“How was yesterday?”
The moment I stepped into the director’s office, those were the first words out of his mouth. A teasing grin spread across his sweet, handsome face.
“It was fun.”
I replied curtly, and he responded with, “Good to hear.” His gaze seemed to pry for more, but I ignored it and placed the stack of reports I’d gathered from the researchers on his desk.
“Here are the reports from the researchers.”
“Thanks.”
I turned to leave quickly, and as expected, he called out to me.
“Where’d you go?”
“What do you mean?”
“You know, yesterday.”
What’s with the “you know”? Turning back to face him, I saw that same teasing grin plastered on his face. It’s not like there’s anything worth prying into that’d trouble me, but being toyed with like this is kind of annoying. So, I slapped on a grin of my own to fight back.
“Are you my dad or something, Director?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Well, asking about every little detail of where I went on my day off feels like something a father worried about his teenage daughter would do.”
“Hey now, I don’t have a daughter.”
He must’ve caught that I was teasing him back, because his grin shifted to a wry smile.
“I went to town. That’s it.”
“Oh?”
“Oh, and I heard you were quite the troublemaker back in the day, huh?”
“Wait a sec. What’d you hear?”
“Who knows?”
All I’d heard was about him eating at stalls, but I phrased it vaguely to leave room for interpretation. Seeing his strained smile as he pressed for details, it seems he’s got a few other guilty secrets. The irritation from being teased earlier melted away.
“I went to the market, ate at a stall, wandered around some shops along the street, and came back before it got dark.”
“I see. That’s pretty wholesome.”
Wholesome? I just went to town like normal, so I don’t see what’s wholesome or not about it. But as I thought that, the director dropped a bombshell.
“Either way, I’m glad you enjoyed your date.”
…
Date? Stunned by the bombshell, I froze, and he gave me a puzzled look.
“What’s wrong?”
“…A date?”
“Hm?”
“I just went to town.”
“You went to town with Al, ate together, and checked out shops, right?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s a date.”
Still reeling, I stared at him blankly, and he hit me with the follow-up.
“When a man and woman go out together, that’s what you call a date, isn’t it?”
Hold on a second. A date? Wait, wait… Is that really the definition? Thinking back, I don’t have any memory of going out alone with a guy on a day off, except maybe my dad. The closest might be running errands for the school festival with a few classmates. Huh? What? Was yesterday my first date? Realizing that, my face suddenly heated up.
“No, but… I just had Lord Hawk come along with me to town, that’s all!”
“Come along? Al invited you, and you two went out together, right?”
“Yes, but! He probably just invited me because he had free time too!”
“Free time or not, a guy doesn’t invite a woman he doesn’t like.”
“Wha—!?”
“Is that really so surprising?”
“But, like… like…”
My words tapered off, and my gaze dropped. I mean, come on. There’s no way the captain would like a “loser girl” like me. Sure, I don’t think he hates me, but… Staring at my feet, my thoughts spiraled until I heard the director’s quiet voice say, “Sei.”
“Did Al treat you coldly?”
“No… He escorted me properly when I got off the carriage and stuff. But isn’t that just normal for nobles here?”
“Well, yeah, it is.”
“Right. He held my hand while we walked, treated me to food…”
“Hmm?”
“And he even bought me a souvenir on the way back.”
“A souvenir?”
“Yeah.”
I pulled the box from my skirt pocket and handed it to him. Inside was the hairpin I got yesterday. When I looked at it again this morning, I noticed the stones weren’t the same as the ones in the shop, they were a lighter blue-gray, matching the captain’s eye color. That made me hesitate to return it. The one in the shop was pricey but within reach if I stretched my budget, yet I wasn’t sure if it was okay to accept something this expensive. I’d been waffling between returning it or keeping it and ended up stuffing it in my pocket. The director took it, opened the box, and examined it closely. He looked surprised for a moment but quickly hid it, closed the lid, and handed it back.
“Sei, escorting a woman off a carriage or while walking is common among nobles.”
“Right.”
“But at the very least, Al wouldn’t give an accessory as just a casual souvenir.”
Gone was his teasing grin, he spoke with a serious face. From that, I realized the captain hadn’t given me the hairpin lightly. Staring at the box in my hands, that fact made my face heat up again faintly.
“Is it really okay to accept something this expensive?”
“If you don’t mind, do him a favor and keep it.”
I mumbled that softly, and he gave me a quiet smile in return. I didn’t say anything, just nodded.
“Good day, Sei.”
The next day, I went to the library to return some borrowed books and ran into Liz at the door. She’d just arrived too, it seemed. Bumping into her in the corridor like this was rare. We don’t plan to meet up, I come here for work whenever it fits so my timing’s all over the place. Sometimes I don’t even see her when I visit.
“Oh? You changed your hairstyle today.”
“Yeah. It’s hot, so I decided to put it up.”
“I see. That’s a lovely hairpin.”
“Oh, thanks.”
The door creaked as I opened it, letting Liz go in first. She headed straight for her target books. I handed mine to the librarian and started looking for new ones to borrow. True to form, Liz immediately noticed my new hairstyle and the hairpin. Her fashion sense is top-notch. It was the one the captain gave me, and I felt a bit shy, stumbling over my thanks.
“Hey, Sei. That hairpin’s really nice. Mind if I take a closer look?”
“Sure, that’s fine…”
She called out to me from behind as I stood by the herb-related bookshelf. Turning around, I saw her flashing a radiant smile. I didn’t mind showing it, but taking it off would be a hassle, so I asked if it was okay as-is. She said it was fine. Standing around felt awkward, so we moved to a table. I sat down, and she circled behind me. She didn’t touch it but leaned in close to inspect it.
“The craftsmanship is excellent.”
“Thanks.”
“And the stones are high-quality too.”
“Really?”
“Yes… So, who gave this to you as a gift?”
“Huh? Why do you ask?”
“Well, it looks too fancy for everyday use, so I thought maybe someone gave it to you. Was I wrong?”
“No, you’re right.”
“Was it Lord Hawk, perhaps?”
“H-How did you know!?”
“How? I don’t think there’s anything more obvious.”
She nailed that it was from the captain, and when I turned around in shock, she had a dumbfounded look on her face. Huh? What’s that about? Obvious how? When I asked, she sighed and raised a slender, elegant index finger in front of me.
“First, there’s been a rumor lately that that Lord Hawk is often seen with the same woman.”
“Ugh…”
“And I’m pretty sure that woman is you, of course.”
Seriously? I’ve never heard that rumor! Also, what’s with the “that”? She gently raised her middle finger next.
“Second, the stones in that hairpin are the exact same color as Lord Hawk’s eyes.”
“You really pay attention…”
“Of course, the stones add a perfect accent to the hairpin.”
“No, I mean to Lord Hawk’s eye color.”
“Lord Hawk’s eye color is famously unique to the frontier count family.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Those are the two reasons that came to mind.”
“Still, just because the stones match his eye color, you connected it to him that fast?”
“Yes, indeed. It’s well-known that Lord Hawk has a thing for you.”
“It’s well-known!?”
“And in this country, it’s common to give a woman you like something in your own color.”
“Your own color?”
“Like your hair or eye color. Eye color is the most popular choice, though.”
“I didn’t know that.”
I had no idea. So that means the captain… No, no, wait, hold on. I can’t think about this anymore! What do I do? Was it really okay to keep this? Director, you totally knew about this, didn’t you? Why didn’t you tell me!? Hugging my head while seated, I heard Liz’s soft giggles.
“Sei, you’re turning so red!”
“I-I’m not used to this kind of thing!”
“Oh, is that so?”
Ugh, here I am, nearly a decade older, having a romance talk with Liz. Lifting my head, I met her warm gaze, feeling utterly mortified. Ugh, so embarrassing!