As If I've Never Loved (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 2
It was the day I ended up oversleeping just a bit.
That day was unusually clear and bright.
After finishing lunch, Eloise rolled up her sleeves, determined to shake off her drowsiness by feeding the ducks.
“Eat slowly, you little ones. There’s plenty for everyone.”
As she scattered golden grains diligently, her words echoed exactly what her father would say at dinnertime.
Her movements were light and lively, as if dancing a waltz.
This was strictly one of Mrs. Hurst’s daily duties, but Eloise, who had adored the ducks since childhood, often helped her out.
Mrs. Bailey couldn’t bear seeing her grown daughter mingling among the ducks, so Sarah, as always, willingly lifted the piano lid to soothe her mother’s nerves.
It was during such a peaceful afternoon that—
“Eloise!”
Amid the flowing melody from the window and the ducks’ quacking, a faint voice called out.
“…Archie?”
Unable to hide her delight, Eloise turned toward the source of the voice.
Beneath the dazzling summer sun, her flushed cheeks glowed like ripe apples.
“Why are you here? It’s not even Sunday yet.”
“Should I leave, then?”
The man wiped a bead of sweat from the bridge of his nose with the back of his hand and grinned. A dimple on his sun-browned cheek appeared utterly guileless. Naturally, Eloise found herself smiling back.
“What? That’s not what I meant!”
Seeing he showed no sign of coming closer, Eloise scattered the remaining feed around and quietly slipped out from among the ducks.
“Be careful, Elsie. Don’t trip…”
Archiebald murmured absentmindedly as he watched her chestnut hair and simple poplin dress flutter in the early summer breeze.
Eloise Bailey seemed both utterly unchanged from the small, young girl she once was—and yet completely different.
When had time slipped by like this?
While lost in such thoughts, Eloise suddenly froze, halfway through smoothing her wind-tousled hair, as she drew close to him.
Archiebald Hicks was not only her childhood friend but also a servant of Fairmont House—that fact had just belatedly struck her.
Fairmont House stood in Longfield, not far from Mayberry.
The grand mansion’s master was Earl Huntington, and his only grandson was none other than Ansel Blaine.
Every summer, the beautiful guest would visit Longfield to spend time with her grandfather.
Eloise’s summer never truly began until she heard the news of his return.
That had remained true every year since the summer they first met, over a decade ago.
For the young Bailey sisters, summer was undoubtedly the busiest season.
The guest from the capital would always leave abruptly before the hot season even ended.
Thus, those few weeks of his stay were always spent more joyfully—and more frantically—than any other season.
He was the very reason she eagerly awaited summer and eventually came to love it.
Though it had been years since she and Ansel played together, whenever Mayberry’s roses bloomed, Eloise’s heart would flutter helplessly—
Without reason.
“Archie, could it be that your mas—”
“I was just passing by and called out. Happened to see you.”
“…What?”
She’d been about to ask if his young master had returned—even though they no longer exchanged greetings these days—but now she asked again with slight disappointment.
“Why are you passing by here?”
“An errand.”
“…How useless. I won’t keep you. Go on, then. See you at church on Sunday.”
As she turned to leave, Archiebald’s calm voice stopped her once more.
“Curious if the young master has returned?”
“…”
“You’ve always liked Master Ansel, haven’t you?”
Her sky-blue eyes, bluer than summer itself, widened as if she’d heard something unthinkable.
“Archie.”
She should have laughed it off as usual, dismissing his absurd remark with ease.
But Eloise missed her chance.
“We played together without a care when we were children, yet now we’ve grown so distant—all because of that feeling, isn’t it? Am I wrong?”
“…”
Eloise was taken aback by Archiebald’s uncharacteristic bluntness, leaving her only able to move her lips wordlessly.
His words were undeniably true, which made her speechless.
Yet there was another, more decisive reason she’d drifted apart from Ansel Blaine.
“It’s because of the gap between him and us. We were too young to understand back then, but now…”
“…”
“Anyway, you and I are still friends, right? Isn’t that enough?”
She playfully tapped his flat chest, but Archiebald didn’t budge.
“You can stay friends with me only because you don’t have feelings for me, Elsie—unlike how you feel about the young master.”
“…Archie, what are you trying to say?”
“But in truth, the young master’s heart belonged to Miss Bailey.”
In that moment, Eloise unwittingly recalled an incident from ten years ago.
The summer the Earl’s grandson turned fourteen, it wasn’t Ansel who came to Longfield—but only his letter.
On the back of the crisp white envelope was the Bailey family’s address—and only her elder sister’s name.
Sarah, who rarely showed her emotions, couldn’t hide her joy upon receiving it.
Of course, Eloise wasn’t surprised; she’d long sensed her sister’s feelings.
‘What does it say?’
When she’d asked in a casually indifferent tone, Sarah had replied:
“His handwriting is so beautiful, Eloise. And his sentences are elegant and courteous—just like letters from grown-ups…”
“But it seems he won’t be back until next year. He’s going abroad.”
Eloise still vividly remembered how unusually sorrowful Sarah’s face had looked as she said that.
Not long after composing herself, Sarah had added:
“He kindly included greetings for you, too.”
By then, Eloise’s relationship with Ansel had already begun growing distant.
Not only had she realized that fraternizing freely with a boy was unbecoming of a lady, but she could no longer pretend ignorance of Ansel’s background—of how he was far beyond their station.
So Eloise had forcibly suppressed the urge to snatch the letter right then and there.
What if it held secrets meant only for the two of them? More than anything, she didn’t want him to discover her futile feelings, so she never even asked how he’d inquired after her.
Thus, the sleepless nights spent imagining the sentences he might have written just for her remained her secret alone.
Not long after, Eloise saw the letter again—in her room.
To be precise, it lay atop Sarah’s small dresser; her sister must have reread it several times and forgotten to put it away.
And before she even realized it, Eloise found herself reading it—without stopping to consider she shouldn’t.
It was a plain, straightforward letter: polite greetings, news of his well-being, and neatly written lines announcing his acceptance into a two-year study abroad program due to outstanding academic performance.
She only learned much later that he’d been attending the capital’s most prestigious private school at the time.
“P.S. Please convey my regards to Miss Eloise Bailey.”
That was all the greeting he’d left for her.
It felt so hollow—almost as if Sarah hadn’t shown her the letter simply to spare her sister disappointment. Yet Eloise had been overwhelmingly happy.
Perhaps it was simply because his handwriting was so strikingly beautiful.
But her joy was matched by guilt over reading the letter in secret, and soon she confessed everything to her sister.
“I’m sorry! I read that letter. I saw it lying out and couldn’t help myself… He really seems to like you.”
At those words, Sarah had smiled brightly, assuring her it was fine.
Her cheeks flushed like rose-tinted paint; her smile, brimming with pure happiness, was breathtakingly beautiful.
Eloise’s heart eased—but also ached.
After all, there had been no shortage of moments between Ansel and Sarah in their childhood.
Nothing grand, perhaps—but like tiny gems in a small box, they’d sparkled with pretty, special memories.
Eloise knew them all as well as the participants themselves.
Because each one remained a tender ache in her heart.
Yet she wasn’t the only one who could never be with the Earl’s grandson.
Even her elder sister—the most beautiful woman in Mayberry—was in the same plight.
Ducks could never pair with swans. It was only natural.
Eloise slumped her shoulders in resignation.
“I know that. But no matter what, our family can never be linked with him. So it’s all pointless…”
“The young master will be coming to Longfield soon.”
Archiebald abruptly cut her off. Though his face was strangely flushed, his tone remained calm.
“He’ll arrive with news sure to astonish you.”
“What do you mean?”
“That’s all I can say for now. See you later.”
He reached out with his sun-darkened hand and tousled her smooth chestnut hair.
Then he strode briskly away in the direction he’d come from.
“Archie! Didn’t you say you were just passing through? What about your err—”
Archiebald had always been a fast walker—then and now.
Left alone in an instant, Eloise turned with a dazed sigh.
Adjusting the sack of duck feed in her arms, she thought:
Well… I doubt it’s anything truly shocking. Unless it’s news of a marriage.
Male lead is reincarnated to save his wife
I’ve also read this one twice already. The female lead is kinda soft and gets embarrassed easily—not really my type, but the plot is definitely worth reading. Hurry up and read it, y’all!
Intro
When Shen Yuan encountered Su Jin again in his previous life, she had already become the Prime Minister of the current dynasty. As for him, the former top young master of the capital, he had long since fallen into the abyss, becoming a singer on a pleasure boat.
After a song ended, he was redeemed and sent to the Su Residence.
Su Jin respected and cherished him, gave him a roof over his head, and bestowed him with warmth. Shen Yuan fell deeper and deeper, but before he could express his feelings, Su Jin passed away.
Shen Yuan died to follow her in death, but instead, he returned to when he was fifteen years old.
At that time, he was not yet engaged, and Su Jin was just a poor scholar.
Shen Yuan gritted his teeth, casting aside all his pride, and thought of ways to coax and entice her every day.
The colder and more indifferent Su Jin was towards him, the more proactive Shen Yuan became.
He was not afraid of being mocked by the world, only wanting to marry his Wife-master early, to hold her hand and never let go for a lifetime.
[Note: This story will not specifically point out the male lead’s reincarnation time point; it’s all in the details. Whenever you feel that the male lead is acting strangely, he has most likely been reincarnated.]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
MANGA DISCUSSION
1 Comment
Chapter Comments (2)
Remains me to novel little women. Eloise who is a free person and a sister who only purpose was marriage
Where is the 100 and 101 chapters 💔💔💔😭😭😭 why it is not here
Inline Comments (53)
Archibald’s face, when she looked down at him, was faintly flushed for some reas
He likes her! I had my dubts, but not now.
Let’s see how the story develops.“And I’d prefer it if we didn’t see each other after the wedding.”
What a fucking asshole Ansel is!! 😬🤣 How could Eloise have feelings for him?
Since childhood, Bianca had never hesitated to openly declare what she wanted.
That’s ok… But she’s soooo annoying and desperate 😒🤨
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Blairwoods
“Ducks could never pair with swans” girl…. you’re a swan too. and as much as i know, men loves girl like eloise who is bright and cute