An Early Engagement - Chapter 1
“Shirley.”
“……”
The low voice calling her—was it a dream?
Shirley slowly woke from her slumber. The dark scenery of the room came into view, like ink spilled across the floor.
“Shirley.”
The voice in the darkness rang out again, clear this time.
“Uhh…….”
Her groggy mind began to awaken bit by bit. The air filling the bedroom felt different somehow.
“…..Mmm.”
At her faint groan, she felt something react.
Someone was in the bedroom.
It was hot.
That was her first thought. Had she fallen asleep with the window closed? Beads of sweat clung to her forehead and the back of her neck, making her grimace.
“Is it hot?”
The hand that touched her cheek was cool. She pressed her face against that soothing hand and let out a low sigh. She felt the hand tremble slightly at the breath she exhaled.
“Damian?”
At Shirley’s call, the hand’s owner silently stroked her heat-flushed cheek.
She buried her face in the hand that felt so pleasant, exhaling continuously. Each time, her hot breath touched the palm, causing it to flinch slightly—a reaction she found amusing.
She didn’t need to hear his voice or receive an answer to know who the hand belonged to. They had spent so long, so often, together.
“Damian.”
With certainty in her voice, Shirley called the name of her old friend.
The discomfort she’d felt since arriving at the villa, the troubles that had plagued her before coming, all seemed distant now.
It didn’t matter anymore, since Damian had come to her like this.
As always, Damian was the one to reach out first, to apologize, to restore their bond to how it had always been.
The thought brought a slight arrogance to Shirley. No matter how much she threw tantrums, Damian would always come to her like this.
My friend, my… future husband.
The stability of such a long-standing relationship was a comfort unlike any other.
“Shirley.”
As if in response to her call, a soft, low voice reverberated. Shirley slowly opened her eyes.
And, as expected, she met the gaze of Damian, who stood before her, watching.
Shirley found herself struggling to suppress a smile that was trying to spread across her face. She didn’t want to seem too easily swayed.
People, by nature, are greedy—the more they grasp, the tighter they want to hold. Shirley thought it was okay to let herself indulge in this kind of greed with Damian.
After all, you’re mine.
It’s a fate decided from the very beginning.
“Let’s do something fun, Shirley.”
Damian’s hoarse voice carried within it a damp and dark tone, like the sound some unknown monster might make on a dense summer night in the forest.
Still half-asleep, Shirley couldn’t help but wonder why Damian’s voice seemed different. Normally, it was closer to a clear tenor.
But now, his voice was…
Before she could fully process the unfamiliar, yet strangely familiar, tone, it happened.
Creak.
The side of the bed where Damian sat sank under his weight, bringing him closer to her.
“Something fun…?”
The moonlight behind him cast a deep shadow over Damian’s face. Even in the darkness, his sharp features stood out, lending him an unfamiliar aura.
When did he get this big?
She already knew he had grown much taller and broader than her, but maybe it was the dim light. Damian seemed entirely different.
“Yeah, something fun.”
Creak.
Damian leaned in further as he spoke, his voice tinged with an almost tangible heat. Was it just her imagination, or was there something more to it?
“And what would that be?”
Thud, thud.
Shirley felt her heartbeat quicken without her control, her whole body seeming to pulse with its rhythm. It felt as if her heart might leap out of her chest.
She couldn’t explain why. All she could guess was that some instinctive reaction was stirring within her.
“You’ll like it, Shirley. I’m sure of it.”
