“Oh? If it isn’t Alan! Long time no see! I didn’t know you were back.”
“Yeah.”
Alan was Rex’s uncle as well. Though Alan and Rex were also pretty close, it was a whole other story when Phil got involved.
“So? Why’d you two drop in like this out of nowhere? Why’re you here?”
Though Alan was glaring at the two sudden guests, this was my room and Alan was also someone who dropped in from out of nowhere. He acted so brazenly that one couldn’t tell that I hadn’t invited him either. It was pretty impressive.
“It’s been too long,” Phil said with a polite bow of his head.
“Yeah...” Alan replied, looking at him like a pouting child. I hate you was clearly written on his face, even though Phil was of higher status than him.
On Phil’s end, he looked calm, as if this was any other day.
“I wish to spend some time with Viola alone. If you don’t have anything you want from her, then I’ll ask you two to leave,” Alan continued.
“Don’t be so mean! I haven’t seen you in ages. The four of us should have some tea together.”
Like Phil, Rex was the same as usual. He swung his arm around Alan’s shoulder and Alan pulled away, looking dissatisfied. Apparently, Phil and Rex were running errands together and they finished earlier, so they dropped by to see if I wanted to have lunch with them.
Though I was interested in dining with them, I wanted to explain things to Alan first. But I didn’t have the heart to send Phil and Rex back since they took time out of their day to come see me. I figured that I would have them wait in a separate room for now. But right as I stood up to tell them that, Alan opened his mouth.
“Phillip, why are you even here in the first place? Why did you come by the Westley manor to see Viola if you didn’t even have something important lined up? What are you planning?”
“Huh?” Rex said.
Phil didn’t say anything, but he looked confused as well.
Because of how blatant Alan’s accusation was, both Phil and Rex stared at me curiously. Just what is this all about? You didn’t explain anything to him? The question was clear in their eyes, and I could feel their twin gazes boring into the side of my head.
I was just about to explain everything to him. So please forgive me. I stared back at them and tried to signal my thoughts with my eyes, but they didn’t seem to understand it. Now that things had come to this, it was no longer the time to be careful with my words or the order of events in my explanation.
“Um, listen, Alan.”
“What’s the matter, Viola?”
As soon as I called his name, Alan, who had been glaring at Phil frostily, immediately turned to look at me with a soft smile on his face. This expression of his had always been the same ever since we were children. Though it was extremely difficult to say, I looked him straight in the eye and continued.
“I love Phil.”
For a moment, Alan didn’t say anything. Then, in a strangled tone, he managed, “Phi... Lo...?”
“I’ve fallen in love with Lord Phillip.”
A long pause. Then, “What?”
In a heartbeat, Alan’s beautiful face stiffened in shock. Then, a moment later, it darkened with despair. Eventually, he covered his mouth with his right hand and murmured, “This...can’t be true. H-He must be blackmailing you, right? Tell me that’s the truth.”
“No. We had some misunderstandings and miscommunications, but now we’re both in love with each other.”
“In love...with each other...” Upon hearing my words, Alan looked like he was truly in shock. He repeated my words in a hoarse voice, then turned to look at Phil. “So you’re also in love with Viola?”
“Yes. I am.”
“Ha! Don’t lie to me! How do you explain your attitude toward her over the years, then?”
“I’m telling the truth. I love Viola so much that I wasn’t able to speak with her properly. I apologize.”
Phil, honest to a fault, was giving a genuine apology with a solemn expression on his face. Rex was next to him, smiling and nodding. Alan looked completely befuddled and he turned to stare at me, eyes wide and begging for more information.
“I wanted to give you the news in person, so I didn’t mention this in my letters. I’m sorry for springing this on you like this. But there’s nothing to worry about.” When Alan didn’t reply, I continued, “I’m sorry for making you worry so much over the years. It always made me happy how you would be on my side no matter what. Thank you.”
I stared straight at him and, as planned, informed him that I intended to marry Phil in a few months’F time. Alan’s jewel-like eyes wavered as if he was lost in nostalgia.
“Viola, you said you would marry me when you grew up...”
“Huh?!”
“Phil, please don’t look so hurt. He’s talking about something I said when I was four.”
Both Phil and Alan looked shocked and upon seeing them, Rex started to laugh. I had no idea what to do in this chaotic situation.
“Wow, things are getting really exciting.”
“You’re the only person here who’s excited, Rex.”
Rex was acting like this had nothing to do with him, so I ignored him. All the revelations must have been too much for Alan, because he was looking down at the ground. After a moment, he raised his head and glared at Phil.
“You never even had a proper conversation with her, so just what do you like about Viola? Are you only interested in her face? I agree that Viola’s the cutest girl in the world.”
“Hmm? No, I’m not only interested in her face. I’m interested in her body as well.”
“Do you have a death wish?”
“Pfft... Ah ha ha ha!”
At the same time Phil made a terrible verbal misstep, Rex started laughing so hard that he couldn’t breathe, then he disappeared from my line of sight. Alan had completely lost his temper and his eyes looked like he was ready to kill someone.
I knew, of course, that there was no deeper meaning or strange intentions in Phil’s words. As usual, he simply chose the wrong words. However, anyone would misinterpret our relationship from those words alone so I seriously wished he would think before he spoke. I felt like I had reached the limit of my embarrassment.
“I-In any case, I’m living my life happily so please don’t worry about me!” I exclaimed, trying to end the conversation.
Of course, Alan wasn’t convinced by my pathetic attempt to do so. He looked like he was deep in thought for a moment before he nodded.
“I’ve made up my mind. For the rest of the day, I will observe Phillip to judge if he is truly capable of making you happy, Viola. Is that fine with you?”
“It is,” Phil said with a serious nod.
“Wha...?” Unlike him, I felt a little unsure about this turn of events.
“Man, we came here on a spur of the moment decision, so I didn’t expect anything as interesting as this to happen,” Rex said.
“Your timing is seriously the worst.”
Without a doubt, today was going to be difficult. I was certain of it. With that thought in mind, I let out a small sigh.