Phil and Alan never returned after they left the house. Around dusk, I received a letter from them, letting me know that they were going out drinking for the rest of the night, and that was the last I heard from them. I worried about whether they’d be all right and before I realized it, it was already morning.
I finished eating breakfast and just when I started to wonder if I should pen a letter, one of the maids told me that Alan was visiting. It was strange that he hadn’t run straight to my room. Curious at what could’ve happened, I told the maid to bring him to me.
“Good morning...”
When he finally arrived, his face was so pale that he looked like he’d seen a ghost. I hurriedly told him to sit down on the sofa and after a quick apology, he stumbled over and settled on the cushion. It seemed less like he didn’t come directly to my room and more like he couldn’t.
“You look like you’re about to faint, is everything all right? Are you sick?” I asked.
“I’m fine. I’m feeling a little ill because I finished drinking not so long ago, that’s all.”
“N-Not so long ago?”
What time did he think he was? Apparently, Alan had been drinking until the early hours of the morning, then dropped by the House Westley manor after returning to his hotel to clean himself up. He was to return to Kilteria tomorrow, so he would spend the rest of the day going around and greeting his other acquaintances. It would be the last time he’d be able to see me until his next visit, so he pushed himself to come over.
“It’s rare for you to drink so much.”
I never thought Phil was someone who liked alcohol very much either. Just when I was thinking that he might’ve met some of his old friends after he and Phil went their separate ways, Alan explained.
“Phillip and I had so much fun chatting that we lost track of time.”
“Wait, you were with Phil the whole time?”
“Yeah. He was drinking tea the whole night but by the time I realized it, he’d somehow switched to drinking alcohol. He was so pathetic while drunk. It was hilarious.”
“I...I see...”
I never would’ve thought that after the two of them left my house a little past noon the other day that they’d ended up spending the entire night together. In fact, they must’ve been with each other until just a few hours ago, when Alan returned to his hotel to freshen up. Truthfully, the sight of Alan looking so happy as he talked about his night out with Phil made me feel like this was all a dream. He’d hated Phil for so long.
It seemed that, upon having an honest conversation with each other, they realized how much they had in common. I was surprised that Rex saw this coming. But two of my favorite people in the world had become friends, so I was very pleased with this result. My worries about their relationship were for naught.
I asked a maid to prepare me some water and I handed the glass to Alan. Then, I sat down next to him.
“Was Phil all right?”
“He looked like he was about to pass out, but I made sure to walk him back home. Don’t worry.”
“Phew. Thank you.”
Phil had unbelievably low alcohol tolerance, so I’d never seen him drunk. I let out a sigh of relief knowing that he made it home safely. When he saw my reaction, Alan’s expression softened.
“He loves you so much that I had to give him my stamp of approval. In fact, he even scared me a little.”
“He scared you? Did you two talk about me?”
“Yeah. You were the only thing we talked about all night.”
“Er...”
Yes, I was probably the only topic that Alan and Phil had in common for their conversation. But you’d figure that they’d eventually run out of things to discuss. It was a little, no, very terrifying to try and imagine what they talked about as the sun began to rise. As those thoughts swirled in my head, I noticed Alan staring at me.
“Viola, find happiness in your life. I’ve always loved your smile.”
“Of course... Thank you, Alan.”
He gazed at me with such unconditional love that my field of vision started to blur. I knew that Alan treasured me and that all he wanted was for me to be happy in life.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be by your side.” That was what he’d always said, ever since we were children. In the past, I’d been negatively compared with Phil and came under intense scrutiny. It had been a difficult time for me. But throughout the entire ordeal, Alan remained by my side. I couldn’t even put into words how much relief his presence brought me.
“Alan, I love you.”
“I love you as well,” he said with a happy smile. That was my favorite expression of his. He gave me a rough pat on my head, messing up my hair.