I needed out. Immediately.
And yet, I had no way of escaping.
Claire was practically glowing with excitement, eyes bouncing between everyone like she was the host of an exclusive romantic drama, while Tessa had entered the stage of quiet, suffering resignation. Camille, despite her usual calm demeanor, hadn't moved an inch from my side, and Diana was clearly having the time of her life.
Then there was Lillian.
Still composed, still elegant, still unreadable.
She hadn't done anything yet, but that was the most concerning part.
Because Lillian never rushed.
She waited. She planned. She executed.
And I was terrified of what her 'turn' was going to be.
I took a deep breath, trying to regain any semblance of control. "Okay. Now that you've all had your fun—which was at my expense, by the way—can we actually focus on enjoying the outing?"
Diana smirked, stirring her tea with leisurely ease. "Oh, darling, we are enjoying it."
"Enjoying my suffering."
"You make it far too entertaining."
Tessa, still slumped over in exhaustion, muttered, "I want a refund on this day."
Lillian, finally picking up her tea again, glanced at me with quiet amusement. "You seem tense, Sera."
I blinked. "I wonder why."
Lillian smiled. "You should relax."
"Relaxing is impossible when I'm being—"
Before I could finish, she moved.
Lillian, the ever-composed, ever-poised princess, reached out, and in one smooth, confident motion—she took my hand.
I froze.
The warmth of her fingers was gentle but firm, her touch featherlight yet deliberate.
The entire table went silent.
Diana stilled.
Camille's fingers paused mid-movement.
Claire's mouth fell open.
Even Tessa looked up in surprise.
I stared at her, my brain short-circuiting. "…What are you doing?"
Lillian tilted her head slightly, her sparkling green eyes steady on mine. "Helping you relax."
I nearly choked.
Claire made an actual strangled noise. "LILLIAN, WHAT THE HELL?!?"
Lillian, unfazed, simply lifted my hand closer to her lips—
"No. NO." I yanked my hand back so fast, I nearly knocked over the entire tea set.
Diana burst into laughter.
Camille's fingers twitched ever so slightly, but she remained still.
Claire, on the other hand, was not okay. "LILLIAN. YOU WERE ABOUT TO—"
Lillian took a leisurely sip of her tea, as if she had done nothing at all. "I wasn't going to do anything drastic. I only meant to ease her nerves."
"BY KISSING HER HAND?!"
"Would that have been a problem?"
"YES. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A PROBLEM."
Diana, still laughing, wiped at the corner of her eye. "Oh, this is delicious. Sera, my dear, you look absolutely ruined."
"I feel ruined!" I hissed, gripping my cup like it was a lifeline. "This isn't a competition! This isn't some kind of—of—"
Diana leaned forward, grinning like a predator. "Oh, sweetheart. It absolutely is."
I genuinely thought Camille might intervene—that she might put an end to this chaos.
But instead, she simply picked up a fork, took another bite of her pastry, and said, "If this is a competition, I've already won."
The world stopped moving.
Diana turned to her, brows raising in delight. "Oh? How bold of you, Camille."
Claire, hyperventilating, grabbed onto my sleeve. "SERA. SERA, ARE YOU HEARING THIS??"
Lillian, as always, remained unshaken. "Confidence is admirable," she said, voice smooth. "But we'll see."
Camille tilted her head, watching her. "We will."
Diana let out a soft, slow whistle. "I do hope no one minds if I up the stakes, then."
Tessa, looking like she had reached her limit, finally spoke. "If you even think about it, I am walking back to the academy alone."
Diana laughed. "Oh, but it's so tempting."
"WE ARE HERE TO ENJOY A NORMAL DAY." I snapped, throwing my hands up. "I refuse to be a prize in some ridiculous noble courtship game. Just let me drink my tea in peace!"
Lillian hummed, taking another sip. "Drink, then."
Diana smirked. "By all means, darling."
Camille? Completely unbothered.
Claire? Still recovering from the entire conversation.
Tessa? Mentally done.
I tried to drown myself in my tea, hoping that if I focused hard enough on the taste, I could forget the absolute insanity unfolding around me.
Spoiler: I couldn't.
Lillian had just nearly kissed my hand. Diana was openly amused. Camille had practically declared herself the victor. Claire was still hyperventilating, and Tessa—
I glanced at her.
Tessa looked like she was experiencing a personal crisis.
Unlike the others, she wasn't smiling, teasing, or entertained. She just sat there, arms crossed, staring blankly at the table like she was mentally reevaluating every life choice that had led her here.
"…Tessa?" I asked cautiously.
She blinked slowly, then exhaled. "I just realized something."
The tone of her voice was so hollow, so resigned that even Claire—who had been seconds away from screaming again—paused.
Diana arched an eyebrow. "Oh? Do share."
Tessa tilted her head back, staring at the ceiling as if asking the gods why they had forsaken her. Then, in a voice that could only be described as the sound of someone who had just given up on everything, she muttered:
"…I'm the only sane person in this group."
Silence.
Then—
Claire burst out laughing so hard she nearly fell off her chair.
Diana actually snorted, covering her mouth.
Lillian's lips curved slightly, the closest thing to a full smile I'd seen from her all day.
Even Camille's eyes flickered with amusement as she calmly reached for another bite of her pastry.
I just sighed. "Tessa, I hate to break it to you, but you're about five conversations too late to figure that out."
Tessa groaned, dragging a hand down her face. "I should've known from the start. I should've known. But no. I kept telling myself, 'Surely, there's a limit. Surely, this won't turn into an actual war over Sera's lap.' But here we are."
I winced. "To be fair, I wasn't expecting that either."
Tessa let out a deep, exhausted sigh. "You should have. You, of all people, should have."
She wasn't wrong.
Claire, still laughing, wiped at her eyes. "Tessa, Tessa, listen. You're not alone. You have me!"
Tessa shot her a deadpan look. "You are literally the least sane person at this table."
"Okay, rude."
"You planned this trip as an elaborate setup."
Claire grinned. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"You made an itinerary. For romance."
"That's called being efficient."
"You're actively encouraging Sera's suffering."
Claire beamed. "I call it character development."
Tessa groaned again, looking like she wanted to throw herself into the nearest fountain. "I need new friends."
Diana, still highly entertained, poured herself another cup of tea. "But where would you find friends as interesting as us?"
"Literally anywhere else."
Camille, who had been quiet up until now, finally spoke. "You could leave. But you won't."
Tessa grumbled. "Yeah, yeah. You're right. Whatever."
I watched her for a moment, feeling a little guilty.
For all of Tessa's sarcasm and complaints, she really did put up with a lot. Unlike the others—who fully embraced this ridiculous chaos—Tessa had always been more practical, reserved.
She acted like she didn't care. Like she was just along for the ride.
But she was always here.
Always watching.
Always stepping in when things got too out of hand.
I nudged her lightly. "If it makes you feel better, I appreciate that at least one of us has common sense."
She side-eyed me. "That's not saying much."
"Still."
Tessa exhaled through her nose, then—finally, finally—allowed a tiny smirk. "Yeah, yeah. You owe me for putting up with all this."
I grinned. "Fair enough."
"Good. Now someone get me more tea before I actually lose my mind."
Diana happily obliged. "Oh, darling, don't worry. I'm sure you'll lose it eventually."
Tessa groaned. "I hate all of you."
I nudged her lightly again. "Hey, at least the tea's good, right?"
She took a slow, long sip, staring at nothing in particular. Then, without even looking at me, she muttered, "This is the only thing keeping me from walking into the ocean."
Diana laughed, absolutely delighted. "Oh, I do love when you're in this mood, Tessa. You're so wonderfully dramatic."
Tessa rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't be if you all weren't so unbearable."
Claire, still bouncing with excitement, grinned. "Aww, but Tessa, don't you love us?"
Tessa gave her a deadpan stare. "No."
Claire gasped. "Lies! Slander! After everything we've been through?"
"We've been through you scheming to make Sera suffer for an entire day."
"Suffer?!" Claire pointed dramatically at me. "Sera is thriving."
I snorted. "I am absolutely not."
Lillian sipped her tea gracefully. "You seem alive to me."
"That's not the same thing!"
Camille, finally done with her pastry, brushed off her hands and calmly leaned back in her chair. "You'll survive."
I stared at her. "That's not the comforting reassurance you think it is."
Diana rested her chin on her palm, looking at me far too smugly. "Oh, but I do think you're enjoying yourself, darling. Deep down."
I opened my mouth to argue, but before I could even get a word out—
Tessa suddenly set her cup down with force.
Everyone stilled.
She inhaled. Exhaled. And then, with the seriousness of someone making a royal decree, she said:
"Alright. New rule."
I blinked. "…What?"
Tessa raised a hand, as if silencing an imaginary court. "From this moment forward, I am implementing a ten-minute cooldown on any and all romantic advances toward Sera. Minimum."
I nearly fell out of my chair. "WHAT?!"
Claire screeched. "Tessa, NO!"
Diana arched a brow, amused. "Oh? And what brought on this sudden ruling?"
Tessa rubbed her temples aggressively. "I just want to drink my tea. In peace. For ten minutes."
Camille, ever stoic, folded her arms. "What's stopping us from ignoring that rule?"
Tessa shot her a look so done it could have stopped time itself. "My patience. Which is currently at three percent."
Claire gasped. "That's dangerously low!"
"Exactly."
Lillian, utterly unbothered, tapped a finger lightly against her cup. "And if someone breaks this rule?"
Tessa didn't hesitate. "Then I am invoking chaos countermeasures."
Diana's eyes lit up. "Oh, I do love the sound of that. What exactly do these 'countermeasures' entail?"
Tessa met her gaze evenly. "You don't want to find out."
The entire table fell into thoughtful silence.
Claire was clearly struggling. I could see it in the way her fingers twitched, like she was physically holding herself back from causing more chaos.
Diana, on the other hand, looked intrigued.
Lillian was simply watching, assessing, like she was debating whether it was worth entertaining this new rule.
Camille, of course, looked completely unbothered.
And me?
I was just in shock.
"You're defending me?" I asked, still trying to process it.
Tessa rolled her eyes. "No, I'm defending my sanity."
"I'll still take it."
Tessa huffed, sipping her tea again. "Good. Because I will enforce this rule with extreme prejudice."
Diana sighed dramatically. "What a shame. And here I was, about to do something terribly bold."
Tessa pointed at her instantly. "Sit down. No boldness allowed. Ten minutes."
Claire slumped in her chair, defeated. "This is so unfair."
Lillian simply smiled. "Perhaps it will be good for you to learn patience."
Claire groaned. "Not you too!"
Diana, tapping a finger against her lips, hummed thoughtfully. "But what if Sera is the one who initiates something?"
I choked. "I WOULD NEVER—"
Tessa glared at her. "Don't encourage her."
Diana's smirk widened. "Oh, but that would be interesting, wouldn't it?"
Camille, completely serious, turned to me. "You should try."
I stared at her in horror. "Why are you like this?"
Tessa shoved a piece of bread into my hand. "Eat. Distract yourself."
I sighed, officially giving up. But honestly?
Tessa's rule was the best thing that had happened to me all day.
For now.