101st Confession

“Haha, that was fun today. Let’s get together again soon.”

“Yeah, right, Lucia’s wedding is only two months away.”

“Ethan, why don’t you bring your girlfriend later?”

“I’ll ask her later.”

The friends, who were slowly leaving, chattered until the end. Lucia waved with a smile, and she noticed Herwin moving away from her.

“You’re going too?”

“Yeah, I have some business to take care of.”

“I thought you’d be here until dinner…….”

Lucia’s shoulders sagged, and Herwin’s hand twitched. If no one else was there, he would have kissed her.

Herwin pushed his patience to the limit and pulled Lucia into a tight embrace.

“I’ll stay longer next time. I’m sorry I had to leave so early.”

“No, I shouldn’t have complained.”

Lucia stroked Herwin’s cheek, and his face softened. They exchanged a quick kiss and said goodbye.

Herwin left his friends piling into one of the wagons and called out to Arista.

“Arista, you’re coming with me.”

“Huh? Me?”

“Yes. You’re the only one here going in the same direction as me.”

“Isn’t that right, Arista, take Herwin’s carriage.”

“Yes, that would be more comfortable.”

Arista was the only one going in a different direction. 

Without much thought, Arista nodded.

“Okay, okay, guys, I’ll see you next time.”

“Yeah! See you!”

“Arista, next time you have to tell me who you like, okay?”

“I’m not telling you. These guys…….”

The carriage pulled away before Arista could get angry, and she sighed heavily as she balled her fists.

Just then, a carriage bearing the emblem of House Phoenaeus pulled up. Herwin opened the door.

“Here, get in.”

“Sure, excuse me…….”

“Arista.”

Arista climbed into the carriage and turned around. It was Lucas who had called her. He’d disappeared when they’d said goodbye.

“Here, this.”

Lucas handed her something. It was a small barrel. Arista took it and looked puzzled.

“It’s burn ointment. I got it just in case. You’re going to use it tonight. Okay?”

It was heartwarming to see him take care of a burn that no one else cared about. It was him who first reacted when she spilled the tea, and it’s still the same now. It felt like Lucas was looking out for her today.

Blushing, Arista bowed her head, grateful that the sky was dark.

“……Thank you.”

Herwin, who had watched the two of them from start to finish, raised a brow.

“Brother, we should get going.”

“Yes, take Arista home safely.”

Patting Lucas on the shoulder to assure him not to worry, Herwin climbed into the carriage. Pulling back the curtain, he waved to Lucia and the carriage moved.

When he was sure Lucia was out of sight, he leaned back against the backrest.

Looking forward, he saw Arista still clutching the jar of ointment, her head bowed.

A nagging suspicion turned to certainty.

“Arista, you like him, don’t you?”

Arista’s shoulders twitched. She looked up involuntarily, unable to control her expression.

Herwin was inwardly surprised. He’d never seen Arista’s face so unhinged, so red.

Even in the darkness of the carriage, he could see that her face was flushed.

“That, that, that, uh, how…….”

“You can’t hide it in the first place.”

Arista’s jaw dropped as she realized how bad she was.

“Oh, I see now. You seemed to be having a particular war of nerves with his ex. You did it because you like him, didn’t you?”

“……….”

“Why aren’t you talking?”

“It’s no one else…….”

“Huh?”

Arista muttered in a mousey voice, and Herwin leaned forward to hear it.

“I can’t believe you’re the first one to notice it……!”

It was a strange feeling, neither a compliment nor an insult, but strangely off-putting. But Arista didn’t care about Herwin’s feelings. She felt like she was being thrown into the middle of a mess.

“Was it really that obvious?”

“No, I only realized it today.”

“Hah…….”

Lucas doesn’t have a girlfriend, and she’s excited. Because up until now, he always had a new girlfriend before she found out.

“He doesn’t know you like him yet, does he?”

“If he did, I wouldn’t be doing this right now.”

“Well, if you had confessed, you’d be dating by now.”

Arista was about to nod when something caught her off guard and she looked at Herwin. Herwin said nonchalantly,

“Am I wrong? That if you confess, he’ll accept it?”

“……No way.”

The disbelieving tone of her voice only confused Herwin further.

“Are you telling me you’re afraid he won’t accept you?”

Judging by the silence, it must be true. It was ridiculous to Herwin that someone so good at giving him advice was so bad at her job. 

Especially for someone as good-looking as Arista to think that….…

‘Isn’t that what she’s talking about?’

Even though it was a conflict of interest, he was not sure Lucia would approve.

“In your eyes…….”

Arista opened her mouth, and Herwin listened.

“Do you think he will accept me?”

Seeing her hands fidgeting, her shoulders shaking slightly, and her violet eyes filled with anticipation, Herwin nodded.

“Yes. Enough.”

Arista’s face lit up for a moment. But she quickly controlled her expression and suppressed her joy.

“I don’t know what you’re insecure about, but be confident. You told me I’d regret it more if I didn’t start if I fumbled around and missed it, and that goes for you too.”

Arista grimaced, remembering the advice she’d given Herwin.

“Honestly, when he breaks up with her girlfriend, it doesn’t take long for him to find a new one, which means there are plenty of people who want him, and you can’t stop anyone from coming. Besides, I heard that his ex-girlfriend was thinking about getting engaged. No one knows what will happen if you miss the opportunity again.”

“……you’re right.”

There was nothing wrong with what Herwin said. They were all things she had thought about herself. 

She thought she should be brave enough to say it, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

She was afraid of being rejected by Lucas. What if he, who had always thought of her as his little sister, rejects and avoids her because he feels burdened…….

Arista felt dizzy just thinking about it. But she also didn’t want to lose him forever.

Herwin sighed as he looked at Arista, who was in constant conflict. He could see his old self in her, and he knew how much courage she had to muster.

The carriage came to a stop. They had arrived at Duchess Lydia’s estate. Arista stepped out of the carriage, seeing her home outside.

Just before the door closed, Herwin spoke.

“I won’t tell anyone that you like him. So don’t worry.”

Arista smiled sheepishly.

“Okay, thanks.”

“And if you need any help, just let me know, I don’t know if it’ll help, but I’ll help you to the best of my ability.”

“……Yes.”

Arista closed the door and the carriage moved once more. Watching Arista enter the mansion, Herwin leaned back and closed his eyes. 

‘My brother seemed to be interested in Arista, too.’

He didn’t tell Arista because it was just a guess. 

If she took his word for it and confessed to Lucas, he wouldn’t be able to deal with the fallout.

Herwin looked up into the moonlit night sky, hoping he was right. 

* * *

“Big brother, do you like Arista?”

“Phew!”

Lucas spat out his water instead of drinking it. No wonder Lucia stepped back in annoyance.

“What the hell are you talking about…….”

“I see you’re panicking, so I guess it’s true?”

Lucas stiffened, unable to say anything. After a moment of embarrassment, Lucas rushed to speak.

“No! Nothing like that. Why do I like Arista?”

“Then why didn’t you say anything just now?”

“Because you suddenly said something so ridiculous.”

“Hmmm…….”

“……You, what’s that look on your face.”

Lucas jerked back as Lucia crossed her arms and shot him a meaningful glare.

“Really, you don’t like Arista, do you?”

“No!”

“But the way you reacted when Arista spilled her tea, the way you picked her up and changed her clothes… and the way you froze when she said she had a crush on someone.”

“……that.”

Lucas stammered, and Lucia lifted her shoulders.

“Well, if not, never mind.”

It was a nonchalant response that turned people inside out.

“But if you’re really into it, you should be nervous. Arista is so popular. There’s a lot of guys lining up to meet her right now, and she seems to think she’ll marry the right guy as soon as she finds him.”

“Really?”

Lucia smiled inwardly at Lucas, who was always interested in her even when he said no.

For now, she decided to ignore his obvious interest.

“I’m not sure, but she said if she’s going to get married, she wants to do it with someone she likes.”

“Ah…….”

“The nuances of Arista’s speech and the way she usually acts. As soon as she meets someone she likes, she’ll marry him.”

Lucas’ shoulders began to sag as Lucia continued, and when he wondered why he was losing energy, he realized that he didn’t think he’d ever be Arista’s favorite.

‘But Arista seemed to like you.’

The behavior of Arista and Lucas stood out to Lucia today. She watched their behavior closely and noticed that they were both stealing glances at each other.

Arista was doing it more often than not.

It was so fleeting that if she weren’t paying attention, she wouldn’t notice. 

Lucia couldn’t help but wonder if she was imagining all of this, but she wanted Arista to like Lucas.

‘They look good together.’

As much as she thought Arista was a bit of a waste for her brother, she knew Lucas wasn’t a bad person, and she wanted them to be together if they were meant to be.

For now, she didn’t know how Arista felt, but she did know that Lucas had a crush on her.

“That….”

Lucas spoke up, unable to make eye contact with Lucia as he fiddled with his cup.

“Do you… do you know who Arista likes?”

Stifling a bark of laughter, Lucia scratched her head in thought.

“Uh…ssh. I guess I do, and I guess I don’t.”

“Whatever. If you know, you know.”

“Yeah, I don’t know.”

The air in the room turned salty in an instant. When Lucas turned to walk away, Lucia opened her mouth.

“Brother. If you’re interested, come closer.”

Lucas stopped.

“Do you know if you’re the one Arista likes?”

“……I don’t think Arista likes me!”

After a moment of silence, Lucas stormed out of the room. Lucia’s shoulders heaved as she watched him storm off. 

She couldn’t understand why he was acting like a child who had never been with a woman before.

Meanwhile, Lucas, who had fled to his room, clutched his frantically beating chest.

In the mirror, his face was red as a tomato. After staring at his reflection for a long time, Lucas covered his face with his hands.

“You’re crazy, Lucas…….”

Lucas leaned back against the doorway, still squirming.

“I think I like Arista.”

He couldn’t help but notice how Arista looked like a woman and not his sister, how he couldn’t take his eyes off her whenever he saw her, and how he felt nervous without realizing it….…

“It’s because I like her…….”

Once he recognized his own heart, the sound of his heartbeat echoed in his ears even more.

He had met many girls and thought that he was tired of love, but it was the first time that he was so infatuated with someone that he could only think of one person.

He hadn’t yet recognized that what he was feeling was love.

“What should I do…….”

He has to go to work tomorrow and see Arista… but he doesn’t know how to meet her with these feelings.

Tonight felt especially long.