An Early Engagement - Chapter 28

Shirley’s ring was kept by Damian, and Damian’s ring was kept by Shirley.

At first, the rings were too loose on their fingers, but now they fit perfectly.

The thought that the day they would slip those rings onto each other’s hands was approaching made her feel even stranger.

“Are you keeping the ring safe?”

Suddenly, Damian teased her with a mischievous expression, and Shirley poked his side, glaring at him.

“Of course. I put it safely in the drawer. Along with the engagement pledge.”

“Do you remember when you signed it?”

“Huh?”

“When you were writing your name, the ink smudged.”

“…Oh.”

At Damian’s words, a memory she had completely forgotten resurfaced.

“Yeah, that did happen.”

With her small hand, she had clumsily written her name, and due to the unfamiliar fountain pen, the ink smudged, leaving a dark stain.

“They said that was a bad omen.”

Recalling that moment, her voice suddenly became deflated.

At seven years old, she remembered the adults whispering about how smudged writing on a marriage or engagement certificate was said to bring misfortune to the signer.

“Don’t be silly, Shirley.” His hand, cupping her cheek, felt cool.

“Don’t pay attention to stories people make up. It’s just nonsense.”

“Yeah, I don’t care about it now. I was just young back then.” Weren’t they the couple everyone in the empire envied? Besides, after the recent fight and clearing up the misunderstanding, they were even closer than before.

It even felt like their relationship had grown stronger.

Misfortune for us?

That’s ridiculous.

Shirley repeated it to herself like a mantra.

At that moment, loud music began to echo across the square.

“…Looks like it’s time to dance.”

As the lively music filled the air, people began pouring into the square, eager to join the festivities.

One by one, pairs formed and started dancing around the bonfire, spinning to the fast rhythm. Damian gladly led Shirley into the circle.

“Damian, Damian?”

In an instant, Shirley and Damian found themselves surrounded by a crowd of people.

“Shirley, take my hand.”

Damian deliberately greeted her with a mockingly improper gesture, then extended his hand to her like a rogue.

Shirley stared at his hand for a moment before reluctantly taking it, and they began spinning around.

Half of it was thanks to the alcohol she had drunk earlier. Laughter burst out endlessly, and their unrestrained voices cut through the night air, echoing loudly.

There was no one to scold them for laughing and chatting too loudly, or for lacking grace or decorum.

Shirley danced with full enthusiasm, and Damian mischievously held her close, spinning her around without pause.

“Damian, I’m dizzy…”

In the end, it was Shirley who surrendered first.

“Should we take a break?”

“Yeah.”

Shirley nodded, her face glistening with sweat from dancing nonstop.

The village square was packed with people who had come out to dance. Damian held Shirley’s hand and led her to a quieter spot near the building.

They slipped into a narrow path between the buildings.

“It should be better here.”

Damian’s hand touched Shirley’s flushed cheek. The coolness of his hand made her let out a long sigh.

“It was so hot earlier.”

The heat from the bonfires lit here and there had made her whole body warm. Of course, it was also because she had been dancing nonstop.

Though it was called dancing, it was far from the formal dances at balls.

The steps were free, the turns were free—everything was free, so she had been so absorbed in dancing that she didn’t even notice her body drenched in sweat.

The alleyway was cool, shielded from the heat outside. A refreshing breeze blew in, cooling her body, and she finally felt like she could breathe. Then, a forgotten thirst surged up.

“I’ll go get us something to drink.”

Damian said, glancing at Shirley’s dry lips.

“Okay.”

Shirley nodded, but at that moment—

“Mmm, ah…”

A sticky, lewd moan came from somewhere.

Shirley, who had been leaning against the wall, widened her eyes in surprise. Her gaze fixed on a man and woman who had just entered the dark alleyway, oblivious to the presence of others.

“……”

Whatever had them in such a hurry, they were completely engrossed in their own business, unaware of the people around them in the darkness.

The sound of their lips noisily meeting and their passionate entanglement filled the air.

The woman’s chest was half-exposed, her clothes nearly slipping off, and her skirt was hiked up, revealing her pale legs.

The man, who had pinned the woman against the wall, hastily loosened his lower garments and lifted one of her legs to wrap around his waist.

Soon after, a simultaneous moan escaped from the two as their bodies intertwined.

“Ah—!”

Shirley instinctively gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.

Despite the not-so-quiet sounds, the couple in the darkness seemed completely unaware of Shirley and Damian’s presence, fully engrossed in their own actions.

“Don’t look.”

A large hand covered Shirley’s eyes, just as it had before.

“…D-Damian?”

Shirley called out to him in a voice as small as a mosquito’s. Even as she did, the sounds of the couple’s passionate encounter continued to echo.

“Haa…”

Damian pressed his body close, resting his forehead against Shirley’s, and used both hands to cover her ears.

“Look at me.”

“…Okay.”

“Not at them.”

Shirley nodded quietly. In the darkness, his eyes, glowing faintly, stared at her as if casting a spell.

Even with her ears covered, it was difficult to completely block out the intermittent sounds.

Shirley’s face flushed bright red, her panicked gaze darting around before she buried her face in Damian’s chest.

His broad, sturdy chest. It filled her vision entirely, offering a sense of security that made her let out a sigh of relief.

Damian tightened his embrace around Shirley as she leaned into him.

Held in Damian’s arms, Shirley felt as if she had been transported to a completely different world, far removed from the obscene acts of the couple nearby. She no longer saw or heard them.