Chapter 30

(A/N Notes: I thought yesterday was Friday)

Inside a familiar-looking dark hallway, illuminated only by the moonlight, two figures could be seen tightly embracing each other as they desperately pressed their lips together.

Of course, those two were none other than Atsuko and Handsome Edward, who were continuing exactly from where they were forced to stop right before it started last time. And now, almost as if to make up for the time lost, the two passionately kept kissing each other, impeding any attempts by Atsuko to stop Handsome Edward from making her fall for her desires.

But then, there was a change in the progress of the dream, Atsuko felt something trying to push in between her legs, it was Handsome Edward's left knee as it successfully managed to put itself in between Atsuko's well-defined legs.

<Stop… I-I'm not ready yet…>

Feeling his knee in such a place, caused Atsuko to feel something weird inside her, she tried to make him stop, but with her lips sealed by Handsome Edward's relentless advance, and her arms busy embracing and holding onto Handsome Edward, forced to keep her refusal to herself, but that was not the end of her pleasant suffering.

"!? Mmmm!! W-Wait! MMMNNNNGGGHHHH!! N-Not t-there! MMNNNPPPHHHH!!!" <D-Don't p-put y-your h-hand t-there! M-My h-heart i-is not r-ready y-yet!>

Atsuko could feel Handsome Edward gently touching her chest as it found the entrance of her kimono, Handsome Edward slowly and gently moved his hand further inside Atsuko's clothes, causing her robes to slowly slide down her shoulders. Then for a moment, Handsome Edward stopped kissing Atsuko only for him to look right into her eyes.

"Atsuko-sama…"

"Y-Yes, Edward-sama?"…"

"Do you want to do it?"

"… … … Yes…" <Stop… Stop!… STOP!!!>

Atsuko's mind said one thing, but her body said the opposite, then all of a sudden Edward pushed her onto her bed and towered right above her, with his clothes mysteriously gone, as the same happened to her, again he slowly approached his face closer to Atsuko's. Sensing that she would reach the point of no return, her mind kept screaming its refusal, as their lips slowly got closer and closer to each other, mere moments from touching, Atsuko's mind screamed with all its might but it was too late as…

"STTTTTTTTTTOOOOOOOOOOOOOPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!! Haa, haa, haa… Haaaaaaaaaaaa… It was just a dream?… *Twitches* !?"

Atsuko suddenly woke screaming as she sat up due to her desperation to stop whatever that was about to happen inside her dream, her breathing was ragged, her face was beet red, and her body felt weird. Atsuko tried to calm herself down, but then a shock ran through her body perking it up even further.

Atsuko didn't understand why her body was feeling like that, but she knew that it was because of that dream she was having, a dream where she was about to do it with Edward… A very exaggerated version of him in terms of looks and handsomeness, but still… It was Edward, even though their looks weren't quite the same because the real one wasn't anywhere near to being that handsome.

She didn't understand why her emotions and feelings were becoming such a mess just from thinking about him, No… Rather, she was unconsciously refusing to understand and accept those growing feelings that have been forming in her since these past few weeks.

Now, even though she unconsciously didn't want those feelings for Edward to grow even more, she couldn't stop thinking about him anymore, instead, she was now starting to think about him all the time to the point she was always searching for him, whenever she walked around the Neville estate, and whenever she found him, she would feel a warm and comfortable feeling inside her whenever she talked to him.

As her mind was still confused from her sudden awakening caused by the dream, and from her fast-paced thoughts that all in some way were relating to or rounding back to Edward. The door to her bedroom was knocked, momentarily snapping Atsuko back to reality.

"P-Please, c-come in…"

Hearing her words, the person behind the door was revealed to be Mako.

"Princess, is everything alright?"

"… Yes… I just… Had a bad dream…"

"Is that so? Very well… Shall I request for some water to wipe your body, princess?"

"Yes, please…"

"Understood"

And so, the start of what would become a rather unforgettable day for Atsuko had begun.

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It was now early afternoon, and Atsuko was once again walking through the hallways of the Neville Manor. And she was in a rather good mood, due to her luck earlier today, which discounting her rather hectic wake up, it was rather calm.

Her breakfast which she had alongside Lysette, Nanako, and Edward, was made by the chef at the service of Lysette's father, but she felt somewhat envious at seeing Lysette and Nanako both getting headpats from Edward after they finished having breakfast. Then later, as she helped Lysette in training Nanako, she ended up talking to Edward who came to check on Lysette and Nanako, and praised her magic skills, though she felt rather pouty at seeing Edward only flirting with Lysette and Nanako.

Then about an hour ago, she happened to pass by Edward as he left the library, and they both had a small conversation, which caused her to find out that they both liked a certain book series.

"*Humming* Today has been rather fulfilling, I had breakfast with Edward-sama, Edward-sama praised me during Nanako-san's training, and I just found out that we read the same book. Fufu! I hope that this day keeps getting better. Hm? Is that Edward-sama?… … … Huh?"

Then Atsuko came to a stop as she looked outside a window, and noticed Edward sitting at a bench near the gazebo at the large backyard garden, however, seeing him also caused her to realize something about everything that she had just said.

"… … …" <Wait, all of these things that I just said are related to Edward-sama… … Why am calling him in the same way as Lady Lysette and Nanako-san!?>

Yes, all of her good memories from this day so far were about the times she interacted with Edward in one way or another. But that was not all, as right now, as she dived deeper into her thoughts, she didn't notice that she began walking forward again, as she unconsciously began making her way to Edward's current location.

<Uuuuuuhh… Why am I only vividly remembering those moments where I'm with Edward-s-… Sir Edward?… … Hm? outside?…!?> "E-Edward-sama!?"

"…"

When Atsuko returned to her senses, she became surprised at being outside, and even more so from being right in front of Edward, she shouted his name due to her surprise, but strangely enough, Edward didn't answer her back.

"Hm?… E-Edward-sama?"

Concernedly Atsuko took a closer look at Edward and saw that his eyes were closed as he breathed softly while holding a book in his hands.

"…" < Ah! He's just sleeping… I'm glad… … …> *Glances at the bench and around*

Seeing that Edward was just asleep, Atsuko felt relieved that it wasn't anything worrying, however, she then began looking at where he was sitting, and at her surroundings. And as far as she could see or notice… They were alone. Atsuko peeked at the sleeping Edward, and with a gulp, she sat down on the bench right next to him. In a manner not so different from when Lysette, Nanako, or both, did so as a way to monopolize Edward for themselves.

Atsuko's face grew redder and redder just from sitting right next to him, as their shoulders were mere inches away from touching. She glanced at him, allowing her to see the side profile of Edward sleeping, something that more often than not would be exclusively viewed by Lysette and Nanako, especially when he overslept.

"…" <Hehe… His sleeping face is quite cute>

Atsuko continued watching Edward sleep for long minutes, but the more she did so, the more she felt a certain urge to do more than just look at his sleeping face, as the fleeting memory of that morning from a few days ago passed through her mind.

"!" <N-No! I-I shouldn't do that! I-I'm not E-Edward-sama's f-f-fiancée t-to that!… … But maybe…>

Atsuko covered her face as she had such thoughts, but in between her fingers, she glanced at Edward again who continued to sleep.

"… *Gulp*"

Atsuko with a nervous expression, gulped down as she slowly moved her hand towards Edward's right cheek, and then with her nervousness causing her eyes to spin as her hand slowly got closer to Edward.

*Boop*

She lightly touched Edward's cheek with her index finger, as she worriedly waited for his reaction.

"Zzzz… Mmmm… Zzzz…"

"!"

Seeing Edward remain asleep even after having his cheek poked, caused Atsuko to show a smile on her face, as she was now confident that she would be able to fulfill her desire.

<T-This will be fine… Yes… It'll fine, I-I'm sure… I-I'll j-just b-be giving E-Edward-sama a-a s-small k-kiss o-on h-h-his cheek… W-Without a-any d-d-deeper m-meaning…>

Still, even as she steeled herself, Atsuko felt extremely nervous just from thinking about kissing Edward on the cheek, even as she tried to trick herself into thinking it as a form of greeting or thanks, but to no apparent avail. However, she was still compelled to do so, for as much as she felt embarrassed by it.

Atsuko gulped down again, and she slowly started to approach Edward, but since she was the only one approaching him while he remained still, she had to get closer to Edward than she expected, as she moved her hands to maintain her balance, she inadvertently put her hand on Edward's right arm by accident and put a little bit of weight on it.

"Ah… That was clo-… … … MMNN!?!?!?"

But that little amount of weight that she had put on his arm for just a second, was more than enough to break the delicate balance that was keeping Edward in his straight seating position as he slept. With his balance being broken, Edward's posture slowly began drifting to the right, as his head also slightly turned in that same direction. Then before Atsuko could react, she felt a soft sensation on her lips, sealing them up, as she could see Edward's face way too close to hers.

Her mind went blank for a moment as her body froze in place, while her eyes began spinning wildly. When she returned to her senses, all that Atsuko could do was scream inside her head, as her body refused to move, forcing Atsuko to continually feel the soft sensation of her very first kiss.

Then, she saw Edward slowly opening his eyes, just enough to allow her to see his brown irises, as he moved slightly away from her, just enough to separate their lips, but his face was lacking in any emotion, rather it was easy to see that he was still half asleep.

"… Ah… It's just you… Atsuko-sama…"

That was all that Edward said in a sleepy voice before he closed his eyes again, but that was not all, as he approached her again this time, giving her a proper kiss on the lips, as Atsuko could feel Edward intentionally pressing his lips against hers.

"Mmmmm!?!?!?"

Her eyes began to spin as steam came out of her head from the overflowing confusion, making her overthink what Edward had just done. Did he wake up and move himself to kiss her even more deeply? Was he really fine in kissing her on the lips? Atsuko became more and more confused, unable to notice how much time had already passed, as all she could think about was about having her first kiss with Edward.

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.

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"Haa… Haa… Haa… … …!?" <No! Why did I just think of wanting to have Edward kiss me more!?>

It had been quite some time, and it was only now that Atsuko was finally able to separate her lips from Edward's, as he was now receiving a lap pillow from her. Both because she didn't want to have his face too close to hers, at least for now, and also because she wanted to keep looking at him even if for a little bit longer.

"…"

Atsuko's cheeks were beet red, she wanted to die from the embarrassment she was feeling, and yet, she didn't want to leave just now, as she looked at the person who was causing her to feel all those things, first by saying that he liked her, taking away her first and second kisses just moments ago, and who was now receiving a lap pillow while having his hair caressed by her.

"… Edward-sama…"

She called his name with an embarrassed voice, not to wake him up, but just because she wanted to say his name.

"… A… Tsu… Ko…"

"!"

At hearing Edward utter her name in his sleep, Atsuko made a surprised expression as she felt her embarrassment rising again. She looked away from him, only to immediately go back to looking at his sleeping face.

"…"

Just like before, Atsuko began feeling an urge within her, the more she looked at Edward, and just like before she fell prey to her desires. No, rather… Atsuko finally decided to stop trying to fool herself and deny her growing feelings. This time, without the worry of having Edward waking up or suddenly falling to the side, Atsuko bent herself to bring her face closer to Edward, and then she once again felt a soft sensation on her lips.

"…"

This time, as she was the one on the lead, she didn't feel as embarrassed, then she separated their lips after a few moments, as she gently smiled at Edward, and said with a gentle tone.

"Fufu… Edward-sama… You better take responsibility for taking not only my first and second kisses but also my third kiss as well, and… For making me fall for you, okay?"

Atsuko continued to happily caress Edward's hair as she enjoyed the warm feeling inside her chest, that she had finally accepted on recognizing it, after countless attempts to ignore and deny all of it. Atsuko now accepted that she had fallen in love with Edward.

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"Hmmm… *Yawns*… *Rubs his eyes* Hm?… … … Princess Atsuko?"

"Fufu, good afternoon, Edward-sama. Did you have a good sleep?"

"Ah, yes, I did"

"Fufu, I am glad"

"… Hm? Ah!"

When Edward woke up, the first thing he saw was Atsuko gently smiling as she looked at him from above, as his mind slowly booted up, he began to realize was a quite strange sight, and then he looked around and realized what was going on. So he decided to sit back up, then turned to look at Atsuko, who was making a cute pouty expression, as she also hid her lips by using her closed paper fan.

"… *Bows down* I am truly sorry for doing such a thing to you, Princess Atsuko"

"It is okay, Edward-sama. In fact, I would not mind letting you use my lap as a pillow for a few more hours"

"I will have to respectfully decline, Princess Atsuko. I cannot make you do such a thing for me, even more so when we are not engaged"

"Is that so? How unfortunate. But thank you for your honesty"

"That is the least I can give you, Princess Atsuko"

"Fufu, is it? Because I find it to be a quite lacking trait on other people."

"Ahaha… Hm… Erm, Princess Atsuko, by any chance, did I cause any other unsightly trouble to you?"

"Hm? What do you exactly by that, Edward-sama?"

"Well…"

Edward scratched the back of his head, because he had a vague memory of seeing Atsuko's face from up close, and because they were on quite good terms as he saw it. He felt that if he was in a half-asleep state, he would be quite comfortable seeing Atsuko, so he was worried that he might've done something outrageous to her while he was in such a state.

And, he was sure he had done something to her, but he thought that it was at most using her shoulder as a pillow, from what he could deduce from his vague and foggy memories from when he opened his eyes before closing them right after.

"I meant it as… That, I think I might have done some unsightly act, because it was you, Princess Atsuko"

"Eh? Because… It was me?"

"Ah! I-I mean that because I saw that it was you, I felt comfortable in doing it, Princess Atsuko!"

"… Sir Edward, are you perhaps asking if you did something to me earlier, because you wanted to, since it was me and no one else, is that correct?"

"Well… You can say that it was like that, yes"

Hearing Edward's response, Atsuko's lips curved up into a smile, that was kept hidden from him.

"*Shakes head* No, you did not, Edward-sama. So you can rest assured that you have not caused me any trouble or done any unsightly act"

"Really? I am glad"

"That is great. Ah, it appears that I will need to take my leave now, Edward-sama. If you ever need another lap pillow or something else, do not shy away from asking me"

"Ahaha, I will keep that in mind"

"*Nods* Also, Edward-sama…"

"Hm?"

"Please continue taking care of me from now on, okay?"

"?… Huh? Sure?"

"Fufu, then see you another time, Edward-sama"

"See you too, Princess Atsuko"

And with that, Atsuko walked away from Edward, leaving only him seated at the bench. Without her around, all that Edward was left with was his own thoughts, which allowed him to notice something different about Atsuko.

"… … … Hm? Why was she calling me 'Edward-sama' just now?… … … And why did she ask for me to continue taking care of her?… I guess, she meant for us to keep on with our good relationship, I guess?… … … Yeah, that's all I can think about"

Edward talked to himself as he had such thoughts, oblivious to all the other meanings that his and Atsuko's words could have if seen from another perspective, especially after doing something like a kiss.