And so, after we arrived at the front door, Where once again, I found myself both mesmerized and amazed at the same time by the look of it.
However, since I had already seen it multiple times on different types of occasions like birthdays, reunions, family meetings, etc., it became less and less exciting for me to look at it.
Anyway, you may be wondering what the door looks like. Well, let's just say it's the simplest way. It has an uncommon carving on it, blah... blah...
Basically, it has a fish that resembles a koi or something like that. The koi is inside a circle and is designed to resemble yin and yang symbols.
And that's what the door carving looks like. Pretty dope, right? I feel the same.
While staring at it, I noticed an intense gaze behind my back. It was as if someone was trying to bore a hole through my back with her eyes.
As it all happened, a sudden realization came to my mind.
'Wait, don't tell me the torn part of my blazer is showing up?!' I thought in panic before asking Aurilya.
"If you're going to sa-" However, just then, as I was about to say something, I was unintentionally interrupted by Aurilya.
"Young maste- Ahh! I'm sorry," Aurilya hurriedly said but then stopped midway after realizing that she had unintentionally interrupted what I was saying.
Knowing this, I leaned back to look at Aurilya and said, "It's alright."
"...?!"
But then, as I stared at her, I was shocked by what I saw—the teary look in her eyes that was about to burst.
And a mournful expression on her face as if she were grieving for someone important to her.
"...?"
Seeing this, I couldn't help but feel skeptical as I tried to understand what was really happening to Aurilya.
But one thing I knew for sure was that those teary eyes were about to explode at any moment, and I needed to do something about it.
"? W-w-ait, d-on't cry, idiot," I stammered really hard as I slowly took a step forward before I spoke to her.
"Wha-" However, just before I could speak, Aurilya suddenly moved forward, knelt, and hugged me tightly without any warning.
"...?!"
'Ugh... that almost scared me, idiot! If you're just going to hug me, then say it,' I thought to myself while caressing her hair.
"You, that almost scared me," I said in a gentle tone as I once again carelessly swept her silky smooth hair with my hand.
'This silver hair of hers is really smooth; not only that, but her hair also smells so good, like a Japanese Anemone flower on a summer day.'
But then, without any notice, Aurilya began to cry like a baby on my chest, "Waaa.... waa... _sniff_!" with a sniffing sound.
'Hm?! Ughh... Why are you crying so suddenly?! Shit, how do I handle this?! Fuck! I don't know what to do!' I thought as the panic was drawing on my face.
Although I know how to comfort a crying girl because of the experience I had in my past life, but, there's no way I can remember how to do it now!
"Waa... waa..."
And so on, Aurilya continued to cry while I, an idiot, was helplessly unable to do a single thing but just carelessly pat her head to calm her down.
"Please, don't cry," I whispered through her ear.
"Hm...."
"?!!"
'Argh, it only makes it worse! I need to do something!! I can't just stay like this!' I thought as I began to think of possible ways to calm her down.
So I started racking my damn head, trying to find some useful information by digging deeper and deeper into the slumber of my memories to see if I could remember something.
Unfortunately, no matter how many times I recalled something, not a single shit came into my head! 'This damn brain, please work sometimes!'I thought.
So, in the end, I gave up and just straight up asked Aurilya.
"Please don't-" However, damn... for the second time, I couldn't finish my sentence as Aurilya unexpectedly stared into my eyes and, without any warning, swiftly gave a gentle kiss on my right cheek.
-Mwa!
"W-what?!" I stammered as I looked at Aurilya with shock on my face.
However, that still didn't end yet as Aurilya once again kissed me and said, "Hehehe, I love you, young master, and happy birthday," with the sweetest smile I had ever seen.
As she stood up and ran away like a freaking ninja.
"Huh? Wh-what just happened..." I mumbled in utter confusion while staring at Aurilya, who was getting farther and farther away from my sight.
"!!?" It's just when she was already too far away, when I finally realized what just happened.
"W-wait!" I yelled after Aurilya.
But it was already too late; she was already far gone.
"God damn it, why did you run?" I said with regret in my tone as I placed my palm where Aurilya had just kissed me.
"That was... regrettable," I added, and just then, something unexpected happened to my body.
-Badum!
-Budum..
-Budum!
"..?!"
Wait, what happened? Why do I suddenly hear a pumping sound in my chest? And what is this?! A freaking butterfly feeling in my stomach? Huh?!
"W-wait, stop it! That's not true!" I mumbled as I covered my eyes to hide the blushing look on my face.
"Did I just fall in love with Aurilya?!" I mumbled once more, feeling embarrassed.
No! That's not true! Always remember, you dimwit, I'm a mentally adult inside a child's body! And nothing else! This is not my fault; it's my hormones' fault!
"..."
"Yes, that's right. It's my hormones' fault, and so I didn't fall in love!" I convinced myself while trying to hide that feeling.
However, no matter how many times I try to convince myself, it seems I can't deny this lingering, elastic feeling inside me.
"Ugh... god damn, this is embarrassing...also cringe at the same time. " I muttered under my breath while touching my chest, which kept beating like crazy.
And so, after a minute, there I stood, totally alone in front of the giant door, feeling like a freaking idiot for a moment.
-Squwkk....
When suddenly, the giant door opened, where Steele then peered through as he called me, "Yo, young master, what are you doing there?"
"Nothing," I replied as I maintained a straight look on my face while trying to hide the deep frustration inside me.
"Really~ Are you sure, young master?" Steele asked in an amused tone, looking at me with a sly smile on his face as if he found something funny.
'What's with that smirk look on your face? The heck, it's creeping me out!' I thought before I spoke.
"Yes, and nothing else," I repeated, trying to remain calm.
However, even after saying that, Steele's smirking face didn't change in the slightest bit.
As he continued to talk, "Ehh, are you sur-" However, just before he could finish his words, I interrupted him.
"NO! Nothing ever happened!" I yelled out of frustration, gazing at Steele with a frustrated look on my face.
Hearing this, Steele paused for a moment before he spoke again, but his smirking face remained unaffected.
"Oh... okay, if you say so," Steele said as he continued to talk. "Anyway, young master, Madam Aria, and Duke Kael are waiting for you inside," before pushing the door wide open to let me enter.
-Squckk....
"Please enter," Steele said in a polite tone before bowing.
Seeing this, I took a single step. But Before I entered, I turned my gaze at Steele and asked, "Wait, you're not going to say 'happy birthday' or something?" as if I were some sort of Mafia boss.
'Heh, this is what you could call power!' I thought to myself, waiting for Steele to respond.
Hearing this, Steele smiled and said, "Happy birthday, young master... hooray~," in the laziest tone I ever heard.
"Wow... thank you," I bluntly replied with a disappointed look on my face as I walked past Steele.
'Sigh... never mind, I've already wasted too much time,' I thought as I proceeded to enter inside.
-Steps..
-Steps..
-Step..
Inside the room, there were three large-gray couches arranged in a "U" shape, with both ends facing the glass window.
Anyway, I stopped for a moment to check if the tear in my blazer was visible. Luckily, it wasn't.
Soon, I continued my walk, and after a few more steps, I met them.
As I met them, I bent my back 48⁰ and greeted, "Good morning, father and mother," with an innocent smile on my face.
After that, I looked up and noticed both Aria and Kael sitting on the right couch, looking at me with big smiles on their faces.
"Ha?? Good morning?" I repeat myself, this time with an awkward expression on my face.
"..."
"..."
"..."
However, even after that, Keal and Aria just stared at me in silence, wearing grins on their faces.
Ugh... why are you guys smiling like idiots? Did something really good happen to you guys? After all, it's my birthday!
.... wait, that's right, maybe something really good happened. But oh boy, I was wrong, as Aria began to speak,
"Oh... cutie, if someone kisses you, always check for any kiss marks they may have left," Aria advised with a sly smile on her face.
Followed by Kael, "That's right." While nodding his head.
"Huh? What are you guys talking about?" I asked confusedly.
Hearing this, both Aria and Kael looked at each other's faces before pointing their index fingers at their cheeks.
Seeing this, I couldn't help but ask myself, "What? Huh? Towards my cheeks?"
-Sweep...
"!!!"
It was at that moment when I noticed some red marks on my palm when I finally realized what they were talking about.
"What is this? Lipstick?" I mumbled as I looked at Aria, who just smiled and said, "See, that's what I'm talking about."