Episode 48
We headed to a cafeteria near the restaurant.
Despite his injured arm, Lu skillfully escorted me and held the café door open, asking,
“Iced coffee, right?”
“Yeah.”
“And soufflé too.”
“Sounds good.”
Lu still knows my tastes well.
…Should I learn more about him too?
I shifted my gaze from Lu, who was ordering two coffees and a soufflé, to take a look around.
Though it wasn’t a café in a bustling district, the place was fairly crowded.
Most of the patrons were young women.
‘Is there a famous dessert here or something?’
Just as I was scanning the interior with that thought in mind—
“…Huh?”
I spotted a familiar face.
A face that should not be here.
Wait, what?
Without realizing it, I rubbed my eyes hard.
But the face before me remained unchanged.
Our eyes met.
As if he had known I would come here, or as if he had been waiting for me, he immediately smiled.
“Charles.”
He abandoned the young ladies gathered around him and strode toward me.
“It’s been a while.”
Before I could even attempt to stop him, he pulled me into a tight embrace.
With his face buried in the crook of my neck, he laughed happily.
There was only one person who would engage in this kind of physical contact so casually.
“You missed me, didn’t you?”
Adrian.
It was him.
“Charles.”
A slightly unfamiliar yet deeply familiar voice filled the space.
“I missed you.”
Adrian inhaled deeply with his face still pressed against my neck before releasing me and stepping back to stand properly.
His silver hair cascaded smoothly, and his eyes—black as an abyss—revealed no depth.
Feeling a chill in my spine, I instinctively withdrew my chin.
At that moment, the gazes of the many young women watching me completely faded from my awareness.
Because Adrian’s gaze alone was so intensely fixated on me.
“Why aren’t you answering?”
He smiled slowly.
At a glance, it seemed warm.
But if one looked closely, they would realize it was anything but.
A cold smile laced with something dark and unfathomable.
Unconsciously, I swallowed dryly.
“Charles…”
Something brushed against my cheek.
His hand.
“Did you not miss me?”
His palm cupped my cheek so naturally—yet at the same time, it left me no room to escape.
“Since that day, I’ve thought about you every single day.”
“…….”
Hoo. A sigh escaped my lips.
Feeling the cold sweat forming, I forced myself to meet his eyes.
“Why are you here?”
At that, Adrian blinked his large eyes several times.
“Every time you see me, you ask that. Am I somewhere I shouldn’t be?”
“That’s not it. I’m asking why you’ve appeared before me.”
“Because I wanted to see you. Do I need another reason?”
“Adrian.”
“Charles. You haven’t answered my question.”
He was still smiling as he spoke.
“Did you miss me?”
I hated Adrian’s smile.
It made my skin crawl.
His smile had always felt like shackles tightening around me.
Every time he smiled, it felt like the space I could stand in was shrinking, like the choices in my life were vanishing.
“Charles.”
Adrian grasped my cheek firmly with his fingers.
“Answer me.”
I swallowed dryly once more.
Every time I faced Adrian, I felt like a bird trapped in a cage.
A bird tamed for too long—so much so that even with an open door, it could no longer fly away.
That’s why I always felt powerless before him.
“Yeah. I missed yo—”
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Right then, a sharp voice cut through the air.
At the same time, I felt a hand firmly yank me backward.
As I staggered back, my back collided with something solid—Lu’s chest.
“Charles. Are you alright?”
With his arms around me from behind, Lu examined my expression.
The breath I had unknowingly been holding finally escaped.
The tension I had felt while facing Adrian suddenly seemed to dissipate.
“We were just greeting each other after a long time. No need to be so on guard.”
Adrian directed his words toward us.
“Or… is Sir Lu Vansen the type to keep his fiancée from even meeting her friends?”
At that, Lu let out a quiet laugh.
“Keep her from seeing friends?”
He tilted his head slightly.
“Usually, restraint is necessary when someone tries to run away. But that’s odd. Charles has never once tried to run from me.”
Lu gave a short, mocking laugh.
“Though, I suppose you might have experienced otherwise.”
Adrian’s eyes widened slightly before his lips curled into an amused grin.
“Pfft—Haha!”
I had no idea what was so funny, but Adrian suddenly clutched his stomach and burst into laughter.
Hahaha! Hahahaha!
After laughing for a while, he finally composed himself, rolling his shoulders.
“You’re a much more entertaining person than I expected, Sir. Nice to meet you. I’m Adrian Barthéleus.”
He extended a hand toward Lu.
But Lu didn’t shake it.
He simply glanced down at Adrian’s outstretched hand and smirked.
“It seems you already know who I am, so I’ll skip the introductions.”
“Oh dear. It seems I’m not well-liked.”
Adrian smiled again.
Though his smile was as gentle as ever, the murky emotions lurking beneath it were painfully obvious.
I felt suffocated once more.
“Sorry, but I’ve known Charles for much longer than you have. And much deeper too. So, this kind of interruption? Not exactly pleasant for me.”
He turned his gaze toward me, as if urging me to agree with him.
Unconsciously, I parted my lips.
“Uh, uh, that’s tr—”
“What does your discomfort have to do with me?”
But Lu’s mocking retort was quicker than my response.
“Well, that’s a relief. I had no intention of making you feel comfortable anyway.”
At that, Adrian’s previously composed face subtly twisted.
No matter how intimidating his aura was, it seemed he couldn’t maintain his composure in the face of Lu’s taunts.
For the first time, I started to feel at ease.
“There’s nothing for me to gain by arguing here.”
Adrian shrugged and stepped closer to me.
“Sha… No, Charles.”
Then, he abruptly grabbed my hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it.
Goosebumps spread along my skin from the lingering touch.
“It was nice seeing you again.”
As his black eyes met mine, the emotions swirling in them were all too familiar.
Obsession, possessiveness, and even hatred.
As his lips parted from my skin, he whispered just loud enough for me to hear,
“Come to me tonight.”
I squeezed my eyes shut.
I didn’t want to go.
I didn’t want to see him.
But—
I couldn’t refuse.
Because I was a sinner in both Adrian’s and Baylor’s eyes.
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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