Mr. Bennett's Strange Acts

         ~London, England, 1856~

        "Keep frowning like that and the look will stay." A young, beautiful bride said to her husband. He smiled at her. 

      "Well I wouldn't think of such a thing to be real." He replied, standing up. He walked into the kitchen, thinking as he approached her. 

     Wesley Bennett was a young man, 21 to be exact, and was happier than could be, knowing he was married to the love of his life. Happy to have her back as well that is. See, his lovely damsel in distress had gone missing for some short time, which put young Wesley in a frantic. When she returned, she didn't dare speak about it, but told him that everything was fine. He pushed the subject away then and left it alone. 

     After her return, he had realized that living without her was the last thing he'd wanted to do. So--he asked her to marry him. She agreed and they both were happy. Though Wesley never could remember the wedding day, which he thought was strange. His wife told him not to worry. The traumatizing of her disappearance must have caused him to block out some things, including the celebration of their new love. 

     Still Wesley wondered about this and pondered on it often. Which always caused his love to say, "keep frowning like that and the look will stay." And he would break away from his train of thought and focus on her. As much as he loved her, he hated when she said that. Every time he felt like something was coming back, a memory tugging at the back of his mind, she would say that sentence and all progress was lost. He never could find out what felt so wrong about their situation. 

     But one day, everything changed for them, starting with a knock at the door. Wesley looked up at his wife, who seemed quite oblivious to the sound. She continued to hum as she washed and dried the dishes. Wesley stood, reaching for the door. 

    When he answered, a middle-aged man stood at the front of the door. He looked concerned and slightly grim. 

    "Wesley." He said. Wesley nodded, ushering him through the door. "Yes, yes, do come in, Paul." 

     "Thank you." Paul said. He took a second to remove his hat as he set it on the coat rack, but decided to keep his scarf and coat on. That meant he wasn't staying real long. 

    "Tea?" Wesley asked, walking into the kitchen. "Elizabeth and I just made a pot a few minutes ago." As he said the words, he looked around him. His wife was no where to be found. She must have wondered upstairs. 

    Paul cleared his throat, looking evermore grim than he did before. "No, that's quite alright, Wesley." 

    "Well, then if you aren't here for tea, what then?" Wesley asked, slightly annoyed with his guest. "I've got plenty of things to do today."

     "And I'm sure you do. I...I just wanted to make sure you were okay." 

    Wesley looked at him and nodded. "Yeah sure, I'm fine. I have a bit on my mind, but other than that, I'm fine."

    Paul nodded. "I've been concerned. You don't go out as much anymore."

   "It's getting colder."

    Paul nodded as he wrinkled his nose. "And it smells like you haven't taken a bath in for weeks. The whole house smells like that." 

    Wesley turned, suddenly very annoyed. "Why are you here, Paul?" 

   Silence. 

   "...I want you to be safe. I'm worried about you, my friend." 

   "Well you don't have to be, I can take care of myself." Wesley answered. He turned away from his friend, gesturing towards the door. "If you don't mind, I'd like to be alone."