“…Hyunjin, are you a little late today?”
“Sorry, miss.”
“Yeah, no matter what happens, because I gave you free time.”
Unbeknownst to me, I was startled by Amelia’s words and stumbled slightly.
Amelia seemed to have caught even such a trivial detail.
“What is it, Hyunjin? Why are you shaking?”
“That, I mean…”
“Are you hiding something from me, Hyunjin?”
Amelia looked at me curiously.
Something stung my conscience. Were these the kinds of gazes the protagonists of romantic comedies received? Well, strictly speaking, I wasn’t the main character here.
As she paused for a moment, appearing lost in thought, she gestured animatedly, almost as if exaggerating. “I didn’t say this to reprimand you. I just want to honestly hear what my butler did.”
Yes, I should talk a little bit and get through this in moderation.
“I went to study… at a friend’s house.”
After hearing my words, Amelia assumed a contemplative posture.
“Hey… do you mean study? At your friend’s house? Then it must have been at Natsuki’s house, right?”
“…It wasn’t.”
“What?! What kind of friend was it? Maybe… that… someone as big and ferocious as a bear—Kiba? Was it him?”
“No, not him.”
“Then whose house did you go to?!” Amelia’s voice rose slightly.
Well, it didn’t matter if I told her the truth—I was curious about her reaction anyway.
“My classmate, Kamiyama Ohana… I went to study at her house.”
“What?!”
In an instant, Amelia’s expression shifted to one of astonishment.
Was it just my imagination?
“I don’t think you heard me, so I’ll say it again. I went to Kamiyama Ohana’s house—”
“I heard that! Do you even know what you’re talking about?!”
Amelia’s curt tone didn’t feel angry, but it did seem tinged with something else—something that made her look cute. Her attitude almost made me smile, but I caught myself just in time.
Behind her, Rachel and Ed seemed to be quietly laughing, as if something about this situation amused them.
“Sorry, lady. I apologize if there was any inconvenience.”
“Hyunjin, this isn’t something you need to apologize for.”
“Is that so?”
I tried to say something more, but Amelia puffed out her cheeks, clearly pouting.
Seeing her like that, I felt a mix of relief and awkwardness, as if this really was a scene out of a romantic comedy.
Ed, standing behind Amelia, cleared his throat quietly before speaking.
“Hmm, ahem. You… Oh, no.”
Amelia glanced sideways at Rachel and Ed, who stood nervously nearby, before abruptly announcing, “Oh, leave for today! Hmph!”
Amelia dismissed me, Rachel, and Ed with a wave of her hand.
***
[Amelia’s POV]
After everyone left, Amelia sighed deeply in the now-quiet room. She knew she was the one who had granted Hyunjin free time.
“That’s not like me,” she murmured softly.
She turned on the music box on her desk, closing her eyes as the slow melody filled the room.
“I know I shouldn’t feel like this… but Kamiyama annoys me,” she admitted to herself.
It was a new and unsettling feeling. Her heart ached at the thought of Hyunjin being with another woman.
‘Would it be better if I didn’t let him go out?’ she wondered. But no, trying to retract what had already been granted would only make her look petty and controlling. She couldn’t bring herself to issue such a command.
“I want to think positively, but I hate Kamiyama! I can’t stand it!”
Her heart twisted painfully as she imagined Hyunjin at Ohana’s house. Why did he go there? Was it really just to study?
Her thoughts spiraled further. What if something happened between them? What did they talk about? Could there be things she didn’t know? Why didn’t Hyunjin come to her, Rachel, or Ed for help instead?
The possibility of him tarnishing the Lionheart family’s honor by doing something inappropriate crossed her mind, but she shook her head.
“No, Hyunjin isn’t like that! Still…!”
Amelia’s head felt like it would burst from the endless speculation. These feelings were new to her, and she didn’t know how to process them.
Since childhood, she had always had everything she wanted, yet she had learned to restrain herself and remain polite. Now, she was overwhelmed by jealousy and sadness, emotions she had never experienced so intensely.
“Kamiyama! Why does Hyunjin keep saying her name? Hyunjin is such an idiot!”
Grabbing a pillow, she slammed it onto her bed repeatedly, trying to vent her frustration.
Realizing she was spiraling, she reached for the bell on her desk and rang it to call her attendant.
***
[Hyunjin’s POV]
“Wow, studying for class is tough…”
The Japanese history paper test was about two weeks away, and I figured if I crammed now, I’d manage to pull through.
“Still, I’m a little concerned,” I muttered.
Despite thinking Amelia was cute, her abrupt dismissal earlier left me feeling uneasy. She probably misunderstood my visit to Ohana’s house.
Was it strange for a butler to study at someone else’s house? Especially at a woman’s house, without permission?
As her servant, it wasn’t unreasonable for her to think it odd that I returned home late after such a visit.
With these thoughts swirling in my mind, it became harder to focus. No matter how much I tried, the material didn’t stick.
Knock! Knock!
While I sighed in frustration, a couple of knocks broke the silence in the room.
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so cute~
waiting the shuraba!