Love Is Not a Choice

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen:Three Unexpected Guests
The ride to Master Ciel's London townhouse was relatively quiet. There was the occasional bump as Mr. Michaelis drove the carriage across rocky roads, and the quiet mutter of a disgruntled young Earl could occasionally be heard, but other than that it was seemingly peaceful.

You sighed as the carriage went over yet another bump in the road, shaking the carriage a little. Master Ciel didn't seem affected, however, if the almost bored look on his face was anything to go by. Well, I'm glad to say I'm not the only one bored them, you thought as you sneaked a quick glance at the Earl out of the corner of your eye, before looking back outside.

You were so very bored, having been in this carriage for an hour now, and all you've had to do is stare outside, watch as the world passes you by in a blurring mixture of earthly and dull colours. Master Ciel had spoken once, but that was at the very beginning of the ride, to explain where exactly you were going, and then everything was silent. It had been peaceful, at the beginning, but then after ten minutes of just utter silence, you had grown bored. You had tried to entertain yourself with fiddling with your thumbs, playing a silent, one-player game of thumb war, but a quick glance over from the young Master made you stop.

Another bump, and then suddenly the carriage was slowing until it stopped fully. Master Ciel blinked once, awaking himself from his thoughtful daydreams, and you resisted the urge to stretch, favouring instead to simply wait until neither Mr. Michaelis or Master Ciel were in your presence.

As the door to the carriage opened, you watched as Master Ciel stood up and carefully stepped out, letting go of Mr. Michaelis' hand the second his feet hit ground. You followed after, taking hold of Mr. Michaelis' hand to carefully step down. Thanking the butler with a gentle smile, you began to walk off, only to pause when you noticed Mr. Michaelis had not let go off your hand.

You turned around, (E/C) eyes wide in curiosity, only to see Mr. Michaelis was staring down at you with those hauntingly familiar eyes of his. Resisting the urge to shiver, you gently gulped, trying to hide the sudden fear you felt (though judging by the way his eyes instantly shot down to your throat, watching as you gulped, you must have failed). Nervous, you chuckled lightly and said, "Mr. Michaelis? Is something the matter?"

He didn't answer, just continued to watch your throat, as if entranced by it. You had to stop yourself from gulping again, and instead began to tug your hand away, suddenly fearful of this once seemingly-innocent butler. Whatever was the matter with him? He has been acting strange recently...

Finally, with a suddenness as if burned, the butler let go of your hand and took a step back, an almost surprised look on his face, only for it to disappear when you blinked but you did not care. The air around you suddenly became almost lighter, and you took a step back. You did not bother to watch as Mr. Michaelis bowed ever-so-slightly, an apology about to escape his lips. You did not stay behind, but instead, turned and simply walked off, following the direction the young Master went in.

You did not bother waiting for him to park the carriage in a neater position, because for some odd reason, when you looked up into those eyes, his grasp seemed to tighten and his eyes held a strange glint to it, a glint that somewhat terrified you more than anything could.

*

It took a little bit of walking, for the closest carriage parking was not really close to the townhouse. However, it didn't take very long, and before you knew it, you and Master Ciel were standing in front of a rather plain-looking townhouse. You didn't know what to expect, but this was quite nice, plain and ordinary, not too small but definitely not too big.

"I hate this. There are too many people in London," Master Ciel suddenly commented, a grumpy tone to his voice as you waited for Mr. Michaelis to open the door. Mr. Michaelis replied with his usual eyes-closed, tight-lipped smile and a gently response of, "There is no helping it, my lord. It's tradition for the nobility to migrate on mass to town from the country every season."

Master Ciel walked in and you followed, instantly finding the house too small, too cramped, when the butler walked in, closing the door behind him. "The season, eh? A waste of time if you ask me." Master Ciel replied causally, though the hint of annoyance was there.

Mr. Michaelis began walking up the stairs, followed closely by Master Ciel and you. As he walked to the desired room, Mr. Michaelis answered, "Getting away from the manor could prove a nice change of pace. It's a break from those four at least. We can enjoy a little peace and quiet for a time."

That seemed to attract Master Ciel, who's eye seemed to light up for a second before going blank once more. You honestly wished that spark came out more, but knew you could not do much. "Some peace and quiet does sound nice."

Honestly, you three should have known peace and quiet does not come easily for the Phantomhive child, and whoever stands around him. Walking onto the landing, you waited as Mr. Michaelis paused in front of a door before opening it once Master Ciel was close by. Opening it, all three of you fully expected there to be nobody inside...so of course there were three.

You watched as Master Ciel abruptly paused in the doorway, the one visible eye wide and angry as he stared into the room. Peering over him, you had to put a hand over your mouth, pretending it was to cough, to prevent the chuckle from emitting.

It would seem Master Ciel wasn't the only one thinking of peace and quiet, if Madame Red and Mr. Sutcliff rummaging through drawers in search of something was anything to go by. There was also a Chinese man, his eyes shut tightly with a rather scantily-clothed woman sat draped in his lap.

You blushed as you witnessed the too-shirt skirt slide upwards when the woman moved a little, revealing a bit of pale thigh. Well, that's certainly one eyeful I hadn't expected to be given, you thought playfully in your mind, chuckling internally.