A gentleman with long red hair, purple and black suit with double breasted buttons, and a red mantle draping his right shoulder approached me. I took his hand and was pulled into a dance.
"Second Prince Ryder, your hands should be higher," I corrected him.
"Miss Fairy is rather good at guessing. You remind me of the first time I met you. Still the ethereal beauty as you once were..."
Children have a rather smooth tongue in this time period.
"Long hair suits you, Your Highness."
"They are extensions made from my real hair. I often use them in ceremonies or big events, but does it really suit me?"
"Indeed."
"Should I grow my hair out for you?"
This Prince... a line like that will not move me.
"...Would you shave your head if someone told you to?"
"Certainly, if that person is you. I would even hand you the razors."
I could not help but laugh a little.
My next partner was a male with flaxen hair and a white and blue uniform. The mask contained dark shades which were placed in the eye sockets.
If we were to only judge him by his hair, he looks exactly like Prince Erik. For my heart, I felt uneasy.
Before I knew it, I was already taken into a dance with the masked stranger. My heart eventually calmed down.
This person was not Prince Erik.
"Senior Glen..."
"I'm surprised... Lady Arielle is the first one to guess correctly. I am a bit curious. What gave me away?"
"You are left handed..."
"Excuse me?"
"Left handedness is frowned upon in this region due to the strong religious beliefs in this region that believe left handedness is linked to whether a person is evil or not. Senior Glen is from a region where The Churches influences have not reached yet, so handedness is not scrutinized as much over where you live."
"You have heard of my hometown?"
"I have seen that you will occasionally bring your left hand out first when greeting people. Upon remembering that you lent out your left hand, you would also bring out your right hand within that split second. The person in front of you would not think much about having their hand shaken with both hands other than the fact that you shook their hand with both of your hands to cover the fact that you were indeed left handed."
"That is still not enough to tell whether I am left handed or not."
"Are you aware of the rules of etiquette in asking a lady's hand for a dance?"
"Of course. I offered my hand first, did I not?"
"Men typically have stronger left hands even though only ten percent of the population is actually left handed. People generally use their less dominant hand in order to perform simpler tasks. In the rules of etiquette, the gentleman is supposed to offer his left hand... Now, which hand did you offer to me?"
"...My right?"
"It was your left," I answered him. "Senior Glen expressed proper etiquette in every way. I lied about knowing your habits or knowing where you came from."
"Oh? How did you guess that I was left handed then?" Senior Glen asked me with a smile. "You certainly had me on a ruse."
"It was your tie. Assuming that you dress yourself... You can tell a lot about a person by their clothes and how they wear it."
"You are just a bundle of joy."
We bid each other goodbye to our next dance. Three dances seemed to be rather long to me. It will end with the next time around anyways...
Senior Glen was the only gentleman amongst the five that had blonde hair. This means that Prince Erik was also wearing a wig. I wonder which one is him... I cannot exactly use the same trick for when I guessed Senior Glen.
My next partner was a male with glistening long silver hair, a navy blue and white collar suit with a checkered vest. His eyes were also covered by black shades. Compared to the other two I danced with, there was a beauty of refinement in the way he moved and his posture.
When I noticed how long I was staring at him, I quickly turned away.
I should really get out of my bad habit of observing people excessively...
Not everyone is comfortable with being analyzed.
I wonder why I felt so comfortable with his dancing...He was a skilled dancer indeed, but there was something more from him that kept pulling me to him.
Nonetheless, trying to start a conversation with a stranger is something that even I am not that brave enough to do.
Before I knew it, couples began joining in on the dance floor. We all no longer had the space all to ourselves. I felt our space between each other was slowly decreasing.
"...Your hair is loose."
I saw how my hair was unraveling...This was probably because of haste job.
"Thank you for telling me," I said as I broke our hold.
He escorted me across the ballroom and had caught my fallen flower ornament.
My hair unraveled completely and settled in soft waves.
"Allow me to fix it," he said as he casually placed the ornament back in my hair.
Thankfully everyone's attention was directed towards the center where people were dancing, otherwise there would be strong gossiping among the ladies.
"Thank you very much for everything. This is a very important item to me."
"It's no problem...Are you a fan of roses? You are completely dressed in them."
"My favorite flower is actually pink peonies. My aunt is the one who helped make my dress. She is a fan of roses. Are you interested in roses yourself?"
Someone this refined and elegant must also love a refined flower like that.
"I have a hobby of planting and raising flowers, so I was rather intrigued by how the imitation flowers closely resembled that real roses. If we are talking about my personal interests, I prefer white calla lilies."
The sound of my heart resembled the sound of thunderstorms.
"...Is there a reason why?"
"I like the symbolism behind it...The flower is considered a symbol for resurrection and rebirth because it returns every year after winter. These flowers are sturdy as they are stunning and can withstand frosts and can regrow in cases after being cut, yet they have such short lifespans. I think it's beautiful how it tries to live its life out to the fullest despite holding in such high amounts of poison," he said with a smile.
This person was Prince Erik without a doubt.
"Are you going to let me die a second time then?" Erik asked.
I suddenly felt sick as I remembered the contents of my nightmare. I clasped my hand over my mouth as I tried to control my turbulent emotions.
"...Excuse me," I mustered weakly as I left the dance hall.
I am fine with watching him from afar...When we get close, I cannot help but want more and more. The more I try to reject my own feelings, the more I hurt myself.
The joy I felt from dancing was always with him... I should have noticed from before.
I found myself in the garden where I saw Prince Erik before.
Erik has always been a gentleman. It does not matter who the other lady is, he will always treat them well not because they are special or anything... I did not want to dance with him. He makes me remember things I should forget and it makes me waver...
"Arielle?"
I suddenly heard someone call out to me.
"Erik?"
"It's Garett."
I turned towards him.
Garett was without a mask and his usual glasses. In his hands were his suit and a book.
"I'm sorry...I was not thinking straight."
The more I look at Garett, the more I think they are similar especially without his glasses. Torturing me with his face. I really did not want to see him.
"...It does not bother me."
"I see..."
He lied. There is no way he would not be bothered by it.
"Are you alright? Your complexion is rather pale."
"I'm fine..."
I know that I am pathetic. My memories, my feelings, my everything...I don't think that I will ever find peace within my wretched soul.
"...You danced with him, didn't you?"
"I did."
"Did something change for you?"
"Nothing...Nothing changed for me."
"That's what you wanted the least...You wanted him to look at you the same way you do or even at least half. Your love is one sidedly selfish, wanting the affection of another person without trying to do anything to get their attention or know them personally. How could you ever expect the other person to feel the same way about you?"
"It only works out like that for people who are happy with their own lives," I replied to Garett.
"It's fine to hold ugly feelings if it helps you get by. You can just spend the rest of your life loving and chasing him. If you are looking for your own happiness, maybe that is exactly what you need to be happy."
There is no reason to throw my own feelings away and hurt myself because of that. I can just keep loving Erik. He will not respond to my feelings, and I will never respond to his. This is truly torture. I cannot imagine myself not being able to not love him. At the same time, I cannot.
"Thank you very much."
Crack!
My mask had suddenly broken in half and fell to the ground.
We both took a look at the broken mask that fell to the ground.
"Not very sturdy, is it?" Garett said as he picked up the two halves and tried handing it back to me. "Do you still want it?"
I shook my head.
"I'm fine with throwing it away. Today's memory will just stay a memory."
"Are you going to let me die a second time then?" Erik asked.
I am going to let you die, the memories of you at least, here alongside with this mask.
I love you more than my memories. That is why I am fine with throwing them away if you get to live another day...
"I see."
I held my hands out.
"You can give it back to me. I will throw it away myself," I said. Garett tucked the broken mask in his back pockets. "Hey..."
"I will throw these away for you. You might change your mind and decide to keep them."
"Do you think I am that flimsy?"
"...Obviously," he said as he held out his hand.
"You say such mean things," I said as I took his hand.
"I can't see..."
"Hm?"
"I lost my glasses while I was wearing my mask and then lost my mask while I went looking for my glasses..."
Garett is surprisingly clumsy at times.
"I cannot believe you wandered all the way here to the Lily Garden," I said as I began leading him around the darkened halls.
"I went this far?"
I thought that I might as well lead him to the library since we both lost our masks.
"How did you know it was me if your vision was this bad?" I asked him as I looked back at his face.
He smiled gently.
"I would know of you anywhere."
I felt my heart flutter for a moment.
That face is truly unfair. Who asked you to look so gentle?
"Gare–"
"I lied," he said as he stuck his tongue out at me.
I threw his hand down and walked away.
"Go find your own way around," I said coldly.