Story takes place in the 1920s
This is the story Zorell Dupree, a young twenty year old nurse who moves to the city working for a prestigious hospital. She is a small time girl thrown into the fast-paced world of the city.
Her childhood friend Lel...
I always wanted to do a story set in the 1920s. This is the story of Zorell Dupree, a twenty year old nurse who was raised by an indifferent father. She's convinced she will never be able to love a man, but when a happy-go-luck club owner comes into her life things are about to change for her.
This is my first stab at a historical romantic drama. I hope you enjoy.
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Note: This is a picture of how I picture Zorell to look. I've also added the audio narration of the story in the video above.
Chapter One: The Accidental Eavesdropper
The morning light shone through Zorell's bedroom window. The sun had just come up, and as with most mornings she was up earlier, even before the rooster cackled signifying the start of the day. Today wasn't like most days, for she had a reason to be up with the chickens. Her brother's wedding was to take place that day, not only his wedding but the wedding of her best friend Eloise. She never thought her brother was worthy of her friend, but Eloise's heart was set on the young man. Zorell, more than anyone else, approved of the marriage and not because their families had been close for more than a generation, but because there was real love between the two of them.
She rose out of bed and grabbed her robe off the chair that sat near her bed. She slipped it on and walked over to her mirror. Her long chestnut hair was in disarray with her curls lying wildly over her shoulder. She ran a brush through her hair just as she heard a rapping at her door. Still with the brush in her hand, she stomped over to the door knowing already who was on the other side.
She opened the door holding up the brush like a weapon. The person on the other side had a shocked look on their face. There was anger in her eyes as she opened her mouth to speak.
"Devlin Dupree, what do you think you're doing?" she asked, holding onto the brush so tight her knuckles were turning white. She glared at the tall young man of twenty-four years. He had the same chestnut brown hair she did, but his eyes were a dark brown as opposed to her violet orbs.
"I was just making sure you didn't oversleep," he said, putting his hands in front of him in surrender.
"I never oversleep," she said, taking the brush and making a stroke through her hair. "You, dear brother, are a different story. Eloise would never forgive you if either of us if we were late to the wedding."
"I would never be late to my wedding," Devlin said as he closed the door to his sister's bedroom. "Eloise might change her mind." Zorell saw the frightened look in her brother's eyes and chuckled at the thought. Not a very lady-like thing to do, but she never put on the niceties where Devlin was concerned.
"Dev, look at the reality of that thought," Zorell said as she stood in front of her mirror and continued to work on her hair. "If she hasn't come to her senses by now, she never will."
"Zo," he said, using the shortened version of her name. "Don't say things like that, or she just might."
Zorell burst out laughing and then threw the brush at him. It nearly hit him, but he managed to dodge the near hit. She couldn't stop laughing even though the horrified look on his face would not fade away. "Oh, Dev, I'm sorry," she said, still trying to contain the laughter in her voice. "You should know my temper by now."
"I keep forgetting that you're not a lady," Devlin said, which brought fire into her eyes. She picked up the brush from off the floor, but he dashed out the door and closed it a second before the object smashed into it.
She was angry over the fact that he would say such a thing, even if it was true. After all, she was raised in a house of boys, so naturally there was little chance that she was in fact a true lady, at least not the type of lady her father would approve of.
She finished dressing, putting on a morning frock. It was a simple light blue dress with a transparent white overlay. It would have been quite drab if not for the orchids embroidered on the front near the waist and at the bottom of the skirt. Eloise's mother Loraine Freeman made it for her for her birthday the year before.
Zorell was to be the maid of honor at the wedding, and her soon to-be sister-in-law had her dress ready and waiting at her father's estate where the wedding was taking place. She was glad that Eloise planned the wedding the summer after her graduation from nursing school. If it had been scheduled before, she may not have been able to attend much less serve as the maid of honor.
Eloise had been her best friend since they were children, and she had never let Zorell down. This was her way of paying her back for her devotion. After all the trouble she had brought her way, she would owe her for the rest of her life.
She had the radio playing while she was getting dressed when her favorite song burst out of the speaker. It was a tune called After You've Gone. Her father hated it, so naturally she loved it. She hummed along with the music while she put on a pair of white shoes that was adorned with a simple gold clasp. They were the fanciest pair she owned, and she usually only wore them on Sundays, but today was a special occasion.
She was soon dressed, but again her hair was a mess. So, she ran a comb through it again and put on some makeup. She made a point of wearing it as often as she could, especially around her father. He would often call her one of the painted ladies of the night, which made her laugh. She hadn't even been courted by anyone in all her twenty years. She had been the attraction of several young men since her early teens, but her father forbade any interaction that would be seen as courting. He was old fashioned in every way, but it went beyond that. It seemed to her that he didn't want her to be happy, so she made it her mission in life to shock him in any way possible.
She laughed at the notion that her father hated everyone and everything he disapproved of. For him appearances were everything, but she learned from him above all else that appearances can be deceiving. His intolerance led her on the opposite path. She would accept people for who they were despite of what the outside world's perception of them was.
After she was satisfied with the way she looked, she slipped on a pair of powder blue lace gloves that matched her dress perfectly. She then picked up her handbag and exited her bedroom. She walked down the hallway only to bump into a hearty man wearing a dark gray suit. Damon Dupree was always dapper no matter what time of day it was.
"Good morning, Father," she said in the most formal of manners.
He stared her up and down with his usual disapproving expression. "You don't plan on leaving this house looking like that?"
"How I look is my business, Father," she said and was about to walk away from him, but he blocked her path. "Let me pass."
"Not until you go to your room and change out of that dress and wipe that paint off your face," he said insistently, but she stood defiant.
"I will not," she said and refused to back down from him. She looked towards the stairs leading to the first floor of the house and took a step forward, but her father grabbed her gloved hand.
"You will do as you're told," he barked out with a look of contempt on his face.
She tried to break free, but he had a tight hold on her. "Let go of me!" she shouted. She stared him down without fear, and he suddenly released her.
"What's going on?" Zorell heard the voice of her brother Devlin from behind her. She turned to see the concerned look in his eyes. She glanced back over towards her father who looked quite stoic.
"It's nothing, my son," he said, and the apathetic look he held so long transformed into a smile, although a forced one. "It was just a little disagreement."
He approached Devlin and embraced him. Zorell looked on for a moment and saw her brother glance towards her. She turned and swiftly walked down the stairs, no longer being able to stomach the scene. Once she reached the bottom she ran towards the front door and grabbed her gray knit jacket off the coat rack and ran out of the house. Before she walked off the porch, she heard her brother calling out her name. She ignored his call and instead ran towards his car.
I have more coming, so if you like this story please comment below.
