If Things Should Stay the Same

Chapter 2: Embarrassed

"Presenting the heir of the Garnier family! Alexander Lyle Garnier!" the voice boomed from the speakers, followed by a crowd's energetic applause.

He sighed in annoyance at the generic announcement that always happened during his family's parties. The spotlights then all focused on him, forcing him to feign a smile as he waved and nodded at the throng of visitors gathered in the ballroom.

From the overlooking balcony, he could see the many faces who came in for the party this night with a lot of them appearing to be in their late thirties to early forties, possibly his parents' friends and employees wanting to wish him a warm welcome on his return. There were some guests in their late teens to early twenties wearing suits and dresses that competed with their older fellows. Grouped up in clusters at the walls, one of them seemed oddly familiar to Alex.

A young man of slim stature, his brown hair neatly styled, his face obscured by a small butterfly-themed mask, it was difficult discern his real identity. Although wearing similar shades of green with the people he was talking with, he did not look like he was enjoying their company, looking more interested at his own wristwatch.

"Hey, you're supposed to go down there to meet with the guests." Joshua whispered to his ear as if reading his mind, jolting him out of his inner thoughts.

"Right," Alex replied, trying not to sound surprised as he made his way to the staircase at the end of the balcony.

Trailed by his personal butler and friend, he descended the flight of steps on the side opposite the wall, trying his best to maintain his poise and ignore the intense glare of the lights focusing on his face. He could barely see what he was stepping on without squinting. As he neared the last few steps, he failed to look at where he placed his foot and felt the sole of his shoe slip on the tiles.

Feeling his center of gravity shifting from his feet, he knew he was going to slip and fall in front of a large crowd. While he had slipped and even fallen flat on his face numerous times before, he had never done so during one of his parents' parties. Occasions on which he had to conduct himself flawlessly as the perfect child of the family, always in perfect manners, looks and composure. An epitome of the old-fashioned ideals of the prim and proper firstborn child in a wealthy family.

He could not watch this. He was going to be a laughingstock by tomorrow. He could imagine his parents' expressions at breakfast in the morning – a mix of mortified embarrassment and regretful disappointment.

Eighteen years of reputation and incessant training going down the drain. He braced himself for a possible roll before the impact. He knew his body could take the physical consequences of the fall but he was not so sure if he had anything could mentally prepare him for what was about to happen.

He then felt a pair of hands strongly gripping him from his underarms. That was not enough to stop him from losing his balance as he continued to stagger forwards. One of the grips then moved to just a little bit under his buttocks. The change was so fast that he felt it was instantaneous.

Before he knew it, he was completely off his feet.

"Catching our young sir is his personal butler, Joshua Ezekiel Hughes! An excellent display of reaction time, strength and elegance," the same male emcee continued, his voice sounding a bit crackly in the speakers. "One of the finest companions employed under the Garnier family, who knew a person so young possesses such caliber of skills and qualities?"

Once again, a lively round of applause resonated throughout the room. He could not tell if they were clapping at his apparent rescue from possible injury or at the first formal introduction of his butler who had been behind him anyway.

He looked at Joshua's unreadable facial expression, carrying him as if he weighed nothing more than a feather. For one quick moment, he thought he saw Joshua sneak a glance at him and winked. He felt his cheeks grow hot and his heart pounding in his chest like he had just sprinted three straight blocks.

This was the definition of embarrassing, he thought. Slipping on such an occasion, then being caught and held like a delicate damsel-in-distress in clichéd movies. Making things worse was that unexpected reaction he had when he saw Joshua smiling as he carried him. Maybe he was just overreacting and possibly overthinking, he mused to himself.

He took a deep breath, silently thanking Joshua who gently set him down on the ground. His parents were the first to break through the crowd of visitors and rushed to his side, their faces visibly stricken with worry. They immediately put their palms on his forehead, then the backs of their hands on his neck before letting out a big exhale simultaneously and hugged him.

"I'm fine, really. There's nothing to worry about," he began to explain as his parents gradually loosened him from their tight embrace.

Whispers from their guests started to fill the air which, compared to moments ago, was still and quiet filled with petrifying anticipation of a mishap. Some expressed a bit of curiosity, others simply felt relief, a few were still a bit anxious, and there were those who let their imagination slowly grow wild probably after one taste too many of fine liquor.

"What happened?"

"What do you think caused it?"

"Is he okay? Like, a hundred-and-two percent okay?"

"Maybe someone spilled a drink on the stairs? That's why it was slippery?"

"What about a leak? But that would be unheard of."

"Thank god, nothing bad happened. I suppose it's time to enjoy the celebration?"

Some of the younger ladies turned their attention towards Joshua and pointed fingers at him, concealing their giggling amidst the others' whispers. Alex could not understand his growing irritation at being able to pick their statements out from the rest but the very notion of someone else getting all googly-eyed over Joshua somehow was getting him worked up again.

"Oh, that Joshua looks so dreamy. I can almost imagine him carrying me off to a date in a beach!"

"He may not look like it but he's definitely like the prince in shining armor type of guy."

"I wonder if he's dating anyone. I can totally use a man like him. Even if only it's on his days-off."

Just then, from the back of the room, someone – presumably one of the older visitor's kids – shouted, causing silence to take over the rest of the guests. "Why is your face red?" The question resonated in the room.

Having the feeling that the entire room was staring at him, Alex wiped the sweat off his brow with a handkerchief procured from his pocket. He cleared his throat before replying, trying to sound calm despite the obnoxious nature of the question. "Well, you see, I was and would have fallen. I'm still a little shaken is all."

As another round of whispers gradually began to erupt, the emcee announced that the visitors were now allowed to proceed to help themselves on the buffet tables laid out at the center of the room while a performance by a hired dance troupe would serve as their first sample of entertainment for the night.

Alex gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, making his way down the stairs with Joshua following closely behind. He made up his mind that the parents of that brat needed to be banned from any future parties. Such behavior was a sign of negligent parenting and should never be tolerated in formal gatherings.

He also needed to talk to his father about this new emcee. While the quick diversion of attention towards the food and dancing performers was much appreciated to stop any ridiculous on-the-spot questioning of tonight's mishap, that commentary provided about him being saved by Joshua was ridiculous and downright embarrassing. The visitors might have reacted in awe at the whole scene but there was no need for any further mentioning of the incident. Not an explanation and not a stupid praise for his butler.

He sighed, thinking that this was going to be one long night. He just wanted this to be over as soon as possible.