Marvel: A Lazy-Ass Superman Chapter 855: Mrs. Mellon

"Ah, Katherine! It’s been such a long time."

Givenchy was also a good friend of this particular Ms. Hepburn. Their relationship might not have been as close as his friendship with Audrey Hepburn, but they were certainly more than mere acquaintances who exchanged polite greetings.

The distinguished French aristocrat displayed impeccable gentlemanly manners. He personally stepped forward to open the car door, helped the old lady out, and greeted her with a kiss on each cheek.

Naturally, the old lady was delighted to see her old friend again. However, unlike in the past, she no longer stood perfectly straight. Her back had begun to stoop, and she had to make an effort to straighten herself before she could give her tall old friend a polite embrace.

"Givenchy, you’re still as healthy as ever. That’s wonderful."

"Heh, and you don’t look bad yourself. I only wish you could pass some of that vitality on to Rachel. She’s been grieving for quite some time."

Henry had gotten out of the car on the other side and was watching the Mellon family’s attendant retrieve their luggage from the trunk.

Once the two old friends had finished greeting each other, their newer friend finally stepped forward and extended his hand in greeting.

"Mr. Givenchy, it’s been a long time."

Givenchy didn’t take Henry’s hand. Instead, he greeted him with an embrace and a kiss on each cheek as well. Naturally, it wasn’t overly intimate, just an appropriate display of affection between friends.

Society had become increasingly tolerant of people with his sexual orientation, but after spending most of his life in a homophobic world, the elderly Givenchy still knew how to maintain proper boundaries.

Henry certainly didn’t mind the friendly gesture. Their embrace was brief, and neither man lingered in the other’s arms.

Pointing toward the various exhibits arranged in the garden behind them, Henry asked his old friend, who had evidently been staying at Oak Spring Farm for some time, "Have some people already arrived and put their exhibits on display?"

"Yes. Since this is an informal exhibition and reception, it’s being held over several days. That way, we can accommodate everyone’s schedules. Unlike a retired old fellow like me, some people aren’t free whenever they please."

Katherine Hepburn, who was holding Givenchy’s arm, chuckled.

"Ha! I thought this reception was going to be attended entirely by old fogeys. So there are young people coming, too!"

Givenchy laughed as well.

"Of course! Rachel has always been tireless in her support of emerging artists. There are quite a few interesting works by young artists that she’s agreed to exhibit.

"The trouble is that these young people think rather highly of themselves. They either don’t understand or don’t care to learn the significance of the name Rachel Lambert Mellon. So most of them choose to attend to their own affairs and only drop by when they have some free time.

"That’s why the reception has been stretched over several days. We have to accommodate these young masters, after all. But today is the main event, and it’ll also be the busiest day."

Henry patted one of the suitcases and said proudly, "Oh, good. Looks like I won’t have brought a gift for nothing."

"Oh, Henry, you’ve brought a gift too? Would you mind letting me have a look first?" Givenchy asked.

It wasn’t that he was overwhelmingly curious and simply wanted a sneak peek. As an old friend, he wanted to vet the gift on behalf of his much younger friend. If the item wasn’t to Mrs. Mellon’s taste, it might be better not to present it at all.

The group had already gone inside and begun chatting without noticing that the lady of the house had approached them.

"Oh? Is that a gift for me? Then how could I possibly resist taking a look? Givenchy, don’t deprive me of my pleasure."

"Mrs. Mellon," Henry said first, bowing his head respectfully. He was the youngest person present, after all.

"It’s been a long time, Mr. Brown."

The woman who belonged to the highest echelons of American capitalist society emerged at an unhurried pace.

Henry remembered the outfit that had left the deepest impression on him the last time he’d visited with Givenchy to borrow a small private aircraft.

They’d stayed an extra day, and on the following morning, he’d seen the lady wearing a sun hat, an apron, and gloves, with a small trowel and a bucket in her hands. She’d looked just like a gardener.

Although there had been beads of sweat on her forehead, the satisfaction on her face had been entirely genuine.

This time, she wore a simple dress, understated yet elegant. Her heels weren’t particularly high, lifting her only slightly off the ground. Around her neck hung a pearl necklace whose individual pearls varied considerably in appearance. Their one common feature was their enormous size!

Anyone unfamiliar with luxury goods might have mistaken her for an ordinary elderly woman. But Henry could identify one item after another and tell that absolutely nothing she wore was ordinary or inexpensive.

Her dress was comfortably tailored, with everything from the collar to the sleeves and hem falling at precisely the right lengths. It was clearly handmade; otherwise, the fit wouldn’t have been so perfect.

The same was true of her heels. They enhanced her bearing without forcing her to spend the entire day balancing on her toes.

The genuine leather and the craftsmanship of a master designer were evident. More importantly, the shoes fit Mrs. Mellon perfectly. They weren’t squeezing her feet until they were misshapen.

Her pearl necklace was especially remarkable. Some people might have complained that a few of the pearls weren’t perfectly round. Yet each pearl was about the size of a circle formed by touching the tip of one’s index finger to the joint of one’s thumb.

Combined with their creamy luster and the subtle, shifting rainbow hues that seemed to appear and disappear across their surfaces, these were pearls of such exceptional quality that even the Queen of England might have opened her purse generously to acquire them for her collection.

Yet despite her extraordinary wealth and the extraordinary quality of everything she wore, Mrs. Mellon had a faint air of death about her eyes and brows when Henry saw her this time.

He’d seen the same expression on Katherine Hepburn a few years earlier, shortly after he had first come to work for the old lady. It was the look of someone who had already grown indifferent to the boundary between life and death, someone who had yet to cross over simply because she hadn’t taken that final step.

With the lady of the house now present, Katherine Hepburn naturally stepped forward to greet her.

The two women, who were roughly the same age, clasped hands with both of theirs and immediately began chatting with warm enthusiasm.

But when everyone’s attention returned to Henry, he knew it was time to answer the question they’d asked earlier.

"Mrs. Mellon—"

Henry had barely begun when the elderly woman came to his side and took his arm.

"Just call me Rachel. You said you’ve brought me a gift, and I can hardly wait to see it. Would you do me the honor?"

"Of course. I brought it specifically for you. It’s just that the items are rather large, so we’ll need somewhere to set them up properly."

Rachel Lambert Mellon glanced at the two suitcases and seemed to understand.

"Are you planning to stay here?"

Henry answered honestly, "Yes. We’ve already booked a hotel in Washington. We don’t know how late today’s reception will run, and catching a flight back to New York in the middle of the night would be rather exhausting. It’ll be easier to stay for a day and return tomorrow."

"Here’s what we’ll do. Stay for a few more days, and I’ll have someone prepare guest rooms for you. I’ve been hoping for an opportunity to meet Katherine for a long time. Now that we’ve finally met, I certainly won’t let her leave so easily."

The two elderly ladies, who had probably never met before, had come together as though struck by love at first sight. Within moments, they had become close friends with a seemingly endless number of things to discuss.

Perhaps having lived through the same era made them eager to confirm their memories of the past through each other’s perspectives.

Had they been younger, these two women from very different worlds might never have found themselves standing together like this. It was only at their present age that they had come to treasure the chance to reminisce about the past through someone else’s recollections.

Seeing the same eager anticipation on the old lady’s face, Henry naturally had no reason to object.

"Then we’ll be imposing on your hospitality, Mrs. Mellon."

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