"...Amelia? Long time no see."
After finishing the discharge procedures, I spotted Amelia and greeted her.
She’d been so busy lately that it had been hard to see her face, so running into her like this was a surprise.
"What a coincidence. I’ve been—"
"...Who are you?"
"Huh?"
But her response to my greeting left me stunned.
There was no way Amelia wouldn’t recognize me, right?
Just what the—
Out of habit, I almost turned to ask the Author, but I stopped myself.
The Author was gone now.
Whenever something confusing or unexpected happened, I’d always pestered the Author for answers. It had become a habit.
At a loss for what to say, I racked my brain—
Then Amelia spoke up with a laugh.
"Sorry, just messing with you."
"..."
"Ah, sorry, sorry! It hurts... Ah!"
She really had me worried.
As punishment for scaring me with that prank, I tugged hard on her golden hair.
After a while, I let go, and Amelia groaned as she smoothed her hair back down.
"Ow, that hurt."
"Then don’t pull stunts like that."
"No, it’s just... at first, I really didn’t recognize you..."
"...Huh?"
"I figured it out pretty quick, but your first impression is different now. Did you put on makeup?"
Because of the makeup?
Even I thought she looked pretty, but...
Was the difference really that big?
"...Well, whatever. Today’s your discharge day, right?"
"Yeah. Just finished the paperwork."
"That’s great. What about the scar? You took a bad hit to the chest."
"Guess the doctor was good. No scar left."
"Good to hear. Be careful with Siwoo’s case, okay?"
"W-What?!"
"Am I wrong?"
Amelia smirked and pushed her sunglasses up, leaving me speechless.
She hadn’t been like this before.
Ever since that incident ended, Amelia had started acting more and more unguarded around me.
It felt like we’d grown closer, which was nice... but—
I’d thought the exhaustion would fade when the Author disappeared. Instead, it was creeping up on me from unexpected places.
If I kept talking, I’d just end up getting teased mercilessly by Amelia’s pace, so I decided to change the subject.
"...So, did you watch a spy movie or something?"
"Huh?"
"Sunglasses and a coat layered on... Aren’t you cold?"
The weather had gone from crisp to downright chilly.
It was still warm enough during the day with just a coat, but...
It’d get cold at night.
As I stared at her with concern, Amelia flustered and stammered,
"Uh, y-yeah... something like that! Ha, I just wanted to set the mood, okay?"
"...?"
Her reaction was so intense that I stared at her for a moment, wondering what was going on.
Amelia began to sweat nervously, looking awkward.
...Well, fine.
I decided to let it slide.
Even if Amelia had done something, she couldn’t be as bad as the author.
"So? What are you here for?"
"Ah, that...! What are you going to do now?"
"I’m going to meet Yu Siwoo, obviously."
I’d deliberately extended my hospital stay just so I could be discharged with Yu Siwoo.
Our discharge dates were the same, after all.
Amelia should’ve known that.
"If you’re suggesting we go out to celebrate, I’m sorry, but maybe next time. I’m going to be with Yu Siwoo—"
"He already left."
"Huh? What did you just—"
"Yu Siwoo was discharged earlier."
Did I hear that right?
I looked at Amelia, but she was now acting as if her earlier fluster had been a lie, standing there boldly.
"He left?"
"Yeah. He finished the discharge paperwork and went home."
"...When?"
"Thirty minutes ago."
Amelia’s words sent my high spirits crashing down.
Yu Siwoo had left without me.
He’d abandoned me.
"...Do you know where he went?"
"Uh, that... He said he was tired and wanted to rest at home..."
"Thanks."
I thanked Amelia and left the hospital.
Huh. Really.
He just left on his own?
...Unforgivable.
I’d even matched my discharge date to his so we could leave together, and he just went home to rest by himself?
I’d been so excited to spend time with him.
But apparently, Yu Siwoo hadn’t felt the same.
Did he find me annoying?
Did he leave me behind and go home alone just because he wanted some time to himself?
Had he forgotten our promise to be discharged together? Was that all I was to him?
All sorts of thoughts swirled in my head.
He’d said he’d always be by my side.
I absentmindedly fiddled with the bracelet Yu Siwoo had given me.
It made me feel a little better, so I finally managed to lift my heavy feet and head toward Yu Siwoo’s house.
"...Yeah, I’m on my way to your place now. Probably... about 30 minutes until I get there? I’ll text you right before I arrive. Got it."
"Have you left?"
"Yeah. Finally starting. It’s been so long."
Amelia and Dorosi watched Arte as she trudged along, her expression shifting between anger and dejection.
Seeing her emotions swing wildly like that made them feel an unexpected pang of guilt.
"...Is she really okay?"
"Probably...? Well, I’d better prepare to get hit later."
"Haa… If only things had gone normally…"
Dorothy sighed at the thought of the backlash she’d have to endure later.
"If they find out Yu Siwoo’s discharge date wasn’t actually today, it’s going to be a total disaster…"
"What else could we do? We needed time to prepare."
"He might not just get angry… He might even swing his threads around…"
"Hah… S-Siwoo will handle it, right?"
Yeah, he definitely will.
This was his idea in the first place.
The two of them began rationalizing their actions to themselves.
The fact that they’d been more enthusiastic about executing the plan than Yu Siwoo himself because it looked fun…
Well, let’s set that aside.
"At this point, we have no choice but to enjoy it!"
"…Right! Come on, let’s go!"
"Alright. Amelia Express Delivery—this time, to Yu Siwoo’s place!"
"…"
I blankly stared at Yu Siwoo’s house.
The curtains over the windows, which I’d stopped bothering to close since I started living with him.
Peering through the gap in the curtains, I expected the lights to be on since night was falling, but the house was dark.
"He must be asleep…"
According to Amelia, Yu Siwoo had already come home.
Since the lights were off, he must’ve been exhausted and gone to bed.
Worried he might wake up, I carefully opened the front door.
"I’m home…"
I whispered softly, my voice carrying the contradictory hope that he wouldn’t hear me—and yet, that he would.
…There was still no sign of him.
Had Yu Siwoo’s house always been this cold?
I hadn’t lived here for that long, but this atmosphere was new to me. I couldn’t help but shrink back.
Thump. Thump.
Maybe it was because the only sound in the quiet space was my footsteps.
For some reason, they seemed unnaturally loud.
And perhaps because of that…
It reminded me of the uneasy feeling I’d had the first time I came to Yu Siwoo’s house.
"…"
…This is too much.
He said he’d always be with me.
Did he not actually like me?
If our discharge dates were the same, shouldn’t we have come home together?
Even if he was tired, this was going too far.
As I walked through the unusually cold and dark house, all sorts of thoughts swirled in my head.
To shake off the gloom, I decided I’d go to bed early tonight and was just passing through the living room when—
A soft glow began to emanate from one corner of Yu Siwoo’s house.
"…Huh?"
It was like a path of light, as if telling me to come this way.
Without a single thought that it might be an enemy attack, I followed it, entranced.
I didn’t fully understand the situation…
But for some reason, I felt like I had to follow this light.
As I followed the gradually brightening blue glow, I realized I had somehow arrived in the courtyard of my house.
And standing right in the center of the light was Yu Siwoo.
Hadn’t he been asleep?
What in the world was going on here?
I had a mountain of questions I wanted to demand answers to from Siwoo, but I couldn’t bring myself to speak.
I was overwhelmed by the aura radiating from him as he stood before me.
Was he nervous? I could see his hands trembling slightly.
"Hmm, I’m a little nervous. Dorosi and Amelia said events like this are important, so I tried preparing…"
Maybe it was because he’d never done something like this before—it felt a bit forced.
As he muttered that, Siwoo slowly approached me.
My mind was still too confused to make sense of the situation.
Just as I couldn’t hold back any longer and was about to ask what was going on—
Siwoo spoke first.
"…Arte."
"Y-Yes…?"
"Will you… go out with me?"
Only then did everything click.
Ah, so Siwoo was trying to confess to me.
That’s what this was.
He wanted to give me an event. Wanted to surprise me.
That’s why he’d come here ahead of time and prepared everything in secret.
I stared blankly at the ring Siwoo was offering, noticing how his fingertips were trembling.
"…Ah."
"Arte—?!"
Tears streamed down my face.
And they showed no sign of stopping.
I had known that Siwoo liked me.
Or at least, I thought I understood that much.
But apparently, I hadn’t.
Seeing my tears, Siwoo panicked, fidgeting in place. I grabbed his head and yanked him toward me.
"Mmph—!"
Our first kiss, clumsy and awkward from inexperience.
It was just a simple press of lips, but it filled my heart with an overwhelming sense of fulfillment and warmth, as if I’d gained the entire world.
How much had he practiced to confess his love?
How much had he worried, fearing rejection, his nerves on edge?
This was the first time I’d ever seen Siwoo, with his sharp intuition, look so flustered.
After our clumsy first kiss ended,
I smiled at him.
The happiest smile in the world.
"…Yes, I do."
I pulled him into another embrace and kissed him again.
This time, slowly, as if to confirm our love for each other.