《I Am a Child of This House》 Chapter 1 - Prologue Chapter 1: Prologue ¡°My daughter?¡± a low voice asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°And what of it?¡± ¡°I want child support,¡± mother¡¯s triumphant voice echoed loud and clear. I know nothing of this world, but I knew father was a rich man of high position. I raised my head and looked around. The room was new. ¡­My toes hurt. ¡°I refuse,¡± he said coldly. ¡°Wh-what?!¡± Suddenly, I felt a tug and I opened my eyes wide. ¡°I¡¯ll buy this one instead.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need her anyway, don¡¯t you?¡± His sarcastic remark caused mother¡¯s beautiful face to distort. Biting her full, red lips, she said, ¡°Gold. Give me that as payment.¡± ¡­I wanted to cover my ears. ¡°Though I¡¯m not sure if she¡¯s truly my daughter. Eleven years old? She looks like she¡¯s eight,¡± he said bluntly. ¡°She¡¯s eleven and your descendant! You¡¯re the only one I had at the time.¡± He clicked his tongue. ¡°I¡¯m no pushover. But you¡¯d better get your hands off me, woman. And don¡¯t speak nonsense anymore. Kelson!¡± At his call, the door opened and a gentle-looking man full of brown hair came in. Father threw me at him. Fortunately, Kelson managed to catch me¡­ gently. ¡°20,000 gold,¡± father said. ¡°Yes?¡± mother asked. ¡°Is the payment. Kelson, get me a pen and paper. Let¡¯s wrap up this deal.¡± And so, I was sold for 20,000 gold. Chapter 2 - Pink Eyes Chapter 2: Pink Eyes I was a mere 23-year-old college student in my past life¡ªat least that¡¯s what I thought. But I couldn¡¯t say for sure that I¡¯d been reincarnated in this life. Though I¡¯ was sure of it. The memories of my past were gradually developing. I was three or four at the time when the first flashes of memories came to mind. People around me thought I was crazy, that I was a lunatic or that my mother dropped me. I¡¯m eleven now. I¡¯ve grown enough to ignore their remarks. But this was my current situation. My biological mother was hard to please. She¡¯d dress in fanciful clothes and meet with multiple men who continue to provide her life of extravagance. To her, I was nothing more than a nuisance. No. That¡¯s somewhat wrong. She was interested in me enough to relieve her stress from her customers. Like an abused dog, she¡¯d kick me several times. ¡°You should be thankful that you haven¡¯t died yet,¡± she¡¯d say. Only once did I try to escape with a badly injured hand, but the alley was a dark, terrible place for an abandoned child to live in. There were orphanages around, but would they accept me? When a customer came, mother would drag me inside a dark, narrow box, and lock me inside. It was there that I became a shy and quiet child. I¡¯d curl to a fetus position, listening to mother conducting business with her guests. Since then, I was afraid of the dark, afraid of the tight, narrow spaces. ¡®If I didn¡¯t have the memories of my past, I think I¡¯ll end up crazy.¡¯ I covered my legs which couldn¡¯t reach the floor of the carriage. Humans navigated the world through the things they learned. Without the memory of their previous lives, they¡¯d surely have a speech impediment, a disorder, or some sort of mental illness. Laughter¡­ clear blue skies¡­ sweet snacks¡­ beautiful sceneries¡­ loving family¡­ all of them could be found in the memories of our past lives. ¡®But I thought you¡¯d at least have a bit of affection for your dog.¡¯ However, the reasons mother fed and raised me was not out of mere obligation nor the slightest bit of affection, but to extort from my biological father. I often wondered why¡­ now I know. She wanted child support with interests. That was her goal. ¡®Child support, huh¡­¡¯ The thought of it saddened me. I had tried everything. She was still my mother. I wanted her love and affection¡­ ¡°Miss.¡± At the soft voice, I raised my head and looked at the gentleman. It was Kelson, the man father appointed to be my handler. Other than that, I don¡¯t know what would become of me. The information I have of this world was so meager. ¡°Kazan, what did your mother call you?¡± ¡°¡­¡± I looked at him blankly, lips parted. ¡°Kazan means no name, Miss. What did your mother name you?¡± Oh¡­ that word means name. Kelson spoke many words I did not understand. The language here was easy to learn, but I couldn¡¯t find any knowledge of it in my previous life. Languages were not inherited but learned. Mother once said that she¡¯d repeat a word ten thousand times to remember it. But I didn¡¯t expect much from her. However, I managed to learn a bit of the language through the lens of an adult who¡¯d gone to college. Still, it had been difficult to learn the language through my own sheer effort. The only conversations I could learn from were from my mother and her colleagues, but they spoke the language of the lower class. Hearing Kelson¡¯s noble-like words stumped me. ¡°Pink eyes,¡± I said. Kelson¡¯s face hardened. He cleared his throat and straightened his stiff back. ¡°I¡¯ll have to inform His Grace to give you a new name.¡± Chapter 3 - F*cking Nice Chapter 3: F*cking Nice ¡°Excuse me¡­¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°What¡¯s going to happen to me now?¡± ¡°First, you¡¯ll be going to His Grace¡¯s mansion. We¡¯ll be there soon. Then, His Grace will decide what to do with you.¡± ¡°All right,¡± I answered, nodding. I don¡¯t exactly know the value of 20,000 gold, but even I could guess that it was worth a lump of sum. Or¡­ was it a mere small sum for the rich and the noble? ¡®Maybe I¡¯ll become a maid.¡¯ Yes, it might¡¯ve been better to become a maid. At least I¡¯ll have the freedom to go out and have three meals a day. ¡®I¡¯m so sick and tired of oats.¡¯ The food that I was so used to eating was prickly and tasteless. It looked just like dog food. There were so many stones and shells, so I had to eat very carefully. So, while my mother was asleep, I would eat her scraps and leftovers she had with her guest. Rarely did I find any freshwater, so I drank whatever I could find. I vomited once because I drank too much alcohol. Since then, I have refrained from drinking as much as I could. ¡®The more I think about it, the more I can survive.¡¯ Feeling proud of myself, I imagined life as a duke¡¯s maid. ¡®Any situation would be better than it is now.¡¯ To work and receive fair pay seemed much better than my life now. After a while, the carriage stopped. Kelson stepped out of the carriage before helping me out. ¡°I thought about it a lot earlier, but you¡¯re a lot like a straw doll,¡± Kelson said. I felt my cheeks turn red at his remark. I knew fully well that my appearance was ugly. My mother had never done anything like combing my hair. I used to comb my own hair with a hairbrush, but my hair looked like a broom because of my lack of nutrition. It was always falling off or tangling together. If I hadn¡¯t washed up the days before I went to see the duke, I would have smelled pretty bad, too. ¡°You¡¯re very light. Children should be heavier than they look,¡± Kelson added, probably because he noticed my look of shame. I glanced at my hands. I could clearly see the joints of my fingers. ¡®I look like a stick.¡¯ ¡°Now, welcome to the house of Castiello.¡± Kelson gently grabbed me by the shoulder, and I took attention off my hands and focused it on the castle right in front of me. ¡°Wow!¡± unconsciously, I burst with exclamation. The house of Castiello was made up of pearly white stones, which matched nicely with its decorative interior. Reflected by the sun, the building shined brightly. Its high, arched ceilings with its beautiful marbled floors were endless! With a light push on my back to snap me out of my shocked state, Kelson began to walk deeper into the house. ¡°Come this way,¡± he said. I followed after him with hurried steps. I felt happy viewing the beautiful paintings and wallpaper in the hallways. While walking up the high stairs, Kelson explained the structure of the house in detail as I tried to hurriedly remember them all. ¡°This is your room,¡± Kelson said as he stopped before a door and then opened it. ¡°Here?¡± I said with doubt in my voice. As soon as I took a peek inside, I was blown away. The room was filled with shiny furniture and ornaments, a beautifully embroidered bed, and a fluffy green rug. ¡°Do you not like it?¡± ¡°No, I f*cking love it!¡± I exclaimed with a twinkle in my eyes. ¡°¡­What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s f*cking nice!¡± I said again without noticing the shock on Kelson¡¯s face. My biological mother always said ¡°nice¡± when she looked at ornaments, but whenever she saw something really pretty, she¡¯d always say, ¡°f*cking nice.¡± Kelson coughed. ¡°Miss, it¡¯s best if you try not to use that word anymore.¡± ¡°Is it a bad word?¡± I asked. ¡°It¡¯s better to use the word ¡®immensely¡¯ instead.¡± ¡®Immensely¡­ immensely.¡¯ I repeated the word in my mind several times. ¡°It¡¯s not the nicest room in the house, so don¡¯t worry too much and make yourself comfortable. I¡¯ll get someone to help you clean up,¡± Kelson said while I repeated the new word in my head. I nodded in response. ¡°Then I¡¯ll leave you alone.¡± ¡°Excuse me.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± He replied as he stopped in his tracks and turned around to face me before heading towards the door. ¡°Thank you.¡± Chapter 4 - Cinderella Chapter 4: Cinderella Kelson smiled and then left the room. All alone, I looked around my new room and moved slowly, still in shock by this beautiful room. Then, I crouched on the ground to touch the green rug. I smiled. It was really fluffy and soft. ¡°Wow¡­¡± I then touched the furniture. It was so glossy and smooth, which was the complete opposite of my dirty and rough hands. The thought of that made me slightly frown. But then, someone came in and I immediately took my hands off the furniture in shock. It was a middle-aged woman. She had both a round figure and face, but that just made her look more softer and kind. She then smiled sweetly at me. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Annie. I¡¯ll be tending to you from now on.¡± She said with a sweet voice. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Pink Eyes,¡± I sheepishly replied back. Annie slightly frowned by my name, but then quickly reverted back to her soft smile. ¡°The Duke will give you a prettier name. Shall we wash up first?¡± She then took me to the bathroom after I nodded in response. The other maids carried the hot water while Annie started to take my clothes off. After undressing me, she gave a short sigh. ¡°You should eat a lot of delicious food,¡± she said with a hint of sadness in her voice. I tried to cover myself with my hands, ashamed of my bony body. My knees which seemed like it was about to pop out looked so ugly. Even my hands and my face had become so worn out¡­ Annie helped me wash up. It felt really relaxing because it was my first time washing with hot water. After being washed two or three times, I applied perfume, which smelled very good, from head to toe. Then, I put on clothes which were light and soft. I was in awe again; I think this was the first time that I had ever worn such a pretty dress. Annie dried my long hair several times with a thick brush. Because my hair was long enough, she spread it out on the bed before carefully brushing it. ¡°Miss, I¡¯ll be cutting a bit of your hair. Your ends are too damaged.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± I replied while lightly nodding. Annie had the maid bring her scissors, and she then cut my hair down to my waist. I looked at the pool of faded gold hair on the ground, feeling lighter than ever before. ¡°Excuse me¡­¡± Noticing that I was unsure of how I should address her, she smiled. ¡°Please call me Annie.¡± I nodded. ¡°Annie, what¡¯s going to happen to me now?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know yet. But the Duke will take care of it. All you have to do now is to play well and eat well.¡± Annie said as she softly fondled my cheeks. ¡°And, you need to gain more weight,¡± she added firmly. I had no choice but to nod my head. *** I can¡¯t believe I became Cinderella overnight. Surrounded by my soft, silk bedding, I looked at the ceiling. When I was young, my mother locked me in a box. As I trembled and shut my eyes tightly, I focused my mind on somewhere else. I would pull up the pieces of my past memory and try to visualize them. Bright streetlights, cool air conditioning, clear skies, tall skyscrapers, sparkling windows, and so many more. It became a habit to think of these things every night. But more than anything, I tried to think of the things close to my past life¡¯s heart. Her sweet parents, her lovely sister, and her cute little dog. I was Seo-yeong, and at the same time, I was Pink Eyes. And now, I am Estelle. ¡°Estelle.¡± I stood myself up as I pronounced my new name. It is said to mean ¡®star,¡¯ but my father must have not known that when he chose that name for me. ¡®Maybe he thought it fitted me.¡¯ I¡¯ve never seen my father since I was sold for 20,000 gold that day. I was both relieved and anxious. If the next time I see him again, will he tell me to become a maid, or will he kick me out of the house? When I first came to this house, I didn¡¯t mind becoming a maid. But now that I have been living luxuriously, I¡¯m afraid to give it up. ¡®No, but being a maid here is better than getting kicked out into the streets.¡¯ At first, I thought the maids here would be addressed more formally. After all, Annie was better dressed than her biological mother. How did she and my father ever get along? Questions ran through my head as I jumped down from my high bed. The soft rug which touched my rough, bare feet made me smile. I then ran to the door of the veranda and struggled to open it. As soon as I opened the door, the cold early morning air poured in. ¡®It¡¯s cool.¡¯ I deeply inhaled the cold air as I stepped carefully on the veranda. I could feel the cold touch of the stone floor. I then raised my head on the railing and looked down at the garden full of dawn fog. The garden was so wide that one could take a walk in a carriage or by horse. ¡®I wish I could sit on the railing. I probably can¡¯t do it now, but I could try later when I find the right footrest.¡¯ I then leaned against the railing and watched the fog slip away. It was quite peaceful. In a moment, however, the mansion was then filled with movement. Annie¡¯s voice then came from behind me. ¡°Oh, my goodness, miss! What are you doing there?!¡± Annie exclaimed with fear in her voice. ¡°I was watching the sunrise.¡± ¡°If you breathe cold air on the veranda in just your pajamas, you will catch a cold!¡± Annie said as she then quickly brought me back into the room and wrapped me around with a blanket. She then brushed my hair and changed my clothes as I dined on fresh, warm milk and cookies. I noticed that my stomach seemed to double in size during my stay here. After all, they have offered me so much delicious food. I like the cookies and cakes that they serve, but my absolute favorite thing was fruit. A bite of a big peach would make all my worries of the world disappear. After having breakfast, it was free time. Annie said to me that I can run around in the garden or do whatever I want, so I explored the mansion with a big rabbit doll that Annie gave me. The amount of rooms in this mansion seemed endless, and each room were full of colorful things. Some rooms were filled with only chicken-related decorations. It was a funny room that had chicken tapestry, chicken-palm prints on the wall, and a carved chicken statue. Some rooms were full of floral prints, and some rooms had luxurious ornaments stacked like mountains. Though I explored much of the mansion, there were still rooms that I have yet to discover. And so, today was the day to attack the south side of the mansion. I entered a new section past the usual corridor. While I was traveling from room to room, the servants pretended to not notice. Is there a reason as to why they act like I¡¯m invisible? What do they think of me? It made me really curious. Click! I opened the big door carefully. ¡°Wow.¡± It was bigger than all the other rooms I explored. I would usually search every nook and cranny of the room, but as soon as I entered the bedroom, I jumped. ¡®The Duke?!?¡¯ My heart fluttered as I immediately froze. It didn¡¯t occur to me that maybe I should have ran away at that moment. Realizing that I had not been spotted for a while, I started to crawl towards the bed. I then climbed on it. ¡®He¡¯s not the Duke. Who is he?¡¯ Chapter 5 - Red Eyes Chapter 5: Red Eyes His black, silk-like hair was disheveled and his cheeks were red. When I saw him breathing shallowly with considerable pain, I placed my hand on his forehead in worry. ¡®It¡¯s hot!¡¯ I quickly folded my hands and looked around. I wondered if I should ask one of the servants for help, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯m in a position to make a fuss with them. ¡®But he¡¯s sick.¡¯ Is he 14? 15? ¡®When you have a fever¡­ you need a cold towel!¡¯ I hurried out of the corridor and came back with a cloth and a bowl of water. Although I was running around like a chipmunk, the servants didn¡¯t seem to mind. ¡®It¡¯s such a luxurious cloth for a towel¡­ anyways, excuse me!¡¯ I gently placed the towel on his forehead and continued to change the cloth. Even if it would work or not, I stayed by his side until lunchtime. I then walked to my room for lunch. ¡°Did you have fun?¡± Annie said as I entered the room. ¡°Yes,¡± I replied. ¡°Come here then.¡± Annie put me in the table chair. She had been teaching table manners during every meal. Several times have I been asked to point out the order of tableware use and how to handle it. If I was just Pink Eyes, it would have been very difficult to master, but fortunately, Seo-yeong, who¡¯s a part of me, was there to help me out. ¡°You¡¯re good!¡± Annie exclaimed. Smiling at Annie¡¯s praise, I quickly ate up the pancakes with my fork. I then asked a question while eating syrupy pancakes and salty sausages with lots of boiled peaches. ¡°Do you have any medicine you take for when you have a fever?¡± ¡°Are you feeling bad?¡± Annie asked with a worried look. She then quickly touched my forehead, but I shook my head. ¡°No, I¡¯m just curious.¡± At those words, Annie stood up as she stared at me. She then took a medicine bottle out of the drawer. ¡°It¡¯s a fever reducer. You can either dissolve it in water, or you can just swallow it. It¡¯s for kids. However, if you are a girl, you must take a half a pill. But if you¡¯re a boy, you can take one whole pill.¡± ¡°I see.¡± As I nodded while looking at the brown pill, Annie placed the medicine bottle back in the drawer, but not at its original position. She placed it on a lower shelf this time. When Annie left after lunchtime ended, I groaned as I reached my hand all the way out to reach the medicine bottle in the drawer. Unlike before, I was able to reach it, using my fingertips to draw it closer to my hands. I took the lid off and placed a pill onto the palm of my hand. I then placed the lid back on, shook the medicine bottle a few times, and then placed it back on the drawer. Fearing that the pills would dissolve onto my palm, I quickly put them inside my pocket and headed back to the black-haired boy¡¯s room. There was still no one present in the room, but only the boy laying down on the bed. I soaked the cloth in the water again, placed it on his forehead, and then took out the poll. ¡®How am I supposed to feed this to him?¡¯ ¡®It would be easy to dissolve it into water, right? But what if it goes down the wrong hole? Then what would we do?¡¯ After thinking about it for a while, I decided to just mix the pill with a small amount of water and then give it to him slowly. So, I went out and came back again with a cup of water that has already been mixed with the pill. ¡®It looks like it¡¯s going to be very bitter.¡¯ Looking at the subtle brown water, I went up to the bed with a smile and carefully spilled it into the boy¡¯s mouth. Thinking that I was pouring it slowly and carefully, the boy coughed violently and opened his eyes. ¡°Huh?¡± I was startled and so I quickly jumped off the bed and laid flat. He coughed and gasped for a long time before he calmed down again. ¡®His eyes are red.¡¯ Ruby red, to be exact, and they were beautiful and unforgettable. The Duke has exactly the same eyes. ¡®Are they related?¡¯ I stood up from the carpet as I continued to contemplate. I then carefully picked up the cloth that had fallen beside the pillow, put it inside the bowl of cold water, and placed it back on his forehead. I was super nervous that he would get up like before, but fortunately, he didn¡¯t. ¡®Is there a sleeping effect in the pill?¡¯ Before I went to eat dinner, his breathing had become more relaxed. I lightly laughed in content before returning to my room. After dinner, I had milk and cookies and went off to bed, but then I woke up in the middle of the night. As I lightly jumped off of the bed, I sneakily walked to my door and cautiously opened it. I walked out of the corridor and headed back to the boy¡¯s room. ¡°Why am I so concerned?¡± I quietly said to myself. I tilted my head as I ran silently through the dark corridor. Why does he bother me so much? ¡®Maybe it¡¯s because I finally feel useful.¡¯ After coming to that conclusion, I carefully opened the door. Everyone here is either insensitive or friendly to me, but it must be because of the Duke¡¯s orders. Their treatment towards me could completely change the next day, and there would be nothing that I could do about it. ¡®But this is different because I¡¯m voluntarily helping someone.¡¯ As I approached the bed quietly, I noticed that the bowl and cloth were put aside. ¡®Did anyone enter the room?¡¯ As I wondered, I reached out my hand and placed it on his forehead, but my wrist was immediately grabbed in a flash. ¡°I said to not let anyone i-¡± His roar was put to a halt. Tears started to swell up in my eyes as I felt pain coming from my wrist. ¡°Ouch, it hurts!¡± ¡°A child?¡± The boy questioned. He slowly loosed his grip, but he still did not let go of it. ¡°Who are you? Why did you disobey my orders?¡± ¡°I-I, uh¡­¡± I didn¡¯t know if I should reveal my identity or not, but my hesitation made him strengthen his grasp. ¡°Ouch!¡± Chapter 6 - Crazy Bastard Chapter 6: Crazy Bastard ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°E-Estelle.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± A bit annoyed by his remark, I replied, ¡°Someone who doesn¡¯t have to follow your orders.¡± ¡°No one in this mansion can disobey my orders.¡± He said as he furrowed his brows. ¡°I¡­ I can¡­ I¡¯m not an employee.¡± He then let go of my wrists as I then gently rubbed them. His red eyes shone in the dark. ¡°Not an employee¡­¡± He muttered as he deeply contemplated, but I took this chance to quickly run away from him. I shuddered as I ran through the dark corridor in fear that he would chase or yell after me, but there was only silence. Breathing heavily, I reached my room as I then quickly jumped into my bed. At any moment, the mansion would come alive so that he may soon find me. However, the only thing that could be heard was my breath inside the blanket. There was no commotion outside whatsoever. ¡®Is he alright¡­?¡¯ Deathly nervous, it was a while till I had finally fallen asleep underneath my soft blanket. The next day, Annie¡¯s tender hands and soft voice woke me up. ¡°Lady,¡± Annie said as she was changing my clothes. ¡°Yes?¡± I replied back. ¡°You have a brother that lives in the mansion.¡± My heart stopped at those words. ¡®I have a brother?¡¯ ¡°You have only one brother. However, the Duke hasn¡¯t officially introduced you two yet, so you might want to keep your distance for a while.¡± Annie added. ¡°My brother?¡± I asked again to which Annie nodded as she buttoned the back of my dress. ¡°So, the Duke has a wife?¡± Annie froze and was quiet for a short while. ¡°No, she passed away when you were younger.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± I quietly said. So, the boy that I saw last night was not only a relative but the duke¡¯s son. Suddenly, I felt as if my strength started to slip out of my body. ¡®What do I do now? Should I go and apologize? But it is true that I¡¯m not an employee¡­¡¯ No, I might actually become an employee. If the Duke tells me to become a maid, then I would be an employee from then on. Then, the master¡¯s bullying would start from now on. Fear settled in my heart. ¡®Let¡¯s go and apologize.¡¯ After I made up my mind, I hugged tightly onto my rabbit doll. After spending some time in the garden in a daze, I felt like I should bring a present with me when I go apologize. It might make him feel better, too. But what kind of gift would be good? I thought about it for a while, but I didn¡¯t have anything to give as a present. ¡®Let¡¯s just pick some flowers out.¡¯ Thinking that the garden has plenty of flowers, I started to pick out flowers and place them inside my apron. I was only going to pick one or two flowers, but after I finished collecting them, I realized that there were quite a few, so I hid my apron and put them in another room. As soon as evening approached and everyone was asleep, I sneaked out of my room barefooted. I crept to his room with my apron that I had left in another room earlier. ¡®It¡¯s nighttime. Would he be sleeping already?¡¯ His room was dark, and so I hesitated before entering. I was going to hold my breath as I placed the flowers in a vase, but he got out of his bed. ¡°Wha-¡± I jumped in surprise as he grabbed me yet again and covered my mouth. He coldly looked at me as my eyes widened from the shock. ¡°Are you going to yell and wake everybody up?¡± He said with a cold expression. I quickly shook my head from side to side as he then took his hand off my mouth. Because I was so startled, I dropped my apron and all the flowers fell on the floor. He didn¡¯t let go of my hand, so I couldn¡¯t run away as I did then. ¡°I asked around about you, but no one answered. Who the h*ll are you?¡± ¡°Estelle¡­¡± I sheepishly replied. ¡°Why are you here?¡± I didn¡¯t know what to say, so I started to mumble quietly. ¡°The Duke bought me.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The Duke¡­ bought me¡­¡± I said a bit louder than previously. A low curse left his mouth. ¡°Crazy bastard.¡± ¡®Huh? I think I must be hearing wrong.¡¯ I thought to myself. ¡°Then why is a whore wandering into my room?¡± His words burned my cheeks. A whore. He¡¯s not wrong. After all, a whore¡¯s daughter is a whore. ¡°I was just walking around the mansion. I found your room by accident, and you looked sic- Ah!¡± When I was going to pick up the flowers from the ground, I realized that he was still gripping on my wrist. ¡°Please let go¡­¡± I said. He gently let go of my hand. I then gathered the flowers and placed them on the table. He frowned at the flowers. ¡°I wanted to apologize. I¡¯m sorry that I came into your room without permission.¡± From the darkness came the sound of his sigh. Suddenly, there was some sort of clicking sound and then the candle was lit. When he saw me under the light, his eyes immediately widened. His hands brushed around my eyes as I shuddered. ¡°You-¡±