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Side Story Chapter 21

Why did he kneel if he was going to say he wanted to break up? Was it really that desperate?

To Jaelin, time seemed to stretch into eternity, and finally, Lionel spoke.

“Jaelin, I….”

The roar of fireworks deafened her. She couldn’t hear what Lionel was saying.

But even without hearing, it was clear what he meant.

They couldn’t break up like this. She didn’t know why Lionel wanted to end things, but at the very least, he should have given her a chance to explain herself. She deserved to be asked why she had done what she did.

Suddenly, anger welled up inside her. She was furious at Lionel for shutting his ears to her words.

“No! I don’t want to!”

“W-wait, Jaelin… What?”

Lionel’s voice sounded flustered. Had he really not expected her to refuse? But Jaelin still liked Lionel.

No—she loved him. The way her heart ached at the thought of him wanting to break up made that perfectly clear.

“No! I said I don’t want to!”

A silence fell over them, so complete that not even the sound of a needle dropping could be heard.

Jaelin opened her tightly shut eyes. The first thing she saw was Lionel, kneeling with a shocked expression.

And then she noticed their friends, whom she had thought were distracted by the festival and had gone off somewhere, surrounding them.

Each of them was holding a huge bouquet of pink flowers in their arms.

“Huh…?”

Jaelin was confused. Why were her friends holding flowers when Lionel was trying to break up with her?

Sasha tugged at Stephan and spoke in a flustered voice.

“W-we’ll, uh… go now. Something came up suddenly.”

“Right! Suddenly, there’s work at the Panteago store… no, no. At our company… anyway, we’re busy, so…”

Stephan also stumbled over excuses, insisting they had to leave.

But Adrian was the problem. He stood in front of Jaelin and Lionel as if oblivious to the tense atmosphere, observing them as if they were some entertaining spectacle.

“Why? Let’s stay. When will we get to see such an interesting sight again?”

“Don’t you have any sense?”

Sasha scolded Adrian, but he paid no attention.

“Why should I care? Serves you right. You made such a fuss about confessing… heheh.”

Nathan grabbed Adrian by the shoulders, spun him around, and pushed him forward. From a distance, Sasha shouted.

“Stop and come quickly, you crazy fool!”

“Crazy fool? How rude! I am the emperor of this country!”

Nathan pushed Adrian again.

“Stop talking nonsense and come on. Can’t you feel the atmosphere?”

Stephan ran up and grabbed Adrian’s arm. Nathan and Stephan stood on either side of him, linking arms, and dragged him away.

“Ah, why! It’s fun. Let go! I said let go!”

Their friends disappeared in the blink of an eye. Lionel, who tried to stand, suddenly collapsed back to the ground as if his legs had given out. Startled, Jaelin supported him.

“Senpai! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Lionel stood up. He tried to speak to Jaelin, but at that moment, another series of fireworks exploded, drowning out his words.

“Huh? What? I can’t hear!”

Realizing they couldn’t continue the conversation until the fireworks were over, Lionel let out a small sigh.

“I’ll talk after it’s over. For now, let’s watch the fireworks.”

“…Okay.”

Jaelin turned her gaze to the sky.

The night sky was painted with bursts of colors like blooming flowers on black ink. Lionel grabbed Jaelin’s hand. Feeling his warm touch, she watched the beautiful spectacle, entranced.

When the fireworks settled down a bit, Lionel spoke.

“I’m sorry it took me so long to keep the promise of watching fireworks together.”

Amid the lingering noise of fireworks, Lionel’s words reached Jaelin clearly, piercing her ears.

Her eyes widened. She hadn’t expected him to remember that promise. By then, the fireworks had faded, and the beautiful sparks that had bloomed across Lionel’s cheeks disappeared.

She was grateful. For remembering the promise, for finally keeping it, even if late—Lionel was lovable.

Jaelin tiptoed and pulled Lionel’s neck closer. Her lips met his.

As if the coldness he had shown until now was a lie, Lionel kissed her passionately. His lips were so hot that Jaelin felt as if she would burn.

Looking down at her and cupping her face, Lionel asked,

“Was my proposal so bad that you shouted ‘no’? Or… was there another reason?”

“Huh? A proposal…?”

“Yes. I asked you to marry me, but you rejected me so coldly.”

Jaelin was confused. A proposal? She had never expected this. Even now, she had been worried about what to do if Lionel insisted on breaking up.

“Wait… you weren’t planning to break up with me?”

“Why would I break up with you?”

“But you were angry with me.”

“Me?”

“Yes. About Louis Marlon. Weren’t you upset that I met him alone?”

“That….”

Lionel hesitated, unable to continue.

“And you avoided meeting me. You lied about working late even though you didn’t. Adrian confirmed that no one works overtime in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Then you said you were too busy for dates… Even when we managed a date, you were distracted and couldn’t focus…”

“Ah… I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were worrying about that.”

“Do you know how anxious I’ve been? I kept thinking, what if you really want to break up… Meeting you was so stressful!”

Jaelin pounded Lionel’s arm lightly. But her fists had no strength, so it didn’t hurt him.

“I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”

“You knew I had dinner with him at a famous restaurant. Why didn’t you ask me about it?”

“…I was afraid you’d find out I get jealous like a petty man.”

“I have no feelings for him. We only talked about work.”

“I know. Even knowing that, I hated seeing you meet him. And I was afraid you’d see me as pathetic.”

“Why did you lie about being busy and working overtime?”

“I really was busy. I wanted to give you the best proposal ever. One so amazing you couldn’t refuse.”

Lionel looked around at the hill lit up by star-shaped lights.

“So all of this… you did this for me?”

“Yes. And I got some help from others.”

Jaelin thought of the four friends who had hurriedly run away.

“And I never actually said I had to work late.”

Lionel avoided her gaze. Indeed, he had never told her that. She had assumed it herself. Of course, it was partly Lionel’s fault for letting her misunderstand.

Recalling that day, Jaelin realized he had been awkwardly avoiding her gaze and hadn’t given a definite answer. She covered her forehead with her hand.

“Ah…”

“I was so focused on preparing the proposal… I missed what was really important. Sorry.”

Lionel sincerely apologized again. Jaelin nodded and accepted it. And, looking back, she had also made many mistakes.

“I understand.”

Lionel looked around.

“When I was young, my parents always brought me here to watch the fireworks. Until my mother passed away, I watched them here every year.”

He lifted Jaelin’s hand. The cold touch of metal brushed across her fourth finger. She looked down.

A ring had been placed on her finger. It sparkled brightly even in the darkness.

“This… what is this?”

“A proposal ring. Jaelin, will you watch fireworks with me here forever? Just like my parents did.”

“F-forever?”

“Yes. Don’t you want to? If I hear you say no again, I think my heart would break.”

Jaelin froze for a moment. Lionel anxiously waited for her answer. After a long silence, Jaelin finally spoke.

“Are you… really sure? If we get married, we’ll be together forever… Did you think this through?”

“Yes. I want to be with you. The only person I want to spend my life with is you.”

Jaelin slowly nodded. And the answer Lionel had longed to hear came out.

“Yes.”

“Once you accept, it can’t be undone. In the Eduard family, a man who gives his heart remains loyal for life. Even if you tire of me later, you can’t leave my side. Are you okay with that?”

“Yes. From the moment I first saw you, it’s always been only you.”

“Liar. You were about to leave me.”

Jaelin shook her head.

“I’ll stay close from now on. I’ll never leave you.”

“Do you swear?”

“Yes. I swear.”

“Really? Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“This is a promise. You can’t back out now. You’ll be with me forever.”

Jaelin nodded.

Lionel scooped her up and spun her around. Suddenly high above, Jaelin held onto Lionel’s neck, screaming.

“Eek! Senpai!”

“Thank you. I’ll make you happy forever.”

The proposal couldn’t have been more perfectly ruined.

On the day he came to the capital, Lionel had stumbled upon a ring in a jewelry store display. He couldn’t look away. It seemed perfect for Jaelin’s slender fingers.

From then on, he carried the ring box hidden in his jacket, waiting for the right moment to propose.

But the opportunity didn’t come easily. Or rather, he wasn’t mentally ready.

Proposing to Jaelin required immense courage, especially knowing her thoughts about their future.

Lionel had to scrape together every ounce of courage he had to propose.

He looked down at her nervously, anxious. What if she rejected him? Never had he felt such tension.

His hands trembled as he waited for her response. Jaelin finally spoke. It had been the longest moment of his life.

And finally, she gave her consent.

Jaelin nodded, smiling brightly—brighter than the fireworks above. Her face was breathtakingly beautiful.

Much time had passed, but thankfully, the hill remained the same. Yet many things had changed.

His mother was gone. He had grown into an adult, and climbing this hill was no longer difficult.

And by his side was the woman he loved, someone he could give everything to, someone he wanted to spend his life with.

He had once thought life was unhappy. Happiness had seemed like an unattainable mirage.

No matter how far he chased it, the goddess of happiness always stood one step away, watching him.

But he had been wrong. Happiness had been with him all along. It was he who hadn’t tried to embrace it.

The sound of unknown insects drifted in the night. A breeze blew. Jaelin’s hair fluttered, and her familiar scent enveloped Lionel.

“This place is fine, right? No one’s around.”

Jaelin blushed and nodded. She had already once rushed at Lionel here to kiss him.

Lionel bent down. He kissed the woman he would spend his life with, swearing to make her happy forever.

Fireworks burst above them, as if celebrating their union. It was a beautiful night they would never forget.

<End of Extra Side story Chapter 21>