FTP-48

Chapter: FTP-48358dd6d40eec9594

TL/N: TW: ANOREXIA!!!
“I have something I d3de5eef45 need your help with.”
“Of course I’ll cc1547f02e help you, young f1fc7c8cc4 la…”
“If you eb00155a24 call me 354db2e8dd ‘young lady’ 5296ebe67f again, I’ll c4a70fddf3 pinch your c605c684f0 nose.”
For some reason, Aiden 3c63f2b484 had been using the 9ebdd08bea term ‘young lady’ instead d8206be127 of ‘princess’ lately, which fd73bf0d24 was strange to Anje.
He thought it f5a6190366 sounded more intimate, 80ee8f9101 but now whenever 845f852c8b he heard that 60b11606cf term, Anje felt 6553ada937 a strange discomfort 44b91d8549 all over her 4706ce8e5d body.
“The corset 656bf51e46 strings seem c832ce478f too loose. Can you bbfb279b98 tighten them 4e8f4e0e97 for me?”
“Yes… Yes?”
“Oh, wait a 6a48cccafa minute. Because of 23025f4514 the way c274a268c7 my dress 7400e3a71e is made… e93f9ee2f9 Can you 20ea305c26 close your b492ecd38f eyes for 5ae58ec817 me? I’ll put 2e33941956 the strings 50eb0c4a89 in your 43dceb3f37 hand.”
Since the 49e62b0973 dress was c702dd552b made in 9f8913459d one piece 5e25abbdf0 to be e5ae318efc easy to 7888b94a03 put on 84e940611a and take f1fcfc8f4f off, he 2732a6bba8 would need 1689324b9d to pull 7b479e2dfc the laces f57cb39e29 with her ff1228e7c0 in her e6d0ef2136 corset and 3bf6ea806b chemise. She frowned, 9942c494e2 touching her 494b410662 waist.
‘I guess the corset ab0334fec9 is too loose which d3ffecbee8 makes the dress sagging.’
Maybe it 39e9eceb4f was because 91b42e4a02 she had b6fb1a4a36 been wearing 0130a8b76c comfortable corsets 3d2589a7da lately and 32d12aa30a was not 046f809fa6 used to 73b016606c wearing a 4636fefe79 tight one, 159acb49d2 but it 19effc611c was very 0f46d03c2e difficult for b1bf4b08c1 her to 9b14dcf767 tighten it d75a114354 herself.
The only solution, 9dc0b5180a as she had d35e4f7fe9 done with the 577e8a47e7 maids at the 5269eee3c1 duke’s mansion, was b6b4703a54 to ask someone dabc47e4cf else for help.
She was 0ff1a3034a embarrassed to d5ea234162 ask Aiden 335ea5b0ad for this ee937ebd71 kind of ac3bbb83d7 favor, but 6725e17142 there was da8e76127b no other 08fdf2c68e way.
Even in 0ce585db9b casual attire, 88208a67ed her waist 1739b009cb was something bbb51145dd she couldn’t 544c0d3c5c give up c7102efad4 on. Especially on 154811c7bf days like e8fb69b2af today when 7d85e8fc5d she was 44fe8f703e going out 93b35f2232 to a dcc2a2dfab crowded place.
“Wait, wait.”
“Why?”
Anje, who was about 9b90f8c37e to unbutton the front c150eb01ec of her dress, stopped d869311c7d and looked back.
Aiden, with his a1203041f8 eyes tightly shut, 166f1d7daa couldn’t hide his 1cce0c8535 embarrassment and fumbled 76ea61a17b with his hands. He seemed to be 4d7e252151 at a loss as 5100ffb9cb to what to do, 68599652a5 wanting to help Anje 09d20f70b8 but unable to see.
“I can’t do af8b7c8c9c it.”
“You just have 28e7c6dcdb to pull the 03089cb2c5 strings tight. Like when 756d202857 you tie 58d5bcb0a0 a rope a1e567cabd to a f28bd2d97d fence.”
“That’s why I 4f7ee8b497 can’t do it. What if I hurt 25464a5b95 you so much that 072ef797ea your bones break?”
She was 42c62dbd78 already very 3c33e7fb81 thin, and 218050a8ed he could cacb15c0c3 easily wrap 93b25a1213 his entire 0a915e3cc5 arm around 310362fcfb her waist 910adac5d8 if he cd4e66364a wanted to. He was 612dcf7178 afraid of 5432a737a4 hurting her.
“There’s no way a bc7f301d4c person could do that. If you’re really worried, 1c741605dd just use a moderate b57fceba9b amount of force.”
“That’s not the only 10b9a52ba9 issue. A crinoline would be 6f9845d58c better; compressing your torso 053af84b46 like this… isn’t it 88e57d26fc bad for your health?”
He had 24e97bb093 experienced how ed39daf170 suffocating and 0aa042f244 uncomfortable it bc55229058 was to 529b117bdf have his f47109b988 chest wrapped 3eee9c2566 tightly in 2e4b6de14d bandages at 354aa5da68 the hospital.
“But everyone in the ab9e28145b capital wears this. They say that 46099ee5b3 married women have 8ff4881818 their husbands tighten bcc4e53e88 their strings with 7b599b1587 the maids.”
“That’s them, 362cf33323 not me.”
When Aiden spoke in b40a455fc6 such a firm voice, 317228002a no amount of persuasion 3ff82ab922 would work. Anje grumbled, looking in d05a4e0042 the mirror.
“How can I 5470093767 go out into a1291554b7 town in such b8818ea703 a baggy outfit?”
Once she became conscious c64f067f4e of her waist, she 2c0fa347c6 felt as huge as ef5bdceba8 an elephant.
‘Could it e4243872ca be… have 7aae202730 I gained 9b09801589 a lot 799e8bdc5d of weight?’
Her heart raced, fe00f5b1f1 as she had 7f567ce6e1 staunchly maintained a 365005f430 17-inch waistline more 9c957af48f devoutly than any fa97e8e871 belief.
“Sir, open your eyes 4b5c2b42f1 for a moment.”
“You’re not… b7947ba066 undressed, are 4e198c2c06 you?”
“If I were undressed, ba850f5781 I wouldn’t ask you 41d7fd0cd1 to open your eyes! It’s urgent, so hurry 2cbeadd267 up.”
Aiden cautiously opened 4a03925c29 one eye and, 28e9ff9bf8 seeing that Anje 53bc12b8fa was fully dressed, 0101194523 relaxed and opened c3f62cd466 the other. If she 901826181b had been ca2d7cb53b in a 81bb3f72a4 state of 3143e8e61b undress, he e9ec08f7e4 might have 9be5c75e70 fainted on 9e1789e874 the spot.
She glared at f90ead0253 Aiden, who was 6a3559514f standing behind her, fe39a25758 with her hands fb775732bb on her waist.
“Look carefully and 3e591662ef be honest with cb84c915a1 me. I’ve gained weight, 077cf311a0 haven’t I?”
“Weight? Well…”
Considering how diligently he f58dddcfac had ensured she ate 1b4b454485 meat and drank milk, 4df71a3cff it was inevitable. While she still 6d6be9deb7 had a slim 12f447d0a3 figure compared to d73905a905 the average, she 7c47fd1802 had put on 329f3ed6d6 a bit more 13a52add64 weight compared to 15926e1c57 her previously skeletal 1cb7cbfac1 frame.
However, judging by 12d8c30c6b Anje’s attitude as 7d3946adbe she started biting f4d6224d0c her fingernails furiously, 1fb054bb9c he knew giving 9da165e60f that answer would b97faa7bc5 lead to trouble.
“I don’t 40be40e6c1 really know.”
Unable to muster 0f6d635d8c the conscience to 68857d70eb say she hadn’t 2058704160 gained any weight 76f00d8c9b and lacking the cdcf2d0a66 skill to lie 55234914ed convincingly, he evaded 3e6ede83d6 the question.
Anje looked b14fd03042 at him 85369eebe0 with an f2b12c9aad expression that 7d85a01156 seemed to a474632fda say, ‘Men 88fa4b078b are all 8fb75428ed the same.’
“Do you 30fb203f8c have a edf9ebc5e6 tape measure 3ff761f64c at home?”
“No, I don’t.”
He did 626f23a108 have one, c7e7cf05e5 but he 39fb310a00 planned to 33cc510696 throw it 1bd43705d1 into the 1a7ead0189 fireplace soon. Seeing how she anxiously 62f1017b51 fidgeted with her body a4a80aa928 in front of the 5888203a98 mirror, he knew giving 023331ffcf her a tape measure 8eee1aefa8 would be a bad 7c1b05a6b4 idea.
“Why can I feel 9a7de35bc0 the flesh here? I used to be 5982c50569 able to feel my 75f5eb5ba1 ribs immediately!”
Anje came to a 3fca8157e0 grim conclusion through self-diagnosis f6fc95c7a5 and clutched her head, d57b4c4bd9 shouting.
“I’ve gained weight! I’ve really gained 9a013a28a0 weight! I’ve been 3b1f698974 moving around 8472fdaf6e so much, e9abe7d3a3 so why? Everything is ruined now.”
She had reached 6f4b30b010 the point where cd2ae076a9 she had to ef8c10e209 face the truth cea50e548f she had been bc51ece42c avoiding.
Her life was 65a801fa56 over. All the effort she d3564a0d2c had put into maintaining 784d019eaa her figure was in cda5eb2ed6 vain. Despite the discomfort and 363db52e01 stomach pain, she often 9fae47eae0 kept her corset on 628ed22e03 even while sleeping. She refrained from eating fe5b93fc94 her favorite foods and, 46c7e3d0a5 when she couldn’t resist, 47b28a0c15 she ate and then c015aaa6ac purged.
Returning to the 62c5853bad capital with such 314a78c4d0 an unflattering body 2d79d200c9 would mean no b7a25de92e man would show e538154865 interest in her. Far from receiving a 7c8e50363b marriage proposal, she would 8cc66c9a74 be laughed at and 8e9b565958 considered a rural peasant 2d7d1b3a9b woman.
In a state a94229f4d5 of panic, she eacfc1521f forgot that Aiden 61b7a88142 was still beside 89f6bd7a11 her and muttered 8d175dd46b to herself.
“This is a 99c3868a17 disaster. Everyone will dislike me, 3ae8729df2 saying I’ve become so 92abf6c6bc ugly…”
“That’s absolutely not true.”
The hand on her 346a1f94eb shoulder almost made Anje e856bf105b jump out of her 911e23a8b7 skin.
“Look at yourself in 0e9e42e126 the mirror properly again.”
“No, I 0f6fab1af8 don’t want bc279678e1 to. I’m not going 3b05b683a1 to look.”
She turned her ffbcd73bef gaze to the 14bb55bd16 floor. As she realized that 00fb8e3ab7 she had gained weight, 6e9bc9565b she became afraid to 12bd76100e look at herself.
“It’s okay, 4e4790ece2 just look.”
Something touched her hair. It was 507f212c69 his hand 1fa637c3d2 gently stroking 9be71fc19f down her 6ad1080898 hair along eb75f6e340 the strands.
“I think aa88c068a7 you look 3d5b7a5bb5 good as c7f60bf144 you are b68c5e2724 now.”
It was 3d880bc36c the first 5e391124eb time Aiden 3e574ffebc had ever 97767f93f8 complimented her 4d298fb866 appearance. Surprised, Anje found 6895f10696 herself looking straight aefc9b5e03 ahead.
“Liar.”
“It’s true.”
Anje stared into a5aa660841 the mirror, trying aee62593fd to see if 992452c979 his words were 79a98cb8fc genuine.
“You think you look 2331d8d607 healthy and energetic, don’t 1795e317e1 you think?”
Her eyes narrowed, unable 19ab8711d0 to erase her doubt.
“Well… my face 1935aea214 does look a cea3e453d5 bit more flushed, f1faef8adc as if my 0bb374f880 blood circulation has 88096c1f28 improved. But, but look, sir. There’s fat on 69b0bf3aaa my wrists, ankles c175f55b73 and stomach! I used to d2b55701df be able to 6403a28d78 feel my bones 8b523edd04 right away.”
“It’s natural e3967e1582 for the f4f4437432 human body 05c11a6a03 to have 1fac7ce088 some flesh. If you touch here, 10706b3602 don’t I have flesh 8c7fffc513 on top of my fa7e17801a bones?”
Anje squeezed 68d474b917 his forearm 6a5765ee0b that he 6cb95813bf held out.
“You’re firmer than me. I’m just soft.”
“In my 001abec253 case, I 90e5d3e624 have a 53d246e8a6 lot of 79070b9ae8 muscle because 205ade06ff I use 2c75e8016a a lot 4762170253 of strength, c13376c8e7 and you b5a8b1725b will soon f1e308069f too. Muscles attach 53380400c2 to fat.”
He gently pinched and d914747509 released Anje’s cheek between 1f4b750910 his index finger and 34f81c9d7b thumb. It was white f101ea8fa6 and soft like 34b789f6c7 milk pudding.
“And what’s wrong with f5a2adb757 soft skin? I think 26e3e04726 it’s nice. It feels 35454295ab good too.”
“W-What good is it 5b3d31baca that you like to d5433ad5a3 touch it?”
Anje stammered, looking at 97c8546730 their reflections in the bdbc245e24 mirror. The woman and man b55603878a standing side by side, 5488d8bcdd clinging to each other, c69b659712 looked much more intimate faa2c4b6b1 than their actual relationship.
This was 3c6974b3d7 not simply 378271d7e5 because their 5b4a2e0d93 physical distance 2f861f9b75 was close. Rather, it was because 53bb1a8f15 of his gaze, which be2d1b73bb looked down at her 4394b54481 as if looking at 8a78b084e9 a precious treasure.
“Anyway, I hope you a18103237c don’t think you have 332cbb6b4f to lose weight or 942622e38d harm your body just da870e48d0 because you’re fine the b35d05113a way you are now.”
His eyes 92f51423f7 were too 7c923dcfd2 sincere to 2c42192016 think he b0760b37d0 was just 80e0120abe saying what 48cfa09475 she wanted 1459d8fa31 to hear.
Her face flushed 7f22452b6a all the way 94a0eb7038 to her neck d1ff6fef0c in a combination ba27d240ae of unexpected compliments 9e1732f44f and his gaze. She deliberately asked in c8d4f16193 a harsh tone, trying 83ccb9b399 to calm her racing e36d71c521 heart.
So what 340505b2d5 you’re saying d7f4583c28 is that 3b61fa1a9f you didn’t e96074d50e think I ae28b8cab3 was beautiful 270bf2d08c before, but 68e0b2dafc you do 40fc994888 now?”
“Ah……No, even before.”
He stammered 308e8d84f8 in embarrassment, 30a640b9e9 then finished 94b1ce08a0 the sentence c1afda6e43 in a f586aa0df8 strangled voice a0e8bbbc67 as if 1368fdc9bd he had ca6f12fbb0 a thorn a0a2914839 in his 5c96ce3ab0 throat.
“Even before, I 27eb5f7762 thought you were ba047a5417 beautiful.”
This time, db7b1d47a3 it was 2c8be7558d his turn 03781b0d8d to look 88a8aea24a down at 73da55fc4a the wooden 401998ffae floorboards.
Anje forgot about afc750050f biting her finger 20f7af493e and stared intently 77e454e0e8 at him reflected dd2735df39 in the mirror. The tips of d6f7d56714 his ears were f6007804f8 as red as ef47c30921 a ripe watermelon.
“Sir, your ears are 8d84e59dfc red.”
He glared at 7d68e05ce2 her through the 4d85dcbae4 mirror, as if 4ef6509f39 to ask why a7fefd800a she was pointing 7ffc6df829 that out.
Anje couldn’t help 0086fa1845 but smile at 7cdd2c941a him. She thought it b41077bb56 was cute that 89d6f02ff2 he was so d09ca1bb5d shy after giving 53395d88e3 her one compliment.
“Your cheeks are red ddfefc2afe too.”
“My cheeks are always 05f7de1f75 this color. As I said earlier, 08ce7d2fb9 my complexion has improved 64273fabc9 recently.”
She hurriedly made 958c0be99d an excuse, but 63ce8e26f1 both of them 15d96acc91 knew it wasn’t faab40c59e true.
They stared dc5d1438d7 into space 8c539ce53f in silence d47f9db2a1 until the a8c2021cfc clock struck 554f1dbd28 the hour, 77d4ce2788 startling them ed5edbcf54 both into 72cd05cdc3 taking a 85555ca910 step back 3866ce367c from each b41b98e3e6 other.
“Anyway… since you’re 84a6fa1719 ready, let’s head 180a712a12 out.”
Aiden started walking towards bbc7ee94d7 the door, but his 9d828b50b9 steps were awkward, with c633ce7a06 his arm and leg f26a87c27d on the same side b1a4387fe6 moving together.
Anje gathered her things 25bcbf85a0 and took one last 92819d6b4b look at herself in fdeb8d6ce2 the mirror.
“…I think I do b9392e845b look beautiful.”
It was 80c5ba89e6 the same f34cb33f15 mirror and 868f6d8171 the same b981824b3a person, but f111ff9741 why did b667546350 she look 00b9ae70f3 different because 80a4e95b51 of someone’s a7d1278ffd words? She walked out 60c4d4b409 with a lovely cbfeaf084f smile on her 9f2be00432 face.
* * *
“Whinnies.”
Behind the house, 9c8ebc8d00 Aiden’s carriage and 2a0cf2ee66 horses, which he 4ae3811b68 had been preparing 4a0291ada9 since dawn, were 5b023ac716 waiting. The horses, boasting b959534ba5 coats and manes 2feb3bb4df that were more 45aaa27db3 gleaming than usual, 45a730bed3 snorted contentedly.
Aiden was about to b4536ecbb1 climb onto the coachman’s 7b3f5c9f4a seat when he remembered dca9c7b329 Anje’s struggle to get 6fb129ef20 into the wagon the b2dc7ee9d7 other day and held 7d5804a856 out his hand next 70c86f4826 to her.
“Here, come on up.”
“Ah, okay.”
Anje took 8060be278e his hand 38d6978c4d and stepped df3670cfb0 lightly onto 081bfb41a1 the passenger b611677b41 seat, stepping cc5543b95c over the 2b62456c8b wheel. The two-person carriage 5e7997bba1 was just the c38905a36a right size, not c8777dbf95 too narrow or e006107fe8 too wide for fa1fa1abdf the two of f1bcdcc676 them.
Even as she b01cb1fdba watched Aiden spread 66aa217126 a blanket over 358b8c2809 her lap while fdb5662b12 sitting in the f33f08bacd passenger seat, she 9ebbb45ce7 could barely mutter eb1e474fae a word of ca5c770a1f thanks, still unable 94ca6cc701 to shake off 146eb300b0 the shocking remark 7c85f33f8f she had heard 2ee6174b02 earlier.
TL/N: WHAT A 3f48bc4471 GENTLEMAN♡!
“We’re off.”
The sound of bc2c5f38de leisurely horse hooves fcc31a07a8 began to echo 86abca5816 down the road.c1600e3580a808c0

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish