Attractions and Soldiers (Hamilton Circus!AU)

The Ringmaster - Part II

The following days felt more like decades to Alexander until he finally made to meet Eliza again. He went to her house but froze at the sight of a servant putting bags into a carriage and Eliza quietly standing at the door frame. She wore white gloves and her hands were firmly intertwined in front of her body as she looked at her feet, a big hat hiding her face from Alexander. She also wore a fancy light pink dress with a giant purple ribbon around her waist and white laces in her skirt.

"Eliza hates pink" Was all Alex could think as panic started to invade his body. He was hiding behind a tree on the other side of the street and started to move his arms above his head, a last desperate act to try to make the girl notice him.

Her father showed up behind her and said something, making her look up at him and nod as he disappeared inside the house once again. She signed and turned around, her eyes widening when finally saw Alex.

He waved and gestured her to come closer. Eliza looked around gestured him to wait before she walked into the house. It took a few harrowing minutes before she finally reappeared, running from the backyard. Alex ran to meet her and they hugged each other tightly.

"My father is sending me to a boarding school in England..." She sadly whispered and Alexander felt his heart drop to his stomach "I don't know when I'll be able to come back and see you again..."

Alexander kept quiet for a bit, not sure if he should tell her or not but ended up saying "My mother isn't feeling so good lately, Betsy... I don't know if she... I don't..." He was interrupted by a sob and Eliza caressed his back as he did his best to swallow the tears.

"She will be ok... I am sure you will be too" Eliza said before stepped back and Alex raised an eyebrow. She then raised her hand in a fist, lifting only her pinky finger "Lock it" She ordered and he complied, locking his pinky finger with hers "Doesn't matter what happens, we will send letters to each other until we meet again, ok?"

"Ok" Alex replied with a hoarse voice but tried to smile at her.

"ELIZABETH!" The thundering voice of Eliza's father echoed as he searched for her.

"I needed to go now..." She mourns and Alex sadly nods, looking down at her fancy black doll shoes, and then gasped when felt Eliza kissing his cheek and looked up at her, his mouth hanging open while she shyly smiled "Bye, Lexi"

"Bye... My Betsy" He waved at her and watched as she hopped into the carriage.

...

The Hamilton's illness only got worse as the days passed by. Alexander ended up contracting his mother's disease and they spent days not being even able to leave the bed and feeling killingly body pains, sometimes barely breathing as their lungs felt like it was burning. But the boy miraculously got better a couple of weeks later, to the dismay of his brother. In the meantime, Rachel's health decreased quickly until she was finally gone. In her last moments, she told her boys to be good to each other and stick together, because she knew they would be able to do big things someday. Barely did she know that was right.

The boys wandered around the city for months after they lose their mother and the house, needing to beg for food and money. But even in such miserable state, Alexander never broke his promise to send letters to Eliza and she kept sending hers to his old address, which Alex would wake up before sunrise just to take them before the new residents checked the mailbox.

"I am hungry, James..." Alex quietly complained as his stomach roared out loud, receiving a slap in the back of the head from his brother.

"Then you shouldn't have eaten that bread so quick, dumbass"