Side Story 1–2
Once it was decided that the two of them would look after Ellie for a while, the maid who had been Ellie’s temporary guardian brought over the toys the child had been playing with.
Even then, she couldn’t wipe the apologetic look from her face, so Aileen reassured her by saying it was fine.
When the toys arrived, Ellie toddled over—tot tot tot—and handed Aileen a female figurine badge with the word Mom written on it in big letters.
“Huh? Wear it?”
“Yeah!”
Aileen pinned the badge to her chest. After looking at it with satisfaction, Ellie then held out a Dad badge to Rihart.
Rihart put it on without complaint, and Ellie promptly plopped herself onto Aileen’s lap.
“Umma, food!”
“Is she hungry?” Rihart asked, tilting his head.
But Aileen, who had raised Adrian herself, thought differently.
“No. I think she wants to play house.”
“Mm!”
Ellie nodded as if to say that was right, then pointed at Rihart and shouted,
“Abba, work!”
“…You want me to go to work?”
“Mm!”
Rihart alternated his gaze between Ellie and Aileen with a blank expression, then quietly stood up.
“I’ll be off to work, Aileen….”
“Have a good day, Rihart.”
Aileen spoke while holding back her laughter.
But apparently something didn’t sit right with Ellie, because she made a sulky face.
“No!”
“Huh?”
“No?”
Both Aileen and Rihart looked down at Ellie in confusion. Then Ellie said a single word.
“Honey!”
The moment they heard it, both adults froze. They had realized what Ellie wanted.
When the two exchanged awkward looks, Ellie shouted again,
“Honey!”
“E-Ellie. Mom and Dad don’t have to call each other ‘honey’….”
“Honey!”
Aileen tried to gently reason with her, but Ellie’s stubbornness was unwavering.
In the end, Aileen looked at Rihart and said softly,
“Have a good day. …Honey.”
The last word was barely audible, but Rihart heard it clearly.
When he stared at her in surprise, Aileen’s cheeks were flushed bright red.
Finding her appearance utterly adorable, Rihart’s lips twitched before he could stop himself. He felt a mischievous urge to tease her a little.
So, in a voice full of laughter and playfulness, he said,
“Yes. I’ll be off, honey.”
Aileen’s already-red face looked like it might burst into flames. Rihart, now a bit embarrassed himself, cleared his throat loudly, his own face reddening.
Watching the scene with satisfaction, Ellie spoke to Rihart again.
“Abba, work!”
“…Right.”
Rihart fled the spot as if escaping, walking toward the tea table by the window. It was something he had prepared to spend time alone with Aileen.
Though he was sitting there by himself for now, it wasn’t bad. Watching Aileen play with the child was entertaining in its own way.
If we had a child of our own, would it feel like this?
A child.
Rihart murmured softly, lost in thought.
To be honest, he had never thought deeply about having children. He had simply lived thinking that it was fine even if he didn’t have any.
But after meeting Aileen and facing a situation like this, his thoughts had changed.
A child of Aileen and me.
He wanted to see it—no, quite badly. It felt as though a future scene was being drawn before his eyes.
A first daughter who looked just like Aileen. Perhaps she would inherit Aileen’s personality as well, being capable and reliable in everything.
And a second son who resembled him. If such a future came, he imagined the second child trailing after the first, just as his own eyes always followed Aileen.
And himself and Aileen together with those two children.
Just imagining it made his heart race; the image was already lovely.
Without realizing it, he was gazing at Aileen with warm eyes when Ellie happened to turn her head and meet his gaze.
“Abba!”
“Is it finally time to get off work?”
With a small chuckle, Rihart stood up. He didn’t go empty-handed; he took the plate of cookies from the table.
“I’m home. Here you go, Ellie—cookies I bought on the way back from work.”
“Wow. Ellie’s so lucky.”
As expected, Ellie reached out for the plate of cookies with sparkling eyes. It was snack time in the middle of their make-believe play.
After munching for a while, Ellie suddenly stood up and grabbed a comb.
“Hair.”
“You want to comb my hair?”
Without hesitation, Aileen removed the accessory that had been holding her hair in place so Ellie could comb it easily.
Thanks to that, Ellie was able to comb Aileen’s hair without poking herself on any ornaments.
Aileen’s hair, already glossy, looked even better afterward, and Ellie then approached Rihart.
“Abba hair.”
“Alright.”
Rihart loosened his tie as well, and his hair swayed lightly around his shoulders. As if she had been waiting for it, Ellie began combing his hair.
At first she combed energetically, but her strength gradually weakened. When Rihart, puzzled, was about to turn around, Aileen smiled and whispered,
“I think she’s getting sleepy.”
“Ah.”
When the comb finally moved away from his head, Rihart turned around. Just as Aileen had said, Ellie was nodding off while standing.
With a soft laugh, Aileen picked Ellie up and headed for the bed.
“Alright, Ellie. Shall we sleep?”
“Mmm….”
Ellie blinked sleepily in Aileen’s arms. When Aileen laid her down on the bed and tried to get up, Ellie suddenly grabbed the collar of her clothes.
“Umma….”
“Okay. I won’t go.”
With no other choice, Aileen lay down beside Ellie. Then Ellie looked at Rihart.
“Abba.”
“Seems there’s no helping it.”
Shrugging his shoulders, Rihart lay down on Aileen’s other side.
With the two of them on either side, Ellie finally relaxed and drifted off to sleep.
“She must have been very anxious without her mom,” Aileen murmured sympathetically as she stroked the child’s hair.
Rihart watched her quietly before speaking.
“You played the role of a mother well, Aileen. That probably eased her anxiety.”
“I hope so.”
As Aileen chuckled softly, her eyes slowly fluttered shut. Rihart smiled and brushed aside a strand of hair that had fallen over her face.
“You should get some sleep too, Aileen.”
“Shall I?”
Aileen answered as if she had been waiting for it, then closed her eyes and gradually fell asleep.
After watching the two of them sleep soundly, Rihart closed his eyes as well.
It was a sweet afternoon nap, something he hadn’t enjoyed in a long time.
❧ ❧ ❧
“Mmm….”
The first to wake was Aileen. Ellie and Rihart were still fast asleep.
As Aileen sat up and stretched, she heard a light knock at the door.
“Madam, are you there?”
Aileen glanced at the two sleeping beside her, then carefully walked to the door.
When she opened it, two maids were standing outside.
“Yes. We were just taking a short nap. What is it?”
“Oh, I see. It’s just that Ellie’s mother has just arrived.”
Aileen reflexively looked at the maid beside her. The maid, who had the same blond hair as Ellie, was smiling at her.
“Hello, madam. I hear you took care of my child.”
“It just happened that way.”
When Aileen smiled awkwardly, the woman bowed deeply.
“Thank you so much. I don’t know how to repay this kindness….”
“Kindness? No, not at all.”
“And I’m sorry. I heard you’re on your honeymoon—did my child get in the way…?”
Seeing her flustered, Aileen was about to reassure her again when a voice came from behind.
“It was fine. Thanks to her, we had a pleasant time.”
Turning around, she saw Rihart approaching, holding the still-sleeping Ellie in his arms. He carefully handed Ellie to her mother.
The maid gazed at her sleeping child with warm eyes and bowed once more.
“Thank you both so much. It’s not much, but I’ll do my best to make sure you enjoy the rest of your time here.”
“Hearing you say that already makes me look forward to it,” Aileen replied with a smile in her voice.
Soon, the two maids left after saying their farewells. Even then, Aileen waved lightly toward Ellie, who still hadn’t woken up, before returning to the room.
Then Rihart hugged her from behind and whispered in her ear,
“Shall we sleep a bit more?”
His voice was drowsy, as if he hadn’t fully woken yet.
Aileen smiled brightly and agreed.
“Shall we?”
The two headed toward the bed together. Then something caught Aileen’s eye, and she widened her eyes.
“Oh? Rihart, look at that!”
“Yes?”
Aileen slipped out of his arms and walked over to the large glass window with a clear view outside. Standing close to it, she pointed out excitedly.
“The weather’s cleared up!”
“Oh.”
Rihart exclaimed softly as he looked at the view beyond the glass.
Just as she said, the rain that was supposed to last until tomorrow had stopped. Moreover, the sun was setting, dyeing the seaside sky red.
As he stood there, momentarily captivated by the beautiful sight, Aileen grabbed his hand.
“What are you doing? Hurry and get ready!”
“Get ready?”
Aileen grinned and exclaimed,
“We’re going to see the ocean!”
