"I'm really just going inside to sit for a while and calm down. Nothing will happen. Can you please stop following me?"
Seeing her almost pleading expression, Draco remained silent for a moment before finally relenting. "Fine, I won't stop you."
Diana had just breathed a sigh of relief, her tense shoulders relaxing slightly, when she heard him add:
But I have to go in with you.
"No need, I can manage on my own!"
She rejected me outright without even thinking about it.
"You either let me stay with you, or you go back to your room now." Draco presented him with a choice between two options.
"I can't just watch you cause trouble on the deck and then sneak into a bar by yourself. What if something happens?"
"Since I've taken on this responsibility, I'll see it through to the end."
Seeing her biting her lower lip and struggling with her emotions, Draco softened his tone slightly. "I'll sit next to you, I won't bother you or say much. Once you've had your fill and calmed down, I'll take you back. Is that alright?"
Diana bit her lower lip, caught in a dilemma.
Go back? She didn't want to.
Go in alone? This man clearly wouldn't agree. Ask him to come with me? That felt even stranger and more uncomfortable.
But the other party was adamant, claiming it was all for her safety, and she couldn't refute or refuse.
Silence fell between them. After a few seconds, as if she had exhausted all her energy to argue, she compromised and said, "... Whatever, but once you go in, don't keep staring at me."
"Okay!" Draco replied.
The two walked into the bar, one after the other.
The air in the bar was filled with the scents of alcohol, perfume, and a faint smell of tobacco. There weren't many people; they were scattered in twos and threes throughout the bar.
Diana found a small round table in the darkest corner and sat down, with their backs to most of the guests.
Across from her, Draco sat down and, as he had said, didn't speak. He simply leaned back in his chair, surveying the bar's surroundings, only occasionally glancing back at Diana's face.
The waiter hadn't come yet. Diana placed her hands on the table, trying to clear her mind and stop thinking about David and the gambling debts, but the more she tried to clear her mind, the more chaotic her thoughts became.
After sitting for a while, she tried to grasp something out of the chaos to justify her decision.
Maybe... I could order the cheapest drink? Or a beverage? At least that way I wouldn't look so out of place...
The thought had barely crossed her mind when Diana's unfocused gaze suddenly sharpened. She suddenly remembered something, something she had overlooked: the drinks at the cruise ship's bar cost extra, and were usually quite expensive.
However, she had no spare money left. David had lost most of his chips, and she hadn't even had time to exchange the ones she won against Collard.
She even needs to save money to deal with any new troubles that David might cause. Right now, if she were to order just one drink, she couldn't afford the 'expensive' bill.
Draco had been watching her closely. Seeing that she had looked blank just moments before, but now her face was pale, she was fidgeting, and she exuded unease and awkwardness, he couldn't help but ask:
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Draco asked, noticing her pale face and restlessness.
"... The wine here must be very expensive," Diana said awkwardly, her tone filled with self-reproach and helplessness.
Draco was taken aback by her words, then understood her concerns. He was about to speak when Diana stood up first.
"I'd rather not drink. Let's go outside, back to the deck or back to our room. It's not interesting here."
In truth, she really didn't want to owe this stranger anything anymore; the embarrassment was far more unbearable than being sad alone.
"Sit down, it's my treat." Before she could refuse, Draco added, "Consider it a small token of my gratitude as your savior; you can't refuse even a drink."
One sentence gave her a way out.
This blocked her way of refusing.
"Thank you!" Diana bit her lip and sat down again.
After she sat down, Draco didn't say anything more. He gestured to the waiters not far away to come over, and then ordered, "Two bottles of peach and white peach sparkling wine, on the rocks, no hard liquor."
At this moment, Diana was on the verge of an emotional breakdown and her mind was in turmoil. Strong liquor would only make her lose control, while sweet, low-alcohol sparkling wine would be just the right thing to soothe her without harming her health.
The wine was served quickly; the pale pink liquid bubbled gently in the stemmed glass, and a faint, sweet peach aroma filled the air, with almost no smell of alcohol.
Draco pushed one of the glasses toward Diana, then picked up the other and swirled the ice in it.
Looking at the overly sweet drink, Diana's hopes of "getting rid of all her sorrows in one drink" were largely dashed.
But she didn't say anything. She just silently picked it up, took a small sip, and sure enough, the sweet liquid slid down her throat.
But the cloying sweetness only made her more irritable.
I only took two sips before I felt it wasn't enough.
The lump in my throat didn't dissipate; instead, it became even heavier because of this insignificant comfort.
"This is too weak!" Diana looked at Draco longingly. "Do you have anything stronger? The stronger the better. I'm feeling down, and I just want something to... help me forget about everything for a while."
She didn't want to care about anything right now; she just wanted to drink a glass of strong liquor to numb her senses, get completely drunk, and temporarily escape this suffocating life, so she wouldn't have to think about those damn things that were driving her to despair.
Seeing her desperate attempt to escape her pain, Draco knew that forcibly stopping her would only cause her pent-up emotions to explode, making her situation worse and potentially leading her to make even more irrational decisions. It was just a drink; it was still within a controllable range.
"A single malt whisky, on the rocks," Draco finally relented, beckoning to the waiter again.
Soon, the whiskey with ice was brought over by the waiter, the ice clinking against the glass with a crisp, light sound.
Diana picked up her glass and, without waiting for the ice to melt slightly to soften the spiciness of the drink, tilted her head back and gulped down a large mouthful.
The strong liquor burned her throat and stomach, causing her eyes to redden instantly and making her cough violently a few times.
But the warmth of the wine temporarily dispelled the chill in my heart, and also seemed to blur those sharp thoughts a little.
After catching her breath, she took another small sip. This time she was more comfortable and didn't cough anymore, but her brows were still furrowed.
"What's making you so unhappy? Keeping it inside will only make you feel worse. Talking about it might make you feel better."
These words opened the floodgates of Diana's long-suppressed emotions. Her hand holding the wine glass trembled slightly, and she remained silent for a very long time, long enough for the music in the bar to change.
The ice in the drink gradually melted, and she finally mustered the courage to speak, revealing the most unspeakable secret in her heart.