Sweet you who doesn’t love me - Chapter 3: Wind

Amidst the entirely blue and white view, a vivid red light flickered slowly like a glass of red wine.

 

A faint golden hue swayed at the ends of the red hair. Though locked under a blue shadow, that spot seemed to be the only place touched by sunlight.

 

Below, like the leaves of sprouting weeds, bright green pupils sparkled.

 

Cassio Bellanea Escalus.

 

“Hello, Juliet.”

 

He shaped his somewhat pale lips into a pleasant smile.

 

“A lovely afternoon for a walk.”

 

Juliet had been bowing her head all along, but suddenly, her startled gaze met Cassio’s.

 

“….”

 

Cassio’s shoulder was still wrapped tightly in white bandages.

 

Juliet’s gaze was caught by the white gleam sticking out from a jagged nail, which made her freeze.

 

“Oh no.”

 

Whether he noticed Juliet’s gaze or not, he casually turned his body. Her gaze slid upward.

 

Unintentionally, she scrutinized Cassio’s face.

 

“Did I startle you?”

 

Anyone would have been startled by the sight of a patient, tightly wrapped in bandages, moving so fluidly like water flowing.

 

“A little… are you okay?”

 

The memories of five days and five nights they spent together long ago weren’t all clear.

 

But at the end of winter or the beginning of spring, under the pale sunlight that barely penetrated the clouds, she vividly remembered Cassio’s face as he gazed at her.

 

‘Yes, you startled me.’

 

Today, when she met Cassio again, he seemed a bit leaner. His skin seemed a bit rougher. His jawline seemed a bit sharper.

 

‘Now that I think about it, even his hair colour…’

 

She had hoped for something more than when he left.

 

Was the faint afterglow floating above the bright red not just because of the sunlight?

 

Exposed to the sea breeze and sunlight all the time—had the vivid red faded?

 

But still, was his immaculately fair skin without a single burn the result of inheriting the blood of the North?

 

‘Or is it because his injuries haven’t fully healed yet?’

 

“Ahem, Juliet, it’s rather embarrassing to be stared at with such intense eyes.”

 

“….Ah.”

 

Only then did Juliet realize that she had been staring at his face without even responding to his greetings.

 

“Your Grace.”

 

One hand pressed against her chest, while the other held onto the edge of her dress. As she bent her knees and lowered her gaze, instead of the clear sight of his hair that captivated her, her vision was filled with the blue moss-covered stone steps.

 

But the red light still blinks before her eyes like an afterimage.

 

“That… No. No, please get up first.”

 

Juliet slowly straightened her previously bent waist. However, her eyes were still fixed on the white stone steps and the blue moss on them.

 

In truth, she had no idea what to do. Meeting Cassio Bellanea here was truly an unexpected event.

 

‘Why is he here…’

 

The faint dizziness she felt wasn’t just because of standing under the sunlight. Juliet stood still, biting her lips.

 

‘I’m confused.’

 

What should she do next?

 

“How long are you going to stand like that? Come up here.”

 

If Cassio hadn’t said that, she might have remained standing there, with her gaze lowered, or turned around and gone back inside the castle.

 

But now that he had opened his mouth first, she couldn’t just turn away. Moreover…

 

“It’s been three days, hasn’t it?”

 

“….”

 

“Even though we live in the same castle, it’s not easy to see each other’s faces. Oh, I’m not blaming you. It’s my fault for not having a meal with my wife.”

 

There was not a single sharp edge in the affectionate words he handed her.

 

“Maybe I should feel more sorry for not visiting you while you were sick…”

 

Her heart stung alone.

 

Juliet took a step forward onto the steps.

 

One, two, three.

 

When she had climbed halfway up, a large hand suddenly pushed in front of her lowered eyes.

 

After hesitating for a moment, Juliet held onto that hand.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“What for? It brings me joy.”

 

As soon as Juliet finished climbing the stairs, his hand quickly withdrew. It was as if it had been a very formal gesture.

 

Juliet stood a little distance away from him. Cassio was once again gazing out at the garden.

 

Juliet had always been standing like this, gazing at the garden, even before he returned.

 

She turned her gaze in the same direction as him. It was a summer afternoon with the sunlight pouring down dazzlingly.

 

“In Sardonia, they say summer is the season of blessings.”

 

A low voice, faint but distinct, whispered in her ear.

 

“The sunlight, the breeze, and the sky, all beautiful and peaceful like blessings.”

 

It was a voice that seemed to scatter away like the foam crashing against the cliff below.

 

“That’s really true.”

 

Yet, strangely, it stuck in her ears.

 

“Juliet.”

 

Perhaps because he called her name.

 

Juliet realized belatedly that someone calling her name was truly a rare occurrence.

 

“During the past three years, did you have a peaceful and blessed summer here?”

 

Cassio, who had been looking out at the garden all along, belatedly turned his gaze toward her.

 

For a brief moment, their eyes met again.

 

‘If only that were true.’

 

Was it because he couldn’t be like that? Since he suddenly spoke of the wind.

 

“….”

 

Silence hung in the air.

 

However, Juliet’s heart was tumultuous, as it had been for the past three years.

 

Throughout that long time, her surroundings had been incredibly tranquil and serene, yet her heart had never found peace.

 

“Juliet!”

 

Her thoughts always turned pages arbitrarily. Memories of the past were chewed over and over until they became ragged and worn.

 

“Come here.”

 

As if floating in the air, she had spent countless days and nights lost in contemplation.

 

“But…”

 

The man before her had spent those countless days and nights, truly unable to stand on solid ground.

 

While Juliet basked in the warm Sardonian sunshine, he braved the sea breeze on a swaying ship. While Juliet sat by the fireplace, warming herself, he battled with the waves.

 

Now, Juliet finally realized this fact, more so than when he appeared in front of the castle, wounded and without any news.

 

Vaguely, she felt embarrassed and even guilty. So Juliet couldn’t answer him casually.

 

“….”

 

Their eyes that had met a moment ago, now avoided each other. Juliet lowered her head first, and Cassio turned his gaze back to the garden.

 

Until then, Juliet couldn’t give him an answer.

 

‘I missed you because you weren’t by my side.’

 

To say such words, their hearts were too distant.

 

‘I suffered.’

 

She couldn’t say that either. Compared to Cassio Bellanea’s past three years, Juliet Cagliari’s three years had been undeniably peaceful and beautiful.

 

‘I was happy.’

 

Yet, she wouldn’t be able answer with a smile.

 

“….”

 

She had no idea how to respond.

 

For the past three years, whenever summer came, Juliet would head to this gazebo almost every day.

 

The purposely built gazebo was raised on several stone steps, and once she climbed up, she could overlook the entire garden.

 

On one side, there was a small forest of silver birch trees, forming a fence-like boundary.

 

The thick emerald green leaves on the front and the white silvery leaves on the back collided with each other whenever the wind blew, creating a sound reminiscent of waves.

 

[Juliet, I’ve been looking for you for so long. We decided to go see the sea today…]

 

Her imagination would run wild.

 

Inside the Escalus Castle, they couldn’t see the sea.

 

However, if she buried herself in the blue shadows beneath the white gazebo, she felt as if she were looking at a sunlit hillside with the sea behind her.

 

At least it felt that way sometimes.

 

‘Have I been living a blessed life after all?’

 

Such a thought crossed her mind.

 

Even though there was no one by her side. Even though everyone who had always been there had left the castle, leaving her alone.

 

“…Yes.”

 

Juliet, who had kept her mouth shut for a long time, finally gave a very brief answer.

 

The past three years might not have been as beautiful as blessings for her, and she might not have been able to enjoy them happily, but…

 

“At least I could peacefully enjoy the summer sun and breeze, as if they were blessings.”

 

So she considered the summers spent without him to have been peaceful and blessed.

 

“Haha, really?”

 

Cassio, who had thought deeply about it, chuckled lightly at her lacklustre response.

 

Unlike his cheerful voice, there was a slight emptiness in his laughter. His long eyelashes fluttered down, and his emerald green eyes sparkled in the sunlight.

 

She had seen that kind of light somewhere before.

 

The fluttering banner and the distant murmurs. The twinkling emerald green eyes that held the light of flickering candles in the dark.

 

“…Juliet.”

 

A voice that seemed to disperse from a far distance.

 

“You don’t have to do anything you don’t feel like doing.”

 

“But…”

 

“There won’t be any problems. I promise. So don’t force yourself.”

 

His tone was markedly different from the stern tone of the Sardonian people. It was as if the words rolled gently off his tongue.

 

It sounded affectionate.

 

That part was still the same. Even if his face was a bit leaner, and his once bright hair had faded over time. Whenever, he had always spoken to Juliet with an affectionate tone.

 

Even now.

 

“I’m glad.”

 

Suddenly, the wind blew.

 

Behind him, the emerald green and silver intertwined, swaying like waves.

 

‘… the sound was like waves. The breeze makes the sun beams dance, and your hair shines.’

 

Amidst the rustling leaves of the silver birch forest and the cascading sunlight on the opposite side.

 

In the midst of the sound reminiscent of waves, Juliet’s husband smiled and whispered.

 

“Truly, I’m glad.”

 

Was it a mistake to think that his smile seemed somewhat sorrowful?

 

As someone who couldn’t even meet his eyes and kept her gaze down, she couldn’t be sure.

 

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