He Likes Me a Lot More Than I Thought!

No matter how young Shuel was, he was not that young that he could not think straight.

I thought he would change his mind later, but that was the future.

Shuel, who confessed to me, was in the present.

It was hard to accept it as he was a child, and so I had ignored it and took it lightly.

“No. It’s not that……”

Those words came out before I could think. But I couldn’t continue the sentence.

I shouldn’t ignore someone’s heart just because they were young.

It was my fault.

“I’m sorry for taking your feelings lightly. I didn’t mean to. I’m really sorry.”

My face burned with shame.

As someone who has been proudly claiming to be a very open person so far, it was shameful to admit my mistake.

At my words, Shuel looked at me with his eyes wide open.

With a bitter smile, I reached my hand out to wipe his tears away.

“Why do you hate me?”

My heart ached at those words that came out with a hoarse tone from crying.

“Why would I hate you?”

“But, you don’t like……”

At the end of his sentence, a sob cried out again. Now, I realised what his ‘I like you’ means.

It was just different from mine.

“Hey, Shuel.”

Shuel nodded his head at my quiet call. I rubbed his eyes, feeling guilty about his tears.

“I like you, but I like you just as I like Rieta, Derick and Marie.”

“I…know.”

Shuel struggled to answer in a stable voice.

He tried to act strong, but tears welled up in his pink eyes again.

“It’s not because I don’t like you. I want you to know that.”

“Then? Why?”

As soon as my words ended, Shuel asked eagerly.

The sight of those desperate eyes made me laugh a little. How can you go through your first love so harshly?

“You are still young and there are so many opportunities out there.”

You are very pretty. That I’m almost jealous of it. Though, it was still lovely.

“I may be the only person you see right now, but things will change as you grow up. You will meet many beautiful people and might fall in love with one of them.”

That’s how bright your future will be. I wonder how precious and beautiful it would be?

The thought suddenly occurred to me. 

“When you grow older like me, I won’t be as pretty as you are. So that’s why I can’t.”

By the time I finished speaking, Shuel’s tears had stopped. Only his red, swollen eyes were evidence that he cried.

“Then, Rwen.”

Shuel, who seemed as if he had wanted to say something for a while, struggled to lift his mouth open and asked.

“Is it because I’m too young now?”

I smiled wryly and hesitated for a while before finally answering.

“……Yes.”

Yeah, maybe this was for the best.

After crying for a few days, his emotions would clear up. Human emotions certainly do not last very long.

And after that, would he feel awkward?

Thinking about it made me feel a little sad. I wanted to stay close to him……

It was Shuel’s small gasp that woke me up from my sadness. Startled, I became restless.

Is that a cry?

He’s going to cry, right?

H-How do I comfort him? No, can I even comfort him in the beginning?

Yet, the moment I decided that I should at least wipe his tears so his eyes wouldn’t swell, Shuel raised his head.

His face was clear, void of any tears. On the contrary, they were sparkling.

“Then, what if I still like Rwen when I become an adult?”

My head went blank at the unexpected conclusion.

“……Huh?”

“If you don’t believe that I like Rwen because I’m too young now, will you believe me when I’m an adult?”

“No, what–”

I was at a loss for words to refute.

For the past 10 minutes or so, I’ve been saying that I couldn’t like Shuel because of my age.

I wanted to open the door and run away, but I locked the door of this room. I wanted to refute.

It was an excuse. I made it up entirely.

“Like Rwen said, time flies.”

He began to quote. It sounded like a letter that I’d written before.

“I’m going to keep liking Rwen, and I’m going to keep saying that I like you. I will grow up in no time.”

Having said that, Shuel laughed.

Like a young boy, but in love, with flushed cheeks and shining brightly.

“You look so pretty today.”

The smile was so pure that I was rendered speechless.

“You said you wouldn’t be pretty in the future, but Rwen is pretty every day.”

A voice serenades faintly.

The words felt more impactful because it was genuine, without a single pretence.

“I like Rwen. I really like you. I like you so much.”

As he said that, Shuel smiled brightly. The rays of sunlight slowly reflected, enveloping him lightly.

In the dark storage room where small rays of lights peaked in, Shuel shone along with them.

It was so dazzlingly beautiful that I simply stared at Shuel without saying a word.

How can he speak like that?

Every touch, every word was beautiful. There wasn’t a single flaw.

Would it be like that if you grew up with parents who loved you and in an environment where you didn’t lack anything?

If I had grown up like that, would I be able to shine the same way?

I felt strange. It was similar to the melancholy of grief, but I didn’t feel like crying.

As I stood motionless in the room drenched with the afternoon sun, Shuel suddenly asked me.

“Rwen. Do you remember?”

“Yeah?”

When I answered absently, Shuel made a strange face.

It seemed like a smile that was holding back a laugh. It was a face that I used to make fun of when I was young.

“The first time I said I liked you, Rwen said you would marry me if I continued to like you when I became an adult.”

“……What?”

The strange feeling instantly disappeared.

Did I say that?

“The day when Rieta and I fought and Rieta cried out loudly. The day you took a nap under the tree shade and taught us to play hide and seek.”

Shuel kindly explained to me, who was bewildered. The bright smile on his face didn’t look like the same Shuel.

I was quite taken aback by him.

Y-You…How can your memory be so clear at that age?

Shuel grinned at my confused look as my head was all jumbled up.

It was a mischievous smile that I had never seen before.

“You have to keep your promise. Absolutely.”

＊  ＊  ＊

Please do not repost. Read only at Dropped Inks.

When I returned to the dormitory, feeling like my soul had been stolen, Sie was waiting for me with her eyes shining.

“How did it go?”

“Sie. Isn’t it time for your class?”

If I remembered correctly, Sie was in the Kingdom History class. Shuel and I had a free period at this time, but Sie didn’t.

I glanced at the timetable on the wall to be sure, but Sie shook her head firmly.

“Is that important right now? I heard you were playing catch in the square! How did that go? Tell me!”

What do you mean playing catch? She should have seen Shuel’s face back then.

It was so grave that he ran away with a pale face without looking back as if he had seen a monster.

Clicking my tongue, I went back to my seat and took off my jacket.

I applied for a twin room because I wanted to share the room with a friend, but it seemed to be the wrong choice.

“So? How did it go? Can’t you tell me?”

“Nothing is going to happen. I’m not dating Shuel.”

“No, but you guys talked for a long time! And I heard that Sebrirua’s eyes were really red just now?”

Did he cry? Sie’s purple eyes twinkled as she asked.

If it were any other day, I would have laughed and moved on, but I was quite exhausted today.

“I didn’t hit him. I was just talking and Shuel cried.”

“Oh my god.”

Sie opened her mouth widely. I thought she would be quiet for a while but then she started to babble again.

“Wow…Oh my god. You made Shuel Sebrirua cry? That brick guy? What? Something must have really happened!”

“Sie.”

“Yes?”

“What would you say if I told you that I’m actually over 30 and can’t accept a 12-year-old boy’s confession?”

“Oh, dear. That’s really bad, my friend. Would you like to visit the doctor with me?”

“Then, please shut up.”

After saying that, I sighed. I had a splitting headache.

The original plot was bound to change. It was expected the moment I left Viscount Broschte with Shuel.

But this……

“Rwen. The ground is falling[1].”

[1] An expression said when someone sighs too deeply that the ground starts to fall.

“Be quiet, Sie……”