“Say, Whipped Cream?” Cotton’s voice piped up. Her older cousin looked to her with delicate eyes, tilting his head a bit.
“Yes, Cotton?”
“How are you and Lady Rose so close?”
“Me and Rosy?” Whipped repeated, letting out a hum. “Now why are you curious about that?”
“Well, I...” Cotton looked away, sighing. “I simply noticed that you two were very close, but you never told me the story of how you two became friends.” Her voice seemed to have a hint of a laugh.
Whipped let out a huff of a chuckle, shrugging. “Well, I just thought you weren’t too interested,” he admitted. “So I never thought to talk to you about it.”
“Well, um...” Fiddling with her teacup, Cotton let out a nervous hum. “Could you tell me how you two met?”
“How we met?” A nod comes from the younger, and Whipped lets out an audible chuckle, a bit awkward in nature. “Well, it’s quite a story. We actually hated each other when we first met.”
“You... You did?”
“I mean, it’s only natural. The only way I could describe myself back then was a spoiled brat,” Whipped said with a sigh. “But Rose, she... Well, she was quite important to me. Heh.” He looks to the swan-like treats on the tray they had set out. His features softened; love and warmth seemed to spill into his expression. “She was a knight, you know?”
“A knight?”
“Mhm,” Whipped responded. “My retainer, to be exact. She was tasked with guarding me and making sure I was well taken care of in my days as a noble,” he added, gently setting another cube of sugar into his tea before taking a drink. “I... Well...” For a moment, Cotton could see his eyes shimmer with a hint of sadness. “Didn’t really treat her the best at first. Mainly just ordered her around to get petty things like a glass of juice or my favorite snack.”
“Wow, that’s...” Cotton blinks in shock. “That doesn’t seem like you.”
“Perhaps as you know me, yes, it’s absolutely not like me,” Whipped laughed. “But back then, I was a damn spoiled noble. My servants then used to complain how I was worse than my mother.” He snickers. “But she persisted. Always when I asked her why she stayed, she would just say that it was her duty,” he added on. “So I suppose that’s how we officially met. Who knows, maybe I’ll tell you how she won my heart next time we have tea.”
“Heh, I’d like that,” Cotton would say, feeling her phone buzz. “Oh, that must be Lemon... I’ll see you later!” With that, she’d excuse herself from the gardens, and Whipped was left alone once more.
A few minutes later, and Whipped would notice that the tea leaves were still warm. “... Perhaps Rose would like some.”
