EPISODE 28

Why is this... … .

Felix looked down at the necklace in his hand without moving.

A crystal with the zodiac sign, the birth sign of October, with exquisite workmanship.

It must have been the constellation necklace that Lucy had purchased in front of the stall on the day of the festival.

Why is this on Adrian's bed... … ?

Felix's face was confused as he quietly lifted his head and looked at his brother's back. He blankly fiddled with the necklace. Thousands of thoughts ran through his mind after that.

Maybe it's just a similar necklace? Because necklaces made with constellations are common.

Or someone else gave it to you. We probably weren't the only ones who bought things from that stall.

He repeated his thoughts to calm the doubts that were creeping up in the corner of his mind.

Yes, necklaces like this are common. It is something you can find anywhere in the market.

So no need to worry.

"Adrian."

he called his brother You just need to check it yourself. But why is the corner of my heart so anxious?

Adrian looked back while organizing his clothes.

"Well?"

Felix slowly reached out and showed him the necklace.

"this… … Where did you come from?"

"Ah."

Adrian hurried over and took the necklace from Felix's palm. He hurriedly put the necklace in the small box on the desk and closed the lid.

"I'm sorry. Because the person in question asked me to keep it a secret."

He answered with a puzzled face.

party? Secret?

Felix's heart sank at the unknown answer. It was an ambiguous word that made me afraid to ask for something more.

Not seeing Felix's reaction, Adrian opened the desk drawer and pushed the box containing the necklace into the depths. Felix looked at him with empty eyes.

After a while, Felix slowly got up from Adrian's bed. He tumbled over to his bed and stretched helplessly over it.

Adrian looked at him with puzzled eyes. It was strange to see him flopping around like a child on the bed just before, and now lying still like a dead fish on a chopping board.

"what's the matter?"

Felix did not respond to Adrian's question. Adrian looked at him like that and muttered.

"Is puberty... … ."

* * *

next day.

Felix, who was returning to the dormitory after the morning class, sat down on a nearby bench for a while. Then, with your thumb, he pressed the temple firmly. The headache I had felt since waking up in the morning never went away.

After a while, he lowered his hand and stared blankly at the campus.

Clear blue sky, beautifully colored trees, and autumn flowers in each flower bed… … .

No beautiful scenery caught my eye. It was just that I was caught up in a single thought that was dominating my head and it was painful.

The fact that I forgot for a while because I got too close to Lucy. The fact that she was fluttering alone at the bright smile she sent and was trying to ignore it.

It's that the person Lucy likes is Adrian, not herself.

Just as a dam, which had begun to crack once, could not withstand the rushing water, and gradually collapsed, so the negative thoughts that kept coming to his head could not easily be shaken off, and he gradually fell into deep agony.

It was painful to imagine Lucy presenting the necklace to Adrian.

The more he shook it off, the more concrete and vivid the scene appeared in his head, making him sad. He closed his eyes and wiped his face with his dry hands.

It was then.

tock tock.

Someone tapped his shoulder lightly.

"Lucy!"

Felix looked back and shouted with a surprised face. Lucy was standing today with her light brown hair neatly braided and hung in front of her shoulders.

She looked down at Felix and smiled softly. He, who found himself, is waiting for him to smile mischievously as always.

But as usual, Felix just looked at him with a surprised face, and the bright smile on Lucy's face faded little by little.

After hesitating for a moment at Felix's unresponsiveness, she came back to the front of the bench.

"Senior Felix."

She said as she sat down next to me.

"Actually, I followed you from there."

She pointed to the entrance to the Academy's main building.

"I was walking pretty close, didn't you notice?"

"Ah… … ."

Felix couldn't even respond properly and only let out a strange exclamation. It's because seeing Lucy's face, a happy heart and a painful heart arose at the same time.

Those two emotions were mixed together, and instead of the usual playful smile on his face, only an awkward smile appeared.

"Where are you sick?"

"no it's okay."

When Lucy asked with a worried face, Felix shook his head and answered.

Not too far away, a group of students passed by, chattering. Lucy, who saw them, stood up and said, conscious of her gaze.

"… … If it is difficult to talk now, shall we talk later?"

"It's not like that."

Felix sat her back down.

However, Lucy bowed her head with a gloomy expression at Felix's unusual atmosphere. An awkward air circulated around them. Lucy wiggled her hands on her knees.

Calm down, Felix!

Lucy came up to me first at the most and walked over to the horse, but what are you doing?

he pushed himself He felt pathetic for not being able to control his mood and attitude because of just one necklace.

"Nowadays… … I think I was able to diligently prepare for the exam thanks to you."

Felix opened his mouth with the words he forced out after contemplating. At his words, Lucy raised her head with a slightly brighter expression.

"really?"

"Huh. It's the first time I've worked so hard."

"If there is something you don't know while studying, ask me. I'm studying 3rd grade subjects in advance too... … . I will tell you as much as I can."

Lucy turned her gaze to the front as if embarrassed.

"Ah! Come to think of it, there is Adrian-senpai too."

She said as if she had just remembered.

"We share the same room anyway, so you can ask Adrian-senpai. I also received help from time to time, and they were very kind to explain it to me."

Felix's heart sank when his brother's name came out. Soon after, my stomach hurt as if someone was squeezing it.

Felix nodded his head creakingly.

"Adrian… … okay… … right."

"I think Adrian-senpai is really great. He didn't miss the first place in all subjects for three years. As a result, I was ranked first in the overall, but I did not achieve satisfactory results in some subjects."

At the words of Lucy praising Adrian, various emotions simmered in Felix's heart.

"For swordsmanship, I was number one."

Those words came out of his mouth. Lucy's eyes widened at the sudden announcement of her ranking.

Felix looked down with embarrassment, thinking that maybe he was the person who had more cubic than Colin or Noel.

"Oh, come to think of it, swordsmanship received the highest score."

Lucy said as if recalling his report card he had seen before.

"… … Yes, if you have any difficulties, please tell me. I will teach you."

"Thank you. But I didn't choose the swordsmanship class... … . Because I don't have the talent to use my body."

With those words, the conversation ended abruptly. The two sat silently, looking at the wide campus for a moment. Lucy's feet kept ticking under the bench.

"… … Ummm, I think it would be okay to learn for self-defense."

After a while, she turned to Felix and said:

"You may not be able to wield it well or do it, but I think there is nothing wrong with learning how to hold a dagger."

"okay? All right, I'll catch you and teach you properly."

Felix tried to answer in his usual tone and forced a smile on his face. Holding down the wretched emotions that keep raising your head.

It wasn't that he didn't know that Lucy liked Adrian.

He himself, who had been acting fat all over again, looked naive.

But what to do. All the emotions he felt after meeting Lucy were beyond his control, and he had no choice but to help.

All he could do was hide his ugliness as much as possible and save even the last remaining face.

"Senior, I'm actually here because I have something to say."

Lucy spoke carefully with an apologetic expression.

"I don't think we can study together this week."

"Why?"

Felix suddenly raised his head at the unexpected words.

"Mrs. Erin fell off a ladder yesterday and broke her arm. There was no one to look after the library business, so the librarians decided to take turns keeping the return desk."

Felix, who had already been disturbed by Lucy's explanation, became more complicated.

"I'm sorry, senpai. Study again from next week. I'm here to tell you this."

"… … I can't help it."

Felix answered, unable to hide his regretful expression.

"Okay, then I'll go see you."

"Wait a minute."

As Lucy got up from the bench, Felix quickly grabbed her wrist.

However, despite holding someone with a rather desperate face, he was unable to say what he wanted to say, and his mouth was still open.

"Maybe the neck… … ."

"neck?"

"Necklace… … ."

Felix's expression, unable to continue speaking, was strangely distorted. The strength of the hand that was holding Lucy was released.

"Nothing."

He ended his speech sullenly.

In the end, he sent Lucy away without even asking about the constellation necklace.

In fact, Felix was afraid.

I guess Lucy really gave Adrian the necklace. I'm afraid I'll answer 'yes' to my own question with a calm face.

So I avoided the situation where I got an answer. I didn't even ask a question.

Felix silently looked at Lucy's back as she was moving away. One day, she felt like she was going to be so far away from her, and it hurt unbearably in the corner of her heart.