Heartache

Then, the tears poured down like a flood.

That was what Victoria looked like after failing to confess. She didn’t want to cry, but emotions aren’t something you can control just because you want to.

Some things are like a speeding train— even if you hit the brakes, inertia will still push it forward, until time smooths out the force of that inertia.

Victoria took a deep breath. She thought of Collins. Although Collins still didn’t have a girlfriend up to now, that didn’t mean he was unattractive. In fact, Collins was quite handsome, with a tall figure. If he weren’t so completely devoted to his field of study and willing to spend even a little time on girls, how could he possibly not have a girlfriend?

Come to think of it, she had never dated a boy before, had she?

Collins seemed pure enough. More importantly, his magical skills far surpassed Victoria’s imagination. If she were to become a couple with him, then in future magical experiments…

Victoria thought about a lot of things. Collins kept turning into different roles in her mind. But soon, Victoria pushed those thoughts out of her head. Collins was a person, yet for a moment, Victoria had regarded him as an object.

That was immoral. Victoria deeply despised herself for having that thought. But the thought also revealed something: in Victoria’s future magical experiments, Collins’ presence was indispensable.

If she rejected Collins without hesitation like this, and if Collins got angry and refused to help her…

Victoria leaned her back against the wall, her face full of sorrow. If Collins were just an ordinary person, she would have rejected him without much hesitation. But right now, Collins was someone extremely important to her.

Victoria didn’t dare reject him.

So, what if… they both took a step back?

Victoria lifted her head. She felt she could agree to Collins’ idea of going to the bonfire party together. But after the bonfire party, she could bluntly refuse his confession— and then give him a “nice guy” card to encourage him.

That should be… the best and most tactful way to reject him, right?

Victoria showed a relaxed smile.

That pure, innocent boy, who was so shy that even confessing made him shrink back— as if saying what he truly thought would make people dislike him— he probably had never even held a girl’s hand, and probably hadn’t spent much time in the same space as a girl, either.

So when she said she was willing to go to the bonfire party with him, Victoria could already imagine the exaggerated smile that would bloom on Collins’ face.

Just like the smile she once imagined when a senior accepted her love letter.

At that moment, Victoria’s smile stiffened. She felt that agreeing to Collins’ request now… maybe it was also partly out of pity for the past.

She didn’t want to see sincere feelings end up in an environment where they couldn’t even be spoken aloud. Only those who have felt pain truly understand what it means to be dead inside, what it means to be heartbroken to the extreme.

Walking slowly back to Collins’ lab, Victoria pushed open the door with a sense of relief.

“Um… I’ve thought about it. Actually, between us… it’s not impossible.”

The gap between the door and the frame widened little by little. Victoria forced herself to wear a gentle smile. But the eyes that met hers weren’t Collins’ sorrowfully restrained eyes— instead, they were a pair of beautiful, peach blossom eyes.

“Huh?”

The owner of those peach blossom eyes tilted their head curiously. The gothic lolita outfit perfectly displayed a soft, childish figure. Paired with facial features so cute and innocent, and skin texture no worse than Victoria’s carefully maintained skin, what stood before her was completely a little loli who could drive any lolicon crazy with excitement.

Only… this little loli was holding up her own skirt with both hands, revealing the reality underneath.

A man was staring carefully, his expression serious.

Victoria took a step back. The little loli raised her tiny fist and smacked it down on Collins’ head.

“Ugh, ow! What are you doing?”

Collins slowly raised his head, and at that moment, his eyes met Victoria’s.

Victoria swallowed hard, secretly clenching her fists.

Collins nodded at Victoria.

“Senior, you’re back.”

From Collins’ tone, Victoria couldn’t detect the slightest hint of shame— as if Collins didn’t feel embarrassed about what he was doing at all.

“Um… maybe it’s just a misunderstanding, but let me ask… what exactly were you doing just now?”

Victoria felt that there were a lot of misunderstandings in this world, and sometimes… it’s better to ask clearly.