CH 116

“What about Aren?”

I threaded my arm through my jacket while checking Aren’s position. Todd fastened the buttons and adjusted my clothes.

“She is in the Grand Prince’s study.”

It wasn’t until I heard that she was still in the mansion that my tension eased. But I couldn’t be careless. Even in the meantime, Aren may go home without hesitation. I wonder when I will be able to stop worrying about this.

I put on all of my clothes and walked towards the study. I thought she just wanted to visit even though there were no classes, but there must have been a book she wanted to read.

I took a deep breath in front of the study and opened the door and entered. A smile appeared at the foot jutting out to the side of the sofa with her back to the door. I was puzzled as she kept quiet at the sound of the door being opened, so I kept quiet and walked.

Several books are stacked on the table, next to which are leftover cookies and a teacup. And Aren was lying on the sofa, and she was sound asleep. She slept peacefully. I poked her cheek wide with my index finger. I thought she must be taking a nap, but she slept so deeply in a place that is not even a bedroom. How fearless.

For some reason Aren didn’t seem to grow much in the past seven years despite eating so much. She was still like a kid.

And I now know that Aren doesn’t like slapping me on the face. I also knew that she wasn’t expressing affection that way. I know she never confessed to me in the first place and she never liked me.

However, the interest and affection, which I ravenously received in my childhood, made me grow up looking only at Aren, and my feelings became embedded in Aren like they were imprinted. So I wanted all of Aren even more fervently. I wanted to have all of her attention, gaze, and thoughts with me.

Aren was my everything.

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9. The reason why the Lady left the Duchy

My throbbing headache. The hardness against the back of my head and the neck bent at an unsuitable height complained of pain. It was asked to be saved, warning that my neck would not be able to function if it continued in this state, I urgently awakened my slumbering nerves. My overworked head and stiff, heavy eyes demanded a little more rest, but I struggled to open my eyes, unable to ignore the urgent signal from my neck.

And what I found was a sculpture. A work of art that evokes admiration caught my eye. A handsome boy resting his chin across the armrest at an angle and looking at a book on the reading table. The problem is that I am looking up at this boy right from below his face.

“What are you doing?”

A voice full of sleep came out of my mouth. If he has a conscience, he might flinch at my question, but Kir’s hand turned the page indifferently. And without looking away, he replied.

“Because you were sleeping.”

No, it’s true that I was sleeping.

“Why am I on your knees?”

I had fallen asleep alone on the couch.

“I thought you might need a pillow.”

“I’d rather you put a cushion on. This is uncomfortable.”

To be honest, this isn’t the first time this has happened, so I wasn’t too surprised. The child who was immature and selfish as a child is still selfish now that he has grown up a little. Of course, he grew up a little, a little bit, but his stubbornness didn’t change.

Kir’s index finger came down and tapped my forehead. He tapped it lightly, but my head was numb, so it rang with a jingle. As I wrapped my palm around the place where he had just tapped off, Kir’s fingers tickled the back of my hand playfully.

“It’s because there are no cushions.”

“No, does it make sense that there isn’t a single cushion in this wide grand duke’s residence?”

I replied bluntly, shaking my head cautiously, loosening the muscles in my neck. It was stiff enough to make me groan. And because I came earlier and saw that there was a cushion. I didn’t sleep on it because it was annoying, but it was definitely there.

It had already been 7 years since I had known Kir. During that time, Kir also changed a lot. Now, the chubby baby cheeks are completely gone, and he is maturing quite a bit, gaining muscles through training. Usually when you look at Hollywood child actors, they changed so much when they grew up, but Kir’s beauty didn’t change, so I was proud. It was really good on the eyes.

Even when looked up from below, only envy soared in his pretty face. Being pretty is pretty. But why are you bothering my neck!