“Goodbye~”
I got on the carriage after hearing the princess’s words.
It feels like just yesterday that I came to the capital, and now I’m already going back.
“Take care~”
Anyway, I greeted the princess, who insisted on seeing us off until the very end. Although she had a bad image at first for crashing my promise with Kyle, she turned out to be a good person in the end.
After all, she brought us this far and even invited us to the ball.
“Kyle, get up and say goodbye too.”
“Yes.”
Kyle got up and bowed to the princess from behind me, and that was that.
Of course, being a princess, she had to stay behind, unlike us.
“Huh. Feels like it’s been forever since we’re going back.”
“Yeah. It’ll be about a month when we arrive.”
“Wow, has it really been that long?”
We’re suddenly on our way back after leaving Eristirol. I made up excuses not to go to the ball, and then suddenly, we set off.
Honestly, I still can’t believe I actually attended the ball.
And it seems like a lot has changed since then. Mainly, I’ve been thinking about Kyle.
“Kyle.”
“Yes.”
When I called him, he looked at me. Somehow, I ended up dating this guy.
Well, we went on dates and had physical contact, so to others, we probably looked like an ordinary couple.
That’s how couples are, right?
But I still don’t quite know if I really like Kyle.
The princess says I do, but…
“Give me a kiss.”
Kyle stood up and pressed his lips against mine. I felt my heart race, not just a little flutter but like a drum pounding.
“…”
“Why? Should I give you more?”
“N-no.”
If I get to kiss him and my heart races like this, does that mean I really love Kyle?
The more I think about it, the more confused I get.
I do have a crush on Kyle for sure. He’s such a good guy.
I had feelings for him even before confessing. He’s handsome, fit, and has a great personality, so it was natural to feel that way.
But does that mean I truly love this guy?
“Kyle, what is love even?”
“All of a sudden?”
“Yeah, all of a sudden.”
What does it mean to love? Is it just the heart pounding when I’m with Kyle, the physical contact, and our eyes meeting, like the princess said?
Is it really that easy?
I’ve basically learned about dating only through comics and stories.
I’ve never been in a relationship, in either my past life or this one…aside from all this with Kyle.
“It’s complicated.”
“Isn’t it?”
It was a damn hard question. Especially for me.
Is it because I was a guy in my past life? Or is it just because I’ve never dated in either life?
“Hmm.”
Kyle fell deep in thought.
It must have been a sudden question for him as well.
I thought about it too. I’ve been struggling with it lately but still can’t find an answer.
“It’s really nothing.”
“Huh?”
“You just end up doing it eventually.”
“R-really?”
“Yeah.”
Kyle’s answer was nothing like what I was thinking.
Is this how alpha males think? Or am I just overthinking it because I’m an idiot?
“But still, isn’t it normal to have something special when you fall in love?”
“Then why do we have the saying of falling in love at first sight?”
“Ugh…that’s just an exception!”
How many couples actually fall in love at first sight?
One in ten?
No, it can’t even be one in fifty!
“Why is it an exception?”
“Well, those things only happen in stories, right? I’ve never seen it happen.”
“Well, I fell for Sophia almost at first sight.”
“W-what?!”
He’s being serious, but why is he saying things like this?
Does he think I’ll suddenly swoon because of it?
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
“No, I mean it.”
“Falling in love at first sight? What kind of…”
“You were super pretty from the first time we met.”
“Hmph. Do you think saying that will make me like you?”
I’m not some fool who falls in love over a single compliment, especially since that was seven years ago.
Seven years ago!
I was still a teenager back then!
“And you were twelve at the time. What do you mean by that?”
“Well, it’s not like I loved you since then, but I thought you were incredibly pretty even then.”
“Hmph….”
“Of course, you’re prettier now.”
“That’s a lie, come on.”
Comparing a late teenager to a mid-twenties is ridiculous.
You need to be more appropriate with your compliments.
What’s changed is not even that much.
I might have grown a bit taller and my chest might have gotten a size bigger, but still, come on.
Even though I’ve come to appreciate a good chest, I just can’t process it.
“Why is it a lie?”
“No, you were super slim, and your waist was tiny back then. Now you’re bigger than you were then.”
“Why bring that up?”
“Kyle sat down next to me, facing me.”
“Why?”
“And you’re still super slim now.”
“Kyle?!”
“With both my hands, there’s hardly anything left.”
Kyle suddenly started to wrap his arms around my waist.
I wasn’t sitting with my back against him, but still…
Being grabbed like this is… well, it felt a bit inappropriate.
“K-Kyle? Can we let go of this for now? Okay?”
I felt really embarrassed with him holding my waist right now.
It was more than just holding my waist; he was touching my belly too.
For sure, the belly that has gotten soft due to not working out would be felt under his hands.
“Huh?! Kyle? Can you let go of this right now?”
“How is this fat? You don’t even feel it when you touch it.”
“That’s the point! Just let go of me already!”
Only when I yelled did Kyle finally release his grip.
It was genuinely embarrassing.
Though I’ve been working out, I’ve clearly seen no signs of abs developing.
My belly was entirely soft…
“Ugh….”
“I really didn’t gain any weight, you know.”
“Then what else could this be?!”
I rubbed my belly with my hands.
It felt just as soft as I pressed it.
If that’s not fat, then what is it?!
“My weight has even gone up to 120 pounds recently!”
“…Pounds?”
“Yeah! I used to be 110 pounds!”
“….”
Kyle suddenly went quiet.
Of course, it would be shocking.
I’ve suddenly gained five kilograms since we first met.
“Sophia, do they use pounds in the lower districts?”
“Huh?”
“Suddenly, you’re talking about pounds.”
“Oh. My bad. I meant I went from fifty kilograms to fifty-five kilograms!”
“….”
Oh, by the way, they use pounds in the lower districts.
I wasn’t used to it at first, but I just got the hang of it eventually.
“Anyway! I’ve gained five kilograms, and you say that’s not gain?”
“Hah….”
I don’t even know why the conversation drifted here, but whatever.
“Sophia. Weren’t we having a serious conversation?”
“You just suddenly touched my belly!”
To be precise, it was my waist, but still, touching me like that without warning definitely set me off.
“Anyway… Sophia thinks she hasn’t gained that much. It’s just five kilograms over seven years. Why make such a fuss?”
“Kyle, you wouldn’t know since you aren’t a woman.”
For a woman, five kilograms is a massive deal.
I didn’t know before, but now that I live as a woman, I can’t help but feel that way.
The day my weight goes up to a point where there’s a decimal change……
“I don’t want to imagine that.”
It’s already feeling like my chest is getting heavier.
If it gets any heavier, I’ll have to change my bra size.
“Sophia, let’s go back to what we were talking about.”
“Okay.”
What were we discussing again? Ah, right.
“What was love again?”
“Yes.”
Honestly, ever since Kyle placed his hand on my belly, I haven’t been able to think straight.
I was genuinely that shocked. “Anyway, there’s no such thing as falling in love at first sight!”
“Hah… I genuinely thought you were pretty from the very first time I saw you. Isn’t that a plausible thing to say?”
“Anyway… no.”
“So how does it happen then?”
“Well… some big romantic event happens, and after that, you really fall in love.”
“I got it.”
“Huh?”
Kyle suddenly accepted it.
Did he finally understand what I was saying?
“There has to be a romantic event, right?”
“Isn’t that right…?”
If you watch romance comics or dramas, it’s always like that.
Something grand happens between the male and female leads, and then they realize their feelings, right?
I really believe something like that has to happen.
Is it realistic to suddenly realize you’re in love while going through daily life without a single event?
That’s just fantasy, delusion, and nonsense territory. Anyway, that’s the way it is.
“Sophia.”
“Huh? What?”
Kyle, sitting beside me, called me again.
What does he want now?
“It’s nothing.”
“?”
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
