#051
‘Gulp.’
I almost choked while trying to pull my drink closer to take a sip, feeling awkward. Wait, just a moment ago he seemed unable to even mention it, and now he’s being so blatant about it? Plus, the message telling me not to interfere was way too obvious.
“Oh, r-really? Then, I’ll get going so you two can have a good time. Raon. Call me later?”
Eira retreated while making a phone gesture with her hand. When Carlisle’s gaze turned toward me, she even playfully winked at me with one eye.
“You’re too popular.”
Carlisle sat down across from me and sighed.
“Huh? Me?”
Is that really what you should be saying? If anyone were to ask who the most popular student at school is, wouldn’t it be you?
“Are you two close enough to talk on the phone at night?”
Carlisle pushed both dessert plates in front of me while looking at me. Despite the caring gesture, his slightly narrowed eyes were persistently studying my expression. Come to think of it, am I really close enough with Eira to talk on the phone at night?
“Well… that’s because… we’re childhood friends?”
I found a reasonably plausible answer. Carlisle closed his mouth for a moment, then drooped his eyebrows as if feeling hurt.
“I’m too late now to ever become childhood friends… Is that why you don’t talk to me late at night on the phone?”
Caught off guard by this unexpected puppy-dog-eyes attack, I stammered in confusion.
“No, it’s not that, it’s just that we’ve only… uh… haven’t we only recently become close?”
“Then… would it be okay to do it from now on?”
Why are you acting so cute when it’s not like you? This isn’t like you, Carlisle. Get it together.
“W-well. Why wouldn’t it be okay.”
But the one who really needed to get it together was me. My face was getting redder and redder.
“It’s pretty. It suits you well.”
A large hand gently caressing the bracelet covered my hand. When I glanced up, I ended up making eye contact with Carlisle who was looking at me. The guy smiled softly (softly? Carlisle Lightinger?). Feeling my face flush hot, I hurriedly lowered my head. Absurdly, and humiliatingly, my heart responded with a thump.
What the hell. What is this supposed to be?
If everything is just my imagination, then why am I imagining something like this? Does this mean I was unconsciously thinking these thoughts? No way. Even if I had more than normal interest in Carlisle’s character, there’s no way I would have imagined such specific scenes with a character so different in age and personality from the actual Carlisle, right?
Unable to bear the tingling feeling around my heart, I started babbling about anything. Recent movies and games I’d watched, music I liked listening to, and so on. What was strange was that even though there should be no common topics between Carlisle and me living in different worlds, stories I didn’t even know I knew came flowing out naturally. Carlisle laughed well even at trivial stories, answered readily when I asked him something, and while talking about himself, he subtly turned the conversation back to me.
“Are you listening to what I’m saying?”
After chattering for a while, I suddenly felt like Carlisle was watching me rather than actually listening to what I was saying, so I stopped talking and asked. I expected Carlisle to deny it and make excuses that he was listening well, but he just gave an ambiguous smile and simply replied, “Sorry.”
I could have asked what he was sorry for, what he had been thinking about, but I decided against it. I had a feeling I’d get an embarrassing answer. Carlisle had been staring intently at the area around my lips for some time now.
When a brief awkward silence fell (probably awkward only for me), someone shouted that the fireworks were starting. We decided to get up to find a good spot.
“I know a place with a good view.”
As we were clearing up and leaving, Carlisle naturally took my hand and pulled me along. My heart pounded at the soft touch of his hand and warm body temperature. I worried that my palm might get sweaty from nervousness. Under someone’s gaze (probably Eira or Rosie), the back of my head prickled and my cheeks heated up, but I pretended not to notice and followed behind Carlisle.
We walked along the beach in silence, holding hands. After walking for a while, the people who had filled the surroundings gradually disappeared and the exciting music grew distant. Somehow, I was aware of where Carlisle was taking me. It was the private beach where the Lightinger family’s beach villa was located. I had memories carved in my head of sometimes holding parties at that beach villa and inviting all the kids.
Following the wooden walkway and stairs, we stood on a small observation deck. The beach crowded with people, the black sea, and the star-spangled sky spread out completely before our eyes.
“I think it’s starting.”
Carlisle whispered. And simultaneously, with popping sounds, countless large and small fireworks decorated the night sky. Although all my nerves were focused on the hand I was holding with Carlisle rather than the fireworks, I couldn’t help but open my mouth in awe at that tremendous spectacle.
For a moment, forgetting everything, I just looked up at the sky. Fireworks that shot up and burst like fountains, fireworks that spread in circles like dandelion seeds, fireworks like giant wheels all brilliantly decorated the black sky in various colors.
It was a strange feeling. No, not strange—I was happy. I hadn’t done anything special. Summer days of meeting friends, having trivial conversations, sharing cold coffee and sweet desserts. A festival night of walking along the beach holding hands with someone I liked and standing side by side watching fireworks.
‘I don’t want to go back.’
That thought suddenly occurred to me. Here, I wouldn’t starve or be in danger of being eaten by monsters. I wouldn’t need to fear panic attacks without Tranquility Potions. The farm wouldn’t have sunk underwater and the village would be just as it was before.
If I could just keep living like this, wouldn’t staying here be a good choice too? There’s no guarantee I can return to the real reality anyway.
“Raon.”
Carlisle tightened his grip on my hand. When I turned around, our eyes met as he looked at me. Long fingers swept through my hair and caressed my cheek. Warmth swirled in his gray eyes that could look cold at first glance. Those eyes contained only me.
I knew he was going to kiss me, but I neither pushed him away nor stepped back. As his face approached, I closed my eyes.
I thought once more.
I don’t want to go back.
But.
The moment his breath touched me, I opened my eyes and pushed Carlisle away.
“Raon, why?”
When I stepped back, Carlisle hurriedly tightened his grip on the hand holding mine. Bewilderment appeared on his sculpted handsome face.
“What’s wrong, all of a sudden.”
I frowned. This was probably some kind of sudden event or something. The inscription carved on the rock just before being swept into the vortex finally came to mind. “You are invited to a beach night festival,” was it? And the status window that briefly appeared and disappeared was [A midsummer night beach festival event begins.]
Connecting this with the characteristic of being a desert, this was likely a mirage, a fake. If it was a real mirage, staying here would trap me in the event and I’d really die. I had to go back. But how?
Once you enter an event, the time period becomes fixed. Unless you exit the event, you remain in that day until you die. How do you end an event again?
I looked around. Beach, ocean. Festival events end when you leave the area where the festival takes place. This was the edge of the beach, so the boundary area wasn’t far. I started running toward the nearest path leading to the village. Or rather, I tried to run. If Carlisle hadn’t stopped me.
“Where are you going, Raon. Are you angry? Because I suddenly tried to kiss you?”
Carlisle’s handsome face was crumpled. In one corner of his face, confused and not understanding, there was a pitiful sadness as if he’d been hurt. Even knowing it was a mirage, my heart ached as if I was hurting the young Carlisle.
For a moment, I also recalled the expression he had when I asked for divorce in the game. After all this and that, I felt like I had done many terrible things to Carlisle. If this entire situation was all within Carlisle’s memories, then it wouldn’t be unreasonable for the current Carlisle to dislike me. Of course, none of it had been my true feelings.
“I’m not angry. There’s no reason to be angry. I just remembered something urgent I need to get back to.”
I spoke soothingly. Carlisle hurriedly caught onto the end of my words.
“Then I’ll walk you home.”
“Your house is right here, but I have to go quite far. I’m not even a girl, and it’s not dangerous. It’s fine. See you tomorrow.”
“…You’d hate it if I was persistent, wouldn’t you?”
To Carlisle who murmured sadly, I lifted the corners of my mouth in a smile. To think boy Carlisle could be this cute. I was reluctant to go back. But it couldn’t be helped.
Even while thinking it couldn’t be helped, I took the hand I had let go of again.
“Just walk me to that path ahead.”
We walked holding hands. Neither he nor I spoke. We walked as slowly as possible, but the distance was too short.
[Would you like to leave the beach? If you leave, the event will end as is.]
When we reached the boundary, a system window appeared. I stopped walking and faced Carlisle. A cool breeze scattered both mine and Carlisle’s hair.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
