As soon as Charlotte had prepared everything, as usual, with the help of her maids, she immediately left her room to do the usual thing.
As before, she tended to have breakfast alone due to her father's busy schedule. Since her father - Duke Fred Carlile - was the current heir to the throne - more of an keeper of the throne, knowing full well that he was once the right hand and a friend of the former Emperor - the people had immediately given him their approval.
They were never given by the Duke let down. Therefore he could not have enough time even for his only daughter to even help her with her needs.
Charlotte wants to understand her father, she wanted to know more about why he does this, but deep down she also wanted to have a normal family where every child could be helped.
She is said to have a happy family - until one day the most precious person in her life left her and the lady changed her mind. That was why she changed and because of that — she ignored the reality that she had a father who would always be there for her and by the time she realized something like that — it was already too late for her.
The reason was? Her father had devoted all those years to his work during her emotional life journey when he was pushed away from his child until he could not change his steady hobby
Learning about her normal, everyday life — Charlotte wanted to have some fun in her monotonous routine until she met someone — that night changed her whole perspective.
She never thought that one day someone from outside, a little boy, will become the butler who will continue to help her with her needs. She never thought she could tell him such deepest secrets that she had built inside herself, knowing that even if she did tell anyone – no one would ever dare to believe her.
But this one person - this little boy - believed him without hesitation or doubt. He believed her like it was the right thing to do. Then, because of this little boy - as her new butler - her life had changed.
Now she doesn't even realize how big a change she's making, and it's all because of a young man named -----
"L-Louis?"
"Yes, my lady. I was here the whole time and never left your room for a second."
Emerging from her room, Charlotte's first sight was the smiling face of a young, gorgeous man that made her heart beat faster than before.
There, though she may never know how she feels about him right now — all she knew was that one day she didn't see Louis' face made her heartbreak like it was being ripped apart, and it was it she never wanted to experience.
She never wanted to experience things as painful as what happened in her past — that was about a precious person who looks at her the most, who left her without saying goodbye
"Milady, are you alright?"
There Charlotte became aware of where she was, her movements came to mind, but her eyes remained the same as before. When she noticed Louis approaching her - again just like before.
She felt as if her body was being controlled by someone - her movements were restricted and all she could feel was her heart pounding again. Sounds of her heart, beating even louder than before, continued to penetrate her ears, making it the only sound she could hear for a moment.
Although for her - she can see Louis' mouth opening and closing as he said words - she wasn't even aware that she was only looking at Louis' lips and only there until she saw Louis' mouth full closed and that made her attention shift from his lips to his face.
That's the only time Charlotte's eyes widen as she sees what Louis looked like for a moment.
He wasn't like the ordinary Louis she sees every day - at this point in time - Louis looked at the lady seriously. He watched her for a moment as if he were looking straight into her soul.
What the lady didn't know, however, was that he's exactly like that when it comes to the people he's watching - but for the lady it seemed like she had to muster some nerve with Louis, which sent a sudden shiver down her spine let.
It wasn't until a few seconds later that Charlotte screamed at Louis - who only giggled afterwards
"Milady - there is no room for doubt or daydreaming - all right? At the moment I have to help you with breakfast, so all you have to do is follow me."
Charlotte just glared at Louis after hearing those words - it was because she cried out because Louis just poked Charlotte in the forehead while his expression went from serious to naughty.
At that moment, Charlotte's attention was already fully focused as her hands traveled to her forehead and gently massaged it, making Louis' facial expressions more alive than ever.
After hearing the young man's giggle, only Charlotte saw how beautiful his smile was for Unconscious as the second passed - Charlotte didn't even seem to take her eyes off him, and the more she stared at Louis, the more her expression changed .
From scowling at her new butler to an already unconscious smile, which she did madly for a second before realizing what kind of expression she was making that she finally took her lingering gaze off Louis and feigned a cough
*Cough*
This is the time when Louis took notice of the lady and again faces her with the usual smile he always displays when he is with her
'I guess she's unpredictable over time. I just hope that by then she will be able to change the way she makes her dad proud of herself. I've been observing her for the past few days and what I've noticed is her attitude and how she's become that way. It seems like she has experienced some severe trauma in her life that has caused her to behave this way.'
With a sad looking eye - Louis looked at Charlotte, the sides of his lips still curled up, but what he was portraying with his eyes was the complete opposite of what his lips were expressing
"Milady, I was thinking, would you like to go to the market with me?"
Back then – the lady's heart, already calmed down, was beating faster than before and it was all in the words she had heard Louis say and how he spoke of them as if it had nothing to do with being like a lady invite you on a date.
She had learned this from the rumors within the Empire and also from her private tutor - when a young man invites a lady only for two, it means that he already admits that he likes her.
The racing beating of the lady's heart, restless eyes darting back and forth, cheeks and ears beginning to redden as an unusual heat suddenly creeps between her face.
It all started after she remembered one of the maids talking about being asked out by a guy in the past
"Ilya! There you are, has Rostier asked you out yet?!"
"What are you talking about, Inia? This isn't the place to say it! Milady might hear us!"
"You're more worried about the lady than the young man now, Illya?"
"Shhhh! It's just that we might get punished again and you know how the lady behaves, don't you?!"
"Yes, yes, I know, but that doesn't mean she's everywhere in the household! I doubt she's even here! You're being paranoid, Ilya!"
The maid named Illya let out a sigh as she turned her head and looked seriously at the other maid named Inia. She then begins to say the words that caused the other maid to jump up from their current position and raise their hands - laughter circling the hall they were in and a high-pitched voice that could be heard as something could decipher winningly
"Really?! Did you say yes?"
"Yes, I accepted his invitation"
"...and you do know what that means, right?"
The other maid raised an eyebrow, searching for an answer she wasn't even aware of
"For heaven's sake, Ilya! You accepted Rostier's proposal - asked you out and didn't even know it?!"
"For me, Inia, it was important to support my family. But the moment I see Rostier's look, I can't even refuse."
"You are always kind Ilya - but you should also know the consequences of accepting such proposals - you are already bound to him."
"Inia, you're deep - the guy just asked me to the market!"
The other maid had stopped talking as if she had seen a ghost - that gave her a sigh of relief afterward
"I see, so you never know how he likes you? For heaven's sake, Ilya - I'm going to speak to you on his behalf and what he asked you was as indirect as possible, but he still wanted to hear you say yes to him about it. But – that is his form of confession!"
"Wait, what?! Are you serious, Inia?"
"Milady - are you all right?"
The moment Charlotte heard the voice - was the moment she came back to reality and her thoughts about the maids from earlier were gone, but the words Louis had said to her earlier still lingered in her head a broken record
"If you're okay, then let's go. We don't want to be late today."
'Wait, did he say late? For breakfast?'