My Fiancée Hates Me

Summer break was finally upon me. I packed my things from my dorm room and found that I had many presents from Garett. I packed them all anyways and returned home with mixed feelings.

At the gate, I saw my beautiful mother alive and healthy-looking waiting outside with a Maid who held a parasol over her head. She had an oddly stiff expression while wearing a frilly peach colored dress. "Greetings, Mother," I said as I formally greeted her with a curtsy.

"Greetings, Arielle," she said as she returned my greeting.

My mother and I had gotten close in our first lives because of her illness. Without the illness, we never really had any chance to talk to one another.

I know that she actually loves me a lot under her cold demure from our first lives, but I am unsure if she feels the same way now.

"I am glad that you look well," I said with a smile on my face.

"...Arielle, there seems to be a leaf on your neck," Mother said as she approached me.

"A leaf? Where?" I asked as I turned my head.

"I will get it for you," Mother said as she wrapped her arms around me and brought me into a hug.

I felt all warm inside.

"Mother?"

"Welcome home, Arielle," Mother said in a quiet voice.

I did not even need to ask whether or not she still loved me. She had always loved me from the very start...as awkward as she was at showing affection.

"I am home," I said as I hugged her back.

I missed her so much after her death and now she is back in my arms.

I am so happy to see her again.

"Let's go see your father," Mother said as she pulled me along by my hand.

She moves without skipping a beat when she is not ill...

I was soon alone and face to face with my father after my mother left the room.

Father opened up his arms wide with a stern face.

If I follow the pattern with my mother, he should be asking for a hug. If not, what could this action represent?

A stretch? Practice for being a conductor? Dear God...What if he wants to wrestle with me? Will I even be able to take him?

In the end, I decided to mimic Father by opening up my arms just like him.

He silently walked over to me and enclosed me in his embrace.

"Welcome home, Arielle," Father said as he warmly rubbed my head.

I closed my arms around him and rested my head against his chest.

"I am home, Father..."

All of this happiness should not belong to me but the person who made it all happen...

"You have been in the carriage for quite some time. Go rest in your room for now," Father said after he released me from a long hug.

"Yes, Father," I replied with a smile.

I went to my room and noticed that things had not changed much from my memory. If there was a noticeable change, I saw that there were various stuffed animals in my room and letters from Garett on my desk wishing me a 'Happy Birthday' with just those two words and his name signed off underneath. I found myself smiling when I held up the birthday cards.

I quickly put them down when I caught myself smiling.

It made me think that my body seems to remember Garett as perverted as that may sound...

Garett told me that our relationship was fake, but I have such a hard time believing that if my heart reacts to everything seemingly related to Garett.

As I continued looking around my room, I could not find any gifts or letters from Erik. I thought that it was a bit strange to have received gifts and letters from a fake lover and not my own engagement partner. As messy as my second life sounds, I expected there to be at least one or two letters from Erik somewhere.

I soon found an odd trunk in my room. I opened the lock with a key I found in my desk and saw hundreds of letters addressed to Erik along with items I had given to Erik in my past life. All of the letters were addressed to Erik without having been sent. Along with the letters, I found my old journals. They were not useful at all. All they did were recount the memories I already had and nothing about the current one or why I chose not to send out the letters. I just assumed that they were letters I was embarrassed about sending out and left it as is.

Just from looking at the trunk, I could roughly tell what my other self was thinking. She thought that she was the only one who remembered everything, so she made a box of memories just in case she would forget everything about Erik.

I am confused about my own feelings.

I feel a deep emptiness in my heart. If only I could recover the memories I lost, I could finally explain this wretched feeling.

The next day, Mother invited me for afternoon tea.

I admired her beautiful figure quietly. She looked so young and vibrant that I almost had to doubt whether she had ever aged since her twenties. Something about her gaze seemed softer and kind. "...Do you mind if I ask about the past?" I asked.

"You can ask me anything," Mother said.

"Were you King Arundel's former lover?" I asked abruptly.

She seemed surprised by my question.

"...I was during my Academy years," Mother admitted. "Did someone tell you?"

"It was His Highness Prince Erik," I answered.

"It was a long time ago. At the time, His Majesty was still third in line to the throne. I met him and fell for him at first sight. The feeling was mutual. It was not much longer that we started seeing each other with good intentions. It was not long after we broke up because that person became King. I could not give him anything to help him in the end and made him decide on difficult decisions himself," Mother explained. "Do you regret it?" I asked.

"I deeply regretted how things ended for us, but I do not regret falling for your father. He was my second love and now the person I love the most. If you are having trouble with your own relationships, just know that it is alright to fall in love more than once. No one can tell you what you are feeling is wrong," Mother said with a compassionate gaze.

It was as if she could read my mind about all of my insecurities.

"Can you read my mind?" I asked.

"...I thought that you were experiencing your own troubles in love since you asked about my past," Mother said calmly.

Mother is a such a sharp person...

"Thank you for your advice, Mother. It was very helpful," I said.

Falling in love again? How could I ever love anyone more than Erik?

The image of Garett's back popped into my mind.

I suddenly felt ashamed and embarrassed at the same time.

Mother seemed to see through my transparency from how she just smiled kindly and did not ask any further questions unless I wanted to continue talking about it. I liked that about her. She was kind enough to always listen and would not reprimand me unless necessary.

11

"...If you are having any troubles, I will be here to listen to you, Arielle," Mother said.

I can see her whenever I want now. Just seeing her alive makes me happy enough to want to shed tears.

"...Thank you, Mother."00000