Backstage Trap - Chapter 18

The lavish refreshments laid out before them weren’t the sort of treats a foster child was ever meant to enjoy. Neither was sharing afternoon tea with the young master in the estate’s most visible garden.

Yet this peaceful tea party hadn’t been something Ian had secretly arranged behind his mother’s back.

Quite the opposite.

Vanessa Lancaster herself had ordered it.

Whenever one of her acquaintances visited the estate, Lucia was expected to behave as though she’d been raised alongside Ian as an equal member of the family.

Simply because it looked better that way. It was nothing more than a carefully staged performance.

The custom-made dress she still wasn’t used to wearing. The patent leather shoes that rubbed painful blisters into her heels. Even the heavy jeweled hairpin pinned neatly into her hair.

Every detail that made her resemble a true daughter of the Lancaster household had been crafted by Vanessa. And, as if to ensure Lucia earned the privilege of wearing them, she could feel eyes watching from the manor.

Somewhere inside, one of Vanessa’s social rivals—someone outwardly friendly while secretly looking for flaws—was almost certainly observing the scene. Lucia couldn’t afford even the smallest mistake.

Even with delicious pastries laid out before her, she wasn’t allowed to behave like an excited child. So she sat perfectly still, every movement restrained.

“…It’s a little uncomfortable when someone keeps staring at you, isn’t it?”

Meanwhile, Ian kept sneaking glances at her.

One sip of tea. A look at Lucia. Another sip. Another look.

His manners were dreadful. Yet unlike Lucia, no one ever corrected him.

After Ian poured her tea, Lucia finally lifted her cup.

Everything she’d learned during etiquette lessons flowed naturally into place as she elegantly took a careful sip of the lemon tea.

“You used to stare at me all the time too.”

“I was embarrassed back then…”

And I was younger. Ian added the last part almost defensively.

“You’re still young.”

“I-I know. But I’m older than I was then…! O-Of course, I’m still shorter than you…but Hans says I’ll grow taller before long.”

His self-conscious muttering drew a small laugh from Lucia.

“That’s true. Boys usually have their growth spurts later. Sounds like you’ve gotten close to Mr. Hans lately. You used to be terrified of him. That’s why you couldn’t even come near me two years ago.”

“I wasn’t terrified…!”

“Weren’t you?”

“…Okay, maybe a little. But mostly, I was just embarrassed…And you were always with Mr. Hans.”

Ian’s attempt to defend himself crumbled almost immediately.

Watching him surrender so quickly, Lucia chuckled and slid the plate of cookies toward him. Ian’s face instantly brightened.

Despite growing up with every privilege imaginable, the young master of the Lancaster family seemed happiest whenever Lucia fussed over him.

His shoulders were perpetually hunched. His voice was still soft, untouched by puberty. Even in shorts and neatly pulled-up knee socks, he looked more like someone’s younger brother than a boy his own age.

Perhaps it was that fragile, almost delicate air surrounding him.

Before she realized it, Lucia had forgotten Hans’s warning to stay away from Ian. Instead, she found herself looking after him as though he truly were her little brother.

Mrs. Lancaster often watched the two of them with cold, displeased eyes. But after hearing that Lucia had stood up for Ian at school, she’d allowed them to remain close.

After all, Lucia had proven herself useful. Unlike Ian, who smiled brightly beneath the afternoon sun, a shadow crossed Lucia’s face.

“Well, I suppose it’s because I feel most comfortable around Mr. Hans.”

“That grumpy old man?”

Ian scrunched up his face in an exaggerated imitation of Hans.

He often complained that he’d seen Hans scold Lucia countless times and couldn’t understand why she kept seeking him out.

“…You’re right. He’s the coldest person here.”

Lucia didn’t explain.

It wasn’t as though she enjoyed spending her time in a smelly stable. But there was no reason to burden this gentle, sheltered boy with darker truths.

So she kept quiet. Just as she hid the painful blisters the new shoes had left on her feet. Just as she smiled as though nothing were wrong while looking after him.

“Is it good?”

“Mhm! But Lucia, stop drinking only tea. You should eat something too.”

The lemon tea the adults had prepared was sweet only for a fleeting moment. The tartness lingered much longer on the tongue.

And like that brief sweetness…

The peaceful afternoon sunlight didn’t last for long before it, too, began to fade.