Maery took her sweet time finding herself an unopened beverage with the highest alcohol content she could find, while Levi sat at the dining table in silence with a grave look on his face, displaying a strange mix of impatience and forbearance.
He was impatient to get this over with asap so that his baby wouldn’t need to wait long, but, on the other hand, he was aware of the importance of this conversation, and rushing it would do no good.
He was the one in the wrong first; thus, he had to remain level headed and tolerant with Maery, no matter how long it took and how she chose to respond to the truth.
Now he could no longer go with his original plan to seduce his baby during this bachelor party and then come out to their families together, changing the marriage arrangement. Thus, the success or failure of his happy matter with his baby largely depended on the result of his talks with Maery.
If Maery insisted on holding on to this marriage or setting herself against him, then his baby might not be willing to “get between them”.
Levi couldn’t take a step back in this matter, and if the other side was also unwilling to compromise, then the two families would have a falling out. The dreaded worst-case scenario.
He couldn’t let that happen.
He needed to properly explain the ins and outs of the situation, with special emphasis on the fact that his baby held no responsibility for what happened. He didn’t wish Maery to misunderstand and blame his innocent little kitten. Whatever mistakes were made, it had nothing to do with his precious. She could hit and scold him, Levi, but she must leave his baby out of it.
Levi would lay his cards on the table, apologize properly and offer compensation. And hopefully, Maery’s anger would be placated, and she wouldn’t stand between his and his baby’s happiness.
As the minutes ticked by, the tension within the room rose, and Maery, whose fury had been doused by her baby brother’s cuteness, had once again started to boil.
Finally, the livid woman poured herself a glass, downed it in a single gulp, and slammed the empty glass cup on the table. “Astar Levi! How dare you?!”
Levi opened his mouth to respond but then realized he had no idea what the other was referring to. How he dare do what? Fall for her brother? Break off their engagement through a text message? Plan to marry said brother instead? Or could it be she found out he had already nearly eaten up her darling little brother?!
…
Thinking back… he had really done a lot of outrageous things recently, ah!
(; ゚ 3゚ )~♪
Maery waited for a response for a moment, but the other remained tightlipped. Seeing the mix of hesitation and uncertainty flickering in Levi’s blue eyes, Maery nearly ground her teeth into dust.
This scum always had this same “wait and see” attitude whenever someone accused him of something! Refusing to admit his wrongs until the facts were laid out clearly in front of him!!
Maery took in a big breath to control a violent outburst that was on the verge of spilling out. “What’s this I hear about you refusing to marry and hooking up with a third party behind my back?!”
Levi’s tense face slackened in shock. He just got intimate with his baby this morning, and she already knew about it?? How did she find out so quickly?! Could it be that his baby told her?!
No, wait, that can’t be right… if she knew who he had been with, then she wouldn’t have referred to his baby as the third party…
“I didn’t hook up behind your back,” Levi righteously defended both himself and his baby. “I only made my move after breaking it off with you.”
Blood rushed to Maery’s head, and she nearly crushed the glass in her hand. This! Shameless! Slag!!
Fire threatened to spill out of Maery’s eyes as she sneered, “And how long have you been messing around with this homewrecker before officially hooking up, huh?!”
She poured herself another glass and slammed the bottle down.
“We haven’t ‘officially’ hooked up yet,” Levi’s eyebrows furrowed in displeasure, “and I haven’t been messing around. We’ve only met each other for the first time last week.”
Maery’s vision went black. Six years’ worth of a fiancé-fiancée relationship can’t even compare to a few short days with someone who is still without an official relationship title?!
“Falling in love caught me by surprise as much as it caught you,” Levi sighed, “But, no mistakes were made, and everything was a complete accident–” Levi abruptly stopped to correct himself, “No, not an accident.”
Thinking about his darling, his eyes softened into mush, “More like fate.” There was really nothing accidental about him falling for his baby, ah! It was more accurate to say that it was impossible for him to not fall in love with his darling.
While Levi was melting at the thought of his precious baby, Maery sitting opposite of him felt her head spin.
What. The. Fuck?!
What’s with that lovestruck gaze?!? щ(゚Д゚щ)
Holy shit! It was so un-Levi-like that it gave her goosebumps!
For a moment, Maery even felt respect for this unknown vixen. That was some love potion she had fed him! No, no, must have pushed him into a tank filled with love potion! Anyway, that shit must be the bomb! Otherwise, how would Astar Levi, this emotionally stunted block of wood, suddenly learn how to utter sweet nothings?
The man was as romantic as a brick! And nearly as emotionally dense as one!
Levi, who, after 6 years, still wasn’t even half as good at reading Maery’s thoughts from her face as she was from his, remained oblivious to her cynicism. He fell silent, pondering how to express his meaning in a way that would neither hurt nor provoke Maery.
Then, with determination, he continued, his tone somber, “I’m sorry, I am unable to keep our agreement. I know that my actions have wronged you and are willing to make amends, but I cannot marry you. I can accommodate your demands in everything you want as long as you don’t obstruct me from having a harmonious relationship with my baby.” After a pause, Levi quickly added, “Or make things difficult for my darling.”
“You sure are protective of your precious ‘baby’,” Maery sneered, staring at Astar Levi’s touching performance with a frosty glare, “You are in deep shit, yet still thinking how to absolve her from blame!”
Levi’s eyes once again showed that gentle look and his mouth couldn’t help but crack a wry smile, “It can’t be helped… I can wrong the entire world, but I cannot wrong this one person.”
Maery almost choked on her drink from the ludicrous words that came out of the other’s mouth.
If these words came from someone else, she might have found it touching. But when it came from Astar Levi, all she could feel are goosebumps!
The man didn’t have a single romantic bone in his body! How could he suddenly learn to speak such sugary words? This was clearly not something he came up with himself! He must have been brainwashed by that shameless third party!!
And this fool! How could he let himself get manipulated like this?!
Men! Must be thinking with their lower half!
Maery slammed her empty glass down and smacked her lips, “Who was it that said that the union of the two cities was paramount? That the heir produced by this marriage was of vital importance? And who was it that swore to see this thing through? And who was it that vehemently opposed the thought of extramarital affairs?” Maery couldn’t hold in her scorn, “Did water get into your head? Or did you forget to take your medicine?”
Levi was abruptly shaken out of his melancholic mood, and his mind couldn’t help but stall. It took him several seconds to fully process the other’s words. Then his nostrils flared, “For the last time, I am not talking any medicine!” “Ah, then there is your problem.” The look Maery shot Levi’s way at that moment couldn’t be properly expressed in words. It was a look that a kindergarten teacher might direct towards a retarded kid that just got his head stuck inside a toilet seat. It was the look that said, “I’m not even gonna ask how or why – I’m sure any explanation you can come up with will be stupid. Let’s just call 101 and get this over with.” Maery smiled encouragingly and coaxed, “Now that we know the source of the problem, how about I introduce you to a friend of mine from Med school that can help you get a prescription?” Levi’s face fell, and a vein couldn’t help but pop up on his forehead from how hard he was trying to restrain his temper. “I am not c
The room fell into a deathly silence. But unlike the quiet stillness of the space, the mind of Cordia Maery exploded with an earth-shattering boom, the shockwaves of which shook up all her cogs, making them suddenly click in place. Abruptly, all of the incredulities over the last couple of days, as well as everything Levi said, fell into the right position. Like pieces of a puzzle that have finally been put together. Levi said the two had met less than a week ago. Levi had first met her brother less than a week ago, too. Levi claimed to have fallen in love with someone in the last couple of days. But ever since Levi came over to Concordia, he and her brother had been joined at the hip!! Her little brother praised Levi into the heavens, which made her doubt life, thinking whether her bro had hit his head too hard. But, as it turned out, it wasn’t her brother’s brain that had problems, but Levi’s! This shameless dawg wanted the other to li
Levi stood there, feeling mightily confused. Um… can someone tell him whether his ex-fiancé was for or against him marrying his baby?? But who could answer him when even the person in question had yet to decide her stance. Maery, after another heavy sigh, clicked her tongue, “And your courting method is all wrong! Aren’t you supposed to be smart? How come you’ve learned nothing from Case, Fynn, and Shaw! If you don’t confess, that silly brother of mine will never realize you have the hots of him!” Maery recalled her brother’s earlier pure and sweet smile. And then another image couldn’t help but pop into her mind. An image of her kind and gentle little brother, all flustered and helpless, trying to escape from the naughty paws of the wild and imposing scoundrel, Astar Levi! Such a contrast in personality and appearance! And two men at that! It was simply, simply…! Simply a perfect pairing, ah!!! (⁄ ⁄>⁄ ▽ ⁄<
Levi eyed the annoying woman from the corner of his eyes and decided, ‘Nope! If I had not interrupted her, she would have definitely continued splitting property!’ But, forget it, he’d be magnanimous this one time and let her keep her face. As for the issue of an heir, that was indeed the most important matter that needed solving; otherwise, their parents wouldn’t agree to the change in brides even if all three people involved agreed to it. At least in this, he, Astar Levi, had been fully prepared! And thus, Levi lifted his chin up high with an air of a peacock spreading his feathers and proudly presented the results of his long and arduous research. “Men can’t get pregnant, but it doesn’t mean that two guys can’t have a baby together. Science is very advanced nowadays. Since men also have an X chromosome, it’s possible to make an egg cell using their DNA.” Maery gave him an odd look, “Advanced? That tech has existed for decades...” L
As the two involved came to terms with everything, the spectating Blackie could hold in his agitation no longer. This was not how this drama was supposed to play out, ah!! ‘I waited so long for this final showdown, looking forward to a dramatic boss fight of life and death!’ ‘Ah, ah! I already pulled my content filter down, and you show me this?!?’ щ(゚Д゚щ) They really had him duped! Made him all excited, imagining a big catfight between the new and the old lovers! And in the end, these two weren’t even an actual couple but a pair of… a pair of… frenemies? Blackie got so agitated that he even contacted his immediate supervisor to vent his anger, lodging a complaint that he hadn’t been sufficiently briefed about his mission! Ah, ah! ‘How could you keep this important info from me?!’ After so many millennia supporting Blackie and his previous host from behind the scenes, the system from the MIM
“I just want to shut up some people’s dirty mouths and stop my family from worrying,” Maery explained. Many socialites were sneering and mocking her behind her back, saying that her fiancé abhorred her and that this marriage was a sham. The more shameless ones even said that she was a slut, trying to seduce Astar Levi, only to be disdained. If she could slap all those disgusting faces until they were swollen, she’d gladly do it! She already had to endure two decades married to someone she didn’t like; why would she endure even more of the abuse if she didn’t have to? Besides, it wasn’t just her that was suffering due to this but also her loved ones. Maery’s gaze turned helpless, yet doting, “After seeing your scary face and stand-offish demeanor at today’s party, my brother is looking at me with tears in his big eyes like I am a martyr about to be sent on a suicide mission!” She hid her mouth behind her hand and giggled, “He even begged me, fo
Levi’s eyebrows furrowed more and more until he could remain silent no longer, “Can you eat more… quietly?” (≖ ‸ ≖) Maery crunched on her shrimp chips, “Lev, I keep telling you. There is a very simple solution to your problem, and its name is ‘noise-canceling earbuds’.” ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Levi, (눈_눈) “And I keep telling you, not being able to hear what’s happening around me is dangerous.” Maery, “And as I already mentioned once or twice, it wouldn’t be dangerous if you just used a Shielder bodyguard like normal people!” (︶^︶)ノ Levi, (°ㅂ°╬) “And as I already mentioned, once or twice, assassination attempts are the highlight of my day!” Maery finally looked up from her light screen to shoot Levi a look one would use to look at a pitiful retarded child, “That reminds me, what happened to what we talked about last time? Have you gone to seek psychiatric treatment yet?” 。◕ ‿ ◕。 Levi, “Scram!” (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻ Blackie, (っ °Д °;)っ ‘Don’t dismis
Blackie came out of the memory lane, feeling like he had aged 10,000 years! Unfortunately, in his absence, the present versions of Levi and Maery, had not even matured a bloody second! They were still bickering exactly the same as before he had left! "Would you stop making me sound like the plague?!" Levi snapped. Maery giggled and easily dismissed his complaint, "Don't be silly. I wouldn't let my brother contract the plague!" Levi, "…" (눈_눈) How can this person and his baby have the same parents? And how can that very similar appearance between the two siblings evoke a totally different feeling in his heart? “I can’t wait to see which unlucky bloke will end up with you!” Levi snorted, “You better make mental preparations. You won’t be able to find a better husband than me!” “Nonsense! Nearly anyone is better than you!” Maery immediately refuted. “Oh? Name one man that is or would be a better husband than me!” Levi chal