Forgotten Juliet

* * *

Carlyle bit his lip.

The reunion he had prepared for wasn’t supposed to be this messy.

He had repeatedly told himself that if he caught her, if he found her again, he wouldn’t let her go.

He wondered about the child in her womb. If she was in pain or if there were any issues. What kind of man her husband was.

There were endless questions that needed answers.

However, he held her hand tightly and remained silent for a long time.

He couldn’t mention how he had repeatedly made senseless promises or how he contemplated various ways to kill a man he didn’t even know every day.

Especially not to Juliet, the woman who cheated on him and ran away.

Even in his imagination, he couldn’t lay a finger on her.

“…What happened to you?”

“Ah.”

She looked as though she had been drenched with water, her shoes weren’t even visible.

“It’s… a mess, isn’t it?”

Juliet awkwardly brushed a stray hair behind her ear, looking embarrassed.

“Ppak!”

He looked down at the sound, and a creature, whether it was a black weasel or a strangely shaped cat, was glaring at him, its long tail wrapped around Juliet’s ankle.

He was taken aback.

He was angry that she looked fine, but relieved that she wasn’t hurt.

He was unsure if he should ask if the child in her womb was safe or if he even had the right to ask.

He had never intended to force his lineage to the child, even if she was bearing it.

Especially not from Juliet.

It was the same thought just a month ago.

If she was going to run away from him, she should at least live well.

What was that look about?

His mind was full of thoughts, but he couldn’t express any of them.

He didn’t know how to articulate his feelings.

All that was left for him was a childish display.

Would he humble himself to the Emperor for a woman? Had he prepared the most luxurious and lavish wedding?

How could he even bring up such topics?

“I heard you’re getting married.”

“…”

“Congratulations. I won’t be able to attend in person, though…”

“What?”

“If I go, she might not like it.”

“…Do you really think so?”

“Yes.”

He felt frustrated.

“Juliet Monad.”

“Yes?”

“Do I need to beg?”

“…Your Highness?”

“If you’re not there.”

Lennox clenched his teeth.

“How can there be a wedding without the bride?”

“…What?”

Juliet looked as if she didn’t understand his words.

She looked surprised, as if she had never considered herself to be the bride of the wedding.

Suddenly, Juliet said:

“Whose idea was this?”

“What?”

“I won’t do that anymore, Your Highness.”

‘That’?

But Juliet’s words didn’t end there.

“You’ve always been like that, selecting people like they’re on a menu.”

Juliet spoke calmly.

Lennox might have thought she didn’t know, but Juliet knew too. The occasional favors he threw her way, as if from the kindness of his heart.

But he might not have known how miserable she felt during those times, thirsting for those moments of kindness.

“You don’t need to apologize or take responsibility for me.”

How should she put it? Juliet chose her words carefully.

He was naturally indifferent to others. That’s just the kind of person he was.

There was no particular malice. There was a time when that made her hate him even more.

“As you know, there was no future for us.”

Juliet still remembered clearly. ‘I won’t let you give birth.’

“You once said you wouldn’t want a child from me.”

“Damn, that’s why I said we should get married!”

As soon as he blurted it out, Lennox regretted it. He didn’t want to press her in such a confrontational manner.

“Your Highness.”

Yet, Juliet responded calmly.

“If I have a child, I won’t make them live like I did.”

Juliet always envied something when she saw Dahlia, Princess Priscilla, or other young ladies.

A child who is loved doesn’t need to be wary of others. They don’t have to constantly worry about being abandoned.

“That wouldn’t change even if I say I’m going back with you right now.”

It’s probably going to be the same thing all over again.

“I don’t want to live like that anymore. I just want to do as I please.”

There was so much she had to endure.

It’s what you wanted, isn’t it? But she was too tired to just say ‘It’s okay’ and let it go. Juliet no longer believed in love.

“So, you don’t need to come to me anymore. And I’m sorry.”

“…”

“There’s nothing more I can do for you.”

At the last remark, Lennox gritted his teeth.

“Um… and also…”

Juliet spoke as if she truly had no regrets left.

“Could you drop me off by the coast?”

“…?”

“My shoes… they’re ruined.”

The man, who looked as if he might force her to come with him, silently stared at Juliet for a long time.

And just as Juliet had said, he dropped her off at the coast and left.

* * *

At dawn the next day, Juliet went to the forest behind the beach with a baby dragon.

‘There are rabbits and deer in this forest, and he’s a creature from legends, so maybe he can hunt and survive on his own.’

Juliet kept pondering where the baby dragon should stay.

The baby dragon, seeing the forest for the first time, seemed intrigued and scampered around.

But when Juliet turned her back to test and started moving away,

“Peep!”

The startled baby dragon rushed to her.

Not knowing how to fly yet, he tripped over himself but quickly got up and ran after her.

“If you keep following me, what will I do?”

Seeing the baby dragon, Juliet collapsed on the sandy beach.

“I can’t take care of you…”

Whether the dragon knew this fact or not, he clung to Juliet and acted affectionately. He definitely didn’t seem to understand.

‘After all, what would you know, being just three days old?’

Suddenly, tears flowed.

“Peep.”

“…”

The baby dragon, not knowing what to do, cried sadly alongside Juliet.

“I can barely manage myself, you understand?”

“…Peep?”

The baby dragon tilted his head in a serious manner.

“…Only until your wings fully grow.”

Juliet embraced the baby dragon.

Did the dragon realize the magnitude of the commitment she just made?

“Peep!”

When Juliet lifted him, the excited baby dragon wagged his tail.

* * *

Bam!

After returning from Algiero’s beach, Lennox went straight into a large bathtub without taking off his clothes.

The vast bathroom quickly filled with steam. He sank into the scalding water, feeling dizzy, and closed his eyes.

It felt as if he was slowly drowning.

‘Every time we meet.’

He had repeatedly told himself that he wouldn’t let her go.

‘How can I not let her go?’

He had thought that he wouldn’t let even a single hair of hers be harmed.

So, if they were to meet…

What did he think would change once they met?

It wasn’t that he believed he could persuade her.

He had been arrogant.

He was still convinced that she had feelings for him.

Juliet Monad’s naive affection was easy to discern. Even when she expressed her disappointment and intention to leave, she had been honest about her feelings.

“I’ve been nice to you all this time, haven’t I?”

It was so like Juliet to openly admit that she had tried not to be a bother just to avoid being rejected by him.

“So please let me go, okay?”

Leave? Leave me?

That’s absurd.

He scoffed coldly.

There’s no way he could let Juliet Monad go.

Juliet Monad had been a convenient lover. Thanks to their past connection, she always responded to his advances.

Unlike other women, she didn’t annoyingly crave love and attention, and she never got on his nerves.

However.

At what point did it happen?

When did the existence of a convenient woman, whom he believed he could let go of anytime, turn into an obsession he couldn’t part with?

“Please let me go.”

“Haven’t I been good enough all this time?”

From the moment the woman, who always looked up to him with soft eyes, brought up breaking up first,

The winds started blowing in the opposite direction.