Obsessed with Regressors

She was startled and searched her arms to see water dripping down Elliot’s shoulder.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“Are you okay?”

 

They asked each other at the same time. Nothing stood out to her. Because her body was covered by Elliot’s body. He smiled after checking that not a single drop of water had splashed on her body. And he took her handkerchief and said:

 

“I wasn’t nice to you.”

 

Even after receiving the handkerchief, Elliot did not wipe the water with it. Shouldn’t he clean it quickly? Instead, in front of her who was impatient, he leisurely shook off the water with his hands and spoke.

 

“I did what I loved.”

 

She didn’t know if they were talking about the same topic. She asked, seeing her handkerchief still in his hand.

 

“Do you like being nice to me?”

 

“Sure. You’re happy.”

 

She did not know what to say. She felt very strange. Elliot shook the parasol to shake off the muddy water and continued speaking.

 

“I like that.”

 

This guy really liked her. A thought suddenly occurred to her. And at the same time, she felt very complicated. Of course it’s good. There’s no one who wouldn’t like someone saying they liked them. But it was also a little scary at the same time. It was a bit burdensome.

 

“Sorry. I will replace your parasol with a new one.”

 

When the stain on the parasol showed no sign of coming off no matter how many times he shook it off, Elliot said with an apologetic expression. It was natural because it was muddy water.

 

“You said that to me before. That I will love you.”

 

She opened her mouth and placed her hand on Elliot’s hand, which was trying to shake off the dirt from the parasol. At that time, she thought he was crazy. Of course, this does not mean that she was canceling the idea that he was a crazy person. Now that she knew more than she did then, she just has questions.

 

“You said that in your dream we were not lovers.”

 

Elliot’s actions stopped at her next words. He looked down at her with an inscrutable expression and tilted his head to the side. She continued speaking in response to his actions that seemed to ask what he was trying to say.

 

“What if I don’t love you?”

 

He said so confidently that she would love him, but that was just his heart. She may not love Elliot until the end. Actually, she liked him a bit. How could she not like such a handsome man? Plus, he said such sweet and cute things like now. But liking and love were different things. She liked Awning, but she didn’t love him. She did think she would love him someday. That’s the difficult thing. And it could also be said to be proof that she was naive. She thought that if they lived together and became a couple, they would love each other someday. But it wasn’t the same for Awning. He was someone who would never, ever love her even if he died. So maybe he thought her wish to be in love with her husband someday was funny. It still hurt her a bit. And it was becoming an obstacle to finding her next spouse. 

What if the other person didn’t love her? Conversely, what if she couldn’t love the other person?

 

“Do you like the other suitor better?”

 

Elliot asked. No, it’s not like that. She was about to say no, but then frowned when she realized he already knew the answer. Of all her suitors, Elliot had the laid-back look that someone who knows he was the best. ‘This guy?’ She said this without realizing it because she found his confident and relaxed face a bit disgusting.

 

“That could be true.”

 

Two other suitors came to mind. But she couldn’t remember the face because it’s obscured by a faint shadow. She just remembered what it felt like. Wait, what was their name? She remembered one of them being Ryan, but she couldn’t remember the other one’s name. She furrowed her brow as she tried to recall the name of another suitor.

 

“If you’re happy, that’s enough.”

 

Elliot said calmly. 

 

‘Huh? Okay?’ When she looked at him, he continued talking with an expression that said it was no big deal.

 

“All I want is for you to be happy. Regardless of whether you love someone or not, I will find a way to make you happy in my own way.”

 

Everything was about her. She felt strange again. She didn’t know how to express this feeling. She thought it was a bit amazing, but at the same time, she felt a bit disappointed. She didn’t think she could do that. If the person she liked liked someone else, she would get upset and lock herself in her room. And she would never want to see the other person again. When Elliot got angry and asked her what such a thing was, her feelings were mixed with her feelings of doing it and her admiration that he was a great person. She didn’t know which way to follow her heart, so she looked at him for a moment, then stepped back slightly and said,

 

“Come back quickly. I will make the clothes clean and return them to you.”

 

At a glance, it looks like only the shoulder has been thrown off. Still, since it got dirty trying to protect her, it would be better to wash it at her house and return it to him. They walked back the way we came. They suggested going back in a passing carriage, but Elliot refused. Even though he was wearing muddy clothes and carrying a parasol, he had a relaxed attitude.

 

* * *

 

“Baron Biscon, do you know what business Count Burns is doing?”

 

The next day, when Oliver arrived at the club, the men who were reading the newspaper flocked to him and asked: This morning, there was an article in the newspaper about Count Burns doing some business with his boat. It was said that Count Burns’s huge ship was still floating on the river and that he seems to be doing some business with it, but the exact type of business was not yet known. Of course, Oliver read the article too. He had just come out from home reading the newspaper with his family.

 

“Oh, that…”

 

Oliver grinned as people turned their attention to him. And he leisurely approached the empty seat and sat down.

 

“What business is it?”

 

“Which one?”

 

“Aren’t investors needed?”

 

He was very curious about what Count Burns’ business was. And if possible, he also wanted to invest. That was people’s reaction. Oliver asked the employee who approached him to bring him a cup of tea first, and then he looked around at the people.

 

“You know what business it is.”

 

“What?”

 

The expressions on people’s faces as if they were dying of curiosity made Oliver happy. He waited for the staff to bring the tea and took a sip of it.

 

“Oh, what do you mean?”

 

“Uh huh, wait a minute.”

 

“Baron Viscon, aren’t you hungry? Here, bring me a sandwich.”

 

“What about sandwiches? Bring me a glass of whiskey here.”

 

“Just one drink. Bring the whole bottle.”

 

The club was in an uproar at the mere news of Count Burns’ business. Oliver opened his mouth only after receiving the sandwich, cookies, and whiskey.

 

“There’s nothing to call it a business. It’s just like a women’s social gathering.”

 

“What?”

 

Was he doing this after taking everything you got? The people gathered reacted to Oliver’s words as nonsense. But it was true that it was a women’s social gathering. The host was Eugenie, and her attendees were limited to women she knew. Oliver ate his sandwich and explained what he knew.

 

“Eugenie said she wanted to learn how to swim. That’s why Count Burns lent us his boat.”

 

“The newspaper said it was a business?”

 

“It looks like a business. If anyone wants to, they can come learn swimming through Eugenie.”

 

Having said that, he quickly added, looking around at the people.

 

“Oh, only women.”

 

Only then did the people understand what Oliver meant when he said it was a women’s social gathering and walked away with disappointed expressions. But he asked in disbelief that the two men who had bought Oliver a sandwich and whiskey were the only ones left.

 

“Then why did the article say it was a business?”

 

“He needs to hire someone to teach them how to swim. “If there are a lot of people who want to learn, they will take money and hire more teachers.”

 

It’s not a business, it’s just a meeting. Huh. The man who bought me a sandwich clicked his tongue and left. The man who had bought Oliver a bottle of whiskey was looking at him in disbelief.

 

“Would you like me to ask if he needs investors?”

 

Oliver asked, swallowing his sandwich. Not required. What kind of investment was necessary for women to have fun? The man stood up, sighing deeply as if he were annoyed. 

And he snatched the bottle of whiskey out of Oliver’s hand.

 

“That’s stupid.”

 

Oliver’s bottle was taken away, but he didn’t feel particularly offended. This was because Eugenie warned him that this could happen when they read the article at home. Even though she’s his younger sister, she had a good heah. He muttered that and chuckled.

 

“Oliver.”

 

At that time, his friend Ted Ryan came into the club. Oliver, who was sitting alone at a large table eating a sandwich, turned his head and said when he heard his friend’s voice.

 

“Uh, Ted. Eat a sandwich, what’s wrong with your face?”

 

There was still half of the sandwich left. Oliver, who was about to share it with his friend, looked at Ted’s face and realized that the sandwich wasn’t important right now. Ted’s face was a mess. One side of his face was stained blue, as if he had fallen somewhere or been hit.

 

“Ah, this. I bumped into some guy yesterday.”

 

“Bump into it? What happened?”

 

It was embarrassing. Ted tried to stroke his chin and frowned when he touched his bruised area. But it also hurts. He said as he sat down next to Oliver.

 

“Well, I was coming out after drinking some alcohol and we crashed into each other. Wow, I almost got hit by a carriage.”

 

He completely died and then came back to life. Oliver chuckled at his friend’s bluff. He knew where he was drinking. It looks like he was drinking in a low-quality neighborhood down there. When Oliver told him to drink a little, Ted said with an embarrassed expression.

 

“So I guess I won’t be able to go to your house for a while. Please tell your sister.”

 

Why at his house? As Oliver was about to ask that question, he remembered that his friend was courting his sister. To be honest, he wasn’t very happy that Ted was courting Eugenie. Although he was rich, he had no title and he knew very well what he usually did. Ted liked card games more than Oliver and would often play betting cards. He was sometimes scolded by his father for not being able to pay off his credit card debt.

 

“That would be great.”

 

Eugenie will be shocked if she saw it. Oliver clicked his tongue and said. He wondered why his sister was having trouble putting Count Burns between Ted and Lord Heinz.

 

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