Negligence
Dirk came to me right away…… but, he was unexpectedly tattered. His face and other parts of his body were swollen. His clothes were also dirty. It was unusual for Dirk to be hit this badly.
“Err, let’s heal you first.”
“… Rosarin, I’m sorry!”
Dirk was hugging me. I was so touched by his embrace that I hadn’t felt it in a long time. I put my hands around his back to heal and purify him.
“Yes.”
“… Rosarin, I haven’t rushed the wedding just because of Birdia. You are so pretty… and get prettier every day, and so many guys are after you… and I was… having a hard time not getting closer to you.”
“Yeah. It was hard for me not being able to flirt with you. I wanted to flirt with you so bad, I didn’t care if you ate me up anymore.”
Dirk gently pulled away and curled up. Cute little thing. I pat him here and there.
“… Rosarin, you provoke me too much! I told you I wouldn’t do it because it’s too hard on your body! Besides… I’m sure that even if I had asked you to marry me upfront, you would have turned me down in a roundabout way.”
“……… Eh?”
“Rosarin, I think I’ve waited for a long time. Eleven years is not a short time.”
“…… Yeah. Why do you think I would reject you?”
“You said after you turned eighteen… after we got past the worst of the future, and that was the plan, wasn’t it?”
“That………… might be true.”
Looking back, it’s not that Dirk didn’t approach me about marriage at all. But I had the common sense of Rin, so thought it was still a long way off. When I think about it, Dirk had always said he wanted to get married soon. I also thought we were going to get married, but not now… and I guess that’s what Dirk got from me.
“Besides, there’s that bird man. And since he’s royalty from another country, you can’t just dismiss him… you don’t hate him too much either, do you?”
“… It’s not like he means any malice, after all.”
I don’t hate him, but I don’t like him either. And he’s not a bad guy… he likes the kids and plays with them a lot, so it’s even harder to be mean to him.
“I don’t care if it’s temporary this time. I don’t care if it’s just a registry. We can have a real wedding when you turn eighteen. You don’t have to change your life… so… so ……… Miss Rosarin Rosenberg.”
“Yes.”
Dirk knelt down and held out his hand to me. His eyes, looking straight at me, seemed somewhat frightened.
“I want you to sign a contract to spend the rest of your life with me.”
“I shall accept.”
Gently, I placed my hand on Dirk’s. The hands were trembling. I wondered which hand was shaking.
“Haaaaaaah.”
Dirk collapsed.
“Dirk?”
He hugged me like he was hanging on. Dirk was trembling.
“I was… so scared… if you turned me down. Your rejection scares me more than anyone else’s coldness. But I should have made sure to tell you. Once I ignored your opinion, and you got angry with me, I made the same mistake again. If we were going to be together… forever, we should have talked about it, no matter how many times you rejected me. No matter how much your rejection scared me.”
Oh, we were together, weren’t we? We were just too scared… of each other. Dirk and I were both afraid of rejection because it was too important. If I were in the same position, I might not have… been able to tell you. I have lost touch with him, and now there were more rivals, plus I’m human, so I can love him even if we are not mates, unlike the Beastmen who are only mates. That’s how much he must have been worried about it… I am happy too, though it is inappropriate to say so. He was afraid of “my rejection” and yet he did not want to let me go.
“I should have spoken with you. I should have said it too… that I missed you. Then I might have realized what you were doing. I should have hit you hard before crying to the Holy Beast-sama. I was so lonely that I cried to Holy Beast-sama. I thought you had gotten tired of me… and I was just so sad.”
I can’t cry. The make-up will be messed up. But I can’t stop crying. I was anxious. I was sad. I was lonely. That’s why I’m happy now. Dirk’s heart hasn’t changed, and he hugged me again. I was still anxious because I didn’t understand that there was no cheating because we are mates.
“… Rosarin… I’m sorry… I know this is extremely inappropriate, but I’m sorry and glad. I’m sorry I made you miss me. I can’t get enough of you. I just can’t help it… I love you so much. If you come to hate me, I can’t live with myself.”
“No, live. And try your best to make me fall in love with you all over again. Oh, by the way, why did you turn down my date last week and go out with another girl?”
“Eh? When?”
“Just past the noon. Near the square.”
“Ahh…… err, I was buying your present. For today.”
“……… Do you have that on you?”
“No, it’s too big. I will show it to you later.”
“Ah.”
“Eh?”
It was the same look I saw on his face that time. I wonder if he was wondering if I would be pleased. Hey, I’m kind of embarrassed. I clung to him to deceive him.
When Dirk hugged me and stroked my hair, my anxiety melted away…I felt loved.
“…… By the way, why are you giving me so many hugs today?”
Normally, Dirk can’t take it anymore, and I’m forced to end it.
“Erm… I’ve been taking anti-estrus pills. I can’t take them often because I won’t be able to have children if I use them too much, but I can’t go into heat at a wedding, you know? It will wear off by nightfall.”
“I see.”
I will spoil you like a child. Now that you are here, I’m going to enjoy it.
“I’ll talk to you properly from now on. Even if you reject me, even if I’m scared… I’ll tell you. I promise.”
“Yeah. I will do the same. Now then, let’s leave the punishment for later and think about what to do next.”
“P, punishment…… right, yeah.”
Dirk pulled back, but we immediately began discussing. Progress and schedule. Dinner banquet. How could he have prepared so much? And almost all by himself. What an impossible task! How did you manage to prepare it…
“… I know our first was a blunder, but let’s make a wedding to remember.”
“Yeah!”
“But I would like to do it again with just our family and friends. Let’s plan it together this time.”
“Yeah! Let’s do that.”
“Let’s go then?”
“Yeah.”
We took a step forward, holding hands.