Startled, Jimmy fell from his crouching position, wobbling backwards to land straight on his bum, staring up at Thomas and awaiting his reaction, his palms already sweating with trepidation. The look on his face was thunderous.
If looks could kill, I've just been brutally murdered, then revived, only to have my heart pulled out through my mouth.
Bugger.
So, I guess that means he's angry?
"I think we should have a little chat, don't you? It seems you need to be told why it's wrong to go into other peoples rooms. Why it's wrong to invade other's privacy. And why it's wrong to touch other's things" Thomas said coldly, almost bordering on dangerously, as he scowled at Jimmy on the floor, taking a step closer to him with each sentence.
Behind the façade Thomas was a gentle man, one not capable of harm. But for the first time, Jimmy felt genuinely scared, unsure of how to react. And more importantly, the full extent of how Thomas might react, given the unusual circumstances.
"I can explain!" jimmy said in a panicked tone, his breath speeding up, and sweat beginning to coat his forehead.
"Oh I'm sure you can" Thomas said with a quiet, but terrifying, click of the door, shutting it to leave them alone. No witnesses. No audience. No one. Just the two of them alone in his room, left to handle the situation of Jimmy's thoughtless mistake and Thomas' misplaced trust.
"Go on then!" Thomas spat out, staring manically at Jimmy's huddled figure on the floor.
"I came in to talk to you. But you weren't here-"
"so you decided to crawl around on my floor and rummage through my belongings!" Thomas interjected, gesturing towards the box now on the footman's lap.
"Well..." Jimmy began nervously.
Shift the blame!
"Where were you? Where have you been?"
The question caught Thomas off guard, leaving him feeble voiced as he replied:
"out." Thomas said quietly, a complete change in tone from a few seconds earlier.
"Out where?" Jimmy tested coarsely.
"I was running an errand, if you must know, Carson let me go out" Thomas said, his voice slowly building back up to the previous frustration.
"Well where is it?" Jimmy pressed further, seeing how it didn't look like the situation could get much worse.
"Where's what?"
"The errand you had to collect!"
Thomas face darkened again, deciding he'd had enough of the charade they were playing.
"Don't question me! You're the one in the wrong!" Thomas bit back furiously, yet somehow still managing to keep his voice at a suitable volume throughout all his speech.
"I just want answers! Why won't you give them to me?"
"Who says it's your God given right to know everything! I'm fed up with your behaviour! You have no right to act this way, not with all that I do for you! Can you please just stop going on at me for one minute?"
"What exactly do you do for me Thomas, hm? I'd hardly call keeping secrets and always being in a foul mood a favour!"
Letting out a deep sigh, Thomas reset his face to display his favourite appearance of professional blankness, and began to talk in a controlled, yet, stern manor, with a subtle edge of what appeared to be upset coating his words as he spoke.
"Get out…n-now!" Thomas growled with a frown, his voice trembling slightly as he spoke, almost as if it hurt too much to even talk. Pointing towards the door, he bowed his head to look absently at the floor, breaking off eye contact to show the conversation was over and he wasn't prepared to talk anymore.
And with that, Jimmy stumbled to his feet and made his way into the corridor. Slumping himself on the bed in his room, he contemplated what he would do next. He had to try and find out where Thomas had been.
Carson must have granted him permission to have a couple of hours off, so maybe I could find out from him? Disguising my interest as a legitimate reason to need to know of course...