Odette watched the five year old. Kneeling in front of the garden, he tore off a red rose from the garden whilst being careful about getting pricked by the thorns.
He was upset as he began to remove the petals one by one, and once done with that, he reached out for another rose.
Arching her eyebrows at that, Odette walked over to the downcast boy.
"What are you sulking about?" she questioned.
Her voice caught him by surprise, making him jolt in his position. His wide eyes fell on her before he decided to ignore her and continue to destroy the roses.
Odette contemplated on telling him about how he wasn't allowed to touch the flowers. If it was someone else, Odette would have harshly punished them; they wouldn't even get the chance to see the next day after turning a blind eye to her presence.
But as always, Adrian was the exception. She had to admit that pout looked adorable on him.
"How long are you going to be angry at me?" Her tone was lighthearted.
Adrian turned back and responded, "For as long—"
Then, it hit him that he was giving her the silent treatment, and his mistakes made him bite down on his tongue. Glaring at Odette, he looked back to the roses.
She was truly lenient on him, given how he acted so boldly. But Adrian was lucky that he had her interest caught in a tight hold.
"Oh well! There were these candies I wanted to share with you, but I don't think you will be having them anymore since you're mad at me," Odette expressed as a regretful sigh escaped her lips.
The mention of candy made boy tense, and Odette's lips curled up at how he contemplated the matter, most likely conflicted on what to choose.
After one last glance at Adrian, she started to walk away. The sound of her footsteps made the boy react. He held on to the skirt of her garment in order to stop her.
"Lady Odette, wait," Adrian said. His cheeks red.
"I am not angry at you. Can I have those candies?" he added.
A short laugh left Odette's mouth before she faced the boy and teased, "I was kidding. There were no candies."
The playful glint in her eyes made Adrian huff as he puffed up his cheeks. Feeling wronged, he glared at Odette.
"This is too mean—"
The sweet taste of candy spread through his mouth, making him unable to control the sentence. His eyes dilated at her actions, obviously off guard. As the candy melted in his mouth, his taste bud was appeased.
A bright smile formed on his face.
"Adorable indeed," Odette commented. He indeed looked the best when he got mad.
This made her think back to the bone-chilling expression he had on his face when he killed her. She was anticipating to see that again.
"Lady Odette, you are really the best! This is so good! I love you," he expressed.
Odette did notice how it was easy for him to mention love. Indeed, there would be no second Adrian.
"Weren't you saying I am mean earlier?" She quirked her eyebrow.
Adrian furrowed his eyebrow and held both of his hand forward, creating a large gap between his palms before saying in an exaggerated tone: "Before you were this much mean, and now…"
He parted the index finger and thumb of his right hand before continuing, "You are this much mean."
"But if you tell me who the culprit is, you wouldn't be at all mean," he vibrantly said with anticipation in his eyes. He clapped his hands together.
Odette remained silent.
That made him downcast and lower his gaze.
"Lady Odette, can't you tell me who it is? I feel really scared."
Odette felt the vulnerability in those words of his, and for a second there, her heart clenched. Impulsively, she was about to grab on to his shoulder and assure him with the words that she would protect him.
She clenched her hand into a fist at the realization and harshly commented, "Look at how disappointing you are, Adrian. I am really starting to regret my decision of showing special attention to you. Don't dream big if you can't solve this on her own."
The coldness in her eyes and tone— that was foreign to Adrian— made him flinch.