Revelation
It was around 10 PM on October 16, 2008, when Jane Seymour was listening to some music on her iPhone in her bedroom. She had finished homework about an hour earlier, and she decided a good way to unwind was to listen to some of her favorite tunes, which included a bit of everything from classic rock to Top 40 hits. She was listening to "Objection (Tango)" by Shakira when she received a text from Cate asking, "Good time 2 chat?" Promptly putting the song on pause and unplugging her ear buds, Jane responded, "Yes hun." Shortly after sending the text, her phone began to ring, and she started to chat with Cate.
"Hey, sweetie. What's up?"
"It's about Tommy. He's been getting really close with Lizzie again.
"Again?!"
"Yes, again. She had his hand on his chest as I was walking past his locker this afternoon, and he looked like he was enjoying it. I had to put my foot down. So, I confronted Lizzie and told firmly her to back off. We nearly started a catfight when Tommy told us not to cause a commotion that would land us in office detention. Then I asked Tommy if he was cheating on me. He said no. I really, really want to believe him, but I am not so sure if he is telling the truth. He acted unusually touchy when I questioned him. My gut is telling me that he is having an affair with Lizzie. What do you think about this, sis? Do you think he is cheating on me? I would really appreciate your take on this matter."
"Hmmm…that's a tough call. Before Lizzie started making advances on him, he wasn't talking to any other girls as far as I know. What you just told me is pretty concerning. He didn't used to enjoy Lizzie's advances when she first came on to him. I just don't understand what changed. I mean, he has always had a wandering eye, but he never acted on it by cheating on anyone he was with. As you also know quite well, he loves to be the center of attention, especially with girls. A true ladies' man. I don't want to jump to any conclusions right now because there is no hardcore evidence that he is cheating, but I feel you should definitely keep your eyes open around my brother. It sure seems like he is hiding something, but is not hiding it very well based on what you just said to me. It also worries me that you said that he got defensive around you when you asked him about what was going on between him and Lizzie. He has always acted defensive whenever he lied about anything. His actions are definitely suspicious. I hope this helps, sista."
"Thanks, girl. Your advice was quite insightful. I appreciate and love you so much! I will keep my guard up when I am around him. I will carefully observe how he acts if I catch him with Lizzie again. All I know is that I will survive from whatever is going on because I am strong. Thanks again. Have a great night, Patches!"
"You too, Cate! Glad I could help. Sleep well. I love you. Bye."
"Love you, too! Bye."
As soon as Cate ended the call, Jane began to hear boisterous laughing coming from Tommy's room, which was right next to hers. "UGH! For the love of God, Tommy, can you be just a bit quieter when you are talking on the phone?! I can't hear myself think," she thought to herself. Having enough of hearing Tommy's obnoxious laughter and booming voice, she then walked to Tommy's room to tell him to keep his voice down. When she was a few inches from Tommy's door, she heard him say in a low voice, "Oooooooh, Lizzie! You're such a sexy vixen! I –," until he was interrupted by the sound of his door opening. Turning around to see who opened the door, he saw Jane staring at him angrily with her arms folded across her chest. At that moment, Tommy's stomach began to churn with discomfort as he knew he had been caught. "Uhhhh, babe…I'll call you back. Jane just caught me," Tommy said. "Uh oh! Good luck. Talk soon. Bye," said Lizzie over the phone. "Sounds good. Bye," Tommy said in a panicked voice before ending the call. Jane usually had a mellow and even-keeled personality, and she rarely expressed anger. It was so rare to see Jane angry that it was often scary on those rare occasions she did lose her cool.
"Uh…hi, sis," Tommy said with much nervousness in his voice. "WHAT ON EARTH HAVE YOU BECOME, THOMAS ISAAC SEYMOUR?! How could you have gone so low and cheat on Cate like that? You should be absolutely ashamed of yourself," Jane ranted. Tommy then said, "Sis, I was practicing with Lizzie how to surprise Cate with a weekend at the Seaport –" "Cut the crap, Thomas! Out of all the lies you have ever said over the years, this one takes the cake! You couldn't afford to spend a whole weekend there. Ha! Just listen to yourself. You are absolutely pathetic to be cheating on Cate like this," Jane said back. "What is pathetic is you snooping on my conversations," Tommy retorted in an effort to defend himself. "I was not snooping! I was walking to your room to tell you to pipe down when talking on your cell," Jane shouted. "Well, my personal life is none of your business," Tommy said angrily. "When it comes to the well-being of my fellow Tudor Six sisters, it most certainly is my business! I love all five of them as much as I love you and Mom and Dad. It riles me up to see you being dishonest and deceitful to Cate in the way you are acting right now. My advice for you is to tell Cate the truth about what is going on between you and that skank. She deserves to know at least that," Jane said. "I would, but I am so scared that Cate will break up with me if I tell her the truth. I love Cate to death, but there is something about Lizzie that is so exciting, and I want to see where that goes, too," Tommy rambled. After shaking her head in disbelief, Jane replied, "Tommy, you sound absolutely delusional right now. There is no way you can have both Cate and Ms. Flirtypants. Act like a man and tell Cate what happened, or I will tell her for you! Trust me. The consequences of your infidelity will be more severe if you don't tell her the truth. She will be way more upset if you continued this stupid charade with Lizzie behind her back."
When Tommy heard his sister's threat, he began to feel extremely guilty about his infidelity. He realized right then and there that it was time for him to stop being dishonest with Cate. He really did love her with all his heart, and he knew deep down that Cate did not deserve to be lied to. With a sense of urgency in his voice, Tommy said, "Ok, sis. I will tell her everything in person tomorrow morning. You're right. I know that Cate deserves to know the truth. It's time for me to man up and stop beating around the bush with her." Jane nodded with a sense of satisfaction that she did a great job in convincing Tommy to be truthful to Cate. She then said, "Yes, Tommy. It's the right thing to do. Remember that time I accidentally broke one of Dad's favorite reading glasses when we were five?" "Yeah! I was reading, and you were playing marbles when you accidentally shattered one of the lenses with one of them. And this was despite the fact that Mom and Dad told us to not play marbles in the house. I remember you were so scared that ran to Mom for advice while I sang to myself 'Janie's in trouble'," Tommy said. "And I sure was! When I told mom, she sent me to the timeout corner for ten minutes for breaking house rules," Jane said. "And I snickered the whole time because I had been the good boy for once," Tommy joked. Jane then said, "That's not the point I am trying to make here. Just listen, please." After giving Jane the go ahead to continue talking, she then said, "After the ten minutes was up, she asked me what I would say to Dad after he woke up from his nap. When I told her that I was afraid to tell him the truth and that I would say that I simply knocked the readers off the end table by accident, she told me that he would be really mad at me and send me to an additional ten-minute timeout for lying to him. After hearing that, I realized I had to tell the truth, and sure enough, Dad was pretty pissed, but he didn't send me to timeout because Mom had already done that. I learned a very valuable lesson that day: Always be accountable for your mistakes and be truthful about them. Sounds a lot like the tables have turned twelve a half years later, doesn't it?" "Yeah, it does, sis. Thanks for retelling that story. I think it's further encouraged me to tell the whole truth to Cate about my infidelity. You always have been the wiser twin even though you are three minutes younger than me. Thanks again, sis. I don't feel so afraid to talk to Cate about what happened between me and Lizzie," Tommy said. "You're welcome, big brother. I love you, and I always will, but I certainly hope you never cheat on anyone again," Jane said. Giving Jane a huge hug, Tommy said, "Deal! I love you too, sis."
A/N: So, this chapter wraps up my first multi-chapter fanfic in my Tudor Six series. Would you guys like me to publish more Tudor Six stories in multi-chapter formats or would you prefer I do single chapter fanfics? Please let me know with your thoughts and feedback 😊