"Ah..." After freezing in place for a long time, a hollow laugh burst out. The words 'I love you' that Yulia had just shyly murmured were playing on repeat in his ears. The feel of Yulia's soft, resilient lips was still vivid on his lips.
He had only been expecting Yulia to say 'I love you' with a shy expression. An unexpected kiss. Thinking that Yulia had mustered up the courage made happiness surge to the top of his head.
"The regret of not seeing her expression when we kissed..."
The only thing he regretted was that he hadn't seen Yulia's face because his eyes had been closed. Was her expression stiff with tension? Or was she so embarrassed that her pupils were shaking?
He was dying of curiosity. He firmly resolved to make sure to see it next time.
Nevertheless, the impact of the kiss had temporarily put everything else on the back burner. The more he thought about Yulia's declaration of love, the more he couldn't stop the silly smiles.
Although he had asked her to say it, there wasn't a hint of reluctance in her demeanor. She had revealed her true feelings, but her inherently honest nature made her face embarrassingly crazy. He really owed Yuri, who had helped him see such a splendid scene, at least a hundred thank-yous.
"Of course, it was closer to a peck than a kiss..."
Despite that, unlocking this new expression of affection was something. If he didn't rush and steadily unlocked it, everything would soon open up. Of course, there were age restrictions on some things, so there was no use hurrying anyway.
"This is what simple happiness is..."
Such fresh happiness could only be fully enjoyed by being present in the moment. As time passed and the children grew, he could no longer expect such reactions. So, he intended to imprint it in his mind while his senses were still vivid.
"Uncle!" "...!?"
Then, bang. The door burst open, and as usual, a cheerful voice erupted.
Ududududu. Charlotte quickly darted into the office and landed on his lap. However, instead of sitting with her back to him, she sat facing him.
Could she have heard the rumor that Yulia and I had kissed and come running? Thinking this, his body stiffened without realizing it.
"What's the matter?" "I can't seem to make balloons properly... I came to learn the trick! But why do you look so tense?" "Tense? Me?" "Yes, Uncle." "I'm not really tense." "Hmm...?"
Charlotte looked at him with suspicious eyes.
This was trouble. Charlotte was also a master swordsman, capable of reading people's faces and emotions as easily as breathing.
Of course, she didn't have the Eye of Lauras like Irene or the Spirit King's Eye like the Empress Sister. But she was certainly good enough to read the information that I was hiding something.
"Is that so? If Uncle says so, I must have seen it wrong!"
However, Charlotte surprisingly gave up her deduction with a bright smile. Did she trust me so much that she just overlooked any suspicious circumstances? The thought of hiding something from such a genuinely good Charlotte suddenly made me feel guilty.
"Please teach me how to tie balloons! I can't seem to do it right!"
"How are you doing it that it's not working? Show me how you do it. It shouldn't be that hard..."
"Alright!"
Whoosh! As soon as she answered, she blew into the balloon, and it quickly inflated.
Charlotte's lung capacity amazed me, leaving me speechless for a moment. Charlotte then began to fumble with the end of the balloon with her tiny hands.
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"It looks like you're doing fine?"
Although her hands seemed a bit clumsy, it didn't seem like a problem. After all, tying a balloon didn't require any great skill. I was puzzled why she couldn't do it when...
"Ah!" "..."
Pop! The balloon burst from her fingertips. Charlotte froze, startled by the loud noise.
"See! It keeps bursting! Yulia's doesn't burst! I'm too proud to ask Yulia for help!"
"I think I know the problem." "Really!? What is it? What's the problem?" "It's because you're too strong." "Eh?"
It was literally that. Charlotte couldn't make balloons because she was too strong.
"You might think you're applying less force, but the rubber balloon is made of a material that's thinner and more fragile than you think. You have to apply much less force when tying the knot." "Aaaaah...!" "Try holding the balloon and completely relaxing your grip. I'll move your fingers to show you how much force is appropriate." "Okay!"
I took Charlotte's tiny hand and moved her fingers to tie the end of the balloon.
Then, holding the finished balloon, she shuddered and soon tried to make another balloon herself.
The first two times, she still had trouble controlling her strength, and the balloons either burst or she let go of them. But from the third time, she succeeded impressively. After that, she kept succeeding, and soon the office was cluttered with balloons.
"Done! Done! I did it, Uncle!" "Well done. But don't go around blowing up balloons outside." "Eh? Why?" "It's... Never mind, forget I said anything." "Eeeh? Is it for some complicated reason?" "..."
"Still, I'll follow your advice! I won't blow balloons outside!" "Thank you..."
I realized as the balloon popped right in front of my nose. The balloon was filled with Charlotte's breath. Trying to smell consciously, I could distinctly feel Charlotte's sweet breath.
If exploited, someone else might try to get their hands on a balloon made by Charlotte to feel her breath. I couldn't stand to see such a sight, so I had told her not to blow balloons outside, but I gave up explaining because it was too embarrassing... Charlotte, being too good-natured, agreed to do as I said without needing a reason, which was a great relief.
"Hehehe! Ah!?" "..."
Accidentally trying to hug me, a balloon got caught between us and burst with a pop, startling Charlotte. It seemed she had burst about ten balloons just today. She still got startled easily. Touching the startled Charlotte, she finally started moving again.
But detecting something unusual, Charlotte tilted her head quizzically. Sniff, sniff, sniff. She seemed to be smelling something...
"Hmm?" "...!?"
Slurp. She suddenly licked my lips. This time, I was the one startled and froze for a moment.
"It seemed like Yulia's scent was coming from somewhere! It was from Uncle's lips after all! Yulia's taste is on your lips!" "Uh..."
Was I caught like this? I was flustered by the unexpected turn of events. Charlotte smacked her lips and then her eyes widened enormously.
"Why is Yulia's taste on Uncle's lips!?" "..."
I nodded silently. At that moment, a mix of joy and displeasure spread across Charlotte's face.
"Hmmm... Yulia did that, huh... I thought she wouldn't dare and was taking it easy... but I'm late now." "Is it really too late?" "Huh?" "Weren't you deliberately late?" "...!?"
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Charlotte's cheeks instantly turned bright red. It was a shy face that was rarely seen on her.
"Eh, no?" "Really? Wasn't it because Yulia was being too timid, so you were just adjusting the pace out of consideration?" "Ah, noo..." "Look me in the eyes and say that again." "..." "Really not?" "Uuuuh..."
She kept avoiding my eyes as she answered, so I grabbed her cheek and made her look at me. Facing each other's eyes, she couldn't lie anymore and, as if admitting defeat, let out a cute moan.
From the moment I sensed the faint joy on her face when she realized that Yulia and I had kissed, I knew Charlotte felt joy that Yulia had finally mustered the courage. Such was their consistently strong friendship.
"But this time I'll let it slide... I won't keep letting you take the 'firsts' so easily. Yulia gets too proud and complacent if she keeps getting ahead, she's the type that needs competition to move forward..." "..."
It was a chillingly accurate analysis. Certainly, she knew Yulia the longest.
"So... from now on, I'll be the first to claim other things..." "..."
[The evil god 'Kalri' revels in happiness and shrieks!]
Squeak. With a 100% frustrated expression, Charlotte °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° looked at me, then hugged my neck and kissed my lips.
But 'other things'? What exactly does 'other things' mean? Curious about the exact meaning, my heart was pounding heavily.
'Wait, when does this kiss... or rather, peck end?'
Soon, I realized that my heart wasn't racing from excitement, but from suffocation. I was slowly losing consciousness...
"Hooeuk...!" "Please look forward to it, Uncle?"
As Charlotte's lips parted, I took a deep breath and sighed. Charlotte, with a devilish smile, slid off my lap and quickly left the office.