Don't Pick That Flower (2 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 3
This voice… could it be…?!
Irene spun around in shock. The shoe she had been clutching tightly to her chest tumbled down the stairs.
There stood Carlos, slightly bent at the waist, holding out a candlestick toward her.
Though she had guessed it from the voice, Irene was even more startled to confirm it really was Carlos, and she instinctively leaned backward while still seated.
But right behind her were the stairs, so she couldn’t retreat far before tilting precariously backward.
“Ah…!”
Irene let out a sharp cry and reflexively reached her hands forward—not hoping Carlos would catch her, but merely trying to regain her balance.
Carlos firmly seized her outstretched hand and pulled her sharply toward himself.
Thanks to this, she avoided the disaster of tumbling down the stairs—but Irene’s eyes widened in alarm at the hand now gripping hers.
The large hand holding hers felt like a solid noose, making her uncomfortable and frightened.
Irene tried to pull her hand free, but he refused to let go. Instead, he gripped her even tighter, as if determined never to release her.
“Let go… please let go.”
“You must have something to say first, don’t you?”
Something to say? Reading the confusion in Irene’s eyes, Carlos added an explanation.
“In a situation like this, shouldn’t you say ‘thank you for saving me’?”
It was a fair point, yet hearing him say it felt oddly unsettling.
“Th-thank you.”
Only after Irene reluctantly offered her thanks did Carlos finally release her hand.
Irene clutched her throbbing hand and shakily tried to stand.
“What were you doing here?”
No—she’d just started to rise when his next question made her legs go weak, and she sank back down again.
“You wouldn’t be heading to the restroom—the guest room has one, after all.”
A detached, calm voice continued from above.
“Are you hungry? Or if not that…”
His eyes narrowed slightly as they looked down at Irene.
“Were you trying to run away?”
Thud—.
The sound of her heart plummeting echoed loudly in her ears. Seeing her blue eyes flicker anxiously, Carlos twisted the corner of his lips.
“So you really were trying to run away.”
“N-no! I just wanted to know where this place is…”
It was a pitiful excuse. Irene knew Carlos would never believe such an implausible lie.
Indeed, he was staring down at her as if utterly baffled.
Avoiding his gaze, Irene clasped her hands tightly together.
‘He’s going to get angry.’
She expected harsh slaps, kicks—or worse, that he might even kill her.
The plea “Please spare my life” rose to her throat, but Irene swallowed it back.
No matter what she said—even if she burst into tears and begged—he wouldn’t listen.
Though sheltered her whole life and ignorant of how the world worked, she knew well enough how fearsome and cold Duke Esper truly was.
Her mother, pitying Irene for being left alone all day while she worked, had brought her all sorts of reading materials—including gossip tabloids that frequently featured stories about Duke Esper.
Tales claimed he carried monster blood, had a twisted personality, and would kill even a child without hesitation if displeased—every story more chilling than the last.
If death was her fate either way, she at least wanted to preserve the last shred of dignity she had left.
Once she accepted this resignation, her mind grew surprisingly calm.
Wishing for whatever punishment awaited her to end quickly, she closed her eyes and waited—until a cool voice sounded above her.
“Take it.”
At those words, Irene slowly opened her eyes. Carlos was holding out his hand toward her.
“How long are you going to sit there?”
So he was telling her to take his hand and stand up?
Expecting a beating, Irene was bewildered that it hadn’t come—and stared blankly at Carlos.
Though her hesitation might have annoyed him, Carlos neither clicked his tongue nor urged her; he simply waited silently.
Finally coming to her senses, Irene stood up without taking his offered hand.
Seemingly embarrassed by this, Carlos frowned slightly and withdrew his hand.
“I’ll escort you to your guest room.”
Why wasn’t he angry?
Could it be that her ridiculous excuse had actually worked?
She had many questions—why he’d brought her here, where they’d go next—but none of them came easily to her lips.
Because she was still afraid of him.
Especially when meeting his violet eyes—the symbol of monsters—her knees went weak and goosebumps prickled her skin.
‘But I need to know.’
She couldn’t keep being dragged along without understanding anything.
By the time they reached the guest room, Irene finally mustered the courage to ask.
“Why… why did you bring me here?”
Carlos, who had been personally opening the guest room door, turned to look at her.
The courage she’d scraped together from the floor shattered instantly upon meeting his gaze.
Her face, pale as paper, drooped limply downward.
Carlos stared down at her for a long moment before finishing the motion of opening the door.
“Because I need you.”
He gently pushed her back with his other hand.
Startled into stepping inside, Irene momentarily forgot her fear and turned to look at him.
“So it’d be best not to think about running away.”
Carlos spoke in a rare tone thick with emotion.
“Next time, it won’t end as gently as this.”
“…”
“Now, get some rest.”
Thud—.
With those final words, the door closed.
*
Carlos had told her to rest well, but resting was impossible.
Having forced herself to sleep yet lying awake all night, Irene finally climbed out of bed, rubbing her bloodshot eyes.
Many things had kept her awake, but the biggest reason was Carlos’s answer to her question.
His words—that he’d brought her because he needed her.
If he’d taken her merely for entertainment or similar reasons, he wouldn’t have said he “needed” her.
Which meant there was another reason—but she couldn’t fathom what it was.
“My head hurts.”
Worrying all night had given her a throbbing headache, worsened by lack of proper sleep.
Intending to splash cold water on her face to clear her mind, Irene entered the bathroom—and while she was at it, thoroughly washed herself.
It felt good to cleanse her grimy body after rolling around in prison filth—but a new problem arose.
She had no clean clothes to change into.
As she hesitated over whether to put her dirty clothes back on, a knock sounded at the door.
Was it him? Her anxious blue eyes fixed on the door.
“Miss, are you awake?”
The voice outside wasn’t Carlos’s.
This voice was definitely… Dewey’s, wasn’t it?
“Miss?”
“Just a moment.”
Irene quickly threw on her dirty clothes and opened the door.
Standing before her was Dewey, smiling as brightly as sunshine.
“You’re awake.”
Irene nodded and glanced around. Thankfully, he was alone—Carlos was nowhere in sight.
“What… what is it?”
“I’ve brought breakfast.”
Only then did Irene notice Dewey holding a tray and reached out for it.
But Dewey merely shook his head and didn’t hand over the tray.
“I’ll set it up for you.”
“But…”
“Please allow me.”
Since Dewey spoke so firmly, Irene had no choice but to nod.
Humming a tune, Dewey entered the room, swiftly set the table, and gestured for her to take a seat.
“Please sit here.”
Once Irene sat down shakily, he poured water into a clean glass for her.
Then he placed a freshly baked loaf from the basket onto her plate.
Never in her life had she received such treatment—so overwhelmed was Irene that she just blinked, forgetting even to eat.
“If my presence here makes you uncomfortable, I’ll take my leave.”
“Oh, no!”
Flustered, Irene shook her head.
It wasn’t entirely true that she felt comfortable—but compared to being with Carlos, this was heaven.
“You’re probably just unaccustomed to such treatment, so please don’t worry about it.”
“I see.”
Dewey smiled, his eyes crinkling prettily.
“Still, since you’ll be staying at Esper Castle from now on, it’s best you get used to it.”
So she’d be living at Esper Castle from now on.
She’d vaguely guessed they’d go to Esper Territory since Carlos was Duke Esper—but she hadn’t expected to stay in the castle itself.
“Why… why did His Serene Highness the Grand Duke bring me here?”
She’d already heard Carlos’s answer—“because I need you”—but that wasn’t enough.
She wanted a clearer reason.
“You should ask His Serene Highness the Grand Duke directly about that.”
Unfortunately, Dewey didn’t provide the clear explanation she sought.
Irene almost replied that she’d already asked Carlos—but stopped herself.
“I see…”
She figured he wouldn’t tell her even if she pressed further.
And if that was the case, he probably wouldn’t answer other questions either.
Resigning herself to silence, Irene picked up the bread on her plate.
As Dewey set a jar of jam beside her plate, he said,
“If there’s anything you need, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
Anything she needed. Irene’s gaze naturally drifted to her worn-out clothes.
“Oh, dear!”
Noticing her outfit, Dewey sighed deeply and hurried out of the room.
A moment later, he returned with a set of clean clothes and apologized.
“I should’ve thought of this earlier—I’m sorry.”
Irene shook her head.
“No, thank you for bringing me clothes.”
“It’s nothing—I should’ve done it anyway.”
Dewey smiled faintly and laid the clothes on the bed.
“I’ll take my leave now. My room is right next door, so feel free to call me anytime if you need anything else.”
*
After Dewey left, Irene almost changed clothes immediately—but decided to finish her meal first.
The food would get cold while she changed.
Besides, she was hungry. She hadn’t realized it until seeing the food, but hunger suddenly surged back.
After all, while imprisoned, all she’d eaten was a fist-sized piece of bread—and even that had been moldy, forcing her to discard half of it.
The delicious meal and the long-forgotten feeling of fullness lifted her spirits, which had sunk to rock bottom. The tension coiled tightly inside her loosened just a little.
Humming softly, Irene examined the clothes Dewey had left behind.
Only then did she notice something—there was undergarments tucked among the clothes. Realizing Dewey had brought her undergarments made her cheeks flush with embarrassment.
Just as she hastily shed her ragged clothes and undergarments and slipped into the new ones—
Bam—.
Without even a knock, the door swung open—and Carlos walked in.
“…!”
Startled, Irene frantically covered herself with the clothes and turned away. Goosebumps rose on her fully exposed back.
“P-please leave!”
Irene cried out desperately—but instead of footsteps fading away, they grew closer.
Her face flushed crimson. Right now, she felt more embarrassed and ashamed than afraid of him.
Keeping her back turned to Carlos, she waved her arms wildly to signal him to stay away—but it was useless.
In a few long strides, Carlos closed the distance, grasped her shoulders, and ran his fingertips down her bare back.
Male lead says he’s pregnant — and it’s female lead’s child
Something seems a bit off about this world.
Wang Zhao thought as she watched a pregnant man walking towards her…
Intro
Female lead finds herself in a world where the men who possess the ability to bear children.
As she navigates this unfamiliar reality, she is caught off guard by the sudden appearance of her boyfriend, who reveals that he is pregnant.
Is this truly her boyfriend?
Why can’t she recall any details about their time together?
She begins to doubt whether the child her boyfriend is carrying is even hers.
Is there a hidden reason behind her amnesia, or could it be a side effect of her sudden arrival in this strange new world?
Just when it seems the protagonist’s life couldn’t become any more entangled, her ex-boyfriend makes an unexpected appearance, raising questions about the protagonist’s past.
__________
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Blairwoods
Carlos closed the distance, grasped her shoulders, and ran his fingertips down her bare back.
is this smut???