Finally got time to write another chapter... please R&R... Atrice

Part 10 - Temper rising... alone

The carriage stopped, and that meant Lucille was home again – or was this home? Didn't someone once tell her, that home was where your heart was? She left the carriage, gave the driver money for his work, and felt her way to the stairs with the umbrella. Climbed them and opened the door, went in, and closed it again. The house was quiet, yet she felt not everyone slept.

"Lucille, is that you?" her mother called from the living room, and Lucille walked in that direction.

"Yes, it is me…" Lucille said in the door to the living room. The voice had come from a person sitting down, probably in the sofa.

"Where have you been? Coretta would not tell me…" her mother said, and Lucille bit her lip. She had hoped nobody had seen her leave.

"I have been out, to visit a friend… that's all. And now I'm tired." Lucille said and turned around to go to her room.

"Lucille! It's past midnight… a young lady should not be out so late. Especially not one who can't see!" her mother had risen from the sofa and was walking towards her. Lucille stopped again.

"Is it that late? I had no idea…" she said, although she knew perfectly well, that the time was closer to 1 than 12.

"Who is that friend of yours? The same that has been sending you letters? What about Artus, whom you are engaged to…" her mother sighed, and Lucille turned around again.

"It's a good friend, and… I don't know if I will marry Artus anyway. Now can I go to sleep?" the blind girl was really becoming tired of this, her mother didn't usually ask questions about what Lucille did or with who. Her mother sighed again.

"Very well, we will talk more about this tomorrow. Goodnight." The mother strode past her towards the parents bedroom. Lucille went up to her own room, finally alone to think. He had cried in her arms, and she had felt he never really cried like that. He cried because someone was there, someone didn't care who or what he was, they just wanted to be there. 'Phantom… whoever you are, and whatever you have done, you really are more than just a friend…' she thought before she finally closed her eyes and slept.

The next day Artus came for lunch as he always did. He was for once happy that Lucille couldn't see him, for his face was like stone today. They sat in the garden and ate silence, until he couldn't hold it back no more.

"I saw you yesterday, Lucille… and you weren't alone!" he said, and the words came out a little louder and a little more angry than he thought they would. She looked up from her plate, surprised. Had he followed her? Seen her with the Phantom?

"As I said, I was visiting a friend…" she said, slowly and very insecure. But Artus was not convinced at all.

"A friend who sings to you about beauty and love? A friend who carry you into dark places?" he then asked, she heard he pushed the chair away from the table and stood up. There was a lot of… anger in his voice. What could she say? "I thought we were engaged, Lucille…" he tried to calm himself down.

"We were… but maybe we aren't anymore." She pulled herself together to say. This wasn't how she wanted to tell him at all, but now it was too late.

"We have your parents blessing, and mine too… the chuch has been reserved for us. It's too late to back out, Lucille… and I want to marry you, can't you understand that? Lucille, I love you!" but again the words left him with rage, especially the last words. She stood up too, her fists clenched.

"You can't tell me what I can and can't do, Artus! Your words make me want to marry you even less, than before you came today!" she said, her voice trembled and her eyes filled with tears. Her temper was rising, like it never did before. Who was he to tell her what to do?

"Really? We'll see about that!" and he left the garden towards the house, to leave her alone in the garden. The tears streamed down her chins; she wished so much, that her Phantom was here to comfort her – like she was there for him just yesterday. But she was all alone in the garden, and she knew nobody came. 'Foolish…' she thought with a sigh and tried to dry off the tears. It was no good, they kept coming.