I Swear I Won’t Bother You Again!

As time went on, the bustling lunchtime gradually spelt its end. The bell hadn’t ring yet, but many people had finished their meal. Some of them already left the cafeteria, leaving only some other students having a friendly chat after lunch. Today, Violette fell into the first category.

If Violette was having lunch only with Yulan, they would be a little more relaxed with the time. Even so, she didn’t really know what to say with the members who shared the same table with her. Plus, the atmosphere was awkward.

Yulan finished his lunch first. Noticing that, Violette drank up her tea without any delay.

Yulan waited for Violette to put the empty cup on the table before tilting his head and asked, “Vio-chan, you’re done?”

Violette nodded. “Yes. Just like you said, the dessert was delicious.”

“Then I’m glad. Okay. Let’s go.”

“Eh?”

Violette thought that Yulan wanted to hear her impression towards the dessert he recommended, but his content expression instantly changed. Yulan lifted his fingers and offered them to Violette like an escort, helping her stand up.

Unable to understand Yulan’s thought, Violette was flabbergasted. Even so, Yulan deepened his smile and moved his gaze to Gia who was still eating.

“Gia, I’ll leave first.”

“Hmm.”

“Don’t be late.”

Gia’s bulging cheeks made him look like a squirrel. There were two mountains of bread at the beginning, but now there was only one left. Not to say, the size was getting smaller. As Violette recalled the remaining time, she felt like Gia would finish just barely in time. Suddenly, she forgot about how Yulan was pulling her hand. Worry filled her mind, making her wonder if Gia would be alright.

But seeing how Yulan warned Gia merely for the sake of it, he must be familiar with this scene. After all, the prince didn’t look like he was rushing for the time. Violette couldn’t decide whether Yulan thought Gia would be okay since he was always in time or because he gave up warning his friend because Gia was already beyond repair.

Her hands were pulled by Yulan’s fingers, reminding her that Yulan was holding her hand.

“Then, we’ll leave first.”

“Yulan, wait… umm, please excuse us…”

Claudia should be the one who understood the most that there was no friendly light in Yulan’s gaze towards him. Yulan’s eyes didn’t give their usual soft impression and he only raised the corner of his mouth a little. Even a robot would look more favorable than him.

Yulan’s grip wasn’t strong, but he moved his feet like he didn’t give her any option to shake him off. Before leaving the place, Violette managed to bow to Claudia. Her manners should be just barely okay… she wanted to believe that.

Yulan walked ahead without any hesitation, his footsteps a little faster than usual. Even so, Violette didn’t feel like he was leaving her behind. Probably, he matched his pace with her. Although he walked faster than usual, it was still slow, considering how long his legs were.

Yulan held Violette’s hands in a light grip. As she watched his fluffy hair swaying, she followed him from behind, not even knowing where they were heading. Violette was sure that Yulan wouldn’t answer her even if she asked. Surely, Yulan didn’t have any destination as well.

They walked for a while before Yulan stopped at a suitable place that caught her eyes. They arrived in the courtyard along the way to the classroom. In this place, there were many places that could be called a courtyard. This one was not a large garden full of flowers, but a relatively small place with a beautiful stone fountain in the midst of it.

Considering the time, only a few people were standing around there, talking for a while before returning to the classroom.

Like those people, Yulan and Violette sat down on one of the benches installed there. The sound of the water fountain filled the space, making sure that no one would listen to their conversation. It was a natural soundproof area since Violette could only hear Yulan’s voice who sat next to her.

Yulan didn’t let go of her hand, but she could see that her shoulders were slightly hanging down in dejection.

“...Have you calmed down?”

“I’m perfectly calm, though?”

“Right. A calm people can also run mindlessly like that, huh.”

“Ahaha, sorry.”

“It’s not a laughing matter.”

Yulan laughed with his eyebrows hunched, the stiff and cool trace that appeared in his face before completely disappeared. Violette knew well that he didn’t regret what he did at all. Yulan only regretted that he had made Violette bewildered. They were not childhood friends for nothing.

She didn’t want to make him go back and apologize to Claudia, but she had been racking her brain on whether she should make Yulan improve his behavior a little bit. Since Yulan seemed to have his own reasons, Violette didn’t want to thoughtlessly judge his conversation with other people. Above all, her words might become a splendid boomerang, worsening the situation, and hurt herself.

“I’m sorry for involving you.”

“...It’s me who has involved you.”

It’s her fault for choosing that seat even after knowing that Claudia was in the canteen. She knew that Yulan was kind enough to split her from Claudia. Otherwise, Yulan wouldn’t approach them. He most probably would either skillfully avoid Claudia or get through him. It’s impossible that he didn’t have the experience and skill to do so.

Currently, Violette was very aware of the danger of where she was standing. She was also sure that she understood Yulan’s anxiety. And it’s all linked to her. She knew the best that wrong actions could lead to distrust even if it wasn’t a crime. Just because her one-year crime had completely disappeared, what Violette should reflect on wasn’t just on her crime.

She didn’t want to let bygones be bygones. It would be too easy for her. She didn’t want to personally attack Claudia as well, stirring up his distrust even more. All of this was something Violette must bear on her back, and she should compensate for it without anyone knowing.

“Don’t look like that. If you want to reflect on your actions, you shouldn’t do it for me, but for Claudia-sama, right?”

“I don’t regret what I did to him at all.”

“Even if you do, you don’t have to say it.”

Violette sighed. She didn’t have any intention to question about Claudia and Yulan’s compatibility, but their cold war hadn’t calmed down over the years. Rather, there were times when she wondered whether their relationship had worsened or not.

She didn’t want to force them to get along with each other, considering how it wasn’t something that could be established with force. Still, she also felt a little strange that Yulan, who basically preferred not to fight, showed his hostility towards the prince so clearly like that.

Was there something between them more than she knew?

“.......”

“What’s wrong?”

“...No, it’s nothing.”

Violette wanted to ask, but she knew Yulan wouldn’t be honest. He was frank, but from her experiences, he would turn obstinate when Claudia was concerned.

And above all, what could she do even after knowing about it?”

“Just don’t do anything rash, okay?”

“...Thanks.”

Yulan squinted and looked happy, but he never nodded.