Midnight:
Chapter 13:
May 21st
8 AM
Laurens' Kitchen
It was too goddamn early to be up and all John wanted to do, more than anything, was crawl back into his bed and sleep, however it wasn't an option that morning. He was seated at the table with a bowl of soggy cereal, stirring it as he stared at it while Marta bustled in the kitchen behind him.
"Long night?" She asked, setting a cup of coffee on the table in front of him before sitting down in a chair across from where he was sat.
John set his spoon to the side, reaching out to take a long of sip of the coffee before answering her. "Yeah, you could say that" he responded as he set the cup back down. "And then when I felt like I was finally able to fall asleep, someone had to wake me up."
Marta shrugged as she took a bite of her toast. "Sorry about that. Dad wanted me to wake you up. He said he had something he wanted to tell you."
Brown eyes glanced around the kitchen as he took another sip of his drink. He wasn't surprised that his father wanted him up, yet, said parental figure was nowhere in sight, making John more irritated than he was. Part of him wondered if he could get away with leaving right then and climbing up the stairs to his room and climbing back into bed and sleeping for another few hours.
Before he could put his master plan into action, Henry walked into the kitchen, nodding at the two of them as they sat there. "Nice to you see you up. Are you hungover?"
"No, I was just out late, is all." If this is how the conversation was just getting started, John knew that he would probably need another cup or two of coffee before noon.
A moment of silence passed, and Henry didn't say anything more as he poured himself his own cup of coffee. "Anyway," Henry began as he stood at the counter, leaning against it and looking at the table where John and Marta both sat. "Like I said, I'm glad to see you're up. I was thinking about the conversation we had last night, and I think it's best if we move the wedding up even sooner. Tomorrow afternoon, perhaps."
John looked up from his bowl of soggy cereal and just stared at his father. "I told you I was gay, and you still want me to get married?"
A dismissive hand was waved. "You don't need to be in love to be married to someone. You two will get married, Martha will have her baby and that will be that."
The two at the table
John stared at his father. There weren't any words that he could say that wouldn't come across as a yell or a scream or anything else. Instead, he stood up and left the room. Marta sat there, frowning a bit. "I guess I have some phone calls to make."
9 AM
Room 205
"Morning, sleeping beauty!" Gilbert's accent voice was the first thing that greeted Alexander's ears as he sat up in bed. A small groan left his lips, looking around the room before he spotted the Frenchman in a chair by the window.
"What time is it?" He asked through a yawn, stretching his arms above his head. It couldn't have been super early, but his body still felt like it needed to rest, however, the way the sun was peaking through the window curtains, it didn't seem possible.
A moment of silence passed as Gilbert looked to the clock on the nightstand that was between the two beds. "It's just now past nine," he commented as he set down the cup of hotel coffee that he had been drinking. "We grabbed some food for you, by the way, as we didn't know what time you'd be waking up." He nodded to the table where there were various foods from the continental breakfast the hotel served in the mornings.
Pushing himself out of the small bed, Alexander sleepily made his way over to where Gilbert was sitting, dripping into the chair that was across the table from his friend. "Where's Herc?" He asked, grabbing a muffin from the assortment of foods that littered the table.
"In the hall. He to call Lizzie and said something about not wanting to wake you up," Gilbert shrugged, snatching up a banana from the table for himself. "I told him; you were in such a deep sleep that you probably wouldn't wake up to a war going on outside. He insisted, wanting to be considerate."
"Is Lizzie coming?"
"Non, but I'll let Herc tell you more about it when he's off the phone and joins us for this lovely hotel breakfast."
Alexander stared at his friend before he cast his gaze down to his muffin. He tuned the muffin over in his hand, a sinking feeling settling in the pit of his stomach. Something was off, by the way Gilbert was speaking and his accent was growing heavier. It normally seemed to happen either when his friend was tired or something else was going on. Deciding not to press the issue for the time being, Alexander nodded. "Alright, let's just eat."
Noon
Manning's Living Room
The atmosphere was heavy as John sat there across from Martha and her father; eyes trained on the floor. "John," Henry began after a moment, turning to look at his son. The silence that hung in that moment was suffocating. As John looked at his father, he wanted to be anywhere but there. He wanted to just tell her that the wedding was off, wanted to set them both free of this burden that was getting married to each other. He glanced up at Martha after a moment, who sat across from him, hand on her stomach that was swollen with his child. God, how could he have forgotten about that part too. The guilt was starting to eat him up.
"Martha, can we take a walk?"
Perhaps talking to her away from everybody's prying eye would be the best course of action.
Martha's face lit up with a smile and she nodded. "I would love that!" She said, shifting in her seat a bit, trying to stand up. "Would you be able to help me up first?"
Nodding, John stood up from his seat, extending his hand to help her up. He ignored the feeling of his father's eyes on him, as if he somehow knew what he wanted to say to her, as he followed Martha, who was chatting away about something. He knew he should have paid attention, but he was far too gone in his own head.
"Now," Martha began as she opened the door, leading him out to the back garden. Closing the door behind him, he looked around at the garden and how much it had changed since the last time he had been back there.
"Hm?"
"What is it that's bothering you?"
Biting his lower lip, he took Martha by the elbow, pulling her away from the backdoor. "Come, I'd rather not have this conversation so close to the house where we can be heard."
Martha frowned as she followed him. "John, you're starting to worry me."