Fleeting Love, True Encounter

: One

In the spring of my third year with my childhood sweetheart, Shane Sinclair, we came to Aethelburg.

Shane Sinclair held my hand.

"Cece," those handsome, captivating eyes looked especially affectionate in the darkness.

"Would a setting like this work for a proposal?"

My heart stopped in that instant.

The Iron Tower, the Serene River, spring in Aethelburg, our clasped hands—it was all as perfect as a scene from a movie.

I opened my mouth, joy nearly overflowing from my throat.

I wanted to say, "I will."

I wanted to say, "I've been waiting for this moment for so long."

But before the words could leave my lips, Shane Sinclair leaned in intimately beside my ear.

"I think a place like this is just right for proposing to Tanya Gable."

The world fell silent at that moment.

All I could hear were Shane Sinclair's careless words:

"You should get together with my brother. That way, Tanya Gable will marry me."

1

I stood frozen in place.

Shane Sinclair was still looking at me, a gentle smile in his eyes. "Do you think Tanya will like it here?"

Tanya Gable is my older sister.

The Gable and Sinclair families have been friends for generations. Back when our mothers were pregnant, they arranged a marriage pact.

The Gable family had Tanya and me; the Sinclair Family had Julian and Shane Sinclair.

Tanya's light shone so brightly, it easily cast me into the shadows. Everyone adored Tanya, and Shane Sinclair was no exception.

Growing up, Shane Sinclair's attention was always fixed on Tanya.

He gave her the best of everything, always trailing behind her, endlessly calling, "Tanya! Tanya!"

Until one day, in front of everyone, Tanya Gable threw everything he had given her into a trash can.

"Shane Sinclair, you're such a pest! Stay away from me!"

That day, with red-rimmed eyes, Shane Sinclair found me reading in a corner of the Gable family's garden.

He said gruffly, "Acknowledge me as your leader, and I'll have your back." I refused.

When I was seven, I accidentally fell into the pond in the Sinclair's backyard.

The water covered my mouth and nose. I struggled, but only sank deeper.

Just then, a hand grabbed me and pulled me forcefully onto the bank.

Coughing, I opened my eyes and saw Shane Sinclair. In the sunlight, he looked as if he were outlined in gold.

"You're okay now," he said. "Be more careful from now on."

From then on, I became Shane Sinclair's little shadow.

If he got in a fight, I'd hand him a brick. If he skipped class, I'd cover for him. If he was punished by being made to stand, I'd sneak him food.

Everyone said that the Gables' younger daughter was the second Sinclair son's most loyal shadow.

In junior high, I was bullied. A group of girls cornered me in the bathroom.

The next day, Shane Sinclair somehow heard about it. He got into a fight at the school gates with the ringleader and the boys she brought with her. His lip was bleeding and his uniform was filthy, but he fiercely wiped the blood away:

"As long as I'm here, I'd like to see anyone try and bully her."

I stood behind him, my heart pounding like a war drum.

On a rainy night three years ago, we drank too much at a party.

Shane Sinclair walked me home, and there, in the empty living room of the Gable house, he kissed me.

From then on, we did everything a couple could do.

Everyone assumed we would get married sooner or later. Even both sets of parents tacitly approved.

Even our elders would often laugh and say, "Once Cece and Shane get married, our generation's greatest wish will be fulfilled."

I had always believed it too.

Until this moment, when all my illusions were shattered.

My nose stung, and my vision started to blur. I hung my head in misery. "I'm sure my sister will love it."

Shane Sinclair seemed completely oblivious to my distress. He tousled my hair and said smugly, "Of course she will. I mean, just look who has such good taste. I even arranged for fireworks."