"Achoo!"
Echo sniffed and rubbed her nose, blinking away the tears in her eyes. She was wearing a plain, blue nightdress that she had brought from home, and currently sat with her back against a couch, hands wrapped around her legs, her head resting on her knees as she stared into the flames of the fireplace.
"Why did I come here again?" she muttered.
"Echo-chan?" Oz's voice jolted her from her thoughts, and she heard the door widen. "There you are! How are you feeling?"
"Echo is feeling okay." No sooner had she said this she sneezed once again.
Oz shook his head and tutted. "Your hair is still wet." He sat beside her, holding a towel in his hands. She stared, uncomprehending, until he started to rub her hair dry with it.
"O-Oz!"
"If you leave your hair like that you'll catch a cold!"
Trembling, Echo tried to stay still, knowing that her face would be as red as a strawberry by now. "Thank you," she whispered when he was done, but clutched at the towel when he tried to take it away.
"Have you had anything to eat, Echo-chan?"
"Just Echo," she reminded him once again from underneath the cloth, although she did not know why she was saying it. Clearly he was not going to listen and keep addressing her like that. In cue to his question, they both heard a soft rumbling from her stomach.
Echo blushed again, and was deciding whether it would be less painful to dive into the fire now when Oz clasped her hand and hoisted her up. "Come on, Gil said he's nearly done."
The Vessalius mansion was impressive, Echo thought as they walked along the hall. Artwork and photographs adorned the wall, a wide collection of portraits, landscapes and creatures amongst these. So far Echo had only seen a couple of servants in the house, and Gil, of course, who had picked them up from Echo's house in a black, sleek car.
"Oz… why do you always call me Echo-chan?" she asked hesitantly. He looked and her, his smile speeding Echo's heartbeat up.
"Because it fits you. And because Echo-chan will always be Echo-chan."
She pouted at that. "Fine. In that case, Oz-sama, where are your parents? And your older brother?" The way that his name rolled off her tongue was familiar, easy, and somehow felt right to Echo.
Oz chuckled at her name for him, but for a moment Echo saw his eyes lose his lustrous joy. "My father is overseas. My brother Jack is out late doing some business, and my mother passed away a long time ago."
She winced at her carelessness. "Echo is sorry."
He ruffled her hair, his trademark, cheerful persona returning. "Echo-chan has nothing to be sorry about. Oh! I think dinner is ready!"
And dinner was indeed ready, Echo agreed, as she picked up the delicious scents that originated from the kitchen. Gilbert was already setting the dishes onto the small table, while Alice sat, eyes fixated on a plate of meat. "Alice, this is Echo Baskerville. She attends school with us. Echo-chan, this is Alice Hearts."
"Alice," Echo said.
"Oz! How dare you bring back another date! You promised me that you would take me to the meat festival today but you never came home!"
Date? Echo blushed while Oz laughed. "I bumped into Echo-chan and asked her if she wanted to stay for the night. And Alice, I thought you were sick! You shouldn't be eating any meat!"
"Don't remind me," Gilbert sighed as he took his seat beside Alice. "Stupid Rabbit wanted me to make it. I couldn't say no, not while she was holding a knife at my throat."
"Stupid? Me? Hah! More like you're the stupid one, seaweed head!"
The two of them started fighting while Echo watched, puzzled. "Sit down, Echo-chan!" Oz pulled back one of the chairs for her, and she complied. He took the seat next to her, and, suddenly, for some reason she could not place, she felt a tightness in her chest.
"Hey, Echo," Alice growled. "Don't touch any of my meat, and I'll accept that Oz brought you here for the night."
Echo nodded. "Echo will not touch any of Ms Heart's meat. Echo will try the other dishes."
Alice stared at her, before jumping up and hugging Echo from across the table. "In that case, we're going to be great friends!" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling.
"Oi! Stupid Rabbit, you're going to knock everything off!"
"Shut up, you seaweed head!"
"Are they always like this?" Echo asked Oz when Alice had released her.
Oz nodded. "But don't worry." He smiled. "Just enjoy the meal. Usually there's more people but everyone else is out for today."
Echo blinked. "Where is everyone else then, Oz-sama?"
Oz laughed. "Well, my father is overseas on business, my brother and Alice's older sister Lacie and twin sister Alyss gone for a short vacation, and my younger sister Ad is out on a sort of mission of sorts. Or so she tells me."
Echo nodded, chewing slowly as she thought it through. "I see. Oz-sama is blessed to have many people who care about him," she spoke after her mouth was empty. Oz watched as she took another small, delicate bite.
"Echo-chan looks so cute while eating," he suddenly said, causing her to nearly spit out the serving of fish she was eating. She blushed, looking away from his face.
"Oz!" Both Alice and Gilbert yelled at him. Alice even jumped up, hands reaching up to strangle him, but Oz had already left and was running through the door. "Oz! Come back here, you worthless servant!"
Echo stared at the empty doorway, turning when Gilbert sighed. "Those two… always leaving a mess behind." The two of them continued to eat in silence. Gilbert was about to suggest that they finish up when he heard Echo whisper.
"Gil…bert."
Gilbert looked at the young Baskerville, who was looking down, her cheeks flushed and eyes wide. She was biting her lower lip, fingers drumming the tabletop lightly. "Y-yes, Echo?"
"Why did Oz-sama bring me here? You are Oz-sama's closest friend, would you know his thoughts?"
Gilbert chuckled. "Master Oz has been taking an interest in for a while, I believe. He's just been too busy to do anything outside of school or family business, and whenever he was free you were already at home with your sister and Vince."
"Oh." Echo looked up at him, fear and uncertainty in her eyes. But also glimmering was a small shard of hope and joy. "Then Echo shall go thank Oz-sama."
She finished eating and went to stand, but then remembered the dishes on the table. Before she could do anything, however, Gilbert was already cleaning up. "Don't worry," he said. "It is my duty to take care of these things after all."
"Gilbert… is Oz-sama… alone?" Gilbert turned to look at her, puzzled. "Echo noticed that Oz-sama's family is not here. Only Gilbert and Alice."
He smiled. "This place isn't really his, even though he's been living here for more than half of his life. This house belongs to his Uncle Oscar, the old man who owns the academy. Oscar loves Master Oz like his own son, more than his own father ever has."
Echo nodded her head, memories of her past flooding into her, but she pushed them away, blocking them out.
"And his brother Jack and his wife went on a trip. They were going to bring Alice along but she refused because she didn't want to leave Master Oz alone. They would have returned tonight but the unexpected storm caught them off guard and left them somewhere."
"I see… Oz-sama is a very happy person, surrounded by people who love him." Echo kept wondering, however, when and why did he notice her then? "What about Oz-sama's father?"
Gilbert looked away, but Echo noticed his jaw and fists clench. "That man." Echo strained to hear his words. "Does not deserve to have the role of Master Oz's father. He cares little of Master Oz, and has never shown any care or affection. He cares only for business and of reputation. When we were children, I tried to protest against his treatment, back when we lived on the estate, and if it hadn't been for Oscar's and Master Oz's intervention I would have been rotting in the basement, receiving lashes each day.
Gilbert sighed once again. "Sorry for my speech." He smiled, a little bashfully. "Master Oz has not had much love. We try but, even though he smiles through it all, we know that he still may be broken inside. Please, don't mention this to Oz again."
Echo nodded. "Why do you call him master?"
"Because, after he tried so hard to rescue me by himself from his father, I pledged myself to forever serve him. My father approved of me being close to the Vessalius, and also he knew that the salary would be good, but for me it is so that, whenever Master Oz is sad, is happy, is hurt, or is angry, there would be someone there to listen and take care of him."
"Echo-chan!" She turned her head to see Oz run towards her. He grabbed her hand. "Do you like desserts? We have some leftover from what the Rainsworths brought us yesterday… well, what we managed to hide from Break."
"Seaweed Brain! Don't touch my meat!"
"Stupid Rabbit! Don't leave it and walk off then!"
The argument between the two began once again. Echo wondered if it ever stopped. "Echo thinks she might go to bed, Oz-sama. Thank you for the meal."
She watched as he deflated slightly. But then he perked up. "Then, may I escort you to your room?" A rose appeared in his hands as he offered it to her.
Echo turned abruptly to hide the blush that made her face a deep scarlet colour. "E-E-Echo sees no harm in that," she managed to say. She let out a small squeak when he linked his arm around hers and started to move.
They moved in silence, and soon enough they were outside Echo's room. "Thank you for coming," Oz suddenly said. He was now looking away from her, his arm disengaged from her as he held them behind his back. "I hope you had fun."
Echo blinked. She looked at the slight boy, saw the hope gleaming in his eyes, and suddenly thought that, to her, Oz wasn't the person that people saw everyday in school. He wasn't the popular, cheerful and incredible leader of the student council. He wasn't the son and one of the heirs to the Vessalius company.
No. To her, Oz was kindhearted, shy at times, and like her. He had a broken last and a broken heart. And maybe they could fix it.
She smiled at him, a radiant, emotional one that made him gasp. "It was Echo's pleasure. Echo… I mean, I would be happy to stay again."
They stared at each other, Echo's heart beating in her chest, so loud that she could only hear that and the sound of Oz's breath. She wondered where the words had come from and how she had thought the thoughts that had flourished in her mind. "S-sorry if that was abrupt…"
He answered her by closing the distance and kissing her forehead. "No… you're welcome here anytime… I would love for you to stay. Goodnight and sweet dreams, Echo-chan."
He pulled away and, without a glance, walked off, leaving her to a sleepless night as she twisted and turned, trying to figure out the small sensation blooming in her chest.