My Fair Ladies

Changes

AN: First, I want to thank you all for taking the time to read our little tale. Second, can we just take a minute to appreciate how amazing and creative our Claire is? And finally, what more apt chapter to announce this: some of you may know me as ArtbyWill on TikTok and Instagram. Some may know me as @an804u here on Wattpad. Others may know both monikers. When Claire and I started this project, I had a real fear of connecting an alternative work to my existing work. Today I am letting go of creative fear and fully embracing this work.

Claire, you have been an amazing friend and support in this situation. We have worked hard, had fun, and laughed ... a lot. Thank you!

Marjorie

Marjorie was woken the next morning by her alarm. She didn't have a very restful night; every time she woke during the night Reece was still sat with his head in his phone researching everything he possibly could. As she rolled over to look at him, she saw he was still sat in the exact same position he was the last time she had woken up. She sat herself up leaning over to place a kiss on his cheek. "Morning darling, did you manage to get any sleep at all?" Reece grumbled in response. Again, his attention not shifting from his phone. Knowing that he was going to spend the day with Autumn, she decided to take Reece's phone from his hand. It wasn't what she wanted to do but, she knew it had to be done. His head spun around following the path of his phone. "Hey! What did you do that for?" She could see the dark circles under his eyes and how tired and deflated he looked. "Reece for your own sanity you need to stop now. You've been researching all night. It's time to freshen yourself up and grab some breakfast before going over to Autumn's." He pulled her into him. "Thank you gorgeous." Marjorie smiled up at him and placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

Marjorie's mind was still swirling with thoughts of the night before. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't get the kiss out of her head or how much she was conflicted over her feelings for each sibling. She loved Reece and she adored Autumn. Could she love Autumn in that way? Was that even a possibility? Realising that Autumn was the only one that could answer some of her questions, Marjorie waited patiently till Reece was in the shower before sending her a message.

Hey, my love

We need to talk about what happened last night. Meet me at the nursery after closing?

M

Marjorie's phone illuminated with a response just as Reece came out of the bathroom. She stood up to go and freshen herself up. She entered the bathroom locking the door behind her; she didn't want to shut Reece out, but she needed to clear her mind. She had to get through the day ahead, and she had to face Winter. "Oh my god Winter!" Marjorie began to feel slight pangs of guilt. Letting the water wash over her; Marjorie shook her head as if trying to shake the thoughts from her mind. It was just a kiss. It didn't mean anything. As much as Marjorie tried not to admit anything, she was starting to fall for Autumn, and it went back farther than the kiss, if she was honest.

Marjorie joined Reece in the kitchen. "Hey gorgeous, here's your coffee and some breakfast." She kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you darling," she said before taking the plate and cup and taking a seat at the dining table. Reece came over to give her a kiss before heading out to Autumn's. "Darling I'll be late back myself I have to stay and catch up on some paperwork," she called after him as he left the kitchen. She hated lying to him, but she had to talk to Autumn. She had to know what it meant.

A little while later, Marjorie was greeted by Winter as he walked into the office. "Morning Marjorie." Looking up from her desk Marjorie suddenly felt nervous. "Morning how are you?" Marjorie could see that Winter didn't look himself, but he was holding it together as best he could. "I'm alright thank you for asking." Marjorie gave winter a sympathetic smile. "How's Autumn doing today?" Winter bounced on his toes. "She's doing a bit better today. I think knowing that Reece was going to be with her all day really helped. When she opened the door to him, she practically threw her arms around him, and they just stood there for a while just hugging." Marjorie was taken back to the night before. Her and Autumn's hug in her mind again. Her mind screamed at her to pull herself together. She couldn't think about that now. "Bless him he was desperate to get to her last night. I had to convince him that you two would want the space to come to terms with everything. He was up first thing this morning to get to her. He really needed to see her." Winter thought for a moment how exhausted Reece had looked. "He looked like he hadn't had a wink of sleep." Shaking her head Marjorie replied, "he didn't. I woke up at various stages through the night and he was sat with his head in his phone researching statistics and how he could help and care for Autumn." Winter knew how much Reece cared for Autumn and was glad he was with her today while he couldn't be.