One week later, Arthur and Jesse were once again visiting the World’s Fair, but this time, they had come with Emma as well. Together, the three of them walked north from the Transportation Building. Emma broke away, heading over to the railings that encircled the Lagoon. Her blue bell-shaped skirt swayed with the strong spring breeze, the feathers on her hat and the puffy sleeves of her white shirt fluttering even more vigorously. Arthur came up beside her, and for a fleeting moment, she reminded him so strongly of Ella that he found it a little hard to breathe. Emma looked every bit as poised and sophisticated as any of the other women fairgoers who were passing by. Somehow, over the last few years, the feisty and often petulant child he had raised had become a lady.
Emma turned to him and smiled, looking positively radiant and confident, and Arthur’s throat tightened. Emma had indeed blossomed into a lady, but not one who would follow in the footsteps of the Hughes or Thompson women who came before her.
Emma let out a loud, happy sigh, her face bright with excitement.
In moments like this, Emma reminded Arthur not of Ella, but of himself. She had a fire within her. One that was similar to the fire that Arthur himself had, though his had been partially snuffed out over the years. Sometimes, though, Arthur still felt the embers burning in his soul.
He cleared his throat.
“Ready to see the Woman’s Building?” Arthur asked.
Emma beamed. “Absolutely.”
Chin held high, Emma turned and started toward the Italian Renaissance-style structure. Arthur’s chest swelled with pride as he watched her effortlessly weave her way through the small crowd on the walkway, beaming from the temporary semblance of freedom. Here, Emma could walk ahead without a chaperone. Here, Emma Hughes was simply one of many fairgoers, her status neither noteworthy nor even evident to those whom she passed.
Arthur caught Jesse’s eye, and the two exchanged warm smiles. In the middle of the bustling World’s Fair, neither Jesse O’Connor nor Arthur Hughes had to be concerned about their statuses either. Instead, they were equals.
It waswonderful.
Linking his hands behind his back, Arthur walked over to Jesse and said, “Well, we better catch up. Unless we want to lose her.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s whatshewants,” Jesse said.
Arthur let out a half scoff, half chortle. “Yes, that’s probably true.”
“Should we take our time then?”
Pursing his lips, Arthur thought for a moment, and then he rose up onto his tippy toesjustin time to see Emma slipping between one of the three main archways, vanishing from view. What harm could there be in letting her explore the building by herself for a while?
Arthur nodded. “Let’s.”
Arthur and Jesse strolled over to the Woman’s Building at a leisurely pace. Arthur let his mind wander while they moved through the crowd, and once they were closer to the building’s entrance, he turned his head to look back at the Lagoon. His eyes searched the horizon. On the other side of the water, he could see the bridge between the North Pond and the Lagoon itself, leading to the Fish and Fisheries Building, as well as the Wooded Island with its beautiful willows and ferns, their leaves providing a lovely burst of color amongst the many white buildings of the fair.
How wonderous it all was.
He and Jesse went inside. There, in the Woman’s Building, were rooms filled with paintings, pottery, paper flowers, embroidery, and sculptures, as well as rooms showcasing women’s recent achievements in other things, like science and engineering, featuring what Arthur thought were marvelously clever inventions. Exploring the exhibits, Arthur couldn’t help but smile a little, hope for Emma’s future settling in his heart. It took some conscious effort for Arthur not to let his sudden happiness burst forth in what would have been a spectacularly improper show of elation through either a leap of joy or a loud clap.
Walking through the Woman’s Building, Arthur could finally see Emma as she wanted him to see her. Not as a little girl. Not as head of the Hughes household. But as her own person. One who wanted to make her mark on the world.
After an hour or so, Arthur and Jesse finally found Emma. Unsurprisingly, they found her in the library. Crouched low, Emma was studying the bottom shelf of one of the many bookcases lining its walls. Rather than call out to her, Arthur hung back and watched, with Jesse following suit. Paternal love and pride continued to swirl in Arthur’s chest as Emma took a book off of the shelf and flipped it open, her lips curling into a small smile as her eyes scanned the page.
Arthur smiled to himself, too. Emma would make a fine journalist someday.
Moving closer, Arthur intentionally swept the bottom of his shoe on the floor, and theswishsound caused Emma to turn. Her smile faltered a bit. Only for the briefest moment, but Arthur caught it. At once, that swell of paternal pride and love faltered with it, and those happy feelings were instead replaced with a heavy regret. He hoped he could still fix things.
“Impressive library they have here,” Arthur said with a tip of his head.
“All of these books were written by women,” Emma said, straightening herself to stand. “And there are over seven thousand of them.”
Arthur’s eyebrows rose in tandem. “Seven thousand,” he repeated. “Incredible.” He took a tentative step forward and cleared his throat. “Someday, perhaps a future fair will feature your news stories.”
Emma’s face brightened. “Do you really think so?”
“Mm-hmm,” Arthur replied, nodding. His eyes widened as an idea popped into his head. “Emma,” he began, “I wonder if you might like seeing how a printing press works. Perhaps the two of us could venture over to Putnam Press one weekend. I’m sure that Mr. O’Connor here wouldn’t mind showing you how newspapers are made.” Arthur turned his head to catch Jesse’s eye. “You wouldn’t mind that, would you, Mr. O’Connor?”
Jesse reeled back slightly. “Oh. Uhm. No, not at all.”
Arthur threw him a wink and turned back to Emma.
