Back home, night had already fallen.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSMANuUobwY
The door to Suzuran’s room closed with a soft click, and the house returned to silence once more.
In his own room, Koichi Kimijima slipped off his suit jacket in one smooth, practiced motion—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDbDTDneOa
just like he always did.
But as his fingers reached into the pocket—
He paused, momentarily caught off guard.
His hand touched something unfamiliar: a small, unfamiliar card.
He pulled it out.
It was a dainty card with pink edging—the kind used for the event earlier.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFgPPR929dB
The handwriting on it was unmistakable—soft and familiar, dancing lightly across the paper:
“Thank you… for staying by my side every Valentine’s Day.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ65hVOcAOsO
You always say it’s your duty…36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDQ9Wnzpye
But still, I… really, truly appreciate it. Mm.”
He stared at the words, silent for a moment.
Then, almost involuntarily, the corner of his lips lifted.
A soft chuckle escaped him.
“When did she slip this in…?”
He tried to retrace his steps—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu6GPew9KZm
Was it on the escalator? While walking to the café?
He could vividly picture her fumbling hands, flushed cheeks…36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbRINQeDf59
But couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment it happened.
Yet that sentence—that final “mm”—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5wKexn2ooQ
felt like a breath left lingering on the card’s edge: gentle, but real.
He ran his thumb slowly over the paper, eyes drifting out toward the night beyond the window.
Scenes flooded his mind, unbidden—
Her hand in his on the escalator,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHfNOHHr8L2
The way her eyes went wide when he offered her the biscuit,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR1jBWKCSOX
That flustered cry: “Ｉ might have a heart attack!”,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBkgf1juLlk
The moment she hugged her head, utterly embarrassed…
They were home now.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTPBWWoji8A
He should be organizing the day’s reports, preparing a summary of the outing.
But his thoughts remained—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡseeJc25tH4
stuck in that single, flickering moment at the mall.
He whispered, barely above a breath:
“My lady… do you realize how many of your little ‘slips’ sound a bit too honest?”
He stood still in the middle of his room,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIWWcyVnM7e
carefully flattening the small card in his hands,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVa5guvaaqM
reading it again and again.
Each simple word stitched itself into his chest—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEB39gr4YRm
like threads piercing quietly, one at a time.
He gently closed the card, pressing it between his palms.
Then, with a soft bow of his head and hands clasped,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEvChYsgCGG
he whispered a silent prayer—
“Ran… may your life be filled with peace.”
36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOHrQCFjoRz
Not asking for anything.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSkokUOLQOn
Not asking to be loved in return.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEuKkHkIYiK
Not asking to be closer.
All he wished—
Was that the girl who always smiled through her fears,
Even if she someday fell in love with someone else,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJKepY2pVPI
Even if she remained forever out of reach—
Would still be treated kindly by the world.
He opened his hands,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPR2erau1CG
then lowered his head—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCm7O4Wzycf
and placed the lightest of kisses onto the pink-edged card.
It wasn’t the paper he was kissing.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCNbvUGRjq
It was her—
Her forehead, her fingers,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlU1tNTCQGJ
the trembling lips that had whispered “thank you.”36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvaSCnI6gjJ
36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRhoDtL1krl
He quietly tucked the card into the deepest corner of his drawer.
His fingers lingered at the edge a moment longer,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzwcK5Ss8ao
as if sealing away a feeling that could never be spoken aloud.
Night fell deeper.
But in his heart,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡprZXynxg9q
he was still standing at the very beginning of that love escalator—
The place where she had once held his hand,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSMpUiyjQSM
and where the warmth of that touch still burned in his palm.
Meanwhile…
After her bath, Suzuran stepped into her room wearing a long house dress, towel-drying her damp hair.
She was just about to sit at her vanity when—
She stopped.
On the tabletop sat a beautifully wrapped gift box.
A silver-white ribbon she knew all too well was tied into a perfect bow.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYcFREDfkzp
Beside it rested a small card.
“Wh-what—when did he put this here…?”
Her heart stopped for a beat.
She hurried over, caught somewhere between panic and anticipation,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsJU48trUI7
and gingerly picked up the card.
The handwriting—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROkZ6qt9m0
was his.
So familiar it made her fingertips tremble.
“My lady, you are a lily in the valley—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTqt4KwYbvZ
Quietly blooming, yet impossible to overlook.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmbkCXoJ7nz
I admire you.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEMHPyn0vRm
—in every way I’m allowed to, as your butler.”
She froze.
Her eyes locked onto that line, unable to move.
And then—
Warm tears slid quietly down her cheeks.
Not sobbing—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYVdxFstCZx
Just a silent, breathless stream, as if even breathing too loud might break the moment.
She didn’t know if she was happy… or heartbroken.
Maybe it was because the word “admire” held such gentle weight—
Or maybe it was the way he chose the word “admire”—36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJczfWL15uU
a word that framed all his feelings neatly36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKQVf4cMoXY
within the role he was never allowed to step beyond.
She gently opened the box.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4YsNbhHDYu
A familiar scent wafted up at once—
It was her favorite perfume.
36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJmdIuc3T4w
Penhaligon’s · Lily of the Valley.
36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPNh8x4PfVI
The scent of valley lilies—soft, clean, and tender.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2tp5methJh
Like a confession that never quite found its voice in spring.
She held the bottle in her hands.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2IiY9wyKea
Her nose tingled, her heart ached, as if the scent had grazed it lightly.
And then, softly, she murmured—
“Why did you have to choose ‘admire’… when you could’ve said ‘adore’?”
Just one word. Just one step closer.
But instead, he chose the one that kept them apart.
Her eyes welled again.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcJPx3SavW7
Her grip on the bottle tightened just a little.
She looked down at the label, her vision blurring slightly.
Then she closed her eyes—
And gently rested her forehead against the glass,36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyPA0uSCYGc
as if hoping to hide inside it,
To escape the emotion threatening to overflow.
And in her heart, one quiet thought surfaced:
“What do I do… I like you so much…”36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhe50nEOMx0
“So much, I couldn’t even bring myself to go watch the fireworks with you.”36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy3IUE564Fq
"Because if I did… I’d fall harder than I already have."
She never did see the rooftop fireworks that night.
But deep down, she knew—
Her heart had already exploded36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpMm4GQ2MdE
on that love escalator36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLKqVqNCtVi
earlier that day.36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfkYEaVpVMJ
You made it this far—you're seriously the sweetest! 🥹💗36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Lc94HopoW
If you liked it, don’t forget to like 👍, bookmark ⭐, and drop a little comment 📝~36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWT3fBbBLFx
Your support keeps me going—and keeps the characters falling deeper in love 💞💭
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