The Prince’s First Love Was Me Chapter 12

When I returned to the café after finishing all my deliveries, Toby came over to me.

“Have things been rough at work lately? You look especially exhausted today.”

Toby wiped his wet hands on a dishcloth while studying my complexion.

“Haaah. There’s been some trouble at home.”

I’d stayed up all night discussing with my family how to get Aaron to break up with me.

Lucy kept pressuring me to come up with a concrete plan, while my mother and Becky got drunk on wine and burst into tears, blaming themselves for lacking the ability to prevent this mess.

It was absolute chaos.

The only one who managed to keep his head and suggest a practical solution was my father.

He told me to prove that I was exactly the prince’s type of person, so Aaron would want to avoid me just by looking at me.

‘Apparently, I should act manly but promiscuous.’

He might have taken Aaron’s image to the extreme, but when I thought about it, he wasn’t exactly wrong.

The problem now was how to pull it off…

“You can take a day off. The café isn’t going to go bankrupt just because you skip deliveries for one day.”

“Come on. A professional doesn’t bring personal problems into the workplace.”

“You’ve brought them in plenty already, haven’t you?”

Toby teased me before suddenly giving me a light tap on the shoulder.

“He’s here. The prince.”

“The prince?”

Aaron was a real prince, of course, but who was Toby calling a prince?

I turned around without thinking much of it, only to spot Aaron just stepping down from a carriage. My eyes widened.

“GAAH!”

I almost spat water out through my nose.

‘How did Toby know? Aaron even uses an ordinary carriage on purpose.’

I hadn’t expected the prince Toby was talking about to actually be Aaron, and I couldn’t stop coughing. Toby patted me on the back.

“Doesn’t he look the part? I’ve never actually seen royalty in person, but I bet they all look that refined.”

I had no intention of hiding Aaron’s identity from Toby, but there didn’t seem to be any need to tell him, either. So I responded with an awkward smile and let the comment slide.

When Aaron came inside, Toby tactfully stepped away. He seemed to have gotten used to it, since Aaron had been visiting every day for the past few days.

I’d wondered if he would come today, but here he was, arriving right on time again. Even if he hadn’t shown up, I probably would have waited another hour just in case before leaving.

“Hello. You’re cute as ever today, Ronnie.”

As he casually took off his jacket, I shyly returned the compliment.

“And you’re even more handsome than yesterday, Aaron.”

Aaron let out a quiet chuckle, rested his chin on his hand, and stared at me.

“You just can’t help saying what you want to say, even when you’re embarrassed, can you?”

“If I don’t say it out loud, the person in question won’t know. I’m looking forward to seeing how much more wonderful you’ll become tomorrow. It’s such a tragedy that we won’t be able to meet because it’s the weekend.”

Aaron had been visiting the café around the time I finished work, so of course we wouldn’t see each other on the weekend, when neither of us had a work schedule to follow. Aaron probably thought so, too.

It was a shame that I wouldn’t get to see him for two whole days. On the other hand, I was relieved to have some time to sort out my thoughts.

The biggest headache of my life was right in front of me, and the problem was that I liked that headache way too much. Whenever I was near him, my common sense stopped working.

“I don’t mind.”

But then Aaron shook my firm resolve to its core.

“Come see me whenever you miss me. I’ll be waiting.”

Come see me whenever you want? I’ll be waiting?

Then why not just let me move in with you?! From my perspective, even the time spent traveling back and forth is a waste! If you give me permission, I could move in as soon as today…!

Wait. No, I can’t. If I moved in, I’d have to maintain my male disguise from the moment I woke up until I went to bed. No matter how much I wanted to be with Aaron, that would be a bit too much to handle.

I snorted impatiently, desperately trying to calm myself down.

Honestly, what was wrong with this man? He had absolutely no sense of restraint. No wonder he got tired of his lovers so quickly.

‘…Oh? Actually, I might be able to use that to my advantage.’

Considering Aaron’s personality, wouldn’t he get sick of me pretty quickly if he saw me every day?

‘But wait a minute.’

As I continued racking my brain for a plan, I suddenly frowned, stood up, and lifted Aaron’s chin.

His eyes widened more than usual at my sudden, unexpected action, but he quietly looked at me.

I wasn’t even aware of what I was doing. I simply stared at the scratch on his cheek.

“Who did this to you?”

“Ah.”

Only then did Aaron seem to understand the situation. He smiled faintly.

“I got hit by a bag that some young lady swung at me.”

“What kind of crazy b—! Are her eyes on the soles of her feet or something?! Why would she suddenly start swinging her bag around?!”

“I told her we were breaking up.”

Aaron kept his face resting in my hand and whispered softly.

“I belong to you now, after all.”

The moment I heard those words, my mind went blank, and the hand supporting Aaron’s chin began to tremble.

When he felt the sudden shaking, Aaron subtly leaned his head back and burst out laughing at my dazed expression.

‘He really is dangerous. If I keep getting involved with him like this, I might end up clinging to his legs and begging him to live with me forever without ever breaking up.’

Before that happened, I needed to carry out the first stage of Operation: Get Dumped by the Prince!

Stage 1: Show Off My Manliness!

Keep reminding him that I’m a strong, strapping man until he finds me disgusting! Execute!

“Aaron. You haven’t eaten yet, have you? Instead of standing around here, let’s go out for dinner. I’m getting hungry.”

“Sounds good.”

After leaving the café, I secretly glanced around from behind Aaron, observing how the middle-aged men nearby walked.

Their shoulders slumped, their bellies stuck out slightly, and their legs spread wide with every step as they walked bowlegged.

There wasn’t even the slightest trace of a refined, elegant lady in their appearance.

Even I was frowning at the sight. Imagine how Aaron must feel.

‘This is guaranteed to work.’

With a confident expression, I stuck out my belly and turned my toes outward.

At first, I wasn’t used to it. My feet tangled together, and I even dragged my steps. But once I focused on walking that way, my movements became surprisingly natural.

“Where should we go?”

Aaron suddenly turned around.

I’d been following him without thinking, so I exaggeratedly scanned the area before pointing toward a shop at the far end of the plaza.

“Just follow me, sir!”

I’d grown fairly confident in my new walk, so I strode forward without hesitation, spreading my legs wide with every step.

‘How about that?! Look at this enormous stride! Those toes that look like they’ll never face each other! That sleazy, rhythmic swagger that makes me look like I should be carrying a loan shark’s bag!’

Even if Aaron tried not to show it, someone who had received posture training since birth would surely find my behavior irritating.

Lost in my own satisfaction, I strolled ahead until I happened to spot an elderly woman trying to load some luggage onto a carriage. I stopped.

‘That’s it.’

I’d been looking for a chance to show off my strength anyway.

Perfect!

I rolled up my sleeves without hesitation and headed toward the carriage.

I sneaked a glance at Aaron. He had stopped a short distance behind me and was watching with an intrigued expression.

Good. Stay right there and watch!

“Ma’am, please get inside! I’ll load it for you.”

After helping the old woman into the carriage, I reached out proudly and grabbed the bundle.

Right then—

“Ugh!”

My body lurched downward with a groan, and I nearly lost my balance.

“What on earth is in this thing?”

I glanced around nervously before hesitantly reaching out with both hands.

I was supposed to lift it with one hand to look cool. But I wasn’t strong enough, so what choice did I have?

I gripped the bundle with both hands and pulled with all my might. This time, my legs started trembling pathetically.

‘How is this possible? Is there a chunk of iron in here or something? Why won’t it budge?’

Unable to watch any longer, the coachman climbed down from the carriage and approached me.

“Hey. Don’t push yourself. Move aside before you throw your back out.”

My face bright red, I raised my head.

“Stop getting in my way and go prepare the carriage. I’m going to lift this with my own hands no matter what.”

The coachman caught a glimpse of the madness in my eyes as I stared at the bundle. He flinched and returned to his seat.

‘Aaaaaah! I’m going to lift it!’

Left alone, I strained and struggled, pouring every ounce of stubbornness into lifting the luggage.

I had barely a moment to enjoy my success before the pain made my arms feel like they were about to fall off. I hurriedly dropped the bundle onto the back of the carriage as if I were throwing it.

“Move out!”

I shouted at the top of my lungs after completing my mission.

The coachman looked back, gave me a thumbs-up, and then pulled the reins with a loud cry.

“You’re strong as an ox, Ronnie.”

Aaron approached me, speaking with a hint of laughter in his voice. He must have been watching the whole thing.

I shrugged as if it were nothing.

“This is the bare minimum for a man. Besides, I’m at the age when my blood is running hot. I need to release some of that energy, or I can’t sleep well at night. Heh.”

I kept walking, spewing information he hadn’t even asked for.

My legs were still shaking a little, but he hadn’t noticed, had he?

‘Maybe that laugh at the end made me sound a bit too obnoxious.’

Feeling embarrassed a moment too late, I scratched the bridge of my nose and continued forward. Then, not far away, I spotted another poor soul in need of help.

‘Let’s drive the point home with this one.’

When I got closer, I discovered that this so-called poor soul was actually a rather large, muscular man, sweating profusely as he rolled an oak barrel along the ground.

I could tell what was going on at a glance. That barrel was clearly filled with liquor being delivered to a nearby tavern.

If it was liquid, it had to be incredibly heavy.

Filled with renewed determination, I first rolled my neck, cracking it from side to side to loosen up.

What if I managed to lift it when that muscle-bound man couldn’t?

Wouldn’t that make me manly enough to be downright repulsive?

“Brother, let me help you.”

The man seemed surprised by the sudden offer of help, but soon let out a hearty laugh and straightened up.

“Thanks. There’s a slope over here, so you’ll have an easier time if you use the terrain to your advantage.”

The man explained how to roll the barrel more easily, but I was so blinded by my desire to show off my strength that I ignored his advice and crouched down.

Since the barrel didn’t have any handles, I would have to spread my arms wide and hug it against my chest to lift it.

The man noticed what I was doing and began pacing nearby with a worried look.

“That thing is quite heavy. You’d be better off rolling it.”

“Let me try just once. There’s a reason I absolutely have to lift it.”

I took a short, deep breath and put all my strength into my arms.

“Hup! Hnnngh!”

I tensed every muscle in my body so hard that I thought I might actually shit myself.

Then, a cracking sound rang out from somewhere.

‘Crack?’

I hurriedly tried to look at the ground, wondering if the barrel had broken. But for some reason, my body wouldn’t move the way I wanted it to.

Only then did I realize.

The thing that had just snapped wasn’t the barrel.

It was my back.

…Ah. I’m screwed.