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CHAPTER TEN . CONSTRUCTION
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THERE WAS NO WORD ENOUGH to describe the trembling Juliette felt in her heart. It may have been true that the marriage between her parents began only as an arrangement, but the two grew to love each other dearly.
Juliette grew up with the thought of finding someone to share the same love her parents did.
It became her ideal.
A few years later, that ideal of hers shattered like fine glass.
When her brother Ryuu was born, the same marriage her parents had that was like an impeccably ironed cloth became ripped and torn into pieces. They fought day and night over the of smallest things and only acted normally in front of others and her younger brother.
Why the two stayed married, she never knew.
Perhaps it was to save them from the possible demolishment of their reputable family name, or an act to conserve her brother's innocence. Whichever of the two, she did not care for.
Juliette promised herself to only marry in the name of love from then on. But she never had the choice to begin with. Even before she and Nozel were born, the pledge between House Solace and Silva was made. 'Why did the two houses make a deal like that?'
Like many other noble children in Clover Kingdom, the two of them had no choice when it came to marriage.
Was her arranged marriage with Nozel doomed for the same fate? Just thinking about it made her stomach churn.
The silence in the room comforted her, and she stood still, not knowing what to do. Juliette blinked but somehow her eyes had failed their purpose.
A thunderous bolt flashed across the sky, and Juliette had to bite her already swollen cheeks from the inside to prevent her emotions from stirring.
Is this the reason her parents have been arguing for the past few years? It had to be. No wonder Juliette heard a silent plea of anguish at night. It was her mother silently weeping to herself.
Oh god.
Her own father cheating?
What about Ryuu? He was still a child. Young and full of ambition. This news would crush him harder than when he got rejected in first grade.
Outside, the snow liquidated the water and the rain began its symphony accompanied by the orchestra of tumultuous lightning. The cold weather swept the room with a single hallow and Juliette's knees buckled without her consent, knocking the small drawer from its standing.
One, three, five, . . . twenty letters of the same red-colored envelope scattered the floor and Juliette reached for each one of them. She didn't need to read the content of the other letters. It would only fan the flames of repugnance that she now harbored for her father.
But she could see the stained tears. Some having more stains than the others.
It was a confirmation that her mother had read these letters, and probably dealt with a greater pain that would never tantamount to her own.
Oh god. Juliette needed to get rid of the evidence quickly. If a single word about her father's adultery got out, Lord Silva would surely use this to break off her engagement with Nozel.
She couldn't lose him. No, she did not want to. Through the ups and downs of their bond, Juliette held onto Nozel and Fuegoleon like her lifeline. Losing either of them would be her limit. Especially Nozel.
Not because he was her fiancé.
But because he understood her most.
Rain only poured harder. The room darkened and quiet halls were filled with a flurry of strong winds, howling the pain its master could not cry out.
The young lady Solace roamed her eyes around the office and made a swift check of every nook and drawer in the room where all other letters with the mistress may possibly be hidden, but she found none. They were all in one drawer, neatly wrapped together like a prized possession.
"What is taking you so long?" Juliette, unable to hide her surprise, jumped at the sound of Nozel's uninvited voice as he walked into the room.
"I—uhm, n-nothing. I just f-fell down."
"You fell down? Are you still feeling unwell, Juliette?"
Juliette unconsciously stepped back from Nozel, and the young Silva quickly took note of this.
He furrowed his brows. "What's wrong, Juliette."
'Ah, that tone.' He only used it when she had been caught red-handed in her own lies. 'I'm sorry, Nozel. This is a truth I can never reveal to you.'
"I... just miss Ryuu a lot." she sniffled. "A-And it's really cold, my lord. I think we should hurry and move elsewhere. . . with fire preferably."
Nozel's eyes moved to the empty fireplace and moved closer to inspect. Juliette used that split-second opening to hide the letters back into the drawer.
She'll have to retrieve them later when the coast is clear. Once they were out of the room, she reached up with tipped toes to lock the room and placed the key neatly in her pocket.
He sighed as reached for her small hands with his own, "I don't know why you're missing that mischievous basta—"
"That bastard is my brother." she intercepted, her finger barely lacing with Nozel's given the thickness of their gloves.
"Mischievous brother-in-law, when he is to return in two day's time." he stopped in front of her, ears reddening as he reached for her round cheeks and wiped the tears from her eyes.
"Do you want him to tease you about missing him too much while he was away?"
Juliette grumbled a no before redirecting the conversation, "I am hungry, my Lord."
"I made sandwiches in the carriage."
"No pickles?"
He smiled, "No pickles."
The two made their way back to their carriage, and Nozel yelled over command to the horsemen, which Juliette assumed was the direction of the place they were going.
As they ate, Nozel repeatedly eyed Juliette's unusually quiet behavior. He was aware of how much she's changed after the countless admonitions she received from his father, but Juliette never held back her thoughts when it came to him.
Her attention flicked every so often at other carriages that rattled themselves in other directions and the young Silva wondered what her eyes were so desperately looking for.
However, Juliette dismissed all his questions with a wave and a smile.
It was as if she was building a wall between them.
And Nozel feared he could not navigate over the bricks she built.
