Chapter 81: Interrupted Morning

“Lie down.”

“Master, I can just sleep on the sofa…”

“I’m not going to do anything. Just lie down.”

Master gazed at me with those eyes, voice low and calm.

I could sense the atmosphere.

Those blue eyes were shimmering.

If I kept being stubborn, Master looked like he might get angry.

With no other choice, I lay down on the bed, pressing myself as close to the edge as possible, turning my back to him. From the way I looked—

Soon, the lights went out.

In the darkness, I slowly blinked my eyes.

Because the bed was so wide, barely any warmth was transferred between us.

Even though I was lying in the same bed as Master, it felt as if I was all alone.

A slight sense of regret and a faint bitterness swirled inside me.

If I moved just a little closer, at least I could fall asleep listening to Master’s breathing…

I unconsciously tried to turn my body toward him, but suddenly snapped myself back to my senses.

“What am I thinking right now…”

I quickly shook my head and returned my body to its original position.

But my body kept wanting to turn toward Master, against my will.

If I fell asleep like this, I might end up seeking out his embrace again in my sleep.

I needed to let go of these feelings I had for Master, but nothing would change if I kept going like this.

Resolutely, I quietly picked up a pillow.

Then, gently placed it between myself and Master.

“…What are you doing?”

At the sound of rustling, Master opened his eyes.

And the moment he saw the pillow placed at his side, his face twisted in displeasure.

Because the pillow was so big, it looked as if there was another person lying between Master and me.

If I explained honestly, Master might feel offended, so I made a clumsy excuse.

“I was worried I might toss and turn in my sleep. So, you don’t need to mind it, Master…”

Master stared at me as if he couldn’t believe it, then reached out toward the pillow separating us.

“Ah, the pillow…”

Master grabbed the pillow and threw it.

I heard the sound of the pillow flying to the corner of the room, hitting the wall, and falling to the floor.

As I reached my hand toward where the pillow landed, Master grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him.

Neither strong nor weak, the force led me straight into a firm, warm embrace.

“Didi.”

Master buried his face in my shoulder, softly murmuring my name.

“How long… are you going to keep this distance?”

“I, I…”

My breath caught in my throat, and I couldn’t say anything.

All I could do was take shallow breaths, not even having the courage to turn my head.

After a long silence, I finally managed to speak.

“Master, as I said yesterday… I don’t love you anym— mmph.”

Before I could finish my words, a soft touch swallowed my lips.

A large palm cradled the back of my head.

With the warmth spreading from those fingertips, a gentle breath settled on my lips. His slightly rough lips pressed and rubbed lightly against mine.

(Uh… mm…)

A subtle tremor spread through my whole body.

The long-awaited kiss was dizzyingly sweet, and it made my mind reel in bliss.

A hot tongue seemed to ask my lips to part.

Without realizing it, I almost opened my mouth, but then I snapped back to my senses and hastily pushed Master away.

“Y-you can’t do this…”

Because of the lingering sensation on my lips and the confusion in my heart, my breathing became ragged.

I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and forced myself to continue.

“Master, you said you wouldn’t do this kind of thing with a robot…”

As I said that, I bit my lip.

My chest ached.

The one most hurt by those words was none other than myself.

Because it was dark, I couldn’t see Master’s expression.

But I could clearly feel that he was silently looking down at me.

His gaze, his breathing, even the heavy silence—all were directed at me.

Suddenly, I became afraid of what he might say next.

I hurriedly slipped out of Master’s arms and turned my back to him.

I pressed myself close to the edge of the bed and pulled the blanket up to my head.

I just squeezed my eyes shut, wishing I could fall asleep quickly.

I held my breath and tried to sleep, but then I felt an arm gently reaching around my back.

It was slow, as if seeking permission, but he pulled me into his arms.

I could have avoided it or pushed him away, but I didn’t.

As I stayed still and silent, Master’s arm wrapped carefully around me.

“Then… at least let me do this much.”

My lips felt as if they were still stuck together.

My eyes stung a little.

For some reason, I felt like I might cry.

Once again, as always, I woke up just as the sun was rising.

Master’s strong arm was still wrapped around my waist.

I wanted to pretend I didn’t know anything and close my eyes again, but…

Quietly, I slipped out of Master’s embrace.

Luckily, he was in a deep sleep, so it wasn’t hard to free myself from his arms.

Even as he slept, Master had a slightly furrowed brow.

Maybe it was because of his tousled hair.

I reached out to smooth the golden strands tickling his eyes, but then pulled my hand back.

Even the smallest touch might wake him.

After watching Master’s face for a moment, I left the bedroom.

I sat on the sofa and, without doing anything, waited quietly for Master to wake up.

Zzz—

I spent time without even turning on my phone, worried that I might wake Master, when suddenly a vibration came from somewhere.

Since I hadn’t been able to find my own smartphone after returning to Master’s side, it wasn’t mine.

That meant the source of the vibration was Master’s smartphone…

The vibration from inside the bedroom showed no sign of stopping.

I hesitated for a moment, then got up.

When I entered the room, Master was sleeping soundly without a hint of movement.

On the nightstand, his smartphone was still vibrating.

If it was an alarm, I could turn it off and wake Master instead.

But what was on the screen wasn’t an alarm, it was a call.

[Thomas]

I checked the caller and hesitated for a moment.

If it’s Thomas, would it be okay for me to answer?

If it’s urgent, I could wake Master and hand over the phone; if not, I could just deliver the message when he woke up.

Thinking that, I answered the call.

-William, don’t tell me you’re planning to skip work again after making me do overtime?

As soon as I picked up, Thomas’s familiar voice came through.

I cleared my throat and spoke.

“Thomas, it’s me, Didi.”

-Didi…?

“Master is still sleeping…”

Glancing at the still-sleeping Master, I spoke, and Thomas replied from the other end.

-William’s sleeping? Well, can’t be helped. It’s probably been a while since he got a good rest, so let him sleep.

-By the way, are you okay? When William brought you over a few days ago, you were covered in injuries and I was shocked.

Ah… I couldn’t remember it, but I could guess.

Master must have found me collapsed at my former owner’s house with my power off, and immediately brought me to Thomas.

If that’s the case, Thomas probably knows everything that happened, without me having to explain.

He was with Master during the time I was gone.

He might even know more than I do, since I only returned to Master’s side two days ago.

“I think… I’m okay.”

-Really? That’s good.

Since he asked about my condition right after hearing Master was asleep, it didn’t seem urgent.

That meant the call would end soon.

But before that, there was something I had to ask.

“Is Eve okay?”

-Oh, don’t worry about that. She’ll be fixed soon. The part for Eve’s main body is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.

Hearing Thomas’s answer, I let out a small sigh of relief.

So Master’s promise to fix her within three days wasn’t a lie just to reassure me.

It seemed I’d be able to see Eve again sooner than I thought, and my heart felt a little lighter.

-Sorry, I meant to have her fixed before you got back, but William suddenly canceled the new product launch, and I got distracted cleaning up the mess.

“What? The new product launch was cancelled?”

-Yeah, you didn’t know? William—

Just as Thomas was about to continue, the smartphone in my hand suddenly disappeared.

Surprised, I turned around to see Master, now awake, standing behind me.

In his hand was the smartphone I had just been holding.

Thomas was still saying something on the other end, but I couldn’t make out the words.

“Thomas, I’ll call you back later.”

Master said in a low voice and hung up.