Bonita couldn’t hide her bewilderment.

‘Why are they acting like this?’

Both Aria and Luke.

As soon as she shook her head, saying she didn’t know her birthday, the atmosphere suddenly turned cold.

‘Did I do something wrong?’

Bonita habitually gripped her skirt tightly. It was a behavior stemming from anxiety.

‘Is it wrong not to know your birthday?’

She had never been particularly curious about things like birthdays in her life.

Children in the back alleys didn’t have birthdays. It was natural since they had no parents. In cases of adopted children, some would celebrate the adoption date as a birthday.

Bonita thought she was similar.

Aria is not Bonita’s biological mother.

Whether she picked her up, adopted her, or took her in for some reason was unknown, but it was certain that the two had no biological relationship.

So she didn’t bother asking about her birthday.

Not only was it unnecessary for living, but Aria also didn’t celebrate her own birthday.

But seeing Aria and Luke’s expressions now, Bonita became anxious, wondering if there was something wrong with her.

“Bonita.”

It was an affectionate call.

But the voice trembled.

Bonita, who had been fidgeting with her fingers, noticed the emotion hidden in Aria’s tone.

She was angry and sad at the same time. She also seemed very perplexed and felt betrayed.

Why was that?

“Your birthday is April 8th.”

“Yes…”

Bonita nodded while watching Aria’s reaction. Her skirt stuck to her palms due to sweat.

This time, Luke spoke.

“We were… planning to throw a birthday party for you.”

“A, a birthday party?”

Bonita stammered in surprise.

‘A birthday party?’

Birthday party, birthday party.

As Bonita rolled the words that came out of Luke’s mouth in her mind, she soon recalled a vague image.

There were such days occasionally.

Days when children from wealthy families, even when it wasn’t a special occasion, would go home with their parents’ hands, carrying armfuls of gifts.

On such days, children wearing similar clothes would surround that child, chattering noisily. It was a scene she could sometimes see when going to the shopping district to buy food.

Of course, such children rarely mingled with poor children like Bonita, so all she could do was overhear bits and pieces of their loud conversations.

“Yes, a birthday party.”

Luke said in a gentle tone.

Although his smile was somewhat unnatural as if suppressing anger, Bonita could at least sense that he wasn’t angry at her.

“So we were thinking of inviting friends you like to the party, and we came to ask your opinion on who to invite.”

‘I can invite friends?’

Bonita tried to suppress the joy that was welling up momentarily.

The atmosphere between the two was too unsettling to express her joy as it was. It felt like a bomb would explode the moment they left this room.

‘I shouldn’t leave them alone.’

At least not now.

Bonita trusted her observational skills and intuition. If nothing else, she was confident in her ability to read someone’s emotions.

‘For now, that’s it.’

Emotions are highly volatile.

Even the strongest emotions are momentary. Anger was especially so.

Once the moment of feeling the emotion passes, people inevitably become accustomed to it. Rather than exploding in anger, they tend to accept it.

Bonita had learned in detail through the previous Aria how an angry person goes through the process of calming down.

So… she just needed to get through this moment. That’s what she thought for now.

“Um, I!”

Bonita, having quickly assessed the situation, shouted briefly as if cutting off her words.

Both of them focused their attention on her.

“I’d like to invite Cassis, Allen, Derek. And, um… also a girl named Maya.”

“I see.”

Luke wrote down the names of the four people on the list. It was a rational attitude despite being angry.

“Any other children?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure about that. Should I invite many?”

“No, you can do whatever you want. It’s your birthday party, after all.”

Luke said so, but Bonita still felt the concept of a birthday party completely unfamiliar.

It couldn’t be helped.

Having never celebrated or even been curious about birthdays her entire life, she was simply dumbfounded when suddenly told that her birthday was a week away and that they would throw a grand party for her.

But being able to invite friends was a joyous thing. It seemed like they could have a fun day like the one spent at the Hyacinth Viscount’s house last time.

As Bonita was thinking about the meeting a week later, she suddenly hit a wall of reality.

“But how do I invite them? Should I go to their houses a day earlier and tell them to come to the birthday party?”

“What?”

Hearing Bonita’s serious concern, the two started laughing for some reason.

As Bonita tilted her head as if not understanding, the two laughed even more.

‘Both of them seem to be in a better mood than earlier.’

Thanks to that, the precarious atmosphere was diffused. Although she didn’t know why they laughed, it was fortunate.

…But how long are they going to keep laughing?

Bonita wiggled her legs that were dangling in the air.

It was good that their mood had improved, but she hoped they would stop laughing now and resolve her concerns.

However, it was after laughing like that for quite a while that Luke spoke again.

“Of course not.”

His tone suggested he found Bonita adorably cute.

“We’ll send invitations. It’s a kind of letter, you see.”

“A letter.”

Bonita exclaimed as she finally recalled the concept of a letter.

“Will you write the letter for me, Your Grace?”

“Of course. Would you like to think together about what to write?”

Bonita nodded.

Then suddenly, a good idea came to her.

‘We can go write the letter now!’

That way, Aria and Luke could have some time apart from each other.

Bonita jumped off the sofa and grabbed Luke’s fingers. She felt him flinch.

“Can we go write now? I want to try sending something like a letter.”

“Of course we can.”

Luke answered kindly, his lips twitching slightly.

“Then shall we go to the study? There should be a few pieces of stationery that dad prepared in advance. It might be good to choose any one you like from them.”

“Will there be paper that they might like? Allen said he likes trains.”

“We don’t have train-shaped stationery, but if needed, dad can help you cut it.”

Bonita naturally held Luke’s hand and led him out of the room.

As she did so, she glanced back.

Aria was waving at Bonita with a smiling face.

There was no trace of sadness or worry in that appearance.

But for some reason, Bonita couldn’t shake the feeling that she would make a different expression the moment Bonita turned her back.

‘Because it was like that last time.’

When talking beyond the door.

Although Aria seemed to try her best to hide it, her voice trembled faintly when Bonita talked about old times.

It wasn’t hard to imagine what kind of face she might be making.

Because the previous Aria also made a very sad… and painful expression when looking at Bonita while drinking.

Of course, it wouldn’t be exactly the same as then.

Whether it’s due to the unique atmosphere the two possess, or simply because the second Aria always goes around with a bright smile unlike the first, is unknown.

‘Ah.’

Bonita, who was thoughtlessly thinking about the two, decided to call them the first and second Aria instead of the past and present Aria.

It seemed less confusing that way later. Even if, well, it’s a terrifying thought, but even if the two were to switch again.

Anyway…

What’s certain is that even when feeling similar emotions, the muscles that move are clearly different between the two.

But as Bonita searched her memories, she soon easily recalled what kind of expression the second Aria used to make.

“I’m sorry, mommy’s sorry, Bonita…”

That was when the second Aria first appeared before Bonita.

At that time, the changed mother’s attitude was so bewildering, and she hadn’t thought it could be a different person, so she didn’t observe carefully.

However, one of Bonita’s strengths was her ability to remember momentary memories as vividly as a photograph.

As she held Luke’s hand and walked to the study, Bonita’s mind was filled with her first meeting with the second Aria.

“Mommy’s sorry. For dying too early, for not being able to find you…”

It was a bit strange from the start.

She hugged her and cried profusely while saying incomprehensible things, then soon whispered words of love in her ear.

Even after calming down, it was still strange.

The behavior, the words.

Everything.

“It was mommy’s lifelong wish to bathe her daughter herself. …Would that be okay?”

“Bonita, what year is it now?”

“617…”

“Then our Bonita must be seven years old.”

“For seven years, you…”

She had a vague guess.

Since when exactly?

Such a fundamental question arose.

Bonita thought deeply.

When she first made a cake with Aria?

When Aria burst into tears at the word ‘mom’ while riding in a carriage to a social gathering?

Or was it when she talked with Aria with just a door between them?

“Bonita, my beloved baby.”

“Now mommy will protect you. Mommy will, certainly…”

However, the moment she recalled the memory that remained vaguely in her half-asleep state, Bonita instinctively felt that all those assumptions were wrong.

The second Aria−

The second Aria, probably…

That is, probably…

“Dad.”

The moment she realized, Bonita couldn’t help but call out to Luke.

Her dad’s face, brightening at her call, filled her vision.

Bonita asked such a dad.

“What kind of person was mom?”