I stepped down the stairway to the clattering of dishes. The scent of the redolent summer forest still held its sanctum in my nostrils. The last of the golden rays lit up the drawing room and kitchen in a dreamy resplendence, their glow softening as they passed through the dusty windows. The sheers swayed with the breeze, which entered the cottage with no invitation but an open door. Sophia was in the midst of bringing in the teacups on their saucers. She had offered to bring inside the whole set while I changed. She looked up as the old steps creaked.
“Another dress?” she uttered.
“It’s darker.” I looked down at myself, bringing up both hands to brush off specs of white from the front of the dark green dress.
“Still not concerned about snagging?”
“No trouble if it does.” I held aside the sheers as she dipped back outside to retrieve the last of our dishes. Her bare feet still somehow made a rumpus on the wooden porch.
“You don’t have any overalls, do you?”
“I do. But, nothing appropriate to wear under.”
She stepped inside. “Not a blouse or anything?”
“It’d be a bit of a mismatch, wouldn’t it?”
“Would they?”
I motioned up to a shoulder, as if I was pulling on the strap of an overall. “They would catch on the frills.”
Setting down the teapot, she watched me. “What, you don’t have any simple ones?”
“Unfortunately not. My simplest clothes are dresses and innerwear.”
“Oh. Why not those?”
“Hm?”
“Like, a chemise, or somethin’?”
I blinked. “Just a chemise?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, that wouldn’t be appropriate.”
“Oh, who cares?!” Sophia exclaimed with a smile. “It’s just us two. I wouldn’t bat an eyelid.”
“Well… I don’t know.”
“Oh, come! We’re both women—”
“It’s no bother, really,” I hastily dismissed. “I’m already dressed. There’s not much sun left, so we shouldn’t tardy any further.”
“… Well…” She looked like she wanted to say more. “If you say so.”
Closing the back door, I locked it and led her to the front. Feeling a little distant from her on how we dressed, I wondered if she felt I was being a little exclusionary. “I’ll keep it in mind for next time,” I added as a bit of a reconciliation.
Her voice piped once more. “Surely! No need to be so formal with each other!”
Stepping outside, I took a brief moment to lock the door before I finished lacing my boots. Sophia skipped down the stone steps a bit and looked around the dusk-lit forest. She turned back towards the door.
“Oh, isn’t Abbey still out and about?”
“She’ll be fine.” I moved on to the other boot. “If she really wants back in, there’s a window in my father’s old bedroom that’s missing a screen. I leave it open most of the time.”
“Right, okay.”
With a tap of each toe on the stone, I joined Sophia down the lengthy steps. She waited there, not really leading the way or anything, grinning with amusement.
“You’re like the princess, and I’m the peasant boy waiting at the bottom of the steps for your blessing.”
“Oh, don’t deprecate yourself!” I cracked. My emphatic response was met with a giggle. “I’d rather not compare myself to the princess.”
With a breathy laugh, she echoed. “Deprecate?!”
“Like, I don’t know… depreciate yourself.”
“Oh, I see,” she continued to giggle. “Certainly feel like a peasant with your big words.”
Not wanting to dwell on the topic any longer, I pointed her to the pathway towards the back. “We’ll depart this direction.”
Sliding her hands comfortably under her bib, she took a deep breath as we walked around the cottage. “Have to say, I miss wearing my overalls as well.”
“Do you no longer wear them?”
“Not in the city,” she said with a sigh.
“Makes sense.”
“As much as I preach about breaking the mould, company’s got dress codes for us all.”
“If they’re a highbrow company, I can understand why they’d want to look apart.” It dawned upon me that I did not know what she worked as.
“I quite like the comfort they provide. They should really look into them.” Without turning, she leaned her head closer towards me. “They’ll be the next trend, guaranteed.”
“I doubt it. Not here, at least. They’re a sign of low status.”
“Hey now!” Raising her voice to a bit of a scold, she gently pushed me on the shoulder, adding a childish giggle of sorts.
“Sorry, I don’t mean—”
“No, no, I get what—you mean!” She laughed over me as I spoke.
“—to slight you. I—I mean it’s what all the factory workers and field workers wear.”
“Well, I say they ought to loosen up a bit! Enough with the stuffy dresses and corsets!”