Our Summer Isn't Over Yet - Chapter 24 (R19)

Dylan was ordered to go to Rhodia. The story related to Jose was top secret. If the fact that not all of the Murad royal family had been arrested was revealed, it could cause confusion among the Hippolytes. So, the Hippolyte royal family didn’t need to make such a story public.

In the midst of this, Jose’s traces were discovered in Rhodia, and Dylan was the only one who could freely enter and leave the place without raising suspicion.

“Why Rhodian forces of all people?”

“Still, isn’t it fortunate? It’s relatively close to the capital, and the transportation is good.”

If it was fortunate, it could be. Dylan tried hard to think positively. It was related to Mia, and it was a chance to finish it with his own hands.

“Shall we start preparing so we can depart at dawn?”

Aaron asked, cutting into his thoughts. He knew the sooner, the better, but Dylan shook his head and replied, “No, departure is tomorrow afternoon.”

Aaron tilted his head, as if he couldn’t believe the answer coming from Dylan, who always handled things quickly. But he skillfully hid his expression and replied that he would prepare for the departure tomorrow afternoon.

Dylan nodded briefly and hurried to the annex. His gait was measured, but somehow faster than usual. He thought of Mia, who would be waiting for him with wine-stained clothes. Mia said she was okay, but he couldn’t help but worry.

Dylan, who had already arrived in front of the room, knocked on the door. No answer came from Mia, who wouldn’t have fallen asleep yet. Unable to bear it, he burst open the door. At the same time, Mia, stiff and unmoving, came into view. Even from a distance, she looked abnormal.

Was it because she recalled memories she wanted to shake off? Her body wouldn’t move. It wasn’t that there was no light, but it was definitely darker than usual. Recognizing this fact, Mia’s breathing became increasingly rapid. Small sounds from around her seemed very distant. That felt frighteningly close.

Then, a voice that sounded somehow impatient was heard. “Mia!”

At the same time, Mia gasped and raised her body. Because she had been tensing all over, her fingers wouldn’t unfold. Mia, who was about to look at her fingers, raised her head toward Dylan, who had already come close.

“You came, faster than I thought.”

Mia, who had tried to calm her voice, avoided eye contact with Dylan, hiding her trembling pupils. And she checked the clock not far away once. It hadn’t even been thirty minutes since she had parted with Dylan.

“Why are you sweating so much?”

Dylan touched Mia’s forehead with his finger. When she turned her eyes, she saw Dylan with wrinkles on his beautiful brow. Seeing him looking so surprised, Mia’s tension was relieved instead. Her fingers, which had been so stiff that they wouldn’t unfold, loosened.

“It’s nothing. More than that, can you turn on the light? It’s too dark.”

Mia asked with a long sigh. At the same time, Dylan immediately looked around and stood in front of the extinguished light. Watching his broad back, Mia blinked her eyes dimly.

Dylan, who sighed briefly, fiddled with the light a few times. Not long after, the light found its color. In an instant, the room became bright. Only then did Mia let out a faint sigh and get up from the couch.

“Dylan, I’m tired, so can you help me take off my clothes?”

Mia stood in front of the vanity as if nothing was wrong. Her face reflected in the mirror was pale white. To hide that appearance even a little, she untied her hair, which had been tied in one, and paused.

“It would be uncomfortable to take off my clothes like this.”

“……”

“I’ll hold it with my hand, so can you help me just a little?”

There was no answer from Dylan, which should have been heard.

“Dylan?”

He took a light breath and slowly moved to stand behind Mia. Then, he skillfully undid the buttons. Mia grabbed the loosened clothes and pulled them down. For a moment, her actions were unreserved, but Mia noticed that Dylan’s gaze in the mirror was on her back.

“I guess you don’t get used to it even if you keep looking.”

“What are you talking about?”

He quietly slid his gaze and asked, gently grabbing Mia’s shoulder. He asked even though he knew the answer, which made her feel resentful.

Mia, who met Dylan’s eyes in the mirror, answered calmly. It was a voice that couldn’t be seen as someone who had recalled bad memories.

“My body. Well, I can’t say I don’t understand your reaction.”

It was sincere. This body, even though she saw it every day, she still couldn’t get used to it. She wondered if the day would ever come when she could look at these scars without any emotion.

“What kind of answer do you want to hear by asking?”

“I didn’t say it hoping for an answer.”

She just said it because she was curious about Dylan’s gaze. The body, which had been torn and reconnected several times, was uneven, and there were grooves between the scars. It was a grotesque body that most people would never see in their lives.

Dylan had been seeing such a body lately. She knew how he would feel about a body that even she found disgusting. She glanced at his expression in the mirror. Slightly raised eyebrows, fierce eyes, and a crooked mouth came into view. At the same time, it felt like there was a bitter taste on her tongue.

“You can honestly say it’s disgusting and hard to look at.”

“……”

“I won’t be that hurt.”

Dylan stopped answering, and Mia was the first to come to her senses. She didn’t mean anything by it, so don’t worry about it, Mia added lightly.

Holding onto the clothes that were flowing down because they were no longer tightening her body, Mia moved inside. And she entered the bathroom. It was a space that she didn’t enter except when the servants cleaned it, so there were many traces of her.

Mia, who was moving to wash, stopped when she noticed Dylan reflected in the bathroom mirror. Mia, who saw him with an unreadable expression, glanced at the bathroom once and asked.

“Are you going to wash here?”

Again, there was no answer. He just calmly scrutinized Mia’s body. It was a gaze as if he was evaluating her. Mia, who turned her head away from Dylan, who maintained his attitude without telling her the reason, skillfully filled the bathtub with water. While checking the temperature, she noticed Dylan, who had already come close to her.

He tapped her shoulder, who was sitting on the edge of the bathtub. Because she had taken off half of her clothes and her body temperature had dropped, the warmth felt from Dylan’s hand felt particularly hot.

Drip, drip, water fell from the faucet, creating gentle waves in the water in the bathtub. He firmly grabbed Mia’s shoulder with his palm and broke the silence.

“Beautiful.”

It took a little time to realize the meaning of the words. Mia blinked her eyes a few times and raised her head to look at Dylan. He, like a calm night sea, told her the same story again.

“Beautiful.”

It was a definitive tone as if he was stating a clear truth. A sensation as if her whole body was being tightly squeezed continued. She couldn’t tell whether Dylan’s hand was tightening, or whether her body was tensing because of his words.

“Did you follow me in because you thought I was upset?”

As if Mia’s reaction was absurd, a gust of air leaked out from between Dylan’s teeth.

“It doesn’t feel bad even if it’s a lie. It seems like I made you worry.”

She swallowed the rest of her words, but what Mia wanted to say was clear. It meant that he didn’t have to lie for her sake. Dylan stopped Mia, who was about to get up from her seat. A more resolute and cool voice than before filled the bathroom.

“To the point where it wouldn’t hurt even if I put you in my eyes.”

“……”

“Every nook and cranny is beautiful.”

“……”

“Do you want me to list where it’s beautiful?”

Only then did Mia realize that Dylan’s hand was not putting much strength. That meant, that she was stiffening and trembling at each of his words. Dylan, who had stood up Mia, who had no answer, stood her in front of the mirror in the bathroom. Then, he pulled Mia’s waist with his strong hand.

She was easily trapped in his arms. The moment she wondered why he was doing this, Dylan brought his lips to her ear.

“Ah.”

He licked her moistly with his tongue, then slowly went down to her neck and sucked it for a long time. After leaving traces a few times while sucking, he rubbed his lips on her shoulder and met Mia’s eyes in the mirror. As if to prove that there was not a single lie in his words, he licked and sucked her body with all his heart.

Only the sound of him leaving traces on Mia was heard in the bathroom. Nevertheless, it seemed like she kept hearing the word “beautiful” in her ear. The woman who was blurred between the mirrors fogged with steam seemed to look beautiful, just as Dylan said.

Support Our Summer Isn’t Over Yet