He gently rubbed his warm thumb over her cold skin until she calmed down, as he usually did every time she nearly exploded due to her turbulent emotions.
Charlotte was so sensitive and so restless, a double-edged vessel divided by black and white.
On reflection, Leonid has not lived near Charlotte for more than a month and a few days, and yet he knows her well, which makes it all the more pathetically obvious.
Charlotte's character was easy for eyes like Leonid's to know.
Charlotte's black eyes were shining like orbs as she tried to contain the tears inside her while looking into Leonid's eyes, this was heavy on her heart, why was she weak when she could crush anyone in front of her.
Leonid continued to rub his thumb over Charlotte's skin. Based on her cold skin, it was ruled that she had been teased utside the apartment building.
Well, Leonid had to revise the plan.
Was it really helpful to force Charlotte to talk since what happened to her happened outside the apartment building?
After thinking, even if Leonid does not benefit anything later. He had already made up his mind and was not going to back down from finding out why Charlotte looked so broken.
Charlotte may be dramatic sometimes, but when she refuses to talk about what happened to her, it means there is something wrong with her.
In addition to seeing her red face that looked like she was about to cry somehow.
"At least tell me what happened."
Leonid whispered gently, hoping to get an answer from her.
It's been a while already and she still refuses to tell him anything.
"Charlotte."
His warm breath was hitting Charlotte's face, but she was in no mood to blush under Leonid's influence.
Today's Charlotte certainly exceeded Leonid's expectations.
"please."
She moved her free hand and tried to push Leonid away from her.
"Let me go."
Charlotte politely demanded that he let her go.
"no."
But Leonid, who had a different opinion, insisted on making her tell him everything.
"Tell me first."
He stopped Charlotte from pushing him away and moving one step further. He caught her other hand in his fist and gently pinned her to the wall.
"I won't let you go until you tell me everything, okay?"
If Charlotte was stubborn, Leonid was more stubborn than her.
When he finished speaking, Leonid smelled something coming from Charlotte's chestnut hair or perhaps her body in general.
This smell was familiar to him as a smoker, but why was this smell so attached to Charlotte, the woman who had always quarreled with him because he had once smoked next to her?
"This smell. Have you been smoking?"
"no!"
Charlotte immediately denied Leonid's accusations against her. It was a shame that she would smell like cigarettes and get caught by Leonid, but what was done was done, and she couldn't do anything now.
"Then why do you smell like cigarettes?"
"This is because…"
Charlotte pressed herself to tell Leonid without shedding a single tear. She closed her eyes tightly and said in one go.
"There's a guy who blew his cigarette smoke right in my face!"
"Who did what?"
Leonid felt his mind stop for a moment. Did she really say that a man blew cigarette smoke in her face? Where and who was doing this at this time?
"A man I don't know came out of nowhere and sat next to me on a chair in the garden, then blew cigarette smoke in my face twice for no reason."
Charlotte confessed what happened to her while still keeping her eyes closed and resisting the tears.
"On top of that, he was a very rude and provocative man."
"Well did you confront him then?"
"No, I didn't do anything."
Leonid narrowed his eyes at Charlotte's unexpected but unwanted answer.
"seriously."
Leonid exhaled deeply and let go of Charlotte's hands and stepped back, brushing his hair back and lifting it away from his sharp eyes. He was trying hard not to yell at her.
Just what do you expect from a woman like Charlotte, a sweet and naive woman to the core, who will not be able to act forcefully in front of those who try to tease her, but why?!
Leonid turned his icy blue eyes and stared at Charlotte, who lowered her gaze. He knew that she knew how foolish she now seemed to him.
"Listen, I feel compelled to ask you this, just tell me why you didn't do anything about the person who tried to teases you… no wait."
Leonid raised his hand at her and then said again in a sharp way at the words.
"I mean the one who really teased you?"
Leonid was prepared to hear two answers, a logical one that might improve his mood somewhat, and an emotional one that might cause him a nervous breakdown that Charlotte would not be happy about.
After thinking, how would Leonid get another answer.
As someone like Charlotte who was raised with good manners and such, there would be no room for anything other than emotion to win, and based on her response Leonid would not be able to hold back his anger anymore.
"I didn't do anything to him because…"
Charlotte paused for a moment to think after muttering.
Honestly, she didn't quite know why she wasn't doing anything. There was no word why when she decided to leave the garden and leave that man alone.
Did she act out of fear for herself or for the sake of her valuable principles?
But what about the other side, what if she didn't do anything to that man so that someone else wouldn't call her a scary, horrible woman?
Since when did she start thinking this way?
"Because I…"
Charlotte continued to stretch in a low voice, confused as if she had many different answers based on her feelings, which she couldn't separate.
"I don't know… "
"You don't know, really?!"
Leonid smiled in amusement and rolled his eyes at Charlotte's answer, seriously wondering how far she wanted to go to make him lose his mind and show her the cruel taste of life.
For Leonid, introversion is not a defect, but to be as spontaneous and naive as Charlotte is a crime against yourself. In this case no one will stop taking advantage of Charlotte because of her good thinking side.
Because she remains silent, she will definitely become the weakest link in front of everyone, and then her life will not be happy at all.
"Hheh."
Leonid laughed a soft, light laugh. It was funny that this woman occupied a space in his mind that he himself could not account for and deal with, as he dealt with others.
Leonid narrowed his eyes and suddenly his fist hit the wall behind Charlotte's head.
Since when had he become so interested in her, he couldn't be so cruel to her without feeling pressure on his chest.
Charlotte flinched as Leonid's fist slammed into the wall next to her head. She looked at him with wide eyes and tried to say something with her trembling lips, but she couldn't.
"You…"
Leonid whispered coldly and slowly approached Charlotte's face, no longer caring about the safe distance between them to the point that his nose collided with hers.
"Master…Leonid."
"You are incredibly pathetic Charlotte."
He whispered very coldly and continued to stare into Charlotte's teary eyes. If this woman did not want to change her very good personality, Leonid would do so and give her the change card at his own expense.
"Don't you know this too?"
"no. "
Charlotte answered as she felt the wet heat flowing over her eyelids.
"I know. I know very well that I'm pathetic, and I also know that I'm so naive and stupid and self-righteous that it disgusts anyone, even my family…"
"You know all this and yet you continue to remain the same."
Leonid moved his hands to Charlotte's cheek and wiped her tear-filled eyelids with his thumb.
"Answer me honestly, Charlotte. Do you really like what you're doing to yourself?"
"What do I do with myself?"
Charlotte closed her eyes and felt the warmth of Leonid's hands on her cheeks and his thumb wiping away her tears.
"Yes, do you like being in this miserable state, weak, shaky and pathetic?"
Leonid continued to speak at a low, cold pace, while his hands continued to move at a warm pace on Charlotte's cheeks.
"No one wants to be like that or likes that, but I would like to hear your answer. Even if your answer is yes, I will be prepared not to go crazy because of you."
"Why do you think I would say yes?"
Charlotte smiled faintly despite the intense tears sliding down her cheeks.
"You should know that the choice was not mine from the beginning."
"Are you playing the victim now, Charlotte, huh?"
"Of course I don't!"
Charlotte suddenly became emotional and pushed Leonid with his chest away from her, but Leonid did not budge from his place. She began to feel disgusted by his closeness to her, and the need to leave now before she revealed details that she did not want to tell anyone.
"Well, do you blame your family and the society around you!?"
"Let me go, I don't want to talk to you!"
"You know, there is no family that raises its children to be victims in this dark world."
"Maybe you're right but you don't know anything, you're not me so you can decide for me‼"
Tears streamed down Charlotte's cheeks, yet she did not stop screaming at Leonid.
"You don't know how i was raised! i lived in a house that told me to give up myself and my dreams to please them!"
Leonid slowly pulled his head back and continued to hold Charlotte's cheeks in his fist. He didn't want to say it out loud, but seeing Charlotte now revealing some points to him made him indirectly happy.
"You're not the one who gets tossed aside and held accountable for other people's mistakes, okay!"
Charlotte clenched her fists and her nails penetrated her soft skin. She wanted to stop and keep her mouth shut so as not to tell Leonid more, but she was unable to do anything. I suddenly felt the urge to reveal everything.
"How can I live now! How!... Because of you, because of them, because of everyone, I don't want to live anymore. I've had enough of you and this world!"
Charlotte covered her face with her hands and cried bitterly. Her glass heart, which she had built over the previous years, was shattering into small pieces, leaving her deeply wounded.
She had always buried everything inside her, which made her even more indiscriminately emotional in front of Leonid.
"You can live as you want."
Even though she was weaker than Leonid expected her to be, he was not going to abandon her now that she had blown up in his face like this.
"You don't have to give in to anyone."
Leonid continued to speak and did not give up holding Charlotte's cheeks in his grip.
"You don't have to bear anyone's mistakes."
Leonid raised Charlotte's head and moved her hands away from her face.
"And of course you don't have to leave this world after you have enjoyed the right to live in it."
Leonid's voice was calm and low. He rested his forehead on Charlotte's and stared into her eyes with an indecipherable look. Seeing the warm tears streaming down Charlotte's reddened face was activating reactions inside his chest that he didn't know were still there, things Leonid had been hiding since he was a sixteen-year-old teenager.
"I will always be by your side."
Leonid said gently and caressed Charlotte's cheeks with his thumb. Maybe it's time to admit that Charlotte has a special place in his heart from the beginning until now.
The woman who tried to communicate with him even though she was suffering from social phobia, the woman who stayed up until he returned from work in the middle of the night, the woman who invited him to breakfast, lunch and dinner several times to offer him some food and comfort.
She is cute in a way that he did not accept at first, and dear to his heart in the end.
This was the story of Leonid's crush and the reason for his intense monitoring of Charlotte. He didn't doubt her as much as he doubted the people around her. He always wanted her safe and occupied only with him.
Was he cruel in his treatment of her? Well, he was always cruel to those around him, and he could tell that Charlotte always had a soft side to him which he never showed to anyone.
Leonid stared at Charlotte, who cried and snorted and wiped her eyes and face several times. She was sniffling and shaking in his hands most of the time.
Leonid looked at her and was quite sure that he did not enjoy seeing her tears at all. He may have had a passion for teasing her, but dropping her tears was his last dark requirement.
He moved and pulled her to his chest and hugged her.
"It's okay, you can cry as much as you want."
Leonid consoled Charlotte, rubbing her back with one hand and gently caressing her hair with the other, while resting his chin on the top of her head.
"I hope you don't hate me later."
Leonid whispered lowly and kept Charlotte's embrace.
"Why do you think I'll hate you?"
Charlotte asked leonid in a low voice after she calmed down gradually, her head still on his chest.
"Well you always say that when someone's bothering you."
"It's ridiculous to believe that."
"It's even ridiculous for you to say that every time you get angry."
Leonid rested his chin on the top of Charlotte's head until he felt her head rise towards him.
He got his head back and stared at her expression.
Charlotte pursed her lips and tried to hold back her tears so as not to start the second round. Leonid's words might have touched her sensitive nerves, especially since her feelings were still turbulent.
Leonid blinked his eyelids once and stared at Charlotte's silently protesting gaze. He remained like that for a while until he relented and said.
"I was kidding you."
"Let me go."
Leonid was shocked by Charlotte's request for a moment.
"Are you serious? You can barely stand on your legs. If I lift my arms off you now, you will fall immediately."
Leonid was quiet while trying to convince Charlotte to back off the idea of letting her go alone.
"I'll be fine."
"no."
Leonid replied in his cold tone and hugged Charlotte to his chest, the height difference between them was uneven and sweet.
Leonid was six feet three inches all while Charlotte was only five feet three inches.
"Are you trying to provoke me?"
"no."
"Then why!?"
Charlotte's nose was red, as were her eyelids. If someone asked Leonid who was the person who cried in front of him the most, he would answer Charlotte without a second thought.
"Because I…"
Leonid spoke quietly and wiped away the tears clinging to her thick, long eyelashes with his finger. Charlotte cried on his chest for about Twenty minutes. She was exhausted, of course, but still pretended to be fine even though he supported her with his arms to stand.
"I just don't want to."
"Huh…?"
Charlotte's expression stiffened, mixed with confusion and embarrassment. Why does she now feel Leonid's influence on her? She closed her fingers around Leonid's shirt and lowered her head down, the chestnut locks sliding down her face and covering her shy features.
"Also, we have something we haven't finished discussing yet."
"What are you talking about?"
Leonid's arm pressed against Charlotte's back and suddenly he picked her up, put his other arm under her legs and pinned her to his chest. He began to walk towards the sofa with calm steps while Charlotte's eyes widened.
Charlotte was surprised by what was happening, but she did not make a sound. She held onto Leonid's shirt tightly and remained calm. She was a little upset because Leonid refused to let her go, but for some reason she felt comfortable.
On his way to the sofa, Leonid asks what kind of feelings Charlotte has suppressed inside her. Just how could a woman who was only twenty-two years old think in such a superficial way despite being so emotional about others.
The icy blue color of Leonid's eyes reflected Charlotte's figure as she rested her head on his chest.
Since Charlotte is emotional towards others, why isn't she emotional towards herself? Leonid asked in his mind and sat Charlotte on his thighs after he sat down on his sofa.
Gently combing and moving random strands of hair away from her face, Leonid was gentle with every step without even noticing it.
"Hey what are you doing?!"
Leonid ignored Charlotte's protest and thought silently. Since he moved to this building, Leonid expected to only do his work and not wander around this woman who lived next to him. She was like a puzzle to him the first time and he did not know that he had gradually fallen into a trap since he interfered in her life against her will.
"Let me go now, this is too much!"
"Stay calm."
Leonid replied coldly and continued to think. Maybe if another crime happened in this building and Charlotte wasn't the victim, he wouldn't be so affected since this woman for whom he had strange and unexpected feelings was safe by his side.
"Leonid!"
"No means no."
Leonid tightened his arm around Charlotte's waist and prevented her from moving. She was just trying in vain to escape from his embrace to no avail.
"Now tell me, if you met that man who harassed you one day, what would your reaction be if he tried to harass you again?"
"That guy?"
Charlotte stopped trying to escape and stared into Leonid's icy blue eyes, his gaze was calm and at the same time indecipherable.
Charlotte thought for a moment since she knew the man in question that Leonid was referring to, well what would she do if he tried to harass her again? She thought for a moment until she said.
"I will beat him until he dies."
"Please say something that makes sense."
Leonid's response was dry, but he could not suppress the smile that appeared on his lips.
It's funny that you would answer in such a serious way after ignoring that guy's antics and teasing.
"Answer really seriously. What would the real Charlotte Smith do if she met the man who harassed her and he harassed her again?"
"The truth? Wait why are you so interested in what I'm going to do?"
Leonid shrugged and waited patiently for Charlotte's answer. Charlotte crossed her eyebrows, then her arms, and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Okay, I will act according to what I feel at that moment."
"Depending on the moment? This is a worse answer than the previous one."
"Why do you criticize my answers every time?!"
Charlotte immediately complained and pouted her lips.
"The blame lies with you. You do not think well about your options. You only talk while you are unable to do anything on your own."
"Do you want to start over again?"
"Absolutely not."
Leonid's answer was as serious as his stern expression.
"then stop criticizing me."
"As you wish."
Leonid smiled when he saw Charlotte's frown disappear after his response, she was satisfied and it was evident in her proud expression.
Leonid secretly knew that Charlotte tried her best every day to better herself for others. At first, Leonid thought that she was doing this to attract the attention of others around her.
"Okay, since we've reached an agreement, can I go?"
"no."
However, Leonid realized otherwise with time, especially through her previous words about herself. It's like she's programmed to do her best to please others.
"Can I know what kind of upbringing you had, Charlotte?"
Leonid asked softly next to Charlotte's ear and cupped his free hand on her cheek.
It may not be the right time, but it is still the right time for this question.
"Why are you interested in this…"
Charlotte could feel the heat on her cheeks, specifically under Leonid's palm, where they had made contact.
"I'm curious about the woman I'm interested in."
Red spread on her cheeks and ears, far from everything. Charlotte was not thinking negatively about Leonid's question, she was thinking superficially.
Since Leonid cares about her, he wants to know everything about her, even the upbringing she received.
"Well, I had a normal upbringing, and I'm also the middle daughter in the family. What about you, Leonid?"
Her black eyes sparkled with colorful orbs and she eagerly waited for his answer.
"For me, as a male I was given a strict upbringing by my parents, plus I am an only son."
"Strict upbringing?"
Leonid noticed the confusion on Charlotte's face, her eyes shining with worry.
"Strict is just a word that explains some situations. Don't worry. I had a normal childhood like anyone else."
Leonid tried to make the term simpler so that Charlotte would not mourn the strict upbringing he received as a child.
"I got it! So it's okay."
Charlotte smiled and lowered her head, not noticing that she had become accustomed to calling Leonid by his name or even sitting on his thighs.
She was developing without noticing how close she was to Leonid.
"Can I know how many people your family has?"
"certainly!"
Charlotte exclaimed quickly. She was happy to tell Leonid everything, as long as she did not feel in danger to herself.
"We are five people, with my mother and father making us seven."
"This is too much compared to my family."
"You're three, well that's very few compared to my family."
"Actually, we're not three. My mother died when I was seven years old."
Charlotte stiffened after hearing Leonid's calm words and didn't say anything, her black eyes staring into Leonid's icy blue eyes, until she said in a low voice.
"I'm sorry."
"Why are you apologizing? You weren't the one who brought it up in the first place, and you've already moved on, so it's okay."
Leonid's palm gently caressed Charlotte's cheek and then pulled away.
"Tell me more about your family, what they look like and how they treat you, can I know the good details?"
"Well I don't mind, I can tell you everything in return…"
Charlotte lowered her voice and hesitated for a moment until she said.
"Can you tell me everything about yourself, without indulging yourself? I mean, I don't want the details of your life."
"I promise to tell you whatever you want, whatever it is, I don't mind either."
Leonid was serious in his words, even if Charlotte asked him about his job he was ready to tell her his truth.
"Then let me start first!"
Charlotte raised her palm slightly in a positive gesture and then lowered it.
"Well, you may have noticed that before, but I will tell you, my father is Russian and my mother is Australian, they are of two different races."
Leonid nodded gently and stared at Charlotte's lips, which were moving again.
"At the moment my family is settled in Australia while I am alone here in Russia."
Charlotte's features were warm and soft as she talked about her family.
"First of all, the fact that I live here alone has nothing to do with my family or because I like to live in an environment like Russia and vice versa for Australia."
"I understand. You live alone and on top of that in a different country than the country your family lives in. There is no specific reason, just your desire and nothing more."
Charlotte's eyes lit up as Leonid calmly explained her point of view and understanding.
"But don't you feel lonely sometimes."
"No…on the contrary, I feel free, even though it is difficult sometimes."
Charlotte gestured with her thumb and index finger as the distance between them narrowed slightly, a bright smile playing on her lips.
Leonid stared silently at that smile and then smiled.
"I thought you were spoiled when we first met, but you take good care of yourself, even though things are difficult for you sometimes."
"Well you're not entirely wrong, maybe I'm spoiled after all."
"Do you like that, I mean being spoiled?"
"no."
Charlotte answered smoothly while Leonid stiffened for a few moments.
"This is completely unexpected. Well why wouldn't you like that, don't all women like being spoiled?"
"Let me think…"
Charlotte thought even though she already knew the answer.
"I don't know."
Charlotte smiled as she answered in the way that was most comfortable for her, the way that Leonid did not prefer at all.
"Stop fooling around. You know why, but you don't want to answer."
Leonid furrowed his brow, then lifted his arm away from Charlotte's back and pushed her onto the sofa with a quick motion, saying as she fell onto the soft mattress of the sofa.
"You can go now, I no longer want to talk to you."
"Are you serious!?"
Charlotte quickly got up and squatted next to Leonid.
"Leonid…?"
Leonid crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes. He ignored Charlotte's call as if he was deliberately ignoring her.
"Oh, so you're really serious…"
She whispered in a low voice, feeling guilty for upsetting Leonid. Charlotte already knew that Leonid didn't like the way she answered like that, but why should he be upset?
Charlotte sat, bewildered, staring at Leonid after she leaned against the back of the sofa, resting her head on her arm.
"No need to be upset… Why do you act like my family every time?"
She asked as she moved closer to him and then tapped his cheek with her index finger. Charlotte was trying to get Leonid to open his eyes, but he completely ignored her.
"That's so mean."
"Leave before I throw you out."
"Do you really mean your words! Throwing a lady like me out?!"
"Yes. "
Leonid did not wait for Charlotte's response. He quickly got up and carried Charlotte by the waist, heading towards the door.
Charlotte's eyelashes fluttered for a moment as she looked down. The floor was close to her as Leonid held her on his waist while wrapping his arm around her waist.
Leonid opened the door, but before he could put Charlotte down, she shouted to him.
"No! Slow down please!"
"What now?"
Leonid stopped, staring into the hallway, waiting for Charlotte to speak, still holding her.
"I'm really sorry, I won't do it again. I can tell you the truth if you want…"
"Then tell me. What's your real answer?"
"My real answer is."
Charlotte remained silent for a moment while looking down, Leonid's arm holding her was so gentle that she would not feel the pain of being carried like this.
"I like it…"
Charlotte finally answered, blushing.
"And sometimes I don't like it."
Leonid lowered his head and stared at the top of Charlotte's head from above. He could see her fiddling with her fingers and the back of her ears turning red.
"What about me?"
"What do you mean… ?"
"I mean, would you like me to spoil you?"
"I… would it be alright if I answered yes…?"
"Why not? Well you can go I'm not bothered with you."
Leonid smiled and then gently placed Charlotte on her feet. He was very satisfied with the answers he got. The next time, if Charlotte tried to mess with him, all he had to do was repeat the behavior.
"That's good, okay see you later."
Charlotte waved her hand and headed toward her apartment. Her white skin clearly reflected the redness of her cheeks and ears, but the sunset lights filtering through the hallway windows did little to hide her shyness.
From now on the new updates date:"every Tuesday (Three chapters) Friday (one chapter)" have a nice day, Kwak~!
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