Simple Twists in Reality - Part II

Four days prior

And then came the gunshot… A scream reverberates through the air and I can’t help but snigger at the idea. I mean, after all, it is just a play. The actors are marvelous and continue on as though nothing has happened. The lady who screamed is in her seat, fanning herself and having a man near by fuss over her. I suspect her vocal chords are going to take some time to recover.

At the end of the scene I clap enthusiastically, wanting the actors to know that they are doing a great job. I love theatre. It is rare for me to be able to get out of the house and enjoy myself, and the theatre is one place where I truly feel at home. The floor plan for the entire place is visible in my mind.

There is something about the whole experience. Not just the performance and the feelings you get while watching, but the plush seats, stuffed to perfection so that you can’t feel the wooden frame underneath; the Rhodolite garnet carpet, with its gorgeous patterns and texture making me want to slide off my shoes and walk bare foot through the whole place; and the stage, with its grand curtains of crimson velvet, its polished wooden floorboards that sparkle in the light from the chandelier above, and the wide set out, allowing for exquisite props and large scenes, with walking room for the actors.

Even the outside makes it look like a palace, a place where only kings and royalty would be admitted. It is a high, white marble building with large glass doors and stone steps leading up to it. There are places where the roof has been bordered with gold, making it look like something out of a painting. It is one of the most beautiful buildings of my acquaintance.

Opera is my favorite, especially in French or Italian. I love foreign languages and am learning Italian currently. I am already fluent in English, French and Latin.

My father likes the theatre as well, so we try and attend as often as possible.

When the play finishes, I clap until my hands are sore. I have an undying urge to stand up and show them just how great a feat they have accomplished, but know that I would be scolded for doing so. My father always tells me that if I am ever to find a husband I am never going to be able to accept an invitation to a play by an eligible young man due to my undesirable behaviour in such an environment. My mother, however, tells me that I am humiliating myself and my family, and that it is ‘not the behavior of a young lady’.

Honestly I could not care less what my mother thinks, but I would never tell her that. I am not a perfect young lady and currently I have no interest what-so-ever in finding myself a husband. If I am to get married it will be to a man that I truly adore. Of course, both my mother and my father have ideas for a man for me.

Mother’s idea is a young man called Michael. He is very wealthy, has a title and belongs to one of the oldest families in New York. He is the most wanted bachelor in the city and is very good looking. I don’t see how he could ever fancy me, and I don’t care for him regardless. He is selfish and has tickets on himself. The only topic that seems to interest him is, well… him.

Michael, in my opinion, is very boring. You will never find him dressed in anything but a suit, unless of course he is entertaining young ladies, which I have heard he is quite fond of doing. He is your typical, tight young man, perfect for any mother’s daughter. His hair is a sort of oak-wood color and he uses enough product to make it shine and sparkle in the light. He likes to show off his wealth by wearing velvet or silk waistcoats and fashionable ties. Quite often he will wear a top hat to pull all his attire into one fashionable and expensive, over-the-top blunder.

Most of the time his appearance just makes me want to laugh, however I stop myself, knowing that if I did my mother would never forgive me for embarrassing her so spectacularly. Michael is a very tall and very lanky sort of man. He has no muscle, unless you count the unused, pathetic ones he was born with, although he does seem to pull off the whole thing very well. This could be due to his broad shoulders and strong chin bone.

There is not a single young lady in this city that would not give everything to go on an outing with him and have the possibility of him as a husband. His sister seems very proud to have such a dashing brother and sometimes I think I see her look at him in a lustful sort of way herself, though I am sure that is due only to my overactive imagination.

My mother, his mother, his auntie and his grandmother are all in the same bridge club, so mother believes that she has a way in, or in other words, a way to make Michael see me as a good prospect. According to mother, Michael’s mother Lucy, and his grandmother Anna, both believe Michael and I to be a marvelous match.

This is mainly due to the fact that I am known throughout the city, by all the mothers, to be the perfect Venetian virgin, meaning that I have never seen a man even slightly under dressed, have never had any lustful thoughts, and have never had any sexual relationship of any sort with a boy. This is true and I am slightly ashamed to admit it. However, mother is very proud and believes that even though many of the young men may not want me, their mothers do and they have the bigger say in the matter. This does not comfort me.

In my opinion Michael’s mother only wants me as her daughter in law because she believes that I am sensible and that my reputation will cast away all the bad things said about her son, involving other young women.

My father’s matchmaking subject is a man of the age of twenty-one, whose name is Henry. Henry is also a very eligible bachelor of a good family and fortune. He is related to the English royalty, which sparks interest within my mother. He is also quite handsome with dark brown shaggy hair that he slicks back, however there is one rogue curl at the front, which refuses to be tamed.

Out of the two he is the more desirable, in my opinion, though I would rather choose for myself. Henry loves literature and seems happy to talk about things he knows I like. He is aware that when I was young my father took great care and pride in making sure that I had the best education available. I believe he likes this idea. I suspect that I am one of the only young ladies in New York capable of playing classical piano, speaking more than one language fluently and knowing about almost all subjects. History has always been my favorite, with stories of gallant young men, such as Arthur Pendragon, who treat ladies with pure chivalry and respect and who always save the day in some great feat of bravery.

 Henry seems to want a wife that will do all he says and who will be a real homemaker. Basically, not me. I can tell that he disapproves of my behavior at the theatre and he makes some comments to my parents when I do things ‘unladylike’. However, through all this, I know that he is a real traditionalist and that my reputation has obviously been leaked to him by his mother. I suspect that he considers a Venetian virgin to be the perfect kind of wife for him and that I could be just what he needs if only he could dispel some of my behaviors.