When the night fell, Aradia went to wait in the attic which was the hiding place where she always met Sylvan over the years. It was a small space but it was their personal space where no one would come to disturb them. And this was the place filled with their memories too. That's why she always came over to clean it up.
She sat on the carpet as she held a small box in her hand looking forward to seeing Sylvan.
She waited for quite some time before Sylvan came over.
"You're late," she said.
"Sorry about that," said Sylvan in response. "I went to see Drusilla and just came back now."
Once he brought up Drusilla, Aradia didn't continue this topic.
"It's alright. As long as you're here. Come here," she beckoned to him. "I brought a gift for you."
Sylvan didn't move and continued to look at her.
"What's wrong?" Drusilla might be casual but Aradia was very keen. She could notice that something was wrong with Sylvan at this time.
"You're going with Drusilla to the suburban mansion."
Aradia's lips parted but nothing came out in the end. She wanted to mention this to him but she didn't think he'd hear about it before she told him personally. She lowered her head, not daring to look into her eyes.
"Don't you have anything to say to me?" he asked her, seeing that she wasn't explaining anything even now. He sighed, "As I said earlier, you really choose my sister over me. You did it again."
Aradia looked up into his eyes and said, "It was the Duke who asked me to follow her. How can I go against the Duke's words? I don't have that right."
"But if you had talked to Drusilla, it could change," he said. "But you just listened to her as always." He shook his head, "Here I was thinking about talking about our relationship to my mother once she is back this time and here you are, always looking for ways to run away with my sister."
Aradia was shaken once he mentioned that he was gonna talk about their relationship to his mother. Her whole body instinctively felt chilled and her breath hitched. Just the name of Duchess Rosewood was enough to make her heart feel scared.
She couldn't help it. This fear was deep-rooted in her bones. She couldn't get rid of it so easily.
"You want to talk to the Duchess?" she asked with a tremor in her voice that he didn't notice. "About us?"
"Of course," answered Sylvan. "How long are we gonna sneak around like this? I want to have a proper relationship with you. For that, I have to talk to my mother. How else will I marry you?"
Aradia was actually very happy that he was thinking about bringing this relationship to light but deep down, she knew it was almost impossible. Anyone could agree to their relationship but the Duchess would never. She might have gone with the flow for all these years and allowed her heart to be swayed by him, but she hadn't forgotten her own identity and she definitely didn't forget his identity.
He was Sir Sylvan. The Young Heir of the House Rosewood. He was the most outstanding young man in all the aristocratic families.
She? She wasn't his match.
Seeing her expression, he moved to her side and held her face in his hands as he looked at her, "What are you thinking? Do you think my mother won't agree? Didn't I tell you, my mother loves me the most? She will agree to whatever I say."
Aradia actually wanted to laugh at those words. How could anyone know Duchess Rosewood more than her? Didn't she know what she was? To say that her son's happiness was more important to Duchess Rosewood than her own prestige? She highly doubted that. No, she was certain that the position Sylvan had in Duchess Rosewood's heart couldn't be above her own interests.
So what if she was his mother? Who said she couldn't be selfish just because she was a mother?
"I think you should forget about it," said Aradia.
"What? Why?" asked Sylvan clearly shocked by her words and a little dissatisfied too.
"Duchess Rosewood will never agree. In fact, your insistence might make your relationship with her stiff," Aradia wasn't just saying it. She had thought about it carefully. "You shouldn't try to challenge her. Duchess Rosewood won't like that."
"You clearly don't understand my mother yet," said Sylvan. "She is very kind and she loves me the most. My happiness is everything to her. If you hadn't been stopping me, I'd have told her about us long ago. We wouldn't have had to sneak around like thieves. But I can't wait now. I have to tell her everything. I'm already at the age of marriage and I don't want her to look for other ladies."
Aradia looked at his confident expression and couldn't bring herself to break his confidence. She couldn't bring herself to do so. He was so happy right now but she knew it won't last for long if he insisted on telling his mother about them.
"Aradia, my mother likes you too. You're so close to her. She brought you to our family," reminded Sylvan. "I still remember when she first brought you to our family. She told me and Drusilla to take care of you."
Aradia's lips twitched as he recalled that time but she didn't say anything to disturb him at all. Who told her to love the young Duke Sylvan? It was her own fault for overreaching her limits. But she had come so far now. She didn't think she could back out now that she loved him so much.
So, she could only stick by his side and support him in any way possible.
"Then can you wait for a while?" asked Aradia. "Once I come back from the mansion, I'll stand beside you. I can't let you face your mother alone. Since we are both in love, we both should take responsibility for our feelings."