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Your brother, Stepanyan, had always admired Major Valeriy.
It was understandable, you supposed, given that Valeriy was a respectable man; strong, polite, and handsome. You’d never really interacted with him, obviously. There was no reason for the family member of a soldier to do so, especially to such a high-ranking officer, and whatever the Fatui did was none of your business as long as Stepanyan returned home safely. But, strangely enough, Valeriy was the one who approached you first.
“Indeed, he was injured when he was defending the Design Bureau against the Wild Hunt.” he informed you, when you encountered him in the public park during your attempt to calm your mind after Stepanyan’s radio silence. “But, rest assured, he’s currently hospitalized.”
“Oh, I’m relieved to hear that. Truly.” you sighed. “Thank you for the information.”
“Of course. Once he’s recovered, he shall return to Snezhnaya as soon as possible. So, do not stress yourself too much.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
Valeriy lifted your hand and kissed the knuckles, all the while maintaining eye contact with you. Immediately, your mind blanked. It wasn’t enough that you met a literal Major in a public park, out of all places, but he just had to kiss your hand as if you were a lady. But maybe he was being gentlemanly. High titles demanded more decorum, weren’t they?
Still, you scanned the environment in case someone saw this. A pair of girls blushed and giggled, whispering something to each other. Your stomach dropped. Were they gossiping about a blooming romance between you two? You hoped not. You didn’t know him that well aside from being your brother’s superior and teacher.
“Um, well,” you stammered, withdrawing your hand from his. Why did he still hold it? And why did he stare at you like that? You didn’t like it. People might think you were having a romantic rendezvous rather than an accidental meeting. “Have a good day then, sir.”
“Indeed, I shall see you later.”
“Huh?”
Valeriy turned around and left with a small smile before you could ask for further clarification, his fur cloak billowing behind him. You shook your head and scurried back to your house, deciding to pray more to the Tsaritsa for Stepanyan’s safety.
***
“[Name], are you secretly dating Major Valeriy?”
You froze. It was a few days after Stepanyan’s return. You’d been fussing over his condition when he suddenly dropped that question with a quizzical smile on his face.
“What…? No, we’re just–”
“I heard that you both had a rendezvous in the public park near our house.”
Oh, Archons. Those girls talked fast. You were certain that if Valeriy weren’t a Major, people would think that it was a casual encounter.
“No, really. It was completely accidental, I swear! I went there because I was worried about you, and then, he came to me and informed me about your injuries.”
You looked at Stepanyan wide-eyed, hoping for him to sense your sincerity. He stared at you for a moment before laughing. Was that disappointment in his tone? That was probably just your imagination.
At least, you hoped so.
“Don’t look so panicked, [Name]. Even if you dated him, I’d be fine with it. He’s a good man, after all.”
A nice man, probably, you weren’t sure about the good part. Did Valeriy purposely set this up? No, he had better things to do than to play games with a mere civilian like you. It was purely a misunderstanding, that’s all.
What mattered was Stepanyan coming home alive and well; that was a promise that Valeriy had fulfilled.
***
It was supposed to be a peaceful day between you and Stepanyan. You were supposed to be out and have lunch together as a sibling activity, because it’d been a long time since he had a proper vacation and you missed spending time with him. Instead, you had to entertain Valeriy because, for some reason, he stumbled upon you both in this particular restaurant.
Out of all restaurants in Snezhnaya.
“Ah, Miss [Name]. It’s nice to see you again. And Stepanyan.”
Valeriy smiled at you and kissed your knuckles in greeting. You shifted your foot and glanced at Stepanyan, who looked delighted at the sight. He eagerly ushered Valeriy to sit beside you and exchanged some pleasantries. You tried to ignore them and read the menu, until a shadow eclipsed the light that streamed in from the wide windows.
“Go ahead and pick anything you want. I shall pay for everything.”
“Oh, you don’t have to, sir. In fact, I should be the one who does that.” Stepanyan sputtered humbly.
Valeriy waved a gloved hand dismissively.
“Nonsense. I intruded on your sibling moment, the least I could do is to pay for the food.”
You shared a glance with Stepanyan before you chose something cheap and fast to eat. You stayed silent and focused on your food while they talked about some trivialities, deciding to endure a moment of awkwardness. It wasn’t as if you could kick Valeriy out, either, especially not after he kept his word about Stepanyan’s safety.
“I heard that you personally informed my sister regarding my situation in Nod Krai.”
When you snapped out of your thoughts, you heard Stepanyan mentioning that encounter.
“Ah, yes. I saw this lovely lady looking all stressed, so I assumed that she was worrying about you.”
How would Valeriy know about that, anyway? There were many things you could be stressing over, but he correctly inferred Stepanyan as the reason. Had he been watching you without your knowledge? Or maybe he was just that perceptive. He wasn’t a Major without a reason, after all.
Stepanyan laughed in embarrassment.
“Thank you for going that far, sir. I wasn’t able to rely to her letters, so I could only imagine how worried she was.”
“Indeed, but I’m glad that she had faith in my promise. And your survival, of course.”
Valeriy turned his head to look at you and smiled, his hand nearly touching yours on the table. Stepanyan went speechless at the softness in Valeriy’s eyes, while you simpered politely in return. What was happening?
Once you all finished talking and eating, Valeriy wiped his mouth with a napkin and paid the bills.
“Well, I should head out now. I wouldn’t want to take your time any further.”
“No, it’s a pleasure to see you, sir.”
As always, Valeriy stood up and kissed your knuckles, stroking them with his thumb. You felt awkward with so many eyes on you, especially with the whispering and giggling patrons nearby. Because why was he doing this anyway? And in front of your own brother, too?
“I think he likes you.” Stepanyan mused as soon as his superior left, his voice almost giddy.
“Nonsense. He’s a Major, so he must have many women vying for his attention.”
“Yes, but I’ve never seen him treating them like that before.”
“Let’s just…” You rose from the booth and tried to pull him up. “… focus on where we should go next, shall we?”
Stepanyan chuckled, “Alright, alright. You’ve always been shy when it comes to romance, [Name].”
Wrong, you weren’t shy when it came to romance. You just didn’t know what to make of Valeriy. Was he trying to court you? Or was he stalking you? You couldn’t wrap your head around the latter. Stepanyan was the talented one, not you. You didn’t have any qualities that could attract a man like Valeriy to you, and honestly, you weren’t sure if you wanted to see another soldier in your family. It was enough that you worried over Stepanyan every time he got deployed to another nation.
***
“I’d like to pursue Miss [Name] romantically.”
Stepanyan gasped and gripped your shoulder as if trying to anchor himself while you sat stiffly beside him. It was a few months after that lunch incident, just as you were about to forget about it, when Valeriy suddenly visited your house and stated his intention to court you.
“S-sir, are you sure? I know that there were rumors about you having a… romantic rendezvous with my sister, but I never thought that you’d…”
Valeriy chuckled.
“Well, do I have your permission to pursue her?”
Stepanyan turned to look at you, and the eagerness in his eyes unnerved you. Turns out, he really wanted you to date his own superior. Because he was a ‘good man’, so that warranted your heart. Of course, you knew that Stepanyan only wished for your happiness, but you still didn’t know what to consider Valeriy. He didn’t even seem bothered by the speculation!
What if that meeting in the public park was a deliberate attempt on his part to spark those rumors?
What if that meeting in the restaurant was a deliberate attempt on his part to spark Stepanyan’s idea of him being the right man for you?
“I… I’m not sure what to say. This is a bit too sudden, don’t you think, sir?”
Valeriy smiled patiently and held your clammy hand with such that it crawled on your skin.
“I came here with my heart laid bare for you, and I hope to continue our relationship to marriage.”
You glanced at Stepanyan, wanting some help, but he only smiled enthusiastically.
“Um, is it alright if I take some think this over?”
“Of course, take as much time as you need.”
Valeriy kissed your knuckles, his lips lingering on the skin for a bit too long, before he excused himself. Immediately, the house felt much bigger without his imposing presence, and you could breathe a little easier.
Just as you closed your eyes to take a deep breath, Stepanyan spoke up.
“[Name], I think you should accept him.”
“But Stepanyan, I don’t even know him that well!”
“That’s what courtship is; a way to get to know each other deeper! He’s stable, strong, and affable. What else do you want from a man?”
You frowned thoughtfully. Was that really the right choice? Valeriy’s behavior still bothered you, but maybe it was normal for a man like him? You didn’t know what to think anymore!
“You should at least give him a chance.” Stepanyan implored, gripping your shoulders. “Maybe, then, you’ll see what I see.”
Staring at his earnest eyes, you slowly looked down and conceded with a sigh. He smiled and hugged you.
***
Onyx Agate had always been Valeriy’s star pupil. His influence had made Stepanyan become the even-tempered and courteous man he was today. His strong respect for authority meant that he wouldn’t dare to disobey Valeriy’s direct orders, but because he was a gentleman, he preferred to take the long way instead. One, because he didn’t want to scare you. And two, because he wanted you to doubt yourself further. Thus, you’d be more susceptible to Stepanyan’s persuasions, because Valeriy knew that you didn’t want to disappoint your brother either.
Was it manipulative of him?
Well, all’s fair in love and war, right?
The reason why he fell for you was that you never really paid any attention to him. You never blushed, or flirted, or asked your brother to relay some coy letters to him. You were only concerned for Stepanyan and your humble hearth. And, as a military man, Valeriy was all too used to conquering territories or people.
That included you, with your womanly caution and sisterly guilt.
So, really, Valeriy wasn’t too concerned about your hesitation. Because he knew that you’d accept him sooner or later, if not because of your brother, then because of people’s pressures.
After all, he’d personally sparked the rumors of a romantic relationship between you two from those rendezvouses.
