Chapter 22

"That’s why—the one I fell in love with was the Mimosa after she woke up."

Huey looked at me, my nose sniffling as I stared blankly back at him. His face tightened slightly as he spoke. He looked a little annoyed, but with his face and neck completely red, I could tell right away it was embarrassment, not anger.

"Even though you’ve lost your memories and must be confused, I watched you trying so hard, and I thought you were cute. I wanted to protect you."

"Uh, but... after I woke up, you were kind to me because you’ve liked me since we were little, right?"

As I stammered through my confusion, Huey suddenly burst out laughing, like he couldn’t hold it in any longer.

Wait—why are you laughing here?

"When we were little? How little are we talking about? That kind of ‘like’ you feel when you’re still a kid who can’t even take a proper human form isn’t the same as the ‘like’ you feel during mating age. Even if I’d said I ‘liked’ someone or wanted to ‘pair up’ with them as a kid, I’m not such an idiot that I’d believe it seriously for ten whole years... And, well, this might sound weird to say now, but even among ‘temporary pairs,’ there are plenty who dated seriously back then but ended up choosing someone else as their ‘true mate’ later on..."

His voice trailed off awkwardly. I couldn’t say a word back—I just stared at him.

At some point, both my tears and my runny nose had disappeared.

It’s true, though. Hardly anyone still believes in a "let’s get married" promise made in childhood once they’ve grown up. There are rare cases where a childhood crush actually comes true, or where two people meet again after ten years apart and fall for each other all over again. Honestly, I love those kinds of stories.

And yeah, I can understand that the person you date and the person you marry might not always be the same—even if I haven’t experienced it myself. Still, hearing that from someone younger than me feels... complicated.

While I was staring off at him absentmindedly, Huey gave a wry smile, like he’d suddenly remembered something.

"Y’know, I just realized something. If someone you hadn’t seen in ten years suddenly showed up and said, ‘We promised to be together ten years ago, so stay with me forever starting now,’ wouldn’t that actually freak you out?"

Now that he mentioned it... if someone I hadn’t seen since I was four suddenly appeared and said, "I liked you ten years ago, so let’s start dating now," I’d probably be scared too.

But still... if that angelic Huey looked at me with those pure eyes and nervously said, "I’ve loved you all this time, for ten years..." I might just melt on the spot.

And he really did look at me with those same pure eyes back then, didn’t he?

I glanced at Huey’s face—once angelic and cute when we were small, now sharp and manly. He met my eyes seriously.

"Also, how does it make sense that if I liked the younger Mimosa, then the current Mimosa isn’t qualified to be my mate? If you’re saying the Mimosa now is a completely different person from back then, then I’m a different person too—I’m not the kid who just followed you around anymore."

"B-but... it’s not just about growing up and changing. Technically, it’s like... my personality is different from before..."

"You keep saying personality and memories make you a different person, but think about it. If you’d woken up after ten years and were still mentally four years old, unable to accept that time had passed, that’d be even harder—for you and for everyone around you. Feeling like a different person because of that gap is natural. And even so, you’ve been doing your best. That’s why I want to stay by your side and support you."

Ugh... I was supposed to be the one convincing him, but somehow, I ended up being the one persuaded instead.

And even though I’m supposed to be the older one mentally, somehow I feel so childish right now.

"You really like those ‘I’ve loved you all along’ types, huh, Mimosa? Pfft—see, that’s such a girly way of thinking! A guy would never come up with that! You’re totally a girl through and through, Mimosa!"

"W–whaaaat!?"

"Oh—‘girly,’ you say!?

No way… what is this turn of events!"

"Look at you, face bright red and embarrassed. A guy wouldn’t react like that! And honestly, little Mimosa back then wouldn’t have reacted this cute either. If I called her cute, she’d probably hit me."

"H–hit me then! I’ll hit you!"

"Ahahaha! Even if you hit me with those trembling little hands, I’m the one who’ll end up hurt, Mimosa. Ah, that reminds me, I always liked watching little Mimosa eat with such enthusiasm. That hasn’t changed even now."

"Wha—!!"

He just casually said he liked me again!

"You know, despite everything, sometimes I still think you’re not much different from little Mimosa. Sure, you suddenly grew up, and sometimes it surprises me how… girly you’ve become. But I’ve never looked at you and thought you were a completely different person—or an old man," he said.

…Girly? Me?

"See? You’re happy again. Face and tail are completely honest," he teased.

I hurriedly clutched my tail. Calm down already!

"And?"

"Huh?"

I felt cornered by Huey’s smile…

"Is there any other problem?"

"Eh…?"

"I like you, Mimosa. And you like me, right? Then what else could possibly be a problem?"

"E–eh!! W–why would I say I like you…?"

"You were crying so much when you were trying to reject my confession, and then, honestly, you were so happy when I said I liked you…"

"W–wa, wa, wa…!"

I could only gape silently as Huey, with a teasing smile, bent his fingers as if counting each of my actions.

"You barged into my room, cried because you didn’t want me to pair with another girl, said my scent was nice… and then…"

"Gyahhh! Stop! Stop right there!!"

Though I had been looking down before, I now leaned forward, nearly lunging at Huey. He looked up at me, smiling the whole time.

"This is basically you saying you like me, right? In fact, I was almost feeling down because you had said it first," he said.

"Ugh… aah…"

Huey’s ever-present smiling face was… really something.

Yes—really terrifying.

What is this feeling… like being recognized as prey by a predator, like someone confirming you’re trapped right in front of them… Where did that simple, kind village boy I met go!?

"Um, Huey… you… haven’t changed… a little…?"

"Really? You barged into my room, took advantage of me being frozen like it was a dream, did whatever you wanted, and ran away from both me and the village. When I finally caught up, you were being attacked by wild dogs. Other people saw your beast form before I did, which made me mad enough to lose my head… I was so furious back then I didn’t know what I was doing…"

No way, Huey’s smile is flashing… and it’s scary!

"And then I finally saved you, and I thought you’d just lean on me… but instead, you treated me like a mother. When we finally returned to the village and met your mom, you started some shocking story out of nowhere, leaving me no standing. I thought today I could finally enjoy mating season without worries, so I confessed, only to be rejected for some incomprehensible reason. Through all of this, I… learned something," he said.

"Uh, w–what did you…?"

Huey—smiling, but his eyes are sharp! He can make this kind of face now!

"I learned that I mustn’t give Mimosa even the slightest chance to escape."

Eeeeeeek! It’s all my fault!!

I’m so sorryyyyy!!