Aster Veren
Episode 140's

- Esther

"... Are you okay?" Sean's voice broke my daydream, I saw he was looking at me with his worried look.

It seems like he's still worried about the events of the past few days. The bad days I deliberately created to push Carel away from me.

Thinking about how I acted on Carel, it turns out that I can also be that thick? I even managed to make the boy so angry with me.

Even Kalea scolded me for acting so annoyingly towards Carel, I who suddenly acted like everyone else must have made them wonder.

"Aster?"

"I'm fine Sean." I answered while showing my best smile. But it seemed like my smile had no effect on him, in fact his expression was even worse than before.

Does he think I'm pretending to be tough? My mind was upset when I imagined Sean thinking those thoughts. It sucks me to guess his mind.

"Remember, I'll help you bring it. It's not fair that you bring everything in while I just see you in trouble." I said as I grabbed a bag of groceries in Sean's hand, but quickly the boy took his hand away from me.

"can't. Let me take him." It made me snort loudly.

"Why can't it?" I immediately ran to him who had walked ahead of me.

"It's heavy."

"I can–"

"Can't."

"Sweety, stingy."

"You wanna stop by somewhere first?" Sean asked suddenly to stop his steps.

"You tired? Or hungry?" I asked back.

"Well a little tired and hungry. It's lunchtime anyway." He said as he watched his surroundings after taking a quick glance at his watch.

"What about the cafe over there?" Continue while pointing at the cafe in question with his chin.

Want to not want me to follow the steps of Sean who has walked towards the cafe in question. My stomach is also crying for food. Going around all day makes me tired, too.

***

"Green tea?" Sean muttered while frowning staring at my ordered teacup.

"I won't give it!" I immediately grabbed my teacup, keeping it out of Sean's reach.

"Who wants to ask?" His grunts immediately sipped mango juice in front of him before eating his ordered food.

"Hmm ...," I never imagined Sean's liking of sweet food as I see it today. He seemed to enjoy his food so much, even his facial expression looked so satisfied with what he was eating.

"What?" Just stopping his chewing activity for a moment when our eyes met the face, made me reflex smile ignorantly.

"... turns out Sean likes sweet food huh?"

"It–little!"

"Relse ...,"

"Stop laughing at me secretly!" His exclamation made the sound of my laughter break when I saw the red hue on his face.

Is Sean so shy if anyone knows his favorite food? What's wrong with boys liking sweet foods? Doesn't she look adorable? A Sean who looks cold and cute, turns out to have an adorable side like that. If I told this to other women, they would not believe it if they did not see it directly.

"By the way, how was your meeting with Miss Alterio? Is she okay?" Sean's question ruined my pleasure watching his joyful expression while eating his favorite sweet.

"What do you mean?" I asked before grabbing the cup of tea in front of me.

"It's none of your business!" Grunts me while throwing my eyes off Sean. I don't know if I'm lazy to explain why I act like that. What is clear is that I deliberately created a commotion between me and Carel, so that the boy would go from beside me and run to Lusy. All for his own good.

Although at first I found it very difficult to start my plan because we had never fought this great battle before. Even I never expected to say such a bad thing to her, she must have been very upset with me. I just hate myself like that, let alone that kid?

"But Sean, do you know where I went to see Carel's mother?" I asked when I realized the boy's words.

"That's ...," he answered without continuing, making me squint my eyes suspiciously.

"It's none of your business!" It made me grunt when I heard the answer.

It's obvious he's looking for her, isn't he? Or could he be stalking me? My mind can't think well of him.

"Ck, I know what you're thinking. So stop looking at me like that!" Decak Sean after sighing harshly and put the fork back in his hand.

"So?"

"Recycle your food, we need to get back to the academy to finish our work. Friends must have been waiting for us." Clearly turning the conversation around tested my patience.

Inevitably I also obeyed his words to immediately finish my food because what he said was true, we had gone too long to shop for school festival needs for tomorrow after tomorrow.

***

- Kalea

"Still thinking about Aster's change?" Teo's voice made me turn towards his arrival before I nod my head to answer his question.

"Did the boy still not tell me why?" The question again made me shake my lethargic stunt.

"When I wish he had told you why, and I can find out why he's acting that way to Carel from you. But, I guess I was hoping for too much huh?" He continued muttering after sighing heavily.

"Did something happen to her?"

"You mean Carel? Yes, he .. little–gila. I think." The answer makes me speechless when considering his closeness to Aster. It was certain that the boy was troubled by Aster's change in attitude, moreover he became very stubborn and annoying. Not just to Carel, but to me, Teo, Nadin and Tia as well.

"Hah~ what exactly is he thinking?" I muttered feeling useless for not being able to find the reason for Aster's change.

Waitaminute! Does this have anything to do with that woman? My mind suddenly remembered Lusy's figure.

If you remember again the child began to stop bothering Aster when Aster began to show a change in his attitude to Carel right? But does that have anything to do with Aster's change?

"It seems we're thinking the same thing?" Teo's question made me glance at him.

"What?"

"Lusuke. The boy stopped bothering Aster after seeing a different Aster treatment on Carel. Don't you?" Obviously it surprised me a little, how could he think of the same thing as me.

"But, somehow I guess Aster deliberately made Carel feel upset and angry if he continued with her. Why would you?" This keeps my mind open.

"Is it possible because of that?" I immediately got a nod from Teo.

"Yes. The threat of Carel's grandfather. It seems Aster won't see Carel transferred to another class if the boy doesn't accept Lusy as his fiancee. So inevitably she has to change and make Carel hate her at all costs. That way he could receive Lusy slowly. But this is just my guess, I can't be sure if I don't ask the person directly."

Right, why didn't I think about it there? I knew Aster could do anything for Carel. Because only he who did not want to see Carel failed to realize his dream to become a doctor who could cure his mother.

Then the thing that can make the child angry is the thing that is concerned with his mother. He asked Aster to see his mother who was hospitalized last time, but Aster rejected him so infuriatingly that he upset the boy and got mad at Aster.

As long as I knew him, I had even just seen the boy angry at Aster that big. Though all this time he was always angry at the people who disturbed Aster. But this time, the reason he was angry was precisely because of Aster himself.

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Thanks for reading...