" Good morning" Lexie greeted Stella with civility while laying her breakfast in front of her as Archie watched with amusement from across the table
" Morning" Stella answered back, glancing up at her
Lexie gave her a killer smile and a flick of her hair before serving Molly and sitting down next to Archie to eat her own breakfast.
" Are you taking any one to the ball Stella dear?" Molly asked
Stella glanced up from her plate, "Um, I'm not sure yet Molly. A lot of the plans are still in the preliminary stage"
" And what about you Archie?"
Archie gazed over his toast at his mother, "Lex and I are going to go together"
" Oh how lovely" Molly smiled knowingly
Lexie nodded, "I get to pick out my dress soon"
" Who's going to do the cooking?" Hector asked gruffly
" I'm hiring a chef father" Archie saved
Hector mumbled a response and Archie sighed
" Father you hate Lexie's cooking anyway"
Hector nodded, taking another bite of his toast "True. Go to the ball dear, I'm sure you'll look beautiful."
Lexie nearly choked on her orange juice at the compliment but finally managed to splutter out a "Thankyou"
Stella rose her eyebrows and glanced at Hector, she had expected more resistance from him towards Archie and Lexie's relationship and class differences. 'Unless...' she pondered, 'he might not know.' Archie and Lexie had always been a bit like brother and sister within the household, Molly definitely knew that their relationship had progressed, but Hector quite possibly did not.
Stella thought about the best way to spring it on him that would work to her advantage. She couldn't just come out and tell him, that would be too obvious, and also she had to be careful that she stayed in Archie's good books.
That night she had the perfect opportunity; she met Archie on the way to the bathroom after getting changed for bed- he had just come out of his room.
They talked for a while and somehow Stella just knew that Lexie was asleep in the room. It was something in the way Archie talked; he was holding the conversation an octave lower as if trying not to wake someone.
When he left for the bathroom Stella grinned- it was the perfect opportunity. Hector would not approve of Lexie being in Archie's room no matter what the circumstances. Archie would be distracted while he was in the bathroom, and it would give her a perfect amount of time to make up an excuse for Hector to go into the room to ask Archie something
Quietly she opened the door and glanced in just to make sure, Lexie lay sound asleep, snuggled up in the duvet. It was all perfectly innocent as she and Archie had been up talking together and snuggling when she'd fallen asleep with him, but Stella knew that Hector wouldn't see it that way
'Speak of the Devil' she thought as Hector rounded the corner and nearly ran into her.
" Oh Hector, Archie was just looking for you"
" For me?" Hector asked, "Why? What does he want now?"
" I'm not sure" Stella lied, "I think he's in his bedroom."
Hector grunted in reply and made his way to his son's room. Stella smiled to herself and calmly walked away.
Less then a minute later the yelling started
" Alexandra!"
Lexie woke up with a start, and looked around disorientated. Until she saw Hector
" Ach, Hector, you scared the living daylights out of me. What are you doing?"
" What am I doing, what are you doing in here?" Hector challenged
" Well, I was sleeping" Lexie commented, "Before I was rudely awakened."
Hector looked slightly sheepish, "Sorry. I didn't expect you to be in here."
" Apparently not" Lexie agreed
" I was looking for Archie" Hector continued
" Well, he's not here. He's probably in having a bath," Lexie answered
" Ahh" Hector replied
" Why are you looking for him so late at night?" Lexie asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes
" Stella told me that he wanted to talk to me about something"
" Oh," Lexie rose her eyebrows in confusion, "Did she?"
Hector nodded, then glanced at her again "What are you doing in here?"
Lexie glanced up at him, not quite sure what to say. She was saved by the door opening and Archie walking in wrapped in a towel
" What's going on? I heard yelling" He exclaimed, and then saw his father
" Father...What are you doing in here?"
" Stella said that you wanted to talk to me about something? Now what is it, because I want to go to bed! "
" I was just talking to Stella before, and I didn't ask to see you about anything, I don't know what she'd talking about" Archie replied confused
Lexie and Archie exchanged glances and then both looked at Hector, still unsure what his actual reaction was going to be
" What are you doing boy?" Hector grumbled standing up, "Fooling with an old man's head."
" Father I swear there is nothing I need to talk to you about right now"
Hector nodded, "I'm off to bed"
" Goodnight Hector" Lexie called
" Goodnight lass, sorry I woke you. Goodnight Archie"
" Goodnight father." Archie echoed as Hector closed the door behind him
They both looked at each other in shock
' What the hell had just happened?!'