Back home, night had already fallen.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpLlqyru17J
The door to Suzuran’s room closed with a soft click, and the house returned to silence once more.
In his own room, Koichi Kimijima slipped off his suit jacket in one smooth, practiced motion—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGXFpBgsCkm
just like he always did.
But as his fingers reached into the pocket—
He paused, momentarily caught off guard.
His hand touched something unfamiliar: a small, unfamiliar card.
He pulled it out.
It was a dainty card with pink edging—the kind used for the event earlier.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyb2JaFXYzW
The handwriting on it was unmistakable—soft and familiar, dancing lightly across the paper:
“Thank you… for staying by my side every Valentine’s Day.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5v0SWlEBDt
You always say it’s your duty…27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNfwhU7uboY
But still, I… really, truly appreciate it. Mm.”
He stared at the words, silent for a moment.
Then, almost involuntarily, the corner of his lips lifted.
A soft chuckle escaped him.
“When did she slip this in…?”
He tried to retrace his steps—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSChgcCAWT
Was it on the escalator? While walking to the café?
He could vividly picture her fumbling hands, flushed cheeks…27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECk0qnbb4z
But couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment it happened.
Yet that sentence—that final “mm”—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2xVD5fOPdz
felt like a breath left lingering on the card’s edge: gentle, but real.
He ran his thumb slowly over the paper, eyes drifting out toward the night beyond the window.
Scenes flooded his mind, unbidden—
Her hand in his on the escalator,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1VRYEz9diK
The way her eyes went wide when he offered her the biscuit,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjXTOkVveZ4
That flustered cry: “Ｉ might have a heart attack!”,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPMJRsdsOLd
The moment she hugged her head, utterly embarrassed…
They were home now.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ofq2nmFku
He should be organizing the day’s reports, preparing a summary of the outing.
But his thoughts remained—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq4hH9UkTbp
stuck in that single, flickering moment at the mall.
He whispered, barely above a breath:
“My lady… do you realize how many of your little ‘slips’ sound a bit too honest?”
He stood still in the middle of his room,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjAz4qlN5Ib
carefully flattening the small card in his hands,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC9GRj5w7tl
reading it again and again.
Each simple word stitched itself into his chest—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡurH56jaxV6
like threads piercing quietly, one at a time.
He gently closed the card, pressing it between his palms.
Then, with a soft bow of his head and hands clasped,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUIxlEAdWjs
he whispered a silent prayer—
“Ran… may your life be filled with peace.”
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHFpkdGrEH9
Not asking for anything.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZre3UEIvFd
Not asking to be loved in return.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHao31LsEIA
Not asking to be closer.
All he wished—
Was that the girl who always smiled through her fears,
Even if she someday fell in love with someone else,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyVMC8X9lX4
Even if she remained forever out of reach—
Would still be treated kindly by the world.
He opened his hands,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIVhQvAUV5C
then lowered his head—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGMh9eqA65y
and placed the lightest of kisses onto the pink-edged card.
It wasn’t the paper he was kissing.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyzWEJ5vynB
It was her—
Her forehead, her fingers,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVSCqgawKkM
the trembling lips that had whispered “thank you.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwgRtKYwum
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYoYbcukloV
He quietly tucked the card into the deepest corner of his drawer.
His fingers lingered at the edge a moment longer,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5TdrPQymM
as if sealing away a feeling that could never be spoken aloud.
Night fell deeper.
But in his heart,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgsPVQ9HfXr
he was still standing at the very beginning of that love escalator—
The place where she had once held his hand,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0g5lv4S313
and where the warmth of that touch still burned in his palm.
Meanwhile…
After her bath, Suzuran stepped into her room wearing a long house dress, towel-drying her damp hair.
She was just about to sit at her vanity when—
She stopped.
On the tabletop sat a beautifully wrapped gift box.
A silver-white ribbon she knew all too well was tied into a perfect bow.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPL1aRDgeb4
Beside it rested a small card.
“Wh-what—when did he put this here…?”
Her heart stopped for a beat.
She hurried over, caught somewhere between panic and anticipation,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhLvPPEfNiO
and gingerly picked up the card.
The handwriting—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuNGSHxB6Ma
was his.
So familiar it made her fingertips tremble.
“My lady, you are a lily in the valley—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiLaYCIiWXh
Quietly blooming, yet impossible to overlook.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp1Vhj2AZD6
I admire you.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgRrd0Orxem
—in every way I’m allowed to, as your butler.”
She froze.
Her eyes locked onto that line, unable to move.
And then—
Warm tears slid quietly down her cheeks.
Not sobbing—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdJiGUm8pAC
Just a silent, breathless stream, as if even breathing too loud might break the moment.
She didn’t know if she was happy… or heartbroken.
Maybe it was because the word “admire” held such gentle weight—
Or maybe it was the way he chose the word “admire”—27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡELcf6nlc7a
a word that framed all his feelings neatly27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIxdnk9YSWX
within the role he was never allowed to step beyond.
She gently opened the box.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7OGbScijpV
A familiar scent wafted up at once—
It was her favorite perfume.
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOVWIpWSJKK
Penhaligon’s · Lily of the Valley.
27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzyPnIj8NIe
The scent of valley lilies—soft, clean, and tender.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQR0q8bd1CH
Like a confession that never quite found its voice in spring.
She held the bottle in her hands.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkSwPiKLKrt
Her nose tingled, her heart ached, as if the scent had grazed it lightly.
And then, softly, she murmured—
“Why did you have to choose ‘admire’… when you could’ve said ‘adore’?”
Just one word. Just one step closer.
But instead, he chose the one that kept them apart.
Her eyes welled again.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2bsEsI4o3R
Her grip on the bottle tightened just a little.
She looked down at the label, her vision blurring slightly.
Then she closed her eyes—
And gently rested her forehead against the glass,27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKPFxkdpmGk
as if hoping to hide inside it,
To escape the emotion threatening to overflow.
And in her heart, one quiet thought surfaced:
“What do I do… I like you so much…”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo8h9uD0wrk
“So much, I couldn’t even bring myself to go watch the fireworks with you.”27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoabaaRcMP4
"Because if I did… I’d fall harder than I already have."
She never did see the rooftop fireworks that night.
But deep down, she knew—
Her heart had already exploded27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjLOazJPtmg
on that love escalator27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUx49iMz2mc
earlier that day.27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDRkYTRY6NS
You made it this far—you're seriously the sweetest! 🥹💗27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR1mjTHiYEl
If you liked it, don’t forget to like 👍, bookmark ⭐, and drop a little comment 📝~27Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldM4lhXuBp
Your support keeps me going—and keeps the characters falling deeper in love 💞💭
and then Add to home screen.