“…Amel?”
“…”
I had been holding the doorknob of Karl’s bookstore when I slowly lowered my hand.
It took me a moment to find the courage to turn around.
Taking a deep breath, I slowly—very slowly—turned my head.
Edward Edwin Callinan.
Of course, it was him.
“Ah… hello.”
“What brings you here?”
That was exactly what I wanted to ask him.
Why did it feel like I kept running into him everywhere I went? Yesterday… well, we hadn’t met face-to-face, but hearing Louizar Canton’s shocking story had been enough to make it feel as though we had.
An awkward silence settled between us, heavy and unmoving.
Karl, who had been watching us for a moment, turned his gaze back to the newspaper he’d been reading, though I could still feel him glancing this way from time to time.
I wasn’t the only one aware of that gaze. Left with no choice, I stepped a little closer to Edward Callinan. He shifted slightly to the side to make room for me.
What was he even doing here?
We were close enough that I could speak softly and still be heard, so I had to answer his earlier question.
“It’s my day off today. I thought I’d come see if Arthur—my younger brother—needed anything.”
“I see.”
And what about you? Why are you here?
I wanted to ask, but for some reason, the question stuck on the tip of my tongue, as though something were blocking my throat.
This was already the second time I’d run into him inside Karl’s bookstore.
When he’d called my name just as I was about to leave the first time, the surprise on his face had been obvious.
So maybe the word “coincidence,” which he’d used during our first encounter, finally applied this time. Back then, it hadn’t been coincidence. But this time—it truly was.
Unless, of course, he had somehow predicted that I would come to the bookstore at this very hour and had been waiting here all along.
My gaze drifted to where his hand rested.
He was holding a plain brown leather-bound book. The title was simple and direct:
Magic Theory I.
“I had some business nearby, so I stopped in for a bit,” he said.
“Ah… I see.”
Before I could even ask, he had already answered—as though he could read my mind.
Before the silence could drag on, I spoke again.
“You’re busy even on your day off.”
“Well.”
His low reply: ‘That’s true’—sounded faintly tired.
Considering the man I’d come to know, that was surprising. He had always seemed like the type who didn’t even know the ‘F’ in fatigue.
But then again, he had plenty on his plate. To be an academy chancellor at his age—he probably held countless other important positions as well.
The young lord of House Callinan really did live in a completely different world from mine.
He looked at me then, the trace of weariness vanishing from his face as if it had never been there.
“You said you came to see if your brother needed anything.”
“Yes?”
“The section for third-year academy students isn’t here—it’s over there.”
“Oh, right. Of course.”
It was Edward Callinan who pulled me out of my wandering thoughts. Setting his book down, he began to walk slowly toward another aisle. The gesture was unexpected.
Is he… going to show me around?
I didn’t bother asking, just followed him quietly.
Passing the display of picture books—the same kind he’d once gifted Arthur—we reached another area filled with school supplies and educational materials.
I’d been here a few times before, but not often enough to recognize the newly arranged displays.
No clerk was in sight, so I could only look around uncertainly. I felt his gaze on me again—Edward Callinan’s steady eyes watching every movement.
“…You can ask me if you need help,” he said.
“Um, then… may I ask for your help?”
He was the only person I could really ask at that moment, and since he’d offered, I went along. Still, I doubted someone like him would know exactly what an academy third-year boy might need. I thought I’d just get a few casual suggestions for stationery—but then…
“That map won’t be used anymore. The one beside it’s better. The curriculum’s changing next term.”
“Oh, I see.”
“And this…”
I nodded, practically mesmerized, picking up each item he mentioned.
Even among countless varieties of similar supplies, he seemed to know exactly what Arthur would need.
Do chancellors usually keep track of things like this too?
I couldn’t tell if he was just extremely competent—or oddly attentive to such trivial details.
When I’d first met him at the mansion, I’d thought he was the sort of man born with a diamond spoon in his mouth, doing nothing worthwhile—just the kind to have secret rendezvous with our young lady in hidden corners.
But the shameless, audacious man who had once made me an absurd proposal was nowhere to be seen now.
The Edward Callinan standing here—my supposed fake lover and partner in this strange “deal”—was someone I could hardly recognize.
What on earth is he doing all this for?
The earlier awkwardness faded as we focused on the task at hand.
By the time I realized it, the basket was full.
“Ah, wait.”
“…?”
“These are gifts for Arthur, so I’ll pay for them.”
He was about to pay again as though it were the most natural thing in the world, and I hurriedly stopped him.
“I appreciate the thought,” I said firmly,
“but really—it’s fine.”
At my resolute tone, he finally stepped aside without protest.
I had really changed a lot. The first time we met, I couldn’t even look him in the eye—and now here I was, refusing him outright.
At least I managed to make the purchase without incident.
Ignoring Karl’s suspicious glances, I exited the bookstore, with Edward Callinan following right behind me.
The suffocating awkwardness returned immediately.
Neither of us spoke. I couldn’t think of what to say, and he seemed disinclined to start.
It hadn’t always been this uncomfortable, so why now?
Maybe because of the things I still haven’t said.
Unspoken words circled endlessly in my head until, at last, I settled for a simple expression of gratitude.
“Thank you for your advice. Thanks to you, I know what Arthur needs now.”
“It would’ve been better if he’d come with you. Why didn’t your brother join?”
“He said he still had homework left. He really wanted to come, but… Ah!”
Suddenly, I remembered the waiting ticket I’d gotten from the crepe shop earlier.
I hurriedly reached into my pocket and pulled out the small piece of paper. Fortunately, it was still there.
“What’s that?”
he asked, puzzled.
Before answering, I glanced toward the clock tower southeast of the bookstore. Time had flown faster than I’d realized.
“It’s a waiting ticket from the crepe shop nearby. The line was too long earlier, so I couldn’t wait.”
“Crepe,” he repeated.
“Yes. Well then, I should—”
“I’d like to try one.”
He tilted his head slightly.
“Is that not allowed?”
I blinked, caught off guard.
Wait— Edward Edwin Callinan, the man who probably only ate desserts made with the finest vanilla beans, wanted to try a strawberry crepe from a street shop?
“Ah… well, sure. Go ahead.”
It wasn’t like I could stop him. It was just… unexpected.
Even at my hesitant response, he followed me as calmly as ever. He stayed close while I showed the waiting ticket to the shop owner and got in line—close enough that I could feel his presence, even though he stood a single step behind me.
I still couldn’t believe it.
Edward Edwin Callinan, waiting in line at a small-town crepe shop.
Couldn’t he have just sent a servant—or a butler—to fetch one?
“What’ll it be, miss?”
the shop lady asked.
“Five strawberry crepes, please.”
“Alright, alright. Your boyfriend’s quite the looker, isn’t he?”
I froze, staring wide-eyed at her. But she’d already turned away, calling toward the kitchen:
“Five strawberry crepes, order up!”
She was far too busy for me to protest, so I just stepped aside awkwardly.
Did my face just turn red?
We weren’t acting particularly close—why would she assume we were a couple? Maybe she was just tired from working all day…
“She said I’m your handsome boyfriend,”
Edward remarked.
“…”
“Do you dislike that?”
I looked up at him, speechless.
A faint, knowing smile tugged at his lips.
(T/N: OMG !!! Lmao )
I don’t mind, his eyes seemed to say.
Before I could come up with a retort, our number was called.
“Order 193! Five strawberry crepes ready!”
“Yes, here—”
“Here,”
he said, handing over the coins before I could react.
His movements were so natural that it took me a moment to realize what had happened. With the crowd pressing around us, I didn’t have the chance to argue, and simply followed him out of the shop.
He was holding a small paper bag containing all five crepes.
Don’t tell me he plans to eat them all himself—
“No.”
“Huh?”
“I can tell what you’re thinking.”
The unimpressed look on his face said it all:
Did you really think I bought five crepes just for myself?
Honestly. If it wasn’t true, fine—but did he really have to look so offended?
________✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧𓉞___________
T/N : This chapter was so funny and sweet … I can’t handle their cuteness !!! *Giggling*
