TPCF 80

CHAPTER 80………………

By the time Anita brushed aside the book that had been covering her eyes, he was already gone. She picked up the book with a hollow expression. It had fallen open to a page far removed from the part she had been reading.

A few days later, Anita woke with a weary face. For some reason, the birds chirping outside her window sounded especially irritating that day.

Knock, knock.

Someone rapped on her door.

She could no longer put off getting up. Rubbing her eyes in a daze, Anita rose from bed.

It was a bright Sunday morning, yet she felt far from happy.

“Are you going out today?”

“Yes.”

“Where to?”

“…I’m not sure.”

Mrs. Rodel, reading her newspaper at the dining table, seemed curious that her daughter was going out so early on a weekend morning, and kept probing for details.

“I’ll tell you later.”

Anita answered curtly and stepped out the front door.

She regretted impulsively agreeing to meet Finian. Even if it was because of Rutger, once the arrangement had been made with the person himself, she had to keep it.

Before leaving the garden, Anita cast a lingering look back at the house. By now she could have been lazily nibbling on cookies…

Honk, honk.

A horn sounded from outside the garden, and Anita turned around.

“Get in.”

In stark contrast to the quiet, still street, a sleek car stood in front of her house. Approaching it, Anita ran her hand over the door handle as though it were something strange. Its smooth feel was unfamiliar.

Her father, Nathan Rodel, disliked automobiles. He would complain, asking why anyone would entrust their life to a hunk of metal speeding recklessly down the road.

“Want me to open it for you?”

Finian asked with a sly smile.

“No.”

Anita climbed into the car.

“You even know how to drive?”

As she pulled the dangling seatbelt over herself, she asked him. But there was no reply for a while. Struggling to shut the heavy door, she glanced sideways.

Finian was tapping the steering wheel with his fingers, eyes fixed straight ahead.

“Of course I know how. Why do you ask such obvious questions?”

He finally replied with confidence. His attitude was suspicious, but the way he turned the wheel and shifted gears put Anita halfway at ease.

Surely, if Finian Nigel had any common sense, he wouldn’t be driving a car without knowing how—his own life was at stake, not just hers.

Besides, he lived not in her neighborhood but over in Henderson. If he’d managed to drive more than 10 kilometers without dying, she supposed he could be trusted.

The car carrying them both began to move forward. Anita had ridden horse-drawn carriages and trains before, but never an automobile. The sight of this hunk of metal moving without horses or coal struck her as strange.

“So where’s the destination?”

“…Shouldn’t you have asked that beforehand? What if I were some shady guy?”

Of course, Anita wasn’t foolish enough to follow a total stranger. She hadn’t spoken with him much, but since childhood Finian had always been at Rutger’s side, so he didn’t feel unfamiliar.

“I don’t really care where we go.”

“And the answer to my second question?”

Anita propped her chin in her hand, gazing at the scenery rushing by. The streets and shops were all familiar, yet today they seemed new.

“And what about you? What made you trust me enough to get in my car? What if I really am a shady guy?”

“Oh… tough question.”

He burst into carefree laughter, as if amused. Anita looked at him with exasperation, though the corners of her lips softened slightly.

Since Finian had been pressing her with attention lately, she’d expected this outing to be uncomfortable. But to her surprise, he hadn’t crossed any lines.

“You probably didn’t even want to come out today. You’re not interested in me at all, are you?”

“……”

He spoke lightly, but Anita hesitated before answering. It was true—she hadn’t wanted to come. She hadn’t wanted to waste a perfect Sunday with Finian, and thinking of Rutger only dragged her mood deeper into the mire.

Still, she didn’t feel like being completely honest with him either.

Even knowing he had spent time with plenty of other girls, she didn’t want to hurt his feelings—or give him any pointless hope. After all, his friendliness toward her was probably just a fleeting whim. Besides, Anita had never thought of herself as especially attractive.

“I…”

She fidgeted with her fingertips, searching for words that wouldn’t offend him yet wouldn’t mislead him. Her gaze wandered—then suddenly fixed on something.

“I… what?”

Finian prompted, but Anita didn’t hear him. Her eyes were riveted to one spot.

Someone had just stepped out of a shop, and their eyes met. Green as summer foliage, his gaze locked with hers. Carrying a bundle of letters—perhaps from the post office—he wore a light summer shirt.

Without realizing it, Anita reached out her hand. But it fell back before touching the window. Even if she had reached, the distance was too great.

He, too, seemed startled by the encounter. He stopped in his tracks and stood staring in her direction. The car swiftly rolled past Rutger. The fleeting eye contact ended in an instant.

Anita, twisting around in her seat to look back, finally turned to face forward again. Her heart pounded as if she had been caught doing something wrong.

“What’s the matter? Did you see someone you know?”

“Huh? No. I didn’t see anyone.”

She was so shaken she didn’t even realize how suspiciously she was acting.

“No one. Really.”