𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 -𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚘𝚍𝚘𝚛𝚎 '𝙻𝚊𝚞𝚛𝚒𝚎' 𝙻𝚊𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎

Chapter 34

BALLROOM. 1869.
        The party is slowly dwindling to close friends and family. People have been coming up to the couple and congratulating the couple all night. There has been an uncountable number of dances and kisses for the couple.
      Mary has been bidding goodnight to people since they have started leaving. Many people, like Laurie and Beth, are still dancing. Mary takes a moment to watch them. Again, the two halves of her heart together make her smile, knowing these are the good days.
        It is as if none of the drama and rejection between her and Laurie had ever happened. It reminds her of Meg's wedding that happened three years prior. Both Laurie and Beth dancing with each other. She should have known then- that Laurie was the one.
        "Uhm- excuse me, ma'am."
         Mary snaps out of her thoughts, "I'm sorry, sir- Danny!"
          Danny smiles, softly, "Mary."
          He nods his head in her direction with his hat in his hands. She shakes his head at his peachy southern accent. She had heard a southern accent before but never thought that her good friend would ever have one.
        "Are you going?" She asks him.
         "It seems as if I must. I wonder-" He pauses and looks down, "I wonder why you didn't answer when I asked if you had a gentleman?"
Mary shifts her eyes to Laurie, "Well, it wasn't public information, and- I'm sorry you came out here for me, Danny."
"I'm not. I guess this is goodbye for a while." Danny says, which causes Mary to hug him.
       "Danny, it was good to see you," Mary whispers.
        Danny looks over at Laurie, who smiles and waves. It was not the reaction Danny was expecting. Danny pulls away from Mary with his hands still on her shoulders.
       "It seems that Mr. Theodore Laurence is a good man," Danny tells her.
         "He is and I love him." Mary stares at her fiance, happy.
        While Mary is distracted, Danny moves on. He walks to the door, not looking back. Mary doesn't notice as she moves to the dancefloor. Laurie nods at her as she joins in the dancing with Beth and him. The smile on their faces shine as they enjoy the ball.
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OUTSIDE THE LAURENCE HOUSE. 1869.
"Laurie!" Mary whispers as she makes it to his window.
His room is in the front of the house, which means that if someone from the March home was looking at Laurie's house, they would see Marilyn climbing. She smiles as Laurie opens his window. He, quickly, grabs her and pulls her in.
"I didn't expect you to climb to my room," Laurie exclaims.
"Then how did you expect me to get in?" Mary asks him as she walks over to his bed.
"I left the front door unlocked," Laurie tells her and then, jumps on her.
"Laurie!" Mary yells, "You're so heavy."
Mary has her back on the bed and her legs hanging off. Laurie, who's on top of her, is tickling her, which makes her laugh. She pushes him away, trying to regain her manner. Laurie is next to her now, smiling as she catches her breath.
"Can't your grandfather hear us?" Mary asks.
"I'm not sure, but just in case, you need to be quieter," Laurie tells her as he caresses her face.
She kisses him. It was meant to be a quick peck, but Laurie pulled her back when she pulled away. This causes Mary to smile while kissing him. Since they're in an awkward position, she moves to straddle him.
"You know this only happens in my dreams." Laurie jokes.
He pulls her down to his lips. When she pulls away to respond to his joke, he sits up and kisses her neck. She laughs at the feeling and wraps her arms around his neck.
"Dore, slow down." She pushes his face away from her neck and softly, caresses his cheeks with her thumb.
Laurie groans, "I've waited 5 years though."
"Then, you can wait a few more months." She gets up from his lap and wanders around his room, "Besides, we will have the rest of our lives to convivial society."
"Pardon?" says a new voice in the room.
Both Laurie and Mary look at the previously closed door. Mary covers her mouth, embarrassed. Laurie laughs at his fiance. Me. Laurence, who had been woken up with all the laughing, stands in the doorway.
          "Oh, sorry, Mr. Laurence." Mary apologizes as she looks over at Laurie, who is almost rolling on the ground.
          "Miss March, what in the heavens are you doing here?" Laurie's grandpa asks her.
          She smiles, awkwardly, "Sleepwalking?"
          "I will walk you to your home." He tells her.
          Laurie stands, "What? Can't she stay?"
           "Sure, when I'm dead. Hopefully, that will be soon, so I don't have to wake up to my grandson having intercourse." Mr. Laurence tells Laurie, sarcastically.
         Mr. Laurence walks out. Mary follows him after giving Laurie a peck on the lips. They're both blushing and embarrassed.
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"You know we weren't doing anything, Mr. Laurence." Mary tries to convince him.
"I believe you," He turns to her, "But even so, I will escort you back home."
"Well, I thank you, but it truly was not necessary. We are engaged to be married, you know?" She reminds Laurie's grandfather.
"Oh, yes, I know, but I still must insist that you stay home. Take care of that sister of yours." He tells her.
As they get to the house, they notice that the house is lit up, which is a big difference from when Mary left. When she left, the house was quiet and only Jo and Marmee laid awake. Jo was writing and didn't even notice Mary leave. Marmee was baking, her nighttime tradition. She saw her daughter go but didn't say a word.
Now, it seems everyone is awake, running around the house. Mary and Mr. Laurence can hear screaming outside. With a quick look at each other, they rush in without a second to lose. Jo passes them but doesn't pay them any mind. She's trying to get everything that Marmee is asking for.
Mary rushes to Mary's room, "What happened?"
Meg, who is stroking Beth's head, replies, "She- she's not breathing."
Mr. Laurence backs away into the hallway, pain flooding through his chest. Mary looks back at him and goes to help him up. He looks at her and takes a deep breath.
"Come on, Mr. Laurence," Mary instructs.
She walks him to the kitchen, where Jo is going in and out, not stopping for a second. She lets Mr. Laurence sit down. Mary goes over and gets a drink for him. She sets it down on the table and then, turns to the sink. She looks out the window.
"I have experienced death before, but it never eases the pain." Mr. Laurence says,
        He puts his arm around Mary's shoulder. She brings her head to his chest. Her eyes are red and puffy. Her cheeks are wet, but then again, so are everyone else's. She had never realized just how close she and Mr. Laurence were before, but it's quite clear that he had cared quite deeply for her and her sisters.
       Mr. Laurence lets go of his soon to be daughter in law and wipes his face, "You should go be with your sister. I'll be okay. I'll wait here."
        Marilyn smiles gratefully at him and nods, "Thank you. I- I will be back."
         With one more nod, Mary leaves the kitchen and Mr. Laurence sits down. Heavy familiar grief sits on his heart. Another daughter figure is gone. Could he deal with much more?
        While he ponders the thought, Mary rushes upstairs to put her medical knowledge to use. She could feel the adrenaline kick in and the worry ceases a bit. She had never experienced death and she never wanted to, especially not her baby sister.
        Mary holds a cold rag to Beth's head to try and break the fever. She watches as Beth breaths shallowly. It gives Mary hope. A chance that Beth could make it, but death didn't take a day off.
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Guys, when I added John Vanderbilt, I totally forgot about Meg's John, cause I'm an idiot. So yes there are two John's. And yes, it's February and I'm still not done. And yes, I suck. Anyway I'm sorry I'm a lazy bitch and a procrastinator.