Next To You

Masquerade

Sarah Kline walked up to the front door of the Flannerys' house. She lived next door to them, went to the same school as Eoin, and tonight, she was asked to babysit Ryan for New Year's Eve. She knocked loudly and her heart skipped when she saw who had answered the door. Eoin smiled warmly as he opened the door for her, all decked out in a tuxedo and overcoat.

"Wow, you're looking very handsome tonight, Eoin, where are you off to?" she asked curiously.

Eoin turned red, "thank you Sarah, I'm going to a friend's party. Tara is staying the night at a friend's house, I'll probably be back around 1, I'll pay you when I get back since my parents will be coming home too late. All the numbers, including my cell, are on the fridge in case of an emergency. My mom says you can help yourself to whatever is in the kitchen."

Ryan came into the hallway and admired Eoin's appearance, "say hi to Heather for me Eoin."

Eoin ruffled Ryan's hair, "I will, you be good for Sarah and do as she says, okay?"

Ryan gave him a look, "come on Eoin, it's me. What trouble could I possibly get into?"

Eoin laughed and wrapped a scarf around his neck, "that's true. Okay, I'll be back later, Happy New Year you two, have fun."

Sarah blushed and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose, "we will, have fun Eoin."

Ryan watched her peep out the window to watch him leave, he shook his head and returned to his corner of the living room, returning to the book he was reading.

When Eoin stepped outside, a limo pulled up. Mya opened the door and popped her head out, "did you remember to grab your mask? You're not wearing it."

"I got it right here in my coat, chill" Eoin got into the car with her and Ken, then pulled it out.

"Who's that looking through the window?" Mya asked right before she closed the car door behind him.

"That's Sarah, she's babysitting my little brother Ryan tonight. She's my neighbor," he said casually.

"How long has she been your neighbor?"

"Always, I guess. Sheesh, why all the questions?" He smirked.

"She looks familiar," was all Mya said in response.

"She should, she goes to our school," Eoin put his mask on as they got closer to Heather's house, feeling anxious again.

The limo drove up the driveway, everything was lit up. He saw limos lined up all along the edges of the turnaround, guests done up in their finest masquerades. It was an impressive sight, and Eoin wished he could marvel at it more, but he had to stay focused.

As they entered, a man in a fox's mask was greeting the guests and taking coats, "Good evening Mr. Flannery, I see you've got your tuxedo."

"Yes, thank you. Connelly?" Eoin could feel the sweat starting to seep through his dress shirt. The mansion was packed full of people.

Everyone was wearing masks, even the house staff, "indeed it is. Be careful, Mr. Flannery, you'll know the difference between the staff and the guests by what they're wearing. All the servers are wearing white arm bands so the guests know who to ask for drinks and hors d'oeuvres or anything else they might need."

Connelly was still helping him, and Eoin was grateful for it, "thank you, Connelly."

It also made him realize that it was going to be a lot harder than he originally thought. With everyone wearing masks, how would he know who he was talking to?

He glanced around and wedged his way between the other guests with Mya following close behind him. They spotted a group of stoutly gentleman standing in a semi-circle with glasses of wine or scotch. Ken tapped Eoin's shoulder.

"There's some of them now. Remember, stand up straight and smile. Excuse me," he walked over to them and started shaking hands with some of them.

Everyone quieted down as a clanging glass was heard. They all looked towards the staircase where Ferguson and Fiona were standing. Fiona grabbed Heather and had her stand there next to them. He wished he could be closer to her.

"Good evening everyone, we are so pleased you could all attend our annual New Year's Eve Masque Ball, please, enjoy yourselves," Ferguson boomed cheerfully.

They all applauded. Mya nudged him as Ken brought over some of Ferguson's associates.

"Gentlemen, this is Eoin Flannery. Eoin, this is Hiram Reynolds, James Rooker, and Cyrus Benoit. They're all executive board members of O'Reilly Corp. and Ferguson's most trusted and valued associates," Ken introduced them all.

Eoin thought for a moment, then remembered all the things Ken told him about them, "Mr. Reynolds, Mr. Rooker, Mr. Benoit, it's an honor to make your acquaintance." He bowed and waited for them to speak.

Hiram was wearing a bear mask, he lifted his mask to get a better look at him, "of course, and how do you know the O'Reillys and Ken Aiko, Mr. Flannery?"

"I'm a good friend of Heather O'Reilly and Mya Song," he answered vaguely, just as Ken had instructed him to.

"I see. Then you must be around the same age as my boy Gregory, he's around here somewhere, probably fighting off a group of swooning little girls," he chuckled and looked around, then saw Gregory standing off to the side, waving him over, "here he is now."

Gregory was wearing a wolf mask, which seemed most appropriate for him, in Eoin's opinion, "yes, I believe we met at the Christmas Eve party."

Gregory reached their side as Eoin spoke, "yes, I vaguely remember meeting you, what was your name again? Edwin?"

"Eoin," he corrected him, while trying to sound polite.

"Oh, right," he took a sip of sparkling cider and went quiet, having no interest in talking to him. "Excuse me father, I'm going to go say hello to Heather and convince her to dance with me."

"Smart boy, you go do that," Hiram patted him on the shoulder and turned back to chatting with the others, completely ignoring Eoin's presence. "He's had his eye on her for a while now, maybe tonight he might actually get somewhere with her."

Eoin seethed inside, he didn't want Gregory anywhere near Heather. There was definitely something malicious and underhanded about him. He wondered if Hiram noticed that. Then again, he got the same feeling from Hiram.

Ken pulled Eoin into the conversation, "what do you know about polo Mr. Flannery, what do you think of it?"

"It's quite exhilarating, a sport for kings," Eoin answered.

"Did I tell you my Gregory is the star player of the polo team at Hill Crest Academy? He's really quite good at it," Hiram bragged to the others.

Ignored again. Eoin stood straighter and smiled, "that's quite an accomplishment, I've actually spent a lot of time around horses."

Hiram stopped and looked at him, "you don't say? Have you ever played polo Mr. Flannery?"

"I can't say that I have, but I'd be willing to give it a try," Eoin decided to just go all in, he wasn't going to let himself be brushed off all evening.

Ken saw the spark in his eyes, he had gained confidence somehow and was now talking naturally with all of them. It seemed to have caught Hiram off guard. He talked business, politics, and current world events like an old pro once he had gotten a grasp on the conversation.

Benoit and Rooker had daughters there. Eoin danced with them. He complimented their wives and told them how delightful it was to meet them and their daughters. After a while, he had talked to all of them. Mya watched in awe, she couldn't be prouder of him.

Eoin finally took a break and came over to Mya, "I do feel like I'm getting the hang of this. May I have this dance Ms. Song?"

Mya faked a swoon and curtsied, "I thought you'd never ask Mr. Flannery."

He bowed then took her by the hand and glided onto the dance floor with her, taking her full appearance in, "I didn't get a chance to tell you earlier, but you do look beautiful tonight. It's too bad Ivan couldn't be here to see you."

Mya was wearing a silvery blue buttefly mask to match her fairy-inspired ball gown in pastel pink, purple, and blue hues. She blushed at the compliment, "thanks Flannery, but I don't think Ivan really notices things like that, at least not with me."

Eoin smiled, "you're kidding, right? All he does is talk about you now, he thinks you're amazing."

"He hasn't expressed that to me," Mya answered timidly. "But it's nice to know he really does think that way about me."

"You're welcome. By the way, I'd appreciate it if you didn't say anything to him about what I told you, he kind of told me in confidence, it would definitely embarrass him," Eoin smirked.

Mya made a criss-cross gesture over her heart, "you've given me hope again, it's the least I could do."

As he spun her around, he glanced over and saw Gregory dancing with Heather. He noticed he was dancing too closely with her, and Heather's face was twisted in discomfort. She didn't like it. Eoin looked back at Mya in alarm.

She looked over at Heather, then back at Eoin and nodded, "it's okay, go ahead."

She went off to the side as Eoin approached Heather and Gregory, he tapped him on the shoulder, "may I cut in?"

Gregory paused and glared at him, but stepped to the side, "sure."

Heather looked up at him as he started dancing with her, she gave a relieved smile, "it's hard to believe I'm looking at Eoin Flannery right now. You clean up nicely."

"Thank you, you look amazing by the way. I've been wanting to talk to you all night, but of course I'm stuck doing this other stuff," Eoin said as they made their way around the ballroom.

"It comes with the territory," she said with a sad smile.

She wore a white feathered mask to match her dress. Eoin took renewed comfort and determination in her eyes. At that moment, it was as if everyone else had faded away, nothing else seemed to matter.

"Heather, as long as I have you in my life, I can handle it," he said decisively.

She gave him a skeptical look, she felt there was a hidden meaning behind his words. She had seen him come in with Mya and her grandfather, and she had wanted to be next to him instantly. She knew her grandparents had seen him come in too. It wasn't hard to miss the tall, red-headed lion that came in and took all of the O'Reilly Corp. executives by surprise.

Ferguson met with his associates in his study, "well? Eoin Flannery, what do you have to say about him?"

James accepted a glass tumbler from Ferguson and drank from it, "he's confident, courteous, and knowledgeable."

Cyrus did the same, "he carries himself well, and has proven to be quite the savvy young businessman. Are you grooming him Ferguson?"

Ferguson expressed an annoyed grunt, "no, he has become quite infatuated with my granddaughter, he wants me to give him consent to court her."

Hiram frowned, "that is troublesome. I thought you wanted to set her and Gregory up?"

Ferguson sighed in exasperation, "we've tried that already, she doesn't seem to show any interest in him, she's still not ready."

Hiram took a sip of his drink, "perhaps not. You should've pressed the issue more, Ferguson. We've been planning this merger for years now. You're not going to let some lovesick schoolboy get in the way, are you?"

Ferguson had enough, "do not speak of our children like they're some kind of business deal, Hiram. It is not my job to sell your son to my granddaughter. If he has not won her over already, then perhaps they are not right for each other."

He had grown less and less fond of Gregory lately, but he couldn't bring himself to say that to his friend. They had put up with it long enough and no progress was being made. His arrogance was disgusting and his personality didn't help much. Hiram had spoiled him, looked the other way when he did wrong, and let him have whatever he wanted so he wouldn't have to spend the time with him, to teach him real values. Ferguson admitted to himself he hadn't spent much time with Heather, but he had already raised his child.

Shamus and Milly had raised her wonderfully, before things had gone horribly wrong, much to the protests and arguments from Fiona. It was tragic and numbingly heartbreaking what had happened to each of them in such a short time. He was proud and amazed with how strong Heather was during such difficult times. She deserved to be happy.

He had made up his mind after talking to the rest of his associates. He went in search of Fiona, finding her talking with some very important female guests.

"My dear, might I have a word with you?"

Fiona gave him a look, "what is it darling? I'm a bit preoccupied here."

"Of course, how rude of me. Ladies, is it alright if I borrow my wife for a moment?" He said with a charming smile.

One of them waved her fan and purred, "of course Ferguson, we can wait."

Fiona turned to them and smiled "I'll be back lovelies." They went into a side room, "this better be important Ferguson."

"If it wasn't, I wouldn't have disturbed you. I'd like to give Eoin Flannery consent. Now before you say anything, they're young, keep in mind it's not likely to be permanent. It's probably just a phase. He has kept his end of the deal, so I feel I should keep mine."

Fiona couldn't believe what she was hearing, "I warned you Ferguson, remember that. But, if we are going through with this, I have some conditions of my own for Eoin Flannery."

They had Connelly get him so they could talk. He removed his mask once he was facing them. Fiona circled him observantly, then stood next to Ferguson.

"It seems you've risen to the occasion Eoin Flannery, my husband has something to tell you," she sat down in an armchair and waited.

Ferguson stroked his chin, then folded his hands behind his back, "you've kept your word Flannery, so, you have our permission to date Heather..."

Eoin wanted to shout for joy. He almost couldn't believe it was real. Then Fiona stood up and stared him in the eyes.

"Under the condition that you're not too much of a distraction for her. If her academic performance falters even a smidge, the relationship will be terminated. I expect you to maintain yours as well. In addition, she has a strict curfew, home by nine o'clock sharp, no exceptions, and all activities must be approved by me, and chaperoned, is that understood?" Fiona snipped.

"Yes Ma'am, thank you both," he said with a grin and a bow.

Ferguson hid a smile and answered gruffly, "what are you waiting for boy? Go, before we change our minds."

Eoin couldn't hide his joy, and didn't even put his mask back on, he thanked them again, graciously shook Ferguson's hand, then went to find Heather. He found her standing off to the side, watching the guests enjoy themselves, exchanging small talk here and there as they came up to her. Even though she hated it, she was good at it. He waited for her to be alone again, then grabbed her by the hand and pulled her into the conservatory.

"Eoin, you're out of breath, what's going on?" Heather was surprised.

"Heather, they gave it to me," he said as he tried to catch his breath.

"Who gave what to you?" she looked confused as she removed her mask.

Eoin took a deep breath and gathered her hands in his, "your grandparents gave me permission. Now it's all up to you. So, here it goes... Ms. Librarian, would you do me the honor of being my girlfriend?"

She awkwardly laughed in disbelief and hugged him, "of course. I can't believe they actually agreed to it. You have to tell me everything, how did you do it?"

Eoin smiled mischievously, then chuckled, "I'm not even sure myself what got them to make up their minds. I must've been pretty convincing, but I had a lot of help."

"Help? From who?"

"Well... you have some pretty amazing people in your life who truly care about you, Heather," was all he said to her.

She knew Mya had to be one of them, but she wasn't sure which other people he could be referring to. She decided not to think about it anymore and hugged him again, "thank you Eoin, for going through all of this for me."

He stroked her hair and looked into her eyes, "how could I not? It seemed like the only thing to do."

They heard everyone starting to count down to midnight. Eoin glanced down at his watch and showed it to Heather, "looks like it's time, should we head back in?"

Heather shook her head and grabbed the watch to see how much time was left, together they counted down the last seconds, "5... 4... 3.. 2... 1..."

As both hands touched the 12, they kissed and whispered to each other, "Happy New Year."

Their school break had ended. The monday morning after, Heather and Eoin met each other outside the school gates. They smiled, then glanced over at the school expectantly.

"This feels so surreal," Heather murmured.

"You think it'll be weird walking in together? Because we don't have to do it if you don't want to."

"No, it's fine. I don't think people would care that much, but still, this feeling is a little overwhelming. I'm happy, but anxious at the same time," Heather swept some hair behind her ear, out of her face.

Eoin rubbed his neck, remembering the conditions that her grandparents had given him, hoping he could live up to it. He started feeling the pressure. When he was keeping up grades for college, that was one thing, at least he had the choice, but now, to keep Heather, it seemed a little harsh. There was no way he was going to back down from the challenge though.

"Are you okay?" Heather's voice had broken through his thoughts as they stepped into the school courtyard together.

"Yeah, I'm great. This will be great," he smiled reassuringly.

Mya waved at them as soon as she spotted them. She was standing with Ivan and Melody, excited to see them.

Ivan greeted them cheerfully, "I heard the news, good for you two. Everyone was wondering when you'd start dating."

Melody was quiet, but she congratulated him. Heather knew it hurt her, but Mya had told her not to let the feelings of others keep her from being happy with Eoin. Melody was her friend, she had to understand, and she knew it was just the beginning.

As she went through the day, she knew she was getting dirty looks from some of the other girls, some boys even, but so far, no one had said anything about it. Then she came face to face with Honora.

"Honora? You look so different, it actually suits you better," Heather said, stunned.

Honora was sporting a new shorter hairstyle, and a lot less make up, she was really a very pretty girl. She ran her fingers through her short, spiral curls bashfully, "thanks, I figured I could change a few things about myself. Do you have a minute?"

"Sure, what's up?"

"Well, I actually wanted to thank you for everything, for knocking me off my high horse and all, heh. It's kind of funny really, but ever since that day, I've been a lot nicer to people. You showed me how to do that, just by watching you. I can see why so many people like you Heather, you're kind, strong, and you never care what anyone thinks about you, I admire that. Anyway, over break, Alex, from the soccer team, he asked me out. I've never been happier," Honora beamed, then hugged Heather unexpectedly.

Heather was shocked at first, but once it sunk in, she patted Honora's back, "I'm glad to hear that Honora, I'm really happy for you."

"Thank you, I heard you and Eoin are dating now, that's great. I'm really happy for you too. You guys actually make a really cute couple."

Eoin took in the scene, and smiled affectionately. She always surprised him, even after everything he had seen from her. It really was just the beginning. Who knew what else might happen, or what other things they might learn from each other, but he was looking forward to it. At least now they really could face everything together, at that moment though, he felt on top of the world, invincible, like nothing could go wrong. But it would, as it often does. Just as everything seemed to fall into place, new trouble was brewing.

Gregory stood there, uninterested, as his father vented and ranted on about Heather's new boyfriend.

Hiram threw a glass at the wall, right next to Gregory's head, "why didn't you try harder boy?!"

Gregory rolled his eyes, "why do you care if I am with Heather or not? She's made her choice, but it's not like they're getting married or anything. We've still got time."

"Boy, you have no idea how much we needed this! Heather O'Reilly is the heiress to O'Reilly Corp. If you ever want to take over, you need to be close with her. The idea was to get her betrothed to you so stuff like this wouldn't happen! Do you have any idea how crucial this deal was?! We would've been set for life, now it's all ruined because now the O'Reillys were foolish to let her run after childish romances! This is all your fault... Get out of my sight, now!" Hiram hollered.

Gregory sighed and walked out the door, "whatever."