CH 27

“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind.”

Cecile shrugged her shoulders in response to my mumbling words.

“Is there any today?”

“Huh? What?”

“Pumpkin pie, I mean.”

“Oh… yeah.”

I was so busy trying to figure out how to handle this situation that I didn’t even think about baking a pie.

Cecile seemed somewhat disappointed.

‘Come to think of it, it was a dish that Clyde used to enjoy… Should I make it when I visit Clyde next time?’

Although the future seemed uncertain, I didn’t dislike the idea of meeting Clyde. Honestly, I felt a sense of joy.

There were so many things I wanted to hear and so many things I wanted to talk about.

‘If only I wasn’t Julion’s daughter….’

It had been a recurring thought since I regained my memories from my past life at the age of eight.

But never before had I wished for it as sincerely and desperately as I do now.

Two days later, I arrived at Clyde’s mansion late at night and found myself involuntarily narrowing my eyes.

The gates were open.

The entrance to the mansion was the same. It was slightly ajar, as if it were inviting a cat to come in.

‘It must be because of me…’

「There hasn’t been any change since then. You leave me every day, and I just wait for you to come.」

「But it doesn’t matter. As long as you actually come.」

Certainly, the door was left open yesterday and the day before.

Perhaps Clyde also couldn’t sleep and waited, unsure if I would come or not…

A sharp pain throbbed in my chest. I took a deep breath to control my emotions.

Clyde’s bedroom door was also slightly ajar. As I reached out my hand to the doorknob, I heard a voice from inside.

“You’ve come.”

“…….”

I bit my lip lightly and pushed open the door.

Clyde was sitting on the edge of the bed. The sheets were neatly spread, indicating that he hadn’t been sleeping in the first place.

Bright moonlight streamed in through the uncurtained window, making the room quite bright, and there was no need to light a candle.

“Hi, Clyde.”

I greeted him, smiling as brightly as I could.

He walked over and kneeled down in front of me. I wondered if he would embrace me like last time, but instead, he held my hand.

Clyde’s hand completely enveloped mine, almost as if a child was holding their father’s hand. Considering that I am currently only thirteen years old, it was an incredibly big hand.

Clyde cautiously brought our joined hands to his cheek.

His skin felt as cold and chilling as the moonlight that bathed it, causing my heart to ache.

“Why is your body so cold? It’s probably because the window is open. I’ll close it now.”

“It’s okay.”

“Clyde.”

“It’s okay, let’s stay like this.”

“…….”

I hesitated, but I couldn’t pull away from Clyde. Soon, his cheek and hand began to warm up from my body temperature.

“I brought something for you today.”

“What is it?”

“Try to guess.”

Clyde’s eyes turned towards the basket hanging from my left arm.

“…Is it something to eat?”

“Oh my, how did you know? Did you smell it or something?”

When I pretend to be surprised, Clyde let out a subtle smile.

“There’s no need for all this. It’s not like I’m starving and suffering like before.”

“You’ll think differently when you see what it is.”

I sat next to Clyde on the bed, and then I opened the basket and took out its contents.

“Ta-da!”

Clyde’s eyes narrowed when he saw the pie.

“This…?”

“Yeah. It’s your favorite peanut pumpkin pie.”

“…….”

Clyde looked down at the pie with an unreadable expression.

“You don’t seem as happy as I expected. You used to love it so much. You would finish a whole pie in just 30 seconds.”

“…I did?”

“What? Don’t you remember? I intentionally worked hard to make something you liked.”

“You… made it yourself?”

“Yes. Why? I used to bake them myself and bring them to you. Did you forget everything from back then? Was it all a lie that you wanted to see me?”

“…….”

Clyde’s hand trembled hesitantly. Something seems off.

“Clyde…? What’s wrong?”

As I asked with concern, Clyde raised his head.

“…It’s nothing.”

Could it be that he’s reminded of his mother?

Peanut pumpkin pie was a snack that Clyde’s mother used to make frequently.

I didn’t know exactly when Clyde lost his mother, but it’s certain that he hadn’t tasted pumpkin pie since then.

‘I thought you would like it, but I guess I did something unnecessary…’

I was about to wrap the pie back up and put it in the basket when Clyde grabbed my hand. His grip was strong enough to make my heart sink.

“Oh, I…, I thought you weren’t going to eat it….”

“I will.”

Clyde took a piece of pie and brought it to his mouth.

Unlike in the past when he quickly ate as if someone was going to take it away from him, this time Clyde chewed the pie slowly, savoring the taste for a long time.

I looked at him expectantly.

“How is it?”

To be honest, I was pretty confident. Based on seven years of research and trial and error, I considered my peanut pumpkin pie to be at a high level.

In fact, among those I recently served, not a single person said it tasted bad. Cecile had become a captive of this taste, looking for it every lunchtime.

However, after a long wait, Clyde’s comment was just one word.

“It’s delicious.”

“…Is that all?”

“…Huh?”

“I’m sure there’s more to it, like what exactly it tastes like, or how it feels, or how it’s textured. I used many different ingredients compared to before. Do you have any thoughts on that?”

I pouted my lips in frustration.

“Sorry, honestly, I don’t know much about those things…”

“Then at least express it more enthusiastically. Like, say you thought it was so delicious that you would die for it, or that it’s a taste that could make a pie shop a huge success… There are so many ways to describe it, you know?”

“…….”

Clyde bit his lip lightly in response to my words. His complexion darkened as if he had committed a grave mistake.

“Hey, why are you like that? I was just joking. Why are you taking it so seriously?”

I waved my hands in surprised.

To be honest, I was a bit… no, quite disappointed.

I didn’t expect an extravagant response like Cecile would give, but I thought I would at least see his eyes widen in surprise when he tasted it.

The truth was, I had been working so hard on making the pie and researching recipes, all in anticipation of seeing Clyde’s reaction.

Of course, I didn’t expect to meet Clyde again. But even so, I had always imagined him eating the pie and enjoying it.

‘But if you think about it, that’s purely my own selfishness… Well, it’s fine since he said it was delicious. In the past, it always ended with ‘It’s not bad.’

“It’s okay, it’s okay, I’ll have to work harder from now on.”

I smiled and said, and Clyde’s expression stiffened slightly.

“No, really, it was delicious.”

“I know. Who said I didn’t believe you?”

“It’s true. It was more delicious than any other food I’d ever eaten. Believe me.”

Clyde looked straight into my eyes. His voice was incredibly sincere.

His face was so close that it felt like my vision was completely absorbed by his reddish-transparent pupils.

For some reason, I felt dizzy in my head, and without realizing it, I moved my body backwards.

“Oh, I see. I said I understand. I didn’t say I didn’t believe you.”

“…….”

Clyde silently lowered his gaze. His long eyelashes cast a dense shadow beneath his eyes.

Why is that? For some reason, Clyde looks even more unstable now than he was seven years ago, when he was locked in a cage and tortured daily.

Even though he’d grown so much since then, his body was that of a full-grown man.

‘What happened to him all these years….’

“…Clyde. Can I ask you something?”

Clyde’s gaze turned back to me as I cautiously asked.

“What is it?”

“What have you been doing for the past seven years since we separated?”

“…….”

Clyde maintained silence for a moment, then slowly spoke.