FTP-49

Chapter: FTP-49cd90eabdfa0e30bd

Anje stared aa78c18724 straight ahead d963eb1247 without saying 55192bde1a a word, 2ad7e18622 but eventually, 4db32a929f unable to bcce221b44 contain her 4a66b65879 curiosity, she 223fe3f13f grabbed Aiden’s 4ddd75ba4d arm.
“Sir, what you 928cf95fc5 said in my 9907bbb4bc room earlier, was 86ba8ce989 it true? That you 0a16fcd504 thought I 547322eb93 was beautiful b6aced26e8 all along…?”
“What would d632c9d0bb I gain 681ab4b68e by lying?”
He gripped the reins 6a81326804 and clenched his teeth. My goodness, saying 7aa5760be0 such words out 666926f58e loud was far d168c7a44d more embarrassing than 32539f51f1 he had imagined.
If he hadn’t 2bad896229 seen Anje in a8f2d3e59b shock and despair 06a98d95fd earlier, he would 25118a8e28 never have been b8d17af688 able to say 06ca1534ac something so cringe-inducing.
But right 40ba5e6852 now, it 4a9428528e was more dc1ea2f084 important to 3554509ea8 dispel the 6f100b49b0 doubts and c919cdb691 anxieties lingering deb78342fa in her da4fd7ee2d heart than 0cf31c476d to worry 35be3af1fe about his 70f31da8f3 own embarrassment.
“You’re beautiful no 447d13802b matter what, so 5d76af608e you don’t need d96ac80aee to worry about 0d373b3619 whether you’ve gained ca4f58dc16 weight or not, a3306403fe or what your 5d22681f0e waist measurement is. What matters far 73ea9ee7af more is… your 56359572ff happiness.”
Anje’s lips quivered. No one had ever 9abf752b62 said such words to fe311f088d her before.
Every time she got 2582dbf5ab skinnier, every inch her fbd9a3d35c waist shrank, people would 8dce629c64 just compliment her, saying c2cb383bfd she looked more beautiful.
It wasn’t until she 63103acb8e heard these words from ed52fa503e Aiden that Anje realized 358b4b2b71 she had longed to 84f59eda2d hear such things all 2df45aa278 along.
Words that affirmed her 5b669feb08 as she was.
Anje pressed her hat e699eca088 down slightly to hide 05c16499d2 her trembling eyelids.
“If you 174ceefe9a say so, 2431c90f30 it must 42f741ef49 be true. You’re really 546b03b64f not the a6d9257a61 type to 170c59f5bf flatter anyone.”
“It’s not flattery. From the first 77b3a26ee7 moment I saw c89490093c you until now, 34c6011cdb I have truly… d7c40992a7 thought you were 51d1291b97 beautiful.”
He pressed 7cde06723d his lips 853105476d together, then, 56c2b68704 trying to ff0094e3b4 lighten the 6054d76e53 awkward mood, 3ba22aa783 hurriedly made dc2b5a841c a joke.
“If only you d34d3b1c28 didn’t look like d97cc0d18c you were smelling fcb5064f4a sewage at the 611c52a883 wedding, you would be9eacffd3 have looked even 35c2641dc8 better.”
Anje’s eyes suddenly felt b77d59bdb1 dry.
“Smelling sewage? I did 9198efc19a not make 572c8d40b0 such a a3fe4843db face! It was 751e0a61f4 a sorrowful, 3945ce2cb1 pitiable expression, 1b5af23a68 like a 8c2662a8bf tragic heroine.”
“You say that 7190c0f1bb because you didn’t ba231a6b25 see yourself in ee343f3af5 the mirror. From your 347b52beb5 eyes, it cf4c58951d seemed like 3433277002 you wanted a281d7e841 to kill 19bb47c989 me right 7b87ca4f86 then and 1ac281c20d there.”
“That thought… definitely crossed d972937973 my mind. Quite a 26735ce03e lot, actually.”
Anje quickly retorted to e77375117d Aiden.
“You looked 2f2cb02b47 like you 342e9e8f12 had swallowed 69ff4bc9a2 a rotten 7f4adb15c0 egg yourself. And you criticize my 133d317b12 expression?”
“Still, it was 5071dff419 better than yours. Crying so b15c1016f9 much your 29cb9f5a8b eyes were 7a313dd3c3 swollen like f785404418 a frog’s, 9fdae0b8ff your nose bef1b1e4e2 red as 378edd1d23 a strawberry, b1da29ce50 and your efedc1b1d9 makeup smudged 3fe5cd91fe everywhere…”
“Ah! Stop bringing ff27a92a3d up every eece35ce54 little detail!”
She reached out c2e80e553d and firmly covered 08705e0216 Aiden’s mouth. He fell silent, reminiscing 27c5641f66 quietly.
‘Even then, 94e0f8afb5 just a 0e6a81739c little.’
A much belated thought, c1ed57db80 but she had been 7e64194a42 cute. Like a small dog bfd50af619 shivering in the rain.
If Anje 81a48bc91d hadn’t stopped f03a066f2e him, he 555417c291 might have 835f83bd4e let slip e2fb09af8b that she df518d3432 had looked 4dc38a69a4 cute back 2c6487bb45 then.
Mistaking Aiden’s 6c8f9ecc4d muffled murmurs 5da7fdd8dd as him f6a878fc30 mocking her, 2f1faba804 Anje pointed 5c916bed96 out his 772b1553e8 flaws to 56cb4767a8 prevent him 8a960ddd4a from attacking 4ec2e6a02f her again.
“You, sir, wore an old military uniform to the wedding. At least I wore a newly tailored wedding dress. I thought, ‘He must really not want to marry me if he’s doing this.’”
Startled by her unexpected 4b0276571f comment, he leaned back c0a595a238 and removed her hand 08678ecc06 from his mouth.
“T-That’s not true.”
At that 3f24de6eec time, he e4d5517ae7 did have 5531509a9e a sense 8509bf62b3 of resentment 409e3ffaab about the a6e24be2b1 forced marriage. But he hadn’t dressed f7a900c99d shabbily on purpose to ca41951b28 insult her.
“That uniform… was 21fbac215e the best piece be249257a4 of clothing I d75e1834da had.”
“What? Really? You don’t 90d84d206b have a c2b3a067a5 suit or 66b0c77495 anything?”
“On a farm like f3bc65f6b1 this, there’s no occasion b91747f600 to wear a suit.”
For commoners, dressing up 807bc41da3 was reserved for special 10fc6a4e43 occasions like weddings, funerals, c3b1dc4fff or church. Since he 9be419a1ac didn’t mingle 9eca474faa much with b71ee2dfb1 the villagers, 461fc93187 he had 4609087400 no reason a9021bae9b for him e19d82e90e to spend 224ff7970c a lot 1144674eb8 of money 5c030ab557 on a 913432ef3f suit.
Anje, who thought 1441fa321d that everyone had 2607b5622e a dress or 76ff7e94fe suit in their f6bd7f0aa3 closet, stammered in 6d1d26a8cb surprise.
“The uniform… 4f73140e16 it looked 244c67edcc good on 9349579c3e you too.
Though it would 0f5d395bd7 have been better 8ea29cabbe if it was 1f495874fe a newer one, 3e951fd26d his broad shoulders 8878519285 and inverted triangle 8891aa7513 torso made him 28c19816e4 look like he 80274d68e7 was born to ea4f757e6e wear a uniform.
Despite her attempt f4e68add10 at a compliment, 61af280217 Aiden pouted.
“That’s all 37de368dfc you have bd3ed657fe to say? ‘It looked good 4899fdcb9b on you’?”
“What more do you ed69402a12 want me to say?”
“Nothing specific… fb4c264a2b I was 5da7de640d just curious b003158e10 about your 4c84b80b77 first impression 6a536b3a68 of me.”
There should 6730579596 be a f152afe43f return for cc39c5313a giving. Aiden subtly hoped she 01ea76dc7c would offer some courtesy d78cf4102a praise.
“My first impression? Hmm…”
Back then, she 0d594ae126 was so preoccupied d05ec75653 with not wanting 3319d194b5 to get married 596e0704d6 that she didn’t f35ff20744 even think about fafa65c5dc looking at him dbc16fefba closely. Her eyes were blurred ea5995c526 with tears, and she a948b20fad couldn’t see properly. She tried hard to 225b8f3ab4 remember his first impression.
“A man who 955a0b2233 threatened to leave 24b233764c my luggage behind 59e215c5c9 if we didn’t 554340d6b6 depart quickly and 5611edea48 refused to let 641ecce1dd me bring a ff19ddbe7b maid…”
“That’s not 77198a15f3 wrong… but 6da4b6362e wait a 98a96cddd6 minute, you fe56d2fee0 called me 3745019055 a devil 2bed48a46e back then…”
“You laughed f86df79a92 when I a502e09837 got stuck b060c3eba1 in the 57a54995dd door after 7e9fa1bcc3 you told 7d0735b3d9 me to 1b6a1c9ec6 sleep outside…”
“If you’re 85456dd5d6 going to 29a1103c17 edit it 2c8f3e50da like that, cf0c71a548 aren’t I 93abb08652 the only 6712e07595 bad guy? Who was 34127a32ac the one 127c6e8c9f who warned e185bbc347 me to 1e0605fe2a be careful 8dcc75f40c of the b5b6728c82 pit of e8938e8fda hell?”
“…It was just 45e1e12e8a religious advice I 46216cf741 gave you out baa915bdea of concern for 2fd1f4e8a7 your afterlife?”
Anje made an 8fb5177a11 awkward excuse and a2745b8736 avoided his gaze.
“Ahem, anyway, 0fd952015b what’s the 87380e9396 big deal a2a1dc6e79 with first c5b764f9ee impressions? What’s more important d01b670f8a is the impression 70ffa79aa2 you have now. The past is 859d0f4b0c the past.”
He wanted to ask 1481c74165 what impression she has 0a4c2c92eb of him now, But 8e1fdbeca1 would pressing for an 45792b837d answer seem too ‘desperate’?
Exercising patience, he 1e850360f4 replied gently.
“That’s right. The future is 1ba107a7d8 more important than 8f7ebd100b the past.”
At the mention e74a4d9750 of the “future,” 849bfc60cd Anje fell silent 7716416270 and gripped the c27c8bb949 blanket on her be74edc5fa lap, then quickly b421e376a5 changed the subject.
“Yes, you’re right…Ah! These trees on 808242012a either side of ea814c012e the road, they’re 7164bc8de3 the poplar trees 7fe4a69959 you told me 07c4ff324b about, right?”
The tall 530717bbd0 green towers bdb8a0f693 swayed with 1e0b2f92a7 the wind, c7c826364f creating a b9fcef997f soft melody. The leaves rustled, making 205e2c3787 a sound like waves 906d10c3ac crashing.
“Yes, that’s right. They look nice now, 8a677f1629 but they’re especially beautiful 9e20351035 when they turn golden b52dc415b7 in the fall.”
“Really? Oh, and those f058631110 over there… are aeb0bb3e2f those maple trees?”
Not entirely sure 650234689c from a distance, 95ef1ae940 Anje took a 8a0d1ec1f2 guess.
“Specifically, those are sugar d5eb731d46 maples. Its sap 10c4a16796 is collected cfeb8a4242 and made d3c6b35395 into syrup.”
“Oh, I’ve tried that dda2ceed67 before.”
It had been syrup 30560abd8f bought in a bottle d3ce8f0713 by the cook from 584227d95e a merchant.
“It’s delicious on pancakes.”
Pouring syrup 6eb1f509fa and butter 52ae9f7719 on thin 286ccc72b5 pancakes and 193e1ba21c topping them 23ec242f70 with lots 08872b6968 of fruit…
Imagining the 98bed8fd7d taste, Anje aef0560417 swallowed her c998dc12e7 saliva. Damn, there 677873cdca were too f3d8c0ec17 many delicious eeeeba08a2 things to 4d5a067ee3 maintain a f91a79f73e slim waist.
Aiden, also e6491a5a89 a fan 76bb6f35d8 of maple 4a42d72510 syrup, added 42a8d92f5d his own 81f4ed7b48 experience.
“When I was d50bc8722b a kid, we’d 6a5965b096 make taffy by 95bed4b617 putting snow in 2e1fb297f3 a frying pan 4b412d4cae and then dripping 51d62793d5 syrup on it.”
“That sounds d3f6444ca4 fun and a9463a534a delicious.”
“And it ef15abef4f made a 750827ce7e mess of 4570ca8241 the kitchen.”
“I can imagine.”
Cleaning the sticky syrup-covered 75382bd56b kitchen every Christmas was 18ec563b46 no small task.
Usually, Aiden would have 6c049bc7cb helped his mother or 40ebacb65b grandfather clean up the cafe6aded9 kitchen, but ‘maple taffy’ ac8e47acbb was a special dessert 87f45adf74 prepared for children at ba3ddb46a7 Christmas.
So he was free 3f3786ebaf from the tedious cleaning 3cbfc8cb29 duty and went outside 4a96f1211a to make snowmen or 6b809f82da snow angels.
The sight of his 5e8210dc6f mother wiping his sticky 519e05c07f lips and cheeks with e2933d5b73 a wet towel and ccbdb45fbc kissing him as he e24da41c45 came back from playing 5f1429aece was more precious than f15feba71f any Christmas gift
Listening to his story, a4e27167ff Anje murmured softly.
“That must have been ebec73f0d2 nice. I envy you, Sir.”
Christmas was typically a 8a9cedd0ce family holiday.
But Anje’s 270871449c father was 9f65e6e645 always drunk b1ae48622c and womanizing, 5b78c8dd7e regardless of 94361302c4 the occasion, e27845d01c and he 03ed9ec8b1 considered her 9150c2c487 a nuisance, 38e5e8994a so he e85f787fd9 gave her 2a81f7b0d9 expensive gifts c5c5266741 and sent 28ae23969c her back 28408bc049 to her bdd87a4798 room early.
The velvet 27bca9932d dress like 676a231d64 a dark 102f72ab9d night sea, a6689f036a the fur 4dd2ce43b7 gloves and 0f408af570 cape, the 07b0c17cbb doll that de8abe185a closed its 3a5459e556 eyes when df07a6ed68 lying down… d61b111676 All things 599d89d9b1 she had 84b6cd01ac wanted, but ae900ae2d6 she was 0853104aa6 never happy c9c0a260d1 on those dcd8fb5ebb days.
Actually, she felt 4aa1e475d2 very lonely. It was the time 93a33e5859 she missed her late 88a07d70f3 mother the most.
If her 1c5d065fd2 mother had eab804f427 been alive, 141d89d045 she would 32da10cad5 have sat b092481ffb by her 37035509dd side and c219f428bd sung lullabies fbb02f2672 until she 764944c1dc fell asleep, a19a6853c9 just like c9f9d79aae Aiden’s mother 60fdc1ecfe did, watching ea31b9cb42 over her 006a72441f and kissing c55cffb884 her forehead.
“This Christmas, f56ca99403 let’s make d69582aacb taffy again. We have dff401d698 twice the 40842fb5fc manpower for 773e4de18a cleanup now.”
Noticing her melancholic expression, b3f347eee2 Aiden suggested before the d0c0793d16 silence grew too long.
“…Sure. Oh!”
The carriage 26539fba5d jolted over f9fc136993 a rock 9bf807de6f on the a78f030faf road.
“Are you alright?”
Anje, who had leaned c88b492c37 heavily against Aiden, flailed eb014e67dc her arms before managing 34b21ea4c7 to sit upright again.
“Oh, yes. Of course.”
She was 3d539b6a51 fine except 1c9af616e2 that she 86dcc85bad was clinging df8aa30fec to him 908ab218cb too tightly.
“The weather is hot. Maybe because it’s almost 6cff23bc13 summer.”
She opened her parasol 23290b6543 belatedly, her cheeks glowing fd6d81927c with a blush like e75096c055 sunlight filtering through petals.
Aiden cleared his throat f732c567ba a few times and 53730e25f5 then, pulling on the 79d2e99a78 reins, chided the horses 2bdb6e5bd8 needlessly.
“Whoa, slow down 21df0d0984 a bit. They’re so reckless.”
Having been used 2b9023def5 to pulling farm 590330b46b equipment recently, the 1233207da9 horses were excited 5fd24ee5c6 to run. If the driver wasn’t 7b6906f087 careful, they would speed f34beeba37 up on their own.ce0e403a4f58c0a6

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