Male Lead, Please Dump Me Three Times - Chapter 53

‘Do you like it?’

“…….”  

What kind of nonsense is this……

Now, this book that has become my precious diary. Someone has played such a prank on it.

I ran my hand over the poorly written phrase.

It wasn’t a mistake.

It wasn’t a random stain, nor was it the letters from the back page showing through.

“This handwriting… I haven’t seen it before…….”

Among the people living in this mansion, none had such poor handwriting.

I briefly suspected Dermian. But this couldn’t possibly be Dermian’s doing.

Dermian’s handwriting was quite elegant.

That’s because Dermian took great pride in his writing and was obsessive about his handwriting.

He was famous as a calligrapher within the academy and had won the grand prize in the calligraphy contest for three consecutive years.

Even if he begged to write with such poor handwriting, he himself would not accept it and would struggle to write.

Moreover, Dermian hated bothersome tasks.

He wasn’t the type to go through the effort of hiding his handwriting to play such a prank.

“Ellie, even less so…….”

It was also unlikely that my parents would play such a prank.

“Huh…… really. This is absurd.”

What kind of book did I buy?

My confusion lasted quite a while.

However, since I had a promise with Ray, I left it be for now and hurried to prepare.

“I should stop by again.”

I grabbed my diary and left the mansion.

* * *

“Lips, calm down…….”

All the way to the lakeside willow, I kept tapping my cheek, trying to pull down the corners of my mouth.

The corners of my mouth, which had been rising since last night, showed no sign of calming down.

Unlike yesterday, when my steps were heavy, today they were light.

It felt like I was walking on fluffy clouds.

Caught up in this buoyant mood, I unknowingly started humming a tune.

As I walked along the forest path, I saw a familiar carriage from afar.

A very handsome man was standing with his back against the carriage.

“Ray!”

Our eyes met in mid-air. He noticed me and unfolded his arms, showing a languid smile.

I hurried my steps towards him. Suddenly, Ray’s expression was filled with surprise.

“Daisy, don’t run.”

Saying so, he also quickened his pace towards me.

“Uh-oh…… Ah!”

I tripped while running towards Ray, just looking at his face.

Suddenly, I lost my balance. As I tilted forward, I tightly closed my eyes.

“…….”

A large and warm hand touched my abdomen.

“I told you not to run. What if you get hurt?”

When did he get here?

Ray was supporting my abdomen with his firm hand.

Then he helped me stand straight again.  

“Hehe…… I didn’t get hurt!”

I looked up at Ray and said.

Unlike my pleasant smile, Ray’s face was scrunched up.

He frowned and spoke in a light breath,

“Sigh……. No more running from now on.”

His voice was slightly frustrated. His eyes narrowed sharply as he spoke to me.

“…….”

Seeing his expression made me feel somewhat disappointed.

Was it because Ray was always so kind……?

Whenever Ray made such a scary face, I couldn’t help but shrink back.

“I just…… wanted to get to you faster…… that’s all……”

You don’t understand my feelings……

Feeling suddenly neglected, my lips jutted out as if they were broken.

Against my will, my expression wouldn’t easily relax. So I avoided Ray’s gaze and dropped my head to the ground.

Ray tidied my disheveled hair and said,

“Thank you. But I was worried you might get hurt.”

“Yeah…….”

His voice was so sweet and tender it felt like melting.

Yet, the feeling of being hurt didn’t fade away, so I avoided his gaze.

Ray carefully cupped my cheeks with his large hands.

Then he gently turned my face towards him,

His hands were big enough to completely cover my cheeks.

Warmth spread from his hands that completely covered my cheeks.

“I’m sorry. I was too harsh.”

I was startled that we were suddenly feeling too close. I pushed Ray’s chest away and leaned back,

“Okay, I got it……”

Ray chuckled softly and gave a light kiss on my forehead,

“Thank you for not being mad anymore.”

Ray naturally took the bag I was holding. Then he took my hand with his remaining one.

We walked side by side, holding hands.

I realized my feelings for Ray just yesterday,

But after that, any physical contact with him felt more awkward.

I quietly pulled my hand away from his,

“Ah, not yet…… it’s a bit……”

“We’ve already done everything we could.”

Ray said as he grabbed my hand again.  

Then he interwove his long and thick fingers between mine, locking them together as if ensuring my hand wouldn’t escape from his,

“We, we haven’t done everything…… yet!”

I looked up at him and stammered without realizing,

Unlike my extreme embarrassment, Ray wore a very relaxed expression,

“Hmm……. Then what else should we do?”

He tilted his head as if he was genuinely curious, looking down at me,

But his lips were slightly raised, and his sharp eyes were narrowly folded,

You know everything and still ask……?

Such a fox-like man……

He shook our clasped hands as if urging an answer,

“Eh? I’m curious what else we should do.”

My face started heating up because of Ray’s teasing,

It felt like hot flushes were blooming all over my cheeks,

I lowered my head so he wouldn’t catch sight of my flushed cheeks,

I wanted to cover Ray’s teasing mouth right then,

“If you keep this up……”

“…….”

“The words I promised to say today……, I won’t do it.”

“I’ll stop.”

Ray suddenly said in a firm voice,

His overly serious demeanor was quite funny, making me crack a smile unwittingly,

I looked at the lush forest and the sky beyond and said,

“The weather is nice today.”

“Right. That’s fortunate. Daisy, do you like sunny days?”

“Yes. I like days when the sun is shining brightly. How about you, Ray?”

“Um… I also like rainy days. What about you?”

“I don’t like them! They’re damp, cold, and humid…”

“Then, from now on, I’ll only like sunny days.”

His voice, quietly reaching me, made my heart flutter for a moment.

Ray’s tone of voice was never particularly cutesy.

Whether it was because of his job or just his personality.

It was simply straightforward and concise. And I didn’t mind that about him.

But looking back, I felt a fuzzy feeling whenever he whispered to me in a tender voice that was uncharacteristic of him.

At that time, I thought it was just because I liked the resonance of his voice and his good looks.

But thinking about it now, it seems like it was because I had started to like this man at some point.

“Um. Then I’ll try to like rainy days a little bit too!”

I smiled and looked up at him.

Ray also smiled back at me, his eyes twinkling.

It was as if I was looking in a mirror.

We reluctantly moved our steps and boarded the carriage.

* * *

Ray was looking out the window.

Maybe because he was tall. I had to look up at the window that he was looking down from.

From Ray’s side view, I could feel a sense of restraint and elegance.

At the same time, I could also feel a sense of melancholy.

I liked Ray’s melancholy, but at some point, the shadow cast over his face began to worry me.

“Daisy.”

“Yes…?!”

While I was scrutinizing his face, I was startled when he called my name.

Ray then looked at me again and said,

“When are you going to say what you promised me?”

I had actually planned to tell him as soon as I met him today.

But I just couldn’t bring myself to say it.

‘Confessing… It’s my first time…’

Avoiding his intense gaze, I said,

“That, that will be right before we go home!”

‘I’ll postpone it as much as possible and then find the right timing to say it…’

“Then I want to keep teasing you.”

Teasing…?

What does he mean by teasing?

“How are you going to tease me?”

I tilted my head and asked.

Ray suddenly chuckled and then laughed brightly.

The shadow that had been cast over his face momentarily lightened.

‘I don’t think I’ve seen him smile so brightly before…’

I realized once again as I looked at him.

Indeed, my type is the cold, handsome man.

The reason why I like cold, handsome men.

Maybe it’s the gap between their expressionless face and their smiling face.

“No, it was just something I said.”

“Hmm…”

Ray’s lips formed a pleasant curve. His warm gaze was directed at me.

Looking into his eyes, I thought,

Maybe…

Now is the best time to confess.