Dumped at the Cliffhanger Moment - Chapter 11

After a few days, Silas hadn’t changed much; there was neither the haggard look of heartbreak nor the anger of being deceived.

The dark gray coat was taken away by the attendant, and he wore a black turtleneck sweater, his gaze lowered, fingers interlaced, resting in front of him.

I didn’t know what to say, so I followed his silence.

Until Silas spoke first: “Have you used those things on others as you did on me?”

I thought he would first question why I deceived him, but unexpectedly, he asked this instead, leaving me momentarily unresponsive.

“…No.”

Indeed, I hadn’t, not even with Kaele had I been so invested in understanding his preferences.

Silas’s expression remained unchanged, but his brows relaxed a bit.

“I–” I wanted to say I didn’t deceive you intentionally, but after thinking about it, I couldn’t bring myself to say it, so I lowered my voice.

“I’m sorry for deceiving you. I know you have every right to be angry, and if you don’t want to see me anymore, I can–” I clenched my fingers.

“I can resign.”

Silas paused: “That’s not why I came here today.”

“I’ve thought it over these past few days. I really like you, even after knowing you deceived me, I still like you.”

Silas is always like this, not good at discussing feelings, yet when he speaks, he is straightforward without any disguise.

His love, like himself, is disdainful of hiding, never concealing his emotions.

“But a relationship built on pretense won’t last long. What I like is your unwillingness to give up in the face of difficulties, your clear planning for your life, your understanding of what you want, never being swayed by external influences.”

“I like you, who shares my ideals, not just someone who likes ‘The Holy Mountain,’ skiing in Hokkaido, or Le Chambertin Musigny.”

“I’ve always felt that in a relationship, having compatible values is more important than similar interests. We are not just lovers, but lifelong friends and comrades, walking the same path rather than drifting apart and eventually going separate ways.”

He raised his head, his light amber eyes looking at me earnestly:

“I really like you, and I hope we don’t pretend anymore.”

“I want to be with you forever.”

I was stunned.

I wanted to say many things, but when I opened my mouth, it turned into a blank.

I had never been firmly chosen before; my experiences from childhood made me never hold any hope for relationships.

So I habitually used tactics and skills to obtain affection, thinking it was right, thinking it was okay.

In this world, so many people just make do together, love only exists in novels and movies, like ghosts–everyone says they exist, but no one has seen them.

Finding a man who fits well is enough; it doesn’t matter whether there’s love or not.

I thought I was okay.

Until someone tore through my facade, telling me he liked the real me.

He said I didn’t need to pretend anymore, said he hoped we would be together forever.

He’s different from Kaele.

Using what I did with Kaele on him was an insult.

In an instant, my turbulent emotions turned into a vast blank. I could have said many things to make Silas happy, but I could only nod dumbly.

“Okay, I promise you.”

Silas smiled.

He rarely smiles; the cold pond breaks through deep ice, revealing a handful of spring water.

“Then I forgive you.”