Souderton Abbey

Chapter 1

In the middle of the summer after the tragic sinking of the Titanic, a black car rolls along the gravel driveway of the infamous Souderton Abbey. Morning duties are being performed as the cooks are hard at work making breakfast and rooms are being stripped and remade to the family's liking, which is very easy to satisfy.

Lady Carrie walks lazily to her window overlooking the front garden of the estate while still maintaining her prominent posture. As she lightly pushes the ivory curtain with her delicate fingers she notices a man with blonde hair unlike her own shyly exit the car carrying only one suitcase and wearing grey suit paints and a white button up shirt with typical black shoes. Normally she would have thought him to be another contender in her father's hunt to find her a husband with a good name and a decent business, but the way he lacked confidence and seemed nervous as he looked up at the massive estate told her otherwise.

The shy man instantly snapped his attention to the front door of the estate as the head butler comes outside and asks him what his name is. "Niall Horan." His hands began to slightly sweat against the faux leather handle of his suitcase. He took a moment as he slightly gulped revealing his nervousness with the movement of his Adam's apple. "I'm here for the driver position."

Lady Carrie watched his awkward interaction with the intimidating head butler. Because she was born and grew up in the estate, as a child the head butler aided as an extra nanny and has been her go-to advisor on topics that would be considered rude and intolerable to speak to about with her parents. His booming deep voice made him seem like your worst nightmare at times, but overall he really was a nice man.

She lifted up her hand to her mouth in an attempt to suppress her giggles as she could clearly tell how afraid the potential new worker was of the head butler as he was ushered into the estate for his interview. She turned around as she heard a small knock at the door knowing fully well who it was. She allowed her Lady's maid Hayley in and politely said yes when asked if she needed assistance in getting ready for breakfast as she does every morning.

As the young Irishman walked through the grand entrance and was led to the office of the Earl of Souderton, he reminded himself of his mother's words in an attempt to relax his nerves in some way. As the prominent man came into view, Niall's attempt to relax had failed. With dirty hair that had a hint of grey and wearing a suit that Niall could only even imagine trying on, his face showed some softness to it, but only enough to allow Niall to hand him his recommendation letter.

The Earl's glasses sat firmly in the bridge of his nose as he read the jobs and the names of employers and messages of Niall's employment past. "You have many comments about your hard work, but it doesn't show any experience in being a butler." a small frown was shown on the Earl's face and niall once again gulped in an attempt to keep from his voice cracking. "I am willing to learn, sir. As long as someone is willing to give me a chance I promise I would not dissapoint on purpose and if I do then I would not make up any excuse because I would know it was my fault." The Irishman searched desperately for something in the older man's face but could not find anything.

The Earl looked once again at the unfolded piece of paper in his hand again, only to look back at the hopeful applicant. "How old are you?" The only reason for asking this question was because the potential chauffeur looked young, but had features that showed maturity and some experience. With more calm in his voice, Niall unsurly answered the question directed towards him. "I will be 17 as of September." It was more of an icebreaker question, as The Earl already knew his answer to the question on Niall's mind. "Well Niall, you have great recommendations and you seem like a man that's true to your word, how about I give you today to learn the basics and you start fresh and early tomorrow?"

Niall's butterflies seemed to only get worse as a smile spread across his face. Not only did he have a job, but it included a place to sleep every night and food on a plate 3 times a day. "Thank you, sir. Thank you so much."

Notes

Hey guys sorry I accidentally deleted and I havent been on I had a concussion but I have many chapters written and ready to be posted!