“None.” he shook his head.
“Perhaps, you are here to see the Your Grace?” the old Butler assumed and adjusted his eyeglass over his nose.
“Indeed.”
“Should I announce your presence?” the Butler asked and was about to knock on the door to announce Millian’s presence when the child immediately stopped him.
“Then I will take my leave, Young Master.” he bid. Maximillian gave way to the old man and when he vanished from the sight, the young Maximillian stared at the big doors.
Why was he hesitating to enter? He shook his head and lifted his fist to knock on the door before turning the door knob of the door.
The door creaked open and Maximus thought it was the Butler but was he not too fast to be here already when he just left?
He lifted his eyes from the papers he was reading to look at Millian who just entered. His coat was hanging on the back of his chair while some of his sleeve’s button were taken off. The sleeves were rolled up under his elbows and his neat hair were now in a mess.
“What brought you here?” the Duke asked and looked back in scanning the papers he was holding.
“Are you busy?” Millian asked.
“Just making myself. Why?” the Duke answered as he flip the file to another page.
“I do not have anyone to talk to.” Millian said as he approached the sofa and sat.
“Then you should retire to your bed.”
“I could not sleep.”
“How is that my problem?”
“You are my father.”
“Never expect that answer.” the Duke said in defeat and glanced at his cold son for a moment before looking at the papers.
“What do you want?” the Duke asked coldly. Millian’s lips twitched up.
“I need someone to talk to.” Millian said coldly as well. He would not back off in a silent argument with his father more so, when he badly need to ask something out of him.
“Spill it then go to bed.”
“Maxine.” Millian muttered just. The Duke’s hand froze in the air from flipping the page. It was only a word but it immediately froze him.
He glanced to his son who was looking at him intently, studying his expression as if he would get something from those.
The forming tension was cut when the office’s door swung open and the Butler, pushing a trolley entered.
The Butler could read the atmosphere inside the room so he bid his goodbye to his Masters after serving the tea for the Duke and milk for the Young Master before going out.
He left the trolley inside to fill their drinks.
Instead of continuing his works, Maximus gathered all the papers on the top of the table and placed it on a separate place.
He leaned his elbows above the desk, intertwined his fingers and put his lips behind them as he looked back to his smart ass son.
‘Now, he paid attention. I see.’ Millian thought as he flashed a smirk on his lips.
“Do not beat around the bush, Millian.” his father demanded as if he wants to kick Millian out of the room quickly and knock him out, which Maximus would not do.
“Nothing to be tensed about. Just want to get something useful.” Millian said in a low voice. Maximus felt it. His son’s now being serious. He wants to help his eldest son to achieve what he wanted, he wants to be a dedicated father to his children, at least for once.
They only talked about Maxine while taking a sip on the drink the Butler gave them until Millian felt his eyelids heavy and soon after, he fell asleep.
He fell asleep in his father’s office and Maximus had not finished a single thing related to his work since Maximillian came. Not that he mind.
“I hope, you will finally be open to her. Good night, Son.” Maximus whispered to his ears as he laid him down his bed. Maximus put his son’s blanket over him and glanced at him one more time before leaving his son’s room.
***
“Be careful boy! How dare you spill it on me?!” the first son angrily asked his fifth and youngest brother as he pushed him so hard that he fell on the ground.
The visitors started murmuring something bad about the kid lying in the ground.
“B-but I d-didn’t-” the boy wanted to defend his self but his brother would not just let him.
His third older brother kicked him on his gut. The fifth brother protected himself by covering it using his arms and winced in pain.
The little girl with a blank and cold face standing in the corner was just watching the scene from afar as she sipped the juice from the glass she was holding.
Leaning on the wall, no one paid attention to her since they entered the banquet, not that she ever care.
She was just silently watching the people chattering to each other, telling disgusting lies, rumor and bashful words against the other. And there was a rare sight she had been noticing since the birthday celebrant appeared on the event.
The celebrant’s younger brother was behind him as he entered the hall. The younger kept his head lowered all the time and being commanded by his older brothers as if he was one of the servants.
‘What a nuisance.’ the little prideful girl told herself as she watched the fifth bastard of the house being bullied by his own blood brothers.
She pitied the boy because of his cowardness but at the same time, she could feel something pinching her heart as she watched the boy more.
She saw how the the oldest brother purposely spilled his own drink in his suit when the youngest was near and serving him. Now the event was the outcome of it.
No one really saw what really happened except for her or so she thought.
The youngest and fifth son of Ystradgynlais Viscounty House was known for having rough attitude even he really was not doing anything, so the people in the social cirle were badmouthing him already without having any proof of the action.
No one even dare to stop them from beating their own brother.
Maxine silently tsked in the corner as she watched them beat the youngest.
She left leaning the wall and stood up properly when his fourth Brother popped up from the crowd and interfered.
It was my older Brother Maxillary who suddenly jumped in on the scene and impulsively pushed the four sons of the other house, away from the boy slumped on the ground.
“What do you think you are doing?” the second son of Ystradgynlais shouted in anger, not knowing who was my brother.
“Are you not ashamed of your actions? You are doing something ridiculous on your brother’s birthday.” Maxillary bluntly replied in a low voice.
Maxine took a few steps forward from the scene to look carefully at what was happening.
The Ystradgynlais brothers bowed their heads and silently looked around under their eyes before elbowing each other as if giving signals to who would talk first.
Their tails retreated to their legs as they were embarassed after realizing that most of the guests were watching them.
Maxine was holding her fan, covering her mouth as she peeked infront.
They suddenly heard a clap from nowhere, stopping the scene. It was Viscount Ystradgynlais, together with his wife, the Viscountess of the house.
They were smiling but Maxine could feel their nervous under those facades.
“We are very sorry for the disruption. The children were just playing but they ended up arguing. Please, pay it no mind anymore. We would descipline them later.” the Viscount reasoned out.
He dare tell to the public that they would discipline their own children? How amusing for a noble to say.
The people who gathered on the commotion left one-by-one while murmuring somthing to their friends. The party continued but Maxine was left standing on her last place, waiting for his brother.
The Ystradgynlais brothers ran to their parents, leaving their youngest still lying on the ground but infront of him and in the middle of them was Maxillary, standing gracefully.
The family looked at the two hatefully, moreover, to the bastard son on the floor before they turned their backs from my brother and their youngest son. They joined the party, not minding the person who was bullied as if he was not part of the family at all.
Maxine suddenly could see herself on the boy’s shoe.
Would there also be a time when everyone turn their backs from her, abandoning her because she was not a member of the family at all?
Just by thinking of it, her heart ached.
The feeling was sorrowful, frightening and painful.
Maxillary sat to face and level the fifth son, who was sitting at the marble floor.
Maxillary lifted his eyes but it became a way for them to have an eye-contact.
Maxine lowered the fan covering her face and was about to give a smile to his brother even if it was just a forced one but Maxillary, the older brother, immediately diverted his attention to the Ystradgynlais’ youngest son.
Her heart felt like pricked by thousands of needles.
Maxillary helped the boy -who was in the same age as him- to stand up and pulled him away from the path where Maxine was standing all alone. They took a different path to avoid her.
They walked away from her like she was not standing there at all.
Maxine clutched her chest and anger emerged from her heart, not towards her brother but towards herself.
She wished, her brothers also command her around. At least, they would pay her attention for once. She did not care whether they torture her or bully her because all she wanted all along was not to be ignored by them.
Being ignored was more painful than being abused because she always felt like a carbon dioxide around them. Existing but not needed.
She wonder, would her brothers also help and protect her if she was in trouble?
How she badly wished for it but she bet, that’s not ever gonna happen.