It’s Not Night - Chapter 171.1

Her heart was in turmoil. Dustin had been staring at Andra in disbelief for some time. What did those tears mean? Was his interpretation correct? He couldn’t control his trembling hands.

“Andra…”

“You’re terrible… just leave me be then!”

With a final push, Andra shook Dustin off and hurried toward the door. Her tears blurred her vision, and her heart ached with betrayal.

She didn’t want to see Dustin’s face. Just looking at it felt like it would shatter the fragile endurance she had maintained until now.

However, before she could reach the doorknob, Dustin caught her. His large frame enveloped her in an embrace.

“I’m sorry, I really messed up.”

“Let go…!”

“Andra…”

Dustin buried his face in her neck from behind, hugging her close. He pleaded cautiously. Please don’t go. His voice still trembled. His arms, tightly wrapped around her, didn’t seem like they would let go.

“Scumbag…”

Eventually, the force in her hands pushing him away waned. Andra stopped resisting and her body slackened. Tears fell to the floor once again.

“I’ll fix everything… just give me one more chance. I won’t do it again.”

“…”

“Andra, please…”

Despite Dustin’s pleas, Andra remained silent for a long while.

“….Why did you do it? The necklace. Did you have to go that far?”

Time seemed to stand still. Suddenly Andra asked with a tearful voice. She buried her face in her palms as she continued.

“I thought I could forget it all, that I could trust you… But every time you act this way, it all comes back to me. I’m shaken again. After all you’ve done to me… The Dustin Airak who despised and loathed me so openly…”

“….Andra, I…”

“Dustin Airak, I hate you. Why do you make me feel this way? Why do you keep making me feel so foolish? I want to trust you, but every time you act this way, I can’t be sure. Why did you do it? Did you really have to go that far?”

She was exhausted from fighting too. Even in moments when they should trust and rely on each other, their accumulated emotions make them at odds. One fears being abandoned, while the other doubts the clear sincerity. Andra hated this.

She kept trying to gauge Dustin’s feelings, and showing her petty emotions, while Dustin rushed in and imposed his feelings subtly. All these things tormented her.

“I hate this situation. I don’t want to be like this… But I keep remembering. How am I supposed to not doubt you, to not want to pull away? Why did you do it? That necklace meant so much to me… How could you?”

Andra burst into tears again. Every time she saw Dustin after recalling the past, the image of the necklace haunted her. She knew she shouldn’t hold onto such feelings, but she couldn’t let go easily. This greatly affected her feelings towards Dustin. That was why her emotions fluctuated wildly in his presence.

Yet she tried to trust him. It was hard to conceal her petty emotions, but she tried to focus on him as much as possible because she knew he was making an effort. Perhaps that’s why she felt betrayed today. How could you, Dustin Airak?

As Andra sobbed uncontrollably, curling up, Dustin’s body stiffened.

“…I didn’t know then that it was the Marchioness’s necklace.”

After Andra had moved to the east following her coming of age, Dustin had only then learned that the necklace he had found that day belonged to Marchioness Avelin. By then, it was too late, and Dustin thought he would never see Andra again, nor would there be a chance to return the necklace to her.

So he really threw the necklace into the largest lake in the north. It was because he felt uneasy keeping it any longer.

“….I’m sorry.”

It felt like swallowing a bundle of needles. Dustin couldn’t say anything more after that. It was indeed his fault that Andra had lost her necklace.

“Did you really not know? You knew how desperately I was searching for it. You knew how much I clung to that necklace. Rather….you should have just said you never saw it. That you had no idea!”

“…”

“Did you really have to tear my heart apart like that? Why did you do it? What did I do wrong? Tell me, Dustin. Did you hate me so much that you even wanted to take away my mother’s only keepsake?”

Years had passed before she could finally ask the questions she had longed to. Dustin felt choked by Andra’s earnest question. Eventually, he let go of his embrace and knelt before her again. It was all he could do right then.