Willamina smoothed down the skirt of her dress and looked in the mirror. She wore a light blue ball gown with delicate lace lining the top. Her brown hair had been done up into a bun and was decorated with a light blue ribbon to match her dress. Her gloves were white and made out of the same lace that was on her dress.

She sucked in a nervous breath. Despite all of her preparations for that day, she still felt so clueless. She tried to remember everything Abigail had told her about debutante balls. She must make a grand entrance. She would have to dance with every eligible man there. And most importantly, she must use her best manners.

There was a soft knock at the door. "Willie, are you ready?" Vincent's voice traveled through the door.

"Almost," she called. She was grateful to have him as her escort. He came to every one of Abigail's elaborate balls. At first, it was only because his father forced him too, but now it was obvious that he came to see Maggie.

She took one last glance at her appearance in the mirror. When she was younger, she saw sixteen year olds as grown ups, but now that she was sixteen herself she realized that was far from the truth. In most ways, she still felt like a child. However, society said she was of marriageable age and it was time to look for a husband.

She put a smile on her face and opened the door. Maybe she would find someone tonight and maybe that person would be just right for her. The thought made her stomach flutter.

Vincent stood just outside the door, dressed in a black and gray suit. Evangeline stood a few feet behind him, and beside her was her own escort.

"That suit looks lovely on you, Vince," Willie said, taking his arm when he offered it to her. She could hear chattering voices downstairs and soft music.

"Thank you," he replied with a smile. He led the way towards the stairs. His mouth opened for a moment, but he quickly closed it.

Willamina arched a brow and smiled. "She's here."

A wide smile spread across Vincent's handsome face. He didn't reply. Didn't have the chance. They reached the bottom of the stairs and the crowd clapped.There were even a few gasps and awes as they looked in wonder at her in her gown.

In the front of the crowd stood Maggie, dressed in a green ball gown she had borrowed from Willamina.

Willie knew her uncle was still unhappy about Maggie's presence at the balls hosted at Goodspring, but he never spoke a word about it. Willie also knew that no matter how much Maggie denied it, she had feelings for Vincent Langdon. Anyone with a pair of eyes could see it.

Willamina turned her gaze towards the stairs as her cousin made an entrance. Evangeline was dressed in a deep red ball gown. The bottom and sleeves of the dress were lined with white lace. Her blonde hair had been curled and half-way pinned up, while the rest of it fell elegantly over her shoulder. She had grown into quite the beauty over the years.

The crowd was silent until she reached the bottom of the stairs with her escort, who shifted nervously while she curtsied to the onlookers. There wasa round of claps, followed by murmurs, which mostly consisted of girls jealous of Eva's dress and beauty.

A violinist started playing and the crowd slowly dispersed to either dance or get drinks.

"May I have this dance?" Vincent asked.

Willie knew it was customary for the escort to have the first dance, but she still felt guilty. She knew he wanted to dance with Maggie. "You don't have to dance with me, go find Maggie," she said politely.

Vincent shifted a bit nervously, but his smile didn't falter. "I was actually hoping to talk to you." He held out his hand to her, expression full of hope.

Curious, Willamina took his hand and followed his lead to the dance. "What did you want to talk about?" She asked after a moment.

"It's about Maggie," he said as they waltzed. "I want to tell her... I want to tell her my feelings."

This was the first time he had admitted his feelings out loud, and it made her smile with excitement. They had all become close friends over the past two years and she was happy for them.

"That's wonderful," she exclaimed. "When are you going to do it?"

"I hope to tell her tonight, but I don't know how. That's where I need your help."

Willie released an amused chuckle. "Just be yourself. She already cares about you."

Vincent's face lit up. "Does she? Did she tell you that?"

She hated to let him down, but she needed to tell him the truth. "Not outright, but it's obvious," she said. She hoped he wouldn't change his mind. "She talks about you a lot."

There was a moment of silence as Vincent stared with a dreamy expression on his face.

The song ended and Willamina curtsied politely before speaking. "Go and dance with her," she told him. "Then take her outside for a walk."

Vincent snapped back into reality. "Thank you, Willie. I really appreciate this." He didn't waste any time and soon disappeared into the crowd in search of Maggie.

She smiled as she watched him and hoped everything would work out. Her gaze traveled the room, which her aunt had elaborately decorated with a variety of flowers. Furniture had been pushed away or carried to other rooms to make space for dancing.

Her gaze landed on Evangeline, her red dress making her stand out in the crowd. She had already found another young man to dance with and she was staring at him with dreamy eyes. The boy appeared to be doing the same to her, entranced by her beauty. The sight made Willie chuckle. Her cousin was definitely the bell of the ball; she was beautiful, graceful, and just the right amount of flirtatious.

Nearby, she spotted Abigail watching with a bright smile. She moved through the crowd in search of another dance partner, knowing that she would get an earful later if she didn't.

She danced with a couple more young men, both of which were very polite and eager to please. This made her happy until she realized why. They were wife hunting.

After she excused herself from the boy she had been dancing with, she left in search of something to drink. Alberda and Nan had set out a table full of drinks and snacks, so she made her way there. Abigail spared no expense when it came to parties and the table was full of expensive foods.

She plucked a glass of champagne from the table and sipped from it as she gazed upon the crowd. She spotted Vincent and Maggie and couldn't help but watch in curiosity. Vincent spoke to her for a moment and then the pair headed outside together.

The sight made her smile. She had faith that everything would go well, and perhaps there would be a wedding someday.

Willamina figured she should be out dancing. It was their debutante ball. But she remained where she was, needing a break from the chaos. She hoped no one would notice her for a few minutes. If anyone asked her for a dance, she would be expected to say yes. Abigail would have her head if she didn't.

It wasn't long before she spotted movement at the entrance. A flash of green signified that Maggie had reentered the house.

Willie smiled and watched, executing to Vincent right behind her. Her smile quickly faded when she noticed that Maggie was traveling alone through the crowd, a distressed look on her face.

She set down her champagne glass and hurriedly weaved her way through the people, meeting Maggie halfway.

"I need a word with you," Maggie said, blue eyes blazing. She tugged Willamina by the arm and led her into another room so they could speak without anyone interrupting.

"What's wrong?" Willie asked. A frown formed on her face. This had been the opposite of what she was hoping for.

Maggie released an exasperated sigh. "Vincent has just confessed his feelings for me."

Willie furrowed her brows. "And how is that a bad thing? I thought you cared for him."

Another exasperated sigh escaped from Maggie's lips. She began to ace the room nervously, hands balled into fists. "I do," she replied. "But it will never work between us, so there is no point. You shouldn't have encouraged him."

Willamina's confusion only grew as she watched a very tense Maggie. "I don't understand. Why would it not work?" It seemed simple to her. The two cared for each other, so why not make it official?

Maggie paused her pacing and looked her friend in the eye. Willie could see a hint of sadness in them.

"Because," Maggie said. "His family is rich beyond belief. His father will expect a dowry if we ever marry, which we will be expected to. His family would never approve. Someone of his status must marry for wealth."

Willie released a sigh of disappointment. Not because of her friend, but because of society's silly rules. She thought hard about it for a moment. It was quiet apart from the muffled sounds of laughter, talking, and music that drifted in from the next room.

"Maggie, if you care about this boy, wealth and status shouldn't matter," she said, finally breaking the silence. "It obviously doesn't matter to him how much money you have."

She looked at the dark haired girl, but Maggie didn't quite meet her eyes. She sighed and left the room, going back to the party.

She firmly believed that if two people loved each other enough, they could make it work against all the odds. She only hoped that Maggie would realize this as well.

When she returned to her party, she was immediately bombarded with dance requests. She politely accepted the first young man and promised to dance with the others later. It was going to be an exhausting night. She was going to have danced with every man by the end of it.

Her new dance partner was about her age. He was tall and lanky, and smiled at her in wonder.

"I'm Homer," he said.

She returned his smile with one of her own. "It is lovely to meet you. Call me Willie."

He was a sweet enough boy, but he kept stepping on her toes throughout the dance.

"Sorry, sorry," he said quickly after smushing one of her toes yet again.

She winced and stopped dancing, but quickly resumed. "It's alright. Dancing takes practice, Homer."

She couldn't help but be a little relieved when their dance was over. He was kind, but her toes couldn't take much more. Nearby, Eva was dancing away with Vincent. He was smiling, but it didn't quite reach his eyes.

Willie scanned the room for Maggie, but the girl was nowhere to be found. She began to wonder if her friend had abandoned the party altogether. The odds of that were likely, much to her chagrin. She hated to think that there was nothing she could do to fix the situation.

She began to wonder if things would ever go back to normal between them. It scared her to think that it might not. She knew what Maggie would tell her for worrying so much. Maggie would say that it wasn't any of her business and not to stress over it, that they would be fine.

She let out a heavy sigh and searched the room for her next partner, still worrying about her friends.

~~~~

Word Count: 2024

Thank you all for reading! I hope you enjoyed. There was a bit of a time skip in this chapter. The girls are roughly 16 now.

Let me know what you think in the comments and leave a vote if you enjoyed.

Have a great day!