"Mother, Father, you asked for me?" Elijah knocked before entering, his father was patiently waiting on his mother as they lovingly sat on the couch in the Archduke's office. He had just finished his higher education and was now waiting to begin his education as a magic instructor, which began in a few months.
"Come in Elijah." His father waved him in, offering him some refreshments as a servant poured him some fresh tea. "There's going to be a masquerade ball next month. I hope that you can make some time for it considering you are able to return back to education soon after. I won't rush you but hopefully, you might be able to find someone you have a connection with." He flashed him a gentle, warm smile, not forgetting to call over a servant to refill their plate with sweets.
"Of course, I'll make some time to attend." Elijah gave a shallow smile, who didn't know that finding true love in this cynical society was nothing but a lucky instance for some. As for his parents, he was told that even though it was originally an arranged marriage, they found love with each other.
"Elijah, you should know our family has a tradition…" His mother tried to convince him passively, "I know Mother. I'll be sure to attend." She gave him a worried smile, her son had no interest in developing a deeper personal relationship with anyone. She could nag about it to him but at the end of the day, she would rather him be happy than indifferent to everything. Seeing as he had no interest in continuing the conversation, Elijah excused himself.
Feeling stuffy having finally returned home after half a year staying in a dorm, he snuck out into town. Trying to blend in, he wore a simple linen shirt paired with long trousers, attaching his sword to his belt, letting it hang loosely on his hips. He peered into the mirror, trying to fluff out his hair. Even though he tried to hide his identity as a noble, plain clothes couldn't hide his mannerisms and the air he gave off. In fact, it made him seem more attractive.
He wandered into town, which was slowly getting ready for Valentine's Day. Street vendors were changing their usual decorations to be filled with fresh flowers, jewellery stores filled their displays with small love trinkets, ranging from small rings to intricate pendants and lavish brooches. It was the season for love.
Elijah gazed around with a mocking smile, seeing this left a bitter taste in his mouth. There was always a good and bad side to everything. He clicked his tongue, speeding up his walking, ignoring the salesmen trying to sell him a pair of rings. Wanting to escape the sickening atmosphere, he turned into an alleyway, bumping into someone. "Pardon me. I wasn't looking where I was going." A soft but smooth voice captured his attention.
"No, it is alright. It was my fault for not looking properly." He peered down to see the flower of society, Cecelia Octavian, currently dressed in similar clothing as his, wearing a slightly nervous look on her face. What was she doing outside in town without any guards?
Seeing as they were only acquaintances, he gave her minimal attention, choosing to only say polite courtesy words, "Lady Octavian, it is dangerous for you to be out without any guards, especially around this area." Although he felt like it was troublesome, Elijah reached out to grab her wrist, preparing to take her home when there was a tug on his sleeve, "This might be presumptuous of me but may I ask you to accompany me, Lord Alphenhide?" She continuously surveyed her surroundings as if she was scared of being caught.
But why me?
"Did you escape from your house?"
Cecelia bashfully nodded, inwardly hoping that Elijah would agree to her unexpected request.
"Then you would know that it is wrong for a man and a woman to be out by themselves, right?" It wasn't that Elijah couldn't accompany her, he just didn't want rumours of him stealing the most desirable woman in high society. At worst, there would be other men who would request battles with him to prove that they're more worthy while other ladies would begin to fight for his attention while trying to downgrade Cecelia. Having to deal with this additional attention made it unappealing to him, it was already enough that he has a few marriage proposals coming his way every month or so.
"I know it is wrong for us but please! I've been sheltered all my life but I want to see what lies outside of our society."
"What's in it for me? If I accompanied you, the number one most wanted lady of our society," He mockingly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "I would have to deal with receiving those unwanted glares from your admirers. And on top of that, there would be countless ladies vying for my attention simply because you pose a threat to them." A cold smile hung on his lips, if they got caught being together, within the same day, a scandal easily would've broken out, damaging both their reputation. He threw off her hand, turning away to leave.
"Elijah please! You know how strict they are with me… It's my only chance before I get tied down with marriage." She unhesitantly pulled his arm back, her voice wavering, begging him to reconsider his decision. "You just have to guide me around town. You don't have to do anything else… You don't have to protect me like you did before…" She trailed off, sinking her head into her body, convinced that her words had no effect on him.
Elijah could feel his resolve weakening, with Cecelia clinging onto him, he couldn't help but soften his attitude and wanting to give in. "I'll… go with you. It's my duty to protect you since I have the ability to do so." He subconsciously reached out to cup her cheek before realising what he was about to do, retreating his hand. "Let's go. If you want to go somewhere, I'll follow you." He started to walk into the crowd without saying another word.
I was too close to losing my control… I thought she would have forgotten it by now. It's been a year since then…
Cecelia saw how he was intending to leave her, hesitation flashed in her eyes before she boldly grabbed his hand, almost linking her arms with him. "I think it would be safer if we held hands…" She gave a reason to cover up her ulterior motive, her guilty smile made him think that maybe, just maybe, his buried feelings could be reciprocated…
Ridiculous. She wouldn't see me like that. We're only classmates and plus, aside from having mutual friends, we have no other overlapping areas.
"Elijah, is it selfish of me to say that I wished for us to venture out into town more often?" Her words broke off his thoughts, "I know that it is not appropriate for us to be doing so but you know? I…" Her voice softened as if she was ashamed of her words and for thinking that way, "I want to spend more time with you!" She peered into his eyes, her eyes glistened with hope and anticipation, "Please don't push me away this time!"
"Let's go. Don't make me repeat myself." He pulled her into the crowd without letting go of her hand. Her eyes widened in surprise, allowing herself to be pulled along. She tried to get him to look at her but noticed how his ears reddened and his grip on her hand seemed to carry a sense of anticipation and anxiousness. Smiling to herself, Cecelia cheerfully began taking him around the town.