To Be the Perfect Childhood Friend - Chapter 102

The brief moment she waited for his reply felt like an eternity to Anita. Her heartbeat had quickened to the point where she feared it might stop altogether. Just as she was nearing that thought, Rutger’s lips curled into a slight smile. Unsure of what that smile meant, Anita stiffened. He pulled her into his arms and didn’t let go. After a while of struggling to get up, she gave in and relaxed her arms. She worried for a second if she was crushing him.

“Does this mean we can agree now?”

“…Huh?”

“You said it’s only a word you can use when there’s agreement.”

Confused by his words, she looked up. Rutger didn’t stop her from pulling away from his embrace. Finally realizing what he was referring to, Anita smiled. Seeing the expectant look on his face, she couldn’t help but feel a playful impulse.

“Oh, right. Friends, wasn’t it? Sure, why not? What’s stopping us?”

“……”

“Of course, we can.”

His eyes narrowed slightly.

“While we’re at it, why not draft a contract? A friendship agreement or something.”

It’s funny how position changes perception. Rutger had always seemed difficult to approach, but now that she was looking down at him, he seemed almost manageable. She could see every shift in his expression clearly.

He must have always been able to see her face so easily.

‘Maybe I should’ve drunk more milk as a kid.’

Of course, even if she had downed crates of milk, it would’ve been tough to beat Rutger in height.

Clink.

Suddenly, the sound of something breaking reached them. Startled by the loud noise, Anita tried to turn her head.

“What was that sound?”

“Nothing.”

Rutger brushed Anita’s hair aside with a casual expression. Although the situation felt unsettling, his face remained so calm that Anita decided not to worry about the mysterious sound. If someone else had been there, surely Rutger would have noticed first.

He reached out, as if to recapture her attention. His warm hand rested against her cheek.

“What’s wrong?”

He didn’t answer. Instead, his fingers gently tucked her hair behind her ear. Anita couldn’t help but think of the time she had fallen from a ladder as a child. The situation now felt oddly similar. But unlike the twelve-year-old Rutger who had pushed her away nervously back then, his touch now was gentle. Still, the hair he’d just tucked fell forward again.

Rutger absentmindedly played with the ends of Anita’s hair as it cascaded like a waterfall beside his face. She felt as if every nerve in her body had moved to the tips of her hair.

He seemed unsatisfied with just touching her hair and slowly brought it toward his lips. Realizing what he was about to do, Anita jerked her head back in shock.

Rutger watched her hair slip out of his grasp with a slightly disappointed look.

“Your hair’s gotten longer.”

“Of course it has. It’s been years.”

“Yeah. Eight years.”

Rutger’s voice took on a strangely nostalgic tone as he looked up at her intently. Something about his gaze made Anita feel as if she couldn’t breathe.

“What?”

Even if she wasn’t the most perceptive person, she knew this was not the time for such a stupid question. But his silent, unwavering gaze made her feel so uncomfortable that she couldn’t help but blurt it out.

At that moment, Anita noticed the familiar mischievous glint in his eyes. It was a look she knew all too well.

“Don’t.”

“What do you think I was going to say?”

“…You were about to say I look pretty.”

Judging by his raised lips and that playful look in his eyes, it was clear he was about to say something like that.

“Who said that?”

Now, suddenly embodying someone overly confident in their appearance, Anita bit her lip.

“Then what were you going to say?”

With a sly grin, Rutger answered, “You look especially pretty today.”

“…”

Anita’s face went blank. As she started to get up, he quickly apologized.

“Sorry, I was wrong. Don’t go.”

Since Anita didn’t really plan on leaving, she let herself be pulled back, pretending to give in.

Just then, murmuring voices echoed from the hallway.

“Do you hear people talking?”

“It’s probably just Liliana.”

Unlike Anita, who anxiously stared at the closed sitting room door, Rutger remained unconcerned. The footsteps grew closer, and she began to fidget nervously.

“What’s wrong?”

“What do you think people will say if they see us?”

Anita shot him a look, as if to ask how he could be so oblivious.

“What else? They’ll think we’re a couple.”

“A couple.”

She repeated the word in her mouth a few times, like it was a language she’d never spoken before. It felt oddly foreign to her.

“Why is it raining so much when it’s not even rainy season?”

“Sorry to break it to you, Liliana, but it is the rainy season.”

Their loud conversation echoed through the hallway. Rutger, displeased that the once pleasant atmosphere had been disrupted, glared irritably toward the door.

“Just ignore it…”

He turned back to where Anita had been, but the spot was already empty.

Bang.

The door swung open roughly. Rutger, who had been staring blankly at the empty space where Anita had just been, turned his gaze to the rude intruder.