Noah hopped out of the carriage in a precarious manner and cheered, “Let’s go!” Kyle, however, hastily snatched her arm, who was about to head in the wrong direction confidently. “Not there.” But as he realized what he had done instinctively, his hand wrapped around her arm, nervousness began to settle in his nerves. He suppressed the urge to flinch and attempted to relax his subtly fidgeting fingers.
Noah looked up at him, rubbing her tired eyes. Then, with his heart unreasonably thumping, Kyle completely released her arm. “Let’s go… It’s probably too much for Miss Noah to move around today.”
“I’m fine.”
“You don’t look very well though. You better wash up in the inn first and get a good night’s sleep,” Kyle insisted. He had noticed Noah’s glum spirit persisting for a few days already. Personally, he thought there was no problem between her and Muell’s resonance since it would have reached perfection by now, nor was she sick; however; Noah was acting a little more lethargic than usual.
Suddenly, thin, warm fingers wound themselves one by one around his hand. These fingers were paler and carried more warmth than the hand of Eleonora, which he had held several times before without trouble. Kyle felt the need to close his eyes as he clasped Noah’s hand. Then, he stole a glance on their intertwined fingers, a sense of crisis wreaking havoc in his mind.
I really…. can’t. I don’t think I should be as casual as I have been.
When Kyle first saw Noah’s true appearance, he had a sense of satisfaction that stemmed from the idea of finally getting rid of the shell of his most despised witch. Only to withdraw such thought in merely three days; little did he know his feelings had soared beyond satistisfaction. If he were not cautious enough, he would find his eyes fixated on one person and his heart erratically pounding over one trivial contact.
Seriously, you’re not some adolescent boy.
Kyle had never doubted his patience in his entire life, but every time Noah approached him without wariness, his patience would evaporate into thin air. Apart from that, Noah had always been overly absent-minded. For instance, when she asks for a hug and randomly grabs his hand like now…
Of course, Kyle had grown accustomed to it, accepting that it was Noah’s habit. She was that kind of person in the first place. But now, Noah’s wonted indifference was becoming a little dangerous to Kyle.
As expected.
It was fortunate that she didn’t notice Kyle’s agitation with her eyes closed. However, Muell, who was hanging from Kyle’s shoulder, was different from her oblivious master. The child asked, clasping his left cheek. “Uncle, Noah, good…”
Kyle interrupted, “Be quiet. You walk along, Mu.”
Muell’s eyes opened wide, tilting his head, but soon a smile was painted on his lips as if he knew. The boy couldn’t completely comprehend the meaning behind Kyle’s words yet somehow, he seemed to have noticed the nuances of his actions lately.
While feeling strangely uncomfortable, Kyle walked away as if he were dragged away when Noah tugged his hand. Soon, he would encounter an untimely situation, which would leave him emotionally strained.
“How many rooms would you like?”
“One… No.” Kyle answered habitually and almost bit his tongue. “Two, please.”
However, his hurriedly altered words could not be concluded. Noah stared at Kyle, her eyes widened in shock. Kyle stammered as he picked up two keys from the innkeeper. “Why… Why do you see it that way?”
“And now…”
“What about now?”
It was unbeknownst to Kyle how far Noah’s misunderstanding was reaching. The shock on her face was gradually turning into a look of betrayal.
Why are you looking at me like that?
“Uh… I’ll change the key.” The innkeeper, who was wary of the two, quickly snatched the key from Kyle, and before Kyle could dissuade her, the owner had changed their key. It was strange, but seeing that they were given two keys still, Kyle thought the rooms were separate
“It’s upstairs in the far right corridor. Please let me know if you have any inconvenience. Would you like your meal up to your room? Or at the restaurant?”
“I won’t eat.” Noah spat out, grabbing one of the keys Kyle held. Dumbfounded, Kyle turned around and hurriedly called her. “You won’t eat dinner? Didn’t you skip lunch on the pretext of having dinner?”
“I’m not hungry. I’ll go up first.” Noah replied coldly and climbed the stairs without looking back.
What kind of defiance was that? But even more, what’s so cute about that? As realization dawned upon him, Kyle snapped himself back to his senses. I must be really crazy.