65: Sharing Room

Sharing Room

Oriana returned to where the building site was. She found the butler leading Luke and his cousin elsewhere and hurried to follow them. She heard the butler's words just as they arrived in front of a classic-looking country house.  2

"These are the servant quarters. All hired laborers will stay here for the duration of your work, and you will be sharing this house with those who work in the gardens and stables. The maidservants, laundry maids and cooks have their own quarters within the manor. Three meals a day will be provided in the common hall along with the other servants."

Luke looked inside one of the rooms and heard Oriana ask, "That means we are going to stay here?"

Luke's gaze had already observed the workers inside who had finished their meal in the common hall. In one room, there were six beds, which meant six men would live together. 

To keep Orian in a place full of men…never. 

He turned to look at her. "This is my workplace. Stay with Ken."

"But the market is closer here and it's more convenient for me…"

Luke's gaze was cold and serious. It was not a glare per se, but a heavy, commanding look that could make anyone swallow their words. Oriana was not an exception. "Ah, alright. I will stay with your cousin."

The butler then interrupted them, "Young man, since you have seen the place where you will work and also where you will stay, you can just come straight here tomorrow. The master builder will delegate tasks for you. Mister Ken, about the draft you sent last time, you can also discuss the general outline with the master builder. I believe he will be bringing additional furniture makers later once you finalize the plans for the interior.."

Ken nodded. "Thank you. Please give the young lady my regards as well." 

The butler left, and soon Luke, Ken and Oriana walked out of the manor. 

"So you will be staying here and I will be staying at Ken's place?" Oriana made sure. 

Ken spoke up, "Orian, you can stay in my home for as long as you want. Don't worry." Seeing how dark Luke's expression was, Ken didn't dare suggest anything to her otherwise. 

Though Luke was younger than him, Ken felt intimidated by this young cousin of his. 

"I will not cause you any trouble, Ken."

"That I am sure of. Like I said, since you are Luke's friend, then then you are my friend as well," Ken said amicably, patting Oriana on the shoulder like a brother. "In fact, your existence amazes me. I have known Luke since we are children. He never allows anyone to be around him the way he allows you. He is like a recluse who hates people in general. I won't even be surprised if one day, he announces he plans to live as a hermit in the mountains."

"No wonder he has no friends in the village," Oriana remarked as she stifled a laugh. 

"He only gets along with me and my sister. Not to mention peers your age, he can't even get along with the rest of our cousins."

"He is so unsociable, isn't he?"

Ken laughed a little. "That's true."

These two talked about Luke as if he didn't exist at all. Luke frowned, his eyes narrowing at the sight of his cousin patting Oriana's shoulder as the two continued to make fun of him.

"...ha ha, and, and there's more! Even when he was just a little kid—hmm?" Ken looked at the large, calloused  hand grabbing his wrist, pulling his hand away from Oriana's shoulder as if it was something filthy. He heard Luke's low voice say, "How long do you plan to gossip like women?"

Ken was taken aback. His cousin would normally not mind being the butt of a friendly exchange. However, Luke's reaction made him feel like he had done something terribly wrong. 

"Ah, I was just—"

"Hurry up before it gets dark. Ena is waiting at home," Luke said and Ken simply nodded. 

Oriana pursed her lips, but decided to quietly walk with them. 'Eh, did Luke get offended because his cousin is telling me stories about his childhood? This guy is so boring. I guess he did a lot of embarrassing stuff as a kid and did not want his dark history to be known.'

When they reached the outer city, Ena welcomed them home with  a warm meal. The four of them idly chatted while eating.

"...Even if you live with the Ahrens, you can come back here once in a while if you want to," Ken offered his younger cousin. 

"Hmm."

"And don't worry about Orian. Ena will take care of him if he needs anything."

"Hmm."

"Orian will be alright here. Don't worry," Ena said as she served her husband another plate of food. 

"Sister Ena, you are so nice," Orian said but then corrected herself, "Umm, is it alright to call you 'sister'?"

"Of course," the woman assured. 

After eating their fill, the husband and wife went to their room, while Oriana and Luke retired to theirs. 

Luke stared at that small space where the two of them were supposed to sleep, and Oriana was doing the same. Neither of them were moving from their spots.

'I have to sleep wearing my outside clothes again.' She looked down at her chest. 'I thought I'd have the chance to remove my chestwrap after we arrive in Karlin, but with Luke around, I cannot free my chest.' She sighed helplessly. 'How long was the last time I brushed my hair? Now I can't even breathe freely at night. Poor me.' 

As she wallowed in her thoughts, Luke began to spread his own mat and lay on the pillow, closing his eyes as if he could not wait to sleep. Oriana spread her mat next to Luke. There was hardly a foot distance between their makeshift beds.

'It's alright. I even used this guy's arm as a pillow.' 

Oriana had a vague recollection of her nodding off to sleep during their travels, though by the time she woke up, her head was always resting against the frame of the wagon.

Just as she had those thoughts, Luke turned his back at her. 

She stared at that broad back. 'Sometimes, I feel like this guy hates me but most of the time, he takes care of me like a sibling. Not sure what goes in his mind.' She turned her head and faced the ceiling of that dimly lit room. 

'I am not used to sharing a room with others. I have never…' She stopped as she recalled something.  'Oh, except for that one night. If that noble brat was not so stingy to rent another room in that inn, I would not have ended up sleeping with him in the same bed. Anyway, let's not think about him. I am sure I will never see his face ever again…'

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