Please Be Patient, Grand Duke

to the bed next to her, granting her easier access to his dark locks.

He snaked an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer.
Resisting his advances, she squirmed away from his embrace.

“Stop, you’re making me uncomfortable,” Lia glaringly said to him.

“You look cold.
I only want to help you get warm,” he said, once again inching closer.

“I’m not cold,” she declared, shifting further away from him, “It’s the middle of summer.”

“It’s raining,” he responded, calmly looking out the window.

“Not at the moment, it stopped a few minutes ago,” Lia retorted.

“Even so, it will soon begin again.
It’s monsoon season,” he countered.

Grinning at his own comment, Ian covered Lia’s cheek with his right hand, stating, “So today’s a cold day.”

She felt a strange sense of comfort from his warm touch, but it was overpowered by the utter weirdness of it all.

“Nevertheless, soup can do a far better job,” she said, removing his hand from her face and getting out of bed.

“Your eating habits are very strange,” Ian observed.

Disgruntled by the man, she opened the door and strode out, responding over her shoulder, “Sometimes my appetite is larger than others.”

The aroma of food drifted up from the first floor, and she started salivating in anticipation.

“You can join me for a meal now.
But if you don’t, I don’t want to hear about it when you’re hungry in the middle of the night,” she said, turning back to Ian, still sprawled on the bed.

Sudden shame came over her, as she looked down at the floor and asked, “Can you teach me how to use a dagger?”

***

Canillia’s honey-colored hair was plastered to her forehead from the rain.
Her umbrella had made a valiant effort to protect it but had ultimately failed.

As she entered the Academy, Count Tholin spotted her, his face turning red.
With a creased brow , she did her best to avoid him, as she made a beeline towards her; she had not slept well the previous night and was not in the mood for any uncomfortable encounters.

Unable to lose the man in the crowd, he eventually caught up to her.
His face was a putrid scarlet color, and a massive vein was bulging in his forehead.

“Good morning, Count Tholin,” Lia greeted politely.
She glared at Tholin.
He was alone for once.
The young low noble he treated as a servant usually accompanying him was nowhere to be seen.