I Became The Male Lead's Female Friend

I feel like I just met him. Actually, I hadn’t seen Lord River in quite a while.

I’ve been to a lot of parties since meeting him for the first time at a social party, but I’ve never seen him again.

I don’t have to say how much I was disappointed with him.

‘He said he’s glad we met, and said he’d see me again next time, but…’

Before he vanishes like the wind, ‘When is that next time? Should I have asked?’

But at the time, I was in a strange sense of pride. Since he showed interest in me first, I naturally assumed that someone with a crush would approach me first.

So I purposely went to the Goldman faction’s social party, but…

“I couldn’t even see a strand of his hair.”

It was only later that I regretted thinking ‘I should have sent a letter first’, but the water had already been spilled. 

It’s been quite a while since we met by chance.

I eventually realized that the fling I was riding was my imagination and tried to close my heart with bloody tears.

This fox-like man had appeared at the most absurd timing.

Still, he suddenly appeared in an unexpected place, no different from before, or rather, he seemed more handsome than before. 

I stared at him in awe, then suddenly came to my senses and answered quickly.

“It’s been a while. Sir… How are you?”

“Yes, Dahlia, how have you been?”

“I’m still the same. Of course, I was a little worried because I couldn’t see the person who said ‘I’d see you again next time’.”

“Oh, that’s…”

He looked like he didn’t know what to do for a while, but then he finally answered with an embarrassed smile on his lips.

“I’ve been busy, so I have no choice but to… I was thinking of sending a letter to Dahlia…”

“What?”

“I’m afraid you’ll be embarrassed if I send you a letter without telling you first…”

‘Ugh…’ So you were thinking of writing a letter while we couldn’t see each other, but you couldn’t send it because you didn’t get permission from me?

Well, that’s a pretty good excuse. 

Certainly, at the previous meeting, I hadn’t said that we should exchange letters. If you’re even thinking about sending a letter, it means that you’ve been thinking about me all this time, but it could be a common gesture…

Even so, why did my heart melt and my lips twitched slowly just because I had just heard such a thing?

I cleared my throat and glanced sideways at him.

“Hmm, well, do I have to send a formal manner…?”

“What?”

“From now on, you can just send it whenever you want to. I’d be happy to receive your letter,” said Dahlia.

Just when I was about to feel ashamed of my words, Lord River in front of me brightly and boldly showed a smile of relief on his handsome face.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

‘Huh, oh, just keep this in mind. Still, it’s good that the handsome man smiles like that.’

Now I don’t know, so I looked at him and smiled, and then Lord River asked me as if he remembered something.

“But what have you been doing here? I thought there was something wrong…”

“What? Uh, that’s…”

Then I came to my senses and looked around.

Coming out of the store and organizing my thoughts for a while, I must have been standing in one place for quite some time. However, it was impossible to tell him the truth, 

‘I was planning to stab someone’s back.’

I continued talking while pretending to look at the window of a nearby store.

“Lo—looking! I was looking around. It’s my hobby to go out on a downtown street and look around like this,” exclaimed Dahlia.

“I see.”

“I happened to stumble with you while I was looking for something I like. Oh, well, what brings you here…?”

“I’ve got some business to do…”

As he answered, he naturally turned his eyes toward the display case I was looking at. After staring at the flashing object for a moment, he turned back to me. 

Then he suddenly said some nonsense.

“Can I get you a present?”

I stared at him with a puzzled expression.

“What present?”

Then I realized, ‘Ah, I’ve been standing in place for a long time.’

I just stood there for a moment thinking about the information I received from the informant, but it must have been a little different from others.

As an excuse, I said, ‘I was looking around if there’s anything I like,’ but it would seem to others that my gaze was fixed as if thinking about buying or not.

With that great example, Lord River seemed to be mistaken and thought I wanted that thing.

“What should I do?”

In fact, the answer was up to me. Whatever Lord River misunderstood, I wasn’t interested in that thing in the first place.

I didn’t even know what it was until he said it. Because I was lost in thought with my gaze fixed on the empty space, not on the object.

So normally, I’d say no…

“Sir, are you campaigning?”

“What?”

There was a mischievous look on his innocent-looking face. I crossed my arms and continued talking with a haughty expression.

“Do you think I can’t live that much?”

“What?”

“You haven’t forgotten about my family, right? I can buy a building for only that amount.”

As if he finally understood my meaning, Lord River’s expression went blank for a moment. 

Then, he quickly loosens up and bursts into a small laugh. 

‘Did I say it too immaturely?’ 

I was just about to get frustrated.

“I’m well aware of it.”

He continued with a soft smile, “The fact that you can have whatever you want.”

“Yes, well, if you know…”

“But I think gifts are a little different.”

Dahlia stared at him quietly.

“Especially buying in person and getting it as a gift.”

“… What’s the difference?”

“Unlike if I buy it myself, the gift was given by someone else. I mean…”

Lord River spoke calmly, “It feels like the person’s ‘memory‘ is in the object.”

“Memories?”

He answered with a faint smile,

“As if the meaning of any place depends on whom you go with. If you get the same thing as a gift from someone, you think of that person every time you see it. I thought it would be more special…”

He scratched his nape and looked embarrassed after such a blurry end of his speech.

“Well, I guess that was a sentimental answer. You don’t have to be very attentive.”

I stared at him, embarrassed for nothing. Maybe it’s because it’s an unexpected answer, or because it’s too much of a response.

Somehow, I smiled in excitement.

“But wouldn’t it be more meaningful if it was a surprise gift?”

“What?”

“No, Sir, you told me that you would give me a present in the first place. Do you have any special memories about that?”

“Oh…”

Only then did Lord River hurriedly make an excuse that he remembered the words he had uttered out of the blue.

“Well, it’s not that, but I think you like it, so I don’t know…”

“If I were you, I would remember it and send you a present. Sir River is a little tactless.”

“Well, that’s….”

Seeing him now in a cold sweat at my outspoken words, I ended up laughing out loud. 

Then, realizing that it was a joke, he finally answered with a sigh of laughter.

“My thoughts were short. I’ll send it to you next time.”

“Well, what’s the use of it now? Just do it now.”

 “What? That means…”

I turned around first and headed for the entrance of the store. Then I grabbed the handle of the door and looked back at him and smiled brightly.

“Give me now. Lord River’s ‘Memories‘.”

Eventually, he laughed after those words.

✿

“It’s better than I thought.”

I looked at the bracelet on my wrist.

Actually, I didn’t really want it, and I didn’t expect much because it was like I was randomly given just something I was staring blankly at.

But for some reason, when I actually wear the bracelet, it’s like it suits me very well.

It wasn’t even that it was studded with expensive jewels. 

It was just a design that was tangled in several lines without any special decorations, but it gave a surprisingly sophisticated feeling with delicate craftsmanship in the middle.

I thought it would look good on a fancy dress if it was properly reformed. I thought of Lord River, looking at the bracelet as if it were new.

‘Same as Lord River.’

Actually, it wasn’t just the bracelet that I liked…

I’d never seen such a handsome man after Rudrick, so I was just making silly comments inwardly, and I tried to look at him as objectively as I could.

Of course, it is undeniable that the original image of ‘Sunshine’ made it a little better. But he made an impression enough to satisfy my expectations.