A Day Meant Only for You

When I told her to change into something decent, she looked at me as if I’d just asked her to leap from the castle tower.

“Go… outside? With you?” she stammered, clutching the hem of her plain gray dress.

“Yes,” I said firmly, brushing on my coat. “The air will do you good.”

Her lips parted. “But I’m a maid. People will think—”

“They will think you’re with me,” I interrupted, offering my hand. “And that should be enough.”

Her cheeks flushed so fiercely that for a moment, I thought she might faint. But after a long hesitation, she slipped her hand into mine. Warm. Shaking. Fragile.

---

The town square was bustling, sunlight spilling across cobbled streets and rows of cheerful stalls. Merchants called out their wares, children chased one another with ribbons, and the scent of fresh bread lingered in the air.

Lila stuck close to me, wide-eyed at every sight. She tugged gently at my sleeve when she saw a stall selling candied fruits on sticks.

“…Do you like those?” I asked.

Her face turned pink. “I just… used to eat them when I was little.”

I didn’t hesitate. I handed the vendor a coin and placed the treat into her hand before she could protest.

Her mouth fell open. “I didn’t ask you to—”

“You looked at it,” I said simply.

“That doesn’t mean—”

“Eat it before it melts,” I ordered.

She glared up at me, but the moment she bit into the glossy red fruit, her expression softened into pure delight. The sticky sweetness clung to her lips, and I had to look away before I did something reckless.

---

We wandered through the marketplace, and every time her eyes lingered on something — ribbons, hairpins, a music box — it ended up in the bag I carried.

By the fifth item, she spun on her heel, blocking my path. “Stop it! You’re… you’re spoiling me!”

I arched a brow. “Exactly.”

Her mouth opened, then closed again. “That’s not how this works! You can’t just… buy me things every time I blink at them!”

“Why not?”

“Because— because then I’ll…” Her voice faltered. “I’ll start expecting it.”

I leaned down, close enough that my breath stirred her hair. “Good. Expect it.”

Her heart all but jumped into her throat — I could see it in her eyes.

---

Later, as the sun dipped low, I guided her to a quiet café tucked at the edge of the square. We sat by the window, where the golden light painted her face soft and warm.

She sipped the tea slowly, her fingers brushing the rim of the delicate porcelain cup.

“…I don’t understand you,” she murmured finally.

I raised a brow. “What don’t you understand?”

“You’re… cold, and scary, and everyone says you’re impossible to please. But with me…” She hesitated, then whispered, “Why are you different with me?”

The question was dangerous. Too close to the truth I wasn’t ready to voice.

So instead, I leaned back, smirking. “Maybe I like clumsy things.”

Her eyes widened, and she almost choked on her tea. “That’s— that’s not funny!”

But I caught it—the corner of her lips twitching upward, the spark in her gaze she tried to hide.

I’d give her a thousand more reasons to smile like that.

---

When we returned to the castle, she tried to hand me the bag of trinkets I’d bought.

“Keep it,” I said.

“But—”

“Lila.” My voice dropped lower. “I told you before, didn’t I? From now on, your only job… is to let yourself be spoiled.”

Her grip on the bag tightened. Slowly, she nodded, her eyes shimmering like starlight.

And I thought—