119 – Aquaman – 2
In the end, I didn’t say a word to Hestia until class was over and I kept my mouth shut. As time went on, he trembled his legs countless times in nervousness and tore his fingernails, but in the end, he couldn’t say anything. However, it cannot be passed on like this. It was only with the end of school in front of my eyes that I could barely open my lips, which were so tight that I couldn’t even think of leaving them.
“Hestia, over there….”
“Mikhail, shall we spend today together after a long time?”
“Huh? Uh, I was going to talk about that anyway.”
As if Hestia had been waiting for me to open her mouth, she struck her head before I could finish my words. Taking a quick look at her, she seemed completely calm, as if nothing had happened. Seeing her like that, I wondered if I was just afraid of myself and couldn’t be restless, but for no reason I stabbed her in the chest.
What did I say to her who was trembling with anxiety at the sudden change in her? It was only at the beginning of the last semester that she declared that she would do well in the future, so it was only half a year ago. It hasn’t been that long since he said that, so what kind of ugliness is this? It was said that if the princess, who hadn’t seen us for several days, pointed out something like that, it would be obvious even to Hestia. Leaning on her broad heart, her heart was heavy.
Contrary to my inner thoughts, Hestia was even singing her hum as if she was quite excited about her long-awaited date. Rather, I was afraid of the milder appearance than usual. Isn’t there sometimes a kind of people who are rather quiet when they are really angry. I carefully watched her eyes.
“… Aren’t you mad?”
“Yes? Why am I angry?”
“It’s okay if you’re not angry. Then where shall we go?”
It’s okay, but there’s no need to scratch it to make a boil. Thinking of what could be called a little complacency in a way, I passed the topic of conversation to another place. Not even seeing Hestia flash her eyes.
–
30 Minutes before her pre-arranged time, I finished all her preparations at the speed of lighting her cigarette with her lightning, I went to her meeting place first and was waiting for her. Her today was her intention to treat her with the utmost respect, to the best of her ability. It’s better than not doing it, even if it’s a little trickier to do it all of a sudden. She had put enough butter on her tongue, and had thought of a store Hestia might like. She pretends she’s self-satisfied, even though she’s not really the only one, she’s mad.
Coming out early was part of that effort. Even if I usually come out 10 minutes earlier, Hestia often comes out first, but she comes out 30 minutes earlier, so I’m faster. Looking back, I think Hestia waited for me most of the time. Five minutes later, Hestia appeared. If she showed up 10 minutes earlier as usual today, I would have made her wait.
Wearing a sky blue dress, unlike usual, the hair below her ears was left slightly, and the hair above her ears and the top of her hair were tied back. Overall, it was a style that seemed to emphasize the innocent impression to the fullest. But instead of admiration, I was worried. Still, it’s September now, so it’s getting chilly in the evenings. Wouldn’t it be a bit cold? If it’s cold later, I’ll have to take off my coat.
Hestia opened her eyes wide as if a little surprised to find me.
“Oh, you came first.”
“Are you surprised? Sometimes I want to try waiting.”
“If I had known it would be like this, it would have come out a little sooner.”
“It’s okay. Waiting time is also part of dating.”
Woo-wook. Said. I clenched my fists as tightly as possible so as not to show off. His short-cropped fingernails dug into his palms. I’m not used to such cheesy comments. However, Hestia seemed to really like my answer and laughed. She tapped my arm
“You like lip service today?”
“It’s too early to be surprised.”
“Can I look forward to it?”
“You can look forward to it.”
Her hands and feet shriveled a little, but I’m glad she seems to like it more than I thought. To be honest, I was worried that such a corny comment would work, but maybe it’s because there is no special media in the world. It seems to work better than expected. Maybe it’s just that Hestia’s tastes are unusual. I stared at Hestia humming next to me. She felt my gaze, she met my eyes.
“Why are you staring at me like that?”
“No, because you look prettier today.”
“Really, why are you like this today, in a manly way. And I was dressed the same as usual?”
“Normally, I didn’t bother to say it. I just wanted to compliment you today. And if you’re going to say something manly, lower the corner of your mouth up, Miss Hestia.”
“Yes. Because I can’t say a word.”
At her point, Hestia put her hand on her cheek, covering the corner of her mouth that was constantly twitching. But how could that cover up the excitement? Rather, it looked like she was doing some kind of aegyo, which made her look even more cute.
I was looking for something else to compliment, but I noticed a slightly different head than usual.
“Did you do the hair yourself?”
“How is it? Haven’t your skills improved quite a bit?”
“Yes. Goes well.”
“I think Mikhail likes this hair.”
To be honest, I didn’t think it was that difficult because it just felt like I left a little bit of my hair at the bottom of the ponytail, but I didn’t point that out. Isn’t it remarkable growth compared to when I learned from Seria one by one at the beginning of the semester? Besides, it was true that I like that so-called half-haired style. Above all, Hestia’s elated appearance is more precious than I thought.
-Growl
A cute sound came from Hestia’s stomach, which had been messing around with her hair for a while. It wasn’t very loud, but it was loud enough to be heard from this distance. Her face turned red.
“I am hungry. What do you want to eat?”
“Did you hear?”
“What?”
“You heard that!”
“What are you talking about?”
I desperately held back my laughter and tried my best to pretend I didn’t know. If it was usual, I would have teased him a little, but today I decided to serve him with utmost sincerity, so I’ll have to refrain from jokes. As I continued to pretend I hadn’t heard, she said in a crawling voice.
“… It’s nothing. Anything is fine.”
“You know that is the hardest thing.”
She wasn’t particularly picky about food, but she couldn’t really eat anything just because she said anything.
Of course, today’s me had no such worries because I had seen a few good shops in advance. Hestia’s tastes weren’t that picky. Rather, it was easy. It’s not too spicy, it’s moderately sweet, and I like meat. If it is universal, it is universal, and if it is children’s taste, it is children’s taste. Thanks to that, choosing the menu wasn’t that difficult.
I grabbed her hand.
“Let’s go. I saw one in a good place.”
“Are you really Mikhail?”
“What does that mean?”
“If you are the Mikhail I know, you should be thinking about it here for at least five minutes.”
“First of all, I understand how you usually look at me.”
She squinted her eyes and gave me a suspicious look. Was I such an indecisive image? I just got embarrassed.
The restaurant was not too far away. I couldn’t even make a reservation because it was the place I finally found after digging through a letter from her mother half a year ago in the room, but fortunately there were quite a few seats left.
The interior is quite neat and luxurious, the employees are friendly, and the atmosphere is good. Besides, it wasn’t overly crowded for such a thing. The downside is that the price is a bit burdensome, but to be honest, I have never worried about money while living at Hestia or Academy. In the first place, both of them aren’t the type to enjoy extravagance on a daily basis, and the unit of allowance given at home is terrifying. In fact, it would not be an exaggeration to say that it was the perfect restaurant for us. After all, the store recommended by the Grand Duchess. Hestia also asked me if I liked the first impression of the store.
“Where else did you find a place like this?”
“My mother picked out some nice shops near the academy and sent them to me in a letter.”
“My mother….”
“The lamb here is good. It was a long time ago, so I’m not sure.”
When my mother went to the academy, she was already a story of nearly 20 years ago. The store may have changed a bit. In fact, some of the shops listed in the letter have disappeared. But Hestia’s eyes twinkled, saying that she must eat lamb. Personally, I’m not a big fan of lamb. The beef just tasted better.
After a while, a waitress came and took my order. As she said before, I ordered lamb ribs, and I just ordered plain steak. Compared to before reincarnation, one of the things that has improved overwhelmingly is my diet. ‘Ordinary’ steak is something I never dreamed of when I was a poor student.
As the waiter left and waited for her food, Hestia opened her mouth. I almost spit out the water I was drinking.
“Why are you doing so well today?”
“Cool! Uh, what? I usually….”
Hestia, who said that, seemed unconcerned as if she were talking about today’s class, how about lunch. Before I had time to make an excuse, the follow-up hit came in.
“Shall we guess? What the princess said in the morning, she cares.”
I didn’t even think of making excuses anymore. I gasped as if my petty thoughts had been exposed. It’s like she’s been stripped naked.
“It’s okay, even if you don’t answer. I always say Mikhail always says what she thinks shows on her face.”
“… Are you disappointed?”
If you’ve come this far, it’s funny to try and deny it. I asked with a feeling of half-desperation. It was a de facto recognition. To be honest, I thought I would understand if she splashed me with water and woke up.
But Hestia said, “What the hell are you talking about?” She coolly dismissed my concerns.
“No? Why am I disappointed?”
“Huh?”
“Why is it Michael’s fault that Miss Cordelia and Miss Lily like him? Did she even shake?”
“No?! I never have.”
I strongly denied it. I swear, my heart toward Hestia has never wavered. I’m really proud of this. The fact that she is the most precious person to me hasn’t changed, and she won’t.
“Apart from their romantic feelings, I, Mikhail, Miss Lily, and Miss Cordelia are all friends. And Mikhail will never be shaken in the future. Then there’s nothing to worry about, right?”
Hestia, who said that, was filled with certainty to the point of being frightening. It was something close to fanaticism. Hestia quickly returned to her original self with a smile, but for a moment she seemed to have caught a glimpse of her black feelings through her eyes, so her heart was a little worried.
“Or did it sting me to be nice to you because you’re going to get scolded?”
Hestia smiled mischievously. She had no rebuttal to this story. Because I hit the right spot. I couldn’t deny it and closed her mouth, and she slightly stretched her.
“Ah, today was really good. They compliment me a lot, and I find a shop with such a good atmosphere without hesitation.”
“Ugh….”
“But there is. As for Mikhail, who I like, he’s not that good at anything. I’m shy and it takes a lot of energy to say only words, I like it, I’m pretty, I know how to say compliments like these kids, I’m really bad at lying, so it’s clumsy to pretend I don’t know what my stomach is growling, and I always spend 10 minutes wondering what to eat. Because he is an indecisive person who worries and is worth caring for.”
All of the things you pretended not to know earlier have been revealed. She spoke at once like her rapid-fire gun, then paused for a moment and winked at me.
“Sometimes this isn’t a bad thing, but no matter how much I think about it, I like Mikhail better. What I like is Mikhail as it is. Not Mikhail, who tries to forcefully pretend to be a nice guy.”
I’m at a loss for words again. This time, it wasn’t because I didn’t have anything to say, but because I was very moved. It’s a little embarrassing to be honest, but if I didn’t force myself to hold it in, I felt like tears would leak out.
“Are you impressed?”
I didn’t want to show that my voice was locked, so I just nodded quietly. She chuckled.
“If you know, you’re good at it. Don’t try to make up for it later like this every day.”
Hestia, who said that, was shining dazzlingly. Also, I guess I was wrong. Fanaticism? Black feelings? Guess I was crazy for a while, what.