[TKOSINM] 24 - Boris (1)

         Irene frowned at the usual one-sided order from her parents.

         After Noel had left, Irene was once again treated like an invisible person in her own residence. She was used to being treated like that by the maids and the servants, but now even her parents gave her the silent treatment. That was the reason why she had rarely left her room. However, Irene now was able to be more confident than before. Noel’s presence had given her some courage and newfound respect from the servants. The maids also could no longer recklessly treat her because they knew that she had someone behind her supporting her.

         This was the first time in a week that Irene had been summoned, so this forced Irene to go down from her room in wonder. Moreover, she was still the daughter of this house, and as long as she lived in her parents’ house, she could not ignore them.

         Irene looked at the window and stood up from her seat. As she headed to the door, Irene stopped for a moment when she saw her reflection in the mirror. There was a large piece of gauze plastered on her left cheek. The day Irene had taken a hit from the Count, her cheeks had turned swollen the next day. The trace of the handprints on her face was awful, so she had to place gauze to cover them.

         Irene touched her cheek and took off the gauze. Fortunately, there was only a slight bruise left, and the swelling had now subsided. Irene was made to leave her room after she threw the gauze into the trash can.

         As Irene went down the stairs, the sound of laughter from the lower floor made itself clear in her ears. But it was not just her family’s laughter. In the midst of the voices, there was a man’s voice.

The voice was not unfamiliar to her. As Irene continued her steps, the voice became clearer the further she descended. Then, she could tell who the person was who owned that voice.

“Oh, Irene. My fiancée.”

Boris, who sprang up from the sofa, stretched out his arms towards Irene. Immediately, he moved to try and embrace her, whom he still considered as his lover. Riel, who was sitting next to Boris, looked at Irene with a bright smile.

“What is happening...”

Irene, who stared blankly at Boris, asked while turning her gaze to her mother. Upon recognising Boris, her face had turned stiff.

“What are you doing?”

On hearing Irene’s cold tone, Boris had a troubled look, but the Countess appeared to be very relaxed. She lectured Irene whilst sipping her tea.

“What are you doing in the presence of a guest? Come and sit down, Irene.”

“I’m sorry, but I will go back….”

“Irene!”

As soon as Irene was about to go back coldly, Boris suddenly came running up the stairs and shouted her name. Irene became surprised and backed away when Boris outstretched his arms and tried to hug her. Irene’s eyes grew wide. The Countess also seemed to be surprised at the unpredictable situation. Riel looked at the two with an expressionless face.

“How dare you….”

“Oh, Irene. Please listen to my story. You have misunderstood me right now.”

Irene pushed his chest to get away from him, but Boris did not back down. Only when Irene stomped hard on top of his feet did Boris back down and retreat his foot. In that unpredictable situation, Irene glared at Boris. Then Boris knelt before her. Irene looked down at him with an absurd expression appearing on her face.

Boris banged his head to the ground and vented his dejection.

“I must have been crazy for a while. I forgot for a moment how precious you are to me. I was a jerk.” He cried, his forehead touching the ground.

“...Boris.”

“Wait, Irene! Listen to my story. Of course, I know I did something wrong, but I was lonely.”

“What?”

Irene had a puzzled look on her face. The Countess and Riel just watched Boris’ play without a word. Boris looked up at Irene with a look of unjust and spoke.

“I’ve always shown you as much affection as I could, but you haven’t shown me any affection.”

“...”

“Think about it. It’s been 100 days since we met. With that time, other couples would have….”

“Stop it, Boris.”

Irene clenched her fists. She felt ashamed to know him. In fact, Irene felt so disgraced, and she could not bear to listen to his words anymore. She regretted that she had ever sincerely loved him and wanted to spend the rest of her life with a jerk like him.

Irene did not want to see Boris’ face anymore. It was only now that she had caught him in the act that she had a revelation. Boris had never once thought of their relationship as being important.

If Boris had really loved Irene sincerely, he would not have had to make an excuse like that. No, he would not have even tried to cheat on her with her younger sister in the first place. Moreover, confirming that fact right in front of her eyes made her heart break even more.

“You should also listen to Boris’s side of the story, sister.”

Then, Riel, who had watched the situation unfold on the sidelines, stood up to defend Boris. The Countess just sighed as if the situation was frustrating for her. Irene almost doubted her ears and turned her gaze to Riel.

“Boris is truly regretful and reflected on his act, and it’s not that he’s the only one who was wrong. You are also in the wrong, sister.”

“What…”

“What Riel said was right. You do not understand how lonely I’ve been because of how you are to me.”

Boris, who was paying attention to Riel’s words, got up from the floor and questioned Irene’s behaviour. Irene looked at him with a puzzled look. As time went by, Boris’ momentum grew stronger because he knew how to crush Irene’s feelings very well.

---