Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Mark of a Goddess ❯ Poolside Confessions ( Chapter 7 )

Chapter Seven

Poolside Confessions

 

The next day Hitomi watched Allen help Celena up the front steps of Dryden's mansion. Gaddes and Eries were coming up behind them. Celena's face was pale and pasty. It was an extremely cold November day and snow was blowing off the roof onto Allen and Celena's blonde heads. Allen was carrying a bucket and surprisingly, Celena had to make use of it before she even made it into the front hall. Hitomi was watching from the window in Selphie's bedroom. She and Selphie kindly turned their eyes away until Celena was finished.

 

Selphie had not left the mansion yet and Hitomi noticed that her clothes were still hanging in the closet like she had no intention of going anywhere. Granted the week she had given Dryden as a probationary time period was not up yet, but since Naria and Eriya were gone, things seemed to have settled back into their old routine, or something close to it. There was still something wrong between Dryden and Selphie. Hitomi remembered what Dryden had said. Selphie wanted him to do something and he couldn't do it yet, so they were in limbo. Van thought that Selphie wanted to marry Dryden and that Dryden was dragging his heels. Was their problem something like that?

 

Selphie looked genuinely sad as they watched Celena come up the rest of the stairs.

 

Hitomi sighed and linked arms with Selphie and took her to go meet everyone in the front hall.

 

Eries was the most welcoming as she sparkled a little at the sight of Hitomi. “Hitomi!” she called, sounding delighted. “I'm so happy to see you! I've been excited since Allen told me that you were staying here too.”

 

Hitomi glanced at Van, who was leaning against the banister with a grouchy expression on his face. His eyes were narrowed and he was giving Allen an evil glare.

 

“Yeah, I'm staying here,” Hitomi said to Eries. So, Van had told them that she was staying there too. It didn't look like he'd explained they were married. Eries would have said something if Van had let the cat out of the bag. Well, Hitomi would have fun letting it come to light in the course of their stay.

 

“I've really missed you,” Eries said, hugging Hitomi.

 

Then Dryden made his appearance. He came in and put his arms around Selphie's middle and nuzzled her neck. Hitomi stared. Usually Dryden had better tact than this. What was he doing?

 

“Yo, Dryden!” Hitomi balked, confused at his odd manners. Where was `the perfect host' when they needed him?

 

“Oh?” he said, raising his eyes and acting like he just realized there were other people in the room besides him and Selphie. Then he introduced himself and presented the maids and the housekeeper who would be taking care of Celena. He basically organized everyone like he was a camp director and everyone was just going to have a jolly time at his mansion, especially Celena, who could barely hold herself up. Dryden was thinking of hiring a certified nurse to take care of her and he said so. “To see a beautiful woman sick grieves me,” he said romantically, observing her tired eyes.

 

But Celena withdrew herself from him like she didn't think he was for real.

 

Hitomi saw Allen's eyebrow twitch. “Van?” he asked, looking to where Van was still regarding him angrily. The question, `Where did you find this guy?' was clearly written across Allen's features. No matter who Allen thought was acceptable to hit on, a nauseous pregnant woman was obviously not on his list.

 

“You said you wanted my help,” Van reminded him, smiling sardonically. “This is the best place to take care of Celena. So behave yourself and be gracious. This guy might not look like a good host, but he's actually sort of all right.”

 

“'Sort of all right'?” Dryden repeated, looking pained. “Oh Van, what cruel words you say.”

 

Van clenched his fist together and muttered, “Don't `Oh Van' me or I'll …”

 

“I know. I know. I know, or you'll actually finish that threat you've had on your tongue since you got here,” Dryden said, looking cheerful again and changing the subject. “Eries, Gaddes, Allen, Celena - this is Selphie. She's my woman, so don't even think that I'm available.”

 

“Why would I care if you're available?” Gaddes barked, seeming unable to control himself.

 

“It's just a precaution, so that you don't think that I'll hit on your woman while you're not looking,” Dryden said, indicating Eries.

 

Hitomi blinked. Eries and Gaddes were a couple now? Since when? How did that happen? Oh yeah, Hitomi had forgotten that the winds seemed to be blowing in that direction before she got kicked out of the Abaharaki.

 

“Could I … please … sit down?” Celena asked Allen quietly.

 

With that Dryden seemed to wake up from his foolishness and realize that it was hard for Celena to stand like that. He hurriedly got Celena settled into a room on the main floor, far away from the kitchens and close to the laundry. Hitomi didn't understand.

 

“Dryden, why is Celena's room so far away from the kitchens? What if she needs something in the night?” she asked him afterwards when she managed to get him alone for a moment.

 

“Are you kidding? I'm doing her a favour! She's got morning sickness; all the fragrances involved in cooking are disgusting to her. Smelling the wrong thing might make her throw up,” Dryden said briskly.

 

“How did you get to know so much about pregnant women?” Hitomi asked, impressed with his practical knowledge about women.

 

“I'm trying to reach my potential and become wise. Do you think I'm getting closer?”

 

“Then why did you make that display in front of everyone with Selphie earlier? That made no sense. Why couldn't you have just come in and acted like you usually do, confident and … I don't know - not like the man-whore I first took you for.”

 

“You thought I was a man-whore?” Dryden asked, looking into her eyes almost like he was genuinely hurt.

 

“Well, yeah,” Hitomi said, colouring uncomfortably. “Or something like that.”

 

“Don't worry about it,” Dryden said, looking relaxed and smiling. “It's probably better that you thought something like that. It's good encouragement for me not to be like that. However, today my behaviour was intentional. Selphie hasn't been feeling special lately and I want to go the extra mile for her. And … I really do make quite a strong impression on the women around me. I wanted both Eries and Celena to think I'm an idiot, so that they don't get any ideas. I have this way of totally screwing up perfectly fine relationships wherever I go. Most of the time, it's not on purpose, so sometimes I have to go out of my way to ensure that it doesn't happen. Especially Eries and Gaddes - really cute couple, aren't they?”

 

“Yeah, how did you know about that?” Hitomi asked.

 

“I'm `The Lover'. I told you, it's part of my abilities to be able to tell who's with whom. It makes going to parties very interesting. It would disgust you if I told you how many people cheat.”

 

***

 

That night, Dryden fed everyone dinner and then took them to his billiard room. He had an air hockey table, pinball machines and naturally, a pool table. Van and Allen played pool angrily all night. Van was kicking Allen's butt and Allen seemed to be getting madder and madder.

 

Dryden mixed Selphie little mocktails at the bar and treated her like she was his exotic treasure. Hitomi guessed that he was trying to convince her not to leave at the end of the week. Hitomi looked at her skeptically. She didn't know if Selphie would give in to Dryden's charms.

 

Eries hung out for a few minutes, and then she headed for Celena's room and didn't come back. Gaddes let her go with a kiss. Then he sat in an armchair and read a magazine.

 

Hitomi was tempted to follow Eries and go see Celena. Sitting at the bar with Dryden and Selphie wasn't fun, though Dryden made a strawberry smoothie for her. It was hard to be cheerful when everything Dryden and Selphie said to each other was in Italian and the air between Allen and Van was almost explosive. Hitomi had hardly slipped off her stool to go join Eries when Allen snapped.

 

“I don't have special powers!” Allen rasped after Van sunk another eight ball. “I can't do everything by myself. I need help. Why can't you understand that?”

 

“I understand perfectly well,” Van said, his dark eyebrows pulled together. “You think it's okay to ask high school girls for help.”

 

“You're still mad about Marlene? Like I told you, I didn't get the chance to break up with her. Hitomi was there and she stopped me from even having the one second alone with her that I needed in order to break it off. It's not my fault,” Allen tried to say in his defense.

 

“Don't even think of blaming Hitomi,” Van said unyieldingly. “If you drag her into this, I won't forgive you.”

 

“Wait,” Hitomi said, interrupting. “Allen, you were breaking up with Marlene that day I caught you and Marlene going on a date?”

 

“Yeah,” Allen said, looking dejected.

 

“Well, then why didn't you say that instead of acting like you were still interested in her?” Hitomi demanded, trying desperately to cut through the crap.

 

“Don't look at me like that,” Allen said. “I just didn't want to break up with her in front of you. It would have been too humiliating for her and I didn't want to hurt her like that.”

 

“You act like you still like her,” Hitomi observed.

 

“He does,” Van said coldly before Allen could say anything. “That's why we're still arguing about this. You see, Hitomi, if Allen was willing to just let her go entirely, then we wouldn't be fighting like this.”

 

“I don't understand why you're so against this, Van,” Allen said. “You clearly recruited Hitomi into the Abaharaki when she was seventeen. How is Marlene any different?”

 

“This is your last warning, Allen,” Van said strongly, his tan looking even darker when contrasted with his white shirt. “You bring Hitomi's name into this argument one more time and I won't forgive you. Hitomi is not the same as Marlene. The situation is totally different. Besides, I waited until her involvement couldn't be avoided, unlike Marlene. There is no reason for Marlene to ever be involved in our problems.”

 

“I don't understand the difference,” Allen said hotly.

 

“Yeah, I don't care if you don't understand how they're different. You are asking for my help, so it's got to be given on my conditions.”

 

Allen took a deep breath and looked like he was ready to start negotiating with Van for real, even though he clearly still thought that Van was being unreasonable. Hitomi thought that Allen must really need Van's help if he was willing to humble himself this much. “What are your conditions?” he asked.

 

“Well,” Van said. “First, you'd have to break up with Marlene for real. I don't care what you do after she's eighteen, but you'd have to leave her alone for three years. Think you can do it?”

 

“That's a long time. Could anyone do it?” Allen asked, pulling the billiard balls out of the pockets and setting up another game.

 

“I would never ask someone to do something that I wasn't willing to do, or hadn't done myself,” Van claimed.

 

“Is that so? What else do you want me to do?”

 

“Well, you'd have to go on any mission just on your own. No more shifting the weight onto others. We'd have to do all the work ourselves - just you and me.”

 

Allen looked relieved for some reason when Van said this. Hitomi was watching Allen carefully. She wasn't sure if he'd be able to meet Van's conditions. It was completely different than the way he was used to operating.

 

“Anything else?” Allen asked.

 

“Just one more thing,” Van said coolly. “You have to explain exactly what you'd like to happen. I'm not interested in going after Dilandau, no matter what he has done to Celena. My goal was to rescue Celena, not to exact revenge, so whatever happens to Dilandau is going to have to be something you do yourself, but you still have to tell me your plans, so that I know if I want to help you or not.”

 

“That's it?” Allen asked.

 

“Pretty much,” Van said, moving out of the way so that Allen could break.

 

“I'll have to think about it,” Allen said, taking an elastic band from the breast pocket of his shirt and tying his hair back in a low ponytail.

 

“Take all the time you need,” Van said, looking across at Hitomi like they shared a mutual understanding - Allen was in the doghouse until they both decided that he was out.

 

***

 

The next morning, Hitomi was in the indoor pool swimming laps with Selphie. Hitomi initially tried to keep up with her as they swam side by side, but it was impossible. Selphie was an excellent swimmer. Hitomi couldn't help but admire her athleticism. Soon Hitomi gave up trying to keep up and instead focused on keeping her workout as long as Selphie's.

 

The water was a really good temperature. Dryden said that Selphie was used to swimming in the Mediterranean. How amazing!

 

Hitomi floated on her back and leisurely looked up at the crystal glass ceiling. It was snowing again and it seemed distinctly wrong that she, Hitomi, should be swimming. The weather was all wrong for it, and they were so far away from the Mediterranean. People could swim there all year round. Here, outdoor pools were closed at the end of August.

 

When Hitomi flipped over to do the breaststroke, she saw Eries sitting on one of the deck chairs. She was watching Hitomi and Selphie swim.

 

Hitomi swam over to the edge and got out of the pool. Hitomi had brought a towel down from her bathroom and she dried off her face and ruffled her hair before she wrapped the towel around herself. Then she sat next to Eries and asked her cheerfully how she was doing.

 

“I'm great,” Eries said, looking at Hitomi nervously.

 

“What is it?” Hitomi asked. “You're looking at me like I have two heads.”

 

“It's nothing. It's none of my business. I just wanted to ask you …”

 

“Ask me what?” Hitomi persisted when Eries hesitated.

 

Eries was too ladylike to ask this question bluntly, and too mature to blush. Instead she turned her face away from Hitomi and asked very clearly, “If you and Van slept in the same bedroom last night?”

 

Hitomi had been waiting to have this conversation with Eries. It had been something she had secretly looked forward to since she and Van had gotten married. She hadn't wanted to spill the news as soon as she saw Eries the day before. She was more interested to see if Eries would pick up on the way Van treated her and thus figure out on her own that she was special to him. Unfortunately though, Eries had been very busy getting Celena settled and had spent very little time with Hitomi and Van, but Hitomi felt like she could be patient and now Eries was asking the question herself. Hitomi didn't have to wait long at all.

 

“What makes you think that?” Hitomi asked, intentionally indifferent.

 

“Well, my bedroom isn't upstairs,” Eries said, turning back to Hitomi. Her eyes were accusing. “I think you know that the housekeeper prepared a room for me beside Celena's, but both Allen and Gaddes are upstairs. Just by counting doors, it's clear that everyone's not sleeping on their own. I know it's not Dryden and Selphie, because Selphie is in the front grand - as far away from Dryden's room as possible, which is weird considering how affectionate he is. But anyway - you! What are have you been doing?”

 

Hitomi smiled. She refused to be ruffled by Eries' attitude. Instead, she played it cool. “You've caught me red-handed.” Then Hitomi even had the nerve to laugh.

 

“So, you loved him that bad? You decided that you didn't care if he had someone else waiting for him - you were just going to enjoy the moment?” Eries asked. Her expression was a thoughtful one instead of the reproachful one Hitomi had expected.

 

“No,” Hitomi said. It was disappointing not to have more sport than this, but she remembered that it was Eries she was talking to. Eries was too serious to joke with for too long. “I'm afraid you've got it all wrong. You see, Van and I have been married for four months. We got married in July, two days after we went away together.”

 

Hitomi didn't think it was possible to startle Eries, but Eries' eyes bugged out like she was part frog. “What?” she blurted.

 

“It's true,” Hitomi said as she turned to show Eries her crescent moon tattoo. “I was always his dream girl, but he couldn't lay a finger on me until I turned eighteen, so we got married the day after my birthday.”

 

“I'm flabbergasted!” Eries exclaimed. “Does Aunt Flo know?”

 

Hitomi shook her head, “She doesn't know yet. Neither Van nor I have told her.”

 

“You have to tell her. She'd be so excited.”

 

“I seriously doubt that,” Hitomi said drolly. “She doesn't like me one bit and has had no problem expressing it, as I'm sure you've noticed.”

 

Eries paused, “But I'm sure that if she knew that you were … the girl of Van's dreams. Hitomi, are you like him?” she suddenly blurted.

 

Hitomi bit her lip and nodded.

 

“So, you're like The Dragon! And you have special powers like he does too?” Eries asked incredulously.

 

“I'm not exactly like Van, but yes, I'm the girl like him who has the moon as her symbol.”

 

Eries took a deep breath, “So why did you two feel like you had to keep it a secret? If he'd told us all who you were when he brought you to Merle and mine's apartment, then things would have been so different.”

 

“What do you mean?” Hitomi asked, nearly smirking.

 

“Well, for one thing, Merle would have gotten the message that Van really wasn't available. You have no idea how she ate her heart out over him after he went to The Voltage Room and what a mess she was after he was shot. It was really painful for her, but if she'd known the truth about you and Van, maybe she could have begun the healing process sooner.”

 

“What happened to her anyway? Do you know?” Hitomi asked, curious about Merle for the first time. Hitomi hadn't even thought about her.

 

“She still lives in the city and works at the police station. When Van showed up with Celena, she tried to come see him, but he wouldn't let her. He said it was because of his wings.”

 

“Did you see Van with his wings?” Hitomi asked.

 

“Yeah,” Eries said, her eyes looking wide again. “That was one of the strangest things I've ever seen in my life. Actually, it was downright terrifying.”

 

“Please tell me about it,” Hitomi urged.

 

“Well, he looked like … a dark angel. His black wings were at least seven meters wide. It was so scary - I can't even tell you. All my religious beliefs were challenged when he landed in Aunt Flo's yard with Celena in his arms. His eyes were black as motor oil and his shoulders were burnt black. He said he had set fire to the building the Dragon Slayers were keeping them in. He was dripping blood and Celena was unconscious when he arrived. He frightened her so deeply that she fainted. Oh, Hitomi, it was terrible!” Eries paused to collect her bearings. “Anyway, I was talking about Merle. Yeah, so Merle came to see him when the news spread that he was back, but he wouldn't see her. She cried and begged and pleaded, until finally, he opened the door to the bedroom a crack. Just a crack - no more. He wouldn't show her his wings. Instead, he showed her half his face and told her that he couldn't possibly return her feelings and it would be better if she just went home.”

 

“Did she go?” Hitomi asked quietly. It turned out that she had more respect for Merle's feelings than she expected.

 

“Yeah, but she came back at least once before I went to Rose Hill with Gaddes and Celena. She said she didn't care if he loved her back - that she was going to try her best for him, but he asked her to leave again.”

 

Hitomi nodded, “I guess I see what you mean, but Van and I had good reasons for keeping our marriage a secret.”

 

Eries waited for Hitomi to continue.

 

“And they're none of your business,” Hitomi said, adding that to the end of her sentence. “Sorry, Van and I have problems that have nothing to do with the Abaharaki, and I would rather not involve you in them.” She paused here for a second in order to give herself a chance to introduce a new topic to the conversation. “Okay, so now I've spilled about Van and me. It's your turn to explain the whole Allen/Gaddes love triangle you've had going on.”

 

Eries looked at the water. “I'd rather not,” she said weakly.

 

“Why? My parents don't even know I'm married. The least you could do to repay my forwardness regarding Van and I would be to tell me what happened between you and Allen and Gaddes. I'm not going to tell anyone.”

 

Eries looked annoyed. “I guess if you put it that way. Wait! You haven't even told your parents? What sort of daughter are you?”

 

Hitomi gave Eries a level expression and answered without emotion, “A daughter who loves her family enough to try to keep them safe from unnecessary problems. Don't pretend to understand Van and I. We are not normal and the kinds of things we choose to do make perfect sense to us, even though they seem crazy to everyone watching us. I haven't even got to graduate from high school. I've missed out on graduating from grade twelve twice now, and I got married when I was eighteen. In case you haven't noticed, these are not things that normal people do, but they are perfect for Van and I. I'm pretty sick of people asking me these kinds of questions when I'm helpless to explain. We live our lives strong - side-by-side - regardless of public opinion. And that's how things are.” Here, Hitomi stopped talking. It was clear that she was getting too intense for Eries. She'd have to wait for the air to settle between them before she could pursue her question about Allen and Gaddes.

 

Eries beat Hitomi to the punch and spoke first. “I can't imagine how your lives could be so different from a normal person's,” she said.

 

“That proves that you just don't know what you're talking about. I could explain it to you, but … I'm not going to. This arrangement with Dryden is only temporary after all. Van and I aren't going to stay here forever, and when that happens I might never see you people again.”

 

“When are you planning on leaving?” Eries asked, looking smug.

 

Hitomi winced. Eries knew that the plan for Hitomi and Van to leave the mansion was nowhere near fruition. There was no possibility that it could be. So many things need to be decided on and done before they could leave. Even uninformed Eries could guess that much.

 

“Look,” Hitomi said, shaking some water out of her ear. “I don't want to fight with you. For your information, you're not the only one who's being left out. I know that Van hasn't talked to Allen about our problems either and they have been close friends for years. Please just accept that I can't talk about some things with outsiders. I'm not really a member of the Abaharaki anyway. I don't have a tattoo.”

 

“I just don't like you when you get all snotty, Hitomi. You're too young to talk like that. Your face just looks like that of a child, so when you get arrogant, you only look bratty. If Van asked you not to talk about something though, I can definitely understand and respect that,” Eries said soothingly.

 

Hitomi wasn't soothed. What was so great about Van? Well, Hitomi could answer that question faster than anyone, so she decided to let it drop. She forgot that the Abaharaki loved Van and that they almost thought of him as their leader. “So, are you going to tell me about you and Allen and Gaddes?” she asked again.

 

Eries shrugged her shoulders. “There actually isn't much of a story. I liked Allen and so when he asked me to join the Abaharaki, I agreed. It seemed only natural that he would want his girlfriend to be a part of his underground resistance group. This was a couple years ago, and I was pretty innocent. I didn't realize that Allen was such a player, and that the lines he performed for me worked on guys and girls alike. So, I ended up rooming with Merle and she had a similar problem, except with Van. I have to say, though, that the idea that Allen didn't think I was special didn't occur to me. I wandered around in this daze always waiting for the next time we would see each other. I honestly believed that even though he hung around and flirted with all these girls that I was really the only one he liked. Pretty stupid, huh?” Eries asked, looking away from Hitomi rather than meeting her eyes.

 

“No,” Hitomi said reassuringly.

 

“No, it's okay, I was stupid. I can look back on it now and not feel angry. Well, things came to a head one winter night, about a year ago, when Allen and I were driving alone together on the highway. We ended up running out of gas without knowing it. It was so cold that the gas gage on the dash froze solid. The heater in the car didn't work well. So, we started walking and we got picked up and taken to the next town where we got a motel room for the night.”

 

Hitomi's warning bells were going off. She didn't think this was going to be a good story.

 

Eries continued, but she still wouldn't look at Hitomi. “So we were alone together and ended up making out … for several hours. At around two, I got up and asked him something … about the status of our relationship. I was beginning to feel like a whore since there was no commitment between us. So, I asked him what we were to each other. He was dead silent. Then he tried to pacify me and get me to relax by saying something noncommittal, but I couldn't let him touch me if all he had in mind was a one night stand.”

 

“And that was all he had in mind?” Hitomi asked softly.

 

Eries turned and showed Hitomi her face. She was smiling, but Hitomi could tell that it was all a show. “Yeah. That was all he had in mind, but he kept telling me that I shouldn't be thinking about it the way I was. He said that he had no intention of taking it as far as sex, so my virtue wouldn't be challenged. I wasn't a whore and he was still a good guy, too. It was just fun for him to kiss me for hours on end. But I felt like I had made a fool of myself. He didn't want a relationship with me. He didn't love me, and I had thrown away college, my family, my friends, and everything because I was so deeply in love with him.”

 

“Oh Eries …”

 

“So, I was angry and when we managed to get back to the city the next day, I wasn't any better. Days went by, and I didn't feel better. I hated myself, but more than that I hated Allen for being so ambiguous and flirtatious. At first, Allen tried to make me feel better. He was friendly with me and went out of his way to show that he cared about me very much as a friend. I couldn't stand this attitude of his and we ended up fighting. And we never stopped fighting. We're still fighting. I can't help it. I can't stand to see him lead young girls on with no intention of backing up his smile with real feelings. If he was serious, just once, maybe I could forgive him for toying with females as a gender up until now, but he's never serious.”

 

“You have to have forgiven him by now, Eries. You were so worried about him when his head was cut that one time.”

 

“Yeah, that's why I'm a stupid girl. Even after all that, I still loved him. Well, that all changed when he got captured by the Dragon Slayers. For the first time in like two years, Allen and I didn't see each other at least once a week. It was weird for him not to be around, but if he had never been gone, I would have never noticed Gaddes.”

 

“Ah, the happy part of the story,” Hitomi said smiling.

 

“Yeah, he's the happy part of the story,” Eries said, her face was clearing and her content countenance was returning.

 

“How did you get together?”

 

“He and Allen were roommates and apparently Allen told Gaddes what happened between him and me. Gaddes didn't know very much about me back then, but he started to take notice after that.”

 

“And he liked you?” Hitomi asked cheerfully.

 

“No! Granted, he didn't like the way that Allen behaved. He really didn't like how I was handling the situation. Even before Allen went away, I had a couple of conversations with Gaddes where he told me to give up on Allen and find myself another man. He said I was wasting myself and it was pissing him off to see it. After Allen was gone, and after you and Van left, Gaddes came to Aunt Flo's for a few days to relax and to hide out from the Dragon Slayers. We talked a lot. Then the best thing happened before he went back to the city.”

 

“What?” Hitomi asked, leaning forward on the edge of her seat.

 

“He hugged me to say `good-bye'. He leaned over and whispered, `I've decided that I'm going to be the man to make you forget Allen. By the time it's time to pick him up from The Voltage Room, you won't even remember who he is.' Then he touched my cheek and left.”

 

“That's sweet! And it worked?”

 

Eries nodded pleasantly. “Yeah, he worked hard and he really showed me how wonderful it is to be with a guy who likes you and wants you for you. I'm not his evening amusement, but his love. I hope Van makes you feel like that too, Hitomi.”

 

Hitomi smiled, “Yeah, he does.”

 

“So, it's still not common knowledge that you and Van are married, right?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Eries put her finger to her lips and whispered, “Then I won't tell anyone. Congratulations, Hitomi. I hope you and Van will be really happy together.” Then she leaned over and kissed Hitomi on the cheek. “That's a wish from my heart.”