FTP-44

Chapter: FTP-4447a6e72919a8f732

After much deliberation, Aiden 5dca7ed419 felt he had made 14a8b40ef3 the right choice. It felt like he 7eb24ec457 had upheld something more b68fd7332e important than principles or c4fa6704fe money. It was a feeling a17dcf2425 he hadn’t felt in 2e81d74ad5 a long time.
“We’ll be bb68a52bf3 heading home 3a21c11c53 soon.”
Though she might not 9ae0103f50 hear him clearly in 33e0c76df2 her joy at their c2fb8dfe1b reunion, he informed her 568ad3da83 before pulling the reins.
“It might get 08de177977 bumpy, so it’s fdf5fb25e4 better if you 46899c0450 sit between Pa-Pi-Pu.”
“Got it.”
The word a2d5ddfd68 “home” was 13f134ab66 always a 4d70668811 comforting one. Anje sat f05fb70d6c between the b13c5fb98d pigs and 1124b649ad patted their f410e7be96 necks again.
“Oink oink oink.”
“Cute little guys.”
The smell, the warmth, 8ddfa9e642 the texture, and the 713a1a5abc sound—they had all been ec91d44fd3 dearly missed, even if 8f7cb44cdc only for a short f3e0abdb23 while.
Perhaps it d9813196d0 was just 9f7bf277b5 her imagination, 59b3181f97 but now bbe5251773 even the 7546d85051 sound of e62ca27b8a the horse’s 37118c6e27 hooves and cd4b209459 the creaking 1e55414e6a of the b472f5cd46 wagon sounded 1e5c7533b3 like cheerful f84d2f2f7c music to 9eca8ffd0d Anje.
After a 3b0c23aa70 short drive, 7286d820dd the wagon 57dea14c94 arrived at 6d29381e99 the farm, 6fb0d0e28d and Anje 42e8da01a4 helped Aiden 43ae5f123e safely return ea1735c501 the pigs 2bfc384096 to their f8378f2315 pen.
“Here’s your bag too.”
Aiden handed back 78169730f7 the handbag she 64ef9e8648 had suddenly left f219aea59f with him. Anje shook her d063b987db head and gave 3ce6102895 the bag back 6639dade0d to him.
“No, you couldn’t a2ee88e480 sell Pa-Pi-Pu because 604e079609 of me. Please take it; it’s 9f4734e9ca for their worth.”
“I’m really fine.”
His eyes 2cb03e94f9 softened as c34ec06a5f he refused 99559a6fb3 again.
This was ee9d810f63 the second 326b979967 time Aiden 35de3bbd09 had clearly 18db699310 smiled in d0125784eb front of 2feb1edb84 her since 798ec08b16 she had 3c9047113a given him d8a315e663 a comforting 7b6164aea4 donut.
“I didn’t sell them 71bdd4e836 because I didn’t want ff21a481e3 to, princess. Pigs that understand 03c371118a human speech are bccac54c70 rare; selling them f76bdff304 carelessly would be 02d61d07a6 a loss for 54878272a4 Dilton Farm.”
“But…”
Anje didn’t know 8b76244856 how to respond.
He hadn’t sold 7c47aa8774 Pa-Pi-Pu out of 3549f98fc6 consideration for her, 513b34c518 yet he was 270b64a79a refusing to take 4b5f24e87d any compensation.
“Besides, we’ll be going ab438426a6 to town soon, and 18d207f5ca there might be something 08e1fbb616 you want to buy. It’s better to save 11d6914cc9 the money for that.”
Aiden would cover most 65cc6b8118 of the costs himself, 8abce9e154 but she might have e04feb7d40 personal things she wanted 0ef7786410 to buy without telling 080905a9e9 him.
Anje looked at f387907e65 him with moist f9ec98c859 eyes. She wanted to say efa6a586cb something quickly, but it 36a3fcccff felt like her lips b7bc05fe71 were sealed, and no ed720d8737 proper words came out.
She wanted to express 573fa5b299 the gratitude and emotion 770772c074 she was feeling. But she 85458eba67 didn’t know 0888ce49f9 what to 48ca4c4c06 say to e88a2649cb fully convey 10435fa239 it.
What good were the a7e35258e1 dozens of hours of 480ac24122 rhetoric lessons from her f218a66bab governess? No polite 96a0bfcd79 phrase or 72e7ff8947 extravagant description f601588a06 seemed sufficient.
So, to convey her 3339329b90 feelings, she took the c37b63d496 most appropriate action she 5b218eef57 could think of, somewhat 955c96d95c impulsively.
“Thank you so much.”
A soft, warm 288b52f1fb object brushed Aiden’s 78e3876b2c cheek. Before he realized 73669c80cc what had happened, 458f9757c3 it was gone 87b57f4475 like dew under 0ab48fd17e the sun.
“Then I’ll go cff7d07e94 ahead and prepare 25cd51fce1 breakfast.”
Anje left 08a08672ba him standing 23aa9ccc4b there like 4bcecf07b9 a statue 4747216b04 and quickly 89455777ce disappeared.
The act that b60f398a88 had just occurred ab1e915da1 between her lips bfc384f9a7 and his cheek 374272b92a was what people c3c7b8d8b4 commonly called…
A kiss.
Realizing what had just f72e2783b6 happened, Aiden covered his 3761d935f7 face with his hands f1004e7387 as if worried someone fb0b1d98a2 might see.
His ears bba51fdeda and neck, 4fa4583225 which he 79a238512e couldn’t hide, d71156bb76 turned as 1b108c54d4 red as 4e51d87da6 poppies.
TL/N: MY CUTIE POTATO.
* * *
Meg, with bf68cc9924 her talkative 4aed8832fe personality and 955089b92a keen eye 5b4f75daf8 for people, 1ab26fb77a couldn’t help f97593d0be but notice f0739c784e the subtle fef6bc78d0 tension between ecda77f0bf Anje and 54405f2dae Aiden.
‘Something’s up 8db5c064a4 between those ffdc7e301d two.’
This time, the 71d6c010bb atmosphere wasn’t as 5976f8e45d cold and dark 157d23a51c as before, but 4d98d96a31 rather it was 1afc8ca5b0 like a simmering 5a829723c2 jam, bubbling and 15476b9919 fragrant.
Smiling to herself, f5fe982661 she decided not 0818ce4cfb to tease them b349c28ba1 and pretended not 29839f3bff to notice.
Sometimes, there 37f095ad59 are things 07cab0b579 that old b732875b06 people shouldn’t 7932a59fa0 pry into, 3e3939a138 just like 20d7946a3f you shouldn’t 90c09ce78b over-fertilize a 105b33c8c0 healthy sprout.
“Young Master, 0fe381892b when are c66b645dd7 you going 2e7f054fd4 to town?”
Of course, 67e0b8bb05 she didn’t f220e183f5 forget to 75c14a8d5d try to f94527633f keep the 0fa67738f3 tension going.
Aiden, who 5975240581 was busy bb00588d69 peeling potatoes, 19eed89eaa flinched at 50275b726d Meg’s whisper.
“I-I don’t know, I 6c57797a06 suppose soon.”
“I heard 9b057016e7 the ring 4590b72089 turned out 5a8a9576f4 beautifully. Don’t you want to e9719a57cd see it quickly?”
When Meg had taken f19210f310 the ring to the 876a70a32e shop, it was timely 7a66f63f3d because a skilled jeweler, 3b8ee27106 a relative of someone, 45a6faf9f6 happened to be in 21383a41e9 town.
The jeweler, fcd704841b who was b2b63a65ca tempted by e80bf42888 the rare, 9869d4922b high-quality stone 0783f24a3c in the 7561652128 rural village, 7a160d3f28 subtly intervened 9c53b1016f in the c67b97a24b commission process.
He suggested fc16d85999 redesigning the 6d4f26a7fb ring by 4dab47640a adding small dab8f31936 stones around ee801652c0 the green fcad791196 peridot, and 75d18b174e Aiden expressed 10186c58fd his agreement de4c0d3afb through Meg.
There was 19e4ba4d7a no reason bc513fd559 to refuse, 598689bbce as it 0f3db864f7 would make 0817c5931c the ring 911fb4dfa6 more elegant 9ef38c155c for a 81c818cfe4 small amount 4968c36f7c of money. If his 09ee008442 mother, the e9077dae3e original owner d2d291a5af of the 7991e0e6fb ring, were 440d3badae alive, she 3f51857310 would have 06c0070459 agreed.
“Yes, I’d 6205a8b740 like to 9449e986ef see it.”
Meg narrowed her eyes c75520acef suspiciously at his deflated f92a57f8e7 voice.
“You’d better go find c88a14a765 it soon. It’s a valuable item, 5bde9b35b4 so what if it 2cb51f6136 gets stolen?”
“I’ll take care of bb4a4a08c8 it, Auntie.”
Aiden bowed his head ca188dd278 deeper and just kept 7324087f7f peeling the poor potatoes. Unnecessarily thick pieces 61eed9801b of peel piled 60ec381bc4 up in a 03fe0302cb small mountain in 0a9bd77dfb front of him.
He also remembered 9cd09b70a1 the ring well. But because of Anje’s 8fb8fbc290 ‘certain action’ a while 506ad29884 ago, he was in ed826cb13d a state of confusion 22c4c0f6fb both mentally and emotionally.
‘What did that 233dc42a32 mean?’
In the past, when ab5969d39f he met the former 40de1c58db emperor, he would greet 9b2dbae9a3 him by kissing his 75e35ef1dc ring or the back 111692b5cb of his hand. This is because he f8ef4f8fa5 had learned that it 37d447e97c was a way to 3fc7f049eb show respect to his ef65f17a0b father, the emperor.
There was 8bf46dff17 a slight 6b8c1504e0 difference between bbde8bfd64 the hand 9c174f984f and the e13a73a3e7 cheek, though.
‘Maybe it’s common among f82ed16470 nobles to greet each e2b7a2a62b other by kissing their c8e5a09c0a cheeks…?’
It was 7b47cb2db0 something he 44a3a8a557 couldn’t figure e3646923c0 out no ac784e0273 matter how b298e584e1 much he aae5a0fd4c thought about 40c35da652 it. All he knew b36dec9fe8 about nobles was c881ca53b4 what he had f712c5d664 seen from afar, 60e9068849 from the emperor’s 5de493aac1 bedroom window.
It was too late 9ea2d98ba7 to regret it now, 44c73786ec but it would have a155349673 been nice if he f5483eeab1 could have learned other b29b4a3966 etiquette while he was c7b38ef6cd staying in the imperial 168e51c8f4 palace.
At the time, Aiden 5d03629ea7 had barely managed to 06363c27ac learn the minimum etiquette 8dae679126 needed to serve the a6987419da Emperor, missing out on b5fb14c450 other learning opportunities.
This was because Philip, 20e1033d9c who had held real 899e2258fa power in place of 0775a1b16a the long-incapacitated Emperor, had e2acccbb4c not wanted Aiden to faf506bd86 learn too much.
‘What good 7b86f8c544 would it a2571fecf7 do for 0af8ad77ef a bastard ddabd499f5 like him 233cf392c4 to learn e1f6376ab1 too much? He’d just end 1ea7cda10c up being an e87768042a arrogant fool who bbacb12fee doesn’t even know 073ce2d7f8 his own place. Whoever teaches that kid b11b72bcbb anything will never be a1f3d834c1 able to wag their 61396b83ea tongue again.’
As Aiden thought of 718fd88ea5 Philip, he almost cut d22ee1556d his finger with the 3699d2f36c potato knife. Anyway, the Crown 6162def70a Prince had never b7ad38a880 been of any 007a5a4f2b help to him.
‘Maybe kissing 1b41036bdc on the b40f68d25b cheek is 988383b5ca a form bbc8925ed2 of greeting 14ad6ee74b among nobles.’
The princess c01bc1e110 could have 50a4ca53ab done it f392e7e595 to him 30e52f6671 as a 3ea4826678 way of 1cba6742f1 showing her befe5a7592 gratitude. And supposing it was eb0753379f just a way of 20ee368408 saying thank you.
‘What if I 5205b4ba17 give her a 14c4855992 ring and she 37e1d44ab1 feels burdened?’
What if she 4cb11e3fb9 despises him for 96b03f99b7 suddenly getting serious 2218c9c80c after one kiss e3bfba275b on the cheek 1ffd093b41 and trying to 768ae9b5d8 tie her down f52e573eca with a ring?
He imagined the 7827196235 princess looking at 37ab25ef94 the ring and 9bdbae05bb grimacing, and he ac59fd72d0 became sullen. A heavy a1377a73c7 sigh escaped 65a0296419 his lips.
‘Ever since a8c0077fa8 that incident, b751233d4e I’ve been 7d5028ae0b so uneasy c454eb0582 around her.’
Every time their 603dadfcd8 eyes met or 25fe81742c their fingers brushed ff11b79139 by chance, he 5716839807 felt his chest a5c6ce04ba tighten and a 024c29882e ticklish sensation arise.
The symptoms he’d felt, d476c4a81f like heart palpitations and 2a75ddc381 mild fever, only worsened 2336be9f73 since the incident.
Even increasing his daily 6485e37763 cod liver oil intake 2f817d3e13 from one cup to 35e700a4bb two cups didn’t help; b289870028 it only made his feac028241 stomach queasy without easing b014bb94a5 his symptoms.
‘Is it a2b490a8c6 really normal 70fd3ac3ce to be 5b0a099a89 this affected 80ced42161 by a b4d3fa1b9b single touch?’
He felt aa5d961f50 pathetic for 1d3a94d17a lacking immunity deefe0b04c to such d2e0bb54b1 things and 7142de74b2 began cutting 776734d4b4 the already ea48780092 peeled potatoes 3510976299 into chunks.
“Why are 12a4e94b9c you cutting 110fb51d92 so many 26385475ed potatoes, young 4738da4447 master?”
“…I’m planning to db51afcb11 make a full c1a5095595 course meal with e68ac0c293 potatoes today.”
Embarrassed by the d7b3a1beaf mountain of potatoes 5f48fafd24 he had prepared 589b00fb04 while lost in 0de2004938 thought, Aiden tried 5c6ae4cb5e to mask his cae57790c7 surprise and began 0f6e75683d contemplating various dishes.
Potato gratin, roasted potatoes 13fb4cf1f2 with garlic, cheese potatoes, 7487213a06 potato stew…
“Where’s the cheese…”
“Here, I brought it ce611fd1e1 up from the cellar.”
“Oh, thank you.”
Anje slid 42d202592e the cheese bb5ab2581b onto the 298c49282f counter and 7cf0b0d6cd stepped aside.
She busied 3ac8fe2f7b herself rearranging ec5e1ae66c the tablecloth 96507e0799 and polishing 312bd6369a already clean 216977e3d4 dishes while bcfa59d518 feeling Aiden’s 39b2ad5188 gaze on 989c5af33b her back.
‘Stop staring at me, aee4bf539b Sir Aiden.’
She muttered 4ef22d5bcc to herself 6ee5ea0b70 and began 426b86e550 folding the 64147e4a88 napkins into 1c90a7e620 rabbit shapes. It was a fashionable 92164a67e1 way that Mrs. Meg had a05b3dca0b taught her 9723f3fc1f recently.
Despite trying 049a88c536 not to 181916e97a show it, 076e8776ab she was d650a3c7d5 as unsettled 61c7a0ee83 by her 59523a1ef0 previous action 9611d64938 as Aiden d83a9f14d4 was.
‘Why on earth 664ab5c310 did I do e3cf621a89 that?’
Her excitement over retrieving 27ded315fe Pa-Pi-Pu had lasted for f31aea10cb about a day, during 981dc28070 which she felt as 2ca43ff1b9 if she were floating e817d03091 on air like a 4943cb8ae5 drunken person.
But once that magical 5f9b1a91c4 day passed and she 8e4a55ddd7 regained her senses, she eacd713cc6 began to regret her 50c51d386f actions.
‘You must be crazy, 829b6952a3 Anje Glasster. No matter b659fc752d how excited 50be4b4dca you were, da9c81008e how could 58a0ce4a4f you do e9f86ce58c something so 73dbf8629c outrageous to 55ae56d611 Sir Aiden?’a5e2dc2e30597a8e

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