Cinderella is... the Male Lead? - Chapter 32
“To…gether?”
Cinderella’s thick eyelashes fluttered over his blue eyes. He was thrilled inside but tried his best to appear nonchalant on the outside.
Seeing Cinderella, Rona’s eyes glistened with moisture. It felt like ‘she’ might grant her request if she pleaded earnestly enough. Encouraged by Cinderella’s not entirely negative reaction, Rona continued.
“Yes. Can’t we? The servants haven’t heard that sound. I want to know if it’s coming from my room, or if only I can hear it…”
“Hmm, I am curious about that too.”
Cinderella put down ‘her’ fork and slowly stroked ‘her’ chin. A subtle smile lingered at the corners of ‘her’ mouth. Watching this gesture, Rona suddenly thought Cinderella was incredibly handsome.
‘A real beauty. If Cinderella were a man, he would probably make many women cry…’
A beauty who could captivate anyone, male or female. No wonder ‘she’ captured prince charming’s heart with just one dance at the ball.
Rona, lost in admiration of Cinderella’s appearance, barely regained her senses when Cinderella called out to her again.
“Sister?”
“Ah, what did you just say?”
“I said it’s fine, if you want.”
A soft smile spread across Cinderella’s lips. Another smile. Rona, once again dazed by ‘her’ frequent smiles today, shook her head. Not even a prince, she shouldn’t be so captivated by Cinderella.
Did she just agree to sleep together? Rona sighed in relief, her eyes sparkling.
“Ah, thank you.”
“It’s nothing.”
Cinderella nodded slightly and resumed his meal. The sound of cutlery clinking filled the quiet dining room. Rona, glancing at Cinderella who was eating quietly, sighed with relief. ‘She’ was kind enough to readily accept such a troublesome request. Rona felt proud that their relationship seemed much better than before.
If ‘she’ was willing to sleep beside her, wasn’t it safe to call them friends? No, the novel didn’t mention being discovered, so maybe they would become close sisters.
Feeling much more at ease, Rona scooped a spoonful of stew into her mouth. Thinking she would sleep soundly tonight, her appetite returned.
While she focused on her meal, Cinderella’s mouth curved into a crooked smile, but Rona did not notice.
***
“I hope she didn’t forget…”
Time flew by, and it was now the dead of night. Dressed in a pink nightgown, Rona hugged a pillow to her chest, pacing in front of the bed. Cinderella should be here by now, but there was no sign of ‘her’. She worried ‘she’ might have forgotten.
Chewing her lip anxiously, she stomped her feet.
But then—
Knock, knock.
A light knock tickled her ears. Rona smiled brightly and ran to the door.
“Cinderella!”
As she flung the door open, there stood Cinderella, also in a nightgown, with ‘her’ golden hair cascading down to ‘her’ chest. The serene moonlight behind ‘her’ made ‘her’ look like an ethereal being. This was the first time Rona was seeing Cinderella at night, and standing in the dark hallway, ‘her’ cold features appeared almost mystical.
‘She’ brushed past Rona and entered the room.
Rona closed the door and followed Cinderella.
“Cinderella, thank you for agreeing to my request.”
“It’s nothing. It wasn’t a difficult request.”
“Yes.”
Turning to Rona, Cinderella tucked a strand of hair behind ‘her’ ear and smiled radiantly. ‘Her’ thick eyelashes fluttered slowly over ‘her’ blue eyes, making Rona’s heart beat faster. She pressed a hand to her chest and walked towards Cinderella standing by the bed.
Anyone would feel their heart race looking at Cinderella. Described as the most beautiful woman in the novel, it would be strange to feel nothing at the sight of ‘her’. Rona blushed and patted her cheeks before hesitating by the bed.
The odd tension made it hard for her to speak. It was strange—she had been fine during the day. It was night, they were by the bed, and Cinderella was a woman, so why was she so nervous?
After a moment of awkward silence, a soft voice reached Rona’s ears.
“Sister Rona?”
“Yes? Ah, yes. It’s time to sleep.”
Startled, Rona quickly climbed into bed. Crawling to the center on her knees, she hurriedly covered herself with the blanket. Turning her gaze to the edge of the bed, she saw Cinderella standing there like a painting. Feeling a peculiar thirst, Rona licked her lips and blinked at Cinderella.
When their eyes met, Rona swallowed and motioned for her to come in. Then she scooted to the corner.
It was just lying down beside another woman, so why was her heart racing like this?
Biting the inside of her cheek, Rona spoke.
“Cinderella, come in.”
“Yes, Sister.”
Cinderella responded calmly, then tied ‘her’ long golden hair into a single strand. ‘She’ glanced briefly at Rona curled up on the other side of the bed. When Cinderella placed one knee on the bed, the edge dipped. With a rustling sound, Cinderella got into bed. ‘She’ stopped short of pulling up the blanket.
“There’s only one blanket?”
“Huh? Oh, yes. The other one is in the closet…”
Lying with her back to Cinderella, Rona answered in a trembling voice.
She really couldn’t understand why she was so nervous.
T/N: look i know this story is as straight as they come, but the sapphic undertones are just aaaaaaaaa
it’s just like the ML getting bi panic from his good buddy from the military i.e. Shang with Mulan (it’s canon, don’t tell me otherwise) or Aenon from Queen Cecia’s Shorts or Ignis from The Villain Discovered My Identity but like?? do you get what i mean??? aslkfjldjf
