“Ah… if only Kamian would touch me a little, I feel like I could live. Leo, I’m sorry. Please step aside.”
“……”
At that moment, a smirking sound could be heard. This guy finds it amusing that I’m dying from an itchy leg.
Leo, pale and shocked, looked at Kamian with a distant, bewildered expression. Kamian lightly pushed Leo with one arm and muttered softly.
“We were in a hurry.”
“……”
Leaving Leo in despair, we entered inside. Kamian opened the door and gently laid me down, gathering the blankets into a soft mound beneath my legs.
His large hand firmly kneaded from my ankle to my thigh with just the right pressure. Each time his hand made contact, a peculiar sensation of pain and coolness simultaneously surged through me.
“Are you feeling a little better?”
“No. Keep that way.”
“Very well.”
Kamian’s lips had been curling into a mischievous smile since earlier. Indeed, that devilish nature of his must be ingrained in his core. Even though his beloved was in pain, he continued to tease and torment like that. I shot him a sharp gaze before closing my eyes. It was too difficult to engage in an argument right now, as my leg was numb with a tingling sensation.
* * *
The next day, I heard a shocking story from Jex.
“Leo, you say?”
“He was so drunk that he ran through the entire town calling out your name.”
“….”
“And can you imagine the extent of the profanity Kamian hurled? Sherry, who overheard it, went so far as to take off Leo’s sock and put it in her mouth.”
“Sherry is quite fiery. By the way, wasn’t today the day Leo was supposed to return to the capital?”
“Well, he postponed it for a day due to his raging hangover.”
I could vaguely surmise why Leo had been calling my name while intoxicated and spreading gossip about Kamian. Yesterday, my attention was solely focused on my aching leg, and I failed to notice the true reason behind Leo’s pale face. But now that my body has fully recovered, yesterday’s events came into sharp focus.
“Kamian, let’s go to the room quickly. I can’t stand it any longer.”
“[Sigh] I need Kamian to touch me a little; otherwise, I feel as though I won’t survive.”
…Anyone who heard it would have had suspicions. It seemed as if I were expressing my intention to engage in passionate intimacy with another man in front of a man who professed his affection for me. Damn it.
If Leo had misunderstood, Kamian should have stepped forward to clarify, but that scoundrel took pleasure in adding fuel to the fire. No wonder he had a sinister laugh. That foxy creature.
Glancing at Kamian, who was sitting next to me on the sofa, he buried his back deeply into it and gave me a faint smile, as if he didn’t understand. A futile pretense. I thought about grabbing him by the collar and shaking him, but I refrained, fearing that Debra would scold me.
“Is something wrong between you and Leo?”
“Ah…”
Jex cautiously inquired, sensing my unease. I scratched my forehead and nodded.
Jex rolled his eyes and glanced briefly at Debra before leaning towards me. When I reciprocated, he covered his mouth with his hand and whispered confidentially.
“After all, there’s no man as good as Kamian, is there?”
“Your voice is too loud, Jex.”
As I spoke earnestly, Jex hastily straightened up with a startled expression. Debra merely let out a light chuckle.
“Well, Liv, there’s no man like me for you either.”
Kamian retorted, as if it were an obvious fact. I couldn’t believe what he said. Have you forgotten that it’s you, not me, who’s emotionally confused right now?
“Don’t be absurd. You must be the only woman I have.”
Without hesitation, I immediately countered. Debra let out a gentle laugh and applauded.
“We are each other’s best, aren’t we?”
“Oh, Debra, that’s not true. Why are you putting it that way? While I may be the best for Kamian, my perspective is different. There are other worthy men out there besides Kamian.”
“Excluding Leo, who was not among those worthy men, right?”
“…Yes, well. That’s true. Everything else was fine… but we didn’t really connect in conversation.”
“Oh, that’s unfortunate. If it were Kamian, you would have been engrossed in conversation and time would have flown by.”
I ran my fingers through my hair, pressing it down with both palms, and grumbled.
“Why does everyone favour Kamian? All the people in town, absolutely everyone. Is there no one on my side?”
“They say it’s because we all love both of you.”
The townsfolk treated Kamian and me like their own children. Since Kamian and I were the same age and always together, everyone hoped that we would get married swiftly, without delay.
“I understand. But please, refrain from meddling in our love lives. Please.”
I clasped my hands together, fingers intertwined, and spoke as if praying. Debra laughed louder than before. Upon hearing her laughter, I let out a wry chuckle and rose from my seat.
“Where are you going?”
And this annoying fellow immediately tagged along.
“To Leo.”
“What?”
I didn’t respond and went straight up to my room on the second floor, retrieving my coat. Kamian followed me all the way into the room, snatched the coat I was holding, hung it back on the hanger, and pulled out a thicker coat. I casually slid my arms into it and warned Kamian.
“Don’t follow me.”
“Ah… if only Kamian would touch me a little, I feel like I could live. Leo, I’m sorry. Please step aside.”
“……”
At that moment, a smirking sound could be heard. This guy finds it amusing that I’m dying from an itchy leg.
Leo, pale and shocked, looked at Kamian with a distant, bewildered expression. Kamian lightly pushed Leo with one arm and muttered softly.
“We were in a hurry.”
“……”
Leaving Leo in despair, we entered inside. Kamian opened the door and gently laid me down, gathering the blankets into a soft mound beneath my legs.
His large hand firmly kneaded from my ankle to my thigh with just the right pressure. Each time his hand made contact, a peculiar sensation of pain and coolness simultaneously surged through me.
“Are you feeling a little better?”
“No. Keep that way.”
“Very well.”
Kamian’s lips had been curling into a mischievous smile since earlier. Indeed, that devilish nature of his must be ingrained in his core. Even though his beloved was in pain, he continued to tease and torment like that. I shot him a sharp gaze before closing my eyes. It was too difficult to engage in an argument right now, as my leg was numb with a tingling sensation.
* * *
The next day, I heard a shocking story from Jex.
“Leo, you say?”
“He was so drunk that he ran through the entire town calling out your name.”
“….”
“And can you imagine the extent of the profanity Kamian hurled? Sherry, who overheard it, went so far as to take off Leo’s sock and put it in her mouth.”
“Sherry is quite fiery. By the way, wasn’t today the day Leo was supposed to return to the capital?”
“Well, he postponed it for a day due to his raging hangover.”
I could vaguely surmise why Leo had been calling my name while intoxicated and spreading gossip about Kamian. Yesterday, my attention was solely focused on my aching leg, and I failed to notice the true reason behind Leo’s pale face. But now that my body has fully recovered, yesterday’s events came into sharp focus.
“Kamian, let’s go to the room quickly. I can’t stand it any longer.”
“[Sigh] I need Kamian to touch me a little; otherwise, I feel as though I won’t survive.”
…Anyone who heard it would have had suspicions. It seemed as if I were expressing my intention to engage in passionate intimacy with another man in front of a man who professed his affection for me. Damn it.
If Leo had misunderstood, Kamian should have stepped forward to clarify, but that scoundrel took pleasure in adding fuel to the fire. No wonder he had a sinister laugh. That foxy creature.
Glancing at Kamian, who was sitting next to me on the sofa, he buried his back deeply into it and gave me a faint smile, as if he didn’t understand. A futile pretense. I thought about grabbing him by the collar and shaking him, but I refrained, fearing that Debra would scold me.
“Is something wrong between you and Leo?”
“Ah…”
Jex cautiously inquired, sensing my unease. I scratched my forehead and nodded.
Jex rolled his eyes and glanced briefly at Debra before leaning towards me. When I reciprocated, he covered his mouth with his hand and whispered confidentially.
“After all, there’s no man as good as Kamian, is there?”
“Your voice is too loud, Jex.”
As I spoke earnestly, Jex hastily straightened up with a startled expression. Debra merely let out a light chuckle.
“Well, Liv, there’s no man like me for you either.”
Kamian retorted, as if it were an obvious fact. I couldn’t believe what he said. Have you forgotten that it’s you, not me, who’s emotionally confused right now?
“Don’t be absurd. You must be the only woman I have.”
Without hesitation, I immediately countered. Debra let out a gentle laugh and applauded.
“We are each other’s best, aren’t we?”
“Oh, Debra, that’s not true. Why are you putting it that way? While I may be the best for Kamian, my perspective is different. There are other worthy men out there besides Kamian.”
“Excluding Leo, who was not among those worthy men, right?”
“…Yes, well. That’s true. Everything else was fine… but we didn’t really connect in conversation.”
“Oh, that’s unfortunate. If it were Kamian, you would have been engrossed in conversation and time would have flown by.”
I ran my fingers through my hair, pressing it down with both palms, and grumbled.
“Why does everyone favour Kamian? All the people in town, absolutely everyone. Is there no one on my side?”
“They say it’s because we all love both of you.”
The townsfolk treated Kamian and me like their own children. Since Kamian and I were the same age and always together, everyone hoped that we would get married swiftly, without delay.
“I understand. But please, refrain from meddling in our love lives. Please.”
I clasped my hands together, fingers intertwined, and spoke as if praying. Debra laughed louder than before. Upon hearing her laughter, I let out a wry chuckle and rose from my seat.
“Where are you going?”
And this annoying fellow immediately tagged along.
“To Leo.”
“What?”
I didn’t respond and went straight up to my room on the second floor, retrieving my coat. Kamian followed me all the way into the room, snatched the coat I was holding, hung it back on the hanger, and pulled out a thicker coat. I casually slid my arms into it and warned Kamian.
“Don’t follow me.”
