<Karma>
With the palace busy with arrangements for the soirée tomorrow night, the palace has been bustling with excitement.
Nagisa and Princess Irina decided together that it was going to be floral themed. Therefore, the gardens will also be open to the public and the ballroom will be decorated with all sorts of flower arrangements and plants.
Like always, Irina was in charge of the event along with her trusted planners and assistants. It felt like if Irina wasn't palace-bound, she would of been great doing stuff like this that she is very fond of.
So, that leaves Nagisa and I to go about our regular daily routine until the soirée commences. In order not to be behind on work, Nagisa and I have been doing as much as we can so the both of us can properly relax tomorrow.
"Hey Karma, can you look this over?" Nagisa handed me a document and I reached over from my desk.
"What is it?" I asked while he took a stretch.
"A new business wants to buy land in Garden of Names." Nagisa explained, "are there lots available in town?"
"We would have check whether or not if they're paying full or over time. Then we would have to verify the business's benefits to the locals. Actually, a lot of things have to be accounted for." I sighed, "we rarely get these requests and when we do, it's a hassle honestly."
"It saddens me when we have to reject them due to the lack of community interest." Nagisa laid his head in the desk and closed his eyes for bit. "I remember how Sugino's mother in the past wanted to open up a small shop for her quilts but nobody was really interested for it to be passed."
"Well, sometimes you just have to look at it from another perspective. Imagine the business failing if it did get passed. She would of lost her hard earned money that was put aside to open it in the first place. That's why we have these community polls so that everyone has a chance to provide their input."
"You're not wrong." Nagisa lifted up his head and reached out for the document.
"Don't worry, just give these ones to me. You can deal with the other ones." I patted his head and Nagisa smiled.
STOMACH GRUMBLES
I silently stared at Nagisa and his face turned rosy red. I couldn't help but to chuckle and look at the time.
"Dinner won't be for another two hours. Should I ring the bell to ask for someone to get you something to eat?" I asked.
"I don't want to ruin my appetite later." Nagisa shook his head and then his stomach growled again.
"Maybe something small?"
"Haha of course. Would a tray of cheese and crackers be alright? Maybe add some cured meats as well?"
"That would be lovely to snack on." Nagisa nodded his head "as long as you eat it with me."
"How about we sneak some wine too while we're at it?" I winked.
"Karasuma will scold us again." Nagisa laughed.
"Wine before dinner is not out of the ordinary." I frowned, "plus it will give us motivation to work."
"More like the motivation to slack off." I rolled my eyes playfully but Karma knew that I wanted to regardless.
Soon after Karma rang the bell for a servant to come, a butler appeared and Karma was thorough with his plans. Looking from the desk, I noticed that he wasn't one of the older servants, definitely a training butler.
"Discreetly make sure the bottle of wine makes it here without Sir Karasuma noticing. It is a difficult task, no, one may say that it's impossible." Karma looked straight into the butler's eyes.
"You could be reprimanded, fired possibly if I dare say."
"Okay. That's enough." I went over and nudged Karma's arm.
"Try your best. If the odds aren't in your favor then we'll do just fine without any wine." I smiled at the butler who was trying his best not to break his smile with the anxiety building behind it.
Once the butler left, Karma patted my back.
"You know I was just joking around. He's new around here, just wanted to tease him a bit."
"You'll scare him away." I sat down at the desk. "Worse is that Sir Karasuma will give the poor guy trauma." I sighed.
"Then oops." Karma chuckled. "I'm not too worried though. The seniors must of warned him about my joking nature."
"The key word is warned, Karma."
Karma stood behind me and hung his arms around my shoulders and neck, leaning his back onto me.
I lifted my right hand and touched his arm. Turning my head to the left, I stared at Karma's lips. And without needing to say anything, Karma gently gleamed and cupped his hand on my chin to pull me in for a kiss.
It wasn't one of those simple pecks, it was one of those kisses that said I love you silently, yet loudly from our lips.
Karma pulled back and caressed my cheek.
"I may have said this but a million times, but my love for you is more than a small heart can carry. It transcends space and time and it will be a forever kind of love that will never dissipate from the face of the world."
"My, when did you become so eloquent with your words? Those weekly reading clubs that your dear sister drags you along to has definitely paid off." I lightly chuckled and turned my body to slightly face him while still seated.
"All from the heart." Karma replied and patted my head. "And only for you."
"Then, I shall say that your heart is full of warmth and a comforting home that keeps me at peace. It dwells within you quietly but it is as deafening as standing next to a cannon when it explodes." I said back with a soft voice.
"While we originally shared the same fate, I'm glad we can write our own stories from here on." I added and Karma held my hand tightly.
"It feels like not too long ago when you rejected me at first. I remember that feeling, it was daggers to my heart and needles in my throat."
"Now you're over exaggerating, you were doubtful in the beginning as well." I raised a brow and Karma shook his head.
"Surely, I was young but all I knew back then was that I wasn't going to give up on you. Even now, I serve to protect you no matter what happens." Karma replied.
I tightly gripped his hand.
"You know that I will do the same for you. My life is all yours."