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“HEY, hey! What happened after you-know-what before?”
That evening after dinner, Oriana found herself idling away in the lounge with Lucian seated beside her.
“And what, pray tell, does ‘you-know-what’ refer to?” Oriana asked him.
“You know, the part where Mister Tanzine dragged you out by the hand. Things were looking pretty romantic from my perspective.”
He was referring to when Vincent pulled her away from the main plaza after returning from his long holiday.
Completely oblivious to the perturbed look on her face, Lucian grinned to himself as he leaned in close and whispered into her ear, “You know, I’ve been thinking this for a while now, but there really does seem to be something special between you guys. Especially this last time.”
Yeah, I thought the same thing. Alas, she’d experienced a rude awakening and realized how shameless and conceited she had been to ever have such a delusion. It was proving a chore to pretend like everything was okay after that.
Siiiigh. I can’t even really blame myself. Anyone else would get the wrong idea, too. I mean, he’s so kind and he smiles at me all the time. I can come up with a million excuses for myself.
Vincent was equally kind to everyone, though, and the only person he didn’t mince words with was Sharon. For as special as Lucian seemed to think Oriana was to Vincent, she had never seen a more intimate atmosphere between two people than the one she experienced with Vincent and Sharon.
“There’s nothing between us,” she said. “We’re just friends.” Her voice sounded much stiffer than she thought it would. Oriana hurriedly slapped on a smile, but Lucian had already realized something was amiss.
“C’mon, go on the attack a little more. How are you going to make it, marrying into a ducal family, if you act so meek all the time?”
“I already told you, it’s not happening,” Oriana huffed at him. “Now, away with you.” She shooed him off with her hand.
“Lucian has a bad habit of thinking going on the attack will pan out well,” Constance said with a smile.
Edda grinned and added, “Well, that’s a virgin for you. No direction to move except forward.”
Apparently the two had been listening in on her conversation with Lucian.
“What the hell?! That’s got nothing to do with this!” Lucian grumbled at them.
“Oh yeah? I seem to recall an incident fairly recently with a younger female student you approached. You called her cute, but you kept staring at her chest the entire time.”
“Heidemarie, you sure do like to keep a close eye on me… Ah, now I see!” Lucian froze with exaggerated surprise. “I’m sorry, I never realized you felt the way for me…”
“Good luck figuring out how to deal with your failing exam scores next time.”
“O Great Mistress Heidemarie! I bid you, have mercy!”
As the conversation changed topics, Oriana watched her friends’ antics with a grin, but she couldn’t make it seem genuine forever. Though her face clouded over, she tried to keep it from catching their attention.
I need to hurry up and get over these romantic feelings I have.
As she remembered how excessive her reaction was to Vincent almost touching her in the library, she was overcome with an urge to find a hole and bury herself in it forever. This was the first time she had ever fallen for someone, and she never knew that harboring affections for someone would completely dismantle all of her self-control.
But what Vincent really wants is a friend, she reminded herself with added emphasis. And a friend mustn’t have romantic feelings. Besides, I don’t want someone to know that a commoner like me has fallen for a man in line to become one of the next Eight Dragons.
Oriana wanted Vincent to think of her as someone wise enough to know her place socially. She didn’t want to prove him wrong for selecting her, out of everyone else, to be his friend. I don’t want him to be disappointed in me.
The moment she fell in love with Vincent, her desire for him swelled.
Friendship? Hah, that’s laughable at this point.
And so, she locked her feelings away. If she let even a little spill out, she was sure she wouldn’t be able to face Vincent without exposing how disgraceful she was. She could just imagine herself, drunk on a shameless sense of superiority, eyes filled with affection as she stood beside him. It made her entire body tremble.
It’s okay. I’ll make sure we can be proper friends.
Oriana steeled her resolve as she absently watched her rambunctious classmates.