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Chapter 8
I narrowed my eyes at Yuri as he casually gave me a nickname.
“Who said you could shorten my name?”
Yuri responded with an adorable smile.
“We’re business partners. Can’t I at least use a nickname?”
A face as soft as cotton candy, a sweet smile, and a friendly tone.
How many people could actually look at that and firmly tell him no?
Yes. Allow me to be that person.
I cut him off immediately.
“No. You can’t.”
At my answer, Yuri stepped closer. Then, with a completely serious expression devoid of any trace of a smile, he asked:
“Then would it be better if I called you by your full name, Ttiana Este?”
“Uh…?”
I was the one who had rejected the nickname, but when he suddenly became so serious, I found myself speechless.
As I merely opened and closed my mouth, Yuri stepped back and answered for me.
“I’m joking.”
A beat later, I pressed a hand against my pounding heart.
Seriously, who tells jokes with a face that serious?
Whether he noticed my complicated feelings or not, Yuri simply smiled brightly and spun around.
“Ah, I’ll make lunch. I already prepared the ingredients this morning.”
“Huh? But—”
It was my turn to cook lunch today.
But Yuri didn’t wait for my response.
“Just wait a moment, Titi.”
“Ah…”
Look at him slipping the nickname in there as if nothing happened.
I pressed my warm cheeks and admired his shamelessness.
Do I need to be that sociable if I want to succeed in business?
Just then, Yuri—who I thought would head straight upstairs—stopped and turned around.
His wide smile shone like the sun.
“And I thought this the first time I heard it too, but I think Ttiana is a beautiful name. It sounds like the chirping of a little bird.”
The compliment was as sweet as his face.
His expression, the situation, the words—everything about it was enough to make anyone’s heart flutter.
The problem was that he was talking to me.
“Eugh.”
At my reaction, Yuri frowned.
“Why are you making that face? I just complimented you.”
“I don’t really like my name. It sounds childish.”
My mother-in-law from my second life used to say the same thing whenever she saw me.
“Ttiana? What kind of name is that? Are you a child? There’s really nothing about you that I like.”
Memories were such troublesome things.
No matter how hard you tried to throw them away, they would suddenly emerge like thorns and stab you when you least expected it.
Yuri stared at me for a moment before speaking in confusion.
“Why? It’s genuinely beautiful. I’m not just saying that.”
Aren’t feelings subjective?
Shouldn’t you consider how the listener feels?
I shrugged.
“If I don’t like it, then I don’t like it. What would you say if I told you your name sounded pretty because it reminded me of a flower?”
“Well…”
At my question, Yuri stroked his chin and smiled.
“I’d think that was a compliment perfectly suited to me.”
“……”
When a handsome young man who looked like a flower said something like that about himself, there really wasn’t much I could say.
Maybe I should buy another flowerpot.
I turned to organize the pots I had planted today when Yuri suddenly grinned mischievously.
“Titi, be honest. You were a little flustered by what I said just now, weren’t you?”
Flustered?
Actually, I was more flustered when he got serious earlier.
The thought slipped into my head before I could stop it, and I immediately grimaced again.
Why would he ask me something like that?
I had already sworn that there would never be love in my life again.
“What are you trying to accomplish by making me flustered? Stop talking nonsense and go make lunch.”
“Nonsense…”
Yuri looked as though he had been struck.
But he recovered quickly and flashed another teasing smile.
“Aha. So you like the nickname more than your actual name after all?”
“I said that’s not it. And stop calling me Titi.”
I scolded him for teasing me, but it had little effect.
Crossing his arms, Yuri muttered in a strange tone.
“I think it’d be much better for your heart if I kept calling you Titi.”
What is he even talking about?
I snorted, clearly conveying As if I’d ever be flustered by you.
Yuri smirked.
“Titi, you have a beautiful neck.”
This guy!
“Stop saying useless things and go make lunch already!”
“Wow. You casually say heart-fluttering things to me, but you’re so strict when I do it.”
“When did I ever?”
I asked in disbelief.
Yuri tapped his pale cheek with a finger.
“A moment ago. You said my name was pretty like a flower.”
“That’s not what I meant!”
When I shouted, Yuri chuckled softly.
That laughter sounded more like a little bird’s song than anything else.
I feel stupid for getting angry.
My irritation fading, I slipped my gardening gloves back on.
“You’d be incredibly popular if you just kept your mouth shut and smiled.”
Yuri crossed his arms and winked one eye.
“I’m not interested in those people. The Empire is already filled with people who only like me for my face.”
“If you keep talking nonsense, you can do the work. I’ll make lunch instead.”
For some reason, my blunt response only made him laugh again.
He waved his hand lazily.
“Then wait for me, Titi. I’ll make something so delicious your eyes will pop out.”
With that, Yuri bounded up the stairs two steps at a time.
His tall frame and long limbs made even his casual walk seem light and lively.
I pursed my lips.
The nickname Titi lingered sweetly in my ears.
It only sounds like birdsong because of the way you say it.
His high, clear voice suited his bright appearance perfectly.
Watching him disappear upstairs, I let out a sigh.
Now that the distraction is gone, I should get back to work.
But I couldn’t focus.
That fluffy pink hair kept appearing in my mind.
I stopped wiping a flowerpot and shook my head vigorously.
Then why did he have to say things like that?
Maybe inviting him to work with me had been a mistake.
Still, he’s definitely become much brighter.
He had already been cheerful when I first met him, but these days Yuri felt as radiant as sunlight itself.
I hope I’ve helped with his depression.
Just as I placed the last cleaned flowerpot on the counter—
“Hey.”
Someone called out to me.
I turned toward the voice and immediately froze.
Luxurious golden hair.
Clear green eyes.
A woman as beautiful as a flower fairy stood there, accompanied by a maid holding a parasol over her.
“Hey, can’t you hear me?”
“……”
Even after making eye contact with her, I stood there blankly for several seconds.
When I failed to respond, she spoke again.
“Are you deaf?”
“…No. I can hear you just fine.”
I finally came to my senses and answered.
She frowned slightly.
“Then were you ignoring me this whole time? Don’t tell me you don’t know who I am?”
When I remained silent, her maid spoke sharply.
“Her Imperial Highness is so beautiful that she must have frozen in shock. How could someone like her ever have seen someone as noble as the Princess? I thought she looked like a country bumpkin, but apparently she has eyes. Hurry and pay your respects!”
“……”
Well, she wasn’t entirely wrong.
I was shocked.
Very shocked.
But not because of her dazzling beauty.
Princess Sabina!
The most beautiful woman in the Empire.
The treasure of the imperial palace.
The flower of high society.
There were countless titles used to describe her.
But in my mind, there was only one.
Roco’s mistress!
She was the woman who had destroyed my second marriage—the partner in my husband’s affair.
Arguing over which of the two adulterers was worse was ridiculous.
If I had to choose, my husband—who cheated on his wife—was the real piece of trash.
Still, it takes two people to have an affair, and Princess Sabina was hardly innocent.
When I confronted her after learning about the affair, she had rested her chin on her hand and said:
“Wasn’t he far too good for you from the beginning? You enjoyed the benefits of being his wife for years. Shouldn’t you know when to be satisfied?”
The sheer shamelessness of those words had made my blood boil.
I swore I would never have anything to do with her again.
And yet, here she was.
Standing right in front of me.
I looked at her with cold eyes.
Princess Sabina.
Rationally, I knew it.
Perhaps in the future she would commit that sin, but right now she had done nothing wrong.
Still, my instinctive disgust wouldn’t disappear.
The reason I hadn’t been able to fully celebrate hearing that the Empress had shown interest in the blue roses earlier today was largely because of Princess Sabina.
I hoped I’d never have to see her again for the rest of my life.
When I fell silent once more, the maid spoke impatiently.
“Hey. How long are you going to stand there pretending to be mute? No matter how rare blue roses may be, no one in this Empire has the right to keep Her Highness waiting.”
At that, Princess Sabina gently grabbed the maid’s arm.
“Don’t scold her so harshly. It’s natural for ordinary people to be ignorant of court etiquette.”
“Your Highness is far too kind! You shouldn’t forgive such rudeness so easily!”
Oh, please.
I hadn’t even said a single word, yet they were already talking about rudeness and forgiveness among themselves.
Their self-centered attitude hadn’t changed one bit.
[To be continued…]
