Here it is! The sort-of-sequel to my arranged marriage story. (There is no need to read the other story if you haven't already. This is just a branch off from it.)
So yeah. I'm really nervous about posting this because it's the first time I've written anything like it before. But I've been reading a lot of slash/fanfiction lately and just adore them. So I hope it's not weird that I'm using my own characters. Does it still work? xp Please comment and let me know!
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Chapter 1 - A New Beginning?
Second Chance ‒ Peter Bjorn and John
This is bullshit, Daniel thinks as he stands in his footman livery. I look like an asshole.
But then again, how can he complain? He had a job now. That was something even though he had to wear these clothes that made him look anal-retentive. Or maybe he was just cranky from having to wake up so god damn early.
"Daniel, that is not the correct way for a footman of the Fairchild residence to look on his first day," comes Arthur's voice from behind him. In the mirror, Daniel watches his uncle enter the small bedroom he now had to stay in for as long as he worked here. Apparently Daniel was also going to have to share it with another footman by the name of Aaron.
"Well, maybe if they didn't make these pants so damn tight, I wouldn't have to look like such a pansy," Daniel grumbled.
Arthur narrowed his scrutinizing eyes at Daniel before saying, "Those are tailor-made specifically for you, Daniel. It should fit perfectly so stop whining." Yeah, it should fit perfectly, Daniel thought but did not say anything for fear that his Uncle might just kick him out then and there. And he knew he would never hear the end of it from his mother if that happened.
This was his last chance for a new start. To finally have a life where he did not fail at everything he did or did not get into 'meaningless street brawls', as his mother would put it.
"Your shirt cuff should be buttoned and your tye tied correctly," Arthur said coming round the front of Daniel so that he may right these errors himself. "There," He said after finishing brushing a non-existent spec of dirt off Daniel's shoulder. "I hope you will start to educate yourself on how to look presentable soon, Daniel, because the appearance and order of the staff are everything in this household."
Daniel sighed and caught himself before he rolled his eyes. "Yes, uncle," He replied.
"Good. Now the staff always assemble in the lounge every morning for roll call and to have breakfast. I will also then give you your chores and other household duties so that you may begin your work as a footman of the Fairchild household."
* * *
When Daniel entered the small staff dining/lounge area, he saw a crew of about five people gathered around the table having what appeared to be breakfast.
"Daniel, I'd like to introduce to you the staff here," Arthur began, gesturing first to a plump woman with an apron. "This is Harriet, the main cook who prepares all the exquisite meals for the Fairchild family each day. And this," He says, now gesturing towards a mousy looking girl with an anxious face. "This is Winnie, the second maid and assistant cook, if need be. Beside her is Rebecca, the main maid and personal hand for Adriana Fairchild," A friendly but tough looking girl nodded her head towards Daniel and he nodded back. "And then we have Greg, personal valet to Keiran Fairchild and previous footman double," A kind looking man with salt and pepper hair smiled politely to Daniel. "And then there's Aaron. He is also a footman of the household and will be sharing a room with you." Daniel looked towards the guy in question and had to make sure his dissapointment did not show on his face. A gangly looking fellow with a large hook nose and extremely bad haircut eyed him once over before giving him an appraising look as a welcome. He could tell right then and there he would not get along with this guy.
"I hope he's trained," Was the first thing out of his mouth, making Daniel sound like a puppy who would pee on someone's rug or something. "I don't want him embarrassing me."
Daniel's teeth clenched but swiftly tried to brush off the comment.
"I'm sure he won't make too much of a mess, Aaron. Do not worry," Arthur said, but was giving Aaron a scolding look. "And I hope you will be kind enough to show Daniel around later on, during your break, yes? Good," He added before Aaron could protest.
Arthur turned to Daniel now and said, "Usually we are up by 6 o'clock and clearing away the previous night's mess, Daniel. After that we assemble here in the staff dining room for a quick breakfast and then we are on duty again. Do you follow?"
Daniel nodded but dread filled him. God, and I thought this was an ungodly hour to be woken up. Be up at 6 o'clock? This is so bullshit.
"Excellent. Now, please have a bit of breakfast before going to your duties. It is always a rigourous day ahead of us," Arthur said.
And that was that. After a quick bite for breakfast, Daniel followed as the table all dispersed and everyone began on their household duties.
* * *
The first thing Daniel was assigned to do was take the wood (just dropped off outside) and restock the fireplace in the living room.
"The Missus likes a good fire in the morning while she reads her books," the maid Rebecca said when she saw Daniel lugging in a basket full of firewood into the house. "It's not even that cold yet," Daniel panted and Rebecca smirked. "Go on then. They don't like to be waiting. But I suspect Mrs Anna will go easy on you. She's very nice."
"They all still sound like a lot of snobs to me," Daniel commented.
"Better not let them hear you saying that," Rebecca said. "And call me Becca, by the way. I always hate it when the old man calls me Rebecca. As if we were all in the early centuries."
It was Daniel's turn to smirk now. "Yeah, he does that a lot."
"I heard he was your uncle?" Rebecca said, leaning a basket of laundry she was holding onto one hip.
"As unbelievable as it sounds, yes," Daniel replied, picking the basket of wood back up again.
"Well, good luck. It's not easy the first time. Especially with this lot of snobs," Becca winked before walking off with her basket of laundry.
* * *
Daniel knocked tentatively on the door before entering, just as Arthur had adamantly told him to do about a dozen times in his crash course for the job. "Come in," came a muted voice.
Daniel stepped into the living room with his basket and immediately marched over to the fireplace to set it down. "You must be the new footman," came a female voice from behind him. Daniel turned to see a pretty blonde woman around her late 30's lounging comfortably in her chair with a book in hands. She smiled warmly at Daniel and he nodded. "Yes, I am. My name is Daniel Croft. Thank you for employing me."
The woman waved him off with a laugh. "No need to thank us. We've been looking for a new footman for some time now but there aren't many people around these days that are trained in butlering, I can tell you."
Daniel shifted nervously. He was not exactly trained for the job either. But this was the only thing he could do now. This was his fresh start. And he always believed himself to be a good learner. Well, he would try to learn anyhow. "So you say your name's Daniel, yes?" She asked.
"Yes, miss."
"Daniel," She repeated, memorizing it. "Good. Well, I hope you settle in here. I know how hard it can be in this place for the first time. But I think you get used to it after a while. And when you've got good books and a cozy fire for company, who can say it's not heaven?" She smiled and curled her toes.
"I'll get right on it, miss," Daniel said and dropped to his knees in front of the fireplace to start making a fire.
* * *
"Lordy, what happened to you?" Becca said as Aaron came into the kitchen while they were all having lunch break.
"The damned dog saw a squirrel in the park and took off in the bushes again," Aaron snapped and plonked himself on the bench at the table. Greg laughed and pat him on the back. "Cheer up. He only a pup anyway. He'll get it out of his system soon."
Aaron sent him an annoyed look. "Why don't YOU try taking him for a walk next time and see how funny it is then?"
"Enough of that now, Aaron. He was only trying ease you," Harriet the cook said taking a large gulp of tea from her cup.
"Ease me? It'll take weeks to get these grass stains off my pants! And not only do I have to help serve the dinner tonight, but I have to watch out for this guy as well!" Aaron said exasperatedly gesturing at Daniel.
Daniel frowned and Becca argued, "What's it got to do with Daniel?"
"He's a complete novice and Arthur wants me to teach him silverservice when he can't even remember to put the firepoker back on the rack or remember to polish it before doing so."
Daniel's fist twitched at his side. "Well, excuse the fuck out of me," he said.
"That's not fair now, Aaron. It's his first day," Becca defended.
"I'm just saying," Aaron said in an obvious tone before shrugging off his coat and placing it on the table before he began to leave the table. "I'm going to clean up."
Daniel looked at the coat and smirked to himself before he looked up to see Becca looking at him suspiciously. "You look like you're plotting evil things," she said, then leaned forward. "Let me in on them?"
Daniel grinned and swiped Aaron's coat off the table. "Since this is no good to him now anyways..."
"I think I like where you're going with this," Becca replied.
"Here, I'll do it. I've been such a complete novice and burden to you, you must allow me to help you with your coat at least?" Daniel said, taking Aaron's coat from him. After Aaron looked at him skeptically for a while, Daniel added, "It'll also be good practice for when I have to attend to guests here...?"
Finally Aaron nodded. "God help us if you can't even put on a coat for someone. But then again, I wouldn't be surprised - Ow!" Aaron turned his head sharply when Daniel had tugged too roughly. Daniel raised his brows and said, "Woops."
Aaron sighed in irritation just as Daniel finished. "There we go now," came Becca's voice from beside Daniel. "You're all ready for the dinner!"
Aaron shot them both a dismissive look before taking a tray of starters up to the dining room.
When he left, they both turned to look at each other when Becca started to snicker. Daniel grinned evilly. "I have to go up there and see it," Daniel said. "This is just way too good."
"Tell me all about it, will you?" Becca called to him as Daniel rushed up with a tray of sidedishes he swiped from the table.
Arthur stopped Daniel halfway up the stairs. "Where do you think you're going, young man? You're not trained for dinner service."
"Please, uncle Artie. Just let me drop it off. Just to get an idea of how you do it in case I have to learn someday...?"
Arthur sighed and waved him off, "Oh, very well then. You may have a peek, but be out of there as soon as possible. We don't want a traffic jam on our hands. This is not a train station."
Daniel nodded eagerly and raced up to the dining room. "And for God's sake, be careful when handling things, Daniel!" He cried up to him.
Daniel came into the room and his eyes instantly landed on the table of people in the centre of the room. This was the Fairchild family, Daniel thought to himself in wonder, only now starting to grasp the fact. I'm working for the most powerful families in the city.
These people were practically celebrities.
"For God's sake stop gawking and give me that," Aaron hissed at him. Daniel shook himself out of his daze to see Aaron glaring furiously at him. "Chill out, man. I'm just having a peek," He smirked but Aaron could see no humour in the situation. "Just get out before anyone sees you."
Daniel rolled his eyes and threw one last glance behind at the table to see a pair of eyes staring straight back at him. When he saw who they belonged to, however, Daniel's breath seemed to catch in his throat. Dark sultry eyes bore into his own and held him there in place for a moment or two before finally turning away. Daniel also had to turn away to take a moment to regain himself.
"Would you stop spacing out and just leave before you mess something up?"
Daniel was hardly listening to Aaron though. All he could think about was those eyes. Those eyes and that beautiful sculpted face, plump cherry red lips...
There was the sound of someone clearing their throat behind him and Daniel looked up to meet his uncle's gaze. "Thank you, Daniel, that will be all."
Daniel nodded and just as he was about to leave, he heard,
"What in God's name...?" came Lady Jackie's outraged voice.
The whole table seemed to turn and follow her gaze straight to Aaron who just stood there looking like a deer in the headlights.
"William, would you mind telling me why your footman has a crudely gaping heartshaped hole in his suit? Or is this just the new fashion in livery these days?"
Daniel bit his lip from trying not smile as he saw Aaron's face slowly drain of colour.
Arthur went round Aaron's back to see for himself what the problem was and then let out a noise of dissaproval. "I-I'm terribly sorry about this. I really don't know why... Aaron? Will you please leave to make yourself appropriate?"
There was a long moment of tense silence and confusion as Aaron hurriedly left the room.
Arthur swallowed and caught Daniel's eye. "Daniel? Will you come and serve the sidedishes please?"
Daniel stood rooted to the spot for a moment, surprised and feeling like the headlights had suddenly been turned on him. Arthur's look did not keep him still for long, however. Soon Daniel was racing over to the serving table and trying desperately to remember anything he knew about silverservice, which eventually came to absolutely nothing.
This is just great. Fucking perfect. My plan totally backfired on me, Daniel thought. Once they see that I don't know what I'm doing, I'm losing my job for sure.
"Behind me, Daniel. Get behind me," Arthur waved frantically for Daniel to stay behind him while serving whatever tray of food they had to offer.
When eventually they came around to her, however, Daniel made sure to take his time. He also made sure that he leaned in a fraction of an inch closer towards her so that he could almost see every eyelash and perfect curve of her lovely face as she helped herself.
Perhaps he was even close enough to kiss her.
Stuck on this thought, Daniel almost did not notice when she had done taking what she needed from the tray of food until her eyes slid sideways to look up at him for a brief moment.
If only Daniel could pause time so that he could stare into those eyes longer.
The longer Daniel spent time in the dining room, the more he could observe the family. He found that Mr and Mrs Fairchild had certainly produced two extremely beautiful children. Both looked alike and Daniel wondered if they might be twins because they both seemed to be around the same age as well. There were definite character differences, however. That much was as plain as day.
Keiran slung one arm over the back of his chair while he rested the elbow of his other arm on the table to feed himself wine. Meanwhile the beautiful Adriana sat straightbacked and elegant in her seat, taking delicate sips from her own glass, but never too much. In all honesty, Daniel did not think he had ever seen such a beautiful woman in his life. Her brother was good looking, yes. But if it were not for his apparant smugness and arrogance, he might have been just as appealing. Sadly, though, he looked like just another spoiled rich kid.
Conversation at the table seemed to be coming from the father at this time. William Fairchild was telling a story of something to do with his work. And while he did, Daniel could easily see where the strong 'good-looking' genes came from...
"It's so good of you, William, to be carrying on Charles' work. He would be proud of you, you know. If he were still here," Lady Jackie said before casting her eyes over to her grandson. "Let's hope your own son will make you just as proud."
Keiran's eyes darkened slightly before saying, "Nah, I'm good thanks. Dad can just have his other son do the work afterwards."
Anna Fairchild looked at her child and said, "Son, you know I love you, but you're kind of being a dick."
Keiran huffed and shot a sulky look at his mother before sliding down in his seat. William sighed and said, "You're just like your mother, being childish as always."
"Honestly," Adriana tsked in agreement.
And now Daniel could see it. Keiran was just like his mother while Adriana was like her father. The revelation amused him to no end and he could not help but smile. He suddenly wished he had a family. Daniel wondered not for the first time whether he was more like his mother or his father.
Keiran caught Daniel's eye over the table and scowled, "And what the hell are you smiling about?"
Daniel immidiately shut down all emotion that might be showing on his face. "Well? Don't just stand there being smug, pour me another glass of wine!"
Mrs Fairchild shot her son a scolding look, "Watch your mouth, Keiran. He's not your slave. He's a human being."
"Well, he might not be my slave, but he's still my footman," Keiran fired back then turned back to Daniel. "Now hurry up."
Daniel hurried over to pick up the canter of wine and proceeded to pour Mr Keiran a drink when he accidentally spilled a little on the table cloth. "Oh, you're completely useless! Why on earth Arthur hired you, I have no idea."
"Keiran!" Miss Anna warned.
Lady Jackie tsked. "Ever since your grandfather Charles died, God rest his soul, you children have been absolutely out of control. It's as if you were raised by barbarians."
"And I suppose you raised us so much better then? Really, mother, you're such a hypocrite."
"William!" Lady Jackie exclaimed in shock.
Anna smirked at her husband, admiring him for standing up to his mother.
"Arthur, I think I'll skip the dessert tonight. Goodnight everyone," Anna said as she got up from the table. She ran a hand along her husband's shoulders in a caress just before she left the room. William sighed. "I think I'll skip out too, Arthur. Please tell Harriet the dinner was delicious as always."
"Will do, sir," replied Arthur as his boss left the room.
"Well, I don't see why I should abandon you children since your parents obviously have done so..!"
Lady Jackie said.
Keiran sighed loudly and lifted his glass in the air to say, "Just more wine for me!" Adriana shook her head at her brother and Daniel could sympathize with her. This family seemed slightly dysfunctional.
