I found out Claude's expression seemed like he was in a daze. I found out that he had been strange lately, but I chose not to care about it instead. Mom and Dad were happier than ever when they saw our interaction.
"It is not a dream, Mio, this is the reality that you will get married to Claude today," Mom said with a happy smile. She dotes on her adopted daughter so much, so she wants Claude to marry Mio rather than any other girl. Mio is sincere and gentle, and Jane always thought that Mio alienated herself from her and her husband. Jane always assumed that Mio felt distant even though Mio always acted spoiled in front of the two of them.
"Eh?" I shifted my gaze from Claude to Mom. Is what I heard from Mom's mouth true? No, of course not, right?
"Pufft, why are you so cute, Mio?" Jane happily laughed when she saw Mio's shocked expression.
"Our daughter is truly adorable, unlike our son, who is stiff on every occasion," Dad even defended Mom to this extent.
"Do you remember, dear, that Claude showed a cold glare when he was left behind at the festival that night? He didn't even cry even though he was left alone behind. He is not cute at all," Mom said with a big grin painted on her face.
"Mom, stop it, okay," Claude felt unbearable while he remembered the dark past of him.
The festival was a place Claude didn't want to think back to because that place was where Claude started to act cold, cruel, and alienated Mio from his life.
Claude never really liked or hated the adopted girl at all, but at the festival, Claude realized something he shouldn't have been aware of—that Mio became a girl who took away his parents. Claude accidentally got separated from his parents and Mio, then just as Claude wanted to find his parents, Claude saw something he shouldn't have seen.
His parents laughed happily with Mio even when he wasn't beside them, then at that moment, Claude realized that his parents didn't love him as much as they loved Mio. The young Claude clenched his fist tightly, and he bit his lower lip until blood ran down.
When his parents came toward him worried, Claude didn't believe them at all, and Claude felt that their acting was really excellent in front of him. Claude started to look at Mio coldly after that festival. Mio even said that his parents were worried sick about him, but Claude didn't believe her words either. Claude pushed Mio away and alienated her from his world, but after Mio already left his world entirely, Claude realized that he was stupid.
Claude didn't want to talk about that nightmare anymore.
"You are not cute at all," Jane protested to her son's words.
"Who said that I am cute?" Claude refuted his mom's words.
I saw their interaction and thought that Claude would be happier without me in his life, but why did he look at me tenderly? Did he forget to take his medicine again today? I stole his parents, and I had no shame to show my face at the same table as them. I lowered my head in sadness, yeah, but I won't think about this sad thing anymore.
Claude pushed all the food on the table onto my plate, and I looked at him in disbelief.
'What are you doing?'
'Since when did you help me put food on my plate?'
'Mom, Dad, look at Claude. He is so strange today, and please stop him, okay.'
I glared at him purposely then asked him with my eyes, 'What are you doing?', but Claude seemed to not see anything in my eyes, and kept putting food on my plate.
"What are you doing?" I couldn't keep silent anymore.
"You are too thin, and it makes me worried," Claude said with tender eyes while looking at me, but who cares about his affectionate eyes? Claude is a skillful actor, so he can show me such an attitude that he never had before.
I was too lazy to react to his words and kept eating my food instead. Then I suddenly remembered the most important thing.
"Mom, what did you say? My dream is not only just a dream?" I asked her with eyes full of shock.
"Silly girl, Claude already agreed to marry you, but you seemed to realize it only now," Mom laughed a little at me.
'No, IMPOSSIBLE.'
Claude kept pushing food to my plate.
"I can't finish all of this, and do you think that you raised me as a pig?" I glared at him in dissatisfaction.
"Of course not," Claude said honestly.
"After breakfast, you will go to register your marriage because you don't want to have a wedding yet," Dad talked to me with a gentle voice.
"Dad, do you not think that it is too early to get married? You know, maybe someday Claude's big brother will find his true love in the future," I asked him in a panic because they really matched me with Claude while Claude didn't like me at all.
"You don't want to marry Claude early? I know that you are only twenty-two years old this time, and Claude is only twenty-four years old, but you are old enough to get married," Jane said while putting food on her husband's plate.
"We don't need any other daughter-in-law except you, and you also love Claude, right? You even followed him everywhere in the past, and so you won't reject this marriage after Claude agrees to it, right?" Jane said with a soft tone, but in her voice, Jane didn't want to hear any rejection from Mio.
Mio could detect that Mom didn't want her to reject this marriage. I looked at Claude, who had a bright smile on his face. Why did I feel that everyone deliberately matched her with Claude? Should I spend all my life in a loveless marriage? Why should I become this miserable?
Small Theater:
Claude: Mom, help me convince Mio to marry me.
Mom: Why?
Claude: Mio seems like she doesn't want to get married to me after she wakes up.
Mom: Don't worry about it.
Mio: "..."
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