Class or Love?

III

     THREE, EXCEPTIONALLY WELL-dressed people sit down at their designated box, high above the play. One woman has her Galilean binoculars close to her face to get a better view of the stage and the soon to be performers. These well-dressed people are the Edwards. The blonde woman with the binoculars is Lillian with her two handsome sons beside her; Elijah and Jacob. Jacob's eyes are on the stage as well, but Elijah's are affixed on Lollie Cameron's box watching the women pile into the box taking their seats. He knows Lollie and her niece Edith, but who are the other three women?

     Elijah elbows his brother receiving a pained grunt from him. "Who are the women over there?" He nods in the direction of Lollie and her women friends.

     Jacob glances where his brother nods. His eyes squints as he tries to take in the women's faces but the distance is far too great. "I do not know," replies Jacob with a shrug. "I cannot see that far."

     Lillian now turns in their direction. She's able to get a good look at them; dark-skin women with beautiful complexions at that. Ah yes, she knows who they are. "They are the D'Amours who have just arrived in town. They must be the ones who are building that house on 5th Avenue. Of course, I will never step foot there, but I do wonder about the inside."

     "Hm..." Elijah watches as one of the women fixes the cream-colored flowers in her hair. "Do you know anything about them? I know you know something because your friends are detectives when it comes to gossip."

     A smirk creeps along Lillian's dusty rose lips. "I take that as a compliment. I do not know much being that they arrived only today. I – as well as my friends – know that they are wealthy, hence their new home of course." Her opera glasses are now lowered to her lap. "I do not why they have chosen New York out of all places. New York is for the old, there is no place for the New here."

     "You are absolutely right, mother." Jacob sniffs, scowling over at the D'Amour women. "There is no place for them here."

     "I do not agree," Elijah responds sternly. "They – as much as anyone have a right to live here and create a life for themselves. It is nice to have the old around, but they will not be around forever."

     "Hush, son," Lillian speaks as the lights on the stage turn on and other building lights turn off. "The play is about to begin; I do not want to miss a thing."

     Elijah clenches his jaw out of frustration. His mother always does that when she doesn't want to hear the truth that comes out of his mouth. His mother never wants to be wrong; she couldn't stand it. He turns towards Lollie's box once more and he's met with a pair of dark feminine eyes from one of the D'Amour women. The room is too dark and he's too far away to examine her features, but she is a lovely woman. Their attentions were affixed on each other for a few moments before they turned back forward. He's curious about her and her family.

     The Edwards are different from the D'Amour's. Where the D'Amour's recently found their wealth, the Edwards had their wealth passed down to them from previous generations. Their line of family did not find New York but they founded Vermont instead. Somewhere along the line the Edwards moved to New York where they have resided ever since. Elijah turns to the other box once again. His mother his planning on holding a ball soon... Perhaps he could try and convince her to invite the D'Amours. It's going to take his might to convince his mother, she is highly stubborn in her ways.

     Elijah has made up his mind to go and introduce himself after the play. He's going to have to do it when his mother is distracted. She will blow a gasket if she finds her son talking to the New. He couldn't understand why she was so against the New. Elijah finds it refreshing actually and quite nice that people can grow from having nothing to something. He would have to make up a lie to part from his family without suspicion. He could create a lie; he can excuse himself to the bathroom.