Chapter 330: How a Sweet Drink Turned Into a Social Disaster [2]

The peace was only for a moment.

Why?

Because the very next moment—

"I really want to throw away these clothes! They’re so suffocating!"

Leona started struggling again, her hands already tugging at her sleeves as if they were strangling her.

"Just calm down, will you? Don’t do something you’ll regret forever!"

...And once again, I found myself trying to stop her.

Man, this was giving me a headache.

I glanced around, hoping—desperately—that someone else would step in.

One person was crying quietly in the corner, muttering the same sentence over and over again. Another was swaying on her feet, repeating herself like a broken record. And the last one—Leona—was determined to undress right here and now.

Then there was Leo.

Leo was standing a short distance away, arms crossed, watching the entire scene with an infuriating smile on his face.

He looked like someone enjoying a play, relieved that he was the only sober one in the audience.

Meanwhile, Nora and Violet were...

"...That’s Ryan’s problem, you know~? He’s handsome and capable, but he’s indecisive."

"Silly~ That’s Ryan’s charm~? Then what about Leo? He’s a narcissist...!"

"Could you call it elegant instead of narcissistic~?"

Damn it. Just stay like that forever.

Surprisingly, they were relatively well‑behaved drunks. They weren’t breaking anything, fighting anyone, or causing a scene big enough to attract attention.

At least, not here.

"Maybe those guys are more necessary for you than I am."

Out of nowhere, Leo spoke up.

I turned to him. "What are you talking about now? Are you drunk too?"

He chuckled softly. "Don’t look at me like that. Until recently, you wouldn’t have cared if people were drunk, crying, or rolling around on the floor."

I frowned.

Honestly, I didn’t know anymore. What kind of person Rin had been until recently? Someone colder? Someone more indifferent?

"Maybe..." I said slowly. "Maybe I was just scared back then."

Leo raised an eyebrow. "The great Rin gets scared too?"

"Of course," I replied. "Especially when it comes to people. Interpersonal relationships are always the hardest."

He fell silent for a moment, then nodded as if that answer genuinely surprised him.

"You know," Leo said, "I worry about that too. More than you think."

I almost laughed. "Yeah, right. If you were really the type to worry about relationships, Kiera would still be following you around."

His smile stiffened, just for a fraction of a second.

"...That’s exactly why I worry," he said quietly.

Before I could respond, Leona suddenly lunged forward again.

"Rin! Help me! I can’t breathe in this thing!"

"You’re breathing just fine!" I snapped, grabbing her wrists. "Please, just sit down for five minutes. Five."

Nora leaned over, squinting at me. "Rin, you look tired. You should smile more. Ryan likes it when you smile."

"That’s not helpful," I muttered.

Leo finally stepped forward, letting out a sigh. "Alright. Enough."

He then turned to Nora and Violet.

"You two—water. Now."

"Bossy~" Nora pouted, but she still obeyed. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Violet saluted clumsily. "As you wish, Your Elegance~"

For a brief moment, the chaos softened.

I looked at Leo, genuinely surprised.

"What?" he said, lifting his glass slightly. "Even I have my limits."

Maybe... just maybe...

The peace would last a little longer this time.

"And I think you should talk to your father instead of taking care of them," Leo added, his tone lighter than his words.

"...Tsk."

I clicked my tongue in annoyance at Leo’s words.

"Haha, I must be drunk too. I said something unnecessary. You’ll do well on your own."

I turned my head.

A man stood there, looking far more surprised than he had the last time we ate meat together. Alcohol spilled down the front of his clothes instead of going into his mouth, as if his body had frozen halfway through the motion.

Black hair, red eyes.

Just like Rin.

And now that his hair was neatly styled, the resemblance became even clearer. His sharp nose, the line of his jaw, even the way his brows knit together when he was caught off guard—it all felt uncomfortably familiar.

Honestly, I didn’t know what to say.

I didn’t know what had happened in the past.

Was it enough to just say I was doing well?

"I’m surprised."

"...What?" I replied, glancing at him.

"I’m surprised you seem to be doing well," he said slowly, setting his glass down. "Honestly, I thought I ruined everything today. I thought I was being hasty again... causing trouble for you when you were only making slow progress."

He laughed quietly, but there was no humor in it.

"I thought I was interfering where I shouldn’t."

Actually, I wasn’t really thinking that.

I was fine.

It was the others who made a fuss.

Honestly, it could have been a bit unpleasant, sure. But a parent with a bad relationship with their child could still be curious, right? Wondering how they were doing. Wondering if they were making bad friends.

It was annoying that he did it without saying anything to me first.

But he had always been bad at communication.

Since he was clearly trying his best in his own way, there were probably things he hadn’t even considered.

"Well, I wasn’t that angry," I said.

He stiffened.

"I... see."

His shoulders relaxed, just a little, as if he had been bracing himself for something worse.

Silence followed.

Ah, damn it.

No matter how hard I tried, he was always like this. Awkward pauses, half-finished thoughts, emotions swallowed before they could reach his mouth. At this point, there was nothing I could do about it.

"...sister," I said at last, turning my head. "Don’t just stand there. Come over here. If you want to talk to me, that is."

My sister—Rachel hesitated before letting out a small, awkward laugh.

"Oh—yeah. I should."

She walked closer, glancing between the two of us as if she’d accidentally stepped into a battlefield after the fighting had already ended.

"I thought I was interrupting," Rachel muttered.

"You always think that," I replied.

She smiled faintly.

For a moment, the three of us stood there, unsure of where to look or what to say. Leo pretended to be very interested in refilling his glass, clearly giving us space.

Seriously.

I needed to find out what had happened.

Not just today—but everything before this.

And somehow, I needed to fix my relationship with these people.

Why were there so many things I needed to do?