♠️ Exceptis Centrum ♠️ ✔︎

Chapter 14

Hi!

Sorry again that there's no title and description, but someone has submitted this book... again TvT

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Chewing on the end of his pen, Alfred drummed his fingers against his desk with his free hand in a pitiful attempt to calm his nerves. He’d glance up the clock every now and then, sighing heavily before looking over at his whiteboards that were now almost completely full of all of his knowledge regarding the strange things that were happening to him, at this rate he was going to have to order another. For most of yesterday and today he had been trying to figure out what the trigger was to send him back to the garden, hoping that he’d stumble upon it eventually so he could go back and check on Arthur. He had been thinking about it before but because of certain events he was now more desperate to figure it out.

“I’m sure he’s fine,” he said, trying to convince himself and make him worry less. “He’s a grown man, right? He can take care of himself.”

But it was far from the truth, he was dreadfully concerned about Arthur for the last time Alfred saw him he was at the mercy of that horrid man, who injured his hand and said cruel things to him that caused him to shed some tears. Although Alfred was curious as to who that man was and why Arthur was afraid of him, he was far too worried about Arthur’s wellbeing to be thinking of such things. He believed that Arthur had a strong personality but it immediately crumbled when he was in the presence of the horrid man, and Alfred was keen to get back to make sure he was alright.

“It’s not eating and it’s not sleeping,” he huffed, standing up to stand before the whiteboards. “What is it that sends me back?”

He had gone over his notes again and again, but yet again he found no pattern nor what triggered his spontaneous visits to Arthur’s garden. As the day dragged on Alfred became more desperate to find out how to get back. He didn’t even get a proper sleep last night nor did he pay attention to anything that Yao had said to him, his mind was far too full of worried thoughts. He wondered what Arthur was doing at this moment. Was he still crying? Was hand taken care of? Did that man leave him alone? Or what if he came back whilst he wasn’t there? What if he hurt him again?

Alfred’s concerns for Arthur continued to build up so much that he snapped the pen he was holding in half, the ink spilling onto his jacket. “Dammit all,” he groaned, grabbing his handkerchief and attempted to clean up.

As he wiped up the ink as best he could, someone knocked at his office door and Yao entered seconds later. He stared at Alfred and appeared horrified. “What are you doing!?”

“It’s just ink Yao,” huffed Alfred as he continued to wipe away the black stain. “It’s not going to kill me.”

“No, I mean what are you doing here?”

Alfred paused and stared at Yao with a puzzled gaze. “I... work in here...?” With the way the Jack was staring at him Alfred had a funny suspicion that he’d forgotten something.

“Your afternoon tea with Lady Hamilton’s daughter is in ten minutes,” barked Yao, gripping the hat upon his head with panic.

Alfred dropped the handkerchief and looked up at the clock, the large hand moving towards the next minute. He then looked back at Yao with the same confused expression upon his face. “I thought that was later on.”

Yao ground his teeth against each other so hard they looked ready to crumble. “Weren’t you paying attention to me last night!? I told you the arrangements had been changed at the last minute, she’s coming here instead and she’ll be seated in the western garden in exactly nine minutes!”