“I thought she might’ve been at first, but I don’t think so, you know. She was crying with an expression of relief. As I saw her cry—and I know this isn’t fair to her—I felt kind of happy.”
“Uh-huh,” Alphonse said. He’d gotten lost in Zeke’s story without noticing it. “And that’s when you fell for her?”
“I...think so. It’s all a bit simple though, don’t you think?”
“Well, that’s just what love is, I guess,” Alphonse said as he shrugged.
Alphonse had a girl he was interested in as well. However, he was at a loss as to how to even approach the matter. It was weird—he never felt this nervousness when talking to other girls.
Zeke’s first love, huh?
Zeke was earnest in whatever he did, so Alphonse was sure he would passionately throw himself into romance with all he had as well. All Alphonse could do was support him without overstepping his bounds—along with the occasional bit of teasing.
“Okay, I get it now. That’s why our venerable captain made his way into town today—just for the sake of seeing this girl!”
“Enough of that,” Zeke said with a snort, before bringing his glass of chilled water to his lips.
✧ ✧ ✧
“That’s about how it went. Ha ha ha... It’s a bit embarrassing, relating it all now.”
Cecily was in shock as she listened to Alphonse chortle at the end of his tale.
I didn’t realize that’s how the rest of their conversation went...
Cecily had been so struck dumb by shock that day that none of what they had said after that point had entered her ears.
Zeke had been silent until then, but now spoke up in a quiet voice.
“I didn’t manage to meet you that day, but when I happened to bump into you the day after that and you invited me to dinner, I was really happy. I was so overjoyed that I was probably quite a sight, huh? Then, when you said that you’d brought me a present, my joy reached its breaking point. I know you tried to stop me, but I ended up drinking every last drop of that bottle.”
Zeke summed up their encounter, which went more or less as Cecily remembered it, although the parts where he was overjoyed were news to her. Zeke paused for a moment and looked at Cecily before going on.
“When I drank that red liquid and woke up, I felt as if my vision had opened up before me.”
“Huh?”
“That potion you made, Cecily—the one that makes people honest... After drinking it, my heart felt strangely light. When I thought that you were pretty, the words came spilling out of my mouth. I was really happy that I could express my thoughts so easily.”
Cecily had no idea that this was what Zeke had been thinking about while she had been inwardly berating herself.
“Hmm,” said Alphonse. “Would you really say such sugary sweet things one after the other just because you drank an honesty potion?”
“He would. He’s not your pair of loins, after all.”
“Hear that? As Princess Charlotte says, you’re not my loins, Zeke.”
Stating this in reaffirmation of what Charlotte had said, Alphonse didn’t notice every woman around him smacking their foreheads with their palms.
“What I’m curious about is, where did Zeke learn all those methods of expressing his love for Cecy?”
“I think I know, Vice-Captain,” said Cyril.
“Please go on.”
Cyril pulled a book from his pocket with a glint in his eye.
“This is one of my romance novels. It’s called The Ignorant Prince’s Love Story.”
“You’ve gotta be kidding, man. It says the author is Cee Rill.”
“That’s me. Cee Rill.”
“I’ve read every one of your books! I’m a big fan!” Charlotte said, with stars in her eyes. Cyril, AKA Cee Rill, bowed his head with a shy “Thank you.”
“Anyway,” Cyril went on, “the captain also reads my novels. And some of the stuff he’s said to Cecily seems a little similar to some of the lines in my books!”
“Hold on a sec—you said you write romance novels?”
“Yep. Romance with a capital R.”
“Mr. Cee Rill, can you sign my copies?”
“Of course, Princess Charlotte. I’d be happy to hear your thoughts on my manuscripts too.”
“Yes, please! I’d love to read them!”
In a moment, Charlotte had started speaking to Cyril with a lot more reverence.
“You should totally read them too, Cecily. Mr. Cee Rill’s novels are so good.”
“Maybe, but I’ve only read picture books and fairy tales before...”
Cecily didn’t even try to hide her nervousness. The book that Cyril had in his hand seemed worlds away from the children’s books she had read until now.
“It’s okay. Everyone has that kind of transitional period,” Charlotte said with fervor. “Novels really are amazing. I’m not good with loins, but when I read romance novels, I’m not scared of the hero’s loins that appear!”
Charlotte’s impassioned invitation would probably have convinced no one except people like herself to read them. Regardless, Cecily gave a shallow nod.
“I see. I’ll read them if I get the chance.”
“Really?”
Charlotte, who didn’t have any friends, didn’t realize that this was akin to a polite no. She looked happy as she went back to talking to Cyril.
Alphonse watched the scene somewhat uncomfortably, and soon, even Greta joined in, merely adding to the chaos.
With the attention off of her, Cecily started to think. It was clear that Zeke hadn’t drunk a love potion. He had simply been saying what was on his mind honestly. Which meant...
“So, can I stay in love with Zeke?”
Cecily murmured this to herself quietly without expecting a response, but Zeke hadn’t missed her small voice.
“You can.”
He reached out and took Cecily’s hand.
“So, do you mind saying it to me?”
Cecily felt the tension that she had been holding for so long gradually dissipating.
She looked up at Zeke and nodded. She could finally reveal her true feelings—say those words that she had never said, though he had said them to her so many times.
“Ahem. I love you, Zeke.”
Cecily smiled as tears came to her eyes.
“And I, you.”
Their first kiss was so warm that Cecily felt her heart melt there and then.