About Your Pride and My Prejudice

Side Story Episode 1: The Flynn Couple

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Spring.

“Come on, Melissa.”

A white steam rose over the white pot handed by a rugged hand. It also contains a lot of beef stew that Melissa loved.

“Oh…….”

“Be careful. It’s hot.”

Melissa couldn’t hide her child-like excited face as she looked down at the plate in front of her. But on the other hand, she felt sorry.

“……Thank you, Mrs. Kearney.”

Of course, she is happy to be able to eat this in the Principality, but Melissa has told her several times that she doesn’t have to worry about household chores. She had been taking care of Collins for so many years, so she hoped she’ll be comfortable in the future…….

But every time, Mrs. Kearney just smiled warmly and said something like, “It’s just something I do occasionally, don’t worry about it.” Watching Melissa enjoy the food she made with her own hands was truly an unparalleled happiness.

Just because she felt so precious and thankful, Melissa quickly scooped up a spoonful of hot stew in front of her. As she blew the steaming warm soup and drank it passed down the back of her neck, her cold insides became warm and even her heart softened.

It was at that moment that stories from the past came together like stars in her head.

The first thing Mr. and Mrs. Flynn did after getting married at the end of winter, about two months ago, was to clear out the servants of the mansion.

The only people allowed by Alan Flynn to remain at the mansion were William the butler, the coachman, several servants, and Sandra. Alan was adamant even though they begged to be allowed to stay here. Because they originally belonged to Ian Leopold’s family.

However, Alan did pay considerable attention to their final arrangements. He provided ample funds for those returning to the kingdom and utilized his connections in the civil service to secure jobs for those staying in the Principality.

This was actually because of Melissa. Even the icy man would become soft without resistance at the request of the woman he loved.

It was not until Lady Flynn had hired women of her own choosing as maids for the manor that the couple sent a letter to the Collins family in Sourn.

The marriage of her only daughter. It was Mrs. Collins’ long-cherished wish. To some extent, she guessed that Melissa, who had returned to the Principality, might suddenly deliver news of her marriage. She just didn’t know it would be this early.

It may have been good news, but it was also shocking news. That’s because her daughter’s marriage partner is Alan Leopold, the protagonist who recently turned the kingdom upside down…… No, wasn’t it Flynn now?

The unfamiliar last name was written right after the name of her daughter who sent the letter. Melissa Flynn. In other words, this letter was not sent to seek advice or approval for marriage.

This cute and cheeky lady even wrote these words in her letter,

We have a mansion here in Lunos, Mom. I want to take you here. He feels the same way as me. I mean it.

Mrs. Collins’s eyes must have been wet at this point. She was proud of her daughter, who had grown this much, but it was actually like a dream. She had never expressed it, but she wanted to leave this place more than anyone else.

From that day, the three Collins women were busy packing their bags. The old two-story house was soon to be disposed of, and each of their own time in Florin was packed in a chest box. It took less than two months to sort out all of their lives in the kingdom.

However, only the two of them left Sourn because of Julia’s shocking declaration that Melissa heard a few days before going to the port.

“Still, I was surprised.”

Melissa, who gently put down the spoon, said,

“Although Julia often went on errands at Mr. Greg’s butcher house…….”

“Oh, you mean staying in Sourn? Because of Hugo, who worked there.”

“Yes, did you know that?”

“We talked about it sometimes, but we didn’t know it had become so serious. How stubborn she was when she said she would remain in the kingdom! You should have seen that face.”

Anyway, love is the problem. Mrs. Kearney muttered softly and smiled. It was a sad yet gentle smile.

“Well, she is already approaching her adulthood. Now she should know how to make her own decisions.”

“……It’ll be okay. I also sent her a letter telling her to come here whenever she changes her mind. Alan also said he would arrange for a ship ticket for her at any time.”

Is that all? He told Melissa that he would always leave room for the two of them(Julia and her future husband). He said it was natural since Julia was like a family to his wife. She did not forget to say that she was happy to have the two ladies in a warm and comfortable place.

Mrs. Collins, a picky personality, loved the place very much, overshadowing the Flynn couple’s concerns. It was the absence of the ‘terrible cold,’ as she used to say, but the mansion filled with flowers was the best gift to her, who never had a garden like this in her life.

The sincerity of her mother, who took care of the flowers and trees every day, was so great that even the gardener praised her. It was here that Melissa learned for the first time that her mother also had a hobby of her own.

“……By the way, what are you doing without Alan coming over?”

Mrs. Kearney asked in a light tone when she saw Melissa, who was unable to eat while waiting for her husband. Hasn’t it been a while since she heard the carriage coming in? This would have cooled off all the food she had done in a long time.

“Well, is he looking at the documents in the room……?”

“Is there so much work at that small publishing company? He’s no longer the great successor.”

Melissa, who was nervous for no reason as she looked at the carefully prepared dishes, cleared her throat.

“Well, it looks like he’s a bit busy with ambassador work these days. He just changed his original clothes and went right away…”

Dinner was eaten together every day unless something special happened, and he always hurried to the dining hall after returning home because he did not want his wife’s meal to be delayed.

“Well, lady, maybe I’ll go…….”

“Melissa.”

“Alan!”

Melissa, who jumped up, ran to him with a surprised face and hugged him. The skirt of the muslin dress meandered like a wave and gently wrapped around Alan’s straight legs.

Through the open collar of the silk shirt, the distinctive scent of the body slowly seeped out. As if being covered in this scent all night wasn’t enough, Melissa only dug deeper into his wide chest.

Alan gently pressed his lip over the head of his wife, who was clinging like a spoiled child, and clasped her slender shoulders as if he were tapping the keyboard. It was only after gently coaxing her to sit in front of the table that he sat across from her. It was his daily routine every evening.

Mrs. Kearney, looking at the two with happy eyes, soon handed over a bowl of delicious stew.

“Welcome. You’re hungry, aren’t you?”

“Thank you.”

“Tell me if it’s not enough.”

“…….”

At first glance, it seemed like too much for Alan, who has a small appetite Melissa, who read the subtle embarrassment in his neat smile, giggled without anyone noticing.

Mrs. Kearney, who seemed to have a grudge against Alan because of Melissa’s long heartache, also became fond of him as if she were dealing with her son when she actually met him. Mrs. Collins was no exception.

Well, it’s not surprising since he was a man who was called everyone’s lover.

“So, how’s work going? Apparently, you seem to be busy.”

“Yes, it’s that time of the year.”

It was a strange answer, but the smile on his lips was beautiful. Mrs. Kearney naturally had this thought. Contrary to the rumor that he is cold and shrewd and has no humanity at all, seeing how he treats Melissa shows that he is surprisingly kind.

It was an interesting fact that he knew how to smile quite brightly. Even if it was a smile that she could only see when his wife was around, he was clearly different from the prejudice that he would be arrogant.

Even on the day when the two ladies and Mr. and Mrs. Flynn first met at the port, he was lithe and handsome. A noble face that answered calmly without being embarrassed by the women’s barrage of questions. Indeed, he was the only heir to the kingdom’s greatest businessman—now a thing of the past—and he was a man of skill.

That day, Alan Flynn calmly said, in a simple expression that was neither exaggerated nor insincere, how great his love was for Melissa and how grateful he was to the two ladies who raised her safely

Mrs. Kearney smiled silently as she remembered how contrasting Melissa, who turned red in both cheeks and his picture-innocent face were. A curiosity suddenly arose in her mind.

Is there a moment when even this near-perfect young man loses his composure?

‘Oh, that’s right. That day.’

On a cold winter evening when there was an unprecedented heavy snowfall, a man knocked on the door with Melissa in his arms. For Mrs. Kearney, that was the first day she met Alan Leopold, whom she had only heard of.

Maybe it was because it was the cold season. He looked like a snowman. His pale and beautiful face was calm and serene.

But was his voice calm, too?

‘I’ll call the doctor right away. Her body…… Please keep her warm. Come on…….’

Wasn’t both his hands trembling slightly, as if he was carefully embracing a precious dream? Those cold-colored eyes looked very desperate and earnest…….

Why does that scene come to mind clearly only now?

‘I see. The poor lady who was crying over the painful love…….’

She just didn’t know that love was already hers.

The lady lifted her gaze from her thoughts. Then she saw young lovers who was busy focusing only on each other. Two people who are lost just by making eye contact and looking at each other.

Would it be fine if I left? Or is it just me thinking so?

Mrs. Kearney, who raised the corners of her mouth quietly, broke the dense silence. It was a pleasant tone.

“I’m going to the annex now, have a good evening.”

“…….”

“Melissa, you too.”

Alan and Melissa, who belatedly came to their senses, greeted urgently.

“Have a good evening, ma’am.”

“H-have a good evening, Mrs. Kearney!”

So finally, it was time for the two of them.

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