I’m plugging my new site, Polite Society. It’s a blog/book. A webbook. Blook? Anyway, Polite Society is an idea I’ve had about a bunch of socialites in 1700s Sussex, England, trying to become big in society while figuring out the messes in their own lives. I’ve drawn from my own loves-Jane Austen books, the catty style of Gossip Girl, the movie Marie Antoinette, and (subconsciously) one of my favorite shows growing up, The Puzzle Place (PLEASE GOOGLE/YOUTUBE IT!!!) For a tease, here’s Chapter One. For more chapters and info on the story, go to societybook.wordpress.com:
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1.
Amelie Vance held on tightly to her date’s arm as they came to the entrance of the ballroom. She felt partygoers’ eyes staring at them as they walked down the steps.
“Don’t be nervous,” she whispered to her date, Emilio Cuarón, as they walked. Emilio squeezed her hand.
“I’m not nervous,” he whispered back. “I think you are, though.”
“You know how my friends can be,” she said.
“Yeah, I know how your ‘friends’ are, especially that E.A. and that cousin of yours,” he said. “With friends like them, you don’t need enemies.”
They reached the ballroom floor. Amelie held the full skirt of her cream-colored dress to keep others from stepping on it. Emilio was wearing a matching cream colored suit that looked obviously not within in his price range.
“They don’t get to me; they can’t tell me what I don’t already know, that I’m a stable boy who is living above his station.” Emilio said as he put her arms around her waist. “You shouldn’t let them get to you so much.” He looked her in the eyes. “You like being with me, don’t you?”
Amelie stared back. “Of course I do.”
“Then there’s nothing to worry about. Let them fret over things that aren’t their business anyway. They’ll soon tire of it, and then we’ll finally be left to our own devices.” He smiled gently.
*****
Elizabeth Ann Storey looked at Amelie and Emilio in annoyance. She sipped her punch as if it was bitter venom. Dozens of Sussex’s finest were here at her father’s Worthing vacation home, celebrating E.A.’s coming out into society, yet, thanks to her friend’s choice of date, E.A.’s celebrating spirit was gone. Joshua Shaw, a stuffy, proper-looking young man, came over to her.
“Those people your father invited stick out like sore thumbs,” he said, twirling the punch in his tumbler. E.A. raised an eyebrow as she stared at two young Indian men mingling in the crowd.
“Father’s textile partners are in town, you know,” she said. “He thought their sons might like some fun while they were here. There are supposed to be three young men,” Elizabeth Ann said, nodding toward the men. “Those two are brothers; another man-a Chinese man- isn’t here yet, I suppose. Perhaps, with the men who did show up, I can make their time more enjoyable-”
“Careful, E,” Joshua said, eyeing her. “You don’t want to ruin your reputation before it’s even created, do you?”
“Speaking of reputation, would you just look at the two of them?” Elizabeth Ann said, nodding her head toward Amelie and Emilio. “I told her specifically not to bring him here, to my party. And yet she brings him. Just because she dressed him up like her life-size doll doesn’t make him any less the hired help. Does she know how this will make me look? As if I tolerate this sort of ‘mixing up the social classes’ bit? I’m trying to use this party as a way to generate my climb up the social ladder, and she brings the hired help.”
“You’re thinking just about yourself, E.A.,” Joshua chided. “Think about Amy’s status. It was fine when she was a young girl and was keen on Emilio. Everyone thought that it was a bit of cute fun, but that it would eventually pass on. Now that she’s older and it still hasn’t passed on, well, people aren’t going to take her seriously. They’re going to think she’s not ready for responsibility, and certainly not ready for the social circle.”
“I worry about her well-being, too, you know,” Elizabeth Ann said. “She’s like my sister.” She let out a sigh. “We’re going to have to break them up. This can’t go on any longer.”
“I concur,” Joshua said. “But how do you think we should go about doing it?”
Elizabeth Ann thought for a moment. “We need to get inside Emilio’s head. Right now, I bet he feels so confident, what with an upper-class girlfriend and his ‘kept man’ status. We need to make him start feeling the heat, as it were. And we need to make Amelie believe exactly what we tell her. Perhaps if I approached her-”
“Amy’s my cousin, she’ll listen to me,” Joshua said. “I’ll handle it.”
*****
Rachel Drew stood by the wall. She looked at Emilio and Amelie dancing among the other partygoers. She was jealous of them. The only other people among her circle of friends who weren’t dancing were E.A., Joshua, and her fellow violin classmate Daniel Stewart, but all of them were so well known in society that they wouldn’t have to dance to appear social. She was only important in social circles because of her parents’ storied lineage and clout. If she didn’t have that, she wouldn’t even be invited to this party.
She observed a few other wallflowers near her. She decided to play a game with herself, to see which currently lonely girl was going to be asked next to dance.
There was a curly blonde sitting in the group. Rachel figured the blonde seemed precocious and girly enough that she would be asked first. She was right; one for one.
She picked the brown haired girl with ribbons in her hair to be asked next. Right again; two for two.
Just as she was picking the next girl, a tall shadow loomed over her. She looked up, perplexed. She was taken aback light brown eyes.
“Hello,” said the man. She studied his creamy tan skin and elaborate gold and cream headdress.
“Hello,” Rachel repeated. The man licked his lips out of nervousness. This only made Rachel even more fidgety.
“I couldn’t help but notice you standing alone,” he said. “Um…I would like to know if I could ask you to dance.”
Rachel fought down the urge to look around to see if he was speaking to someone else instead of her. Shakily, she said, “Of-of course.”
The corners of the man’s mouth pulled up in a smile and he held out his hand. Rachel took it, trying to hide her blush.
“My name is Devinder Chopra,” said the man. “What’s yours?”
“Rachel Drew.”
Just as Devinder was leading Rachel to the dance floor, another man came up to them. He looked very similar to Devinder, except he was a foot and a half shorter, and his headdress was a brilliant cerulean with cream. His clothes were also cerulean with intricate bright pink details. He grinned a huge boyish grin at Devinder.
“Well, Dev! I see you’ve finally stopped holding the wall down!”
Devinder huffed. “Very funny, Abe,” he said. He turned his attention to Rachel. “Miss Drew, this is my brother, Abinhav.” Abinhav bowed towards Rachel.
“Very nice to make acquaintances with you,” he said gracefully. Reverting back to his whimiscal self, he said, “I hope my brother doesn’t bore you. Being the oldest can drain the fun out of you, apparently.”
“I’m not dull! And especially not because I’m the oldest!” Devinder retorted.
“You are dull!”
“Am not!”
“Am too!”
“Am not!”
“Am too!”
“Am-” Devinder stopped himself. He glanced at Rachel, figuring he had made himself look childish in front of her. She was stifling back giggles.
“I apologize,” Devinder said to Rachel. “I acted not in accordance to how an adult should.”
“On the contrary,” Rachel said, “I thought it was rather cute!”
Abinhav looked sick, like a little boy who had been told a girl liked him. Devinder, on the other hand, looked relieved, and straightened back up in a regal stance. Taking Rachel’s hand again, Devinder said, “I think we’ve handled enough diversions; let us have a dance.” Rachel happily nodded, not having enough breath to answer. She smiled warmly at Abinhav, who impishly waved by to them; this caused Devinder to shoot him a look from over his shoulder.
*****
Daniel was casually looking around the ballroom when he noticed Joshua sipping on punch and leaning against the wall, looking perturbed. He walked over to Joshua, trying to appear relaxed while his heart thumped in his chest.
Daniel and Joshua’s fathers were childhood friends and stayed friends as they got older. Because of their friendship, their sons became friends as well. Joshua had been Daniel’s crush ever since they were children, but he was also Daniel’s best friend. Joshua wasn’t inclined to be infatuated with other men, at least as far as Daniel knew. These things complicated matters for Daniel, but he kept his feelings under wraps, hidden under layers of self-confidence, charisma, and snootiness.
“So, you’re having fun holding down the wall?” Daniel said smoothly as he sidled up to Joshua, who was brooding as he nursed his tumbler. Joshua glanced at him, then smirked.
“I’m fine, Daniel,” he said. “I’m just thinking about my cousin. And Emilio.”
“I saw you and E.A. talking,” Daniel said. “Whenever she has something to say, it’s usually in the form of a vicious plot.”
Joshua sighed tiredly. “We’re trying to break them up,” he said, gesturing to Emilio and Amelie, dancing as if they were the only two people in the ballroom. Daniel watched them, a Cheshire-like smile across his face.
“They look happy,” he said in a snooty, but oddly sincere, way.
“I know,” said Joshua bitterly. “This will make the break even more painful. But it has to be done. For Amy’s sake.”
“Of course,” Daniel said delicately. “As her older cousin, you should know best.”
Joshua turned to Daniel. “Are you mocking me?”
It wasn’t clear if Daniel’s face of shock was sincere. “Of course not. I’m agreeing with you,” he said, smiling demurely.
Joshua turned back to face the dancing crowd and to glare at Amelie’s boyfriend. “The sooner we break them up, the better. Society is about knowing your place in it, and, thus, knowing your place in the world. He certainly needs to know his.”
Daniel was still wearing his smile, but it was wilted. “Yes,” he responded. “Knowing your place is a mighty good thing, indeed.
*****
Elizabeth-Ann was put out of the mood for dancing. She was at her own party-one that was supposed to be the party of the ages- and she didn’t even feel like having fun anymore, what with Amelie bringing the help as her date. Did Amelie even consider how that would make Elizabeth-Ann look to her guests, the who’s who of Sussex? No. Of course not. All of her father’s planning to make her enter into society successful could have been ruined if anyone recognized Emilio. For E.A. image and gossip meant everything.
Her extravagantly expensive dress, which was an avant-garde design found nowhere else in England, was supposed to make a statement to the other women, dressed in pedestrian gowns. Her father specifically had her party planned for the vacation house to show the event-goers that the Storeys had not only enough money for a vacation house, but also enough to furnish most of it in gold filigree and crystal chandeliers. Her boyfriend, Roosevelt White, was also a strategic move for E.A., even if she felt the strategy was beginning to backfire. She watched him as he politely mingled with the crowd, smiling congenially at various men and women. Before leaving her, he had pulled out a chair for her to sit.
She and Roosevelt had been steady for about a year, and, from the outside, their relationship appeared solid and serious. Sadly, Roosevelt also thought the relationship was solid and serious. Only E.A. knew otherwise. To her, their relationship was beginning to get stale. He was a great man, sure-he was generally well liked by everybody, loyal, dependable, handsome, and many other positive attributes you could give one person. His father was well established as a prominent banker and investor. Having Roosevelt on her arm would make her the envy of every woman in Sussex. And he did.
Even though her thoughts of having Roosevelt were strategic, she was always keen on him. He seemed caring and gentle, possibly someone to smooth out her rough patches, but instead of being smoothed out, E.A.’s rough patches seemed to get rougher the longer she stayed with him. At points, his dependability could be boring for her. His chivalry sometimes became too much for her. She felt that she had gotten to know him too well, and now she needed someone new.
The strangers who had shown up at her party could’ve proven to be a great diversion, had she time to get to know them.
She would’ve been delightfully spending her time talking to Devinder, but in a strange turn of events, he was entertaining Rachel, who is mild in personality at best. E.A. liked Rachel very much, but she felt she had much more to offer. She tried to hide her pout from Roosevelt, who was walking over to her. He sat down beside her and put his hand on the small of her back.
“What’s the matter?” he said softly. “Why aren’t you having fun?”
“Oh, it’s just Amy bringing that boy Emilio,” E.A. said. “I can’t believe she didn’t bring the man I told her to bring.”
“Well, you can’t control who Amelie wants to bring,” Roosevelt said soothingly. “She has the right to bring whomever she wants to.” E.A. huffed at his words.
“How about we have a dance,” Roosevelt said. “That should take your mind off Amelie and her date.”
E.A. looked at him, studying his brown skin and pearly-white teeth. Everything about him was perfect. Too perfect for her. Nothing about him was like her-coarse.
“Okay,” she said, and he smiled broadly. As he took her hand and led her to the floor, she finally saw the Chinese man she had been eager to see.
The man looked annoyed, although he was looking at nothing in particular. His extravagant, intricately designed clothes were similar to the patterns on the fabrics her father handled regularly in his business, but on him, the designs took on another level of beauty. He was regal, from his shiny, black hair to his high cheekbones to his straight-backed stance. His presence also intimidated E.A., something that never happened when she was around Roosevelt. He seemed like something she could never have, which made her even more interested.
When their eyes met, E.A. gave him a small, flirtatious smile. Roosevelt didn’t see.
