The Vanished Fiancé Has Returned - Chapter 7

The breath that had been caught at her throat finally escaped. Gasping, Gabrielle stammered out an explanation, then flinched as a hand approached.

“Tears…”

Julian wiped the tear running down her cheek with his index finger and stood up abruptly.

“Who was it? Did you see his face?”

“No… only that it was a man.”

“Wait here.”

Leaving only those brief words, he turned away. Gabrielle shook her head and grabbed his pant leg.

“No! He might be armed. He seemed dangerous.”

“That’s why I can’t leave him alone. Someone like that will harm you again.”

Julian spoke firmly and removed her hand. Like a puppy torn from its mother, Gabrielle clung to him.

“I don’t want to be alone.”

“……”

“Please, just… help me home. Please?”

Her legs had given out completely. She looked up at him with tearful eyes, pleading once more.

“I’m really sorry, but please. I beg you.”

After a brief silence, Julian finally nodded. Gabrielle reached out, thinking he would help her up, but his large hand suddenly supported her back and knees, lifting her lightly.

“You don’t have to do this.”

Startled, Gabrielle tried to push him away, her face flushed red. But his arms only held her tighter.

“You might fall on the stairs again.”

Even after arriving inside, Gabrielle’s heart was still pounding. She couldn’t shake the thought that the man might attack her again at any moment.

“Make sure to lock the door, and go to the police first thing in the morning.”

After sitting Gabrielle at the kitchen table, Julian handed her the key and turned to leave. Hesitating, Gabrielle grabbed him.

“Would you like some… tea before you go?”

“……”

Julian slowly turned around with a strange expression, as if trying to read her intentions. Realizing how it might sound, Gabrielle blushed.

“Of course, I didn’t mean anything by it. Just literally. I’m just really grateful…”

But her fear hadn’t fully gone away.

“Though… it is really late, isn’t it?”

Julian glanced at her trembling hands and let out a quiet sigh. Then he pulled out the chair across from her and sat down.

“I like tea. What kinds do you have?”

“Um… just a moment.”

Gabrielle brightened and went to check her kitchen shelves. She found some jasmine tea leaves.

“Is jasmine alright?”

“Yes. I like it.”

“That’s a relief.”

Smiling faintly, Gabrielle expertly measured the leaves, filtered them, and brewed the tea. The fragrant aroma quickly filled the small kitchen. Her shaking hands slowly steadied as she prepared the tea. Her irregular heartbeat began to calm as well.

Finally feeling a bit stable, Gabrielle carefully poured the steeped tea into a guest cup.

“Please, try some.”

“Alright.”

Julian nodded and sipped from the cup. His indifferent expression turned to mild surprise.

“It’s good.”

“I like tea. Brewing it alone is sort of a hobby of mine.”

It was a quiet hobby she could enjoy alone. Other hobbies cost money, which her mother disapproved of. Her new siblings had always mocked her. Tea was the only thing she could enjoy without their scorn. It didn’t cost much and she could enjoy it privately in her room.

Julian closed his eyes briefly, as if savoring the tea, then slowly opened them.

“It’s from Kerya, isn’t it?”

“How do you know that?”

Only someone with a real interest in tea would know. Surprised, Gabrielle stared at him, and Julian asked in return, “How did you get it? It should be hard to find right now, with the trade freeze.”

“The owner of a tea shop gave it to me. As a farewell gift before closing down.”

“I see.” Julian nodded and set the cup down.

Gabrielle, catching the cue, poured him more tea and cautiously asked, “Are you… from Kerya?”

His relaxed dark eyes suddenly sharpened. Focused on pouring the tea, Gabrielle didn’t notice and continued speaking.

“I heard it’s a beautiful country. In the south, tea cultivation is very active, and there are vast tea fields.”

“……”

Five years ago, the spark that ignited the war between Verti and Kerya began with a small incident at the border. In a village designated as neutral territory, soldiers from both countries, heavily intoxicated, pulled their guns on each other. A brief scuffle escalated into a large-scale shootout, leaving two soldiers from each side seriously injured.

As the two nations demanded apologies and reparations from one another, emotions boiled over and ultimately led to war. Though the conflict officially ended after causing countless casualties, deep resentment still lingered between them.

Gabrielle didn’t know why a Keryan was living in Verti, but it must have been difficult to live in a country that had once been an enemy.

With sympathy, she added, “You don’t have to answer. That was thoughtless of me.”

Just as she tried to steer the conversation away, Julian, who had silently finished his second cup of jasmine tea, answered plainly, “I am from Kerya.”

“I thought so.”

Her suspicion turned into certainty. Gabrielle spoke calmly, offering comfort.

“I don’t know what brought you here, but it must be hard living in a foreign country.”

“Hard, huh.”

Julian repeated her words as if to himself, then gave a short laugh.

“Thanks for the tea. I should go.”

Gabrielle stood to see him out. “Thank you again for earlier. Please get home safely.”

Julian nodded in place without a word and turned around.

Gabrielle added, not forgetting, “Just one thing.”

“……”

Julian turned his head, waiting.

Gabrielle asked calmly, “Why did you suddenly start speaking informally?”

No matter how she looked at it, he seemed about her age. Even if he were a year or two older, mutual politeness was the bare minimum. Gratitude was one thing, etiquette another. As she waited for a response, an unexpectedly simple answer came.

“Then you can speak informally too.”

***

After that day, Gabrielle remained on edge for a while because of the attacker, but thankfully, nothing happened.

She also began to grow a little closer to Julian, who had helped her. Though ‘closer’ might have been misleading—they hadn’t actually met again.

Sometimes, when she made extra salad or sandwiches, she would knock on his door downstairs, but it rarely opened. Still, Gabrielle would leave the food at his door.

And without fail, a cleanly washed empty container would be left at her door the next day.

“Couldn’t he at least leave a note saying he enjoyed it? So stiff.”

“Who’s stiff?”

Startled by the sudden voice, Gabrielle looked up.

“Chief.”

“What are you doing?”

“Since the executive director is out all day, I’ve just been catching up on leftover tasks. What about you?”

“Same as always, you know me.”

Chief Colton responded glibly and casually sat on the couch in the waiting area across from her.

“The executive director is always busy.”

“He was already busy, but he’s been even more so since the official appointment.”

“Is that so?”

Colton replied meaningfully, then glanced around.

“Don’t you think something about all this is strange, Gabrielle?”

“Strange…? What do you mean?”

“You know, the whole situation. Everything just feels off.”

Jumping up from the couch, Colton paced in front of Gabrielle’s desk, passionately continuing.

“A young guy who barely looks thirty suddenly gets appointed as acting executive director… then, not long after—”

He stopped and furrowed his brow deeply, staring at Gabrielle.

“He gets dismissed for being involved in all sorts of corruption and bribery? A man who seemed so clean and upright?”

“……”

Now that she thought about it, it was strange. Gabrielle had felt something was off, too. But she couldn’t speak carelessly.

She simply shrugged. “I wouldn’t know. That’s above my level. I just follow instructions and report what I see.”

“Oh come on, Gabrielle.”

Colton pouted and leaned in, lowering his voice.

“You haven’t heard anything? Any frequent visitors, maybe?”

“Chief.”

Gabrielle, who had been politely engaging, suddenly grew firm.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate for you to ask that. I’m not the kind of secretary who gossips about her boss.”

“Ah… I didn’t mean—”

Colton had expected her to yield if he coaxed a little more, but her unexpectedly strong refusal left him flustered. Gabrielle, without even blinking, declined again.

“Let’s pretend I didn’t hear that. Please go back.”

The previously gentle look in her eyes turned sharp in an instant. Most people would have been shaken by Colton’s change in attitude, but Gabrielle wasn’t. She had experienced plenty of warm faces turning cold in a heartbeat.

“…You’ll regret this.”

“Excuse me?”

“Nothing. I’ve been a bother. I’ll leave.”

Colton gave her a quick once-over, then briskly left the waiting room. Left alone, Gabrielle finally let out the breath she’d been holding.

There was no doubt Dominic Moore was suspicious in many ways—but he was still her boss. And even resentment was a kind of bond, wasn’t it? She surprised even herself by how firmly she had shut down Colton’s insinuations.