on you all"

"Yeah, it's a lot of pressure, but at least we don't have her clinging off us all day. I'd take work over that any day" Dak replied, shuddering slightly as everyone took their seats at the table, James of course sitting in the free seat next to Kendall.

"Why do I feel like I know the name Griffin?" the blond spoke up after spending the last five minutes about it.

"Because Carlos and I warned you about Mercedes Griffin ages ago" Camille replied, as Carlos imitated the devil horns again.

"Oh yeah, she's the one that's dead set on being James' wife!" Kendall finally realised with a smile on his face, but once he spoke out loud he realised what he had said. "Bitch" he mumbled under his breath, causing James to chuckle next to him as he slid his hand onto Kendall's knee under the table. The brunet still wasn't sure who knew in the room, so they were still being cautious about it.

It was clear that Camille, Carlos, Jennifer and Katie knew. And if Camille knew, it was a safe bet to say that she had told Dak by this point, so that still left Lucy, Peggy and Jenny. James was sure that Lucy would be ok with it, it was just Peggy and Jenny who he was worried about. Still, a little caution was worth it for peace of mind. When James zoned back into the conversation, it was definitely at the worst time.

"This meat is too hard. I like my meat soft, so I can bite into it" Carlos spoke, putting on the poshest, girliest voice that he could think of. It was clear that he was imitating what Mercedes had said to him once, but James was still thrown for a second before he joined in with the laughter.

"What about the time she tried to rip the shit out of you Camille" Lucy added, causing Camille to roll her eyes as she began to talk.

"So, I was mucking out one the pens, so like usual the horses were roaming in the field making my job easier. That's when James and Mercedes came strutting in" Camille began, making eye contact with James, a grin on her face as he rolled his eyes. "So, the first thing she said when she walked in was 'Oh, this is so quaint. It's so small, and adorable' so I was already pissed off before she even spoke to me. And then she started to click her fingers as she was shouting-"

"Horse maid!" James interrupted, a chuckle leaving his mouth as he said it.

"Exactly. So, of course, being on my best behaviour, I walked up to her with a smile, and asked how I could help. She responded with 'well, I'm obviously in this shit riddled place so that you can get me a horse. You see, James and I are going riding'" Camille continued, putting on her voice before continuing. "So, I went out into the field, found Fable and I was just about to grab Snowbell when I heard this ear piercing shriek come from inside the stable. I quickly grabbed the two horses and when I finally got back, I saw her leaned against one of the pens, with James scraping shit off her boot"

"It was horrific by the way" James chimed in, causing everyone to chuckle as Camille continued.

"As soon as she saw me, her gaze turned to ice and she began her rant. 'You best become better at your job' she said. 'Because of how lazy you are, I've just stood in shit, and it's ruined my perfectly new riding boots' so as calmly as I could, I asked where she stood in the shit. 'Over there, I don't know why that makes any difference' she retorted to me sarcastically, and when I looked over to where it was, I had to hold back a laugh. It was the designated waste area."

"Oh god, I remember what happens next" James added, a smile growing on his face.

"So, as calmly as I could, I pointed this out to her. 'Well, you could at least have a sign or something letting people know!' she snapped back, and once again in a completely calm voice, I nodded my head to the right slightly, to the sign that read 'Designated Waste Storage.' She was absolutely fuming" Everyone laughed at the story, James quickly adding his two cents in.

"She ran out of the door, and back into the house. Being a good host, I followed her, and she started ranting to me, saying she refused to go horse riding in such a place, and how bitchy Camille was. Of course, the whole time, I was just suppressing my laughter" he added, causing everyone's laughter to increase.

"She sounds like a true madam" Jennifer said, causing Lucy to nod.

"She is, but she's also 'daddy's baby girl' so he treats her to everything she wants, and therefore thinks she so much better than everyone" Lucy replied, causing everyone to nod, before Lucy glanced at the time. "Well, I think it's best we all get to work. We've got a long day ahead of us" she continued, causing everyone to nod as they began to get up from the table and make their way to their designated areas.

Before Kendall could head out however, James quickly grabbed his arm, and when he was sure that very few people were around, he pressed a kiss onto the blond's lips. "I love you. No matter what happens today, please remember that. I love you"

"I don't like the sound of that, what's going to happen?" Kendall asked, causing James to shrug as he took the blond's hand into his own.

"I don't know, but I can be sure that Mercedes is gonna try something. But I love you Kendall, and no one else"

"I love you too" Kendall replied, leaning up to place a kiss onto James' lips.

"Alright lovebirds break it up!" Camille spoke up, causing the two of them to grin as they finally separated.

"Like you can say anything. Dak's just left" Kendall quipped, causing Camille to blush before the two stable hands left the room. With the two of them out of the door, James made his way over to the sink, and began to help Carlos and Jennifer wash up.

"You don't have to do this sweetie" Jennifer said, causing James to shake his head.

"Trust me I do. I feel like I should help if I'm going to unleash the she-beast onto you all." He replied, and from the back of the room, he heard Carlos shout.

"Amen!"


So there we have it! Arthur and Mercedes Griffin are coming round! I wonder what trouble they will cause for everyone?

So, I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad you liked it! Kendall and Carlos' heart to heart was really important, just like you guys pointed out, although I feel like you're going to be disappointed that you don't get to see Logan's visit. Don't worry, we'll see him again soon.

Anyway, I will see you guys on Thursday, for the last chapter of Love, James, which is so sad, but until then,

TTFN 😃