#this whole thing is like 15k words i think thats the longest fic i've ever written

[kiwi-stan]

Southern Belle

Evelyn has always done exactly what her overbearing parents want, until she meets Harry, their new gardener. I’m a little nervous to post this because I’ve never written OCs in fics before, but I wanted to describe her appearance more and didn’t want to do that with a self-insert so I figured I would give it a shot. There’s probably two more parts to this but I didn’t want it to get too long. 

Eve woke up to the sound of the lawnmower roaring right below her window. She rolled over to see the clock on her nightstand to check the time. It was just after 7 am. In the 19 years he’d worked for the family, Gavin had never mowed the lawn this early. He saved it for the middle of the day so he didn’t risk waking anyone up. She burrowed herself beneath the covers and tried to sink back into sleep, but gave up after about ten minutes. She crawled out of bed and started getting ready for the day. It was her first full day back from college for the summer, and she’d been looking forward to sleeping in and catching up on all the sleep she’d lost during finals week. After breakfast she would go outside and have a word with Gavin. 

Even though it was early, it was a weekday, with Eve knew meant that her father had already left for work and that her mother was at yoga, followed by tennis, lunch with friends, and meetings for her charitable cause of the month. She was alone for the day. Or at least, as alone as she could be in a house so huge it required live-in staff to keep things running smoothly. Eve pulled on an outfit her mother would never approve of, cutoffs and a Barnard T-shirt both purchased when she’d been away at school, and made her way down the spiral staircase into the marble floored entryway. She could smell maple syrup and bacon coming from the kitchen and entered the spacious room to find Joyce standing at the stove making breakfast. 

“Good morning.” Joyce smiled up at her and slid a plate of waffles, eggs, and bacon into a place at the counter. Eve pulled herself up onto one of the barstools and waited as Joyce set a glass of orange juice in front of her. “How does it feel to be back?” 

Eve smiled up at Joyce. With her father always working and her mother always off with friends or getting her hair done, Joyce has basically raised her. She’d been hired as a live-in housekeeper, but once Eve had been born her duties had shifted to being more like a nanny. Now that Eve was older, she was primarily a housekeeper again, but Eve still considered her as a close friend and confidant. “Alright.” Eve said carefully. “A lot has changed though. Since when does Gavin cut the grass this early?” 

Joyce studied her. “Your parents didn’t tell you? He retired. Your father hired someone else. A young man. He’s been here for about a month. He likes to do it first.” 

Eve had spent a grand total of 20 minutes with her parents the previous night before her parents headed off to some dinner fundraiser and she collapsed into bed after a long day of traveling, her father spent 10 minutes criticizing her for finishing the semester with a 3.8 instead of a 4.0 and her mother manager to insult her appearance 3 times, so it wasn’t surprising that there were things they hadn’t told her. Seeming to sense that she’d touched a nerve by bringing up her parents, Joyce quickly changed the subject and began peppering Eve with questions about what college had been like. 

Eve finished her breakfast and Joyce swept the dishes away. The lawnmower was still roaring outside and she found herself growing increasingly annoyed with the sound. She tugged on shoes and headed outside with the intention of telling the new gardener to knock it off. The yard was so expansive that even though he’d been working for an hour, he was still only about halfway done. Eve tried yelling a few times to get his attention, but when that didn’t work she marched toward him and positioned herself directly in his path. He swerved around her. Eve watched him for a few moments to determine his path, then positioned herself so she was blocking his way again. He swerved around her again. This went on a few more times until he finally gave in and turned the lawnmower off. 

“Can I help you?” He asked. Although she’d lived in Atlanta her whole life, Eve’s parents and most of their social set had been educated in the Northeast. No one she knew had a true southern drawl (they’d kept Eve from developing one by hiring a nanny from the Midwest and docking Eve’s allowance anytime she dropped a g). His accent was straight out of Steel Magnolias. 

It took Eve a few moments to get her bearings. Now that he’d stopped moving and she could get a good look at him, she could see that he was much younger than Gavin had been, probably about her age. And cute. Very cute. Messy dark hair covered by a ballcap. Tall. Great body. And he was working without a shirt on. She tore her gaze away from his toned arms to look him straight in the eyes, which turned out to be a mistake since they were startlingly green and kept her tongue tied for a few seconds more. Finally getting a grip on herself, Eve drew herself up to her full height of five foot two and crossed her arms, trying to look as imperious as her mother did when dealing with “the help”. Then she realized she didn’t really want to resemble her mother in any way and she let herself slouch. “Um yes. I live there,” She pointed to the massive house. “And I don’t know if Gavin, the old gardener trained you or anything, but he always used to wait until the afternoon to cut the grass. You know, so people can sleep.” 

A smile slowly spread across the gardener’s face, which of course just made him look even cuter. “William mentioned that he had a daughter,” Eve bristled. Everyone who worked for her family called her parents Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery, and she was Miss Montgoemery to everyone but Joyce. It felt weird to hear someone calling her father by his first name, and she wasn’t sure if she liked the blatant disregard for authority it showed. “He didn’t mention she was hot though.” He continued, letting his gaze slowly rake along her body. 

Eve felt her jaw drop. She knew that, in theory, she should be flattered. One of the best looking guys she’d ever seen in her entire life was hitting on her. But this wasn’t the kind of flirting she was used to. After attending a private, all-girls school her entire life, most of her interaction with guys had been at formal dances and parties, where even the teenagers properly asked women to dance, avoided wandering hands, and grinding was strictly forbidden. “My name’s Evelyn. Or Miss Montgomery.” Eve rarely used her real name, but something about this guy made her want to act more formal, to put more distance between herself and him. 

“Harry,” He waved a hand to indicate the yard. “Anyway, I’m trying to get this done before it gets too hot. It’ll be boiling by the afternoon.” 

“I was trying to sleep.” 

“It’s,” Harry made a big show of checking his watch, a big ugly Timex. “8 am. Most people have to work and they’re up by now. We can’t all just live off our parents, Miss Montgomery.” He said, giving her the look-at-this-spoiled-little-rich-girl look she’d been getting her whole life. 

Eve felt like she’d been slapped. Even though most of her friends had parents who were just as wealthy as her, she’d been judged as the spoiled rich girl her whole life. And yes, she did have just about every material thing she wanted. But she would have traded that for a less lavish lifestyle and supportive parents any day. Being misjudged by people she didn’t even know and who never would understand her life never stopped stinging. 

She knew that he was just waiting for her to threaten to tell her father about the interaction. He probably had a joke about running to daddy when things went wrong or throwing a tantrum to get what she wanted at the ready. Eve refused to give him the satisfaction. She whipped around marched back into the house without another word. 

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Eve spent the next few days avoiding Harry, barely seeing her parents, and waking up before 7 am to the sound of the lawnmower (he started it earlier and earlier every morning. Eve suspected it was just to annoy her). When she had been home for a week and had spent a grand total of twenty minutes with her parents, Eve walked downstairs one morning to find her mother standing in the kitchen, correcting Joyce’s omelette-making technique. Eve glanced down at her cutoffs and tank top and wondered if she had time to run upstairs and change. Her mother saw her before she even had a chance to make a move. “Evelyn! There you are. I’ve got to run to breakfast with the girls, but I wanted to tell you that we’re having a welcome back dinner for you tonight. We’ll eat out on the patio.” Her mother looked at Eve’s outfit and wrinkled her surgically-corrected nose. “Please wear something appropriate.” She said in place of a farewell before breezing out of the house. Joyce gave Eve a sympathetic look as she slid the omelette in front of her. She’d been witness to enough family dinners to know that they were rough for Eve. 

Eve spent the morning sulking and started getting ready for the dinner around 1 in the afternoon. She went through a complete self-care routine, shaving, exfoliating, moisturizing, then blow-drying and curling her hair. While both her parents had perfect golden hair, Eve’s had somehow come out a more reddish-blonde. Her mother had been trying to convince her to bleach it for years, but Eve refused. By the time she’d finished her makeup and dressed in a black shift dress and black heels, Joyce was tapping on her door to summon her down to dinner. Joyce escorted her out to the patio, which Eve had to admit looked beautiful. Harry was good at his job and the flowerbeds nearby bloomed and the hedges were neatly trimmed. The table was situated near the in-ground pool, which gleamed beneath the safety lights. The table was settled beneath a string of Christmas lights and a vase full of red roses sat at the center of the table. Her parents were already seated around the table, her father in a suit and tie and her mother in a long black dress, looking like Barbie and Ken.

Eve had only been sitting for a few minutes and Joyce hadn’t even brought out the first course when her father started talking. “I hope you’ve enjoyed your first week back at home, Evelyn.” 

“I did, daddy.” She said, sensing that the conversation was about to take a turn. 

“Good.” He nodded approvingly. “Now that you’ve had a little time to relax, you’ll need to start preparing for the next school year. We’ve hired a biology tutor who will come every day to help you.” 

“Daddy,” Eve began to protest but was interrupted by Joyce arriving with the salad. She knew better than to argue with her parents in front of “the help”. 

“Give Evelyn a little extra please.” Her mother spoke up. Joyce shot Eve an apologetic look, but knew better than to argue with her employer. “And no dressing for her.” 

“Mother-” Eve began. 

“Evelyn.” Her mother countered, with a look telling her not to argue. Eve bit her tongue. Once Joyce had walked away, her mother continued. “I think you gained weight while you were away at school. You’re not eating that dorm food are you?” 

“Only when I don’t have time for anything else.” Evelyn admitted. Truthfully, she’d spent most of her days eating in the dining hall on quick breaks from studying. She was grateful that her parents didn’t really keep an eye on her meal plan. “But I’ve mostly been using the food budget you gave me to find places in the city.” Eve had spent most of her weekends eating her way through the city. She realized pretty quickly that since her father paid the credit card bill, her parents could see where she was eating, but not what. She had to be careful to find places where there were lots of options, knowing that eating a place that exclusively served burgers would earn her a phone call from her mother and a lecture about her eating habits. But aside from that, she’d been having a good time with her parents not controlling her diet for the first time ever. She’d been careful to keep working out to keep her weight fairly static to keep her mother’s comments at bay, but evidently that hadn’t been enough. 

“While you’re here I’d like you to get back down to a two. Maybe you can start coming to yoga with me. We can’t buy you new clothes if you keep going up a size.” 

Eve caught herself before she rolled her eyes. That gesture was the thing her mother hated most in the world and it would surely earn her a lecture. Her family owned the largest house for miles and the residence itself employed more people than a few local small businesses. She could walk into Neiman’s and buy the entire store if she wanted to and not even make a dent in her father’s bank account. “I still am a two mother. We bought this dress three years ago remember? It still fits.”

“It looks tight.” 

“It’s not.” Eve said, though she’d had a bit of trouble getting the zipper to close and she could feel the fabric straining a bit at her hips. She flashed back to hitting up some thrift stores in New York over the winter when she’d found that some of her clothes didn’t fit (paying cash of course). Maybe she had gained weight. But it wasn’t that much. 

“Yoga sounds like a good idea,” Her father spoke up suddenly. “You could go with your mother then come home and work with your tutor.”

“Daddy, it was a high A minus in one class. I was just a few points away from an A but the professor wouldn’t bump me. She told me she never does. I told you that in my email.” 

“Evelyn, I know, but I want to see all As next semester. A tutor can help with that.” 

“Daddy, it’s summer.” Eve knew she sounded a bit whiny, even she recognized that. But she’d been the last 8 months free from her controlling parents. Slipping back into being the obedient daughter she’d been before wasn’t going to be easy. 

“Evelyn, eat your salad. We’ll talk about this more later.” Her mother broke in, making it clear that the discussion was over for now. Eve ate her dry salad in silence while her parents rattled off a list of events and activities they wanted her to attend with them during the summer. 

It went on like that for another hour and a half. Eve’s father spent the soup course rattling on further about boosting her grades. Her mother spent the whole main course (after instructing Joyce to give Eve a smaller portion than normal) telling Eve how should could fix her makeup, and how to dress in more flattering styles now that she was a little bigger, and if she was sure she didn’t want to bleach her “awful red” hair. By the time Joyce brought out dessert for her parents (her mother had said that Eve didn’t need any) Eve was looking to make a quick escape. 

“Joyce,” Her mother said before she could walk away. Eve watched longingly as her mother stabbed a piece of chocolate cake with her fork. Joyce’s chocolate cake was legendary. 

Joyce whirled around. “Yes, Mrs. Montgomery.” 

“Be in the kitchen at five thirty tomorrow morning. Evelyn will be going on a diet and I need to discuss meal preparation with you.” 

“Yes, Mrs. Montgomery.” She hovered for a few moments longer, shooting Eve an apologetic look.

“You’re dismissed.” 

Before Joyce had even entered the house, Eve spoke up. “Can I go to my room now?” She was feeling drained from two hours of being criticized by her parents and being unable to retaliate. 

“Evelyn, you know it’s rude to leave the table while people are still eating.” Her father said. 

If she’d had more energy, Eve might have commented that it was also rude to eat in front of people, but she was too tired to fight back. She zoned out as her mother rattled on about the city’s eligible young men that were back from college for the summer and how Eve should try to make plans with some of them. If she was lucky, her mother said, she could go off for her sophomore year in a relationship, date for three years, and be in the perfect position to get married right after graduation. Eve made little humming noises of agreement, though she’d secretly promised herself that she would get married before 30 over her dead body. When her parents finally finished eating and said that they were ready to retire for the evening, Eve was up in her room almost immediately. She kicked her shoes off and threw herself down on the bed, too tired to bother with showering or undressing, though she knew if her mother could she her she’d say something about Eve getting a face full of makeup on her clean white sheets. Thinking about her mother made her head hurt, so she rolled onto her back and tried to push that thought out of her mind. 

Eve was just starting to feel some of her strength come back when she heard something tapping on her window. She ignored it, figuring it was just the wind or a bird. When it happened again, she sat up. Her room was on the second floor, meaning no one should be able to reach it. She got up and walked over to the window to investigate. Harry was standing just below her window, illuminated by the pool’s safety lights. As she watched, he threw a pebble at her window. She waited for the little stone to tap the glass before pushing the window open. “What are you doing here?” She didn’t have the energy to chase him away. 

“I just wanted to see if you were okay. I heard some of what your parents were saying and-” 

“You were eavesdropping?” She whisper-yelled down to him, fully aware of the fact that everyone else in the house was asleep. “Hold on. I’m coming down there.” She said, aware that this was probably heading into argument territory and not wanting anyone to overhear her arguing with the gardner at almost 10 pm. Eve closed her window and opened her bedroom door. As expected, the entire house was quiet and dark. Not bothering to change out of her dress or put on shoes, she slipped out of her room, down the stairs, and into the backyard. Harry was standing there waiting for her, somehow looking even cuter than he had when she’d first seen him. His hair was tousled, like he’d gotten out of bed just for this, and he was wearing basketball shorts and a Hawks T-shirt (Eve’s mother had forced her to learn about all the area sports teams as potential conversation starters with local boys). 

“I wasn’t eavesdropping.” He said before Eve could even question him. “I’m living in the guesthouse,” He pointed to the small structure not far away. “I had the windows open and y’all were talking kind of loud. I was going to close them, but I-” He cut himself off. “Can you sit down actually? This is kind of a lot to explain.” 

Eve settled herself on the edge of the pool, dangling her feet in the water. She was annoyed that he’d been listening in a private conversation, and a little humiliated that someone had witnessed her parents berating her. But she wanted to hear his explanation. And, a tiny part of her was happy he’d come to check in on her. No one had ever done that before. “Okay. Explain.” 

Harry sat down next to her. “Okay. So this is kind of personal but my family, it’s just me and my mom and my sister. We don’t have a ton of money. It’s why I’m working here right now. I should be starting my second year of college.” Eve smiled a bit in spite of herself. Her assessment of him being about her age had been right on the money. “So when I got the job here and I saw this big house and a couple living there and they look like Barbie and Ken and she’s the perfect socialite and he’s some super high up guy in business and they have this daughter who also seems perfect, I just think everything in their lives must be flawless. So when I heard you fighting with your parents tonight it was just like of like ‘Okay things are kind of fucked up with them too.’” Eve cringed a bit. She wasn’t used to people swearing freely like that. Her mother didn’t think it was proper and had once actually washed her mouth out with soap when she’d used a curse word. “So I kind of liked seeing that, the whole everyone has problems thing. And because I liked it I kept listening. But I guess the conversation was personal. I mean, I know it was. I shouldn’t have listened. I’m sorry.” 

Eve shrugged. Most of her friends had similar relationships with their parents, but for some reason they all always pretended like they came from perfectly happy families. She tried to keep up the charade too. It would be kind of nice to have someone she didn’t have to pretend around. “It’s okay.” She bit her lip nervously as she looked at him. “You heard everything though?” 

“From when you sat down to when y’all left the table. Sorry.” He said, looking at her sheepishly. 

Eve sighed. “I just, can you not-” 

“I won’t tell anyone.” He finished for her. “And the whole thinking your life’s perfect thing, I guess that’s why I was so mean to you the other morning. I wanted to apologize for that too. You stormed outside of that huge house and were complaining to me and I just thought ‘This girl has everything in the world she could want and she’s still whining’ so my first instinct was to be a dick. But I realize that’s not the case now. I’m sorry.” 

“It’s okay. I was kind of overreacting..”

Harry got to his feet. “Stay here for a second. I have something for you.” 

Eve sat alone for a few moments, swirling her feet in the pool and watching the water eddy around her toes. Harry sat down next to her again, this time carrying a box of Twinkies. He held one out to her. “Since you didn’t get dessert.” 

Eve accepted it. “Thanks.” A Twinkie didn’t really measure up to Joyce’s cake taste-wise, but it was almost as good. Eve had almost never been allowed to have Hostess snacks when she was a child, so she associated them with more lenient relatives and her roommate back at school. She tore it open and bit into it, feeling the sugar and artificial preservatives hit her system. It tasted like heaven after the rabbit food dinner she’d eaten. 

“I’m a twenty year old single guy living alone so my house is basically junk food city. If you’re ever craving something, just come to the guest house. I can hook you up.” 

“Thanks.” Eve said again, half thanking him for the offer and half thanking him for not directly bringing up her diet. She took note of how he’d conveniently mentioned the fact that he was single.

“So,” Harry tore open a Twinkie for himself. “You never answered my original question. Are you okay?” 

“Oh!” Him first appearing beneath her window seemed like it had been forever ago. “Yeah. I guess. I’m used to it.” She said truthfully. She was so used to her parents’ insults that she’d grown almost immune to them, like she’d developed an exoskeleton. 

“That happens a lot?” Harry asked, frowning. 

“Oh yeah.” 

“Your whole life?” He sounded upset now. 

“Since I was like twelve maybe.” Eve said, thinking back. Her parents had never exactly been nurturing, and her mother had always fussed over her looks, but middle school was when the real pressure had started. She felt a little on edge. She didn’t talk about this with anyone really, and she hadn’t planned on talking about it with anyone. Talking about it with a virtual stranger who was not a licensed psychiatrist was unprecedented. “From how you’re reacting I’m guessing that’s not what your family is like.” 

Harry shook his head. “No. Not at all. Like, when I was a kid I would fail a spelling test and my mom would still put it on the fridge. When I brought home Cs in high school she would just smile and say that she would help me so I could do better next time. She felt awful that she couldn’t pay for me to go to college even though I probably wouldn’t have gotten in anywhere good with my shitty grades. When I told her I got his job she was ecstatic and I was like ‘Mom it’s just cutting some rich guy’s grass.’”

Eve laughed, which felt good after the night she’d had. She felt Harry watching her, letting her know that had probably been his goal all along. She was careful not to let her face fall when she thought about how different his life was from hers. She wondered what had happened to his father, but knew that despite the bonding they were doing they weren’t to that level. She’d been raised not to pry into people’s personal lives until you had a close relationship with them, and certainly not the second time you had a conversation with them. 

They were both quiet for a few moments until Harry spoke. “Evelyn?” 

“Call me Eve. My parents are the only ones that call me Evelyn. And you can guess how I feel about that.” 

“Eve, you know nothing your parents said is true, right? I mean, a 3.8, my mom would throw a party if I got grades like that.” He hesitated for a few moments and Eve could see his cheeks turning pink even in the dim light. “And I like your hair how it is right now. And your body looks really good how it is now. Not that I was just like staring at you, but you look great in this dress. You don’t need a diet or to lose weight or anything. I meant what I said that first morning about you being hot. Though I wish I hadn’t phrased it that way.” 

Eve smiled, letting the compliments sink in, feeling like rinsing the salt out of a wound after a few hours of being insulted. “Thanks. I think deep down I know they’re not right, but I hear it so much sometimes I start to question that.” She said slowly. She hadn’t even realized that until Harry had brought it up. 

“If you ever need someone to talk to I’m here,” He pointed to the nearby guesthouse. “Literally. In addition to being a junk food connoisseur I’ve been told I’m very good at giving pep talks.” 

“I might take you up on that. Thanks for listening to me. And thanks for checking in on me. No one’s ever done that before.” 

A sad look flickered across his face and Eve got the feeling that things were done very differently in his household when someone was upset. “Do you want another Twinkie? You can hide it in your room somewhere and eat it the next time you need a pick me up.” Eve accepted one gratefully. “And I meant what I said. Anytime you need to talk to someone just come bang on my door. Or come throw rocks at my window or something.” He said with a little smile. He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek before getting to his feet. “Good night, Eve.”

f“Night.” She said, watching him walk back to the guesthouse as her cheeks turned red.