"Morning, Tina."
"Oh… Oh! Good morning!"
Tina jumps up quickly, bowing her head awkwardly. Lilia glances at her with a small sigh, but Tina quickly steels herself and straightens up.
"Uh… Good morning, Lilia."
"Nice," Lilia responds with a nod, her expression unreadable.
Tina lets out a quiet sigh of relief, glad that Lilia doesn't seem upset.
"So, what are you doing here?"
"Yeah, I was waiting for you, Lilia."
Lilia's stomach churns, an uneasy feeling creeping up. But she manages to keep her smile in place, pulling at her cheeks in a playful gesture.
"Heh. Why?"
"I need to talk to you for a second... Besides, I think it's a dream, thinking we could have been friends... Hey, Lilia. We are really friends, aren't we?"
Tina's question hangs in the air. Lilia's gaze wanders briefly, but she quickly meets Tina's eyes again. She wants to avoid the conversation, but she knows she can't. And there's the matter of the prince... Lilia opens her mouth, ready to say something, but then...
"What are you talking about? Master Lilia would never be rude to me."
Lilia freezes at Alisa's unexpected words.
"Oh! Right! Alisa's right! There was something wrong with me!" Tina says, flustered.
"Naturally. It's Lilia, after all," Alisa adds confidently.
The trust they have in Lilia is... strange, but at the same time, it's comforting.
— Guru... Guru...
— "Oh, haha... Don't move, Lilia…"
Apparently, Lilia has no way of escaping Tina's advances. She sighs heavily and sits down across from Tina. Alisa joins them, sitting beside Lilia, while Tina happily pours tea into her cup.
"So, what are we talking about?" Lilia asks, trying to keep the conversation light.
"Huh? Ah... I wasn't really thinking…"
Tina trails off, and Lilia and Alisa exchange confused glances. What does she mean, she wasn't thinking? She invited them to talk but has no topic prepared?
Lilia narrows her eyes, sensing that something's off, when suddenly...
— "Lilia, I'm not trying to set you up for a chat with a friend."
— "Really?"
— "Yeah. At least I didn't."
— "Oh, so you are."
"Wait a minute, what does that mean!?"
Ignoring Sakura's shouting, Lilia focuses on Tina, who, after a moment, claps her hands and says brightly:
"Makeup!"
"Yes?" Lilia responds, still confused.
"You're not wearing makeup today. I didn't recognize you."
Lilia froze, while Alisa pulled her cheeks teasingly. Sakura chuckled, clearly enjoying the moment.
– "You're walking through a minefield here! Lilia, don't be mad at me, Tina doesn't know, okay?"
– "Don't worry. My anger is all directed at you."
– "There's nothing reassuring about that!"
A brief exchange with Sakura helped Lilia regain her composure. She forced a smile back onto her face, though it felt like it might peel off at any second, and then spoke.
"It doesn't suit me," Lilia said, her voice soft. "I knew it looked strange."
"That's not true! You look much better now. I always thought you were beautiful, Lilia."
"Huh? I mean, before… Huh?"
Lilia blinked, taken aback by the sudden silence. Tina quickly looked away, and Alisa, who had been avoiding the conversation, casually took a sip of her tea, her indifference more evident than ever. Lilia's thoughts echoed in her head, confused and unsettled.
Lilia's mind raced, and she finally smiled weakly at Tina's words.
– "Sakura, it seems like my sense of beauty is off. Please keep quiet about it."
– "It's not good to run away from reality, is it? Let's study together sometime, okay?"
Sakura's words stirred something inside Lilia. On one hand, she was grateful to have Sakura around, but at the same time, she felt a tinge of sadness. She wondered if she would have felt this way if Sakura hadn't said anything at all. Yet, in the long run, it was probably a good thing to confront her insecurities, so she decided not to bring it up further.
"Tina. Alisa. If you have some free time, could you help me figure out a makeup style that suits me?"
When Lilia said this, Alisa let out a small, bitter laugh, while Tina paused for a moment, surprised, before her face lit up with a smile.
"Of course! I'll take care of it!"
The conversation continued, and the tension seemed to ease a little. Tina talked about her family, particularly the pets she had back home. However, there was one topic that was clearly avoided during their chat.
"Tina. You're here."
The voice of the person they were all avoiding came from behind Lilia. She froze, her expression stiffening. Alisa glanced at the source of the voice, her concern for Lilia growing. Tina, on the other hand, immediately distorted her expression, trying to act calm but failing to hide her unease.
"Your Highness… You're early today," Tina said, her voice shaking despite her efforts to sound nonchalant.
Whether the prince noticed her unease or was deliberately pretending not to, he continued speaking, his tone unwavering.
"Oh. I heard Liliane was back. So Tina got worried and came out early. Isn't that a bit earlier than usual for you?"
"Yeah... I... I just wanted to talk to you…"
"Hmm."
The prince walked closer and stood next to Tina. His gaze shifted to Lilia, and she, knowing she couldn't just avoid him, quickly put on her usual mask. They had to see each other eventually, considering they attended the same school, but she hadn't expected it to happen so soon. Her heart began to race, and tension settled heavily in her chest.
The prince then spoke, his voice laced with curiosity.
"That's the first time I've seen her. Is she a new friend of Tina's?"
"Tina and Alisa are absolutely stunning," the prince said, his words completely catching everyone off guard. Lilia's face turned ashen, her expression faltering as the weight of the situation settled in.
"So, Your Highness… are you sure you don't remember?" Lilia asked, her voice barely holding together.
The prince raised an eyebrow, looking at her with confusion. "Hmm? Do I know you? If you insist, I feel like I've seen you somewhere before…"