A Summer With Bitter Rivals - Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Shall We Get Married?

***

Since the night they went to see the fireworks, Zenon had occasionally come to visit Emeline at night.

As they secretly nurtured their private moments, time flew by quickly.

In just a month, the two had steadily continued preparing for their entrance exams, while the business affairs of the Duke of Delzeier and the Marquis of Trancium also seemed to be progressing smoothly.

Over time, Emeline had grown accustomed to her relationship with Zenon. Unlike before, holding hands or hugging no longer felt awkward, and they had shared countless kisses.

Zenon had become such a part of Emeline’s daily life that it now felt strange to imagine a future without him.

‘He came over last time, so he probably won’t come today.’

Having finished her day, Emeline got ready for bed and sat on the edge of her bed, occasionally glancing at the terrace.

Two nights ago, Zenon had secretly come over, and they had climbed the cathedral’s bell tower to see the starry sky and the lights spreading across the city.

With Zenon, Emeline experienced things others wouldn’t even dare imagine. Each time, the thrill and the sense of liberation she felt were indescribable.

With a faint smile, Emeline finally turned her gaze away from the terrace. It didn’t seem like Zenon would be coming today.

Instead, she looked at the book on her nightstand.

It was the book, About Joe, that Zenon had given her as a gift when she visited his house. Although she had read through it once, the content was challenging, and she hadn’t fully understood it.

Still, there must be a reason why he had read it so many times that it had become worn out.

As Emeline reached for the nightstand to pick up the book, a loud thud echoed from outside.

Sitting with her back to the terrace, Emeline glanced curiously toward the window.

‘What was that noise?’

Before she could wonder too much, she quickly dismissed it, thinking it was something for the people outside to deal with.

But before long, she heard a tapping on the window.

Emeline glanced indifferently in that direction, then widened her eyes. Forgetting about the book, she stood up abruptly.

Through the window, which she had kept closed because of the particularly strong wind tonight, someone was cheerfully waving.

‘Zenon?’

Emeline’s breath caught in surprise as she realized that the earlier commotion had been his doing.

Her face went pale in an instant.

Surely no one else had heard that, right?

Emeline stepped onto the terrace and cautiously scanned her surroundings.

After paying close attention for a while, she was relieved to find that it seemed no one had heard the noise or come to investigate.

Feeling relieved, Emeline looked at Zenon. He, perched calmly in the tree, jumped lightly onto the terrace.

“Hello, Emeline.”

Zenon greeted her, like a puppy wagging its tail.

Emeline let out a sigh and immediately dragged him inside. Just as she looked up to ask him about the noise earlier, her expression hardened.

The room was dimly lit by a small lantern.

Emeline’s gaze swept blankly over his appearance before snapping up, her intensity causing Zenon to flinch.

“What happened to you?”

His shirt sleeves were slightly torn, his hair disheveled, and dirt smudged his cheek—it looked like he’d fallen somewhere.

“I, uh, fell while climbing the tree…”

Zenon rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, as if he could already guess how he looked.

‘Fell out of the tree?’

Emeline stared at him in disbelief. “Are you hurt?”

“No. It’s not like something like that could really hurt me.”

“Was your skin made of steel from birth?”

“…No.”

Seeing Emeline’s darkened expression, Zenon quickly dropped his playful tone. He kept glancing nervously at Emeline, but the excitement in his eyes was impossible to hide.

Emeline sighed and reached up, and Zenon quickly bent down, sensing her intention.

She placed her hand on his head and began to shake the dirt out of his disheveled hair. Her fingers ruffled through his soft blonde hair, knocking a few leaves to the floor.

“I told you climbing trees was dangerous.”

“I couldn’t help it, I wanted to see you… Sorry if you didn’t like it. Should I stop?”

“Just send another paper plane like last time. Don’t do anything dangerous.”

“Alright, I will.”

Zenon smiled brightly as she fussed over him. He had a small scratch on his cheek, but it didn’t seem to bother him.

Emeline shot a glare at Zenon, who was smiling foolishly, and pushed him down onto a nearby sofa.

“Sit here for a moment.”

“Okay.”

She pulled a clean handkerchief from her vanity drawer, soaked it with water from the pitcher, and returned to Zenon.

Standing in front of him, she began wiping his face with the damp cloth, removing the dirt smeared across his cheeks.

He looked like a puppy who had just returned from a walk. Showing up looking like this…

Emeline wiped his face with a somewhat irritated touch. Zenon watched her quietly before breaking into a grin.

Detecting his mischief, Emeline shot him a questioning look, but Zenon suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in.

She had no time to resist, her knees pressing into the sofa as she was pulled down. Sitting on Zenon’s lap, Emeline looked at him, still clutching the damp handkerchief. His eyes, filled with a mixture of tender affection and longing, met hers.

The arms around her waist tightened slightly. His gentle gaze grew even more affectionate as he looked at her.

“Emeline.”

“What is it? Pulling me in like that out of nowhere…”

Unable to bear the tickling feeling in his gaze, Emeline averted her eyes slightly as she moved the handkerchief.

The proximity of their bodies made the atmosphere between them more intense.

Emeline’s hand, which had been gently wiping his face, froze when Zenon spoke again.

“Shall we get married?”

Her eyes instinctively sought his. Emeline blinked at his unexpected words.

When she didn’t respond, Zenon rested his head on her shoulder, holding her tightly as if he didn’t want to let her go.

“Don’t you want to? I like you…”

His hair tickled her neck.

After replaying his words in her head for a while, Emeline snapped out of her daze.

She set the handkerchief aside, then grabbed Zenon by the shoulders to face him. Her hands cupped his cheeks firmly.

“This isn’t your formal proposal, is it?”

Zenon, who had been tense under her serious gaze, let out a laugh, sounding almost defeated. “After you make your debut, I’ll send an official proposal. I’m not stupid enough to propose without a ring.”

After her debut, the university entrance exams would also be over.

Despite the playful tone, his smiling eyes were more serious than ever.

Soon, he spoke again, this time more carefully, “So, what’s your answer?”

Seeing Zenon’s tense expression again, Emeline’s lips curved into a soft smile.

There was only one answer Emeline could give him.

He may have started off as an annoying man, but now Zenon was the only person who supported her dreams.

It might have been his occasional warmth and honesty that stirred Emeline’s heart.

At some point, she found herself thinking about him constantly, curious about him, and enjoying every moment they spent together.

With Zenon by her side, life felt more vibrant. He had brought excitement to her dull days and helped her find beauty in them.

Zenon was so precious and dear to her, to the point that she didn’t care about any opposition from her family.

With a swelling heart, Emeline lowered her head. Their lips met briefly and parted.

“Alright.”

“Emeline…”

Hearing her cheerful answer, Zenon’s expression slowly relaxed, and a genuine smile spread across his face. He leaned in to kiss her again.

“Thank you.”

“Mm.”

“I love you.”

“…Me too.”

When Emeline answered shyly, he laughed.

Their breaths, warm and ticklish, brushed against each other. One of his hands moved up from her waist to cradle her head.

“Emeline, I love you.”

This time, he kissed her before she could respond. Emeline moved her hands from his cheeks to wrap them around his neck.

It felt as if this night, when they promised their future to each other, would last forever.

How foolish.

***

After promising to marry that night, the two focused on studying in preparation for their exams.

While studying in the library as usual, Emeline sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. Sitting in the chair for so long had left her body feeling stiff and creaky.

“Are you feeling stiff? Should we go for a walk?” Zenon, who was studying across from her, asked.

Emeline hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.”

“Good idea.”

After pushing her chair in and removing her glasses, Emeline stood up, and Zenon followed suit.

As they walked out of the library, Zenon seemed to remember something and spoke up, “You submitted your entrance exam application, right? Recently, I received a letter at my house confirming the application. It had the exam date and time, and it seems you need your guardian’s consent to take the exam.”

“A letter arrived? When exactly?” Emeline looked startled as she asked. It was unexpected. The letter would likely be delivered to her father’s hands.

Fortunately, her father had been away from home for a week, and her only brother was studying at Robelque University. This likely meant the butler who handled the mail hadn’t found anything suspicious.

Hoping that the letter had arrived while her father was away, Emeline waited for Zenon’s answer.

“It arrived two days ago. If it was delivered around the same time, your father probably hasn’t seen it yet.”

“That’s a relief…”

Emeline let out a sigh of relief. But she couldn’t fully relax.

Her original plan was to proudly present her university acceptance to her father and convince him.

He would likely be furious the moment he heard about her taking the entrance exam, but she believed that if she presented results that even the children of most noble families struggled to achieve, he would grudgingly accept it.

But at this rate, it seemed she might be caught before even taking the exam. To prevent that…

“We can just steal it.”

The thought she couldn’t even say aloud came from beside her.

Emeline turned to look at Zenon, startled, and he smiled.

“Let’s go get it, just the two of us, secretly.”