"I hope that day never comes."

When she said that, silence fell over the room. Neither of us was speaking, just staring at each other.

I don’t know about her, but I was so shocked and somewhat worried by her statement about putting down Viora if necessary that I couldn’t even speak.

My eyes were wide and my jaw was open.

"What are you doing?" Elena spoke again. "Go and get her inside. I have something to talk to her too."

Hearing that, I closed my mouth and went to the door. After opening it, I saw Viora fidgeting her fingers nervously. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Viora,"

That was just a simple name calling, but it made her so worked up.

"I-I definitely wasn’t listening."

She raised both her hands and waved them left and right.

Welp. She really was listening to our conversation the whole time. If she had just stayed neutral and hadn’t overreacted, I wouldn’t have known, but now she made it so obvious herself.

’Did her hearing improve so much that she can now hear through a wall?’

I thought and walked to her.

"Come on. My aunt wants to talk to you."

Grabbing her hand, I led her back inside the room.

After Elena was face to face with Viora again, she began, "You can stay here."

"T-thank you," Viora bowed her head slightly. But Elena wasn’t finished yet.

"That is... if you follow some rules."

"Rules?" Viora furrowed her brows. She was clearly confused by Elena’s words.

"Yeah, a few rules which are a must for you to follow if you want to live here." Elena repeated, and without thinking, Viora also agreed.

"Tell me." She said, and Elena lifted her hand then raised her finger.

"First. Under no circumstances are you allowed in my study."

Saying that, Elena raised a second finger.

"Second, do not wander around the villa at night."

"Okay," Viora nodded slightly, thinking that was it for the rules, but it wasn’t.

"I am not done yet." Elena said while suddenly looking directly at me. "Third, do not. I mean DO NOT casually enter Woo Jin’s room."

"W-what?!" Both Viora and I blurted out in unison.

For some reason, that felt like it was meant for me and not Viora. Does she think I can’t control my feelings? Huh?

"Fourth, if you plan to leave this villa, inform me beforehand." She again looked straight into my eyes and continued, "No sneaking out, no hospital escape, and no suspicious outings."

She knows about the hospital too? But how? It hasn’t been that long since we left. Did that nurse informed her? That makes sense.

"Lastly," Elena lowered her hand and looked at Viora. I could feel the atmosphere changing slightly.

"If you are hurt, sick, dizzy, uncomfortable, or something feels wrong, report it immediately. As long as you are here, don’t keep problems to yourself."

This time Viora took her time. She seemed to have been caught off guard by the sudden change in tone of words.

"A-alright," she answered softly.

That one rule clearly hit different from the rest. Elena didn’t just stop Viora from specific things; she also told her that she can’t suffer alone.

But the question was, would Viora really do that?

"There. Those are the rules."

After finishing, Elena let out a breath and began walking toward the door.

However, before opening the door, she suddenly stopped.

"Oh, and one more thing."

Both Viora and I turned our faces toward her.

"Stop clinging to him every five seconds."

Hearing her, Viora immediately straightened and stated, "I do not cling."

She said that while literally still holding my sleeve.

Elena stared at her face, then at her hand, and then back at her face.

"Of course," she said dryly and stepped out.

Phew~

I let out a sigh and collapsed on the bed.

’That was intense, but that also means now I don’t have to worry about Elena finding out about Viora.’

"Woo Jin," Viora spoke and I looked at her, still standing with lowered gaze. "Where is my room?"

Oh right. Viora’s room.

Since no one lives in this room, I think she can live here.

"This is your room," I told her. "Come, sit here."

Viora moved her feet and walked toward the bed to sit.

"Viora, wait!"

I grabbed her before she could sit.

"W-what happened?"

"You were gonna sit on my leg."

"Oh, sorry." Saying that, she moved and sat on the mattress.

We stayed just like that for a couple of minutes. She was sitting beside me and I was laying on the bed.

There was an awkward silence between us which neither of us tried to break.

"So, what now?"

I spoke first, but it seems Viora was just waiting for me to initiate the conversation.

"Now, could you please go to your room?"

I stared at her in disbelief. "...What?!"

Viora sat with her hands nearly folded on her lap and repeated, "Could you please go back to your room?"

Her expression was calm, but the slight tension in her shoulders told me that she wasn’t as composed as she looked.

"Wait a second," I sat up from the bed and pointed at myself. "You made me sneak you out of a hospital, buy you ice cream, bring you home, and now you’re kicking me out?"

"Yes."

Really? She answered way too quickly. It’s not like I’m gonna hurt her.

"That is cruel."

"That is privacy." Viora said, and it made me realize she only wanted a bit of privacy. She had spent the entire day with me.

And now she was in a completely unfamiliar room, wearing unfamiliar clothes, in a completely new environment.

Of course, she would want a little time alone.

"Oh..." My shoulders relaxed and I stood up from the bed. "Then I’ll leave you alone for now."

However, before I could take a step, I suddenly felt something lightly tugging at the back of my shirt.

Slowly, I turned around and found Viora still sitting on the bed, but one hand was now holding onto the hem of my shirt.

"..."

"You do realize," I said while raising a brow, "this is the exact opposite of asking me to leave."

Immediately, at my words she let go. "That was a mistake."

"Do you want me to stay or leave?" I asked directly and she lowered her head.

"I..." She paused for a moment before continuing in a much quieter voice. "I... want you..."

Come on, say it. You want me to stay until you sleep or whatever.

"...Out of this room right now."