To the One Who's Only Cold to Me - Chapter 61

“I want to rest.”

Aisha said this to Ian the moment their first dance ended. Ian was about to ask if it was because of what happened that day, but when he saw how tired Aisha looked, he stayed silent.

“Are you okay? Should I call someone?”

“No, I think I’ll be fine if I rest a little.”

“Then rest for a while. I’ll just go greet a few people. I’ll be back soon.”

“Okay.”

Ian pulled the curtain over the entrance to the lounge as he stepped inside. Aisha nodded while holding her throbbing head. Ian told a passing servant to bring water to the lounge and then walked off toward the people sending him subtle glances.

“Thank you.”

Aisha, now slumped on a couch, thanked the servant who handed her the water. The servant bowed politely and quietly left the room.

Left alone, Aisha looked outside. Since the pre-celebration banquet was held on the second floor, she had a clear view of the garden far below.

The palace garden, bathed in moonlight, had a quiet beauty. Aisha looked at the softly glowing flowers under the moon and closed her eyes. The cool breeze helped ease her headache a bit. As she began to feel a little better, she muttered to herself,

“Let’s talk when he gets back. We can’t stay silent forever.”

In the carriage earlier, Aisha had been deep in thought. Ian’s words from last time had hurt her deeply and the wound hadn’t healed yetbut should she reach out first anyway? Or should she wait until her feelings settled down?

Aisha chose the first option. She remembered how Ian had written to her first after her horseback riding accident. This time, she decided to be the one to take a step back.

But as soon as she made up her mind, a wave of unfairness rose inside her. She may have been blinded by her feelings for Ian, but she wasn’t someone who didn’t think.

“I like Ian I promised to love him forever”

As if brainwashing herself, Aisha mumbled alone, thinking about the promise they made when they were young. It was a summer night when it felt like the stars might fall at any moment. The memory of that tearful promise calmed her heart a bit.

“Ugh, stop it. That tickles. Stop.”

A woman’s flirty laughter reached Aisha’s ears as she relaxed. Soon, she heard footsteps rustling through the bushes nearby.

“Shh, what if someone hears?”

“Everyone’s too busy dancing. But hey, did you see it? About Marquess Lloyd and Lady Aisha?”

“Oh, I saw.”

The couple had stopped just below the lounge balcony. Aisha, thinking it was nothing unusual, was about to ignore them. But when she heard her name, she stepped closer and perked up her ears. The couple in the garden didn’t even think to look up and started talking.

“Lady Aisha chased after the Marquess so much, but now that they’re engaged, why does she look like that? Shouldn’t she be smiling and glowing?”

They pretended to feel sorry, but it was fake. The woman’s voice was full of cheap gossip, nothing more. The man responded proudly, as if showing off what he knew.

“You really don’t get it? It’s because of that Helen Fitz woman. Everyone pretends not to know, but I think she really has something going on with the Marquess.”

“Oh, no way. At the last Marquis Reimond’s banquet, Marquess Lloyd paid attention to Lady Aisha, not Helen. And after that mess, he hasn’t even been seen with Helen.”

“That’s just because they got more secretive. I saw them before I came out Lloyd and Helen were exchanging looks. Sure, they say it’s business, but between a man and a woman, you know what that means. And get this Helen even attended their engagement ceremony.”

“After all that drama? Well, now that I think about it Helen’s been visiting the Marquess’s house even after the engagement. They say it’s Sophia and that famous woman from the Kingdom of Todome who invite her, but who knows? Maybe the Marquess uses them to bring her in. Some nobles bring in their mistresses that way.”

“Here’s the real bombshell! Countess Saturn caught Helen with a locket necklace”

“And?”

“It had Marquess Lloyd’s eyes drawn on it. You know his rare blue eyes.”

The gossiping couple, excited by their own stories, didn’t realize that Aisha was right above them, hearing every word. The calm she had regained slowly disappeared from her face.

“Oh my, really?”

“I told you. I heard it clearly from Countess Saturn.”

“Goodness! Then Lady Aisha is the only one being fooled.”

“Is she really pitiful though? She should’ve known what kind of man the Marquess was before the engagement. If she still went through with it, she’s either stupid or too blinded by love. If I were her brother, I’d tell her to stop chasing a man who doesn’t care and stay at home instead of embarrassing the family”

“Ahem! Hmm.”

Just then, a fake cough broke the conversation. The man who had been mocking Aisha stopped. The couple froze at the sudden noise from nearby.

“Even in autumn, the bugs are loud. Is it because there are two of them?”

The voice rang out, clearly meant to be heard. Aisha turned toward the sound, eyes wide. A head of deep red hair appeared from behind the wall.

“I should call the gardener to get rid of them. Or maybe they’ll fly away on their own?”

The couple must’ve understood. They rustled through the bushes and ran off. Aisha watched them disappear and then carefully stepped back, worried they might see her.

“It’s too late to hide now.”

Jared spoke as soon as she moved. He came closer to the wall, resting a hand on the first-floor balcony railing.

With a light leap, Jared landed on the first-floor balcony. Aisha blinked in surprise. Then he grabbed the bottom of the second-floor railing and swung himself up. In no time, he landed on the second-floor balcony where Aisha stood.

He moved so quickly and skillfully, he could’ve broken into any house like a thief. Aisha stared in disbelief. Seeing her round eyes on him, Jared scratched his head shyly.

“Ah… I greet Your Highness, Prince Jared.”

Aisha finally gathered herself and bowed. Jared waved his hand, telling her to skip the formalities.

“I should’ve chased them off sooner Sorry about that.”

“No, Your Highness has nothing to apologize for.”

After speaking about chasing the couple off, a brief awkward silence fell between them. Aisha fiddled with her fingers, glancing at Jared. After a moment, she finally spoke.

“Um. Your Highness, about that time your injury”

“Oh, that? I’ve been fine for a while now.”

“I should’ve visited and apologized I’m sorry.”

“It wasn’t even your fault. Just a silly fight between men. That letter you sent was enough.”

Thinking about the letter, Aisha lowered her head. The letter had politely asked him not to visit under the excuse of checking on his injury. From a prince’s perspective, it wouldn’t have felt very kind.

“By the way, where’s the Marquess? He’s not with you?”

“I said I needed a break He should be back soon.”

“Then I should leave before I cause any trouble.”

He said it like it was nothing, but Jared’s expression showed a bit of regret. Why did he climb the railing like that? Still not over his one-sided love, Jared unconsciously leaned in to see Aisha’s face a bit closer.

When Ian’s name came up, Aisha didn’t know how to respond. Seeing her hesitate, Jared turned toward the lounge entrance and offered his congratulations.

“Congratulations on your engagement. Did you like the gift?”

“Huh?”

“I sent a gift for your engagement. Didn’t you get it?”

At the word “gift,” Aisha was surprised. She hadn’t received anything from Jared among the presents. Forgetting a prince’s gift could be serious, so she quickly searched her memory.

But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t remember getting anything from him. What she did remember was a servant who had handed her a list of gifts and seemed to want to say something.

‘My lady… The Marquess said he’d tell you himself…’

Just then, something had come up, so she told the servant to say it later. Now remembering that the servant had mentioned Ian, Aisha’s face stiffened for a second. But noticing Jared still watching her, she lowered her head and replied.

“Ah… There must’ve been a mistake. I’ll go check again. I’m so sorry. If I had known, I would’ve thanked you right away.”

“It’s fine. I didn’t send it expecting thanks. Don’t worry about it.”

“No, I insist. I’ll check and be sure to thank you properly.”

“If that’s what you want Anyway, I really should go. If the Marquess sees me here with that temper of his”

Jared waved and turned to leave. But just then, the curtain at the lounge entrance was pulled roughly aside, revealing bright blond hair and burning blue eyes.

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