Mermaid Trap

“Theo…”

Vivianne called out softly to Theodore, who was walking ahead of her. But he continued to stride forward without looking back. For some reason, he hadn’t let go of her hand since they exited the carriage. In fact, his grip seemed to tighten.

When Kian had escorted her, he had let go of her hand as soon as they stepped out of the carriage. This was confusing.

Vivianne felt a dull ache in her hand and called out to him again, more urgently this time.

“Theo-.”

“……”

Still no response.

“It hurts, Theo.”

As soon as she said it hurt, Theodore abruptly stopped.

“…I-I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

Startled, Theodore quickly let go of her hand.

He hurriedly walked ahead again. From behind, Vivianne could see the tips of his ears turning red.

“Theo. Are you not feeling well?”

“No, it’s nothing like that.”

“Walk with me, please. My feet hurt in these high heels.”

“Oh, yes. Sorry.”

Why was he acting so awkwardly? He seemed completely out of sorts. Considering Kian’s earlier behavior, it was understandable.

Vivianne bowed her head slightly towards Theodore, who had finally matched his pace to hers.

“…I’m sorry, Theo.”

“What are you sorry for, Vivi?”

“It’s just, you seemed really flustered.”

“No, it’s fine.”

“Still…”

“Vivi, you did nothing wrong, so don’t worry about it.”

Vivianne didn’t feel she had done anything wrong, but she apologized because she felt guilty. It was an annoying habit, but she couldn’t help wanting to ease the discomfort of the situation.

“Theo, Kian was too mean, right?”

In truth, it was Kian’s fault. When Vivianne cautiously mentioned this, Theodore sighed softly.

“No.”

“What?”

“The Master wasn’t being mean to me. He was being mean to you.”

“…I…”

She wanted to argue, but his words were undeniably true.

Reflecting on it, the previous incidents involving Kian had been similar. Whenever she was involved, Kian’s actions seemed excessive towards Theodore.

She wondered if Kian had some sort of misunderstanding. Yet, explaining it seemed more awkward since they weren’t supposed to have any significant relationship.

“Anyway, he wasn’t angry at you, so don’t worry about it. Really.”

“Okay.”

“…I’m just angry at myself.”

Theodore sighed deeply, pausing to catch his breath. Vivianne felt that asking more would be inappropriate.

“And earlier… it looked like you were uncomfortable.”

“……”

“I’m sorry. I was being cowardly.”

Theodore avoided her gaze, staring off into the distance.