"I thought you wanted to escort me outside, Ray. Why are we heading towards the garden?" Sabrina asked with her right hand still locked with her fiancé's, as they continued their journey.
From the fourth storey of the mansion, where Ray had offered his hand, Sabrina and Ray had been holding hands the entire time, now making their way to the garden.
"I am escorting you outside, my dear fiancée." Ray replied, seemingly unbothered as if he had done nothing wrong.
Fuming with anger, Sabrina burst out due to his sarcastic replies.
"By 'outside,' I mean to the carriage where I will be riding to get the hell out of this place."
"Such foul words. I am sorry for making my fiancée angry." Ray replied with a calm demeanor.
"If you are sorry, then let go of my hand."
With a slight smile, Ray gently let go of her hand.
"Tsk."—The onomatopoeia came out naturally as Sabrina clicked her tongue, looking at Ray with disapproval.
Ray shrugged, pretending to be confused as he looked at her.
"What is wrong?"
"Wrong?" Sabrina smirked cutely, but her following words were not so cute. "Wrong? Everything here is wrong. Your face is wrong, this garden is wrong, and the whole world is wrong. The only thing that's correct here is me saying everything is wrong."
"Fabulous." Ray commented out of the blue, which visibly annoyed Sabrina, causing a vein to appear on her temple.
"What?!!"
Ignoring her angry expression, Ray looked beside him. "This flower is beautiful, isn't it?" He said, touching a piece of flower attached to a sturdy stem.
Sabrina halted her words, knowing they were useless against someone who wasn't listening to her. She sighed, letting her anger dissipate.
"Do you know the name of that flower, young master?"
"My apologies. I do not know."
"That flower is called Amaryllis, young master." Sabrina said, her furrowed face intensifying. "I can't believe you excused all my sentences for a flower you do not even know."
"You seemed displeased every time you looked at me." The smile on Ray’s face vanished. "Dismayed and disgusted. Just like my mom’s."
"I’m glad you know." responded Sabrina. "Your mother is not here either, right?"
It took a while before Ray responded.
".......Yes."
"Well, I will do that too. I'll never set foot in this place again."
Then, Sabrina didn't expect Ray's expression to darken.
".... D-Don’t be like that."
The whole atmosphere turned silent, only the rustling of wind passing through the garden could be heard.
"Your father did talk about your mother. It's a pity; your father was like you. He liked putting a bush everywhere."
"My father is not a gardener. Please do not insult him." Ray exhaled.
Sabrina's whole face then went completely blank. It was as if Sabrina had left this world. She murmured ‘Is this for real? Is he really this dumb?’ but Ray couldn't hear her.
"Forget it. Let's just go back outside of this mansion." Sabrina announced.
"You.... Don't want to know about my mother?"
"Yes." Sabrina answered firmly. "Maybe next time, I will. But I told you, I don't care."
Sabrina's choice of words was quite rude, considering that she was a child and much younger than her fiancé. But this time, Ray couldn't argue with her. The reason was unknown.
Ray hesitated this time. His hand was slightly shaky as it levitated towards Sabrina.
"W-would you mind me having the honor of guiding you outside the mansion?"
"Wow, are you embarrassed? This is a first," Sabrina teased. "Of course. I shall."
Sabrina gracefully accepted his outstretched hand, anticipating the comforting warmth of a human touch.
However, instead of the life-affirming sensation she expected, she was greeted with the chilling touch of a lifeless corpse lying amidst the frozen expanse of Antarctica.
“Ray, are you feeling nervous?” she inquired, her curiosity brimming with concern.
Before uttering a word, Ray lifted his gaze to the sky, attempting to find solace in its vastness.
“I am.” he finally confessed, his voice tinged with vulnerability.
“Why?” Sabrina probed, genuinely wanting to understand his emotions.
“Because you're my fiancé.” He replied simply, yet his response seemed to hold a deeper layer of uncertainty.
“That’s strange. I also sensed your rapid pulse from your hand, young master.” Sabrina observed, her worry subtly manifesting, though her expression remained stoic in Ray's eyes.
“Are you truly nervous, or could it be that you're experiencing some mild stroke now?” Sabrina's medical instincts couldn't help but consider all possible explanations for his unusual behavior.
Without hesitation, Sabrina moved closer to him, intent on inspecting his face and complexion for any signs of distress.
Nonetheless, each step she took forward, Ray seemed to unconsciously take a step back, as if her proximity made him even more flustered.
“Please, young master, stop moving.” she implored, realizing that he might stumble and hurt himself.
“N-N-No, please don't get clo—
Ray's sentence was cut short as his eyes widened in realization that his foot had stumbled over a rock or perhaps a vine in the garden.
In a twist of fate, the two of them tumbled to the ground, with Sabrina inadvertently landing in front of Ray.
The scene seemed like a clichéd moment straight out of a romance novel, where a man unexpectedly "wall-banged" his love interest.
Unfortunately, in this case, the outcome was far from romantic as Sabrina ended up on the ground in an awkward position, her hand and wrist throbbing in deep pain, yet she couldn't bring herself to cry out.
Ray found himself lying on the ground as well, but thanks to the presence of soft grass and soil, the impact was lessened, sparing him from serious harm.
As Sabrina lay there, her eyes turned red with unshed tears, her heart aching both from the physical pain and the emotional turmoil within her.
Ray's face flushed with embarrassment and concern, and he hurriedly approached her, desperately wanting to help alleviate her pain.
“M-miss Sabrina! Let me help you... I am so sorry!” He stammered, his own discomfort momentarily forgotten in his genuine worry for her well-being.