The Abandoned Princess: Promises Arc

Chapter 10

𝕾𝖔𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖓 𝖙𝖔: 𝖂𝖍𝖎𝖙𝖊 𝕳𝖔𝖗𝖘𝖊 𝖇𝖞 𝕿𝖆𝖞𝖑𝖔𝖗 𝕾𝖜𝖎𝖋𝖙

***

The instant his hand moved from gripping the door to running over the fringes of my hair, something snapped directly at me. My eyes kept becoming bigger and bigger, and before I realised it, I was holding my breath.

It seems like something is upsetting him because of the way he twirls my hair as if he wants me to make locks, the way he looks at it, down to my lips, and up to my eyes again, and so on. I know it's rude to look him in the eye.

My chest felt like a drum that would never stop banging, and I have no idea what I'm feeling right now. My worst error occurred when I chose to meet his gaze directly; my vision went hazy, and I was only able to focus on his lips.

I could see how narrow and red they were, as if they lined up precisely with each contour of his face. He leaned closer to me, and I was unable to look away. The smell he was carrying also made it feasible for me to pass out before I could ask another question.

"Y-Your h-high----"

"Lady Vestia, why? Did I say or do something that alarmed you?" He spoke in a whispery tone, engulfing me in this spherical foundation that I was unable to escape. I was even more inebriated when his warm breath cascaded into my nose.

His breath had a lemon-mint aroma that caught my attention, and it felt as though the pandora was gently opening again rather than closing and disappearing into the abyss.

It wasn't like this when he normally saw me in the past. He used to hate me, treat me like a fly, and walk right by me like he didn't know I was there. But now things are different.

So far, everything he's revealed has only piqued my interest. What question did he ask me earlier, though, when I should be the one asking him?

Why would I grasp a small boy's hand at a market, and why did I feel afraid when I first met him? At that moment, I was able to absorb one thought: Did he notice us there?

As long as he had one or two imperial knights by his side, he might wander outside. But in my opinion, there was no fuss about the crown prince showing up at the market earlier.

No, that isn't possible. Just let go of your feelings and heart. Just don't do whatever you're thinking. Vestia, get a hold of yourself because Caliere is the kind of person who would pursue you out of curiosity rather than a desire to have you in his life.

I thought back to the last glimmer of optimism that had briefly brightened before fading from my consciousness. We were so close right now, but I understood what he wanted, and he wanted me to just respond to him.

"Y-Your Highness, I don't know why you're doing this." I stopped and put my hands softly on his chest, waiting to see whether he would try to push them away or whether I would fall to the ground and stand up.

But he never actually did. When I lifted my eyes from his lips to his eyes, I saw an emotion there that I had never been able to feel before, not even in the past.

"You ask, why?" He spoke, but I saw that he bit his lower lip rather than causing me any pain before backing off without even threatening to unhand his chest.

As soon as his body began to burn me, the hands that were still attached to his clothing moved. Caliere shook his head, his eyes widening at my abrupt movement.

He took a soft hold of my hand without even waiting for a moment. He wasn't the kind to hold on to things tightly.

I never asked him to "take a seat," but he never asked for those words either. I don't want to be a doll, but in this situation, I would rather be, he replied, sounding as if he were ordering his obedient subject to obey. I still wasn't able to connect with him.