<Chapter 71>
#8. A Frightening Encounter (3)
Calix frowned worriedly, recalling how Melty had slumped on the sofa as soon as he entered the room.
“I told you it’s fine to just rest if you’re tired. We’re only going to assess the situation, so it won’t take that long anyway.”
“I’m here to work as your assistant.”
With his hands on his waist, Melty raised his chin proudly. Calix couldn’t dislike Melty’s insistence on fulfilling his role. Calix gently caressed Melty’s innocent cheek and asked in a sweet voice.
“Then would you like to come have dinner together?”
“…That’s a bit… Isn’t that mealtime for you and your family?”
“It is, but it doesn’t really have any special meaning anyway.”
Calix shrugged lightly and waited for Melty’s answer. Fidgeting with their joined hands while cautiously glancing at Calix, Melty smiled softly with crescent eyes.
“Still… I’ll just eat here. I’m a little… scared.”
Remembering Braiante’s piercing gaze, Melty shuddered. While staying here, he’d have many chances to face him, and perhaps one day he might become comfortable with it, but he didn’t want to confront that sharp gaze just yet.
Calix easily recognized that Melty’s quiet final words were sincere. From the beginning, Calix had no intention of suggesting anything that would make Melty uncomfortable.
‘If it weren’t for that inconsiderate knocking, we could have spent a more pleasant time together.’
The moment he recalled the situation, irritation surged through him. Though quite clumsy, this was the first time Melty had initiated a kiss. Calix could have used the excuse of teaching him properly to roll around a bit more, so disappointment disguised as regret dripped heavily.
Melty belatedly noticed Calix’s gaze fixed on his lips and subtly raised his hand to cover them. Amused by this small defense, Calix smiled and planted a loud kiss on the back of Melty’s hand.
“Then let’s do something more fun after we drop the ‘temporary’ part?”
“Eek!”
A high-pitched sound escaped between Melty’s lips as Calix’s hand brushed up his nape. With a low chuckle, Calix tousled Melty’s hair and quickly moved out the door. Melty, who missed catching him because one hand was covering his mouth and the other his nape where Calix’s fingers had trailed, stared at the closed door with a dazed expression.
“W-what fun!”
He shouted as loudly as he could, but the person who should have heard it was already gone. Feeling indignant and at a loss for words at Calix who had clearly fled deliberately, he stomped his feet.
“Seriously, what a strange personality.”
After criticizing someone who wasn’t even present, Melty stuck his tongue out with all his might toward the firmly closed door. Deliberately making a loud “hmph” sound, he turned his head sharply to the side and belatedly began exploring the room.
The room was filled with deep mahogany furniture. The bedding, carpet, curtains, and other items were a blend of black and deep red, exuding an elegant atmosphere. Carefully moving toward the bed, he touched the comforter, feeling its incredibly soft texture against his hand.
“Wow.”
The sensation was so pleasant that it was difficult to pull his hand away, as if it had some special power. Like a fish in water, Melty looked around the room, brightening when he discovered an oval-shaped mirror. Subtly moving to position himself in front of it, he struck various poses while examining his reflection.
“What the… Why are my lips like this?”
Moving closer to the mirror, Melty began inspecting his lips, which looked different than usual. They appeared twice as plump as normal. Moreover, their color was deeper than usual, making them stand out at a glance. Melty carefully poked his plump lips with his index finger. They were still soft, with no particular pain. He could quickly find the reason why his lips had become like this.
– It feels like… being attacked by a giant octopus’s suction cups.
Before embarrassment could rise about having kissed Calix, the memory of his annoying words surfaced first in Melty’s mind. Furrowing his brow sharply, Melty stared intently at his face in the mirror, almost piercing it with his gaze.
“Giant octopus suction cups! Was he perfect from the start?”
Even as he said this, Melty, who had failed to notice Calix setting up a beehive in his eyes, glared intensely at his innocent reflection. Slowly raising both hands beside his face in the mirror, Melty wiggled his lips.
Not long after, Melty hastily pulled back his face from the white mist forming on the mirror, ending his practice session prematurely. While pondering how to practice better, Melty’s eyes fell on his milky-white hand. After examining the back of his right hand from different angles, he pressed his lips firmly against it without much thought.
With Calix as an exemplary model, it seemed that with a little practice, he could do even better. Melty, burning with determination to definitely see Calix’s surprised and dazed face next time, repeatedly planted kisses on the back of his hand.
“Are you sleeping, sir?”
A voice from beyond the door made Melty’s shoulders stiffen, and he quickly removed his lips from his hand. Having hastily finished his enthusiastic practice, Melty vigorously rubbed the now round, red mark on the back of his hand with his other hand as he raised his voice.
“N-no! I’m here! Not sleeping! J-just a moment!”
As he hurriedly moved in a fluster, Melty misstepped on the carpet and fell. At the thudding sound, a concerned voice asked, “Is everything alright?” from beyond the door.
“Everything’s fine!!”
Though tears welled up from the hard fall, Melty pretended to be okay and raised his voice. Diligently rubbing his throbbing knee, he reached the door, quickly straightened his clothes and hair, then carefully opened it. Standing outside was a man who appeared extremely kind-hearted.
“Um… Calix-ssi just left a little while ago.”
“I’m aware. Actually, I have a message to deliver to you.”
“To me?? F-from whom?”
It seemed impossible that anyone would have a message for him when he had just arrived at an unfamiliar place. Melty blinked his round eyes, not understanding the situation. The man smiled gently at Melty, who was trying to make sense of things with a bewildered expression.
“Master Braiante has invited you to dinner.”
***
To begin with, Melty wasn’t composed enough to casually decline an invitation from the mansion’s owner. In the end, unable to even utter words of refusal, he had no choice but to follow the butler who waited for his answer with a kindly smile.
As soon as the door to the guided location opened, a piercing gaze stabbed into Melty’s body. Unaccustomed to receiving such raw scrutiny, Melty’s head automatically lowered.
“Please sit over there.”
The butler, still smiling, showed the intimidated Melty to his seat. Awkwardly nodding, Melty tried to remain calm as he moved forward. His entire body creaked as his hands and feet moved together.
“What exactly is going on here?”
Melty, who had barely caught his breath, turned his gaze sideways at the familiar voice nearby. With an obviously displeased expression, Calix was glaring at Braiante. Despite his sharp questioning, one of Calix’s hands firmly wrapped around Melty’s hand that rested on his knee.
Though there were no special words or clear meaning behind the gesture, thanks to the body heat transmitted through their hands, Melty could feel his anxiety easing considerably.
“You’re acting as if inviting a guest visiting the mansion to dinner is somehow problematic.”
“Calix. Your father didn’t invite him with bad intentions, so don’t be so confrontational.”
A gentle voice mixed in after the stiff, cold voice Melty had heard earlier today. Slightly lowering the tension that had built up in his shoulders, Melty carefully raised his eyes.
Unlike Braiante, who wore a hostile expression on his handsome face, the middle-aged woman sitting next to him appeared modest and gentle. Perhaps it was because she was beside the intimidating Braiante, but she seemed especially warm.
“We’ve unintentionally been a bit noisy among family in front of someone who’s here for the first time. So…”
“Ah, I’m Melty.”
“Ah, yes. Melty-ssi. I’m Amelia. This is my husband, Braiante.”
Thanks to her kind smile as she spoke, Melty felt much more at ease and nodded deeply to greet both her and Braiante.
“So I hear that you’re from the Crosel family…”
“If you were curious about that, you could have just asked me instead of summoning someone unnecessarily.”
Calix stepped in for Melty, who was about to nod with a blank expression. As a result, both gazes directed at Melty shifted toward Calix. Unlike Melty, who shrank under a glance or two, Calix calmly met their eyes.
“When have you ever given a satisfying explanation?”
“Hmph. This is all because you rarely contact us and hardly ever come home.”
“I’m busy.”
A conversation that could at least be called familial had formed. Calix removed his hand that had been covering Melty’s, and when Melty turned his head at the sudden loss of warmth, Calix mouthed silently.
‘Eat.’
Melty was captivated by his soundless affection. Concerned about Melty, who hadn’t even thought of touching the fully served food, Calix moved his hand under the table to point at the tabletop. Noticing Calix’s moving finger, Melty looked back at his face. As soon as their eyes met, Calix smiled slightly, as if he’d been waiting for it.
Following the curve of his smile, Melty smiled softly and shifted his gaze to the table. Only then did he notice the food that had been served, which he hadn’t realized until Calix pointed it out. The aromatic steak smell and the sight of delicious-looking dishes made him swallow involuntarily. Just as Melty was about to taste the food by picking up his fork:
“I wondered why our son brought a new person for once… It seems this isn’t just a friend.”
