Chapter 47: Chapter 47 – New Year´s Eve party

Maybe it was because the Northrops were a well-known and well-loved family in Snodland, with an unblemished reputation and large fortune, that not many were serious about turning them down on those rare occasions when they were invited to an event. And it is that, to all this, it was not too complicated for Oscar to get his uncles agree to spend their New Year's Eve with these kind people.

Although yes, it was true that they were surprised to learn that Oscar, who as far as they knew had always stayed away from the Northrop, had received such a treat.

Uncle Rob looked shocked when he heard of the news, but after remembering how he had seemed to see Oscar walk into Thornfield a couple of times before while he was doing his routine work at Rose Cottage, the subject was no longer news to him. It seemed that he had just gotten an answer to his doubts.

Aunt Cathy did want to know more. She urged him, to the dismay of Thomas, who was deprived of the attention her mother always paid him, to have him tell them how, when and why he had acquired such treatment in his favor. In particular, Mrs. Stevens was very insistent as to which of the Northrop it was who was kind enough to remember them for their festive evening. Assuming that it must be Letitia who had the idea, since she remembered Oscar had told her in the summer that they both saw each other from time to time and got along, Aunt Cathy even suggested that it would be a good time to let her dear nephew begin the courtship.

Because it was true that the Northrop were on another level. But why not give it a try? Aunt Cathy must have thought that if Oscar already had Letitia on the boat, it was a matter of time before her father accepted a marriage between them.

Or well, that was the fantasy until Oscar finished answering what he could from the questioning. Because, when he finished speaking, she realized that it was Albert Northrop who had driven the idea of ​​him and the Stevens coming to the celebration. And what could be expected of that? The fairy tale that Aunt Cathy could have imagined, including the lavish wedding invitations, the happy bride and groom at the altar, and a life full of prosperity for her nephew, vanished as soon as it had appeared.

Until then, the question of visiting the Northrop would be a resounding yes. But, after learning that it was the son and not the daughter who had an interest in Oscar, Aunt Cathy was indifferent about whether to go or not, passing the final decision to Thomas.

Oscar believed Thomas would refuse, claiming any nonsense along the lines of: “We were supposed to spend the end of the year together as a family, or didn't you miss me? How cruel of you to accept the invitation of some people who are not related to us without considering my feelings first!”, Or something like that, always pretending to be the victim. But no. He agreed delighted, recovered from surprises and bad looks because his mother was showering Oscar with attention a few minutes ago, smiling because "they could finally regain their forgotten friendship with their neighbors."

Anyway, pure hypocrisy. Oscar knew from the moment his fake cousin accepted that he was up to something.

And so, on the afternoon of the thirty-first, the four of them went to Thornfield with a couple of bottles of wine in hand and a cake prepared by Mrs. Stevens who, persistently said, this was a minimum detail that could be had for that family, for allowing them to come to eat dinner at their house.

"I hope it was not a great inconvenience to take you out of Rose Cottage today," said, shortly after receiving the Stevens, Peter Northrop. “At this time, and more with the issue of moving, presumably there´s a lot to do in the Cornell home.”

"Oh, don't worry about that," Aunt Cathy replied cheerfully. “The master had already given us part of the afternoon off, long before the decision to move was made. Between Mrs. Sowards, Mallory, and myself we set dinner for them before we left. Well, they were also fighting a bit today, you know. So with the work done, I imagine the Cornells are getting ready for their joyous family dinner right now.”

Mrs. Stevens sounded convinced and Mr. Northrop smiled too, doing his best to believe it. Although, Oscar was convinced of it, there was no one who would buy such a hoax.

Edmund Cornell was bankrupt and about to lose the house in which he had lived for the last twenty years, his lover had abandoned him, his eldest daughter was not doing better with her suitor and, on top of that, he had been forced to to dispatch the service early on a festive night like that. If they didn't even have guests! None of his distant relatives, friends or neighbors had remembered them…! Except for Patrick Seymour, of course.

But, again, that the protagonist had once again cast his eye on Madeleine was not indicative that fortune was going to smile on them in future editions. It wasn´t like that, even though the whole town already knew that Patrick won his duel.

What was the problem now? Well, Madeleine still hadn't quite given up on her infatuation with the villain. She no longer felt in the mood to pursue him to the ends of the world, carrying out her espionage work or preparing ridiculous plans that could end in disaster again. But she didn't want to give up just yet. If Albert Northrop didn't invite her over to her house, she wouldn't go begging him!

Ah, but she, too, wouldn´t accept invitations from Patrick. Because, what did he think? Did he think she was going to accept him after all the slights he did to her while they were dating? She no longer wanted to have anything to do with him! Dueling for her made her happy, she couldn't deny it, but she would have preferred Albert to have won. It was so disappointing that things didn't turn out like this…!

For all this, it was plausible to think that that family of six would now be letting life go by in their living room, while they reproached each other for all their shit and pot runs during the previous three hundred and sixty-four days, and then sit at a table full of food already cold.

That was an image as laughable as it was satisfying for Oscar. And Madeleine seemed to have fallen out of favor again: Since the Seymour ball, she and Patrick had not spoken again.

"They told me something, yes," agreed Peter Northop, recalling having briefly chatted with Mr. Cornell during Mass on Christmas Eve. “My daughter wanted to invite the youngest Cornell child, Theresa, to this celebration. But it couldn't be.”

"It's a pity, no doubt. I suppose they would be too many guests if they had to include the Cornells in their plans on such short notice.”

"It is likely that, if they were included, we would have to set another table."

Mr. Northrop laughed uncomfortably. And Oscar knew instantly what he was thinking: No, the invitation to Theresa Cornell did not extend to the rest of the family. Not even if she had the power to accept, her parents and sisters would not have been welcome. It was more than obvious that the Northrop only liked Theresa and that they wanted nothing to do with the rest of her family.

In truth, it was a shame Theresa was too young to be allowed to make such an important decision as who she would spend New Year's Eve with.

On the other hand, Letitia hadn't been lying when she told Oscar that only Northrop relatives would attend the feast. Counting him and the Stevens, they were a total of eighteen people, including uncles, cousins ​​and the grandmother of the aforementioned. Oscar was introduced one by one, albeit briefly, as this was not a formal meeting and it was not enough time to go around remembering everyone's names immediately.

From what Oscar understood then, Mr. Northrop had two brothers: George and Juliet. Both married and having brought their respective partners and children with them. Children who, counting each other, were five. All with ages so disparate that they were between the twenties and eleven or twelve.

George Northrop also worked in the family business, although, as the younger brother, his position was not as high as Peter's. Despite the fact that he owned a good part of the shares of the company and, living permanently in London with his wife and his two children, they were not doing badly at all.

As for Juliet, she had married an individual named Doherty, and she was one of the most beloved teachers at a private school in Brighton. Her husband was a middle-class merchant who had a small shop in one of the alleys in his hometown. And, the fact that he had a lower social status than his wife, only gave to reaffirm what Oscar had already figured out long ago; that the Northrop — by and large — weren't lineage-minded people.

Regarding the cousins, the youngest in that celebration were Charlie and Graham, the children of George Northrop. They both attended high-level schools at the capital, attended clubs, were excellent at sports, and ultimately had everything for their mother to show off.

The oldest were the Dohertys; Twenty-six-year-old Byron had recently started working as a lawyer in a small law firm in his town. Meredith, at nineteen, was preparing to become a teacher, like her mother. And, finally, there was Jack, who was around the same age as Oscar and being the only one of all his relatives who had abandoned his interest in studies, it had been more than a year since he began working in the shop of his father.

Oscar wasn´t sure if it was because they were contemporaries or because the two had coincided days ago, having similar goals to achieve, but the truth is that of all the people he met that afternoon, Jack Doherty was the one with whom he seemed to sympathize best.

"Between you and me," he had said at one point, lowering his voice so that no one in the room could hear them, now that we are finally in a good environment and I can ask at ease, how have you done so that my dear cousin voluntarily come out of his cave? Uncle Peter has tried it for centuries, but to no avail.”

"I think I can swear, without fear of being wrong, that all I have done is show interest in his books."

‘The movie was made by himself,’ he thought to add. But that would have been somewhat inaccurate because, as Dianne had hinted on a couple of occasions, even if it was Albert who took the initiative, he himself had done nothing to stop him. On the contrary, accepting his invitations so pleasantly, what he did was give him wings.

Of course, that was not something that made Oscar uncomfortable, otherwise he would have stopped or rejected him sometimes.

"No wonder he doesn´t listen to me!" Jack exclaimed in mock annoyance, implying that his cousin was spending enough of him. “It's not that I dislike reading, but I don't have it as a hobby either. And when I come to Snodland what I want is for Albert to guide me through the streets and shops through the town ahead. But what does he do? He Refuses! Or, if he does go, he tries to get out early and doesn't talk much either.”

“It may be a question of what topics you choose to talk about. He also spoke little to me at first, but if you bring up a topic that really interests him, the weird thing would be if he was silent.”

“We got a problem then, because my cousin has always been interested in academic subjects and I… Well, I think I'd better not say anything, I'm sure I'll screw it up. I just wish he would at least agree to come with my brother and me fishing one day. No need to talk for that!”

"And would he accept? You mentioned the other day that he wasn't fond of it.”

"Perhaps, with some pressure, he would agree to approach the shore. He wouldn't catch the rod or go into the river, but hey, quality time with my cousin is not available every day! With how elusive he gets when someone tries to drag him to a place where he doesn't feel entirely comfortable… Oh, but what if you came?” Jack's face lit up as he said this; He must have had a good idea. “We have plenty of room at home for one more guest. And who knows, maybe that way the other hermit will also dare to come.”

‘And what makes you think that if I visit your town I will go with Albert?’ Oscar wondered. But, not wanting to delve into it, he intervened:

"I understood you had a business there, didn´t you?”

"That's right, we sell materials to go fishing precisely. From rods and lures, to special boots to get into the river so that your socks do not freeze. We have an agreement with the shoemaker, so...”

"I imagine that you will take advantage of the fact that this is your business to go fishing often then."

"You have to show the products to people, right?" Jack pointed out, smiling. “Especially when the weather is good, because there are months that are very bad for the store and not...”

“What are you talking about?” Thomas intervened, since being the only one who had not been able to establish a lasting conversation with anyone, must have believed that he should try his luck with them.

Oscar sighed, bored, when he saw that he had resumed the friendly side of him. Jack, on his part, was extremely blunt:

"Excuse me, but haven't they taught you that it's wrong to break into other people's conversations?"

It was possible that if Thomas had approached anyone else, the response he got would have been different. But Jack had already shown himself to be honest and straightforward. If he didn't like something, he would point it out right away.

Thomas had to apologize, assuring that he wouldn´t do it again, and retreat to the other end of the room. The spitting image of defeat.

Given this, it might seem that Oscar had preferential treatment, but it was not entirely so. His aunt and uncle also chatted with the Northrop for a long time before they sat down at the table. He wasn't attentive to what they were talking about, but the way they looked, they seemed happy. Thomas was the only one not having a good time; he had also gone to annoy Meredith, Letitia and Charlie, but he hadn´t got on with them and the exchange, although they never sent him to hell the way Jack did, it was bland and short lived. With Albert and Byron he tried it likewise, but they were even more mature than their cousins, talking about work topics that escaped the understanding of the false cousin. With the older ones, he didn't dare try.

The only one who was in favor of paying any attention to him was little Graham. But how could someone like Thomas, whose ego was high, find pleasure in talking to a twelve-year-old boy?

Hence, Thomas was isolated even when they sat down to dinner, taking a seat at the back of the table, like a plague. Despite the fact that the evening was being very lively, and that he was accommodated next to his parents and the Northrop who were contemporaries so that he had the opportunity to try and integrate again, sulking as he was, he barely looked up from his plate.

And speaking of table placement… When everyone positioned themselves on the table, as instructed by a host who would obviously take the lead, Oscar felt there was something wrong with his seat.

Unlike his uncles and cousin, who were at the end of the table, he had been given a chair more or less in the middle. To his left was Mrs. Doherty and to his right was Jack. In front stood Albert with whom, unfortunately, he still had no chance to speak beyond the obligatory greeting. Now what was wrong with this placement? Well, not that there was anything terrible here, it just got a little strange if you considered the strict rules of etiquette in an English mansion during the era they were in.

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Rules such as, for example, that seats be divided by age and importance. That it was unusual for two women to sit together. Or that, in the case of partners, in order for the conversation to flow better between all the diners, they had to sit facing each other and not next to each other.

"We were planning a trip to Edinburgh next summer," Mr. Doherty commented, snapping Oscar out of his thoughts. “We haven´t fully decided yet, but we got already taken a look at the itinerary.”

"To Scotland? You tell me what you have missed in Scotland!”

The one who had spoken was the elderly Mrs. Northrop, the grandmother of Albert and Letitia. That woman also lived in London, with a lady-in-waiting — whom she also brought with her, since she never left her when leaving the house — in the solitude of her apartment. Apparently, she had been a widow for more than a decade and, although she didn´t participate actively in the lives of her children, she never missed an opportunity to take advantage of making an opinion everything they did.

"You should stop traveling and prepare a coming-out, as she deserves for Meredith," she continued. “Years ago she passed the age to appear in society, now what she should be doing is looking for a husband.”

"This is something we all decided together," Mrs. Doherty protested in a tone that, while not tame, wasn´t open to arguing. “We had been wanting to take a trip for years, a little further away than we usually go on vacation. But if we go there, we can't organize a ball. We don't have enough money to do both.”

"Said it before! I can lend you what you need myself, but the girl's party comes first.”

"But Grandma," Meredith put in, "I'm not interested in introducing myself to society. Parties are not my thing.”

Oscar couldn't help but smile upon hearing this. Where had he heard that before? They were all clearly Northrop.

"It's better this way," Mr. Doherty continued. “We will only make the trip and no, do not insist you will loan us money for the coming-out, there´s no need to do it.”

“Silly stuff! There´s always need! How do you plan to introduce your daughters to the world? No matter how capable they are with so much study, which by the way I approve, do not accuse me that I don´t, they will never find a decent party if they don´t get together with the right people.”

"Even being educated or in the right place doesn't mean you're going to meet someone of prestigious fame and fortune," George Northrop pointed out, referring to his sister, who shot him a murderous look from her own seat.

"The point is to try, but in this family no one does! Not even men, who should have more facilities for these things. It seems that you have the initiative saved in a place that I cannot mention without being disrespectful.”

"Mother, there's no need to force them," Peter Northrop asked her quietly.

It was hilarious, on the other side of the table Aunt Cathy and Mrs. Wallace — who was the old lady's lady-in-waiting — were having a lively discussion about cooking. A debate so instructive that even the youngest were also encouraged to participate in it. On Oscar's side, on the other hand, the atmosphere seemed to be a little more charged with that conversation about dances and love affairs that never were.

"But it's about time!" The lady kept saying. “When are any of you going to bring your fiancée to dinner?”

There was a deathly silence on that side and, for some reason, when Oscar looked up from his plate he found Albert staring at him. He didn´t know if he had been watching him before, since the old woman asked the question or what the hell, but the fact is that, as soon as he saw Oscar looking back, he pretended that nothing was happening and looked away.

Byron was the one who broke the silence, claiming:

"I'm dating someone, but she's spending Christmas in Wales with her people. Maybe another year will bring her with me, if she wants to come.”

“Do it please! Who is she?"

"Oh, she's a clerk in a small hospitality business."

"Say better that her father owns a tavern," Jack corrected him. “They got the best beer in Brighton! Oh, not that I have tried it though.”

That must have been a disappointment to Grandma, because she didn't want to ask any more questions about the girl. She even refrained from questioning Jack about love affairs because, everyone knew, he only had a head for fishing and for the business of his father. The rest was just a plus without too much importance for him.

"And you, Letitia? Tell me at least you've already had your eye on someone.”

"I haven't had a chance, I'm afraid," Letitia excused herself; they weren't going to fight with her. “I've been busy with my exams. And, considering that there is not so much left until I finish my studies and have to decide what to do in the future, it doesn´t seem appropriate to waste my time thinking about those things.”

"It's good that she's concentrating on his studies," one of her aunts praised her.

“Yes, good. At least she was introduced to society!”

That remark was supposed to be directed at Meredith, but she was no longer listening. In the middle of dinner, not a few found it more stimulating to focus on the food in front of them than on Mrs. Northrop's demands.

"What about you, Albert?" Seeing that the aforementioned was keeping quiet, the old woman insisted. “Don't you have anybody special?”

After a pause that seemed eternal, the villain finally replied:

“I do.”

"Really? You?" Laughed Jack. “It's not fair for someone as shy as you to beat me! That makes it even more embarrassing for me.”

After a few more displays of surprise by those who had listened, Ms. Northrop enthusiastically said:

"It's great! You have never met anyone before that piqued your interest, am I right? Ah, when will you present her to us?”

Albert looked back at Oscar, though only for an instant, before turning back to his grandmother:

“It's a little bit complicated.”

Oscar wanted to disappear when he noticed it was no longer just the old woman, but that it was several of Albert's uncles and cousins ​​who, having caught their curiosity on this matter, were preparing to ask a few questions. Luckily, that was the moment Letitia used to, out of nowhere, ask:

"And why Scotland?"

"What do you mean, my dear?" Mrs. Doherty asked, since everyone had been distracted for a moment from the main topic to be discussed.

"Nothing, it just occurred to me. Why choose Edinburgh for a vacation? I'm not saying that the place is not pretty or anything like that, I was just wondering why go so far or if there would be something of particular interest to see. Perhaps I too would want to go one day if it was like this.”

Smiling naturally as she said this, the conversation took a complete turn. People soon forgot about love affairs and began chattering about tourist destinations, plans during school vacations, and possible future business in cities that were not close to them. Oscar could barely say anything about all this, but that didn't matter to him at all. Since the subject had turned to something else, he could finally relax.

And when the banquet ended, everyone left the dining room to go to the hall.

Once in that room, the group divided. It was a few hours to midnight and the older people thought it would be fun to get a few hands on bridge. Nothing serious, in any case. Just a few friendly games about which, as was already obvious, the younger ones were completely disinterested. Even Byron, who his father bragged that he had taught him to play the game almost like a professional, wasn´t  in favor of participating.

And so they were placed at a pair of circular tables, four people each, at one end of the room. Forming teams of two, made up of the host, his mother, all the villain's uncles, Mrs. Wallace and, of course, Aunt Cathy.

Of the elders, Uncle Rob was the only one who preferred to remain seated in an armchair, close to where the youth stopped. At first he gave them conversation, from his seat, both to one and the other. But soon it was that he fell asleep, causing Oscar a smile to escape when he saw him snoring on the Northrop sofa and also causing Thomas to feel terrible shame. Shame not only due to the fact that his father had been transposed in the middle of the celebration, but because it would be rude for him to try to wake him up by shaking him. And hence he had to continue behaving as if nothing had happened, joking about it with the rest of the Northrop.

The truth is that Mr. Stevens was not cut out for social events. He liked to go, yes. But he had little endurance, and the alcohol only made him more sleepy, so the result was to be expected.

Quite the opposite happened with Jack and his younger cousins, who were the ones who took the initiative to lead the talk and even suggest that the others play some games of pool or darts. Games that, by some, were accepted.

About Letitia, she and Meredith were most interested in a piano that stood to one side, close to where the others continued to sit. And it wasn't long after everyone had settled into the room that various melodies began to pour out of the instrument, flooding the room and causing Uncle Rob to momentarily stop snoring, perhaps unconsciously alerted by the sound.

Oscar spent a long time chatting with Jack and the others, waiting for an opportunity for Albert to vacate or, rather, to be able to talk to him without anyone joining them. Complicated thing, for the moment, because both himself and the villain seemed to be quite in demand by their relatives. It wasn't until an hour after dinner had concluded that, as the girls continued to engage in their debate over music, the boys decided to move to the pool table, and Oscar found the occasion he was looking for.

He had no plans to play that game, anyway. He had said so to Jack when he suggested it, claiming that he had no idea how it was played and, likewise, politely declining his offer that they would teach him. Thomas must have believed that this was his moment to shine, because he felt sorry for his beloved cousin and, with the grace of a noble who has stooped to take part in commoner games, agreed to take part in the small tournament  without anyone having invited him yet.

The original Oscar may have been annoyed by the way Thomas got into the game, causing some jealousy in him and thus awakening his competitive streak. But this Oscar was not so easy to provoke: If he said that something did not interest him, it was because, in truth, he was not interested. And Thomas could put himself as he wanted with this, he would only smile back at him, pretending to others that he believed his false gentleness, and continue walking his separate path, ignoring what the other might be saying behind his back.

But it was curious, to all this, that just the moment in which Oscar decided to leave the games was the same one that Albert chose to approach him, being that he did not have planned to join them either.

"Can we talk in private?", he had asked.

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