The Kind Older Sister Is No More

“I am cute?”

At this unexpected question, Irene hesitated, she then nodded. Just now, the implication in her answer was vague, but besides that, it was true that she thought he was cute.

“Yes. Oh, but this is a compliment...”

“I see,” he said faintly.

Still, Irene, though added an excuse because she was afraid he would feel unpleasant, was rather astounded at the reply that came back. Surprisingly, Noel nodded in a soft conviction. Then he continued walking. Irene stared at Noel’s back distantly, and belatedly caught on to him.

Walking beside Noel, Irene glanced at him.

But he was persistent in wiping his face of any expression, so she could not tell how he felt.

Eventually, Irene thought ‘he would not care about such a trivial thing’. When she thought about it, she was just complicating things herself. Noel could not have taken it very seriously.

I must be thinking too much. Noel would not care much about my words.

It was a relief to think so, but it was a bit of a shame. She did not have any influence on him.

I’m too greedy.

How much closer did she want them to become than this? Irene blamed herself and tried hard to match his stride.

But, in fact, unlike his carefree outward appearance, Noel was internally in chaos. His mind was confused.

I’m cute?

His feelings had indeed become quite complicated.

How the hell do I look in her eyes? Cute?

If he had been praised for being cool or reliable, he would have been happy at ease. The reaction of being called cute was ambiguous, it was a mixture of both joyful and unsettling feelings.

Noel lowered his gaze to Irene. She seemed to be in a good mood, smiling and walking while looking forward, her wheat-coloured curly hair fluttering with her every movement.

I don’t know anymore.

Why did he think so much about her insignificant words? Why was he worried and struggling to infer the meaning of her words? There was no conversation between the two. They were just walking through the forest path.

A smile formed on Irene’s face. Wherever her feet touched the ground, there was a sound of the crispy crunch of branches and leaves. The sunlight was shedding here and there, spilling over her head. The birds’ singing, which harmonised with the mild breeze, was so sweet that any orchestra’s performance would be filled with envy.

There wasn’t a single flaw in this scenery, everything was lovely, but the best thing was...

It’s reassuring to be by his side.

Noel’s shadow -- walking together side by side -- casted upon Irene. It was only a shadow, so why did it feel like a shield to protect her?

There were many things that had changed; falling asleep without any worries and being able to draw freely without being disturbed. But the biggest change among them all was...

Noel.

It is said that a person’s life resembles a painting. Like a painting, it will eventually be completed by the movement of the paintbrush from one spot to another. 

Irene’s life was achromatic. Gray. Black. The colours that resembled a shadow. However, a completely different colour was poured over the painting. A large amount of brightly coloured paint covered all of her dull paintings.

I don’t know yet.

What kind of picture the pouring paint would draw, would her picture be completed in an entirely unexpected direction, or would it be ruined as it already was?

But there was only one thing for sure.

Because Noel is here, I can change.

Many people pointed their fingers at Noel claiming that he would not be recognised as a half-blood successor, as he was born from a lowly commoner, but to Irene, Noel was more perfect and greater than anyone else.

Can I be that kind of person to Noel, too?

Like what he had done for her, she wished she could transform Noel’s stained painting into a refreshed canvas, brightly coloured, with the most beautiful scenery. 

That, was Irene’s thought to herself.

♔♔♔

“Because the number of people here is sparse, it would be appropriate to talk.”

Noel said as he opened the door to the greenhouse. According to him, the greenhouse was located in a corner like a secret hideout, and there was no sign of people there. Irene gave a small thank-you to him for opening the door and went inside.

The temperature controller did not work because it was Summer, but as the sunlight penetrated through the glass ceiling, the inside was bright and warm like the outside. Likely at night, it would be pretty in its own way.

The scent of fresh plants lingered around the tip of her nose. They could see flowers and trees dotted in every corner and space.

“I did not know there would be a place like this in the Grand Duchy.”

“I found it by chance, do you like it?”

“Yes. I really like it.”

Irene answered with a bright face. She looked around here and there, her olive-coloured eyes were glistening, indicating that she truly loved it. At that sight of Irene, Noel became happy for no reason.

After looking around, Irene and Noel sat down face-to-face at the table in the centre. Irene stared at him wondering what Noel wanted to say, but Noel was thinking about something else.

It would have been nice if there were refreshments.

//last updated on onedaythreeautumns (Nov 2021) Perhaps date next time? ;))