They arrived at the residence in the late afternoon, approaching evening. Adelle noticed the changes that had occurred in this house. From the front garden to the backyard, everything felt different. That's what she thought before entering her house. The interior layout was still the same, even the room arrangements were unchanged.
Especially the room she knew so well, none other than her room—should we just call it Calsius's room, perhaps?
Calsius had explained to Adelle that his mother was suffering from a prolonged illness. Perhaps it was the effect of the trauma the family experienced a few years back. Adelle felt pity, and with a heavy heart, she agreed to stay temporarily. There was no harm in staying here for a bit; she also missed the Eddenberg region, which was rich in natural resources.
Dinner time arrived, but both decided to clean themselves first. Anna understood and would return when they were ready.
Calsius showered first, and during that time, Adelle wore a sour expression. Even when Calsius was finished and tried to coax his wife, Adelle narrowed her eyes. Then she took a towel and went into the bathroom.
"Do you want me to call a servant?" Calsius asked before Adelle fully entered.
Without turning, the woman said, "No need."
The bathroom door was almost slammed shut, but Adelle still had her dignity and self-respect. So she closed it normally.
Calsius massaged the bridge of his nose. His head already felt dizzy even though they had just arrived. "It's okay, I'm used to this kind of thing. So, let's just pretend nothing happened," he mumbled as he put on his pajamas.
Calsius suspected that Adelle was still angry with him.
After finishing, Calsius went downstairs and approached Anna. He informed her that they would be ready soon so Anna could prepare. Calsius ruffled his hair, which wasn't completely dry yet. He opened the bedroom door; Adelle was already done.
Upon entering, Calsius's eyebrows almost met in confusion. Adelle in front of him was struggling to open a thin hairpin on her temple because her hair was wet.
"Come here for a moment, let me help you," Calsius said, pulling the woman's waist closer.
Adelle didn't object; in fact, she was a little embarrassed for insisting on showering alone without help. They stood in front of the bed, Calsius focused on removing the thin clip. However, a second later, Adelle cried out in pain.
"Ah, gently!" she exclaimed, lifting her previously bowed head.
As a result, her head accidentally hit Calsius's face, who was still focused on her, so he didn't realize and ended up getting bumped. The impact caused Adelle's balance to weaken, and she fell backward. With a quick hand movement, Adelle grabbed Calsius's chest, causing them both to fall together.
Quickly, Calsius shielded the back of Adelle's head with his palm, even though he knew they would land on the bed, but Calsius's body reacted quickly. Adelle's eyes widened in surprise, but she immediately became fixated when her gaze met his blue eyes.
Calsius, too, was still regulating his breathing; he couldn't move. The scent of roses stung his nose, ah, it seemed because Adelle hadn't completely dried herself. Calsius restrained himself from smelling the scent more deeply. Calsius guessed that the scent would be very fragrant if he smelled this woman's neck. "Snap out of it, Calsius! What are you thinking!?" he yelled in his heart.
Neither of them moved, not even hearing the knock on the door.
"I-I'm sorry, Sir. I'll come back when you two are truly ready." Anna closed the door again.
Realizing what had happened, Adelle immediately pushed her husband away. She got up and stood immediately,"then approached the door and quickly opened it. "Come in. We're ready," he said.
Calsius tidied his clothes, then sat in his chair.
Anna prepared the food as quickly as possible. Arranging each dish they would eat. The food was still warm, clearly because Anna had warmed it first. Before leaving the room, Adelle asked Anna for help to remove her hair clip. Only after she finished, Anna excused herself.
After the door closed, the room was filled with silence and the sound of cutlery scraping. Both focused on their respective meals until they finished.
"Do you want to sleep alone? I can sleep on the sofa," Calsius said when Adelle had wrapped herself in a blanket.
The woman clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Anywhere is fine, I'm sleepy," she said without turning.
Calsius approached the bed, slowly beginning to sit his bottom on the other side. "So I can sleep here?"
Silence, no answer. Calsius decided to get under the blanket too. He looked at Adelle's back in front of him, then decided to face the opposite direction.
They turned their backs to each other, lost in the long night. It didn't matter how long they remained silent, they just needed time to get used to sleeping in this position again. Hopefully after this, they could be more open with each other.
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A knock on the door woke Adelle, and when she sharpened her gaze, it was Anna. The woman brought news that Dania wanted Adelle to go horseback riding with her.
"Should I tell them that Madam and Master still want to rest?" Anna asked.
Adelle shook her head. "It's fine, I'll go down first. Let Calsius sleep longer, he seems tired."
Anna nodded in understanding, then prepared the clothes Adelle would wear. Since horseback riding was not in Adelle's holiday plans, Anna took special clothes from the room Dania had mentioned. While waiting, Adelle observed every inch of the face that was still closed.
His body was prone with his face directly facing her. His breathing was so regular, Calsius seemed to be sleeping soundly. Adelle reached out, trying to touch the hair covering Calsius's forehead. Safe, Calsius showed no reaction. Then her hand moved down to his cheek, stroking it gently.
Adelle realized that the face she was observing, she rarely knew all this time. Moving back to his lips, Adelle's thumb stroked the soft and slightly red part.
"Hmm?"
The sound made Adelle immediately withdraw her hand in surprise. The woman looked for some excuses when their eyes met.
"That... Um, I was trying to wake you up, Mother told us to get up and go horseback riding. You'd better get ready quickly." Adelle hurried to get out of bed.
However, a hand pulled her back to stay still. With half-open eyes, Calsius placed Adelle's hand back on his head.
"Can you do it a little longer?" he asked in a hoarse voice.
Well, Adelle didn't refuse. Just assume that they were missing the togetherness that had been lost.
"Just for a moment, okay?"