Chapter 391: Leo Karumi [25]

"What if I threw a water balloon from up here onto Dave’s head?"

"Where would you even find a water balloon?"

Leo shot Nathan a skeptical look—because he was fairly sure Nathan already had a stash nearby.

Nathan hesitated for a moment, then elaborated. "The janitor’s closet. He has water balloons in there."

Leo raised both eyebrows.

Then they lifted even higher as an uncomfortable thought crossed his mind.

’Wait... is he the vandal?’

It was a stretch, but still—why would a janitor have water balloons in the middle of winter?

’Not my business,’

Leo decided, and let it go.

Instead, he looked down at the field. He and Nathan leaned against the rooftop railing, watching the students below—boys in sharp tuxedos, girls in elegant dresses—dancing in pairs or groups around a massive bonfire.

It was cliché, Leo thought. But it had been Nathan’s idea. And Leo had agreed to it, letting the otaku live out his fantasy—at least, that was what Leo told himself.

"You should go down there and dance with the rest," Leo said flatly, eyes on the fire. The scent of smoke had risen all the way up here.

Both of them wore black tuxedos.

"Nah, I’m fine," Nathan said lightly. At some point, he’d produced a lollipop and now had it in his mouth.

"I’m fine too," Leo replied, narrowing his eyes at him. "So just go."

Nathan turned, wearing a sly smile.

"If I do, will you go dance with me?"

"Die."

"Ouch."

Nathan pretended to be wounded and looked away, leaning farther over the railing.

Because he sulked like this all the time, Leo didn’t think much of it. He relaxed with a small sigh and looked back down—letting his guard drop in a way he never would with anyone else.

Which was exactly why he couldn’t defend himself from the sudden attack.

"Take this!"

Instinctively, Leo turned toward Nathan.

A mistake.

Something small, round, and wet was popped into his mouth.

Leo froze like an idiot, eyes locked on Nathan’s cheeky grin. Nathan held his hand out, gripping the lollipop stick—which now sat between Leo’s lips.

Heat rushed to Leo’s face. Veins practically bulged in his forehead.

"You piece of shit," Leo growled, keeping the sweet apple lollipop in his mouth as he grabbed Nathan by the hair with both hands and yanked.

"O-ouch! Let go, Leo—have mercy! I don’t want to go bald!"

"Your father is already basically bald!" Leo snapped, yanking harder. "What do they say again? Better early than late! No point letting hair cover up something as useless as your head!"

And for some reason, Leo still refused to spit the lollipop out.

Why would he? He was doing Nathan a favor—saving him future barber trips. Truly.

Saint Leo.

"C-context! Context matters!" Nathan wheezed, gripping Leo’s wrists and trying to pry him off. "P-please, I’m sorry! I’m sorry!"

But Leo’s grip was tighter. When it came to raw strength, unfortunately for Nathan, Leo had the edge.

"U-um..."

A new voice came from the rooftop.

Leo and Nathan froze like statues—still tangled together—then slowly turned with cold expressions toward the intruder.

Their eyes widened.

Lea stood there, stiff and uncomfortable, wearing an awkward smile. She gave them a tiny wave.

"H-hi..."

They immediately let go and stepped apart.

Nathan offered an equally awkward greeting back. Leo just stared, silently taking her in.

Lea wore a flowing dress in dark crimson. The light makeup and red lipstick were clearly meant to make her look more mature, but to Leo, it only made her look cuter.

Still, the boy two meters away from Leo—disheveled hair, wrinkled suit, starstruck expression—was staring at her like she’d descended from the stars. If Lea’s intention had been to earn admiring looks from someone as handsome as Nathan, she’d succeeded.

Lea looked between them, and a hint of disapproval crept into her eyes. She crossed her arms and walked over with a slight pout.

"I’ve been trying to find you two since the sports festival started," she said. "Where have you been? And why are you even on the roof fighting each other?"

There was a trace of sadness in her voice too—like she’d genuinely been searching for them.

Leo had a lot on his mind this week, and his cloudy brain hadn’t prepared an excuse.

Luckily, Nathan had one.

"Ah, you see, Lea..."

Nathan suddenly looked uncomfortable. He rubbed his arm and glanced away.

Unluckily, it was

that

kind of excuse, Leo corrected silently, watching Lea’s expression turn cautious.

"The thing is... Leo was actually anxious that after this festival, I might leave him."

"..."

"..."

Leo stood there dumbly.

Lea mirrored him, equally stunned.

Nathan then wrapped an arm around Leo’s shoulder as if the earlier assault had never happened.

He was bold, wasn’t he?

"So these past few days, I’ve been convincing Leo that I would never, ever leave him," Nathan said with a bright, heartwarming smile—so convincing Lea actually seemed to believe it.

Hell.

Even Leo almost did.

No—he

did

, in a way. Because what that annoying bastard with the punchable face said... wasn’t entirely false.

At least, the part about not leaving him.

"I must say, it was a real chore having to give him so much lov—"

"A-argh!" Nathan yelped.

Leo, expression cold and empty, grabbed the arm around his shoulder and bent it just enough to make the point.

"T-that hurts! Please stop! Mercy—mercy!"

Lea couldn’t hold onto her disapproval anymore. She giggled, looking at Nathan with an expression that was half amused, half exasperated.

Eventually, Leo had to let go—if he didn’t, he probably would’ve snapped Nathan’s arm.

"Bast—

you fucker!

" Nathan switched insults mid-sentence. Leo had already guessed what he was going to say, but wisely let it slide. "What if you mess me up so badly I can’t play basketball again?!"

Leo merely shrugged while Nathan growled and rubbed his arm.

"Well, I’m sure Leo would at least pay the hospital bills," Lea offered with a half-hearted joke. "Since he has the money...?"

The moment the words left her mouth, an odd awkwardness settled over the rooftop.

"D-did I say something wrong?" Lea asked, panic creeping into her eyes.

Nathan shook his head quickly. "No, it’s just—um..." He scratched his cheek.

But Leo coughed, drawing Lea’s attention, and spoke.

"Nathan is richer than my family."

"..."

"Come again?" Lea blinked.

"Nathan is richer than my family."

"...."

"He’s the one who actually lives in a mansion," Leo added. "Not me."

Lea stared like her brain had stopped working. She looked at Nathan, who suddenly found the sky, the railing, and the distant bonfire

extremely

interesting.

"...R-really?" Lea stammered.

"Really," Leo confirmed.

Gradually, Lea started to look more and more uncomfortable.

"L-Leo, I could believe," she muttered, voice cracking slightly. "But... but Nathan too? I-I was close friends with

two

young masters...?"

"Who are you calling a young master?" Leo snapped.

Lea acted like she didn’t hear him. Instead, she grit her teeth and stepped between them, leaning on the railing like she needed something solid to hold herself together.

Nathan, meanwhile, seemed to remember something. He glanced at Lea, noticing her mood.

"Why did you come up here, anyway?" he asked.

There was no reason for her to be on the roof while everyone else was still down on the field.

Lea sulked harder.

"I was running away from all the boys who wanted to dance," she mumbled. "I came up here to rest..."

"I see." Nathan tapped his chin, then smiled wide—like a brilliant idea had just struck him.

Without warning, he dropped to one knee and looked up at Lea with sparkling eyes. Lea looked down at him, annoyed.

"Prez, would you like to dance with this very rich young mast—"

"I refuse."

"Khh—" Leo looked away, trying to hold back his laugh.

"N-no hesitation, huh," Nathan muttered, patting his knees as he stood. "Well, it would’ve helped you go back down and enjoy yourself, and I could’ve acted as your bodyguard at least."

Lea considered it for a moment, then shook her head.

"I appreciate the thought," she said, "but I’m good. Thank you, though."

Nathan shrugged casually. "Sure."

But Leo could tell he was disappointed.

’Maybe she doesn’t know how to dance?

’ Leo wondered—then immediately dismissed it. Knowing Lea, she’d probably practiced for months so she wouldn’t make a mistake.

Lea went right back to sulking.

"I wish I were as rich... Ah, being a healthy princess would be nice."

Nathan frowned and grumbled, almost reluctantly.

"Being rich isn’t all that nice..."

Lea rolled her eyes.

"Of course someone rich would say that."

"I’m serious!" Nathan exploded. "Do you know how annoying it is to attend those stupid events and parties in uncomfortable clothes, plaster on a fake smile, and talk about boring crap that we somehow call ’socializing’—instead of just calling it barbaric medieval torture?"

He started listing grievances like he’d been holding them in for years.

"Not to mention how many times I’ve had to visit some rich, spoiled lady’s house to ’talk’ about engagement. It’s awkward as hell because I always have to tell them I’m not interested! Seriously! Why does my mom always force me into this stuff? It’s embarrassing, and those girls are always so demanding and annoying. Stupid politics!"

Nathan was venting so hard he almost forgot to breathe.

Leo watched him with a rare flicker of sympathy.

Lea, on the other hand, looked wide-eyed—and

extremely

interested.

"How many times have you

almost

been engaged?" she asked, leaning in, curiosity plastered across her face.

Nathan looked away, suddenly uncomfortable, fiddling with his fingers.

"About... twelve times."

"Woah..." Lea whispered. "T-that’s a lot, isn’t it...?"

Nathan nodded slowly.

"But why would you decline twelve times?" Lea blurted. "Who knows when someone like you will get another chance at love!"

"S-someone like me?!" Nathan snapped. "How rude! I’ll have you know I have plenty of admirers of my own!" He puffed up, offended. "Besides, engagements like those are dull—and I already told you how much of a headache those girls were!"

Instead of arguing, Lea turned to Leo, suddenly excited again.

"What about you, Leo? How many engagement offers have you gotten? Fifteen? Twenty? Fifty?" She leaned closer, eyes shining. "Wait—are you actually engaged already?"

"W-wait," Nathan protested, betrayed. "Why do you assume he’s gotten more offers than me?!"

But the other two ignored him completely.

"I don’t know," Leo said.

"...?" Lea tilted her head.

"What do you mean, ’I don’t know’?"

Leo shrugged. "I don’t know if I’ve ever gotten any engagement offers. I never asked, and my parents never told me. I doubt I’m engaged without knowing, though..."

He paused, then added, drier,

"...I hope."

Hearing all of that, Lea slumped against the railing, her expression defeated.

"I want an engagement offer too..." she murmured. "How romantic would it be to get engaged to a handsome prince and fall in love gradually..."

"Didn’t you just say you wanted to be a princess?" Leo asked, confused.

Lea didn’t even turn her head. Her chin rested on the railing as she stared at the bonfire.

"Both," she mumbled. "I want both."

"What if you get engaged to some fat, sweaty prince?" Nathan asked with a grin.

"I said

handsome

!" Lea shouted, glaring at him.

Nathan laughed, which only made Lea narrow her eyes further.

Then—whether it was revenge or something else—she straightened and turned to Leo, her gaze suddenly serious, almost competitive. Leo looked back at her in silent question.

"Leo," she said. "Do you want to dance with me?"

Nathan froze instantly, making a ridiculous face. Leo only blinked.

"...No thanks."

"Wha—seriously? Can’t you dance?"

"I can dance," Leo replied calmly. "I’m just not interested."

Lea’s shoulders sank. She leaned onto the railing again, sulking.

"To think I kept rejecting everyone, yet the one person I

wanted

to dance with rejected me..." She sighed dramatically. "Life can be cruel, huh..."

She lifted her eyes to the sky.

"What’s even worse is that we won’t even have a white Christmas." Her voice rose suddenly. "Ah—this makes me so mad! I want snow!"

The outburst startled both Leo and Nathan.

Lea huffed angrily, then stretched like she was shaking the mood off.

"I’m going back. Maybe I’ll at least find my prince somewhere along the way."

Neither boy said anything. They just watched her walk away.

Nathan stepped closer to Leo and lowered his voice.

"Are you sure you don’t want to dance with her?"

"Yeah," Leo said.

"I don’t want to give her the wrong impression."

"I doubt she’d take it that way," Nathan replied. "She probably just wanted to see which one of you is the better dancer."

"Still..."

Nathan waited.

After a pause, Leo added quietly,

"Someone like me shouldn’t dance with someone like her."

Nathan looked at him with a sad, complicated expression, but didn’t argue.

Leo kept watching Lea’s back until she disappeared from sight.

If he’d known what was coming, he never would’ve said that. He would’ve accepted her offer without a second thought. He’d forgotten—because of his own miserable thoughts—that the whole point of this festival was to make memories. Real ones. Fun ones. For himself... and for Lea.

Maybe a dance would’ve been a good memory, at least.

Only later would Leo understand that these past few weeks had been a turning point in his twisted life.

Life could indeed be cruel.

On December 24—Christmas Eve—when the only mercy that night was the white snow falling outside, Lea died of an overdose.