Chapter 80: Hotel Suite

Embraced in Master’s arms, my eyes met Father’s.

Father’s eyes widened in surprise when he spotted me.

“…Father.”

Master muttered in a low, unwelcoming voice.

Clicking his tongue briefly and twisting his face in displeasure, Master started to move away, trying to leave the spot.

But the bodyguards standing beside Father were a bit quicker, blocking Master’s path.

Master glared at the bodyguards with a menacing look.

At that, Father walked over to us.

“I heard Didi went missing… Have you finally come back?”

So Father knew I’d disappeared.

And… he must have seen the scandal between Master and me.

That means he could easily guess why I left home.

A guilty feeling crept up in my heart.

It must have been hard enough for him, just knowing his own son was caught in a scandal with a robot, and Father’s reputation must have suffered as well.

Yet, his gaze remained as gentle as ever.

“William, if you found Didi, you should have contacted me.”

“Why should I have to tell you that I found Didi?”

“Why? I was looking for Didi too, because you asked me to.”

A brief silence followed Father’s words.

“You were searching for Didi every day, and then suddenly went quiet. I wondered why… So it was because Didi came back.”

Listening quietly with my eyes lowered, I unconsciously looked up at Master.

Master… had been searching for me a lot, it seemed.

I thought he wouldn’t look for me.

That’s why I left home without a word, and even after returning, I purposely didn’t try to find out if Master had looked for me.

I’d thought he’d be glad to have fewer bothersome things to deal with.

That’s what I believed…

But the memory of the longing in his eyes when he looked at me, powered on, and the urgent whisper of “I love you” when I started to cry, kept surfacing in my mind.

No, it can’t be.

I shook my head firmly in denial. If I didn’t do at least this much, I felt like I’d really end up deluding myself into believing Master loved me.

“But then… why is Didi dressed like this?”

Father looked at my appearance and asked, as if realizing something.

Pyjamas and bare feet.

Anyone could tell it wasn’t attire for going out.

Embarrassed, I hunched my shoulders a bit.

Thankfully, it was so late that there were hardly any people in the hotel lobby, but I hadn’t expected to run into someone I knew.

If I’d known this would happen, I would have just put on the clothes Master told me to wear earlier…

Feeling awkward, I rubbed my arm with my hand.

Father’s gaze moved to the small scar left on the back of my hand, then to my eyes, still red from crying all day, and he asked with concern.

“Didi, won’t you come back home with us?”

“Father!”

Master called out sharply.

Even I was startled by how cold his face was, but Father didn’t seem to care at all.

“William, bring Didi home with you next week.”

“I refuse.”

“Are you not even going to show your face at your parents’ birthday?”

“I’m not going…”

“I’ll go!”

I hurriedly shouted, cutting off Master’s words.

Birthday… It must be Father’s birthday.

I nearly missed the birthday of one of the few people who had always treated me kindly.

Father looked at Master as if he were hopeless, but when he turned to me, he smiled gently and replied.

“Will you really? If William refuses to come, you can come alone. If you contact me, I’ll send the driver for you.”

I smiled shyly and nodded, deliberately avoiding Master’s intense glare from beside me.

After promising to visit for Father’s birthday next week, we parted ways.

Still wrapped in Master’s arms, I waved brightly to Father as he left the hotel.

Master and I took the elevator to the highest floor.

Since I accepted Father’s invitation, I could clearly feel Master’s mood sink.

I felt sorry for Master, but I was seriously considering leaving his side.

It wasn’t as if I was going far.

I was planning to ask Father to let me stay as a household robot.

I knew that Master had been paying attention to me since I returned.

We hadn’t talked much since I came back, but his glances and actions were enough for me to notice.

Still, regardless of those feelings, my resolve not to love Master hadn’t changed.

Whenever I faced Master, my already battered heart would start pounding all over again.

If I kept staying by his side like this, I’d just end up getting swayed by his whims and hurt all over again.

Before that happened, I had to leave Master’s side.

I’d stay just until Eve was repaired.

Of course, it depended on whether Father would accept me, but I believed he would.

***

The door is opening.

With the announcement, the elevator stopped.

As the door opened, Master stepped out into the quiet hallway.

My body swayed slightly with each step he took, the familiar warmth of his embrace seeping into me.

We walked down the long corridor, and when Master held the card to the door, the room opened.

Still in Master’s arms, as we entered the suite, the first thing that greeted me was a savoury aroma that tickled my nose.

My stomach growled instinctively.

Master seemed to notice my twitching nose and let out a small laugh.

“I ordered room service.”

With that, Master gently set me down on the floor.

As soon as I was free from Master’s arms, I put on the slippers set out on one side of the room.

They were the disposable slippers hotels usually provided, but I felt relieved just to finally have something on my feet.

Feeling the soft slippers wrapping my feet, I slowly walked further in.

The city nightscape was visible at a glance through the large window, and the neatly arranged dishes on the table caught my eye one by one.

Glossy steak, warm soup, freshly cooked pasta, salad, and even fruit.

I hadn’t eaten anything since waking up in the morning.

Even after hearing about Eve, I felt guilty just for being hungry, but now, with the food right in front of me, my stomach roared.

Without thinking, I swallowed my saliva.

Seeing Master sit down first, I sat across from him.

“I’ll eat well.”

I picked up my fork and sliced the steak.

The meat was tender and perfectly cooked.

The warm soup was savoury, and the creamy pasta, rich with truffle aroma, filled my mouth.

Enjoying delicious food for the first time in a while, I ate hurriedly, but then suddenly felt someone’s gaze and looked up.

Master hadn’t touched the food at all, just quietly sipping wine.

I hadn’t planned to speak first, but curiosity got the better of me.

“Master, why did we come to the hotel?”

He said it was a date, but the place Master brought me was a hotel.

It was a nice place.

The atmosphere was cosy, the view was great, and the food was excellent.

But knowing Master, I expected he’d take me somewhere more extravagant and crowded, so I was surprised.

“It’s quiet here. I can’t stand crowded places anymore.”

Had Master changed too, while I was wandering outside for so long?

Instead of answering, I took another spoonful of soup and continued eating.

After finishing the meal, I washed my tear-stained face thoroughly.

When I came back out, the table was already cleared.

The room was quiet.

Outside, the city lights were going out one by one, darkness settling in.

The city I’d wandered through and the night view from up high felt completely different.

When I was out on the streets, I felt suffocated by uncertainty, but now, everything just felt endlessly peaceful.

I gazed at the night view for a moment and yawned.

It was time to sleep.

As I walked to the bedroom, I slowly looked around the suite.

If it were the old me, I would have loved coming to a place like this with Master.

The view was nice… the bed was big…

Wait, the bed?

As soon as I entered the room, I noticed the huge king-size bed and was taken aback.

It was the size of two beds pushed together, but there was only one blanket.

Did I really have to sleep under the same blanket as Master?

A feeling of instinctive rejection welled up inside me.

“Come to think of it, there was a big sofa in the living room.”

I decided to sleep on the sofa and just grabbed a pillow to sneak away.

Of all times, just then, Master came out after finishing his shower.

Clutching the pillow and shuffling along, I met Master’s gaze, who looked at me curiously.

Awkwardly, I spoke up.

“Master, I’ll sleep on the sofa.”

Tch.

Master’s brows furrowed.

For a moment, I almost backed down and said it was nothing.

But instead, I stubbornly continued.

“There’s only one bed… I thought you’d be more comfortable if I slept on the sofa.”

“Ha… you really…”

Master raked a hand through his hair, muttering low as if suppressing his anger.