The pavement was met by the constant clanking of her black spool heels and her labored breath was made evident as she continued to run down the streets. Laura was chasing after a young boy, who had initially accidentally bumped into her. Not realizing that the boy made a quick and sly movement with his hands and had snatched something through the pocket of her dress. She was not pleased the second he made a dash for it, however, she refused to let the boy get away with this.
While in hot pursuit of the young pick pocketer, she had bumped into all sorts of people along the way, apologizing swiftly without giving them a chance to hear their complaints to her. It wasn't long before she had caught up to him as they now stood on the overpass.
She was panting heavily, and her eyes remained fixated at the young boy. He had a smug look on his face as he extended his hand over the cement railing. In his hand he held a long golden chain and attached to it was a pocket watch that had a rose engraved on it. It was the pocket watch that he had stolen from her as he dangles it over the edge mockingly, as if he was saying: Come any closer and I'll drop it.
Her eyes widened at the sight, yet she held back the urge to tackle the boy and remained calm as she possibly could. She extends her hand slowly towards him, maintaining eye-contact with him and as she does this, she is slowly inching closer to him.
"Give that back to me, please." It was a risky move on her part but it's better than just knocking him off his feet. He was still a child after all, and she would feel awful if she ever laid a finger on someone so young.
Alas, her plan didn't work and watched as he ultimately let go of the golden pocket watch. However, she was fast on her feet and then lunged forward, successfully catching the watch in the nick of time. With a sigh of relief, she pushes herself off the railing and turns around, and the next thing she knew she was pushed harshly over the railing. Only catching a glimpse of the boy smirking at her before retreating.
It's as if time had slowed down while she fell. With her hands clutching the pocket watch close to her chest and her eyes were shut tight. She waited to hit the pavement below, but it never came and instead, she felt a pair of arms holding her.
Laura fluttered her eyes open and slowly raised her head, curious as to who had saved her from an unfortunate fall. The person who saved her was a man wearing a grey trench coat, a navy-blue scarf around his neck and a grey newsboy hat, however that's not what genuinely surprised her. It was the fact that the man's entire face was wrapped in bandages and he was wearing a pair of polarized sunglasses.
"Are you all right, miss?" His muffled voice asked with concern which had brought her back from her thoughts.
She slowly nods in response before he carefully lowered her legs on the ground where she held on to his gloved hand for support. Once balanced she composed herself and then smiled apologetically at him.
"I'm sorry… I-I didn't mean to stare." Stumbling with her words like a fool being already flustered from her predicament. "Thank you… for catching me."
"Well, it's not every day you get to save a lovely maiden such as yourself." His flattering remark left her entire face completely red, as well as her heart pounding hard against her chest.
Laura looks off to the side feeling utterly bashful, in a good way thought! It's not every day a stranger gets to compliment her often. She's not used to this kind of thing and she doesn't consider herself the attractive type either. Then her demeanor swiftly changed when she thought about that young thief.
"That boy - I swear the next time I see him I'll give him an earful about stealing and pushing me off the overpass!" She was beyond peeved and was silently seething from where she stood with her hands balled into fists.
"A boy pushed you off the overpass?" The man mused aloud, sounding genuinely surprised by this fact.
Laura looked back at him and even with all the wraps covering every inch of his face, she could tell that he was stunned. She was reluctant at first, unsure to tell him but she soon given in.
"Yes… that young boy stole my pocket watch, it's invaluable, so I pursued him and uh… the outcome didn't pan out as I expected it to." She sent him a sheepish smile and was stunned to see his demeanor change.
His clenched fist and unyielding posture, his overall body language said it all. The man was practically radiating anger altogether. It was beginning to scare her. As she hugged her sides to find some sort of comfort and this had caught his attention. Almost instantly all traces of his anger were nonexistent, before muttering an apology to her.
She sent him a reassuring smile before checking the time on her pocket watch. Her eyes were wider than a euro coin and with raised eyebrows while she stared down at her pocket watch in horror.
"Oh no! I'm going to be late!" Her sudden outburst startled the man and began to slowly walk the opposite way. "Sorry, I need to go. Thank you again for saving me! Take care!"
Before he had the chance to say anything, the young maiden was out of sight.
….
The streets were empty in the dead of twilight. A cold breeze had suddenly brushed against the lace and chiffon fabric of her dress, causing it to sway lightly with the wind. Even when her dress draped above her ankles and the many layers underneath, it was not enough to keep her from feeling light nips on her skin from the cold. Laura didn't let the chill of the night bother her as she continued to walk down the empty streets. However, this didn't change the fact that she felt utterly exhausted.
Being a Lady's maid for a wealthy family in her town is not a simple task whatsoever. She also takes the role of housekeeper since her employer, Madam Lucia Carter, had recently promoted her the position just over a month ago. Which meant she had to manage the other maids, the butlers, the cooks, etc. throughout the household. Her working schedule had doubled, and she often came home even more exhausted than before.
A soft sigh slips through her lips, with her eyes closed and allowing her shoulders to relax. Laura couldn't wait to return home and rid herself of the maid outfit before taking a long and well-deserved bath. Just fantasizing about it made her swoon.
"Oi! You!"
Her fantasies were abruptly interrupted by a voice trying to get her attention. So, she stopped walking and opened her eyes only to be greeted by two men in their mid-twenties standing in front of her. Both men wore the identical workwear, navy blue jumpsuit and a white long-sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up. The man on the right had unkempt brown hair while his friends' ebony hair was neatly kept.
Oh, and let's not forget about the alcoholic beverages they held in their hands. Both men practically reek of it as they swayed from where they stood.
"What's a fi-i-ine young lady like you wandering around the streets at this ungodly hour?" The ebony haired one slurred and then proceeded to take a large swig of his drink.
Laura wasn't even standing near them when she caught a whiff of the alcohol breath invading her nostrils. In response, she scrunched up her nose in slight disgust. The compliment he gave her didn't flatter her in the slightest, in fact, it made her want to hurl.
"So, you're a maid, huh? Why don't you come and join us?" The unkempt man offered.
"That's very thoughtful of you but I'll have to pass. You see, I need to head back home to tend to my cat." She politely declined with her hands raised just above her chest. It wasn't a lie per se, but she really didn't want to be near these two intoxicated men.
The ebony-haired man took an unsteady step forward almost eating the floor in the process. If it hadn't been for his friend who steadied him... well, he would've lost his precious pearly white teeth and eaten them with his blood.
"I'm sorry but I really must take my leave." She was about to walk around them but was unable to do so when the unkempt man suddenly spoke.
"A maid like yourself needs company. We can take you home… and have some fun." The way he emphasized fun really unnerved her and knew damn well what he was trying to imply. She is no prostitute; it was revolting to say the least.
Her kind smile that she wore from the very start of the conversation was gone in an instant. She sent them a displeasing glare which did little affect to them, being too drunk to even care. The way their lustful eyes studied her body, fantasizing their lude actions with her. She reached down to her pocket and was ready to act when a voice had made itself known behind her.
"Sorry gentlemen, but I'm afraid that this young maiden is with me."
Laura almost jumped out of her skin and turned around to see the man that saved her life earlier that morning. He walked over to her until he stood beside her with his gloved hands shoved inside his trench coat pockets. Mind you that he's like seven feet tall compared to her petite height standing only at five foot three beside him. His tall stature was enough to intimidate the intoxicated men, mumbling under their breath before sauntering off.
She exhaled deeply in relief as her green orbs landed on to his bandaged features, although with much difficulty considering their height differences. "Thank you for shooing them away."
He looks down at her with a slight tilt in his head. "I'm happy to have helped. I...um, hope I'm not intruding by asking this out of the blue. But why is a maiden like yourself wandering in the dead of night?"
"If you must know, this maiden right here," She points to herself with a smile. ", has a job and just so happens to clock out late. It's quite a handful and I'm eager to go home."
Being the gentleman, he is, offers his gloved hand to her in which she gladly accepts. They peacefully walked down the sidewalk with their arms linked until arriving at her humble abode. She stood up the steps which lead to her mahogany door and then turned to face the man with a grateful expression.
"Thank you for accompanying me. Honestly, I can't thank you enough for what you did. Is there anything you'd like as compensation?"
"Hmm... and if I refuse?" He asked humorlessly and watched in amusement as she folded her arms and then sent him a playful glare.
"Even if you refuse, I'm still going to repay you for all the trouble that I've caused."
"Are you sure? I believe that the trouble seems to be attracted to you after all."
There was a hint of jest laced in his muffled voice to which she responded by punching him in the arm. This had completely caught him off guard and he couldn't help but get a good chuckle out of it. Since there was no real force into the punch itself and he knew that she did so with good intentions.
"Say," She mused, earning his attention. "I never got the chance to ask for your name."
He straightens his posture with one arm tucked behind him and the other rested against his chest. "Daniel is the name, and what yours might be my young maiden?"
She stifled out an amusing chuckle, feeling her cheeks burn up from his performance. "Laura. Laura fleur-de-lis, it's a pleasure to finally be acquainted with you Daniel."
