Ch. 5: Thoughts Dyed Red
When I opened the door, I could do nothing more than blink at what I saw.
OO: “Wow…”
An assortment of flowers, plus a lot of fruits and sweets, were lined up against the wall.
OO: “Could this be…”
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Rufen: “I’ll bring you something different. What do you like? Do you want something sweet like a cake?”
Rufen: “And then what? What else do you like?”
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OO: “Our conversation back then… he brought all these things I would like…”
Rufen: “You’re awake?”
OO: “Rufen…”
I rushed over to Rufen and grabbed both of his hands in mine.
OO: “Thank you Rufen!”
Rufen: “N-no problem!”
His face turned red, and his eyes darted away.
OO: “Rufen?”
(I wonder what’s wrong… he won’t look at me.)
OO: “What’s wrong?”
Rufen: “N-nothing… I’m same as usual!”
(His demeanor is completely different from the other day…)
He glanced at me briefly, but then immediately looked away.
As he did, I saw his ears were red.
Ch. 6: I Want to Know You
I couldn’t hide the fact that I was confused about Rufen’s sudden change.
(Rufen, what’s wrong…?)
He turned his face away, and I could see his ears were red.
OO: “Rufen, are you alright?”
Rufen: “I’m sorry for being so pushy the other day!”
Rufen suddenly vigorously bowed his head.
OO: “W-why are you apologizing…?”
Rufen: “I have to apologize with sincerity!”
(Does… that mean…)
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Rufen’s Brother: “So first you need to apologize for all the times you were pushy. You like her, right?”
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(Rufen… likes me…)
Rufen didn’t notice as my face turned red, and he continued to talk.
Rufen: “You were tired, but I really messed up! I thought it would make you happy, so I just…”
OO: “N-no, it’s alright… I was really happy.”
Rufen: “R-really!?”
OO: “If I had been feeling better, I would have wanted to try more foods and see more things.”
Rufen: “I’d actually thought a lot about it! That the parade would really be worth seeing, and how at night there would be fireworks, and then…!”
I got excited seeing his eyes sparkle more and more as he spoke.
Rufen: “I mean… I’m fine with whatever! What is it you want to do?”
OO: “Me…?”
(Something I want to do…)
OO: “Then… will you go to the garden with me?”
Rufen: “The garden? Y-yeah! Of course!”
We went out to the garden and a gentle breeze blew over me.
We sat down at a white table with two chairs that had been arranged in the center of the garden.
OO: “This way we can just spend some time together.”
Rufen: “O-oh, yeah… is there anything else you want to do? Anything is fine!”
Rufen kept glancing at me as his face turned bright red.
I felt something tickling the inside of my chest, and my face heated up.
(I’m happy… about Rufen’s feelings… but…)
OO: “I want to ask you more about the conversation from earlier.”
Rufen: “Earlier…”
OO: “I want to know what kinds of things you wanted to do.”
Rufen: “Eh…?”
OO: “I want to know more about you Rufen.”
Rufen: “About me…?”
OO: “You asked me on the first day I was here, about the things I like. So, I want to know the same thing about you.”
His eyes wavered with uncertainty…
At last, the sparkle returned to his eyes and his expression morphed into a smile.
Rufen: “Alright!”
Beneath that bright smile, I searched my heart to figure out my own feelings.
(I wonder if I like Rufen…)
Rufen: “I’ll tell you anything you want to know!”
Rufen moved around the table to sit in front of me and rested his chin in his hands.
OO: “Then first… what’s your favorite color?”
Rufen: “Red! Because it’s the color of the sun!”
OO: “Where’s a place you want to go?”
Rufen: “The ocean! It’s huge, right? I’ve never seen it before.”
OO: “Do you have any siblings?”
Rufen: “I have two older brothers! One who’s really helpful and one who’s really quiet. And I have a cousin!”
My heart pounded louder as I learned more about Rufen.
OO: “What else should I ask…”
As I looked up at the sky to think…
A shadow fell over my field of vision, and Rufen’s lips touched mine.
OO: “…!”
(Did he just… kiss me…?)
From across the table, Rufen had bent forward and now he slowly pulled back.
Rufen: “Th-the girl I like… is you!”
Rufen looked at me, his face completely red.
(That surprised me… but…)
OO: “Yeah… thanks!”
I showed him a bright smile, and he kissed me again.
I felt a sweetness fill my heart, like the sweet smell of flowers.
END
Secret Story: A Gift For You
The blue sky spread out over the town again.
The weather was nice.
At least that’s what I wanted to say…-.
Butler: “Lord Rufen, please wait!”
Rufen: “I’m just going to do a little shopping. I’ll be right back.”
As I was leaving the castle, the servants stopped me.
Rufen: “I have to buy a present for OO.”
The evening before, OO had felt unwell and was now sleeping.
(It’s all because I was so pushy… that’s why I have to go and buy things that will make her happy so I can apologize.)
Butler: “In that case, please allow someone else to go do the shopping while you wait here.”
Rufen: “There’s no point if I’m not the one who gets it for her. That’s why I’m going.”
(Though that’s what my big brother told me… but still, I want to do everything I can.)
Rufen: “There’s no point trying to stop me.”
I shook off the servants that were still trying to stop me and ran off.
I heard voices calling out for me to stop.
(Sorry! You can get mad at me all you want later!)
I hurriedly pushed open the castle gate.
I was wrapped in bright sunlight.
As I got to town, I bought up every single thing that caught my eye.
Hats and clothing that I thought would look good on OO…-.
Rufen: “That’ll look good on her too! I wonder which flowers would be good… I’ll just buy all the flowers that look good and make a huge bouquet!”
If it was for OO, I didn’t mind buying up every single thing in town.
Suddenly, a fruit stand caught my eye.
Rufen: “Which fruits were the ones she said she liked…?”
I looked down at the glossy fruit and OO’s face came to mind.
At that moment, my brother’s words crossed my mind.
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Bro: “You like her right?”
Bro: “She’ll hear you.”
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Rufen: “He said she’d hear me!”
Wanting to deny it, I frantically waved my hands.
At that time, I had completely forgotten I was at a fruit stand.
Rufen: “Yikes…!”
My hand hit some of the fruits and they fell to the ground.
Rufen: “Sorry! I’ll pick them up!”
I apologized to the shop keeper and hurriedly picked up all the fruits.
(My face is hot… I’m sure it’s totally red right now. Geez Bro, why’d you have to say such weird things?)
I knew it was useless to complain about my brother who wasn’t even here.
(Oh yeah, I…)
Though I’d just regained my composure, my brother’s worked flitted through my head again.
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Bro: “It’s possible she’s already heard our entire conversation.”
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Rufen: “Did she hear all that!?”
(Oh yeah. It’s possible that she heard everything! At that time, I thought I’d heard her voice from inside the room… but I…!)
Rufen: “No, she had to have been sleeping! Th-th-there’s no way she heard! I’m sure Bro was just teasing me!”
I waved my hand reflexively.
There was a noise from inside my hand.
(Huh? What’s this?)
Until that moment, I hadn’t realized I was holding an apple.
Rufen: “OO’s present!”
In a panic, I let go, but I recovered and caught the apple with both hands.
The bright red apple shone and sparkled in my hands.
(I’m really glad I didn’t crush it…)
I saw her face reflected in the apple.
Rufen: “Do I like her…?”
(It’s true that I have a good time when I’m with her. And I want to make her even happier. This definitely means I like her, right…?)
Rufen: “But I pushed her and made her feel worse!”
I groaned, crouching as my head was spinning in circles.
But I took a deep breath and stood up.
(There’s no point worrying about the past. What’s important is what I do from here on…)
Rufen: “First I’ll apologize!”
I threw the apple I still held up towards the sky.
The vivid red was in stark contrast with the pure blue sky.
(I’m sure this apple will be delicious. I want to give her things like this. And there’s a whole bunch I want to say to her. So, she needs to hurry and get better. A happy, energetic smile suits her!)
Grabbing the apple, I ran off in search of more presents.
The path ahead sparkled gold.
END