More Than Just a Servant Girl

Chapter 6- The Truth Will Set You Free

The rest of the day went smoothly, except for the fact that you've been avoiding Ella the whole time.  She's been your best friend since childhood and you were the one she confided in when her mother died, and vice versa when your own mother followed suit a couple years later. You can tell that Ella already knows about your relationship with her stepmother, but how can you bring yourself to confirm it to her? 

Madonna walks over to the bed where you're sitting and takes a seat next to you on the edge.
"Y/N, what's going on? You're awfully quiet..."

You look up into her eyes and just shrug.
"I'm just worried about telling Ella..."  You shake your head gently. "But it'll be fine. I suppose I should just do that now and get it over with, huh?"

Madonna starts combing through your hair with her fingers. "Do whatever you feel is right. I'll be right here waiting when you get back."

You don't say anything, you just give her a gentle kiss as a wordless thanks. You walk out of the room to go find Ella.  When you find her, she is finishing up one of her nightly chores; making dinner.

"Well, something sure smells good." you say, as you walk up behind her.  She turns to look at you, giving a small, incomplete smile.

"Thanks. I just made grilled chicken and potatoes. One of Madam's favorites, you know."

You give her a small smile.  "I'm sure she'll be pleased."

Ella just gives a slight nod and finishes setting the table.  You take an awkward breath in.

"Ella... there's something I have to tell you. Why don't you sit down?" you ask, taking a seat at the table.

Ella takes a seat next to you, but asks, "why is it that people think you'll take bad news better if you're sitting down?"

"I don't know, but it almost seems like a tradition."  You chuckle, but look up to notice that she doesn't even crack a smile.

"Y/N..." she coaxes.

"Right. Well... I'm dating your stepmother, and-"

Ella cuts you off.   "I know."

You nod softly and look away.  "I thought you did. I just wanted to tell you to your face. You deserve that much."

Ella just sighs.  "Well, thank you. But you know how she is with me."

"I know, but I feel like I could get to the bottom of that for you, if I haven't already. She's been through a lot. I'm sure that being with someone who actually cares will help her get better with that."

Ella sighs. "Maybe. But just remember that it might not be easy. Old habits die hard..."

You look down again and sigh.  "I know, but hopefully this could end up being good for all of us." 

Ella just nods once more.  "Hopefully..."  She stands back up and starts to wash dishes.  "You should go get her for dinner. She's usually very particular with the time."

"Of course."  You stand up and go back to Madonna's room where she is still sitting on the bed waiting for you, as she promised.

"How did it go?"  she asks, patting the space next to her on the bed, imploring you to sit down.

"It doesn't matter right now."  You give her a small smile and take her hand.  "Dinner is ready. Why don't we just go eat and and I'll tell you after?"

She can tell that you're hesitant to tell her and, while she really is particular with being on a time schedule, you are more important to her right now.  She puts her hand on your cheek and strokes it tenderly with her thumb.

"I can wait. You have all of my attention right now."

You give a genuine smile and lean into her palm. "Well, she wasn't as upset with me as I thought she'd be, so that's a plus. She just..."  You sigh softly.  "She just wishes that you treated her better. I told her that being with someone who actually cared about you might help with that..." you say, as you look into her eyes.

She brings your hand up to her lips and kisses it softly.  "I wish I had treated her better too..."  She gives you a small, remorseful smile. "And I know you care for me, and I care for you too. You have been really good for me since we've met, and I feel like we can only go forward from here."

She tears up slightly and continues.  "I have been horrible to her for months, but I've been this way for even longer than that. It is something that I want to change. And I thank you every day for coming into my life and being willing to help me through it."

You smile and wipe a tear off her cheek.  "You don't have to thank me for that. You made that decision on your own. I just gave you a little nudge."

"I suppose you're right.  Well, we are ten minutes past schedule, so why don't we go eat?"

You laugh and roll your eyes.  "Okay, but I'm always bad with time, so you're gonna have to loosen up with these time constraints of yours a little."

She chuckles as you both exit the room. "I will."

You and Madonna sit next to each other at the table. Ella puts the prepared dinner on the table, and then walks past you both with her own plate in her hand. Madonna looks over at her.

"Ella, where are you going?"

"To the next room to eat as I usually do, ma'am."

"You don't have to do that. You should join us." Madonna says.

Ella looks at you and you give her a playful 'told you so' look.  She smiles and playfully rolls her eyes at you as she sits at the table. She looks over at Madonna. "Thank you Madame."

"Of course. And you don't have to call me that anymore. 'Madonna' or 'Stepmother' will do just fine."

Madonna looks at you as you take her hand under the table, giving it a little squeeze as you smile to show her that you're proud of the progress she's already making.

Dinner goes smoothly and Ella goes back to her room as you and Madonna walk back to your room. You have your hand on the small of her back the whole way there, and as you open the door to step inside, she looks at you and says, "You know, if you keep touching me like that, I'm going to be eating more than just that chicken tonight..."

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A/N: Cliffhanger, boiiii!  What are we thinking?  Smut in the next chapter? Implied smut? No smut?   Tbh, I've never written smut a day in my life, so I probably won't be very good at it, and will probably do better with implied, but you guys can make the decision 🤣