The Moment of Realization

Chapter 19: The Moment of Realization

here is where Violet talks to Alysha who should be Naozumi instead.

Alysha gently closed the door behind her, leading Violet into the hallway. The air was quiet, save for the faint hum of distant conversations in another room. Violet followed nervously, unsure why Alysha had pulled her aside.

Without warning, Alysha turned to face her with a bright, knowing smile.

"Vio… Do you like my brother?"

"Eh?... Eeeh!??"

Violet froze, her face immediately flushed red. She stumbled over her words, unable to process the question. Her hands nervously fidgeted at her sides, her eyes darting anywhere but at Alysha.

Alysha blinked in mild surprise at the intensity of Violet's reaction. She knew that Violet would be interested in her brother and Alysha had expected a flustered denial or an embarrassed outburst—something simple—but Violet fell completely silent instead.

Is she really thinking this over? Alysha thought, watching her closely. Violet's furrowed brows and hesitant stance revealed she was taking the question seriously. For once, Alysha refrained from teasing, instead patiently giving Violet the time she needed.

Finally, after a moment of quiet contemplation, Violet whispered softly.

"I'm not entirely certain about that. I don't have a strong inclination either way because I lack prior experience with situations like this. But…" she paused, clasping her hands tightly. "However, if you're inquiring about my level of interest, I believe I am indeed interested."

Alysha smiled warmly, her suspicions confirmed. "I see. That's a good enough answer for now."

She placed a comforting hand on Violet's shoulder. "It's okay not to have everything figured out. I won't tell my brother or anyone else about this, I promise. And if you're ever curious about him—about anything—just ask me. I'll help however I can."

Knowing that Violet was interested in Naozumi at their first meeting, Alysha felt very happy. 

Violet was relieved that Alysha wouldn't discuss it and would assist her, as it made her very anxious. When it comes to Violet, since she was young, she was not very good at dealing with men.

In elementary school, Violet didn't have many close male friends because she lived in a rural area. When she entered junior high, she received a scholarship to attend an all-girls school. Now, for the first time, she is comfortable being around a boy. This was a rare occurrence because Violet wasn't usually interested in boys in that way.

Violet let out a small, relieved sigh. "Thank you, Senior Alysha…"

Alysha grinned. "Call me Sister Alysha next time you get the answer, okay?"

Violet's face turned pink again, and she shyly nodded.

*

Present Day – Student Council Room

Imelda sat back in her chair, her usual curiosity bubbling to the surface as she turned to Alysha. "Alysha, what exactly did you ask Violet yesterday?"

Alysha smirked lightly, crossing her arms. "I'd tell you, but I promised not to."

Imelda frowned playfully. "How mysterious. You're really not going to spill anything?"

"Nope." Alysha shook her head. "A promise is a promise."

Imelda glanced at Violet, who was sitting quietly, her face flushed and distant as she twirled a strand of hair between her fingers. Even without knowing the details, Imelda had a good guess about what had transpired. Interesting.

Meanwhile, Alysha noticed Violet deep in thought again, staring at nothing in particular. She leaned forward with a curious smile. "Vio, what's on your mind?"

Violet looked up, startled. Her cheeks turned red as she hesitated, but after a moment, she whispered shyly, "Senior Alysha… What does… love mean?"

The room grew quiet. Imelda raised her brows, instantly intrigued, while Alysha blinked in surprise before smiling warmly.

Alysha was a bit surprised to hear the words from someone clearly in love, but Alysha just smiled at her question. It was really surprising to hear that straight from Violet Lips even though Alysha could guess it.

"That's a big question," Alysha said gently. "Since I haven't experienced it I'll answer as best as I can. Everyone has their own definition of love, you know? It's not the same for everyone."

Violet nodded, listening intently.

"For me," Alysha continued, "I think 'Love' is a feeling of wanting to have, in other words, possessiveness. Not in the sense of dominating, but sharing. You want to always be with them. You want to care for them and be cared for by them. And most importantly…" Alysha paused for emphasis, "you can accept them exactly as they are, flaws and all."

Violet sat back, mulling over Alysha's words carefully. Wanting to share happiness? Accepting him as he is? Her thoughts turned to Naozumi—his quiet strength, his attention to detail, and how at ease she felt around him. She blushed as memories of their small moments together replayed in her mind.

I want to be around him… I want to care for him. I feel… happy when he notices me.

She thought about wanting to always be with him. She wanted to always care for him and be cared for by him. And finally, she tried to accept him as he was. 

At first, when she thought about it, Violet felt shy, but afterward, she smiled. 

Violet realized her feelings and thought she truly loved him. She wanted to be with him. The feeling in her chest indicated a longing even at their first meeting. Perhaps it was the result of her first sight of Naozumi.

She wanted to be cared for. After talking with Naozumi, there was a feeling that tickled her chest that Violet felt. From Nao's attention to her, she wanted and increasingly desired his attention, and her greed for it grew. 

After thinking about it, Violet realized it. She smiled and knew what she felt with it smoothly.

Seeing Violet's charming smile, Alysha also smiled happily because Violet finally found the answer to her question.

"So, Vio? Have you found the answer?"

Violet, who was thinking about Naozumi, came to her senses when Alysha asked her. Her previously smiling face turned shy because she was noticed by someone else. She didn't realize she felt happy and started smiling when thinking about Naozumi.

"Ye-yes... I-I think... I do... like him." 

Her voice was almost a whisper, but for Alysha, whose sharp hearing picked up even the softest sounds, it was perfectly clear. 

Alysha smiled again, seeing someone loving her family sincerely. She also felt happy that Naozumi seemed to feel the same way, even though he denied it.

"I'm glad to hear that," Alysha said softly, leaning forward to meet Violet's gaze. Violet shyly glanced up, their eyes meeting for just a moment before she looked away again, flustered.

While Alysha and Violet were talking, Imelda, watching from the side, just smiled. Seeing their reactions, Imelda realized that Violet accepted it.

Right now, Alysha was indeed happy to hear this answer from Violet, but she had promised Naozumi that she would explain the misunderstanding, so she should tell Violet about it. 

"In that case, Vio, I want you to know one thing. When you ran earlier, my brother wanted to follow you, but I stopped him. And earlier, my brother said he wanted to clear up the misunderstanding, even though he was the one who misunderstood the situation."

"Eh!?"

"Yep. He thought there was some kind of misunderstanding and wanted to clear it up. So really…" Alysha smirked, "he misunderstood the situation completely."

Violet froze, processing Alysha's words. She felt a pang of embarrassment and nervousness. Did Naozumi think she was upset? Or worse… did he regret talking to her?

Seeing Violet's flustered expression, Alysha reached out, patting her hand reassuringly. "My brother has a reason for this. But, I think he won't be that mean. Therefore, I want you to make my brother say it directly to you."

"W-what do you mean, Senior Alysha?"

Once again, Alysha made Violet confused. But this time, it wasn't something that made her feel sad. She was confused when Alysha asked her to make Naozumi say it directly to her. 

In Violet's mind, various meanings of Alysha's words had already flashed, but for some reason, she always thought that Alysha wanted her to make him fall in love with her. Violet didn't know which one she meant, so she was a bit panicked and a bit embarrassed.

Seeing her expressions and actions, Violet seemed easy to read and predict. Alysha thought Violet was a cute girl and also seemed similar to Naozumi, whose character was easy to read. 

Alysha once thought it would be very difficult to see other people's characters in detail besides her brother Naozumi. But after seeing Violet, she thought that maybe Naozumi and Violet were more compatible than she initially thought.

"Why ask me? Don't you already know~."

Alysha teased Violet a bit because of her current state. She felt like teasing Naozumi, so Alysha also wanted to tease Violet more.

"Uh~, "Violet bowed her head and held it because she was a bit embarrassed that her thoughts were easy to read.

"I have many secrets I want to tell you, but I can't tell them all, so for now, please help me with this, okay?"

Alysha's smile was still visible, but there seemed to be something odd about it. 

Violet knew that Alysha just wanted to help her, so all she did was comply, "Alright."

Imelda watched Violet and Alysha from a distance, knowing it wasn't her place to interfere. After a while, she noticed the time and remembered Naozumi was waiting outside.

"Hey, sorry if I'm disturbing you. But hasn't Nao been outside for a while now?"

Remembering Naozumi that still outside, Violet and Alysha felt a bit guilty.

"Oh yes. I'll call my brother first... Vio, don't panic too much."

Alysha tried to stand up and said it intending to tease her a bit.

"Stop teasing me, Senior Alysha!" 

Alysha thought that even Violet's and Naozumi's reactions were the same when she teased them, smiled, and then left.

"Hm.. okay okay. In that case, I'll go for a bit." Alysha answered casually.

"Also just call me Sister, if you are too shy to call me that in front of brother, you can call me senior again. But you must call me Sister, Okay?" 

Without even waiting for Violet's answer, Alysha goes outside, and like it or not, Violet feels like she has to do what Alysha has just said.

Imelda, still observing, considered asking Violet something but held back, fearing an awkward moment when Alysha and Naozumi returned.

"Vio.."

"Yes, Senior Imelda?" she answered, having calmed down.

Seeing her relaxed, Imelda decided against comforting her. "Good luck!... With Nao," she teased, smiling.

Outside the Room – Naozumi's Wait

"Big brother! Brother Nao!" 

Leaving her room, Alysha searched for her brother, who was supposed to be waiting outside, but she couldn't see him anywhere. After hearing Alysha's call, Naozumi stepped out of the building and spotted her looking around.

"Is it over, Alysha?" Nao called out as she faced away from him.

"Hi! Come on, don't scare me," Alysha replied, a bit startled when Naozumi spoke. She found it slightly amusing. "Huh... the problem has been solved."

"It's not like you to get startled. I was just walking normally, you know."

"Maybe I was too relaxed. By the way, why did you come out from inside? Were you eavesdropping?" Alysha asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"No, I wasn't. I was with the Disciplinary Committee; Arthur invited me in."

"In that case, it's fine. Now that the issue is resolved, let's go back inside."

"Okay."

With that, Naozumi followed Alysha back inside.

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