Hey guys! Thank you very much to those who reviewed last chapter. :")
Anyway, this chapter is quite short. I also would like to say that I did not check for any mistakes. Just point it out to me whenever you notice one. :D
Alright, Enjoy!
"You look lovely tonight." The Judge says as he runs his hand on the side of Lucy's face. They are both in the middle of the dance floor, waltzing to the now cheerful music that is being played by the band. Lots of dancing couples are surrounding them, not paying them any mind. Everyone is too busy with their own partners to pay attention to other people.
Lucy blushes at the compliment, her cheeks becoming rosy. She does not want to admit it to herself, but when the judge told her that she's lovely, it means more to her than when her husband told her that she's beautiful, just a while ago. She cannot explain it, maybe it is the way that Ben has complimented her- his tone of voice- but she can tell that he is not sincere. Unlike the Judge, she knows and she feels it, that he meant what he said.
Richard Turpin twirls her around; her expensive dress is billowing around her, following her every motion. When she is back in the Judge's arms, she flashes him a smile and she replies: "and you look mighty handsome."
She is truly enjoying the night. Although she is supposed to feel guilty by enjoying it with another man, yet, she cannot simply make herself care. Her husband is probably looking for her now. She has left him with that obnoxious old man a while back- the old man will keep him busy for a while. If he ever sees her dancing with Richard, he'll surely be furious.
Wanting to check on him, she glances at the table on where they are seated in before- the old man is there, pestering someone that is not her husband. Ben is gone. Where can he possibly be?
Panic is starting to creep inside her; she cannot focus anymore on dancing. She is frantically looking around, trying to spot her husband from the crowd. She must get back to him; she cannot let him see who she is with. Thin sheet of sweat is starting to form on her forehead. Her head is spinning and she is feeling dizzy. She does not know why she is scared; she is not even doing anything wrong, no, not at all.
The Judge, as if sensing her inner turmoil, leans towards her and whispers in her ear. "Are you alright?"
She composes herself, feeling stupid for being so obvious. She tries to smile at Richard, but it only comes out as a grimace. Taking a deep breath, she manages to calm down for a bit just to answer. "Can we go somewhere private?"
Richard's eyebrows shoot up and his eyes widens. Upon noticing this, Lucy immediately knows what he is thinking. She can feel the heat crawling from her neck to her cheeks out of embarrassment. She quickly explains herself. "No- not that. I- just, somewhere- somewhere quiet."
She can see the disappointment on the Judge's eyes, but he quickly hides it with a smile. He places his hand on the small of her back and guides her towards the door that- she knows- leads to the balcony. She just follows his lead, bowing her head down. She just hopes that the throng of people can hide her from her husband.
Nellie detangles herself from Benjamin as the music stops. Smiling at him, she curtseys; he also does the same, after her. Then, they both walk over the railings of the balcony, leaning on them. Ben is standing closely beside the baker, they are facing each other.
It is only now that they have stopped, that Mrs. Lovett starts to feel exhaustion. Her feet are throbbing with pain, and she wants to sit so badly. She is also out of breath, though this could be from the reason that Benjamin is staring at her- dare she says it- lovingly. But, although she is tired, she can say that it is all worth it. She is very happy, very, very happy.
The whole time the she and Ben is dancing, she is deceiving herself, pretending that he is her husband and that he loves her. Of course, what adds to her pleasure is when he has told her that she can pretend that he can be that man that she loves; well, she clearly does not need to do that anymore. She is already with him- with that man- and it is him.
Oh, she wants to tell him now! Tell him that he is that man that she has been talking about, all this time; how starting from the beginning, that she has seen him, she fell in love already. How she longs for him every day and every night. That it pains her whenever she sees him with Lucy. It hurts her every time he talks so fondly about his wife, and how much he loves her. That she has tried so many times to forget about him, but she can't. She can't do it, for she loves him too much.
It's just that, she has been keeping this all to herself for so long, that she feels the need to tell it. She needs to vent out. Also, the timing is so perfect- everything, from the scenery to their privacy. No one can hear them, so it is only him that will know of what she is going to say. No distractions; she will be his sole focus. Alright! She's ready to tell!
But of course, she has a problem. She knows that admitting her feelings to Benjamin will cause nothing but awkwardness between them. He may treat her differently upon knowing, and she does not want that to happen. Hell, he may even avoid her. But what is she to do? Shall she be contented with forever hiding her love for him? No, she cannot allow that to happen! She will confess everything to him, and face the consequences later.
Taking a deep breath, she grabs Ben's hands and holds them firmly. She is very nervous; her heart is beating fast. Gathering all her courage to say what she is going to say, she finally opens her mouth to speak. Instead of voice coming out, she only manages to inhale air, and ends up gasping. Biting her lip, she tries once more to talk. Benjamin is already looking at her strangely.
"Ben, I-I need to tell you something." She is looking down at her feet, for she is suddenly incapable of looking him in the eyes.
She hears him chuckling, yet she still refuses to look up. Only when two fingers lifts her chin, does she meets his eyes. "You're acting funny, Nell. Tell me, what's wrong? What is it that you would like to say?"
"I Lo-" before she even finishes uttering the word 'love', the door from the balcony opens.
Both she and Ben immediately whip their heads to see who just walks in. It turns out; it is the Judge and Lucy. Just when she thought that she will be able to tell Benjamin, Lucy has to ruin her moment. Why? Why now? Couldn't they wait just a couple of minutes before they show up? Well, it doesn't matter anymore. It just clicked on her, she and Ben are doomed!
Lucy walks towards Benjamin so fast it's like she is running. Her face is a picture of fury, yet she manages to still look beautiful. Within a blink of an eye, she is already beside her husband. She points at the paralyzed baker and shouts, asking her husband. "What is the meaning of this!?"
"I- uh- listen; it's not what you're thinking." Ben stutters, clearly shocked and afraid to see his wife there. He is too shocked, not expecting to be caught, that he does not notice the presence of Judge Turpin standing just behind his furious wife.
"Oh, go on Ben, why don't you explain." Lucy replies, her voice a tone of mockery. Her breath is coming out fast, and it looks like her eyes are going to pop out from their sockets.
Nellie knows that there is no way out for her; she just hides behind her best friend, hoping for his support, lest Lucy tries to kill her. It looks like the woman is ready to do such a thing and she does not doubt it.
Ben moves away from her and into the side of his wife. He does what Lucy has done to her; he points at her, his face morphing into one of disgust, and then he explains. "She forced me!" he bellows. "I didn't want to come with her, but she said that she just needed to tell something important to me. I didn't want to come, I swear! But she said she'll go to you and tell you that I am still seeing her if I didn't. I agreed, only so that she can leave me alone. She's desperate!"
It feels like time has stopped. She cannot believe that this man that she loves can do this to her. She trusted him, thinking he will protect her, but he didn't. He saved himself, and he left her alone. She feels like her heart is being torn into million pieces. She cannot hear anything but the word desperate that her mind keeps reciting to her.
She does not realize that she is crying. Wanting to get away from Ben and Lucy, she runs back in the party. She blindly goes back to hers and David's table and finds him there. He welcomes her with an all smile, but it quickly falters when he sees her state. She grabs him by the arm without speaking a word and leads him outside the mansion. She drags him out into the streets, running without going anywhere.
Suddenly she stops. She cannot take it anymore. She flings her arm around David, and he supports her immediately. She collapses into him, crying her heart out.
Why is it that the one that you love most, is the one that always hurts you most?
It is only when Nellie has ran back inside, does it hit Ben of what he just did. He slowly turns to face his wife who now looks very apologetic. She is saying something to him, but he cannot hear her. He can only see the pain in Nellie's eyes and her sobs as she runs away.
Whatever went in his mind that he thinks it is okay to do what he just did? He hurt his best friend. He hurt his Nellie. He does not know why he said those things. At that time, he was only thinking of how he would find a good excuse just so his wife won't get mad at him for seeing him with Nellie. Well, it worked, Lucy looks sorry, but now his best friend is gone.
How can he be so stupid? He wishes that he can take back what he has said. He does not mean them, he doesn't. It's just that, he does not want to have another fight with Lucy. He admits, yes, it is selfish of him to hurt his friend just so he can escape the wrath of his wife. And now, he'll just choose to fight with Lucy, rather than to see Nellie like that.
"I've heard about that whore, and yes, she's desperate. Had I known that she will be in this party, I would have thrown her out the moment I see her." Ben hears someone says. He instantly can feel his blood boiling with rage. He knows the owner of that voice, and that person also happens to be degrading Nellie.
He does not notice that the bastard is here with them. When the door opens a while ago, his attention is caught by his angry wife right away. Is he with Lucy all this time? Well, yes, obviously. This explains why his wife has disappeared for a long time, although she said that she will only be going to the powder room.
Instead of confronting the two, Ben decides it is better if he leaves them alone. He can hear his wife calling out after him as he walks away. He does not know where he is going, but he just wants to be alone. He has done a great deal of stupid things tonight, and he plans to erase them from his mind just for a while by drinking. Alcohol always saves his problem- temporarily, that is.
Yeah, I know, Ben's stupid. -_-
So, what d'ya think with this chapter? tell me! :)))
Reviews are L.O.V.E.