Chapter 47

Why is Rufus here?

Seeing my confusion, he gave a small smile, stood up from the sofa, and came over to me.

When he finally reached in front of me, he called my name, "Saidi," in an incredibly gentle voice. My heart skipped a beat just from that.

"Um, why are you here?"

"Your friends called me. They said you probably can't attend the party, but they wanted me to celebrate for Saidi."

"Eliza and Norman..."

"Yeah."

Perhaps my true feelings—that I wanted him to celebrate for me—had been exposed. Recalling their words from earlier, I felt both embarrassed and happy, and I wanted to cry.

"Saidi, happy birthday."

Rufus said this and handed me a large bouquet of flowers. They were all my favorites, and my vision blurred even more.

I never thought he would celebrate for me.

"Ah, thank you, Rufus. I'm really happy."

"Is that so?"

"Really, really happy."

"…I'm glad."

I felt it was the best gift, and I was truly grateful to both of them and to Rufus. I gently placed the precious bouquet on a nearby table and turned back to him.

"Um, would you like to sit and talk?"

"Yeah. But I only have about 15 minutes."

"Even so, thank you for coming."

"No, it's enough just to see you."

Hearing those words, my heart began to race. Today, Rufus seemed somehow sweeter than usual.

We sat side by side on the sofa, and I apologized for not having time to prepare tea, but I was so elated that I kept repeating how happy I was.

Rufus smiled softly and kept listening to me.

"Do you want anything?"

"No, I'm already satisfied. I got what I wanted the most."

"…What you wanted the most?"

"Yeah. Being celebrated by Rufus is what I wanted the most."

I blurted out my thoughts and quickly clamped my mouth shut. I was afraid it might sound too heavy. Feeling embarrassed, I was about to ask him to forget what I just said when—

He suddenly pulled me by the arm, and before I knew it, I was in Rufus's embrace. Surrounded by his soft, gentle scent and warm body, I forgot to breathe and froze.

He held me tightly, and though I didn't understand why he was doing this, I felt so happy that I wanted to cry.

Eventually, he relaxed his grip and suddenly pulled away, covering his face with both hands.

"Sorry, I suddenly... I don't know what I was doing..."

"No, it's okay."

He looked extremely flustered, his ears red. My face must have been just as red and hot.

In that moment, he looked up and hurriedly said to me,

"I don't do this with just anyone."

"O-Oh, I see."

He must have been thinking about the incident with the alcohol the other day.

After a while, an indescribable silence fell between us, but it ended when Rufus murmured, "It's about time."

"Yeah. I'll see you to the door."

"Sorry."

As I tried to stand up from the sofa, Rufus gently offered his hand. Taking his large, warm hand made my heart race again.

As we walked down the corridor, our hands remained linked. The servants we passed all gave us kind looks, which made me feel both embarrassed and uneasy.

We quickly reached the front door, and our hands quietly separated.

"Once again, happy birthday."

"Thank you so much today. Please be careful on your way back."

"Yeah. Enjoy yourself."

Rufus smiled, of course, with no idea that I would be drinking poison later that day.

I wanted to see Rufus again after everything was over. As I watched his carriage drive away from the window, I thought this.

◇◇◇

Returning to the house and heading to the hall, I saw Eliza and Norman and ran over to hug them tightly.

"Welcome back, Saidi."

"Thank you both so much...! I was really happy."

"We're glad you enjoyed it."

I thanked them repeatedly, and they were genuinely happy for me, making me feel truly blessed.

"Still, you look absolutely stunning in that dress. You look like a fairy."

"Thank you. Did Father prepare it for me?"

"Uh? It was Mr. Rufus. Didn't you know?"

"...No way."

Earlier, he had only complimented me on how well it suited me, but he hadn't mentioned anything about this. I fell in love with this dress even more.

Thinking about thanking him for the dress the next time we met, I was informed by a maid that Gerald and Neil had arrived.

They were also invited to the party, but they had gathered beforehand for a final check.

"Saidi, happy birthday. You look beautiful."

"Thank you."

"You look like a princess."

Gerald and Neil also gave me beautiful bouquets and said they would prepare gifts later. Even though I told them it was enough, Neil was laughing, saying he would prepare something amazing.

After the final check, as we were about to head to the venue, I suddenly remembered that I had left the necklace Rufus gave me on the table in my room. I had taken it off because it didn't match today's dress.

It probably wouldn't go missing, but I was still worried. I decided to put it in a box before heading to the venue.

"I'll be right back, just going to my room for a moment."

"I'll go with you."

Gerald said, "We don't want you to trip and get hurt or dirty your dress." I felt a bit awkward refusing, so I asked him to come along.

As we walked down the corridor, chatting about trivial things, Gerald seemed completely normal, which put me at ease. I carefully put the necklace in a box and returned to where Gerald was waiting at the entrance.

I thanked him, and he called my name, "Saidi."

"Did you just see Rufus Langridge?"

"Y-Yeah. He came to celebrate for a bit, but how did you know?"

"I could smell him on you."

My heart skipped a beat. Had his perfume scent transferred when he hugged me? The atmosphere became awkward, and I couldn't bear it, so I apologized.

Gerald smiled softly at me.

"No, I'm glad, too."

"Huh?"

"You no longer hesitate."

What was he talking about? Gerald had the same smile as always, and I couldn't tell what he was thinking.

"Let's go back. It's about time."

I took his outstretched hand and started walking. His hand was extremely cold, and I felt goosebumps.

The preparation for the yandere is complete.