The Kind Older Sister Is No More

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. I was just worried that Irene would get hurt.”

Noel’s honest words put Irene in an awkward position as she did not know where she should focus her gaze. On his face? On the floor? Should she draw the curtain up and pretend to be interested in the shrubs and houses outside the window?

Noel also felt a sense of regret for what he had said. Unknowingly, he had spoken his mind without a second thought. For a moment, he was worried that she might find what he said strange.

“I-it is okay now.”

“Yes.”

“…I mean, you can let me go now...”

“Ah...”

The fact that he had not let go of her til then forced her to straightforwardly speak. Only then did Noel realise what she meant and slowly released his hand.Irene who fumbled back to her seat, and sat quietly. She didn’t dare to look up at him who coughed awkwardly across her and cleared his throat. She turned away as if nothing had ever happened.

The two sat facing each other, but their eyes lingered in different places. The sound of the wheels rattling was jarring, but inside velvet covered wooden walls, it was silent and motionless. Irene tried hard to put on a casual expression and keep her eyes out of the window.

But contrary to her appearance, she was a mess inside. Her head seemed to be spinning, and heat seemed to be rising from her shoulders and wrist, where he had held her just moments ago.

Noel was also in a very complicated state.

I’m going crazy.

He did not even notice she was uncomfortable, but he was swayed by something else.

What on earth was that?

He felt peculiar; it was an unfamiliar sensation. He could not take his eyes off Irene. It was strange and he could not find the proper words to describe the feeling, which he believed was caused by her.

Noel pretended to look elsewhere, occasionally sneaking a glimpse at Irene. A ring with the same design as the sky-blue dress he had given her; a flushed face with lips tightly pressed together.

I shouldn't pay it too much mind.

After all, it was only a contractual relationship. Since it was a relationship that had a set end, the person who was too affectionate would find it too difficult to move on.

However…

Yet, why did he keep looking her way?

♔♔♔

“We have arrived.”

While the atmosphere was brimming with awkwardness, a voice outside the carriage notified them of their arrival at their destination. When the coachman opened the door, Irene stood up, trying not to make eye contact with Noel as much as possible.

However, all her effort was futile as Noel was one step ahead of her, he got out of the carriage first, and this time also, he naturally extended his hand to Irene.

“I can get down by myself…”

“But you have always done this. Or are you feeling uncomfortable?"

Noel asked purely out of curiosity. Irene, who had been touching her wrist absentmindedly, shook her head.

“No, thank you.”

In fact, Noel looked fine, she might as well be the only one overreacting, so Irene pretended not to care. She did not want to feel uncomfortable with him because of this incident either.

Upon placing her small hand in Noel's large one, Irene got out of the carriage. She gave him a brief glance, then examined her surroundings.

Wow…

The scale of the exhibition was so enormous that the name “Duchess Jasmine” automatically came to mind.

The ball was grand too.

She thought that the exhibition would be smaller than the ball because it was held in the villa where the duchess resided, but that was a complete misunderstanding.

Although it was no different from ordinary exhibitions in terms of contemplating and freely sharing one’s views while appreciating the artworks, there was a designated space for chatter and tea on one side -- which was, frankly, huge. Still, it was a place of peace and there was no sign of distraction or noise.

As they walked down from the entrance of the exhibition hall, the nobles were not aware that Irene and Noel had come. All except for the host, Duchess Jasmine.

“Welcome, Lady Chase. This is our second meeting.”

Lady Jasmine, wearing a gorgeous red dress, approached Irene. Her dress was striking, with a sheer red chiffon cape off her shoulders, and a slit between her bust and the high neck collar. Irene thought it was magnificent, for the hostess.

Since it was a familiar face, Irene was able to greet her with a fairly comfortable face.

“Thank you for inviting me, Lady Jasmine.”

“Oh, no. Rather, I have to thank the young miss here for raising the reputation of my exhibition this time. Like this...”

Lady Jasmine then looked at Noel with a sarcastic smile.

“You brought quite a great figure with you…Hello, Duke Kristen.”

“It is Noel Kristen. Thank you for inviting me.”

Noel accepted the greeting in a perfunctory manner. It was just a normal greeting, but Lady Jasmine giggled as if it was something interesting. Then, out of the blue, she asked a straightforward question that made them taken aback.

“But the two of you, came ‘together’, in ‘one carriage’?”

Was it just them? Or did the Duchess purposely emphasise some specific words? No, it was not just their feeling. It was because the look in her eyes directed at Irene and Noel, who were standing next to each other, was unusual.

As she felt slightly tensed, Irene gulped. How should she answer? While she was still pondering, Noel replied.

“We have a special relationship.”

“Oh my goodness.”

*Ah, yes huehue, oh my goodness indeed（՞ਊ՞）