Why is he suddenly showing interest in her today?

“So?”

He put down the untouched cup as he spoke. The sound of the heavy mug settling on the table always felt sluggish to Anita. In her opinion, it was akin to the beginning of a long and serious conversation.

Moreover, there was nowhere to escape here. It was a sealed space with no way out, and outside, the rain was pouring down.

“What’s the connection between you and that person?”

“Who?”

“The student council president.”

It was a topic Anita hadn’t considered at all.

“Well.”

Was there really a connection? He was just a senior from school, someone Anita had exchanged a few words with. In her opinion, Edmund was no different from the passersby on the street. At best, a slight difference lay in knowing his name.

“I think…”

He seemed to be trying to bring up a difficult topic, as he lightly tapped the glass he had put down.

“…?”

“I don’t think you suit each other.”

It was an unexpected and inexplicable statement. Anita couldn’t understand what he was trying to say, and she blinked her eyes quickly.

“Why are you suddenly saying that?”

Brushing off his wet hair, Rutger, who had been fiddling with the glass, stared fixedly at the tiled floor without moving for a while. If someone saw him, they might think he had developed a profound interest in the floor tiles.

Although Anita didn’t intend to rush him, the silence became more uncomfortable than necessary, and she unknowingly tapped the table with her fingers.

“I mean, showing interest in you.”

Anita’s fingers stopped tapping the table in a steady beat. His eyes, which had been staring at the floor, met hers. The unexpected eye contact stunned her, and she blurted out.

“You? No, no, Senior? Interested in me?”

It was the funniest thing she’d heard all year. Anita couldn’t even decide whether to burst into laughter or wear a bewildered expression.

“Why do you think like that, exactly?”

“Well.”

Watching him continuously cutting her off without completing a single sentence made Anita feel stifled. What on earth was he trying to say, keeping such a hesitant pause?

Anita increasingly felt uncomfortable in this situation. Today, for some reason, they had smoothly passed without any disagreements.

“He’s always hovering around you.”

It was a reaction that simply couldn’t be understood logically. Edmund was hovering around her? Anita doesn’t have many friends, so she doesn’t have anything to compare it to, but most people wouldn’t rate it as flirting.

If Anita defined her relationship with Rutger by the number of times they met, it would be as close and loving as a family.

But the reality was different. They met almost every day, and there was frequent interaction among family members, yet their relationship was sometimes less than ordinary compared to others.

“What do you mean?”

“Aren’t you aware of anything?”

Rutger, who seemed frustrated, touched his forehead and tilted his head back.

He was right, Anita was not very perceptive. Problems that were easy for others to see and deal with were often invisible to her.

But this was different.

Rutger Baylan was the one who was truly clueless, If there had been clear mutual liking between them, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for him to go on and on about Edmund.

But between Anita and Rutger, there was nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Anita herself knew well that she was perceived as someone easygoing and somewhat foolish, especially when it came to Rutger. She let him pass when he suddenly appeared friendly after acting cold. She didn’t get angry, cry, or question.

But now, he was trying to give her a lecture on her interpersonal relationships, and it irritated her.

Who did he think he was?

Just someone who easily pushed her around, making her look truly ridiculous.

“What do you mean?”

Anita asked again, more patiently.

“It means he’s interested in you.”

“So what? What does that have to do with me? What does it have to do with you?”

“What?”

“Yeah. Let’s say the senior is interested in me. So what? Is that a problem for you?”

Anita shook her head in disbelief.

“…”

“If he’s not for me, then what kind of guy is for me?”

“Well…”

“Come to think of it, isn’t that a bit strange? Do you have to be compatible to meet someone? Can’t it just be based on my feelings?”

Anita wanted to act as if she were genuinely curious and asking, but unintentionally, her words quickened, and along with it, her voice naturally became louder.

“…”

Anita had no intention of getting along well with Edmund, and she assumed Edmund felt the same. However, seeing Rutger so concerned, for some reason, she felt the need to say something.

He had been silent since earlier, just staring at Anita. This fact made Anita even angrier, as it seemed like proof that he had thrown out words without any purpose or reason from the beginning.

He’d done what he always did, and Anita had gracefully sidestepped it.

“I’m sorry you just don’t suit each other.”

The corners of her mouth twitched, and she twirled the ends of her hair. Rutger abruptly stood up. Somehow, when he stood up so forcefully, the poor chair behind him fell backward, making a loud noise.

“…”

“Are you serious?”

She just shrugged her shoulders.