Lucifer's Effect

two

All at once, different voices echoed the room, random chit chat and business agreements were heard. The simultaneous voices rang through Adelaide's ears, she was meters away yet she could hear how loud they were being.

Rubbing her forehead, she sent polite smiles to the wives seated across from her as they send her worried glances.

"Adelaide, your posture." Sitting up straighter, she complied to her mother's orders.

Everyone in the house was either her parent's business associates, their wives, the eldest child or the staff. Events like these bore her to death, the wives would constantly pick on every little detail and complain and complain and occasionally boast about their husbands' wealth, properties and companies. It was a silent feud between all the wives to talk about their wealth and wait for the others to shatter on how unsuccessful they were compared to the others. If it weren't for her mother inviting their associates' family, she wouldn't have to endure afternoon tea with them.

Everyone's voices seemed to be getting louder, amplifying the already growing headache she had. It didn't help that wives kept asking about her plans for college, in which she politely replied with the same answer she had been given to say by her mother. A major in business management in one of the Ivy League schools that her parents were capable of buying their way into. It's her path to success, her mother would always say. In truth, she had no clue what she wanted to do or where she wanted to attend to in the fall.

The wall on the clock ticked. Tick Tock Tick Tock. Adelaide stared as the seconds passed by one after the other.

"Adelaide, dear, would you pass the tea?" A middle age woman with white pearls around her neck and an obvious nose job had asked.

"Yes, I'd be glad too." Adelaide answered, her voice dripping with venom that the other women in the room couldn't hear.

She picked up the expensive porcelain tea pot, holding it by its side so it would not fall. It was when she was about to pass it to the woman, her hands flinched at the hotness and it fell against the glass table, spilling the contents toward her.

Manicured finger nails tapped against the glass table, Adelaide's mother tapping them again and again as she moved her gaze from the broken tea pot to her.

"Adelaide," she said, sending her disapproving looks. The people that were talking to her father a mere few meters away from them, all turned their heads, looking at the disaster that just happened.

"I apologize, I'll look for a staff member to clean this up," she said, unwillingly apologizing to her mother and to the guests. Her eyes were brimming with tears, trying not to look at her parents for they surely would have disappointment and shame written across their faces as they looked at her.

"Here, let me help you." A male's low voice was heard, Adelaide looked up to see a clean cut boy around her age, a lazy smile on his lips.

"No, it's quite alright, I can handle it." she replied, moving around the table so that she can go and find a maid.

"What a gentleman, my boy is. Isn't he, Adelaide?" Another woman said, this time Adelaide nodded her head looking over to her mother.

"Let the boy help," she told her with a flat tone. Another nod and she faced the clean cut boy.

"I'll just change and then we can go find one of the staff members to clean this up," she said. The boy nodded, following as she manuevered herself around the guests and onto the staircase that led to the rooms.

"Exciting isn't it?" He said, walking step by step beside her as they reached the end of the set of stairs.

"What is?"