The Gap Between You and Me - Chapter 54
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Rattle, rattle.
She seemed to be quiet, but the sparse wind shook the open barn door. It would be nice to close the door and hang the lock, but it was impossible to lock the door at will because of his place as a slave.
Besides, Edwin had another reason why he wouldn’t lock the barn door.
Edwin felt slightly excited. He could feel Herietta looking at him from behind. She was lying comfortably on the hay he had piled to one side as if she were in her room.
Normally, he would have told her to sit down with something underneath, but today he kept his mouth shut. He didn’t want to offend her by saying something wrong.
It had been a week since Herietta went to see him like this.
Meanwhile, he was starting to get nervous and was wondering if he had done something to her. Although he was acting as if nothing had happened, he couldn’t be more pleased with her sudden visit, she asked him, ‘What are you doing?’ It was a pain to hold back his laughter that was struggling to leak out like a fool in front of her.
Herietta was very curious about him. Since she went to Lavant she had been depressed because a lot has happened to her, but originally she used to snoop around.
She came over to him and watched closely what he was doing. She then rolled up the sleeves of her clothes and said that she would help with the job.
Edwin turned down her offer. The reason was that it was too dangerous.
The tool he was using was common to many people’s daily life, but the thought of it being in her hands made him feel uncomfortable. Even though he knew he was being overprotective, he couldn’t help it. Since she wasn’t a very attentive person, she could have turned her eyes elsewhere and she could have been cut.
He mentioned to the promise engraved on the maple tree and said that this was too much for her. He thought her rebuttal would follow, but his expectations were wrong. Herietta gave up much more easily than he thought. She pouted at one point, but that was all.
She lingered around him for a moment, and then she climbed onto the hay piled up behind him and settled down.
Rustle, rustle. Behind him came the sound of the hem of her clothes rubbing against the hay. Whoo. The sound of her breathing sounded like a small animal that found a nest after a hard day’s work.
As he listened to the sound, the corners of his mouth curled up even though it wasn’t really a big deal. It was a feeling that was blooming in the corner of his heart, an emotion that could not be expressed in words.
Edwin didn’t look at Herietta for a long time. It wasn’t because he was mad or upset at her. He just didn’t want her to see himself smiling like a fool. It was because he didn’t want to show this face of his.
With every step he took, her gaze moved with it. While he was working, he thought it was cold in the barn, but from the moment she walked in, it became somewhat warm. It felt as if the empty space was filled with her presence.
Edwin turned around. He couldn’t concentrate on the task in front of him.
The silence between the two continued to grow infinitely longer. She seemed to have something to say to him. But at the same time he felt that he did not want to break this serenity.
He just loved the moment she was standing here like this, and she was lying comfortably not far from him. The present moment when they can focus on each other while forgetting everything, the past and the future, even for a moment.
“?”
Edwin straightened his body. It was because Herietta’s gaze, which had been looking at him for a long time, suddenly ceased to be felt.
Or maybe she fell asleep while lying down. Come to think of it, the clothes she was wearing were not that thick. He was worried about what to do if she fell asleep in that state and later caught a cold.
Edwin looked carefully behind him. He was contemplating whether he should wake him up if she really fell asleep, or if he should bring her a blanket.
But seeing Herietta, his expression hardened. For some reason, she was burying her face in her hands.
‘Are you crying?’
Edwin was perplexed. He never expected that she would be crying behind him. After all, she had no reason to cry now. She was a little bit too sulky, but she was very lively just a moment ago.
While he took his eyes off her for a moment, maybe she got hurt. His heart plummeted.
Edwin threw the tool he was holding onto the floor. It was quite noisy, but he didn’t care. He approached Herietta with a quick gait.
“Miss Herietta. Are you okay?”
He asked. Then he quickly took a look at her condition. Fortunately, she did not appear to have been injured. But no answer came back. She just lay still, not even moving, as if she couldn’t hear him.
He felt a wall he had never seen before as she closed her eyes and refused to face him.
“If you are teasing me, please stop. Otherwise, I might get really angry.”
Edwin said with strength in his voice for no reason. It was because he was wondering if she was doing this because she was upset that she couldn’t help with his work a while ago. It was nothing else, it was related to her safety. Looking back, he didn’t make the wrong decision.
Still…… Could it be that he was too cold-hearted when he refused her?
Another suspicion arose in his mind. Come to think of it, she must have just wanted to help out with pure intention.
“Please raise your head. I was too blunt, is that why?”
Edwin’s voice softened. No, he thought it wasn’t it, but as time passed, he became more and more withdrawn. Even though he thought he was not wrong, little by little he began to be unsure.
“I must have acted too harshly. I’m just worried……. I was wrong. I was wrong, so please don’t be upset.”
He could have said it better.
Edwin now regrets his own actions and begins to blame himself.
It’s only been a minute since the moment when he confidently said he didn’t do anything wrong. Even from his own perspective, the speed of his collapse was so fast.
Edwin clenched his teeth. He felt like he wanted to remove the two hands that were covering Herietta’s face. He wanted to check her face hidden behind it and her expression.
Edwin’s hand hovered close to Herietta’s face. But he couldn’t touch her so easily.
She wouldn’t be offended if he had held her hand if it was the woman he knew. She might not have cared so much as if she didn’t even know he had held her.
But nonetheless, he was cautious with everything. It was because he was worried, but he didn’t know if she would look at him like that. Still, maybe she was crying because of his actions.
What if she forcefully accepts my actions?
What if the situation gets worse than it is now?
If she hates him even more.
If so, what should he do?
“Miss Herietta. Please…….”
“…….”
“Please show me your face.”
Edwin began to plead with Herietta. It became so flat that I thought I couldn’t go down any further.
His mouth was dry and his stomach was burning. Although the moment waiting for her response was actually very short, it felt as long as eternity.
Edwin couldn’t stand it any longer and was about to grab Herietta’s hand. Herietta slowly lowered her hand that was covering her face.
Her hidden face, and the clear, clean brown eyes set on it, turned towards him.
Herietta was not crying. There were no tears in her eyes, but her face was just dry.
But why? He thought she was crying. He thought she was sad and mourning. This strange feeling that could not be easily explained made Edwin bewildered once again.
‘What is it that makes you so sad?’
Edwin was about to ask, but the corners of Herietta’s lips rose. As if it was very enjoyable. She smiled but she looked numb, yet even looked sad.
“It’s a joke. Have I fooled you again?”
She said so.
“So, don’t keep ignoring me.”
She added a grin lightly.
The face that gave him the impression that she looked sad was no longer there.
As if nothing had happened from the beginning, only a bright smile remained.
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