Chapter 16: What''s in the box?


    Like every morning, us maids woke up early and went about our regr routine. After that, I quickly


    took a shower and changed intofortable clothes so I could move easily. Madam and I were


    going to work on tidying up her garden.


    "Hey Lyka, good morning!"


    "You didn''t even wait for me, Lyka. You''re such an early bird!" Madam joked when she joined me,


    arranging the nts. She was wearing a hat, and her eyes widened when she noticed something


    about me.


    "Lyka! Wear a hat! Your skin is fair, white, and smooth. You need to take good care of it!" she


    eximed, but I shook my head.


    "It''s okay, Madam! I''ve seen other actresses who prefer tanned skin. So I thought I''d try it too," I


    exined, and sheughed.


    From the corner of my eye, I saw Kiro walking towards us in the garden. He sat down on one of the


    decorative benches Madam had ced there. Madam went over to him, and they started talking. I


    continued arranging the pots, pretending not to notice that Sir Kiro was watching me. I kept working,


    carrying some heavy pots. They were not easy to handle.


    Suddenly, I felt someone behind me. "Let me do this, Lyka. It''s heavy," Sir Kiro said.


    "Sir?! No, it''s fine! I can handle it. It''s not that heavy... well, maybe just a little," I replied, turning my


    gaze to the nts, ready to lift them. But then I stopped.


    "No, I insist. Let me do it. Just guide me on where to ce these pots, okay?" he insisted. I stared


    at him, still unsure.


    "Well, it will be good exercise for me since I''ve been confined to my room for months," he added,


    and I finally nodded. He started working, and I showed him where to position the pots. Madam


    watched us, particrly her son—Sir Kiro.


    "Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!" I recognized the voice immediately.


    Doday and Joday were walking towards us, carrying a tray in their hands. I assumed it was our


    snacks.


    I couldn''t help but notice that there seemed to be something different about Joday''s face today. SheN?velDrama.Org (C) content.


    looked even more beautiful, as if she had a special glow.


    I realized that they must have done something with Doday''s helpst night—probably some


    makeup. It had a fast effect on Joday''s face. Doday also had some makeup on, but it didn''t seem to


    have the same effect. Or at least, that''s what I thought.


    I quickly dismissed that thought, not wanting to upset Doday.


    "Sir Kiro! Madam! Lyka... let''s have a snack here first!" Joday eximed as she ced the tray on


    the fancy table in the garden.


    Madam immediately went over to them. I nced at Kiro, who was looking at me as if waiting for


    me to go first. I shrugged and walked towards them to join for a snack.


    "Oh Joday! Look at you... You''re always beautiful, but I didn''t expect you to be even more beautiful!"


    Madam gushed over Joday.


    Joday shyly lowered her head in response to Madam''spliment. Then she looked at all of us,


    especially Kiro, who didn''t seem to care and started eating right away.


    It''s true, Joday is beautiful. She handed Kiro the prepared juice with a shy smile. Meanwhile, I


    continued eating my own snack. After finishing, I asked Madam for permission to continue arranging


    the pots. She agreed, and I went back to my task. Surprisingly, Kiro followed me.


    As I smiled while looking at the nts, memories of my mother came flooding back.


    "Why are you smiling at the nts?" Kiro asked, standing behind me.


    "I just remembered my mom, Sir... She loved nts so much. Our house was almost filled with


    them. It''s funny how nts always made her smile," I shared.


    "Then, you''re just like your mom," he remarked.


    "Huh?"


    "You''re like your mom, smiling with the nts," he exined, and I couldn''t help but turn to him and


    smile.


    The day ended with Madam''s nts neatly arranged. As I continued serving Madam and delivering


    food to Sir''s room, we grew closer to each other.


    –


    "Wow, is this really Madam when she was a teenager? She looks so beautiful!" I couldn''t help but


    admire the photo of Madam in the album. Kiro and I were cleaning his room, and my eyes were


    drawn to the photo albums.


    "You look beautiful, too," I heard Kiro whisper, causing me to turn to him. But he quickly looked


    away and cleared his throat.


    "Yeah, that''s my mom. I guess I inherited my good looks from her," he said, sounding a bit boastful.


    I quickly changed the topic to avoid any further conversation about appearances. Well, he really is


    handsome, though.


    "Let''s focus on cleaning up. Miss Linda might need my help downstairs... Once I''m done here, I''ll go


    assist her," I promised.


    As time went on, we became morefortable with each other, and Kiro started teasing and joking


    with me.


    "What about that maid? Her name is Joday? The one who always gives you sharp looks," he asked,


    referring to our previous conversations about the mansion. I didn''t want to dwell on Joday''s


    behavior, so I brushed it off.


    "Oh, her? It''s not a problem anymore..." I said, trying to downy the situation. Joday and I didn''t


    greet or pay attention to each other anymore. We simply avoided each other''s presence.


    Curiosity got the best of me, and I started looking around the room for more items. I identally


    bumped into a brown rectangr box, so I picked it up and attempted to open it. But Kiro abruptly


    stopped me.


    "Don''t you dare touch that," he said in a cold voice. I jumped in surprise and turned to him,


    wondering what had caused this sudden change in his mood.