Wolfie joined the family during dinner that night, although he was very quiet. He ate slowly, like he was already tired. One of the the younger cousins noted that he was acting similar to Titus, who also seemed rather sluggish.
Penny slowly turned her gaze to her mother, silently questioning.
"I know what you're thinking, and no, I did not put anything in his drink!" Grandma Carol said.
"Just what kind of person do you think I am?"
The couple and Wolfie turned in soon after finishing dinner. Titus remembered Grant, right before he clocked out, warned him that considering how big of a batch of treats he made, he was going to feel it soon after.
"Doesn't matter how much muscles you have, unless your body has been conditioned to the routine the same way mine has, you are going to soon realize how much you overexerted yourself my boy!"
Titus said goodnight to him, not thinking much of it.
That night, Rosary listened to Titus ramble to her about the day he spent with chef Grant, who he considers a new friend. As they were getting ready for bed Rosary smiled and nodded, listening to him talk about how Grant was at first just leaving him be and baking.
The muffins impressed him at first, especially with the amount he made. Titus got to know the other staff better because of the breakfast treats. It wasn't until he then told Grant that he also knew how to make other pastries, which is when Grant began paying more attention.
He helped the chef finish his grandmother's lunch before getting a hand in making the macarons, along with the crust for the tarts, and the cream filling for the eclairs.
"I never realized how much I ignored how food was made! Grant really expected me to accidentally start a fire, but he humored me anyway." He said as he sat at the edge of the bed, ruffling and smoothing Wolfie's fur.
The furry companion sat beside him and also seemed to be patiently listening, wagging his tail. Rosary checked the thermostat in the room whilst brushing her hair.
"Seems like he had a soft spot, since he knew you since you were a kid." Rosary finished brushing her hair, all dressed in her sleepwear.
She placed the brush on the table, next to her hair tie.
Titus got up and pulled the curtains closed, blocking their view from the pure, white snow outside. In a way, that made the room feel warmer. He pulled the blanket over as he got in bed beside her. Wolfie hopped up to lay right at their feet. His weight as he plopped down was heavy, letting them know how tired he was from the day. That, or he was feeling a food coma from the baked treats that Titus made specifically for him.
The man had also, incidentally taught chef Grant how to dog friendly pastries, and had also fed some treats to Wolfie on the side.
"Yeah, but this is the first time I've gotten to know him since, my entire life!" He shook his head as he reflected on his old memories.
"I, don't know why..."
"Things change, and you, I can guess that you changed a lot." She reached out for his face, turning his head to face her.
"You are so different from your relatives, that sometimes it's hard to remember that you grew up with them."
"Well, I did have a very humbling life experience." He shrugged.
He then shook his head again as they laid down, Titus extending his arm out for Rosary to rest her head on as he pulled her close.
"But enough about me. How was your day? What did my brother do?"
"He just, had us follow your dad around town, and he was clearly keen about finding something on him, but I don't think he ever found it. He kinda gave up, and that's why we ended up coming back way before your father and uncle."
"Why would he give up halfway?" Titus frowned.
"He's stubborn, and always finds a way to figure out what he wants, one way or another."
Rosary, for a minute, looked away, feeling guilty, especially as Titus was holding her.
"I, I kept wondering, why your mother invited us here. She gains nothing from us, and clearly I don't think you can go back to being the one to inherit the family company, since Atticus is still the one being referred to as the heir. So, I asked him."
"Like, outright?"
"No, it began when we were watching a movie. It was a play at the town theatre, a stage version of the 'Ghost of Christmas Past'. I may have, compared him to Scrooge?"
Titus wheezed, softly laughing, his shoulders shaking. Rosary gently smacked his chest.
"Don't laugh! It was a serious conversation!" She whisper-yelled.
"Sorry- but you compared him to Scrooge!" He huffed in between giggles.
Rosary was just about to retort, and to tell him the rest of what she found out about his brother, but looking at his face filled with laughter and relaxation, made her want to push it aside for now. Today was his day and she wanted him to feel this happy for just a bit longer. He hadn't been this happy ever since they came to this mansion of a cabin.
"Your cousin seemed interested in baking, did you see his face when he saw all that you and chef Grant made?"
"I did! But I don't think he has an interest in baking. I think he might just like sweets, like my uncle and dad."
"No, he's interested. I remember seeing him check out the baking items in an antique store."
"... You were in an antique store?"
She paused, blinking.
"Wait, I remember you came back with a bag in hand. Did you buy some cookware from the store?"
She turned to face the other way, back to him as she refused to answer, already realizing too late that she may have said too much. Titus tried to look at her face over her shoulder, patting her shoulder.
"Hey. Wait- tell me!" He whispered as he tried to get her to speak again.
Wolfie huffed, not fully asleep yet.
"Was it something for baking? Is it a hand mixer? A butter churner? An antique juicer? Please tell me it's that, I hate the plastic ones at the store. I just know I'm gonna break them and I can't use the lime squeezer because the juice just goes everywhere. Hey, Rose. Rosie. You didn't wrap it up already, did you?"
"Go to sleep my love." She huffed, covering her ears and closed her eyes.
"Aww, I'm not seeing the bag anywhere in the room, did you give it to a servant to wrap up? You did that with the other things you bought too." He said as he scanned the room.
"Titus."
Wolfie let out an irritated bark, lifting up his head at him.
"I'm going to sleep." He gave up.
He reached over her carefully, turning off the lamp on the night stand and checked both their phones. Wolfie laid his head back down, huffing once more.
"Goodnight, I'm gonna find out soon!" He told her.
"Goodnight." She turned her head at last, at least to give him a goodnight kiss and to pull the blanket fully over his shoulder.
Thankfully, in the morning after, Titus would forget to ask about what she bought.
Both of them were slow thinkers in the morning. Knowing this, Rosary left herself with a note in her phone to read when she woke up.
It was the third day. Two more days until Christmas, and Rosary wanted to get all presents wrapped up and put beneath the tree. She isn't sure if they really will be here for Christmas day, but still, the current gift box they arrived with did not feel enough for her. Regardless of the people, she still wanted to give each of them a gift, at least something that each one would actually like.
She turned over after turning off the alarm on her phone to check on the two. Titus and Wolfie groaned from the alarm.
The still tired man threw an arm over his face, covering his eyes. The arm muscle it took to make those pastries last night were finally catching up to him, as he woke up feeling very sore.
"Wanna stay in bed today?" Rosary caressed his face.
"Yes..." He groaned, taking hold of her hand to keep it against his face.
"But I get the strangest feeling that you're gonna leave me alone in bed for some reason."
"You won't be alone, you have Wolfie."
"Wolfie can't kiss me the way you can, and I need a lot today because I'm sore and my arms and legs hurt." He playfully whined.
Rosary huffed, shifting to sit on her knees, and moving Titus' head to lay in her lap. She bent down to kiss his his forehead after moving his arm out of the way.
Wolfie got up soon after, trotting closer to his two loved ones before plopping down again, resting his head on the man's stomach. Titus let out a mixture between a laugh and a groan upon feeling his weight, and weakly moved a hand up to stroke the dog's head.
"Well, I feel bad for leaving you, if that's the case, but I still have to go. I have something I need to do today."
He pouted but let her go.
"Will you at least tell me what it is you're going off to do?"
"You'll find out soon." She told him quietly, gently patting his face and encouraging him to sleep more if he wanted.
Wolfie certainly seemed like he wanted to sleep more, letting out a soft yawn.
"Give me one more kiss please."
He raised his head just enough so she could give him a peck on the lips, and then Rosary turned to give Wolfie a kiss on the head.
"Watch over your daddy." She told him, stroking the fur on his head.
The dog let out a soft huff, closing his eyes again.
Rosary finally left the bed and got dressed, putting on a winter dress with a plaid design and a turtleneck that had a wider girth, giving her neck some comfortable room. Titus weakly waved to her as she left the room with only her phone in hand, and her brown hair flowing and wavy as it wasn't braided this time.
She walked down the stairs, noticing how no one else was awake yet, or at least, if they were, so far nobody was in the living room. Right as the young woman got down to the first floor, she searched for the library, trying to remember which corridor it was in. When she gave the bags to the servants to hide away, they showed her to the library and where the items would be hidden. Since this was her first time going to the library alone, the path was less easy to remember.
This was how she ended up getting caught off guard, startled by the last person she expected to be awake.
"Now then, where are you headed so early in the morning dear?" Grandma Carol asked, hair curlers still in her hair, and a red velvet shawl with fur lining, draped over her shoulders.
She had both hands folded, resting on the top of her walking cane.
"You scared me." Rosary muttered, hand on her chest.
If she had pearls, she'd be clutching them.
Rosary then quickly cleared her throat.
"I'm trying to find the library, but I think I'm lost. Would you mind, showing me how to get there please?"
Carol laughed softly, turning around and waving for Rosary to follow.
"Sure thing dear, but in exchange, you will be showing me what secret you're going to the library for."
"H-how did you-"
"I'm old, dear! And still kicking! You don't get to my age without picking up how to read people. And you've got a little secret."
As a fair trade for guiding her to the library, Rosary led her to the secret hiding spot, the old cabinets of the desk that hardly anyone touches, because everyone assumes it's only decorative. And due to the design of the desk, it's easy to forget that there are cabinet doors on both sides. This is because the handles tend to blend in with the rest of the decorative carvings.
Rosary took out her phone and was just about to play the video she recorded, where the servants showed her how to unlock the little doors, until Grandma Carol interrupted her. She instead told her to follow exactly the instructions she was about to give, unable to do it herself due to her knees.
"Find the carved out design of a heart, right in the middle, the one surrounded by a perfect circle of little stars. Goodness it's hard to see the grooves now, but I'm sure you can find it. After that- you're on the left side of the desk- search for the star in the right center, next to the heart. Now, you need both hands, turn the heart to the right, your right, and then pull the little star, left."
The cabinet door clicked open, revealing the still bagged items inside. Rosary memorized and followed the same instructions for the other cabinet on the right side.
"I came here with a gift, but of course, after spending some time here, it felt very inadequate. So I went and bought some better ones."
Carol shook her head as she took each bag, one by one, placing them on top of the desk table.
"Now why would you feel the need to do that? You've seen the great big tree, in the other room, it has plenty of presents underneath for everyone. I highly doubt they'll show any appreciation for yours, even if they are perfectly chosen for each member."
"That may be true, but it's the thought that counts. At least for me. Sure, they may not appreciate it as much, but it puts me at ease to know that at least I tried... And besides, if we do end up staying for Christmas day, I don't want any of them to try and step over us by pointing out how I barely brought any presents."
"Good point!" Carol let out a small chuckle
Along with the bags hidden inside the cabinet, Rosary also took out some rolls of new wrapping paper, bows, and tape, all still with plastic wrapping, showing that they were bought recently.
Grandma Carol helped her wrap up the presents as they sat together and chatted.
Meanwhile, back in his room, Titus was groaning and suffering from pain.
There came a knock at the door, prompting Wolfie to raise his head. He sniffed the air and started wagging his tail, getting up off of Titus and trotting over to the door.
"Mr. Titus? I came to start cooking breakfast and thought I'd check on you." Grant's voice spoke, muffled behind the door.
Titus barely lifted his head before telling the chef to go ahead and come in.
Grant walked in to see the man laying stiffly on the bed. He wheezed and tried his best to hold back his laughter as he set down the tray of hot chocolate that he brought for him and Rosary.
"You were right, I can really feel it. And I almost regret everything." Titus said as he opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling.
"And to think, you were even about to consider making croissants!" Grant laughed, sitting at the edge of the bed.
"Now that, you definitely would've regretted. All those layers of dough to spread butter over and roll out! After having stirred multiple batches for the eclairs!"
"Oh please don't make me think about that. I told myself that I didn't need to use the stand mixer, but it was only because the stand mixer scares me." The man tossed an arm back over his face.
"Where is your partner?"
"She went somewhere to do something secretive. Said that I'd find out later. I think she's wrapping up a new baking tool for me."
Chef Grant envied Titus for his relationship.
Being a chef who worked for a high class restaurant, and then seasonally as a personal chef for a rich family, he didn't exactly have time for a relationship. Thankfully, as long as he could do what he loved, and have all the ingredients and materials needed to cook any dish he wanted, he was satisfied enough.
Grant then rang for a servant, using the intercom box beside the door. Every room had one, and it was a recent installment just a couple years ago. He ordered for the maid to search for Rosary and to bring her the cup he made for her, then he eventually managed to help get Titus to sit up and drink some of his own cup.
There was a large milk bone biscuit on the tray, sitting in a dog bowl. Titus got up and picked up the bowl, kneeling down to place it on the floor for Wolfie, not wanting his friend to have to kneel down, not knowing how well his knees were.
"Say, I don't think I asked, since it was never my business to pry into your personal life."
"How did Rosary and I end up together, when it's only been a year since I got out of prison?" Titus guessed, having heard the question plenty already.
He had already told a summary of his story to others.
"Well, that's not necessarily what I was wondering. I've heard a bit from the other staff members. Gossip spreads in this place as you know, but I was mostly wondering how your life had been after prison. When you got out." Grant asked in a cautious tone, bringing up a serious thought.
"Oh!" Titus straightened up, now sitting at the edge of the bed beside his friend.
Grant folded his hands politely.
"Life for an ex-convict is not easy to put back together after have spent years on prison. at least not for those who do not have any support, financial backing, family or friends. Of course, your family did not reach out, and I never knew what happened between you and your friends, after all, I'm not that familiar with most events in your life. The only information I have about you is from the yearly events where I come to cook for your family, and in the past six years, I didn't see you around."
"I understand. And, you're probably wondering how I managed to get a job, a girlfriend, and a life of my own? Well, I did receive a lot of help."
"Yes, but, how? Please don't take this to mean that I am disbelieving of all your accomplishments."
Titus squinted at him suspiciously with a grin.
"Do you have a friend or family who's in prison?"
"Oh no no! Not that!" Grant smacked his thigh, laughing. The crows feet around his eyes became visible and added a delightful joy to his face.
"It's just nice to get to know the well-being of a new friend, and well, you're clearly too tired to cook now!"
"Hey! I can still cook! I'm the one who cooks dinner at home every night!"
"Titus, back when you were younger, you could throw a football and play with your cousins and siblings, only to retire to your room soon after. How you got to be this tall? I always guessed that it was the semi-hibernation you would do every December, or so I've heard from the other staff. And in prison, I expected that you likely did lots of studying instead of exercise. That's my only idea to how you could've began taking up baking." Grant shook his head at him.
Out of stubbornness to defend his pride, and remembering that laying in bed all day will not help his fatigue, Titus got up, and he, Grant, and Wolfie, headed down to the kitchen. He decided to help his friend with breakfast, even though Grant insisted that he could do the breakfast orders on his own.
"You are insulting me by implying I cannot do my job, either because of my age or because you think you can do better than me."
"I never implied any of that!" Titus retorted, before reluctantly sitting at the bar of the kitchen island, watching chef Grant work.
The old man set a plate down in front of him, containing a couple neatly placed slices of meatloaf. Next to it were some peas and paired with the dish was a cup of juice.
"Something to help restore your energy. The peas are good fiber, and any pure meat is too heavy right now."
The young man smiled at the chef, watching as he even gave an extra milk bone to Wolfie, solely so that Titus wouldn't have to eat alone as the chef worked. He took his fork, cutting and picking a slice of the meatloaf. It was a light kind of savory, a soft texture, and warmed him up from the inside out as soon as he popped it into his mouth. He closed his eyes briefly in bliss.
"So," He lightly tapped his fork against the plate.
Titus watched as Grant still managed to work quickly, preparing each of the orders, placing the plates on the counters for every maid or butler to pick up and take away.
"It's a really long story. I don't know how best to explain it without making you have more questions. I moved in with Rosary as soon as I got out- which, I know sounds pretty questionable. I mean that's a pretty sketchy and naive thing to do- but we knew each other for two years already before I got out and she asked me if I wanted to stay with her- and I'm pretty sure it was because something or someone suddenly made her feel unsafe-" He began rambling.
Grant was watching over a pot, carefully making oatmeal as he patiently listened.
"You should finish your breakfast before you start rambling." He gently advised.
Their light banter of conversation was barely audible outside of the kitchen.
Still, Rosary had a feeling that two people were there, especially as she walked into the living room just in time to notice a servant coming and going from the kitchen.
Carol put a hand on her shoulder, reminding Rosary of what they were doing, their arms filled with recently wrapped presents.
They continued on to the drawing room where the Christmas tree was.
The star nearly reached the ceiling surface, with garlands, fairy lights, and glass ornaments decorating the upper half. The lower half had the little ornament bulbs that were filled with pictures of each of the family members.
Rosary was surprised to see one of Titus, and she turned to look at Carol, who nodded.
"I put that there. I may no longer run the family business, but my word still matters here."
"This family is so strange."
"it wasn't at all what my husband and I thought this family would turn into." Carol shook her head, disappointed.
Rosary put each of the presents down, one by one, and then Carol gingerly took her wrist, leading her to one of the photos that hung on the wall.
It was an old photo, one that had Carol sitting in her usual rocking chair, smiling at the camera. Beside her was an old man sitting in a less aged version of the loveseat recliner, also smiling at the camera. The chairs were placed much closer together as the old man held Carol's hand.
He was dressed in red clothing just like her, a Santa hat on his head, and with a long beard on his chin.
Rosary stared with wide eyes.
"My husband, Nathaniel, thought the fake beard would be a funny addition to the photo. And I still think he was right!"
"He seems nice."
"Of course he was! And such a delightful man!" Carol smiled.
"Back then, my husband used to work in carpentry, and I as a nanny. One day, when I was pregnant with our first child, he noticed how much of a difficult time I had getting up out of my chair. He made a chair in his shop, the most comfortable I ever sat in!"
"Is that the rocking chair in the photo?" Rosary pointed up to the chair that she guessed.
Carol shook her head.
"No, it's actually in a glass case at one of our first ever furniture stores. Other people eventually learned about the chair he made for me, and next thing we knew, he was getting so many orders for his furniture designs!"
The old woman sighed, smiling as she briefly closed her eyes, thinking about the happy memories.
"The inspiration for his designs came from his love for family time, and of course, back in our day, family time used to mean something. Something significant. Parents teaching the children life lessons that was too informal and vague to be taught in school, talking. Even when Nathaniel grew his simple carpentry shop into a large company, he always made time to come back home, just in time for dinner!"
"That sounds like such a sweet thing to do."
Carol chuckled, blushing at the memory.
"Do your parents also love each other?"
She cleared her throat awkwardly, finding the proper and polite words. Rosary looked up at the photo again, one of a happy, elderly couple, who still seemed to love each other despite likely having been married for years. Something very rare to her.
"I, I don't know." She stammered.
"Why not?"
Rosary led her to one of the cushioned seats surrounding the tree. there were several benches around it, like a circle for everyone to get a picture perfect view of the presents. Also several perfect spots for the kids to sit at the tree, unwrapping gifts as the parents sat right in front of them, watching their reactions as they were in perfect alignment with the camera.
"My parents were- they tolerated each other I think? I'm, not sure. I know that I must give off this impression that I came from a cheerful family but, really, it's all just my wishful acting. I don't think they loved each other, and only stayed together for stability or whatnot. Looking back, sometimes it makes me worried that Titus and I are only together because we have no one else. I mean, I didn't want to say it before but, I'm quite envious of everything her. My family's holidays were rather quiet, and we didn't have grand traditions like this." She waved her hand up, referring to the grand tree.
"You've been with us for three days now. Do you honestly think grand decorations such as these are a good example of how close our family is?"
The young woman awkwardly shook her head no.
"No, not at all, if anything, I think a lot of things about this family are oddly superficial. N-not that I'm trying to say you all seem like bad people! But well-"
Carol waved off her rambling, brushing it off.
"I know what you're trying to say. Our children, did not turn out the way we expected. But, it's not too late to have at least some of them become good people eventually." She smiled at Rosary, referring to Titus and his change in character.
Unbeknownst to them, Atticus had peeked into the room, staring at them for a moment, holding up a phone.
He swiftly and silently left, clutching his phone tightly.
Atticus made his way upstairs, looking around to see who else was awake, or more looking for any prying eyes. He went to his bedroom and quickly sat at his desk, turning on his desktop.
The video he recorded of Rosary speaking with Carol was stored to his cloud, and logging into his cloud through his desktop, his fingers flew across the keyboard. Shaving off certain seconds of the video, he edited the recording in a way to make it seem as though Rosary was saying nothing but insults and negative comments.
He smiled to himself, holding back a yawn.
In his bedroom, he had his desktop setup, his bed that was already made before the servants could check, so that the servants will gossip about how he always keeps his room clean without help. Next to his computer desk was a book shelf that faces the doorway, blocking any would-be visitor from a part of his room.
Behind that bookshelf was a vanity table of his own, only less decorative and less grand.
It had a medium size mirror, and a single drawer. Sitting on that table was foundation and a makeup blender. Atticus didn't have any makeup on right now, as evidenced by the dark circles under his eyes.
He finished up editing the video, smiling and about laughing to himself.
On his computer was a list of compiled photos, voice recordings, and videos. Recordings in every form of Rosary and Titus, anything he could get his hands on.
He started the printer, getting ready to get the photos out as he then began to freshen up. Nobody was allowed in his room during the early mornings, that was when he was his busiest, preparing everything in place to keep up his golden boy persona.
There was even a reef on his door, and some minor holiday decorations that he himself placed around his room. Another thing to make him seem as though he was just a swell guy. It takes preparation each day to maintain the image of himself that he controls, and he can't have anyone see him when he's not ready. Ever.
"What do you think you're doing, Ticky?"
But Paris can.
He jumped out of his seat, turning to see his younger sister leaning against the doorway that he forgot to close all the way. She was wearing a leopard print robe with fur lining, arms crossed, eye mask on her forehead as she gave him a judgemental stare, looking him up and down, and then to his laptop.
"Paris. I would appreciate if you didn't barge into my room without knocking." Atticus smiled through gritted teeth, stealthily putting his makeup away.
Paris looked down at her feet, seeing that she was still standing behind the threshold line, feet behind the carpet of his room. Not on but right by the line.
She looked back up, keeping eye contact with him as she slowly raised her fist to his door and with the back of her hand-
Knock, knock, knock.
"There."
"You know that's not what I meant you brat!" Atticus hissed.
Paris only smirked before stepping inside.
"There we go! That's the oddball I know! Drop your freaky class president, model student, bright-eyed smile act."
"Is there anyone with you?" He asked as he looked outside his bedroom door before looking back at her.
He practically tossed himself over at his printer as soon as he saw her looking at it.
"What the heck is this?" She knitted her brows together, barely moving the mouse and clicking to a different browser.
"None of your busin- I mean concern!" He covered the screen with his hands.
"Did you connect your computer to the cameras around the mansion?" She pushed his face and thus, his arms away from the screen.
On his computer screen, on the browser that she had just clicked, there were several screens shown of different rooms throughout the house.
Even the ones with Titus speaking and rambling to chef Grant as he stroked Wolfie's fur, and the one with Rosary helping Grandma Carol up the stairs.
Groaning internally to himself, Atticus quickly took the photos that were blown up and printed, hiding and tossing them somewhere else. After that, he went to pry his sister away from his desktop.
"I told you! It's none of your concern!" He grabbed her by shoulders, trying to shove her out of his room.
"Hey!" She wrestled out of his grip.
Unlike Atticus who was scowling and wrestling to get Paris out, Paris was grabbing his face and pinching the skin on the backs of his hands to get him to let go. Her eyes were glued to the screen, specifically the ones with Titus and Rosary in them.
"Is Grandma giving Rosary a tour of the place? I know Titus didn't do that, he definitely forgot the layout of this place. Aunt Josephine told me about how he had difficulty finding the library."
"Shut up! She's not giving that woman a tour- that woman is trying to curry favor with Grandma! I just know it!" Atticus said through her hand as she kept pushing him away.
"That's doesn't look like that on the cameras- hey let go!"
Atticus pulled on her hair once.
She turned around and slapped him, prying her eyes away from the computer.
On the screens, Titus was rambling to chef Grant about his situation while Rosary was telling Carol of her family situation. Her and Carol ended up in the playroom, where Grandma was explaining how she got it turned into a playroom in the first place, showing all the interesting, modern toys she chose to have it filled with.
"I do wonder, Titus used to seem like such a lazy boy, barely remembering to clean his room every time he came home on break from college. And he used to dream about driving a sports car, he snacked on chicken tenders, and dressed in a sweatshirt and sweatpants on off days." Carol reminisced as they explored the room.
"Be honest with me, how much of a mess was he when he first moved in with you?"
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