A Small Misunderstanding

It all started here

I have no idea where I'm going with this story so I'm pantsing the whole thing. Updates will probably be slow but I promise to finish it no matter how long it takes. I've taken some liberties with timelines and characters. Okay, a lot of liberties.

So far so good. Tedi had been invited to movie and pizza night at Amanda and Martin's home and the evening was going well. Nervous about meeting so many new people at one time, she'd given herself a long lecture before arriving. Smile. Be sociable. Ask good questions. Don't drone on and on about writing and books.

Of course she was comfortable with Amanda already. They'd met at the gym several weeks ago and hit it off right away. She'd met Martin a few times as well and he was as funny and sweet as he seemed on television. Tonight she'd met Benedict who was kind and smart. They'd discussed the sight-seeing she'd done since coming to London two months ago and he'd recommended a few places off the beaten path. His girlfriend Isla was friendly and nice, asking lots of questions about America.

The problem was Tom. He'd spent most of the evening scowling at her, but she had no idea why.

Tedi had the strangest feeling he didn't like her very much even though he barely knew her. They'd only exchanged a few pleasantries when they'd been introduced in the beginning of the evening. He'd seemed stiff and brittle, hardly acknowledging her presence when she'd told him that she enjoyed his work. He'd simply nodded as if it was a foregone conclusion.

The pizza had been consumed and the first movie watched. They were all taking a break lounging around the living room, and Martin had asked Ben about a book adaptation he was going to star in. That had started a discussion about books in general, a topic that Mr. Hiddleston had some strong opinions about.

"It's just sad that more people don't read the classics," Tom said. "They're missing out on great literature and their lives are lesser for it."

Ted had strong opinions about this subject as well and she simply couldn't be silent. "It's sad that more people don't read. Period. It doesn't matter what they read. Classics. Thrillers. Mysteries. Plays. Heck, the back of cereal boxes. I just want people to read and discover the worlds that it takes them to. The number of people that never read a book after high school is downright depressing."

Tom shook his head. "It does matter what they read. They shouldn't waste their time on rubbish. If they're going to read they need to immerse themselves in the great works of centuries past. Shakespeare. Dickens. Austen. Bronte. Only then can their eyes truly be opened to the masterpieces of great writers."

"I disagree," Tedi replied just as strongly. "The problem is that we force books on people who are too young to appreciate them. I read The Great Gatsby in high school and it was good. But when I read it as an adult with that frame of reference, it was only then that I understood Fitzgerald's genius. We need to nurture the love of reading in our youth and let nature take its course. If we fire up their love of books, they'll naturally travel to the great writers."

"Naturally?" Tom scoffed in his posh accent. "You think we should encourage children and teenagers to read inferior works?"

Everyone in the room had pretty much shut up and let Tom and Tedi hash this out.

"If someone loves it, how is it inferior? There are a lot of books that I think are trash but who am I to tell someone what they should like? One of the reasons people don't read is that they believe - and rightly so from this conversation - that they are looked down on for their choices. We need to encourage them to read no matter what they prefer."

"Like romance novels?" Tom sneered. "Those stories are all the same. Anyone with half a brain could write one."

There was an audible intake of breath from Amanda whose eyes had gone wide. Tedi could have heard a pin drop in the room it was so quiet. Tom knew perfectly well what Tedi did for a living so now he was just being a rude asshole. They were all waiting for her to explode. They'd be waiting awhile. She'd heard all of this before from others although it she had to admit it hurt coming from Tom. As a lover of words, she hadn't expected him to be so...pompous and arrogant. Superior. Deliberately cruel.