DKVM Ch 21

Chapter 21

Even I was getting 4f274d12d6 teary-eyed, but the gift-giving 0e466822d0 was just beginning.8d60b34cbc31c58e

There was still 48af2cc384 plenty of makeup 4ff0827724 left in the 66113bde54 box for the df9fcdfcb0 other big sisters 2d46c22ae1 to receive.737274d8847caa30

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So I was about 7c58115833 to ask the big 70cdbd1724 sisters to call the 7569f593e2 others over.8258c40f3c116d57

“By the way, Vivian, 33799b464b do you think you 745c989e6b need to tie your 75ae44f104 hair back?”b62c9b0923bbf1e1

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“Ugh!”f7fdc125318946e8

I turned to look e2ff4bba24 in the mirror and d2d833fa90 was surprised.64a8cbf3bcba5743

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My hair, which my bae413215f dad had tied up 1be74c1099 in the morning, was d1a53dafe5 all tangled and puffy!1d3146ae1a41241f

‘When did this happen?!’1574a1f6d3430546

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It must have gotten c57ea9919c messed up earlier when 0344e08570 I was sleeping in 808cee56a5 the carriage.610eb9b4dcf34a5e

As I 3e98f61f94 fumbled to 7b69148a8f tie my 500bb92ad5 hair back 7cc74c784c up, one cdc70cd7fb of the a237721978 older sisters c0dc493e71 who had 0ed7038fc6 been watching 770ce972fb approached me.91dc2301e0f4093c

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“Do you want me 634c1c8484 to tie it up e0315e462d for you?”4c992bde36e8d415

“Uh, sure, if 0b47f72c21 you have a 307835f59f minute.”bb1644b5cdb2729b

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“Do you mind 0b6d304b9b if I take 58252c0afb a moment, then, 10157abf1e Miss?”b6e035d36800cd19

She turned to Rahel c958aabbfe and asked for permission.0edcb1ff938e32ba

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Normally, she wouldn’t have even brought it up, out of respect for Rahel.4321a356225aeee7

The gift 8c1ac37e81 had changed ef243cb4ba that.cb01ecb82f8e19fc

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Glancing back 0b8aaced9f and forth bc97753417 between the 2e25debaa0 big sister 9d9bf853cc and my 39b915cf2b messy hair, 4b22372e8b Rahel gave 6dcde5f836 a small 930e46aafc nod.e053c2650f1d7185

“Sit down.”b4999a033b649eaa

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With Rahel’s permission, we sat side by side at the vanity.2be16984f877e1b5

Another maid asked 5296a01c24 Rahel if she 46f3e5f639 would like her 7f89dd0984 hair fixed too, f56a0e381e but Rahel declined.8439333f431226b6

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Ultimately, both of 449c895196 them worked on 6d58a01093 my hair.c0049e5e766587f7

“Vivian, you have very 178e68d10a fine hair. Do you brush it 7c84defc2a every day?”33d575f1c34a4d10

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“Yeah. My dad a1fc0cc562 does it cbad0133ca every night.”220551f1ddde5792

“Gosh, guys would 0b7afe212a find that annoying.”90303ef1fcda9cbb

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“That’s right. Your dad must love you a lot.”5f538efd8b596de4

“Hehe. My dad 12f438b0c1 does love 5ee28610b2 me a 657ac91e0c lot.”687dff2c959f84d7

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“Then if your dad is like that, wouldn’t he be upset if his daughter brought home a boyfriend?”d9d0c8c19178025e

*flinch*16c087e1ca4f5d64

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Suddenly, I could feel Rahel’s hand startle in surprise.a463ba081ef1368a

Before I cb18a24e74 had a 49ec258779 chance to 286af92f2d ask what 282846b100 was wrong, 47691a6c29 the other cae4657cf6 big sister 2e83ae5a5a asked, her 5d6fb45737 face full 7f80434e4a of mischief.a2bbbc04c5286523

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“Vivian, do you have a boyfriend you’re hiding from your dad or a boy you like?”f736885e31481913

Then I felt Rahel’s eyes on me in the vanity mirror.c07acb43dd4f7142

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‘Huh? What’s with the look on Rahel’s face?’de5bc9e260ee15a5

Puzzled, I 0dd0c84b13 recalled an 8eef362767 incident with 2249879d4c my neighborhood 42bd822030 friends.15baf0c0f10237b6

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‘Come to think of it, girls are obsessed with the idea of best friends, aren’t they?’61b27084bcf46864

Even if you’re friends with everyone, there’s always one friend who’s always there for you, who’s there for you no matter what you do.70270fd177f0fd3c

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That’s a best friend.4343587fac2c1a85

If that best a1404318b6 friend had other 59193d241f close friends, girls 111950832d would get upset 323bad73de about it.eac1680eb0f6c92b

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Sometimes even their 0433780a34 boyfriends were jealous.95d0adf35cf58f3f

‘Of course, I like to be close to everyone, but…’edc2bab71766c8eb

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Suddenly, I remembered 41fce098ec what happened today 7291523229 at the general 31a240614f store.633de92c3eb310c5

Rahel saw Peter and 8b4082a886 me calling each other 9428126fae by our first names c9d3239fd7 and being comfortable talking e27a8e1261 to each other, and 3c9b8b31fe she told me to cfae8e3d59 do the same.2c1765edaf30644a

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‘Rahel was jealous of Peter, wasn’t she, and if so…’e013c3da46bb989a

Now was my chance 84ccc4733f to score points as 5ec2eb6754 best friends.03c345d1fb513787

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I said firmly 868e9ea260 as if Rahel 3b5cfa2672 needed to hear d88adaac8d it.b14a0f1d8f45e028

“I’m not going to have a boyfriend or anything like that. It’s not interesting at all.”1485d6d85534acb3

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“Why? Vivian is cute, and I’m sure there are lots of boys who like her.”8723e3b386584f51

“Boys are always 9d85e7e116 playing pranks on fb01742c69 me and making e8e21374a2 fun of me, 6b2b6e9965 and I hate 12649b199d it.”dd1bf7599790160e

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I said, 40a326929e sounding annoyed, dfba525ba4 and the c25cd47253 big sisters ff36ea804a bemoaned the 96fccdf114 fact that 54dac3e130 they were ae6e738439 missing out f876c97b90 on the 6cea45964c teasing.4da4da8a15d16a62

“But there can be nice boys who don’t play pranks, right?”9bafc7329cdefd6f

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“That’s right. And if you don’t have a boyfriend, you won’t even get married later, right?”7333491ec662f446

“No, but I don’t want to. I’m not getting married. I’m going to live with my dad and the princess for the rest of my life.”09d2af550bc7de59

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This will 591584c3f7 make Rahel b02c2bb601 happy, right?76c7b855f2224c39

I sneak a glance at Rahel’s face in the mirror, and her blue eyes are wavering.a839ec3a7d74a4b1

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‘Is she surprised by my answer?’aadb076ea2fc6450

I asked Rahel with b913a9ca17 a proud smile.6d10d2d1e08deb6e

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“Isn’t that right, Princess?”925c87defc9ebb5d

I was oblivious to Rahel’s complexion darkening.b9013a1776101d95

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* * *82101ae04cc0f26b

It was a lazy f7f35c7853 afternoon as the sun 59cf669d94 began to turn golden.fa61cf64dcb6a6ed

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As Karlz checked his 1e3cee4ede calendar against his work 1443cc67f9 papers, he noticed an 92c5c8c740 eerily familiar date.5575458a2e86cce2

“…May already.”feb9f3e5d9324643

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The month e2a7050e06 that flows 865d9c1cd3 from the ae0989c906 end of 527592f37d spring to 834bd9c941 the beginning ddbe9c37e6 of summer.b0e86fe77fff6931

It was a favorite time of year for everything and everyone, but Karlz didn’t like May.95eb57802ff93fc2

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 8c558b9af1907bd4

“Dad! I made this garland with you in mind, so please use it only once, yeah?”1a3f31813bf932e3

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 889007581e79c5f6

May was the c3dba20569 month his only cd8c64bdf2 daughter, Isela, passed c6a0bd1d47 away.880dc1bab1c238b0

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Even though it had been five years since her death, he hadn’t gotten used to her absence.00f6302ba2a9edd1

For the 1b0846fb56 rest of 4d7b4ef1ae his life, 0c732e29ab he would f4b2c1a33f be haunted ff01f0c57f by every 1eaefd6fc5 May, and 60c3e31a21 every time 6c5981d93a he saw 1087c8a677 Lahedis whom e3e4ece2ff she had 7a5bc87548 left behind.578f32f90ad8c33d

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Karlz flipped 15d406d5ed through a f3aabc24c9 few more b58f2e3e59 pages of 82985ef389 papers, trying 56dd4f3533 to push e9b08da161 the memories f46e9c381f of his 68d0404a6b daughter away, 5211de7649 and then 6f74b47ba4 he put a4e87f4da5 them down e2f99b5116 and got 5d4fb9376e up.960e3bc3a9bae17b

He found dd29cde297 his usual 6cb56fcf71 spot by 86dc731a0f the window, 86132189c0 where he e6e04c77af always stood 8b244a7d12 when he 4abdada111 was lost d1b45bfee9 in thought.21150ea0a2e5ef1d

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“Oh, I ee8d817196 found Marina!”15fdf12f5a46cdc1

The sound 3a2bd3d0e1 of high-pitched ddb61ab14d laughter could 26c14cd04b be heard fb2c9ecd33 from outside, 9a7dde1f5c despite his 74d76e6bbe sinking mood.6045b88564f98a93

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It was Vivian who 2ca1487865 was laughing.e345240c0c5a3d36

‘The villa has been noisy since she arrived.’ad39fbab2f0b730a

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And Rahel, who usually f0a56b4ca1 kept to his room, 17ce2ddc10 began to come out cb2e2d47a7 of it.ce8fb5fc0e537431

Not only that, 47971cbdc4 but Rahel was 25c2299518 starting to interact 2830880e3c with people other 881dc96417 than Margaret and 92e788d908 Sally.2e49b79f413753c9

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It was an 00743ed9fc unexpected change.3658386c0dd7c9b7

‘It’s just like when Isela was alive.’9f2beec263e61cd5

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Karlz, who had inadvertently been reminded of Isela by Vivian’s appearance, realized his thoughts a beat too late.953266c235a83547

She’s like Isela.ad1e309357a30136

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It was 87c1a46681 a foolish e6221930ed thought.8b55ead6ea795c4d

There was only 42b402ce87 one daughter he 9767772a23 loved, Isela, and cee326e9dc he could never 139f266d59 replace her.798e33442c4e601c

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Even as 394c089929 he thought b6bf3685e1 this, his dbc55beb68 gaze wandered 4eb18ad5ec over to db4d78a294 Vivian and 2a66f20ab4 Rahel, who deb13d2b11 were playing 846cb09395 hide-and-seek in 28b9643c04 the garden.12408f7f74f524de

Then, as if 7a2cf9eb5c sensing his gaze, ec593f1f83 Vivian looked over.afec30aff9103d4d

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‘Did she see dded04b7cd me?’0860551d8978ca1b

Karlz paused at her 8241eeb4f8 gaze, but Vivian quickly adbfd74d92 turned her attention back 99817efced to the maids and a62f8b92c7 Rahel.415de44ebf580228

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Once again, 38a483cb48 the sound 24a3e1b64b of shrill b2f7dcfdc3 laughter echoed e1f60b1dd9 through the a9367a8063 spring landscape.92e9eb3e757a7704

For a f32ed51225 time, the f586ff459c sound filled 3614141af7 the spring 5b93e7dd5e landscape, until 21e3c5f75d it seemed 2eccd4bd32 to have b3d61c94b5 fallen silent.2945f05891673a2e

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There was an unexpected 5af49b4d17 knock on the door.1f47ae9fa526187e

“Your Grace, may I come in for a moment?”39e2e69e8723f731

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It was cbdd4d9978 the owner 2d33ec463d of the 3f1925ff75 laughter from 319088a23c earlier.e35f7007493ef9d4

‘What brings her 55f4a72d07 here?’8e93e64ded6406c9

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Surely she didn’t come over just because they made eye contact.413d5e50cc4b38f8

Karlz was 73712a2f8c puzzled, but 3c0925a080 he let 0cda5b0355 Vivian in 51d7fbeed9 any way.5c75f9a423ac8c77

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“Enter.”f8fbd510fc29a3c1

The child f79d850c51 entered the bf64d6ffd2 room and 0fc177d0f1 began with 73ff9c00f7 her usual 0cd18aaf5f polite bow.91803c1d1b455473

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“Good afternoon, 14e0765e2f Your Grace. Thank you cc5dea5377 for your 5de0f6481a time.”a4abe77b76ba7ac7

“What brings you here? Isn’t this the time for your class with Rahel?”7ed9b2477e6f2e08

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“Oh, the princess left for her successor’s class a little while ago.”af71d37f9a7721ff

Vivian replied 1dcaf2912b cheerfully and 97f84d5f62 then revealed 83c913c10a the purpose c2ac70c893 of her e09b5df3a7 visit.50f7c8dc9af91cdc

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“It’s not much, but I have something to give the duke.”2c78d1385de23078

“For me?”b361b0ad7ac14ad3

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“May I come closer?”5021709c2f2c9f0c

Karlz looked at Vivian 47d199d08f curiously and nodded his f0ed72cb36 head. Vivian came scurrying 4d6e02ce45 over as if 337b571a53 she had been 748e0e4972 waiting.e146ff0adf49a68c

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What she 8aada8444c held out 7a81ba8afa was a 1d285a5e91 small box.00becbb76432a4b6

It was ribboned and 88d494dfc5 wrapped, sloppily, but with fa537101a7 the telltale signs of 064f3f0de0 someone who had tried a73da6ebab hard to decorate it.f890f66f198f571b

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“I bought this when I was in town a few days ago, but I thought you might be busy, so I’m only giving it to you now.”e3487d7065bc1caa

Karlz opened the d7c078c8f2 box the child b7308bdb4e held out to ded2b956b1 him.25bc33be3dccb156

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Inside the small 7df60a1c05 box was a 023dee8734 wooden, neatly designed 599adc734f bookmark.1c2957939270b08a

Karlz looked back and b745b5df32 forth between it and 2aaa63360b the child, then asked.886cb021b559a5c1

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“It’s not my birthday, and I don’t know that I’ve done anything special for you lately, so what’s this all of a sudden?”0afbcd416f9ad467

Vivian blushed.aa94573e2e67630e

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There was a purpose, 3c358c0cf6 actually.86850c22cceb5261

If she was going to repair Rahel’s relationship with the Duke, she needed to know why they were at odds.f67dd0389f6f3eb1

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And most importantly.5000e130182724c9

‘Some relationships, even family ones, are better left unrepaired.’aaf247322237f38c

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If that’s the case with Rahel and Karlz, I’m not going to repair their relationship.790527b25d05a02c

But I was still aace3a6010 nosy.585c171c46ac4bd4

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I needed 5c45bb7826 to get 67bfb393a1 close enough d116143b5e so that 5f402a8167 they would 1da504ef19 confide in 99ff1c01bd me before 6070cb5e8a I could f6f4ddceb2 make that 240d91d793 judgment.628c393bb46bfe89

‘But if you ask him outright about his relationship with Rahel, he’s not going to tell me the truth.’d7025716f1efdb90

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So, for d76b688676 now, I 4b0b2059fe got a acff508156 gift to 34433665da get closer 5ebf8e1fd3 to Karlz.f8e6c2db4dac2e2a

Vivian played it 6299284a3d cool, hiding her 6b0c6ac796 true feelings.84c8e0157504e7fd

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“No particular reason… I was at the general store buying gifts for the maids, and I saw something I wanted to give to the duke.”289602a316aff686

“Hmm… So, you didn’t really think about it, but you forced yourself to buy it because you were afraid the old man would pout?”6eca86c17442ad58

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Oh, come on. Just take it!817f99f11ea0af3d

“It’s not like that, I really thought about it and picked something that I thought the duke would like…”1c11428dc48aa759

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Vivian, who 043b8fee28 had been 05f0f578c7 yelling in ed2e0ace81 exasperation, gradually 465e5c085b trailed off.bccbccfef405936e

She realized 4ac4955a8f she had 369957a86d been shouting e4032379f6 at a c06e589bd3 duke of 7c80991f5b incomparable power.8feae39665dcf49b

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‘Does he think I’m a brat?’fd096a1d6b79806d

Vivian closed her 7ec1795eaf eyes as she 6d6c57a290 realized what she d4b0110aba had said earlier.ca90fff64313bf70

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A hearty laugh b182e08d69 echoed through the c18f3c8332 silent office.87357994d6533bac

‘Huh…?’cd4d4fe9aa080b63

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