Do you know the feeling of watching the man you like only look at someone else?
Every time she witnessed Scarlett blushing while talking to someone else, her heart felt like it was burning.
But she thought it was a problem that would naturally be solved if she were given a little more time.
Scarlett had never once thought she was inferior to anyone.
But the red-haired girl, whom she thought wasn't much better than herself.
She saw her holding hands with the man she liked, chatting happily with him alone, blushing shyly as they kissed, and finally, wearing a wedding dress and getting married to him.
Seeing Scarlett mock her with eyes as red as her hair at every moment was not a pleasant experience for Sylvia.
To be precise, it was more than unpleasant; it was quite irritating.
So much so that her expression involuntarily frowned.
'It's just an illusion, after all.'
She had long realized that she was seeing an illusion.
That was why she felt so irritated.
To think that what she subconsciously feared or avoided the most was just this.
This made it seem like she had thought she was inferior to her in some way.
Taking a few deep breaths and focusing her mind, the illusion dissipated.
Even after escaping the illusion, she couldn't help but feel bothered whenever she saw Scarlett.
Feeling this way made her so uncomfortable that Sylvia clicked her tongue.
She thought she would end up lashing out at Scarlett, who kept buying her macarons, and had to gather her wits.
*
I want to eat a macaron.
When she thought this, it felt natural that Scarlett would soon be offering her a macaron, which made Sylvia feel strange.
'Can she read minds?'
Suppressing the irritation that arose from the illusion she saw yesterday, she asked Scarlett how she knew she wanted a macaron.
"Because we're friends, I can tell."
It was an incomprehensible answer.
Sylvia didn't really consider her a friend.
Unable to understand, she asked bluntly if there was any reason she kept buying macarons.
But Scarlett still answered that she did it because they were friends.
Honestly, Sylvia thought Scarlett would soon get tired and give up.
It seemed like she was just pretending to be a friend, right?
It was strange to keep buying macarons just because someone said they were a friend, especially when they barely talked and only exchanged pleasantries when Scarlett brought the macarons.
She thought Scarlett would reveal her true colors soon.
But whether it was due to patience or lack of pride, Scarlett continued the same behavior from the first day they met, without any sign of annoyance.
Still, that consistency didn't feel bad.
Sylvia thought it was better than those who approached her saying they wanted to be friends but quickly changed their attitude.
And that day, while passing through the first-floor corridor on some errand, Sylvia saw a familiar person carrying someone into the infirmary.
Leonor Lionel.
The daughter of a famous hero, with whom she had occasionally interacted since childhood, was carrying Scarlett, who had just given her a macaron, into the infirmary.
Curious about what had happened, Sylvia peeked inside the infirmary.
There, she saw Leonor laying Scarlett on the bed.
Leonor looked at her with a meaningful smile and asked Scarlett, who seemed unusually relaxed, a question.
"Remember when I heard that name? Aren't you the one who does the bread shuttle for that Astra girl?"
Bread shuttle?
Sylvia had never thought of Scarlett that way.
She wouldn't make anyone do something as barbaric as a bread shuttle, would she?
Except for the initial request to buy macarons, which was a bit of a prank, everything else was Scarlett's own doing.
But could others see it that way?
Sylvia was somewhat shocked.
A possibility she had almost never considered came to mind.
"Would you like me to tell her to stop?"
"Stop... I do it because I want to... If not, no friends..."
"......Is that so?"
Leonor turned her head toward Sylvia and laughed.
Sylvia was confused.
'Could it be that she really just wanted to be friends with me?'
She had assumed Scarlett was only being nice because she wanted something.
But what if...
If she was really buying macarons every day just because they were friends.
If she truly believed they were friends.
Sylvia found herself running back to the classroom from the infirmary, lost in thought.
It couldn't be.
She wished it wasn't true.
If it were, wouldn't she be a terrible person?
Her ears burned with shame.
"Miss Scarlett is not feeling well and is lying down in the infirmary."
Sylvia answered the teacher's question about Scarlett's whereabouts and thought to herself.
Could she really trust this time?
Was Scarlett really just trying to be friends with her?
If it was true...
If she maintained a consistent attitude for a while...
What should she do?
*
Once she changed her mind, receiving macarons from Scarlett felt somewhat embarrassing.
She would have normally accepted the macarons without much thought and said something like, "We're friends, right?"
But now, she couldn't easily say such things.
"......Thank you."
Even saying a simple thank you was unfamiliar to Sylvia.
She meant it, not just as a formality.
*
The next day, Scarlett, who usually arrived early except for the first day of school, was late.
"Miss Scarlett, you're late."
Sylvia muttered to herself, slightly bothered.
Then, Yoon Siwoo's voice came from beside her.
"Sylvia, can I talk to you for a moment?"
Thinking it might be a confession, like the girls had been talking about, Sylvia's heart raced.
She tried to calm her blushing cheeks as she waited for him to speak.
Then, Yoon Siwoo opened his mouth.
"I don't want you to accept anything from Scarlett anymore."
Sylvia couldn't understand the situation.
Why was he talking about Scarlett?
She had only recently started to think that Scarlett might be treating her as a friend.
Why was he telling her to stop accepting macarons from her?
She couldn't accept Yoon Siwoo's words, which gave no reason.
"It's a bit much to ask me not to accept them without a reason. Miss Scarlett is just being friendly as a friend."
When Sylvia said this, Yoon Siwoo looked slightly angry and said,
"Liar."
"Excuse me?"
"You're lying. You don't really think of her as a friend."
Sylvia felt her breath catch at Yoon Siwoo's words.
It was true.
She still didn't consider Scarlett a friend.
She had only started thinking about becoming friends with her a day ago.
Though it was true, Yoon Siwoo's gaze, which made her feel like she was a heartless person playing with Scarlett's feelings, made her a bit angry.
"......I don't understand why you think that. Even if you insist-."
"Stop it. I know everything."
Yoon Siwoo, cutting her off, said.
His determination to label her as a bad person made her wonder if Scarlett had said something to him.
She had started to want to be friends with her.
Was it wrong to suspect her first?
I wanted a friend too, but I was afraid she might be using me.
Was it so wrong that I received such a look from the first person I ever liked?
Feeling hurt by Yoon Siwoo's refusal to listen, Sylvia shouted,
"What is it! Why are you always so concerned about her! I'm much more important to you......!"
In the middle of her outburst, she met Yoon Siwoo's eyes.
His cold gaze, which seemed to say that someone like her didn't deserve it, made Sylvia's heart turn cold.
Yes, she was that kind of person.
She had lived just fine without friends, and she could continue to do so.
"......I understand. I'll stop accepting macarons from Miss Scarlett. After all, we weren't friends."
*
While eating, a macaron was suddenly offered to her.
How did she know I wanted a macaron?
But now, it didn't matter.
Ignoring the macaron offered by Scarlett, who had arrived late today, Sylvia said,
"I don't need it."
When Scarlett tilted her head in confusion, she repeated,
"Didn't you hear? I don't need it. There's no need for you to buy macarons for me anymore. I have no reason to accept them from you."
"B...but, friends......"
Seeing Scarlett's trembling voice and expression, Sylvia felt a bit guilty.
Maybe she really did want to be friends with her.
But even if that was true...
"I'm sorry. It's my fault. From today, I'll be honest."
She was a suspicious person who played with Scarlett's feelings and used her as a bread shuttle.
She didn't deserve to be friends with her.
"I never considered Miss Scarlett a friend from the beginning."
So, she shouldn't be friends with her.
Looking at Scarlett's distorted face, Sylvia thought to herself.
Author's Note:
This was from Sylvia's perspective.
If it weren't for Yoon Siwoo, she might have easily fallen for it...
Please check out the fan art by BlueRabbit, GunguTaemang, and kisses, and the comic by YanggangKing on the respective boards!