“How… how do you do that? How do you become proactive?”
Even with the memories from a past life, where I had gained a fair amount of life experience, my knowledge of romance was at zero.
‘In my past life, I went to an all-girls middle and high school, spent my entire college life preparing for the civil service exam, barely passed, and then died from overwork.’
There was no room for even the tiniest bit of romance in that life.
‘Back in school, the teachers told us that dating was the quickest way to fail, and the online lecturers said the same during exam prep—save it for later.’
But there was no ‘later.’
Even in this life, where I attended a co-ed academy, the people who showed interest in me were all duds.
Even those who seemed like they might lead to something never turned into anything more.
Connie scratched her cheek, deep in thought.
I sighed, sensing that there wouldn’t be a brilliant solution coming from her.
“Should I go to the library and borrow some romance books?”
In a world without the internet, books were the only source of information.
As if talking to myself, I suggested it, but Connie quickly shook her head as if I had said something absurd.
“Why would you look for romance books at the library? That’s not it.”
Connie firmly rejected the idea.
“Then what?”
“Let’s go to a bookstore. The library only has old editions that aren’t up to date with the latest trends.”
“Ah.”
Indeed, zero was better than a negative.
We headed to the largest bookstore nearby and bought a pile of books on romance.
Then we studied them as diligently as I had prepared for exams at the academy.
After reading through all the books, I finally lifted my head and rubbed my tired eyes.
“So the conclusion is: smile when you make eye contact, give small compliments, subtle physical contact, and that’s about it?”
“That’s a perfect summary.”
Connie, who had helped me analyze the romance books, agreed.
‘Flirting doesn’t seem so difficult.’
“If you’ve learned the theory, the next step is practice.”
I clenched my fists with determination.
* * *
The next day, I dressed in the clothes Connie and I had picked out while shopping and headed to my meeting place with Everett.
As usual, Everett was already there, waiting for me.
“Sir Roxas.”
As I called out to him and approached, Everett, who had been looking around, turned his gaze towards me, his golden eyes gleaming even more brightly under the sun.
‘First, smile when you make eye contact.’
I smiled warmly at Everett, my eyes crinkling at the corners.
Everett stiffened slightly.
‘Is it working?’
It was a strange reaction, but at least he didn’t seem to dislike it.
Maintaining my smile, I stepped closer to him.
‘Next, give a small compliment.’
“Sir Roxas, you look incredibly handsome today.”
Of course, Everett looked handsome every day.
His looks were consistently flawless.
‘But the book said that was a good example of a small compliment.’
Lacking creativity, I couldn’t come up with anything else.
‘Since it’s an example used in the book, it must be universally effective.’
I completed the second step of giving a compliment and closed the distance between us, but there was no offer of an escort from him this time. He simply stood there, looking dazed as if his mind was elsewhere.
I observed his expression closely, then cautiously reached out and took his hand first.
‘Is subtle physical contact the next step?’
This was the final stage of flirting according to the books.
This time, there was no reaction from him at all.
It was as if he had turned into a statue.
‘Is this not right?’
I tilted my head in confusion.
‘Maybe subtle physical contact doesn’t mean just holding hands.’
Holding hands is something even friends do.
The physical contact the book mentioned for progressing to a romantic relationship might need to be a bit more intimate.
‘For example…’
Summoning all my courage, I gently pulled my hand away and lightly linked my arm with Everett’s.
Everett flinched like a startled cat.
If I hadn’t linked my arm with his, he probably would have stepped ten paces away from me.
‘Was that too bold?’
Worried by his intense reaction, I glanced up at him.
Just then, Everett, who had been staring straight ahead, slowly turned his gaze towards me.
It was as if a creaking sound effect would suit the movement perfectly.
The moment our eyes met, his face turned bright red in an instant, as if that was a signal.
“Miss Diaz…”
He barely managed to say my name, but nothing followed.
He seemed to want to lift his right hand to cover his flushed face, but it was already occupied by me.
So, in an awkward motion, Everett raised his left hand instead, covering his face with his large hand.
Through the gaps between his fingers, I could see the red blush on his cheeks and the back of his neck.
Seeing him so embarrassed made me feel a surge of warmth as well.
Our connected bodies felt as if they were holding the sun itself, radiating heat.
The pounding of a heart, whether it was mine or Everett’s, echoed loudly in my ears.
‘This must not be it either.’
Though I was the one who initiated the arm linking, Everett’s intense reaction made me feel like I had done something incredibly daring.
I awkwardly unlinked our arms, watching for his reaction.
Then, I sidestepped slightly, putting a bit of distance between us.
Only then did it feel like I could breathe properly again.
We stood there, facing opposite directions, with about two steps between us.
Both of our faces were flushed red.
The breeze that brushed my cheek felt colder than the season warranted.
Everett was the first to regain his composure.
“Uh… there’s not much time left before we have to enter.”
He used the excuse of the entry time, which still had several hours remaining, to talk to me.
“We’ve been standing outside for too long. Shall we go?”
But I was just as relieved to accept that flimsy excuse.
After hastily finishing our conversation, we walked towards the exhibition hall together.
We didn’t exchange any words, but our minds were busy.
Near the entrance of the exhibition hall, Everett cautiously took my hand again.
Even though it wasn’t the first time we held hands—including during the escort—today, for some reason, it made me even more nervous.
‘I feel like my heart is about to leap out of my chest.’
My heart was pounding so loudly that it seemed to drown out the noise of the crowded exhibition hall.
I was so irrationally worried that if I exhaled deeply, my heart might pop out along with my breath.
We walked in silence, holding hands, for about half a lap around the exhibition hall.
Like robots following a preset route.
But in our minds, we were both preoccupied with each other.
We had only covered half the exhibition hall, which would take at least five to six hours to fully explore.
Despite the passage of time, my racing heart showed no signs of calming down.
‘Maybe I should let go of his hand to calm down.’
I glanced up at Everett, who was walking ahead of me.
‘But I don’t want to let go.’
I readjusted my grip on his hand, and I gradually got used to the rapid heartbeat.
Just then, a stall selling exhibition catalogs caught my eye.
As my gaze shifted in a different direction, my steps slowed down.
Everett noticed the change in pace and turned towards me.
His gaze, which had been fixed on me, slowly followed the direction I was looking.
Everett hesitated when he saw what had caught my attention.
At that moment, I was sure that the same scene was playing out in both our minds like a panorama.
Everett’s eyes trembled slightly, as if he felt a bit embarrassed about getting caught memorizing the catalog before.
‘But it was cute.’
I smiled to myself, careful not to let him see.
The tension between us eased significantly.
I was even able to pretend to be relaxed.
I teased Everett playfully.
“Did you memorize the catalog today too?”
The teasing tone made Everett’s gaze drop to the floor.
His lowered head revealed the bright red tips of his ears, which were now clearly visible.
It felt as if my chest was filled with feathers again.
I asked in an even more teasing tone.
“Didn’t you memorize it?”
Unable to withstand my repeated questioning, Everett finally stammered out a reply.
“I just read through it.”
He added, shyly.
“The dwarven bellows looked like nothing but a hunk of scrap metal to me, but I wanted to understand why it made your eyes light up like that.”
Everett’s voice grew fainter towards the end, as if he was running out of courage to reveal his true feelings.
But at the same time, his presence became clearer in my heart.
To be honest, I had realized since our second exhibition visit that Everett wasn’t really interested in ancient artifacts.
‘But without this, we’d have no common ground at all.’
I hadn’t told him that he didn’t have to come if he found it boring.
It felt like a relationship hanging by just a few threads, and if I cut even one of them, it would become precarious.
‘But as long as two people are willing, a connection can always be made.’
It was up to us to create those common interests.
I gently swung our joined hands and suggested,
“Next time, let’s do something you enjoy.”
Of course, there would be a next time, and many more after that.
