#nct prince au

[herwonderland7]

♥ Introducing King Jaehyun's family! ♥

Jung Yoonoh Jaehyun, King Jaehyun

Our Queen Aera's soulmate and to our King Jaehyun, Aera will always be his greatest and forever love

but at the same time, she is his greatest sorrow

Jaehyun is, and has always been lucky that he had support from the people he loves - he received helping hands on raising his 6 kids, the people who helped him has been personally approached by Aera herself, back when she was still in Wonderland

Aera and Jaehyun are like star-crossed lovers, circumstances doesn't allow them to be together

honestly, Jaehyun doesn't take it well for like a few years - according to the Neo royal housemaids and royal knights, whenever they walked passed King Jaehyun's room, there are days that they could hear muffled cries and other days they would hear objects being thrown here and there followed by loud screams of frustration.

everyone kind of knew what or whom made him all crazy and thank goodness the children weren't in the palace during these days - those days were called as 'one of those nights' by Jaehyun

and those nights continued until his condition got worse with Jaehyun falling really sick and somehow his 'vampire' side out of nowhere came alive which was him craving for blood so bad for unknown reason

hence he unknowingly drank blood of the royal housemaids in result of killing them - as traumatizing as this sounds, the twins Jinyoung and Junyoung who were just 16, kind of figured out what their father has been going through after noticing more royal housemaids going missing

with the help of the twins along with Aeria as the older sister guided them with the studies of healing from cosmic energy, as well Jia's cordial, Jaehyun finally felt much better - receiving the positive energy thanks to the his children

fast forward, because of that incident, Jaehyun felt guilty of what he has done at the same time, he felt like he made Aera and the kids disappointed - so he decided to do what Aera has always been doing, even when she settled down

which was to help the people all around Wonderland who are suffering with different issues, hence Jaehyun brings along with the eldest two of the Jung siblings to help settle issues that was occuring in Wonderland - they sail all around Wonderland and went to wars (and this was after defeating the great battle of the Ice Warlock)

and also, with the help of his brothers - mainly Yuta, Winwin, Lucas, Renjun, Jeno and Jaemin, he set up a business & law firm known as JUNG Corporation.

The company provides services regarding accounting and consultations, providing assistance to the ones in need regarding healthcare and education.

♥ Jung Junwon Peter

Jung Junwon Peter, well-known as both Prince Peter and Prince Junwon, is a remarkable young man with a striking appearance and a sense of responsibility beyond his years. As the firstborn son of King Jaehyun and Queen Aera, he carries the weight of expectations and the role of leader for the Jung siblings. At 23 years old, Junwon embodies the title of "golden boy," originally bestowed upon him due to his naturally golden hair, which has since transformed into a slightly dirty blonde shade.

Physically, Junwon is a blend of his parents' features, creating a captivating and unique appearance. While he inherited Jaehyun's eyes initially, over time, they have taken on a resemblance to Aera's, causing confusion even among the other members of the royal family. It is as if Junwon embodies the best qualities of both his parents, both in terms of appearance and strength. He shares his mother's fortitude and his father's determination, which has proven invaluable in his participation in numerous battles alongside his father and sister.

Despite being revered by many as the golden boy, Junwon remains humble and clueless when it comes to matters of the heart. While his good looks may lead others to assume he has been in relationships, the truth is that he is completely inexperienced and often oblivious to romantic advances. His sisters, Aeria and Jia, worry about his lack of knowledge in this area and have taken it upon themselves to offer guidance through personal discussions.

A gentleman and mature man in public, Junwon's true nature shines through when he is with his family. Although he can be a bit rough with his brothers, he deeply cares for them. His softer side emerges when he interacts with his sisters, but it is Jia who holds a special place in his heart. Junwon's affection for Jia is evident, and he finds himself acting like a fool for her.

Brave and adventurous like his mother, Junwon has proven his mettle by fighting in countless battles alongside his father and sister. One particular accomplishment he takes pride in is his involvement in the slaying of the red-eyed alpha king. He once used to be a Mummy's boy, but with Aera's return to Earth, Junwon has found solace and inspiration in looking up to Jaehyun. Despite his mother's absence, Junwon never resents her, believing that she is always watching over him from afar.

While Junwon is initially destined to follow in his father's footsteps as the next crowned prince, his future path remains uncertain. Although he is expected to assume the role, Jaehyun, recognizing his son's potential, encourages him to pursue further studies instead, given his own good health and vitality. As a result, Junwon finds himself in a state of confusion, torn between his duty and his personal aspirations.

♥ Jung Aeria Venusia

Publicly known as both Princess Venusia or Princess Aeria, Jung Aeria Venusia is a captivating and radiant young woman who exudes beauty and possesses extraordinary powers, much like her mother, Queen Aera. As the first daughter of King Jaehyun and Queen Aera, Aeria, at 22 years old, embodies her mother's youthful traits, characterized by her breathtaking appearance and a touch of rebelliousness.

Inheriting her mother's force-field generation ability and cosmic energy, Aeria's powers were no surprise to her family, as Aera had forewarned them of her daughter's unique abilities. Physically, Aeria is a mirror image of her mother during her younger years, which only enhances her allure. However, as she grew older, Aeria also developed a nurturing and motherly nature, taking on the responsibility of caring for her younger siblings, Yoel, Jia, and the twins.

Aeria's childhood was marked by her love for cooking and a fondness for gardening, which showcased her nurturing side and her connection with nature. She stepped into her mother's shoes to provide care and guidance for her siblings, especially during challenging times when her brother Yoel faced difficulties with his home-schooling. A fierce advocate for her brother, Aeria fearlessly confronted the professors in Neo, unknowingly revealing her glowing pink eyes—a testament to her immense power.

Being a spitting image of her mother, Aeria possesses a deep admiration for Aera, which earned her the title of a true Mummy's girl. She constantly looks up to her mother, even during Aera's absence, thanks to the stories shared by their father and the support of their extended family, including the Neo uncles and Morian aunties. Consequently, Aeria harbors no resentment or hatred toward her mother, fostering a deep sense of love and respect.

At the tender age of 14, Aeria experienced a powerful connection with her mother when she managed to communicate with her while Aera was on Earth. However, the strain of channeling such immense power resulted in Aeria falling gravely ill the next day. Determined not to succumb to sadness, Aeria believes that expressing sorrow weakens her powers, a belief reinforced by past experiences when her powers diminished after her first heartbreak involving Prince Jaebeom's son.

Aeria's resemblance to her mother extends beyond her physical appearance, as she has also engaged in battles alongside her older brother and father. However, her powers manifest in a distinctive pinkish glow, setting her apart from Aera's signature red glows. Despite her exceptional abilities and adventures, Aeria has also experienced the ups and downs of teenage romance. She was in a relationship with Prince Jaebeom's son, Lim Leon Juno, which was marked by their on-again, off-again dynamic, becoming the talk of their school before Aeria set sail for other parts of Wonderland, leaving her education behind.

♥ Jung Yoel Evander

Jung Yoel Evander, publicly known both as Prince Evander and Prince Yoel, the second son of King Jaehyun and Queen Aera, possesses a striking resemblance to his mother and holds a unique place within the royal family as the middle child. At 20 years old, Yoel is shy around strangers but maintains impeccable politeness, earning him admiration from royal princesses and girls in general. His demeanor exudes a prince-like quality, characterized by his reserved nature and the ability to speak only when necessary.

While Yoel may be reserved with outsiders, he displays a different side with his own family. Known for his sharp wit and sarcastic comments, he doesn't hesitate to engage in banter or share his opinions. This occasionally leads to stubbornness, especially when clashing with his older brother, Junwon. Yoel possesses his father's deep laughter and the frowns that reflect Jaehyun's contemplative nature.

Yoel plays a vital role as Junwon's right-hand man and has proven himself to be a skilled swordsman, earning the approval of both Junwon and their father, King Jaehyun. During their school days, Yoel would stand by Junwon's side, supporting him in fights that arose due to others mocking the belief in their mother's existence. This unwavering loyalty showcases Yoel's strong bond with his family.

In addition to his familial relationships, Yoel shares a close friendship with Lee Yujin Anaria, the daughter of Taeyong and Aurelia, as well as Moon Taegeun Scorpio, the son of Taeil and Queen Zelenia. His polite and gentlemanly demeanor adds to his charm, reflected in his habit of placing his hands behind his back.

Yoel possesses extensive knowledge of mystical creatures and has a special connection with them. His childhood best friends include a dragon named Green, a gift from Grandma Kim, and a gryphon named Speed, bestowed upon him by Queen Aerina. These mythical creatures have become a significant part of Yoel's life, offering companionship and aid when needed.

Participating only in the great battle against the Ice Warlock and Aerina's royal household, Yoel proved his mettle alongside his older siblings. This battle held immense significance as many of Aerina's citizens from previous generations were lost. Yoel's life was nearly taken during this encounter, saved by Green the dragon and supported by Speed the gryphon, as well as the intervention of the twins. Although injured deeply, Yoel's life was saved through Jia's healing powers and Junyoung's assistance.

However, due to the traumatic experience, King Jaehyun forbid Yoel from returning to the battlefield. Unaware of the true reason behind his father's decision, Yoel believes he is being treated as a child, leading to disagreements between him and Jaehyun. These conflicts further fuel Yoel's desire to prove himself as a capable and independent individual.

Furthermore, Yoel serves as an assistant to Jia in caring for the twins, the sons of King Jaehyun and Queen Aera. This responsibility demonstrates Yoel's nurturing side and his commitment to supporting his family in any way he can.

♥ Jung Jia Valentia

Known as Princess Valentia and Princess Jia, Jung Jia Valentia, the second and youngest daughter of King Jaehyun and Queen Aera, is a 19-year-old with a unique blend of characteristics inherited from both her parents. With a face shape and nose resembling her mother's, Jia holds a special place in Jaehyun's heart, who fondly bops her nose as a child. Her appearance reflects a mixture of both her parents, showcasing their shared traits.

Jia possesses a charming and slightly flirtatious nature, which makes her charismatic and captivating to others. However, she also experiences moments of introversion, becoming more reserved. Her casual demeanor towards everyone often requires Yoel's guidance in matters of royal etiquette.

Compassion and empathy define Jia's character, as she is filled with a deep concern for the well-being of others. She demonstrates a shy nature but displays a boost in confidence when she feels comfortable in her surroundings. Jia is also known to be somewhat sensitive, making her highly attuned to the emotions of those around her.

Faith plays a significant role in Jia's life, particularly when it comes to magic and her belief in her mother's return. Jia vividly dreams about her mother, witnessing Aera surrounded by children. Seeking answers, she visits the Athenian palace to consult her cousin and best friend, Moon Taeri Celeste, daughter of Taeil and Queen Zelenia. Taeri confirms the truth of Jia's dreams, explaining that Aera is currently on Earth but it is not yet time for her to return to Wonderland. This revelation strengthens Jia's faith, and she patiently awaits her mother's eventual return, even if it takes centuries.

Currently on a break after graduating from high school, Jia aspires to assist the royal family while planning to continue her education next year. Her desire leads her to enroll in her Uncle Doyoung's renowned school, where she intends to study astronomy, inspired by her sister, and delve into the studies of magical creatures and magic in general.

Jia's love for animals is boundless, including even the creatures that many dislike, such as snakes, spiders, and insects. She shares a passion for caring for and understanding animals, drawing her towards a future career as a veterinarian. Despite people assuming she would pursue prestigious roles like a royal doctor or high-class jobs, Jia's true calling lies in nurturing and healing the animal kingdom.

Not only is Jia known for her unique appearance, particularly her naturally born orange hair, but she has also gained recognition for her exceptional academic achievements. Throughout her high school years, Jia consistently earned straight A's, establishing a reputation for academic excellence.

♥ Jung Jinyoung Jonah

Jung Jinyoung Jonah, also known as Prince Jonah and Prince Jinyoung, is an 18-year-old fraternal twin to Jung Junyoung Joel, who is known as 'Jinnie' by his twin. With a striking resemblance to his father Jaehyun, Jinyoung carries a blend of Jaehyun's features with a touch of Aera's sharpness. He exudes a bad boy persona, being labeled as the tsundere and mysterious one among the Jung siblings.

Sporting full sleeve tattoos on his arms, Jinyoung intimidates everyone around him, including the royal housemaids. His piercing gaze and perpetually clenched jaw give him an air of unhappiness, leading others to fear his presence. However, behind this façade, Jinyoung is exceptionally observant, often saving the housemaids from potential trouble caused by royal guests, a role they are unaware he fulfills.

The garden holds a special place in Jinyoung's heart, where he finds solace and ease. It was a space he and his siblings once shared, spending time together, having tea, and indulging in gardening activities. Resembling his father, Jinyoung possesses Jaehyun's intense eyes, which can mirror cold gazes and annoyance, much like a viral video of Jaehyun at an airport, enduring fan invasions.

Jinyoung frequently finds himself in trouble with professors, particularly during his time at Neo Palace. He shares a strong dislike for the royal system, knowing that his mother was forced to return home, which fuels his resentment towards the royal family. However, he remains unaware of the circumstances surrounding his mother's departure.

Like his oldest sister and mother, Jinyoung possesses extraordinary powers. Specifically, he wields cosmic energy, similar to his sister Aeria, but his abilities mainly revolve around manipulating others. He possesses formidable telepathic powers, distinguishing him from his older siblings. Jinyoung's reservations with strangers, particularly those from royal families, translate into an indifference towards nobles and royal highnesses, earning him labels such as "rude," "arrogant," and a "heartbreaker."

Currently residing in Athenian Palace, where his uncle Taeil and his family reside, Jinyoung enjoys a break from school. He attends the School of Neo, along with his twin, as members of the House of Aerina. The strained relationship with his father, King Jaehyun, serves as another reason for his stay in Athenian Palace. Jinyoung feels that Jaehyun has been absent during critical moments in his life, though Jaehyun persistently attempts to soothe his son's heart. Interestingly, Jinyoung possesses the power to manipulate his father mentally, adding another layer of complexity to their relationship.

While he may project a rough and closed-hearted exterior, Jinyoung shares a deep bond with his siblings, albeit in his own unique ways. He listens to Grandma Kim, Aeria, and Jia, valuing their guidance. Despite enjoying teasing Jia, he is exceptionally close to her. Additionally, his similarities with Yoel bring them closer, though Yoel embodies a softer personality, contrasting Jinyoung's roughness. Lastly, Jinyoung's twin, Junyoung, holds an irreplaceable place in his life, as Jinyoung cannot imagine a day without his presence.

Ultimately, only those closest to him truly understand Jinyoung's character. Behind the rough exterior lies someone who harbors a deep desire to help those in need, a trait that emerges when given the opportunity to showcase his true nature.

♥ Jung Junyoung Joel

Publicly known as both Prince Joel and Prince Junyoung, JungJunyoung Joel, also affectionately known as "Junnie," is the youngest of the Jung siblings and the younger twin of Jung Jinyoung Jonah. With his bright-colored hair, particularly platinum blonde, Junyoung stands out as the brighter and more carefree twin. In his early years, there were jokes about him being swapped with one of Doyoung's children due to his unique hair color. However, his resemblance to his parents became evident as he grew older, sporting Aera's eyes during infancy, which eventually transformed into a resemblance to Jaehyun.

Known for his fashion sense, Junyoung inherits his father's impeccable style. He is also the more exuberant and boisterous twin, often heard laughing or loudly expressing himself while playing board games or video games with the generals. His infectious laughter and passionate outbursts are reminiscent of Jaehyun to the extent that Neo royal housemaids mistook Junyoung's presence for that of King Jaehyun himself.

Junyoung assumes the role of mediator between Jinyoung and those with whom his twin has conflicts. Whenever Jaehyun and Jinyoung argue, Junyoung finds himself in the middle, utilizing his powers to separate and defuse the situation. However, he often faces scolding for using his powers on his father, even though he takes it lightly and doesn't let negative or disheartening words affect him. Junyoung possesses an uncanny ability to let negative words pass through one ear and out the other, refusing to let them take root in his heart.

The bond between Junyoung and Jinyoung is unbreakable, as wherever Jinyoung is, Junyoung is sure to follow. They are inseparable, despite Jinyoung occasionally complaining about Junyoung being a troublemaker. Both twins possess the same powers: cosmic energy manipulation, but Junyoung is less skilled in the manipulation aspect. However, his exceptional ability lies in clairvoyance, granting him the power to see things from a distance and perceive events beyond his immediate surroundings. This ability allows him to catch glimpses of their mother on Earth, though he is aware of the dangers of interfering in the mortal realm.

In addition to clairvoyance, Junyoung has inherited his mother's healing abilities, capable of restoring health to living beings. He also shares strong telepathic powers with Jinyoung, enabling him to hear his twin's thoughts from a distance. Their connection runs deep, and Junyoung can sense Jinyoung's presence even when they are physically apart. Together, they possess remarkable power, as demonstrated when they intervened to stop their father, Jaehyun, from succumbing to his bloodlust during a period of intense grief. Jinyoung forcefully put Jaehyun to sleep, while Junyoung expended tremendous energy to heal their father, enduring physical strain in the process.

Currently residing in Athenian Palace, where their father, Junwon, and Aeria have sailed to different parts of the islands, Junyoung and Jinyoung remain inseparable. Junyoung frequently visits Yoel and Jia in Neo Palace, participating in various activities and social gatherings with his cousins. He often brings Jinyoung along, particularly for grand dinners or birthday celebrations organized by their extended family.

Junyoung serves as the bridge between Jinyoung and everything that Jinyoung deems unnecessary to know. While Jinyoung maintains a rocky relationship with Jaehyun, Junyoung harbors deep affection for his father. He acts as a messenger, conveying Jinyoung's feelings and health updates to Jaehyun. Junyoung also endeavors to help Jaehyun soothe Jinyoung's heart, although he sometimes struggles to understand his twin's emotions due to Jinyoung's self-imposed mental barriers.

NEO FAMILY

#nct royal #nct royal au #nct prince au #nct au #nct scenarios #nct prince #nct imagines #nct 127 jaehyun scenarios #nct 127 jaehyun imagines #nct jaehyun scenarios #nct jaehyun imagines #nct as dads

[sunflowercheol]

Beautiful Time

Prince! Kun AU

[AU MASTERLIST]

[P] - [Chapter 6] - [N]

pairing: Qian Kun x Female Reader

genre: fluff, chaos

warnings: cliffhangeeer! / but none apart from that 

word count: 1,291

A/N: i am trying to get more focused on this since i really have the basics of how i want it all to play out, just need to focus on the actual writing part. But I am starting to get more motivation, so let’s see when i can finish the next part! two more parts til their big day though! also tag list is open if any one is interested in getting notified when the next part is! hope you enjoy!!

After walking deep in the garden, you and Kun decide to sit on one of the benches in the garden. He looks around the quiet garden while you glance at him through your peripheral.

“I’m really sorry for Ten’s actions last night,” Kun brings up again as he leans forward, placing his elbows on his knees. “I know I should have cut off the conversation as soon as I saw him take you away—”

“Stop talking and listen to yourself! You were willing to come off as rude and weak to the general for a person who is not worth it!” You interrupt him, not wanting him to continue to blame himself for what happened last night.

He sighs. “I don’t know if you’re calling Ten or yourself unworthy. If its Ten, then hell yeah, he is not worth it. But if you are talking about you?” He sits up and grabs your face in between his warm hands. “Then you are worth everything, regardless of what happens to me.”

You look into his shining eyes and playfully push him away, weakly. “Stop, you’re going to make me all flustered.” He laughs, kissing your forehead before pulling away.

Right when he opens his mouth to say something to you, a splash of something wet and cold hits the both of you which causes you two to shriek.

“Stop being all cutesy!” Renjun yells, running away with Chenle as they each hold an empty bucket. Kun immediately stands up, allowing you to see the entirety of his back wet. You laugh and turn around to see your brothers and Chenle giggling and running into the maze of a garden, throwing the buckets towards you two to slow you down.

You jump up and grab the water hose that was left behind by a gardener as Kun grabs a nozzle that he found lying nearby. You quietly weave through the maze-like garden with Kun helping you look for the young princes. You were able to find the four princes by their giggles and their loud shushes as they tried to get each other to quiet down—keyword: tried. Kun nudges you and hands you the nozzle for the hose and gestures that he will go turn on the water. You nod, quickly placing the nozzle on the hose and wait for Kun to turn on the water.

“NOW!” you hear Kun faintly yell from a distance. You run around the hedge that the four princes are hiding behind and press on the lever, aiming directly at them. They all scream as the cold water hits them.

“OKAY! STOP, STOP, STOP!” Sicheng screams as he shoves Yukhei in front of him to get drenched by the water instead. You let go of the lever right when Kun arrives. He laughs, looking at the now wet princes. He grabs the hose out of your hands, “Now. Whose idea was it to throw two buckets of water at me?”

The princes refuse to make eye contact with him and resort to looking at the ground, lightly nudging each other to confess. Kun aims to Renjun and Chenle, allowing Yukhei and Sicheng to escape. “Which one?” Neither of them says anything making Kun press the lever. Renjun and Chenle flinch, but when no water goes their way, the two of them look towards Kun. You look at Kun as well only for him to make eye contact with you.

“There’s no-“ he gets cut off by Yukhei pouring a bucket of water over his head. Kun drops the hose causing Yukhei to drop the bucket and quickly grabbing the hose. “NOW, SICHENG!” Yukhei yells, causing you to run away from them and try to find a hiding spot in the garden. Chenle and Renjun try to stop you by running after you, but Kun grabs on to them tightly and throws his body weight onto them.

You stop running after you get back to where you and Kun were in the beginning, hearing the playful screeches of the princes in the distance. Let’s do it like good old times, you thought. You head to the gardener’s shed and find another hose with a nozzle already on one end. You quickly run to the tap and turn off the water, disconnecting the hose and connecting the one you found. You run towards the princes from a different direction and see them questioning why there was no water coming out of the hose, and you press on the lever spraying all of them. They all yell, surprised as they weren’t expecting you. Sicheng runs towards you, trying to snatch the hose out of your hands. You both struggle for a bit, with you trying to spray Sicheng in the face and Sicheng trying to stop you and trying to get the hose out of your grip.

“What’s this?!” Mother yells behind you as she approaches the chaos that was unleashed. You quickly let go of the hose and move next to Sicheng, which makes Sicheng almost lose his balance. This causes him to press down the lever, while the nozzle is aimed towards your mother. She screams as the cold water hits her, and Sicheng immediately drops the hose, all of you freezing in fear. A couple of guards come running to your mother’s aid after hearing her loud scream. Your father’s head could be seen above the rest of the guards causing you to grab onto Sicheng’s arm as the both of you run away to hide. This causes the rest of the princes to snap back into reality and to run and hide with you two behind some hedges, quietly laughing at what happened as all of you continue to watch what would go down.

“What happened, darling?” your father asks your mother as the guards leave once they notice that it wasn’t something threatening her safety. She aggravatedly sighs, “They’re acting like little children!”

Father laughs, holding on to Mother’s arm. “Oh, my sweet love. You must remember what it was like to be young and to have fun?” She shrugs him off and grabs the hose that Sicheng had dropped. “Oh, I certainly do,” she responds as she presses the lever and pointing it at your father. He stands there, with his mouth wide open frozen in shock as your Mother did that. You all laugh a little too loudly, alerting your mother where you are all hiding. She turns around and quickly aims where you all were hiding, effectively getting the ones that were in the front wet. You all scream and run away, with the King and Queen’s laughter heard over the screams.

———————-

You walk out of your bathroom drying your hair with your towel. You sit down on your vanity chair and grab the hairbrush to take out the tangles out of your hair. As soon as you finish brushing your hair, you hear a quiet knock at your door. You put your brush down a little curious as to who it was, since your brothers just barge in without knocking—much less knock louder than what you heard if they ever were to knock—and anyone else, including Kun and Chenle, announce that they are there.

“Who is it?” you question loudly and turn in your chair to face the door. The person just knocks again before calling out your name in a teasing manner. You still can’t recognize the voice, but you get too curious and get up to open the door and see who it is.

Opening the door, you make eye contact with the one person you thought that you wouldn’t see for a while.

“Hello there,” he smirks, as he casually leans against your door frame.

[NEXT]

#kun prince au #nct prince au #kun au #wayv kun #nct kun #nct qian kun #nct u #nct 2018 #beautiful time au

[prodbymaui]

Oops, Baby (I Love You)

I take this magnetic force of a man to be my lover

PAIRING: jeong jaehyun x reader

GENRE: modern royalty ; arranged marriage

WORD COUNT: 12.5k+ words

WARNINGS: heavy alcohol consumption, mentions of sleeping pills, food play, oral sex, dirty talks. (the whole fic is romcom slash very fluffy, the only nasty thing here is the smut scene)

SYNOPSIS: you had been living your life as a rebellious and controversial crown princess, now you must face the consequence of purifying your tainted image; marrying the gentle and infamous crown prince of South Korea.

PLAYLIST: Do you hear my heart?

A/N: after weeks of depression episodes what do you call them), I finally got the strength to finish this bad bitch lmao. I know you guys have been waiting so I hope you'll leave your thoughts after? anyways, happy reading!

Everything is spinning and everyone is either two or three. You don't know how much alcohol you've drank but certainly it was enough for you to stumble your way out of the bar, looking for somewhere to puke your guts out.

The intense nausea is already too much for your fucked up body system to accommodate, but the gods and deities thought it's not enough and it'll be perfect if you trip continuously on your Celine Truffle Pointed Heels, possibly damaging it more than you've done to your other shoes. The mask to hide your face is not helping as well.

Someone bumps your side and due to your drunken state, you lose your balance and break one of the heels, sending you to dive to your side. Your eyes shut close as you brace yourself for a painful slam but it never comes. Instead you meet a firm chest hidden underneath a black dress shirt and 2 layers of silver necklaces.

Looking up, through your hazy vision, you see pursed lips and palms up, as if avoiding touching you anywhere. As you step to regain your balance, you trip once again and like a deja vu, the man only lets you use his shoulders and chest to support yourself but never lets his hands touch you.

''You might want to get off of me, Ms…?''

Hearing that voice, a strange sense of familiarity and longing surge to your heart, engulfing it and squeezing it. As if to say, remember it.

''...heart.'' Why is my heart aching?

The man pulls away and observes you, sighing. He clears his throat. ''Sorry, Heart.''

His figure walking away is the last thing you see before your vision blacks out with no guarantee of you being able to recall the events that took place tonight.

Utmost disappointment. Series of distasteful comments. Disapproving reactions. Surely, these aren't the usual feelings of the people towards the soon-to-be-queen of their country but it has been the weekly routine for the people of yours to criticize their sole princess.

''Strip her off the royal titles–! Are these people out of their mind?!'' Your squeal that comes close to a banshee rings across the whole entirety of the bedroom.

''Excuse them, they take after their princess.'' Hiding her giggles behind a fist, Winter scrambles off the bed as you aim to strangle her fragile neck.

Barely dodging your deathly grips by an inch, Winter's yelps bounces off the walls continuously, followed by your irritated shrieks and threatening hands ready to crush your best friend. The chase eventually dies down with the two of you panting, catching your breaths. You pull her short brown locks one last time before jumping on the bed, face down. Winter does the same and lands next to you, arms draping over each other.

A knock disrupts the peaceful atmosphere that engulfs the room, pulling you out of your slumber trance. You knew the pattern of the knock too well. It is practiced by all royal staff to ensure politeness and great manners whenever they are surrounded by royalties and VIPs. Included in training  as per the Queen's request.

The door opens and it reveals a female servant. This one's not yours, judging by the blue brooch. ''Good evening, Your Highness. Ms. Kang wishes to see you in her office right now and orders me to fetch you.''

''And why is that?''

''She said nothing, Ma'am.''

That earns a boisterous laugh from your best friend, alongside a series of claps. ''Goodluck on hearing an hour of scolding, girl.''

Winter sends you a 'fighting' gesture. You give her your middle finger.

The trip to the advisor's office takes a few minutes as the private chambers of the royal members are at the east wing while gatherings, some royal duties, and part where it is open for the public are dealt with at the west side of the palace. You're still not mentally prepared when the wooden entrance makes its way for you. As your eyes meet the pair of the royal advisor, you know you should've prepared yourself much better.

''Good evening, Your Highness. Please do take a seat.''

Albeit it's probably showing on the courtesy of your eyebrows, you still cover your scoff with a cough under your breath. ''Drop the politeness, Eunhye. I don't need it.''

Eunhye removes the newspaper that serves as a hindrance for you to see her expression, and there you spot the disapproving look on her face. You shrug inwardly. What's new? You suppose people in their late 30s are quite uptight. Or it's just your former babysitter.

Kang Eunhye used to play with you a lot during your childhood whenever you and your friends didn't have a playdate. You should've known she was going to take up her late mother's position when Eunhye often disappeared after the death of the former royal advisor. That was when she started changing and became more strict with you.

''You don't need it, you say? Good. Because I don't perceive it as necessary when I tell you Her Majesty had gone haywire by yet another scandal of her sole heir that she asked me to not let you out of the palace if it's not for your studies or royal duties.''

''–what?! That's absurd!''

''Oh I think it's a light punishment for a scandal involving participating in a brawl, breaking the nose of a commoner and almost ending up in jail. Mind you, this happened in front of a controversial bar! And to top it all off, it hasn't been a week since you were caught sleeping in the streets because your drunk ass couldn't help yourself up!''

You scratch your head. ''...well, if the bodyguards came–''

''They would've if you didn't switch clothes with a random woman and make them follow her thinking it was you! Do you know they got suspended and will not receive a portion of their salary because of what YOU did? It's only because of the King that they were spared from getting fired.''

''Not my fault that the guards you hired were fools and easily deceived. They should've recognized my figure even with different clothes.''

''They are bodyguards. Not your devoted fans–,'' Eunhye sighs. ''Your Highness.''

A moment of silence travels along the soundwaves of the room decorated with blue.

''Okay…? What do you want me to do, then? Public appearances? Press conference?''

Eunhye, knowing her ways, will probably advise you to address the issue, apologize for the things that you don't even regret to pacify the netizen. And because they most likely (definitely) won't buy your fake ass apology statement and continue to terrorize you on social media, your schedule will be packed with attending public events to show your 'genuineness'.

You've done this routine more times than the royal court approves so you know what to expect. In fact, you already have a few suggestions ready on which events will possibly dust bits of dirt on your name. You know this like the back of your hand.

The Queen enters. ''No.''

Apparently, you don't..? 

The moment your mother opens her mouth, you feel as if a myriad of buckets of icy water washes over you.

''You will marry a gentleman with a clean image. By then, you will be seen with great influence and garner people's love.''

Once. Twice. You slap yourself three more times but you don't wake up from this nightmare. Winter only looks at you pitifully while chewing her steak.

''Darling, would you please stop hurting yourself?'' A lovable tone is evident from the King's voice, accompanied by a concerned stare.

You sigh but the stabs of your fork through your own steak doesn't stop. ''Marry a gentleman.. I can't fucking believe this.''

''Language.'' The Queen says firmly. ''I apologize for getting ahead of you. I suppose you don't fancy a gentleman?''

''You apologize for assuming my preference but not for taking away my freedom..?''

''Do you wish to marry a lady, then?''

Silence fills the table. You sigh. ''Honestly? Anything would be fine.''

Your mother mums. ''Very well, then. You will be meeting your fianceé in 3 days–''

''–as long as I get to choose who I am marrying.''

''That won't be possible. The person needs to have the most influence and power among your age. The gender will be the only thing we can let you choose.''

''You don't have problems with having a queer princess?''

The Queen frowns. ''Of course, why would we? It is neither a crime nor a sin.''

Your father then nods. ''The royal court fully supports it since two decades ago.''

''But not the 'choosing your own lover'?'' You can only shake your head. You turn to the maid nearby. ''Please bring this to my room, I'll eat there instead.''

Everyone watches you in silence. No one at the table dares to scold you for your behavior.

''She has the rights to be upset this time.'' The King comments.

''Yes, she does.'' The Queen agrees.

Winter warily looks around, pursing her lips as she raises her hand. ''Uhm.. Your Majesty?''

''Yes, Lady Minjeong?''

Winter winces at the mention of her government name. ''As your daughter's best friend, will it be possible for me to know who she'll be marrying?''

Smiling, the King snaps his finger. ''Ah.. let's see if the future lover would pass the best friend's vibe check.''

His husband sends him a curt glance. ''Don't ever try to use generational phrases, it doesn't suit you. Back to Lady Minjeong, yes, it is possible. Would you like to know now?''

''A-already? I thought you're still looking through the profiles?''

''We have tons of staff, Lady Minjeong.''

''Right, I forgot about that.'' Winter sheepishly smiles.

''I'll excuse myself then. I have an appointment with a VIP in an hour, I have to go.'' Just as the husband and wife head towards the exit of the dining hall, the Queen turns. ''It is Prince Jaehyun of South Korea. A good man and the best one for the princess.''

''None on twitter. Nadda on instagram. Nothing on their official website. Heck, there's not even a single picture on google! Does this Prince Jaehyun even exist?'' Winter exclaims as she continues to scroll on her phone.

Frowning, you throw a pillow in her direction. ''Let the others hear your whining and they'll think you have a crush on my soon-to-be-fianceé. Why are you so interested in him?''

''Well, duh! You're literally marrying him, that's enough reason for me to get curious! The question here is why are YOU not interested?''

''I'm more interested in that man at the bar.''

''You should give some! This is the person you'll be spending your life with we're talking about!''

Scoffing, you tug the ends of her hair. ''Will you stop saying I'll marry him? The engagement will be called off sooner than mom and dad can even realize it's coming.''

Winter gasps dramatically and shots up to sit. ''What if it's some old man with a stinky smell and white hair? Oh my god what if Her Majesty agreed to marry you off to some ugly ass 50 year old man for the sake of the country's betterment?!''

Threatening to punch her if she doesn't stop with the overthinking, Winter zips her mouth as she decides to scroll on her phone once again.

You sigh. ''Pretty sure, Mom wouldn't do that, right? I mean she said something about being the best out of the people among our age so..''

''Huh, look at this.''

Winter crawls to you from the part of the she is lying, hands careful not to swipe her screen and risk refreshing the page. You squint your eyes to see.

PANN:

Crown Prince Jaehyun Once Again Stuns The People Of South Korea With His Amazing Visuals.

[ +217, -5 ] It's a shame that we're not allowed to post a photo of him on the internet. How am I supposed to stare at his face for a long time then? How am I supposed to appreciate and share his beauty?

[ +190, -3 ] Daebak! The royal family just visited our village and the rumors weren't lying when they said Prince Jaehyun is handsome ahwksjskww. He's like a walking statue!

[ +165, -20 ] I would die for a man like Prince Jaehyun. Very gentleman and polite. One time, I was with my niece when I met him and the youngest prince in a mall. My niece really wanted the toy car but Prince Jaehyun and Prince Jaemin got the last one before use but they still gave it to my niece.

[ +132, -56 ] Heol ㅋㅋㅋ Of course he would say that, he has an image to keep up! Royalties would try to polish their personalities in public often because they can't afford to lose the trust of the people. It's so fucking dumb how you think the prince acts that way because that just how he is and not because he has an image to take care of.

[ +122, -13 ] The comment above lolol. You're just jealous that the prince has everything you don't; looks, manners, and brains ㅋㅋㅋ

[ +84, -7 ] I don't think Prince Jaehyun does it because people are watching him. I've seen him lecture Prince Jaemin about how he shouldn't expect to get what he wants every time and mind you no one was inside our store that time as our store isn't quite popular so he couldn't be doing it for his image. I feel like Prince Jaehyun is genuine!

[ +65, -5 ] Didn't a lot of people see him wearing clothes with no brands? And that he has a good relationship with the youngest prince? Idk about you but I'd say that speaks a lot about him.

[ +52, -3 ] I've met Prince Jaehyun a lot of times, the only thing I could say is; 'Ultimately Prince-Like'! Handsome and tall, like he's written by Taylor Swift ㅋㅋㅋ. Prince Jaehyun is a dream *three heart emojis*

As you read over the first comment again, the curve on your forehead only deepens. They are not allowed to post a photo of their prince? Then, that would explain the lack of appearance of the royalty everywhere on social media. This pricks your interest. 

''That's a bit.. odd. They forbid any pictures of that prince from getting uploaded.''

''I know right! It's strange. Why would they hide the prince's face if he's truly handsome like the people said?''

You suck the top of your teeth. ''Maybe he's actually ugly and those that say otherwise were paid people. Or probably royal staffs ordered to spread some good words about their prince.''

''Why are you so hell-bent in making him ugly? Can't accept that your parents actually chose someone handsome, rich, and has good personality?''

Shaking your head, you wave your hand dismissively. Oh how you wish you could swipe off that annoying smirk on Winter's face. Is there a rule saying a princess can escape any law including those that involves unaliving a certain daughter of a duke? Hopefully, there is!

If, miraculously, your parents bring that man from the bar to you and arrange him to a marriage with you, maybe then you'll agree to tie up the knot at such a young age. In fact, you might even drop down to your knees and serve him–

The alcohol, or lack thereof, is definitely not good for you.

With the news of your engagement being released plus the anger from the people that is far from dwindling anytime soon, Winter didn't think twice to join you when the idea of getting drunk comes up. There's nothing better than drowning yourself in alcohol after constantly having to deal with the disappointed people of your country.

However, the night is just near getting young when your personal bodyguards dragged you and your best friend out of the bar. It is said that the royal advisor ordered them to do so but your mother was the root. It angered you to the core. They took your freedom of marrying someone you truly love and now, they're depriving you of coping with it as well? How controlling.

Winter was sent home right after both of you got howled back to the royal car. A couple of warnings from the Duke to his daughter and you know something is off. 

Winter's father isn't one to indulge himself in his daughter's vices. Sure, he keeps tabs on her every now and then but the Duke of Boryeong never attempts to control Minjeong as if some kind of robot, lest he suffers from the wrath of Duchess of Boryeong.

You could only wish your own parents did the same. Maybe they will. If you beg for a couple of days in front of the palace while dawning your white hanbok like those korean historical films that Winter likes to watch.

Shutting the car door close, you pass a whisper of 'thank you' to the driver before striding inside the palace. There aren't many people aside from those guarding the entrance which is why you don't find the need to be extra careful on your way. Being free from the shackles of aches caused by your heels is the only thing on your mind.

Just as you turn a corner, straight down the hall that leads to the dining area– you collide with someone. It'll send you a few steps backwards if it's not for the grip on your blazer. Your vision clearing takes a couple of seconds, courtesy of being tipsy from your previous activity.

''Is everything alright?'' A rather soothing yet deep voice asks you, hands already back on his sides.

Your attention diverts to the man that steadies you. Sharp cheekbones in contrast to the soft jawline, almond eyes, and a slightly chapped lips. You wonder if they're naturally pink or the color comes from cosmetic products.

''Your Highness–'' Eunhye appears out of thin air and your bodies separate right as the royal advisor sets her eyes on you. 

Your Highness? Who could this be?

''Ah, I see, you've met each other already. Shall we take this to the dining..? Her Majesty awaits alongside the King and Queen of South Korea.''

No words are exchange between you. Silence fills the air. Clicking of heels appearing every now and then until they reach where your parents and the leaders of South Korea chatters. Everyone stands before their seats at the sight of two crown heirs.

You might be rebellious but no way you're gonna forget the basic manners each person should possess. Doing a brief curtsy, you earn a loving smile from the Queen of South Korea. It radiates warmth and comfort. 

The man beside you does a bow as well that makes his body fold to a 90 degrees. It was too formal for your liking. Too ancient royalty. Too prince-like. So this is what the mysterious prince of South Korea looks like. Somehow, it irks you to the bones.

Gritting your teeth, you sit at the right side of your father after exchanging pleasantries. Each person that occupies the seats of the table starts to dig in as they begin to discuss the matter which you assume is about your issue.

You thought you could go through this dinner in peace until the conversation, courtesy of your mother, diverts to you.

''I've seen the news but it doesn't bother me at all. The princess is merely having fun, just like those around her age do. I, myself, have gone through that phase. '' Queen Miyoung laughs softly. ''The Crown Princess is only at the wrong place, at the wrong time. We used to get in trouble for sneaking out often before as well, isn't that right?''

With the amount of times you've gotten snapped by the paps and you were caught doing shits that is considered inappropriate behavior for a royalty like you— surely, it's not a coincidence anymore. Ever since your first scandal came up, the media that follows your every step doubles. They are always hungry for a headline. And you cannot deny the fact that you're giving them a reason to use you as one.

Your mother reciprocates her friend's chuckles, shaking her head as they recall their memories during when they were your age. Surprisingly, there's a relief inside you. Well, at least the Queen of South Korea doesn't think you're a defect in the royal family.

''I think the wild-like personality of our dear perfectly contrasts the gentle and tame personality of Prince Jaehyun, which is a charming point that the people will eventually love once they got to know about this marriage.'' Your mother adds. 

Balling up your fist, you had to bite the insides of your cheeks to prevent your eyes from rolling.

''Oh absolutely!'' Queen Miyoung places a hand on her son's shoulder, a smile once again appearing on her captivating features. ''My son here is known in our country as someone who is compassionate, emphatic, and humble. Talented on top of that as well!''

Adoration paints your mother's face. ''So I've heard. I feel assured that someone like Prince Jaehyun will be taking care of my daughter.''

''Please, Your Majesty, you can just call me Jaehyun.''

The velvety voice swoons the hearts of the Queen. ''Alright, alright. My heart is beaming at the thought of having you as my son-in-law soon, Jaehyun.''

What the hell? What did this Jaehyun do for him to gain the favor of those around him? Even your father is nodding and smiling in approval as he shares a conversation with this insufferable prince! 

''Humor me, Jaehyun.'' Your father speaks. ''What do you do as a hobby?''

Probably plan how he can convince everyone with that fake ass personality lol.

Jaehyun pats the napkin on his lips before replying. ''Not much, Sir. I indulge myself in music instruments and sometimes, I also sing for fun.''

Did he do his research? That's your father's favorite pastime!

''Ah, singing! If you didn't know, that's one of the things I like the most especially if I'm consumed with boredom.''

Your mother nods. ''Catch him singing while signing papers at his office. Or while feeding our dogs.''

Chuckles blooms on the table.

''Maybe if we have enough time, you could sing for us?'' Your mother suggests as the others agree. 

Jaehyun shakes his head with a fist hiding his smile. ''I'm not great at singing but I'll make sure to prepare once that time comes.''

Acting humble now, eh? He doesn't have to prepare because you'll make sure that time won't come. The skin on your forehead creases even before you could stop it. This is stressing you out more than you anticipated.

Deciding to release your stress on something else, you proceed to harshly cut your Sole Meuniére with the knife prepared by the kitchen staff all the while pursing your lips. Poor innocent Mr. Fish, suffering from the wrath of a princess.

Operation: Stopping the wedding! Step 1, do things that will turn him off. Forking the sea creature's meat, you make sure to chew extra loudly, looking straight at Jaehyun's eyes as you open your mouth every now and then while munching. Surely, anyone would grimace at the sight of chewed fish meat inside one's mouth and at the sound it makes.

Anyone, Prince Jaehyun not included. You slow down the movement of your jaw when the man only sports a brief squint of his eyes before turning away, as if he didn't see the disgusting view you just showed him. Is he not disgusted? Hah! Maybe this is how he actually chews when there's no people around so he's not bothered by it. That's right!

You nod subtly at the voices in your head, gulping the food down when it starts to feel a little weird on your tongue. Reaching for the glass of water, you sip the liquid to tend your throat.

''So about the wedding next week–''

The people gasp, your father standing up from his seat. Series of coughing sounds emit from you as you pat your chest continuously.

''I'm sorry– the water went down the wrong pipe.'' You face towards the other way while massaging your throat, your back getting tapped by your father.

What were they thinking, mentioning that fucking wedding while eating? What if you die from choking? Far-fetched, but you don't cross out the possibilities anyway.

Clearing your throat, you give them a smile after fixing yourself. ''Did I hear it right? The wedding is next week? Isn't that quite fast? We're not chasing a due date here. Plus, we haven't even announced an engagement yet. I'm sure the people will be shocked if I'm suddenly married or engaged in just a matter of days. I suggest prolonging the engagement for– let's say.. a month? I think that would be realistic enough.''

King Jaekyung sends you a grin. ''Dear, your engagement is trending on social media platforms as we speak.''

''W-what?''

You quickly fish out your phone. You don't even have to search either your name or Jaehyun's because an article about your engagement pops up the moment the app loads.

JUST IN: The Crown Princess Revealed To Be Engaged To The Crown Prince of South Korea

After getting involved in numerous issues, the Crown Princess had dropped off the limelight for a few days only to surprise us with an amazing news. According to the exclusive interview held two days ago, Her Highness shyly reveals that the reason for her disappearance on the radar is because a certain man snatches her focus with a shiny ring!

The princess happily shares that she and Prince Jaehyun, Crown Prince of South Korea, have been in a healthy relationship for 4 years now and still going strong. During the early months of dating, the two royalties express their worries about causing an unnecessary ruckus and heartbreaks if they ever go through a break up. According to Her Highness, a stable relationship wasn't exactly guaranteed as they live in different countries and have heavy responsibilities as the future leaders which is why they avoided letting the people know about their romance until they are sure that they can handle the consequences all at once.

''The country had been experiencing some serious issues back then so when Jaehyun and I started to get in touch, we decided not to make it public immediately. Not only were we just starting but we also didn't want to stir another headline if we ever broke up. We were teenagers 4 years ago, we were kids. We know that we are bound to make mistakes but as the future leaders of our countries, adding our childish break up to the countries' problems isn't something that we desire. Thankfully though, our relationship stayed strong and sturdy. There were a few fights here and there, of course, but Jaehyun and I remained understanding with each other. Those years were the reason why I didn't hesitate to say yes when he proposed to me. It was just the two of us, no cameras, no media, no other people. Saying this might be off to some but I was glad that only the both of us got to witness it. As someone who lives in front of the camera and prying eyes, we enjoyed the privacy and intimacy we had during the proposal. We initially didn't plan to have our wedding soon but we figured that there's no point in prolonging what's been a long time coming. Our love kept us intact throughout the years and until now, I could say that I'm still very much and deeply falling in love with him.'' said the Crown Princess.

Furthermore, Prince Jaehyun also shared that one of the reasons that he hid his face was to protect his relationship with his future lover, now Crown Princess. Show more…

''I don't– I don't remember getting interviewed for this...''

The Queen massages your shoulder. ''That's the power of influence, love.''

A shrieking scream jostles Winter in her bed despite being on the other line. Rubbing her ears, Winter felt as if her eardrums got busted just now. She munches on her cookies while she waits for you to be finished with all your screaming and throwing angry punches at the poor teddy bear beside your pillows.

The screeching stops. You look at Winter through the screen of your phone. ''Humor me.''

Eyes boring to you, she didn't stop licking the crumbs that were left on her fingers. ''What is it?''

''Making up stories about my supposed relationship with that man was one thing, but seriously? Telling the whole country I'm still fucking falling in love? Deeply even!''

You hear your bestfriend giggle. ''You think them making everyone think you're smitten with a man is worse than creating fake ass stories about your love life?''

''Well, Isn't it?''

''You're unbelievable.''

''Tell me something I don't know.'' Getting off your bed, you head out of the room. ''Anyways, text you later.'' Blowing her a kiss, the call ended just as you jog down the stairs.

It's been three days since you last saw that prince and those days might be the happiest of your entire life, sans the nags from your mom to get closer with that twat. For a few suns, you've surprisingly experienced peace.

However, it didn't last a long time. It seems like when God precipitated a rain of misfortunes, you were in the middle– swimming in it. Instead of peacefully staying at the palace just like you had always done, you received the news saying you'll move to a place– an apartment. And you received it through waking up one day and seeing them packing your things without even asking your permission. You were asking yourself whether it's real, or it's just a figment of your imagination as sleep still buzzed in your veins.

Now, what's so unfortunate about having your own place? Jeong Jaehyun, is what's unfortunate. You won't forget that infuriating smirk that he sports as he watches you glare at the boxes in the living room, boring holes in them. Complaints start to spill out of your mouth in a whisper despite being in the same space with him in just a matter of an hour.

Dividing the closet and choosing bedrooms is a nightmare. Everyone knows you've got things enough for 3 people, including your heels collection. Storing your possessions requires a big space, but Jeong Jaehyun thought it was a great idea to upped you and place his stupid rubber shoes (or sneakers) collections first without leaving any space for your heels.

Jaehyun stands by the door, leaning on the frame with his arms crossed as he witnesses you turn into some kind of witch, casting different spells, desperate to cast his annoying ass away. It's so comical that it had Jaehyun's shoulder shake as he stifles his laugh. A witch with a collection of heels? Truly, one of a kind.

''Let's split them, Jeong. You take the right side, I'll take the left.''

''No can do.''

''The fuck? Are you expecting me to leave my babies on the floor?''

Jaehyun quirks a brow. ''What's so bad about that? I'm sure your 'babies' will not mind where they are placed, nonetheless.''

''Well, I do!''

The prince turns his heels, but before walking away, he looks at you over his shoulder. ''Learn to take a no, witch.''

''W–what? A fucking what? Hey! Jeong, you jerk– get back here and repeat what you said! Oh you piece of– you did not just say what I heard you said.''

Needless to say, the night ended with you cackling like the devil you are in your room while Jaehyun stays at the kitchen, pressing a cold compress to his skin, hissing. This should go away by tomorrow, or he wouldn't be able to explain how he got a faint mark of slippers on his forehead. Prepare a protective gear if he wants to taunt a witch, Jaehyun notes.

Operation: Stopping the wedding! Step 2, piss the fuck out of him like he does to you.

Being the menace that he is, Jeong made it his daily errand to annoy the hell out of you. His day wouldn't go by without doing things that ticks you off so much you just wish something important would come up in Korea so Jaehyun would be obligated to leave your country and magically stay there for good. 

Example no.1, the cookies you baked for yourself.

''Jeong, where's the cookies?''

''What cookies?''

''The ones in the tray. On the countertop.''

''I don't know no cookies.''

The crumbs on the corner of his lips says otherwise. You waited for half an hour to eat that!

''You– Jeong!!''

Example no.2 followed not long after. You were running late for a hang out with Winter as you couldn't find your today's pick of pair of heels. No, you wouldn't leave this apartment until you find that very pair. Your outfit won't look put together if you wear a different one.

A quarter before 9 PM, you still haven't found the shoes. Did you perhaps leave it at the palace? That couldn't be! You swear you saw it yesterday. Going back and forth to the walk-in closet, living room, and your bedroom– you're this close to tearing your hair apart and turning the whole apartment upside down.

Your phone pings and displays Winter's message. ''Fuuuck, where did I put that?''

Washing your hands over your face, you tilt your head upwards as you let out an exasperated sigh, stomping your feet in annoyance. When you open your eyes, you see the shoes you had been looking for the past 30 minutes. At the ceiling. Where the broken ceiling fan used to be.

How the hell did that even get— You recall seeing Jaehyun standing on a ladder this morning, saying something about fixing the fan.

''JEONG JAEHYUN, YOU FUCKER!!''

Boisterous laughter echoes from the bastard's room.

You still haven't recovered from the heels incident when example no.3 shows itself.

Hammered from drinking all night long after getting your hands on your shoes, you are swaying and tripping as you reach the apartment, slurring your nonsensical words. You don't know how, but you got home safely anyway. A hangover was expected yet it is harsher than you thought it would be.

''Ah fuck..'' You hold your pounding head.

Heading towards the kitchen, you fend your drying throat some water. Washing yourself is not on the list as you change out of your black bodycon dress and fit yourself into an oversized hoodie and sweatpants. You jog out of the building after fighting the urge to throw up the elevator and arrive at the convenience store in no time, your breath that reeks of alcohol be damned.

Picking up a few items for your hangover didn't take long, the cashier is already punching them a few minutes upon your arrival.

''You..''

You bore your eyes to the cashier. ''Yes?''

''...Nothing, Ma'am.'' He then proceeds to tell you the total of what you bought.

There's no further exchange between the two of you after that, so when you get your plastic bag, you walk back to your apartment. As you prepare yourself some cup noodles, you tilt your head, tsking.

Is it just you or the cashier has been giving you some looks? You might be suffering from a headache but pretty sure, you're sober enough to notice the subtle glances the cashier has been giving you. Did you do something stupid again last night? But Eunhye would be calling you first in the morning if you did. Maybe he recognizes your face? The country's princess' face is plastered everywhere. 

''Whatever. Why am I even thinking about it?'' Ever since the engagement, you noticed that you became more cautious in your actions. The streets say the lioness got tamed by a prince. You say you just learned your lesson not to underestimate your mother's punishments.

Staring at your food, your bladder got triggered at the sight of the soup. Peeing what's probably the alcohol in your system, you stand before the sink to wash your hands. And when you look up, you feel an overwhelming surge of emotion.

You are shocked. You are angry. You want to hide yourself from embarrassment. You want to punch the wall. And on top of that, you desire to unalive a royalty, preferably a crown prince that comes from South Korea.

A smile that appears to stretch the ends of your lips. A massive black dot on your nose and cheeks. Two big horns at the top of your eyebrows.

''JEONG JAEHYUN YOU ARE FUCKING DEAD!!''

There were a lot of pranks that Jaehyun had played, with big ones not failing to show up each week. Hiding your charger. Stealing your snacks. Mismatching your socks. And many more that ruin your day so often that the second thing you'd do after waking up is checking for the prank that the prince had done for the day. You are frustrated. And it's not like you to let these kinds of things pass without getting back. This time, you're making sure he'll order to stop the wedding and regret messing with you.

Shuffling in her bed, Winter huffs. ''What do you want?''

''Help me curate a list of the most infuriating pranks.''

Your best friend frowns. ''What for? Are you turning to a kid now? Or perhaps, you're..'' Then she gasps. ''You're carrying a kid?!''

''..The fuck?'' How did she even come up with that conclusion?

''Isn't that what happens when two people who hate each other's guts live under the same roof? Like enemies to lovers!''

You scoff. ''I told you to stop watching kdramas.''

''I'm Korean, duh!'' Winter rolls her eyes. ''Don't forget I'm still upset you took a long time before telling me you literally moved in with your fianceé.''

''Well now you know, and I'm asking for help so I could escape this hellhole.''

''Wait– so you're telling me to suggest pranks in order for you to move out? How does pranking even equals to that?''

Giving her a bored stare, you click your tongue. ''I'll piss the hell of out him, he won't be able to sleep properly at night.''

Winter squeaks. ''You're pranking the prince–?!''

''Yeah, no shit. Who else would it be?''

''Never thought I'd to live the day I'll see you getting on prank wars with your fianceé.''

''Yadda yadda. Just help me with it, please.'' Winter fake gags as she watches you bat your eyes at her.

''Promise me when you get in trouble, my name won't get drag.''

''You're my ride or die, though..''

''...''

''...''

''...Fine.''

''Yay!!''

Jaehyun passes the clock a glance. He's up early so he doesn't have to worry about getting late to his appointment for the day. His footsteps ring from his bedroom, eventually transfering to the kitchen. Just as Jaehyun reaches out for a mug, a container catches his attention.

''Made too much, you can eat it if you want.'' The sticker on it says.

His eyes must be playing with him. What has gone to the witch? Should he be scared? Although overthinking aside, you mentioned that you only made more than enough for one person, hence giving it to him. Welp, free breakfast for him then.

Sitting down, Jaehyun takes off his coat lest he stains it minutes before he attends an appointment. The lid clicks open and his nostrils hit with an appetizing scent of eggs and bacons. There's some rice and tomatoes on the side as well.

Biting the bacon along with rice, Jaehyun chews slowly, checking out the taste. He then hums, figuring out there's nothing to be afraid of. They taste like what they should've been. Strangely, Jaehyun thinks it tastes more delicious.

Today, you are not at the unit as it is the start of your 'redeeming reputation' era. Jaehyun ponders what you're doing right now. Are you sleepy? He heard you talking to your friend at 2am. Have you eaten breakfast properly? You eat a little in the morning. Are you having fun? Or you're just pretending to be? You don't fancy gatherings unless it's with people you are close to.

Jaehyun doesn't know when he started thinking of you, he just catches himself wondering what you're up to often. Is he catching feelings? Is he getting infatuated? Jaehyun doesn't think much of it. If he's developing feelings, then so be it. Would it be bad for him to harbor romantic feelings for his–

Saliva lands everywhere on the counter as Jaehyun launches forward, spitting what he ate at the empty spot of his plate. ''What the fuck..?''

Using a fork, he pokes the egg, turning it sideways, up and down. The food breaks down with all the movement, revealing the receipt that left an overly salty taste on Jaehyun's buds.

Fishing out his phone, he snaps a picture of the devil food in front of him before sending it to you, uncaring if it looks disgusting and all chewed up.

JH: What the hell is this?

Not even a minute, you reply. As if you've been waiting for him to message you.

You: Uh.. egg? Duh.

Jaehyun clicks his tongue.

JH: I know it's a goddamn egg. Why the fuck does it have clumps of rock salts in it? We put iodized, not the huge ones.

You: Heh. *Tongue out and eyes shut closed tightly emoji*

Jaehyun gulps down his water alongside his irritation, eyebrows meeting each other. He tries to settle for the bacon and rice but the demonic egg fucked up his taste buds and now, he can't enjoy his breakfast. Jaehyun should've known his fate was written the moment he decided to prank you.

Little did the royalty know, it was just the start of his road to slow death. Starting from the salty as fuck eggs, Jaehyun soon finds out you took the remote of the TV and so he couldn't watch the movie he had been waiting for since the announcement of its release date, unfortunately Jaehyun is not one to remember his passwords– he couldn't log in on his mobile phone.

What comes next is the kitchen sprinklers. You must've noticed Jaehyun cooks his own food from thereon (the egg incident) and figures out it'll be a good idea to use it against him. Jaehyun didn't see the lack of labels on the sprinklers, and with his hands already memorizing the placement of herbs and spices, Jaehyun grabs what he knows is the right one. Long story short, the prince opts for food delivery as his kimchi jjigae was for the ants. It was like the demon egg all over again, except this time, it was fucking sweet.

3 days later, when Jaehyun's favorite sneakers went missing, he knew he hadn't misplaced them. Is he unlucky that you're out of the city to do your princess duties? Maybe. Is he gonna let this piss him off? No, that means satisfying your goals. This is nothing, Jaehyun can search for it, surely it's somewhere in the house.

Wrong. Well, it is in the area of the house but it's not in the house. Guess where Jaehyun found his fucking sneakers? On the fucking rooftop. How did you even put that there, he doesn't have a clue. In the end, Jaehyun had to climb a ladder and fell once at the third step (he's quite clumsy, yes) before retrieving his shoes.

As Jaehyun sits through a meeting in a stained white (or should he say pink) dress shirt, he is surely determined to get that win back

Acting civil with your fianceé is something you didn't expect after a constant back and forth of ruining each other's day, but you suppose it's only appropriate in a dinner with the family of both sides. Royals like meals as family bonding it seems, not that you know. Or do your parents consider discussing country matters on dinners as one?

Sipping your champagne, you hum quietly at the taste, too busy in your own world to listen to whatever conversation they are having at the other side of the table. That is until your father softly calls your name. You turn to him and pay attention.

''How's your appearances doing so far?''

''Good, I guess..? If it's not, Eunhye won't let me rest for a day or two.''

It's not like the King and Queen only orders you to help in charities and orphanages solely for building a good reputation for you, they also genuinely care about the unfortunate.

''That's great to hear then.'' Queen Miyoung smiles. And even though you're once struck by her beauty, it doesn't sit well with you.

''Hmm?''

What your mother says next emits a confused look from you. ''Prince Jaehyun will be accompanying you in every schedule, especially those that involves the media.''

You frown. ''But I thought it was for my image? Why would I need him to come with me?''

''Because once people see you getting along with your husband, moreover someone known for his kind and compassionate personality, it'll be easier to convince them that you've changed. Prince Jaehyun will be a great help to you.''

Seeing the grin that the man in front of you is not-so trying to hide, you clench your fist around the cutleries. How irritating.

''It was all thanks to the Prince for he voluntarily comes forward to join you on your appearances including those that does not involve medias.''

So the suffering you'll experience for the following weeks was his idea?

Squinting your eyes at the prince, you reach your foot forward, your face remains unchanging. You observe Jaehyun who's happily eating his food for a few seconds before smirking and stomping down on his foot hard enough to make it hard for him to hide his pathetic whimper.

Concern and worries are thrown at him but he dismisses them with his usual flower smile. Jaehyun then looks at you, his eyes diverting your subtly hidden fist, gesturing to punch him as a representative for your irritation at him. Jaehyun tongues his cheek and chuckles. He dares to fucking chuckle?!

Why is he smiling as if he won the olympics? Why is he so smug about this? And more importantly, why is your heart racing as you stare at the dimples shyly peeking out?

You yelp as you accidentally bite your tongue. Before you could even reach for yours, Jaehyun shoves his glass of water to your hands. Everyone is looking at the exchange, you have no choice but to accept his offer. You wanted them to believe this marriage fell apart naturally, and not because you sabotaged it. Though, you plan on doing the latter.

King Jaekyung's snicker rings on your ears. ''Ah, it seems like the two have been getting along. Perhaps the shared apartment was indeed a great idea.''

Your mother follows right after, clapping lightly. ''Right, right. Look at them, treating each other like real lovers. I'm not gonna be surprised if they themselves request for the wedding to be done soon.''

''How lovely. Are you alright though, darling? What has caused you to bite your tongue?'' Queen Miyoung worries.

''It's noth–''

''She was too busy staring at my face, Mom.'' Now, what the flying fuck is this motherfuck trying to play?

Queen Miyoung squeaks. ''Is that so?''

''Yes– my fianceé here even once said I'm too handsome, I could be up as an exhibit in Louvre.''

You give Jaehyun a smile so sarcastic he will know to run for his life the moment you two get out of here. The other people in the room thought it was a smile fondness instead. While Jaehyun sends you a finger heart, you itch to send him the middle finger.

Your mother shares a giggle with Mrs. Jung. ''Ah.. young love.''

Jaehyun earns another stomp.

Days after the dinner with the Kings and Queens sees you and Jaehyun in a kindergarten wearing pink white polka dots aprons. The little humans cheer as their teacher announces that they'll be designing their own cakes today with the help of the visitors. Visitors being you and Jaehyun.

Raising a piece of fruit, you snatch the kids' attention. ''Who wants some strawberries?'' 

''I want to! I want–!'' Little Seol-a makes grabby hands to you, making you chuckle.

''Okay, okay. Say ah..'' Popping the strawberry in Seol-a's mouth, you receive a cute giggle and 'thank you' from the little girl.

As the teacher announces the start of the making, everyone quickly gets to work, eager to create their most beautiful versions of cakes. Since you also have a cake to decorate, you only look at the kids every now and then, checking up on them. So far, everyone's doing good.

A high-pitched voice calls you. ''Can you please help me with the icing..?''

Smiling, you leave your seat and transfer beside Mina. ''What should we do?''

''I want it pink like Seol-a's, it's so pretty!''

Mina's words pull Seol-a out of her focus, turning to the two of you. Seol-a purses her lips. ''But I'm making it for my mommy. Does your mommy likes pink too?''

Mina looks down and her eyebrows crease in thinking. ''No. My mama likes blue, I think..''

Watching the exchange, you could tell that Seol-a doesn't want to tell Mina off but at the same time, she doesn't want her friend to do exactly the same as she's decorating hers specifically at the thought of her mom.

You decide to step up. ''Then, Mina, would you like yours to be blue?''

Mina ponders for a second before nodding, smiling a bit. ''Okay..''

Seol-a perks up. ''Mina! I'll be pink and yours will be blue, and then let's decorate it the same so our mommies would get matching cakes!''

Mina lights up at what she heard. She will have a matching cake with Seol-a, yet also have her own version. The two girls squeals at the cute teddy bears and gushes over the pastel colors their cakes will be. You smile in adoration.

Minutes pass, little humans ask for your assistance until almost everyone at your table is finished. You feel a tap on your back.

''Hi, Rowoon!''

The chubby boy smiles cutely at you, hugging you. ''Teacher, can you come help me please? Teacher Jaehyun is a bit busy with the others.''

Glancing at Jaehyun, a bunch of kids flock around him, calling his name and asking for his help. It has no sign of dwindling down so you nod, heading towards the boy's place after telling your own group that you'll be at the other table. As you help Rowoon with his cakes, you fail to ignore the conversations he's having with the kids due to the proximity.

''I love chocolates, I eat them everyday! Teacher, do you like chocolates?''

''Yes, of course. Chocolates is one of my favorites.''

''I like chocolate too but my mom won't let me eat more than three. Does your mom let you eat a lot of chocolate, Teacher?''

Jaehyun laughs, shaking his head at the core memory of Queen Miyoung scolding him for eating too much sweets. ''No, she doesn't. Your teeth will turn bad if you eat a lot of it and mommies are just taking care of you.''

''Turn bad? Like fall out–?!'' 

''Most likely.'' The little boy covers his mouth dramatically, earning another laugh from Jaehyun.

''Teacher! Your cake is so pretty!''

''Why, thank you, Yuna.'' Jaehyun boops her nose with a clean finger.

''You should get an award for having a pretty cake.''

One kid appears. ''My mommy gives me kisses as an award!''

''Me too!''

''Does your mommy gives you kisses too, Teacher?''

What's with these kids and questions about mommies?

''No, she doesn't.''

''Oh no.. is she mad at you?''

Jaehyun giggles. ''She's not. She used to give me kisses but not anymore because I'm a big boy now.''

''Ah, you don't want kisses anymore?''

Thinking he will earn kisses from the little kids if he says no, Jaehyun tells them he loves kisses. Humming, one of them then points a finger.

''Teacher will give you kisses as a reward if your cake is the prettiest!''

Jaehyun follows the path where the kid is pointing at. ''Really?'' His eyes landed on you, still and unmoving. Jaehyun bites his lower lip to stop the laugh rumbling on his chest.

Jaehyun grins. ''Then I should work on making this the prettiest cake ever made.''

You almost choke on your own spit.

Articles after articles, headlines after headlines. Old people gush about how pure your interactions are. Adults nudge each other at how you sweetly stare. Teenagers envies how Jaehyun performs all love language at you. It seems like everything now revolves around the Crown Princess and her lover.

The crowd certainly loves the contrasts between you and Jaehyun whereas you're more carefree and casual while Jaehyun sticks to his formal attitude. One thing that became popular amongst your supporters, or 'shippers', is the picture of you– like the diva that you are– wearing a pink miniskirt, corset top, socks with ribbons on top, mary jane pumps, and a cream loose cardigan sits beside Jaehyun who is dawned in his usual dress shirt, slacks, and blazer. You cannot forget that fanfic you found wherein Jaehyun is a CEO and you're a supermodel. Shippers are imaginative and delusional at the same time.

It's been 2 months since you've started attending events with the prince and it wasn't as hellish as you thought. Maybe because Jaehyun can't cause a problem in public, or maybe he just doesn't find the need to. Nonetheless, that didn't cease the fire that is the prank war. It goes on and on that even Winter finds it hilarious at this point. Who knew the lovely couple searched for a list of pranks to do in their free time so they could piss each other off?

Lately though, you've noticed (actually it was Winter) that your pranks have been getting less harmful to your daily lives and had just become something to enlighten the mood. Like the clown that pops up when you open the fridge and the snake balloon hidden in the tin can. Very uncharacteristically, you even find yourselves posting each other's reactions on your stories. And if Jaehyun created an instagram account just to upload videos and pictures of you, you're not so sure. A thing you're certain though is that the dislike for Jaehyun had faded away and was replaced by something else. Something you're yet to find out.

''A penny for your thoughts?'' A finger snaps you out of your thoughts. Jaehyun grins.

You shake your head and continue looking for the best quality of vegetables as Jaehyun follows you around, pushing your cart. Another thing that you've grown to get used to is doing groceries with Jaehyun. Very domestic, isn't it?

''Can we buy this one?'' Jaehyun points at the packs of big marshmallows.

Frowning, you shake your head. ''What're you gonna need it for? It'll just expired at the cabinet.''

''No, it won't.''

''How so?''

''I'll eat it before you can even say chubby bunny.''

''No, Jeong.''

''But we have a mini chocolate fountain machine at home!''

''Yes, a fountain machine you, may I say–'' You face him. ''–unnecessarily bought. Literally no reason to buy one.''

''Well now I can finally use it and it won't be useless anymore..?''

Tsking, you walk away to look at the meat. In the end, Jaehyun huffs, staring longingly at his marshmallows before tailing you, steps heavy.

After shopping for at most 2 weeks worth of food, you type on your phone while Jaehyun carries all those bags. So much for being a macho man. Winter sends an atrocious idea and forces a laugh out of you.

''What's funny?'' Jaehyun asks like a curious cat, peeking at your phone.

''Winter says we should announce that all of this is fake at the upcoming press conference and film Eunhye's reaction. God, that would be hilarious honestly.''

''Oh..'' And curiosity finally kills the cat. Jaehyun mums. Are you faking it all this time? Are you not enjoying your time with him? Are you faking having fun whenever you're with him, even now?

You are about to ask Jaehyun for the car keys but as someone who spends their entire life under the spotlight, you know a camera when you see one. Pocketing your phone, you stride towards the man at the car beside Jaehyun's. Said man tries to run away but you are quicker with your feet and grab him by his collar, you hear Jaehyun's call of your name.

''What's wro–''

''Give me the phone.''

''Why– what's happeni–''

''Give me the fucking phone!'' Shoving the man to a car, he winces at the pain in his back. When he surrenders his phone, you delete his video and throw it on the ground before stomping on it, crashing it.

Jaehyun calls your name again. ''Why did you do that? Stop, you're choking him.''' Though obviously wanting to calm you down, Jaehyun doesn't touch you anywhere, opting to wash his palm over his face.

You ignore him and focus on the man shivering in your hold. ''Tell me, what the fuck do want?''

''Nothing–''

You dig your forearm deeper to his neck. ''I'm only gonna ask this twice, you fucking twig. What do you want?''

The man struggles to breathe but attempts to answer anyway. ''I–I was.. paid to–'' He wheezes. ''To prove t-that.. Prince Jaehyun isn't what– what he pretends to be.'' The man coughs.

Raising a brow at what you hear, you wrap your hand around his throat and lean closer to his ear. ''Listen here, fucking microphallus. I know this fucker here looks like he's a worldwide known actor but in reality, he can't act for his fucking life. This man doesn't have a fucking future in acting. He can't fake anything, he's too goody shoes. This prince can't do a thing except entertaining the fucking crowd.''

He is genuine and is not pretending in front of the cameras. Is what Jaehyun can hear between your lines.

''So if you're thinking of exposing him and shit– too bad for you, Jeong lives his life by the books.''

Sighing, Jaehyun tugs at your shirt. ''Let's.. let's let him go. He said he was just paid to do it, didn't he?''

Glancing at the prince, you could see the stress on his irritatingly handsome face and annoyingly, you find yourself to hate the foreign emotion on it. Clicking your tongue, you let go of the man but grips his collar again before he can get away. ''Spread misinformations about my fianceé again, you'll be caressing metal bars the next day.''

Jaehyun holds your hand to take it away from the man and fixes his mask. ''Sir, you can send your resumé at the palace and you should be offered a job with monthly payment. Please don't ever damage someone for the sake of quick money. Money wears off in time, but the damage doesn't.''

With that, Jaehyun tugs you away from the scene. During the ride, silence fills the car and as you arrive at the apartment, that's when you realize Jaehyun's hand is still intertwined with you from the moment he holds it until you reach the flat. Why does Jaehyun look like it's the most normal thing? Why is your heart doing the fucking rabbity pumps?

Jaehyun heaves a sigh. ''Damn.. that's actually crazy– I can't even believe it happened. It went by so fast, my brain couldn't process the fact that someone believes I fake my personality and manners in front of the camera. Like–''

You plop to the couch.

''–what did I even do? Did I upset them? Did they say hi to me one time and I didn't say it back? Did they–''

''I punched the guy because I wanted to protect my friend.''

Jaehyun stops arranging the items you bought. ''What–?''

Hugging your knees, you keep your eyes on Jaehyun's. ''It was my friend's birthday and she wanted to celebrate it in this bar, it was called gangbang. Controversial, I know. We were having fun just like we planned to. But a group of guys at the other table starts joining in. We weren't paying attention to them– or at least, I wasn't. But one of my friends starts complaining about how one of the guys 'accidentally' brushes his hand on her ass too many times. Accidental, my ass. No one wants to come forward so I did, being the hero that I am. I talked to the guy calmly and asked what's wrong. Said guy told me my friend was lying but fuck– my friend was this close to crying about it. And then I got pissed at how his friends defends him when the CCTV clearly shows the incident so I fucking punched him and broke his nose.''

''Next thing I know, news outlets reports me getting involved in a brawl and ruining a fucking commoner's nose without including the reason why I did it.'' You scoff. ''Said friend I protected refused a statement and left the country without defending me.''

Jaehyun sits at the carpeted floor, facing you, looking with worry in his eyes. Something in your eyes flashes but disappears before Jaehyun could even determine what it is.

''And the pictures of me sleeping on the streets?''

Jaehyun hums, caressing your hands.

''They told everyone I was so fucking drunk I couldn't even bring myself home and showed videos of me chugging vodkas, whiskeys, beers straight from their bottle. But why didn't they show the part where all those fucking people around me gangs up on me and calls me a fucking pussy, a no fun, and a fucking killjoy. They didn't stop until I agreed on drinking all those fucking liqours.'' You sniffs, you didn't even know when you started tearing up.

''And that video where my bodyguard had to carry me because I wouldn't wake up? The palace was on emergency alert at that time– why? Because alcohol and sleeping pills were mixed inside me. When I tried to explain what happened, no one fucking believed someone slipped me a fucking bunch of sleeping pills– my heartbeat was fucking slowing down and I was over-sedated, Jaehyun. There's no point of telling them the truth when they already decided I was fucking lying. For fuck's sake, I was near to dying that fucking night– god!'' You bury your head in your knees, shoulders shaking as you sob, fist continuously knocking your head hard.

Jaehyun hugs your quivering figure, whispering words that he knows best that'll comfort and calm you. ''I understand you. I believe you. It's okay, love. You're gonna be okay. I'm here, alright? I'm here, love. Everything's gonna be okay.''

Your cries haven't even died down when you look at him. Jaehyun thinks vulnerability was the flickering emotions behind your eyes these past minutes that he failed to catch on.

''Aside from the people who did those shits, Winter is the only one who knows about the truth. Because she's important to me.'' You hiccup, tears streaming down your face. ''Do you get why I'm telling you this, Jeong?''

There's a clue, but Jaehyun doesn't want to get ahead of you. ''..why?''

You chuckle while crying, more tears roll down your cheeks. ''God, you're so fucking stupid, aren't you? Winter is important to me so she knows the truth. I told you the truth because–'' You bow your head down and hold Jaehyun's hands. ''–you're more than just important to me.''

Jaehyun's breath hitches, and the world stops. ''Oh baby..'' He kisses the back of your hands and the top of your head before hugging you tightly.

He attempts to say the words that have been at the tip of his tongue since you decorated cakes with the kids but you cut him off.

''I will hurt you, Jeong, accidentally. I don't communicate. I don't open up. I find it hard to trust people easily despite sharing a close bond with them. I curse more than I say affectionate and loving words. I push away more than I pull. I'm violent. I am broken, I'm a mess.''

Jaehyun smiles, so handsomely it makes your heart ache. ''You don't communicate and open up? That's fine, I can read between your lines. You find it hard to trust people? That's alright, trusts are earned, not bought. You curse more than being lovey dovey? Well, I'm lovey dovey more than cursing. You push more than you pull? Isn't it great that I'm the exact opposite. You're violent? I could do the talking, you could do the punching. You're broken? I will patch you up again and again. You're a mess? So what, you're a beautiful kind of mess. And if you hurt me and wound my heart.. well then– Sorry, Heart.''

Right there and then, the faceless man that you saw at the bar and had a crush on morphs with Jaehyun's. You chuckle. ''Fate is playing with us, isn't it?''

Jaehyun cradles your face. ''And I'm glad it did. Because I met you.''

''You're such a sap.''

''Oh shush, you love it.''

''Maybe, maybe not.''

''Pfft, wait– does this mean we stop the pranks now?''

''Do what the hell you want, but you'll continuing to be pissed off first thing in the morning.''

Operation: Stop the wedding! Step 3, fall in love with your soon-to-be-groom.

A shudder electrifies the fibers of your body as Jaehyun spreads the cold juices of peaches along the lines of your collarbone, his tongue dips in next, easing to freezing temperature with his warmth. He sucks where the sticky liquid lays previously, his cravings of sweetness beaming in glee as the flavor slowly seeps in him.

Your breath heavy, hands moving to caress your boyfriend's blond strands as his kisses travel to your breasts. The flesh of the fruit circles your nipples before Jaehyun dives in, sucking the hard nubs all the while fondling and playing with the other. Quiet moans of pleasure finally escape your lips after minutes of holding back, your head lolls back and your eyes close shut, sighing from the pleasure slowly building up. Slurping sounds bounces off the four walls of your shared bedroom, it's so obscene that anyone who could hear it could certainly feel how hungry Jaehyun is for the mixture of the peach's sweetness and the bits of saltiness coming from your sweat. It's disgusting to think but Jaehyun's cock gets only harder with each taste.

The surface of his hand palms your clothed core, thumbing where he's sure your clit settles and gives the area a slight pressure, he makes circles around the button that elicits a series of whimpers from you.

Fuck. How he wishes to see this image of you everytime. Your glossy eyes, puckered swollen slips, and whole face scrunched up as your body shivers in his hold, back arching as pleas of having him inside you draws out. 

Break me, wreck me, ruin me. Those are everything your body screams. 

Oh, he will ruin you, alright.

Jaehyun rips the remaining pieces of clothing off of you, gripping your legs apart, wide and open just for him. The way your pussy glistens under the dim lights of the room, the prince's lust fuels up until he could no longer bear the desire of devouring you. 

His mouth, his tongue, his body, his mind -- screams for your taste, it craves the feeling of you thrashing against his embrace as you fall apart. And Jaehyun.. he's just a man. One who could only do much to control himself from drowning his face in the sea of tempting your slick.

''Ooh, Jaehyun, please..'''

From the alley your legs created, you are able to see Jaehyun's face and how his brow quirks in question to your plea. He's so fucking cruel, unlike the gentleman and polite prince everyone in your country had loved since the beginning. If they only know.

The pad of his tongue follows the traces of your juice, squeezing the last bits of the peach and lets it trickle down on your pussy. Dipping the tip of his tongue, he wiggles it until he's deep inside your warm tight walls, clenching on his muscle as he fucks you with it.

''Jaehyun–! Fuck!''

Your hips jerks upwards, practically offering your core to Jaehyun's face. That, Jaehyun accepts. Gripping each thigh, he pins you to the bed as he sucks, licks, and devours more than you offer.

Jaehyun's fingers join his tongue, squelches emitting from your soaked pussy as Jaehyun's digits continuously penetrate it. By the time Jaehyun is about to add the fourth finger, he sees your eyes rolling and notices the constant clenches of your walls– a telltale sign of your climax. And Jaehyun isn't Jaehyun if not a bastard in bed.

He pulls away before walking away to fetch something, all the while unbuckling his belt and unzipping his pants. Jaehyun reaches the foot of your bed, he tugs his pants and boxers down, revealing a girthy and lengthy dick with an angry tip.

Jaehyun pumps his cock, staring at your sore pussy and fucked out face. Your breathlessness is music to his ears.

''Jaehyun, please..''

''Please?''

You open your legs wider, hands dipping between your legs to spread the cheeks of your pussy. ''It's all yours. Please, fuck me.''

''Fucking hell..'' Jaehyun nudges your legs open as you both moan in unison as his cock pushes past your entrance, veins rubbing against the tight velvet walls. Jaehyun plans to wait for you to adjust, but you shake your head. He smirks, and starts fucking.

''My girl is getting brave, huh? Let's how much you can fucking take.''

God, this is why you love Jaehyun in bed. This is the only time you hear him curse, be rough, and manhandle you in positions you didn't even know you're capable of doing.

You ask for it hard, and Jaehyun gives it every time. Wrapping his hand under your knee, he folds your body until it touches your chest as Jaehyun slides deeper, reaching deep inside you that a bump appears every now and then on your stomach.

''Fuck– do you see that, baby? Look at your stomach, shit, it's bulging. Am I too big for your tight pussy, baby?''

Jaehyun pins you against the headboard with his weight as drools escape the corners of your lips, dribbling down your neck. You grip the top of the headboard for support.

''Ah ah ah! S-so good.. so good!''

Jaehyun chuckles lowly. ''Does it, baby? Tell me what makes you feel good.''

''Y–your big–big cock! Fuck, i-it's so, haahh, so big!''

''That's right. My big fat cock is making my girl feel so good; she can't even construct a proper sentence. Do you know how that makes me fucking feel, baby? I feel like a fucking king, you know. Crown Princess, fucking feisty and always hissing at everyone, crumbling down at the feeling of my cock at her guts.''

Jaehyun plows into you deliciously, white spots showing themselves at different parts of your vision as pleasure takes over your body. ''You're so fucking tight, baby. You're choking me.''

Yelping, you hold onto Jaehyun as he withdraws from your pussy, carrying you as he transfers you to the glass window near the bed, pushing you against it before he starts pounding vigorously once again, teeth sinking to break your skin, lapping the droplets of blood. Lewd moans knock out of your throat. Seeing your reflection from the window, you're reminded of those pornos you've watched as a curious teen.

''Jaehyun– uh, uh, Jaehyun! You're gonna make me come!''

''Then come. Come for me, darling.''

You white out, shuddering in Jaehyun's hold as you clamp down on his cock, white ring appearing around his length. Jaehyun buries his head in the crook of your neck as he chases his own high, groaning as he finally reaches it, pulling out to finish himself on your back.

As a minute passes, you both regain the air your lungs have been desperately needing. Jaehyun makes you face him and kisses your lips full of gentleness, so in contrast to the rough pounding earlier.

And of course, Jaehyun isn't Jaehyun if not a sap after sex.

''I love you so much, baby.''

You snort. ''I do too, idiot. Now clean me up.''

Operation: Stop the wedding! Step 4, abort mission.

Come morning, the sunlight seeps through the curtains and shines on your bed beautifully. Jaehyun wakes up, his day already made at the sight of you sleeping peacefully in his arms. You look adorable, like you couldn't harm a fly. You wouldn't if said fly doesn't harm any of your loved ones.

God, Jaehyun is so fucking in love with you. You smile, his day is made. You breathe, suddenly the weather is perfect. You exist, Jaehyun finds every reason to live. You are the water that keeps Jaehyun tethered.

''What the fuck do you want, Jeong?''

The prince chuckles. 8am in the morning and you're already so grumpy. It confuses a few staff members how Jaehyun fell in love with you. If he won't get in trouble, he'll tell them you're a witch and make him drink some irreversible love potion or what.

''Nothing. You're pretty.''

''... Shut up. Just because you look fucking good in the morning.''

''Thank you, baby. I love you.''

''Ugh, you're too in love with me.''

Jaehyun giggles. ''I am. Will you marry me?''

You stop yawning and look at him as though he grew a second head (or third..?). ''The fuck did you say?''

''Will you marry me, baby?''

You scoff. ''Ask that again if you have a ring to out around me.'' The words are mumbled but Jaehyun manages to hear it.

''What?''

''I said your breath stinks, Jeong.''

Shaking his head in disbelief, Jaehyun laughs deeply, caused by his morning voice. You find that hot but you won't te him because he'll use it against you everytime.

Jaehyun reaches for something behind him, inside the drawer, and faces you again. There you see a small red box on his palm, Jaehyun opens it and reveals the ring you've once mentioned to be your dream ring. Wordlessly, he slips the ring on your finger after taking off the fake one.

''But we're already engaged though.''

''Eh.. that was fake, baby. This one's real.''

You raise a brow. ''I haven't even said yes.''

''You'll say no to me?''

''Pfft, you're getting too cocky. I don't like that.''

''Hmm, sure, love.'' Jaehyun smiles warmly and takes you in his arms again. You bury your head in his chest.

''Jeong,''

Jaehyun hums.

''I hate you for making me feel this way.''

Jaehyun settles his hands on the sides of your face and caresses your cheeks with his thumbs. ''I love you too, witch.''

''Psst,''

''What now, baby?''

''I love you, Jaehyun.''

Operation: Stop the wedding! Step 5 and the last step, be in love and marry each other for real.

#nct #jung jaehyun #jeong jaehyun #nct 127 #nct smut #jaehyun smut #nct scenarios #nct imagines #jaehyun scenarios #jaehyun imagines #nct fanfic #nct soft hours #jaehyun soft hours #nct boyfriend #nct royalty #nct royalty au #prince jaehyun #jaehyun boyfriend #jaehyun royalty #prodbymaui

[mint-yooxgi]

Kinktober Day 22.5 - Prince!Haechan + Cockwarming & Praise

@soluvcore​ Said: Prince Haechan + Praise + Cockwarming. 🧡

A/n: And as it is written, so it shall be~

Word Count: 443

Kinktober 2022 Mini Masterlist

The two of you sit beneath the shade of the willow tree, a blanket spread out on the ground and offering you a layer of comfort over the grass. Slowly, a breeze flits by, causing the leaves to sway gently as the clouds float lazily through the sky above.

Shifting your hips slightly, a low moan escapes both your lips, smiles on both your faces. You quirk a brow, hands resting on his shoulders as he pulls you closer.

“Ready to give in, yet?” You tease, purposefully clenching around him.

He inhales shakily, fingers digging into the skin of your sides as his hands bury themselves within the folds of your dress. “You wish.”

If anyone were to look at the two of you, it would simply appear as if you are sitting in his lap. Haechan’s back rests against the trunk of the tree, using it for support as you sink even further onto his cock buried within your wet folds.

A simple bet. Whoever could make the other crack first gets to do whatever they want to the other all night long. You’re confident you’re going to win, but with how good he feels filling you up, the tip of his cock brushing against your walls, you may just find yourself cracking sooner rather than later.

“Fuck, you feel so big within me,” you throw your head back, eyes fluttering shut as you revel in the fact that his cock twitches inside of you at your words. “Stretching me out so nicely; making me feel so full.”

“Princess,” he groans, “I’m already having a hard enough time thinking straight with your tight, hot little cunt wrapped around me so delicately. I don’t need your hypnotizing voice putting me under your spell, too.”

“Oh?” Your quirk a brow, lips twitching upwards in the corner. “But you know how much I love your cock, especially when it’s filling me up like this. How can I not tell you how much I love it when I’m stuffed full of you?”

Haechan bites his lip, suppressing the moan that threatens to escape him at any second.

“Come on, My Prince,” you lean in, your voice a mere whisper as you nip at the shell of his ear. “Don’t deny me when I’m telling you that you make me feel so good.”

“You’re really in for it later, Princess,” he hisses through clenched teeth as you once again shift above him.

“Oh, am I?” You giggle, and the sound is like music to his ears. “I think someone needs to win first, and if I’m being honest,” your eyes flash, “I have no intentions of losing.”

#Haechan scenario #haechan smut #donghyuck scenario #donghyuck smut #nct smut #nct scenario #kpop au #kpop scenario #kpop smut #kinktober #prince au #royalty au

[zchnlswrld]

[ 18.09 ] prince!chenle — fluff / personal favourite

chenle storms through the palace halls, you hot on your heels right behind. the click of each heel almost taunting the fact you weren’t able to keep up.

“honey, what’s wrong this time?” you say, trying your best to stay close but the shoes aren’t helping.

he doesn’t hesitate at all “he can’t just do that to us.” he fires back. with that chenle begins to walk faster, well aware how far you really are from him.

if you were to walk anyway faster the mid thigh dress you were wearing would ride up so you weren’t going to be taking any chances, chenle was aware of that hence why he moved so quickly.

“it’s no big deal, i have faith in you as do your parents!” trying your best to convince him. at your comment he stops, he waits for a moment before turning around.

there you are, the love of his life. the warm sunshine that melted his heart of ice. his sunshine. he so badly wanted to smile at the sight of you but he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

you recognised the look on his face, “look at what he’s done. to me. to my mother, my father. look at what he’s done to you, darling…”

the distance between the pair of you was unbearable but neither of you could bring yourself to move closer, ten feet left like ten miles.

“he can’t help it, he’s in love. he looks at her like she strung up every star in the sky just for him. he constantly has this burning desire to be in her presence, how, how do you not see that?” you say, pulling off the small tiara that sat on your head.

before chenle could get another word in you spoke up again, “she is the love of his life and he would do anything for her, that’s what he’s doing and you have to understand that… if we were in the same situation would you do the same for me, my love?”

silence filled the room, it did for a minute or so before it was broken by his parents entering the same hall you were in.

“my love, would you not…” you pleaded, begging for an answer but chenle looked away. “you’re filled with hatred because his love is not convenient for you and that is not a nice thing to be on the receiving end of, sweet prince…”

he looked back at you, tears filling your eyes and in turn his heart shattered. “it’s not that it’s inconvenient for me.” he started firmly. his heart told him to agree with you and move past it but his head told him to prove the point he planned to make.

your grip on the tiara tightened, trying to understand him. chenle caught on and loudly stated “princess, it’s not that it’s inconvenient for me. it’s because it’s inconvenient for you…” his words held so much sincerity.

“you’ve said to me since day one that you wanted nothing to do with the throne and here we are, the public address you as their princess and you never wanted that..” he began moving closer, each step felt like torture as you looked down.

eventually he was in front of you, slowly he place his hands on your cheeks to get you to look up at him. chenle’s eyes were filled with so much love it was hard to deny he didn’t love you. “sweetheart, you were only open about being with me publicly was so you could openly love me.”

you stared back at him with that same love, something he would be forever thankful for. he could love you so tenderly and it would be returned with just as much tenderness and care.

“my dear, my love, my princess, my sunshine… you never wanted this, so why are you pretending it’s ok?” chenle’s eyes began searching for an answer however he couldn’t find one, only sincere love was present in your eyes.

your free hand came up to your cheek and you placed it over your partners, a small smile graced your face as you began to caress his hand. “because i love you… and if your brother stripping himself of all of his royal duties means i get to love you as openly and tenderly and softly as i can all while protecting the people you love i would do it over and over again, my prince.” as you spoke your voice hushed into a whisper as chenle moved closer.

the pair of you stared into each other eyes for what felt like years, unable to look away despite the previous nervousness to do just that. you were so immersed in each other presence the light sound of the tiara went ignored.

you hand slowly moved up to your lovers neck, once it was there he gradually moved closer to lean his forehead against yours. “my sunshine, i love you just as much. please, please be my queen…”

as a response to his question you pulled him in with a smile on your face, closing the gap between you and letting all the love you had for him and every ounce of passion you felt be put onto him, your lover.

#nct dream x reader #nct x reader #nct imagines #nct scenarios #chenle x reader #nct dream imagine #nct dream imagines #nct dream scenarios #nct dream scenario #nct au #nct dream au #i don’t see enough chenle on this app #prince chenle ftw #i don’t know what other tags to add #kpop imagine #kpop imagines #kpop x reader #RINA’S TIMESTAMP

[talktonana]

ok but this got me thinking of a fic with princess!reader and knight!jaemin.. like that would be hot

WAITTTT I NEED THIS PLEASEEEE 😭😭

childhood best friends - enemies - lovers, arranged marriage

in the moon kingdom. jaemin, son of the commander, was born to take over his father's position once he turns 18. you were the king taeil's daughter, and conveniently the only other child in the palace that jaemin could be friends with. but when your princess duties and his knight training start interfering with your daily play time you both start to grow apart.

it didn't help when he was appointed as the knight responsible for your safety when you both are adults. he would continue to pester you, telling you to sit properly, curtsey, eat appropriately, sleep early, study, and wear proper dresses. though he was mostly doing it for the sake of your image as the royal princess, it made you more annoyed at him than you already were.

but when you were betrothed to prince haechan from the sun kingdom, his action shifts, encouraging you to be on your worst behaviour, sneaking you out to the infamous bar in town to have fun (imagine the scene from titanic when jack sneaks rose out to the party in the lower class) slowly winning your heart over when he apologizes to you under the moonlight atop a hill.

"you're my princess, you know that right?"

#talktonana #ttn: asks #jaemin #nct dream #nct imagines #jaemin fics #jaemin smut #jaemin x reader #nct #nct scenarios #jaemin fluff #prince au #royal au

[daeguzen]

Winter’s Mortem Ornamentum

PAIRING | n.jm x f. reader

GENRE | packed with angst, happy ending

WORD COUNT | 16k

NOTE | this one was in my inbox for a long time and i'm terribly sorry i never finished it to post it. motivation to write, personally for me, fluctuates a lot. so i am terribly sorry about that but on another note, hope you guys like it, princely au’s are immaculate. and i literally finished this today. aha. so it’s not proofread. (previously titled winter’s ornament of death). 

REQUESTED | anon

WARNING | mentions of makings of lOvE but not detailed. this is mostly a holy blog...mostly. jaemin is very mean to reader.

SUMMARY | princess y/n was the most beloved of her kingdom by all. her kindness and warmth showed no bounds. she was greatly respected for helping the kingdom become the prosperous land it was. she lived a good life until a terrible illness overtook her, causing her to grow up much too fast at such a tender age. there was a possible cure but the price may prove too much to pay. only a certain prince could save her. not only that but she is soon to be betrothed to said prince, na jaemin. knowing she was the one who turned his heart to stone will be something she has to live with for eternity. will prince jaemin rescue her from the impending death sentence? or will he let the cold hands of death encase her and turn her into its ornament?

Hands grazed at your clothed skin lightly, head moving only slightly as ribbons were pulled, your posture remained straight, and brushes feathered around your face and neck. Gazing into the mirror you took in all that was around. The maids you grew up with were whispering sweet compliments with gentle smiles. They laughed with genuinity while a small smile played at your lips. Your smile, although gentle and light, held enough warmth for the entire room to feel. The smile of their beloved princess had always been enough to boost their spirits. 

You were the most respected princess in all of the kingdoms; the most humble and sweet. The people of your kingdom lived in prosperity and knew they were well taken care of. Because of you, citizens were able to share their troubles and you were capable of reaching great solutions. The King and Queen were constant witnesses of just how far your fairity and warmth reached. Your intelligence and sympathetic attitude was always blessed by your people, their eyes filled with gratefulness at all that you accomplished.

You were always worried for the people who didn’t have homes or lived in terrible structures. You went as far as giving instructions for the building of new and better homes. You had their structures examined for any problems to be addressed, doctors also received the medications and supplies needed and so much more. All of this was done at the prime age of seventeen. Citizens received all of this on your behalf and in return worked hard to keep the kingdom thriving and their dear princess happy.

However, even if you did receive all their public affection and blessings you knew they maintained some sadness in their hearts. You were aware of how they always questioned why their dear princess rarely attended the royal banquets among other events. The King, Queen and Prince Jeno, your dear brother, were always present; but your seat that was to the left of the Queen more often than not remained empty. This made people long for your presence even more. They never spoke ill of you except for those who held anything but kindness and honesty within them. They felt it wrong to ask such questions but you knew, you always knew. Other royal families felt the same curiosity and wished to know for what reasons you remained absent. Some were nosy people whose mouths only liked to spew gossip. Others felt just as your citizens did, longing for the girl whose graceful gestures remained imprinted in their memories. This sadness was especially felt by the family who ruled in the kingdom south of yours.

The Na family was the most rich and respected kingdom in the country. Your kingdom was known for agricultural advancements but the Na family had been known for the advancements of medicine and technology. The education was also one of the best all around and many students from all the kingdoms were granted the opportunity to study in the Na kingdom. The royal families had known each other for many years and were happy to have seen their children grow side by side. It had stayed this way for many years, Prince Jeno and Jaemin were your two faithful friends. And you were their little Princess who needed to be protected and loved always. In those days the little foreign prince had become your knight in shining armor. Quite literally as he would take the armor in the hallway and slip into the chest and head piece noisily. He would hold your hand with confidence and you’d blush. He would always claim to be your guardian forever and always.It was the only time the prince got down on his knee for someone else.

Na Jaemin was just as loved as you, maybe a tiny bit less compared to you. He was charming, mischievous, but loved sincerely like no other. You used to know him like you knew every little line and detail on your hand. You had come to love once with all the strength you had in you but in your eyes, fate had ruined all of your hopes and dreams.Only your family and trustworthy servants of the household knew what you had to live with for the remainder of your life. The sweet princess with the blinding smile, gentle eyes, and caring personality, was taken over by a disease that was said to have no cure.

The beloved royal Princess Lee Y/N was dying.

~

You were vile, cold, and a creature undeserving of love. You were more cruel than any villain that ever existed. In Jaemin’s head, you weren’t the sweet angel that your kingdom painted you to be. You weren’t as beautiful as Aphrodite and you definitely weren’t as loving as Eros. You were a wolf disguised as a sheep. No, you were the ugly reflection of the cursed Medusa. Jaemin hated you with such ferocity that if you hadn’t been a princess he would have found worse ways to torture you for the rest of your life. But this was not allowed. You had to be respected and treated with utmost kindness. It was because of you that Jaemin learned he could trust no woman besides his mother. No princess could ever make Jaemin fall in love because that was simply a game for a fool and he was not to be made out as one. Never again would he allow this.

He thought it to be ridiculous of you to not show your face to your own people. Did you really think so highly of yourself? You might as well have been branded as a narcissist to care for your own wellbeing so much. Jaemin wanted to wipe off every smile you had ever made just to see the look of pain and despair on your hideous features. You disgusted Jaemin to the point where he could almost lose himself in the angry shades of red. You didn’t deserve any affection or love from your people. Especially, from the damned fool that would have to put a ring on your finger and call you his queen. But Jaemin realized he was cursed in this life.

Fate had branded him to be the damned fool.

~

You dreaded the moment you currently were in. One moment you were happily walking through the garden, the next you were sitting in your living room, Na Jaemin sitting across from you with a feral look in his eyes. You imagined he wanted to attack you, yell at you, make you disappear even. Because the look he had was that of a man driven mad.

Even then, seeing Jaemin’s beautiful features was something you felt deprived of for the longest time. The only vivid memory you had of him was when he was fifteen years old, his brilliant eyes dimming with each second as you broke the boy's little heart. You remembered how his loving expression changed to one of pure pain. You saw it in his trembling lips, shaking figure, and teary eyes. In your mind, you knew you were doing the right thing. Making him hate you was easy, telling him you were going to die and counting the days alongside him was impossible. You couldn’t put him through the pain you felt. For you, that was much more cruel than giving him a reason to hate you.

Remembering his broken expression made you realize that time had not been so kind to Jaemin. You knew he was beyond frustrated, angry, and hateful. You could see it in the way his body was a little hunched over as he remained sitting on the velvet red couch that your mother adored. His right forearm was placed on top of his right leg and his other hand was grabbing at his left leg. His right hand looked like it would turn red as he held it in a fist. You could guess that his nails were probably digging into his skin, his anger wanted to erupt and you would be the brunt of its force. It didn’t surprise you when Jaemin stood up immediately, his loud reaction shocking the parents. However, it didn’t stop the painful strike to your heart as his words tumbled out recklessly.

“Mother, I will not marry her! I’d rather die an agonizing death than have to call her my wife!” He didn’t know the power that his choice of words had but he could care less, his appearance turning red and haggard. You kept your posture straight and tried your utmost best to not look hurt. Jaemin’s parents gasped in shock and turned a bright shade of red, embarrassment flowing through their bodies. Your parents knew how he would react and kept calm. It wasn’t hard to know what you had done because it was the same thing you tried to do to them. At a young age you had grown up too fast for the world. You wanted to push away anyone who cared for you because of your disease but they stood by you and cared for you. They made you realize that you shouldn’t push away those who love you and although you told yourself that you should make amends with Jaemin, you knew he still hated you. Your brother had let you know all those cruel secrets that Jaemin would have not minded saying to your face.

Prince Jeno looked towards you, sadness evident on his face but protectiveness overpowering his body. He placed his hand on yours and you glanced at him for the slightest moment. Jaemin stood facing you, anger blurring his vision and despair drowning his heart. Of all things the world could have done to him he thought this to be the most evil. He flinched when he heard his father speak in a calm tone.

“I apologize sincerely for my son's behavior. I have not taught the young Prince to act in such an abrasive manner.” Jaemin didn’t look at you and instead glared intently at the rug you had once called as intricately beautiful. He loathed that rug. When you spoke it was like the flames were growing at a more rapid pace and Jaemin didn’t know how much more he could handle.

“There is no need. I understand that he must be going through a lot at the moment.” He hated the sound of your voice. He regained a bit more confidence again as his eyes met your empty ones. You were mocking him, he just knew you were.

“You understand everything, don't you Princess? Yet, no one seems to understand how much of a vile being you are.” Jaemin heard his mother yell his name but he was like a wild animal being freed from a cage he’s been wanting to escape for too long.

“You are fake. You are no angel, you are a demon. Purely twisted and cruel. You could never understand anything and you could care less.” You could never understand how much I want to love you. How much I wanted you to tell me that you were joking and that you liked being around me. I wanted you to tell me you loved me when I said that I loved you. 

Jaemin could never bring himself to say those words to you. He promised himself that he would never be weak and fall as a victim to the lies of someone who could create the perfect facade. Really, Jaemin hated how composed you looked, your hands neatly folded in your lap, in his anger he noticed the small blur of Jeno’s hand overlapping yours. He hated how your face was void of any emotion, how your voice still sounded so sultry to him even after all those years of wanting for you to leave his dreams. Most of all he hated himself for still taking unnoticeable glances to your lips and wanting to kiss them, to feel your chest pressed against his and hearts beating as one. He despised you for breaking his fragile heart, for having so much power over him and if he couldn’t hurt you the way you did him then he would vow to make your life a miserable hell.

~

After Prince Jaemin had been practically dragged out immediately by his parents in sheer embarrassment and anger, you let yourself be taken away by your brother. As he closed the door to your room, you sat down on the floor, not having the strength to make it to your chair. You hadn’t said anything after Jaemin’s words. His parents excused themselves hurriedly and apologized many times. Your parents weren’t mad, they were worried. They had always loved Jaemin dearly. They thought him to be the only one deserving of their princess. The plans had been arranged long before you reached womanhood. You were to marry the heir to the Na family and thrive to run a successful kingdom. You would have been happy to hear those news but now you simply dreaded your marriage with Jaemin. How could you live your life with the man who hated you for breaking his heart? You didn’t want to give him any false hope. You didn’t have the heart to bear the idea of Jaemin having to mourn you. But unfortunately, he would have to mourn you eventually as a lover or not, he had been your best friend once. 

You heard Jeno’s soft voice reach out to you, “Y/N, let me help you.” Tears rolled down your face, your youthful beauty fading and in its place a grim expression. Your eyes had looked sunken, your color looking sickly with lips turning blue and your breathing turned irregular. You immediately went limp in Jeno’s hold, your head falling back. Jeno was quick to notice as he cursed under his breath, picking you up and carrying you towards your bed. Kneeling on the bed next to you he screamed, his voice now sounding harsh and loud.

“Maids!” All you could hear was the opening of the doors and steps rushing in. When you got like this, hearing others was a bit hard. Everything felt...cold. It was so cold to the point where your body went numb. It wasn’t something that only you felt, it was something that was visible to anyone. Your skin would feel like ice against anyone's touch. Your hair would turn completely white and your fingertips were encased in ice. 

Jeno could have said that his dear sister looked beautiful. You looked like an ethereal being, a goddess, and he would have liked to think of you this way. If only it wasn’t draining your life force. You were his little sister, the little princess he grew up with. He protected you more than he did himself because although people saw you as royalty, you were just a girl with a heart more fragile than anyones he’s ever known.

He remembered the first time this happened. He witnessed his fourteen year old sister faint in the middle of an animated conversation with your parents. They all feared for your life and Jeno could only stand frozen as his precious little princess fell with a harsh thud on the ground all of the sudden, your hair growing white by the seconds. Jeno didn’t tell anyone, he’d learned to turn expressions into masks and use the right one when needed. But seeing you, limbs bent, hands outstretched around you, ice encasing your fingertips, he was terrified. 

He heard his parents scream, his mother letting out a cry of agony and fear. His father had screamed your name, immediately throwing himself towards you and taking an arm to wrap around your shoulders, propping you up. It had traumatized Jeno, seeing how your head just fell back limply. Jeno couldn’t remember much of anything else after that. All he could hear were the cries of his mother, his father calling out for his little girl, and the demands for calling a doctor. Some servants stood frozen in their place, scared for your life, others reacted much more quickly, getting anything that would bring up your temperature. They checked for your heartbeat which was steady at that moment but they were anxious because there was no possible way for your body to maintain the coldness it did.

Jeno was whisked away by a female servant who was assigned to him since he was a baby. Jeno didn’t realize he was sobbing loudly and uncontrollably until he pulled away from her embrace and saw the tear stains on her clothes. She had held his face, brushing away the tears as she tried to calm him. 

“Prince Jeno, please calm down. It’s okay, your sister will be okay. Please calm yourself.” Jeno could only shake his head in denial as his sobbing continued. The royal family had always been different from the others. They held a lot of respect for the servants who worked for them and when the female servant had been assigned to Jeno, she was told to take care of him in anything he needed. That’s why Jeno, on instinct, let his arms wrap around her in a tight hug as one would do with their mothers and she let him. Hugging him closely she tried not to break down into tears as she heard the uncharacteristic cries of a young boy who never knew a pain such as this one.

Jeno was now sitting on a chair next to your bed. His hands itching to hold yours. His eyes and nose had turned red, little droplets running down his face slowly. Jeno knew nothing could ever hurt him as seeing you in this state. Any arrow, dagger, or sword could run through his body multiple times and paint him bloody. It still wouldn’t hurt as much as losing his little sister.

~

Years of searching and paying for the finest doctors could never help your physical state. Your illness was far from being normal. Your family believed it to be some type of witchcraft or the gods punishing them. For what they could not know. What they did know was that losing you would destroy them. They couldn’t foresee it but they could imagine the agony and suffering you would have left behind. The family looked like they aged quickly overnight when you would get sick and they were losing hope in finding someone to cure you.

But hope eventually made its way through like sunlight peeking through the curtains. They were informed of a doctor who resided in the forests to the west. He lived in the kingdom and was said to be very knowledgeable on all medicine and herbs. When the carriage arrived on behalf of the King and Queen he did not hesitate to go immediately to where you were. It had taken the guards that were in the carriage by surprise not at his willingness but at the crazed look he had in his eyes. He smiled happily all the way to the royal castle, humming here and there.

When he arrived he introduced himself as Doctor Lee Haechan. The King and Queen were taken aback at the youthful appearance of the doctor, looking no older than you or Jeno. His hair had grown long, sticking to the back of his neck. His hair was pretty brown and although it was a mess of thick waves here and there, he was still quite a charming sight to behold. Your parents made it very clear that whatever happened in the castle remained there. He was not to speak of your current state and if he did he’d be severely punished for it. Dr. Haechan had just laughed but his eyes were still, void of any of that joyful laughter he let out.

Jeno was told to keep a close eye on him as soon as he was led to your room. For a doctor Haechan walked strangely. His strides were strange. Jeno’s eyebrows furrowed when he noticed that he walked like a royal. Graceful, head held high, back straight, and posture almost near perfection. When he walked into your room, Jeno felt unnerved at the blinding smile and interest that took over Haechan’s face. He looked jittery, as if he were a little boy being offered a bag of sweets. He walked over to your bed quickly, taking in your sunken eyes, white hair, blue lips, and ice covered fingers. Jeno walked over to the other side of the bed so he could watch everything that Haechan did. When he reached out to hold your hand, Jeno spoke up.

“Is it necessary for you to have to hold her hand?” Haechan smiled, his eyes boring into Jeno’s with a dangerous glint. 

“I would say so. It is a strange thing is it not? How does ice cover her fingers completely when she’s nowhere near the perilous winter mountains?” Haechan looks back down at you, taking in every detail. Jeno knew he wasn’t admiring your beauty, he was entranced by your illness. It had his full attention. He let go of your hand, taking a look at his palm and noticing the flush of red that spread from touching your freezing hand. 

His hands came up and he let a mischievous smirk show itself to Jeno before completely disappearing. His fingers combed through your hair and Jeno tried to refrain from striking him across the face. 

“I don’t think my parents would be very fond of you touching her.”

“Oh Prince Jeno, they aren’t here. In fact, I’m pretty sure they are having a nice cup of tea in their dining room.” Jeno let confusion paint him but before he could say anything Haechan spoke again.

“Your dear little sister has somehow claimed a power that is not hers.” His voice sounds jealous.

“This is no illness or curse. It’s a beautiful thing really. A power so pure and somehow it manifested itself in her body.”

Jeno feels enraged, “You call this beautiful!? It’s killing her!”

“Well yes that’s rather…unfortunate. But see, hm well let me tell you a story of a little blue flower that is said to have strange properties. Even its nature is not what we consider normal. Its petals are covered in a substance that is invisible to the human eye. It's extremely poisonous and kills people within minutes. A nasty death really. Your body freezes from the inside excruciatingly slowly, frostbites start to take over, it hurts to breathe and then you bleed profusely. It is said that after the flower has done its work, red roses bloom all around the person, snow cushioning the body. The snow turns red with the blood of the victim. It’s quite a gruesome sight,” Haechan lets out an airy laugh, “in whatever position they were in, the flowers bloom around them. They aren’t as beautifully placed as your sister is though.” Before Jeno could grab Haechan by his collar, he puts his hand up and the other immediately wraps around your neck. Jeno stills.

“Ah ah ahh, I wouldn’t recommend that. You’d hurt my feelings very deeply if you’d cause any harm to my being. I might even feel inclined to ah, how should I say, spread my pain towards your little princess.” Haechan smiles cruelly and Jeno just watches him wishing he could wipe the smile off his face. 

“I will help you. Truly. After all, this works to benefit us both. Your sister gets cured and I will get ah, the flower I need. Please, sit down.” Both boys looked at each other calculating and Haechan’s hand retracted from your neck.

“The cure for this flower is ironically another flower whose properties are just as strange. Your sister must have had contact with the first flower, it’s called Winter’s Mortem Ornamentum. Death Ornament. As I told you, its petals are extremely poisonous and she must have touched it. The curious thing that we do not understand is how your sister reacted to it. Instead of dying instantly, she seems to have fallen sick to it instead. She’ll die all the same if it’s not treated. As I said, it is ironic how the cure to this flower is another flower which is actually its opposite. It looks almost like a rose, thorned, and is a very vibrant orange. Winter’s Mortem Ornamentum blooms in the spring, its brother blooms in winter. Spring’s Spiritus. Spring’s Breath. It breathes life and warmth back into the body of the victim. We’ll have to ask your sister where she saw that flower. And if she can’t remember well, quite unfortunate how that would turn out now. I can’t help you any further. But I can give you this,” Haechan takes out a box from his case. When he opens it Jeno sees a green substance of some sort in vials.

“These are special herbs that I mixed with other properties. You only need to use a little bit from the vials so they should last you a very long time. You take a little bit of it and place it in her mouth. It’ll dissolve like water and spread warmth within her body enough so it doesn’t completely freeze her heart. I’ll stay in my home until you’ve given me news about the flower. Remember, winter’s flower blooms in spring and the spring flower blooms in winter.” Jeno takes the box that is handed to him and looks back worriedly at you. When he hears Haechan speak again he no longer can see him.

I’ve listened and whispered into your parents' heads. I know of the union between Princess Lee and Prince Na. Let’s say, I’m deeply invested in the benefits of this union. Prince Na has quite a lot of achievements and success with medicine and I’d be in your ah, debt let’s say if you’d give me an astounding recommendation. I can’t venture to the Na Kingdom as I’d like because of uh personal matters. And I know how much little Princess Y/N loves her Prince who she turned cold. They’ll make a great couple if Prince Na gets over his desire to hurt her as she did him. Little sadistic if I do say so myself. At last, I take my leave. Remember, only she can touch the flowers, if anyone else does the results will turn…deliciously gruesome.

~ 

Jeno puts away his thoughts of Haechan’s character and how he only helps when it benefits him. It’s been two days and you’ve finally awakened from your cold slumber. After hearing the news Jeno was the first to show up in your, almost smothering you in a hug. 

“You were asleep for only two days. That’s better than last time when you were asleep for a week. Welcome back to world sis.” Jeno smiled fondly at you as you reciprocated his hug. 

“I’ll tell the maids to bring up your breakfast now.”

“Actually, I want to have breakfast in the garden,” you say a bit weakly. Jeno looked at you worriedly.

“Are you sure you have the strength?” You nod insisting that you want to be out of your room. He helps you up and you sway slightly but Jeno helps you and lets you get adjusted. You tell Jeno to wait for you in the garden while you freshen up. After showering and putting on a simple gown with a pretty white lace turtleneck and long sleeves, you head downstairs. One of the maids smiled at you as she came to aid you in descending the stairs. You wished you wouldn’t have to bother anyone but everyone in the house knew that it was their duty to watch out for you. So you let the maid lead you all the way to the garden where you met Jeno. 

When Jeno started to speak, he brought something up that always brought a smile to your faces. “Remember the time you devoured all those little muffins?” You let out a laugh.

“Yes and then you proceeded to laugh at me thinking I was too but only realized I was choking after I started turning blue?” He glared at you playfully.

“I was five I didn’t know any better.”

“Hmph how dumb for a give year old prince.”

“Oh stop it. Anyway, I had the chef bake you some of those muffins. You took long enough time for him to make them and have them served. I wonder why girls take so long getting ready.” You rolled your eyes playfully.

“Prince Jeno, a girl must carry herself well and if she is a princess well then appearance plays a great role. All princes have to do is wash up and get dressed while their hair dries. A princess has to do much more.”

“That makes sense coming from a rotten child such as yourself.” Your smile fell off your face immediately at the voice. Jeno looked towards you apologetically but made a quick remark as his eyes flashed quickly towards the person behind you. 

“I know we are like brothers Jaemin but I will ask you once to refrain from making negative comments about my sister and your soon to be wife.” You didn’t have to see Jaemin’s face to know that he was happy with Jeno referring to you as his future wife. Jaemin would probably marry a random princess than you.

Wife. Na Jaemin’s soon to be wife. Why can’t I feel happy hearing those words? I don’t deserve him, that’s why.

“Let him be Jeno.” Jaemin laughs as he comes around to sit next to Jeno, diagonal from you.

“You hear that Jeno? She knows she deserves all my hate and besides she’s a big girl now right? She can look after herself.”

“Prince Jaemin, may I ask what brings you here at this early hour?” He faces you you know with a dangerous glint in his eyes, making an uncomfortable feeling crawl in your chest.

“I was told to come meet her grace to beg for her forgiveness in treating her oh so wrongly and distastefully.” Jaemin kept looking at you and you watched his every move. The way his lips pulled up in a smirk, his cheek meeting his palm, and his elbow firmly placed on the table.

“I don’t think I will though. If anything you should be begging for my forgiveness. Won’t you be a dear and beg for forgiveness? Hmm?” Your expression remained stoic as it always did when Jaemin tried to pull one of his little stunts. Jaemin wanted to see something break in you. He hated how composed you were while he fell apart easily. 

“Jeno, do you remember last year when Prince Renjun wanted to invite Y/N to their royal banquet?” Jeno almost growled at him.

“Jaemin.”

“Y/N showed up and wondered for an hour. She looked so utterly stupid in her red dress. He’d given her the wrong location. You know how I know? I told him to do it. You should have seen the crestfallen look on her face when she realized he lied to her. It was quite hilarious.” You knew what he was trying to do to you. It really did hurt to see how hard he was trying to throw all the pain back in your face but you had to keep your composure.

“Thank you Prince Jaemin for telling me and remembering the color of my dress.” That wiped Jaemin’s grin right off and Jeno had the audacity to laugh at his friend’s failed effort.

“Y/N, you should start waiting you don’t want to f-”

“Yes, Jeno I will. I’d rather eat in my room though. I’m not feeling quite well.”

“Nonsense, a princess should stay with her company. Eat. You do look fatigued. It’s not good to starve yourself to feel pretty.”

“I do not starve myself Prince.”

“Of course. Well then why don’t we all just dig in then.” You sat in silence as the servants laid out the breakfast for the three of you. Jaemin started to eat and Jeno looked towards you but you just gave him a reassuring smile.

You would tell yourself countless times that you deserved this. His cold shudders and silent treatments. All of his insults, you felt like you deserved them and more. You ate in silence and after you were finished excused yourself. But before you could leave Jaemin spoke.

“Do not get used to this. After we marry the servants will look after you. I will not so do not expect anything from me. I will always hate you and absolutely nothing will change that.” Jaemin didn’t look at you while he spoke and you just turned away. You cried silently, the stares of the servants making you feel worse as Jaemin’s words were etched onto your heart.

~

“You never know when to stop, do you?” Jaemin just grinned.

“Well that’s because you’ve never been betrayed by your best friend Jeno.” Jeno groaned in annoyance. He knew Jaemin was being irrational. He understood that you had hurt him deeply but you had your reasons. Even though Jeno kind of wished you’d talk to Jaemin, he understood that it was hard. If Jaemin could detach all of his feelings from you he wouldn’t have to mourn you. But Jeno could see the longing in Jaemin’s eyes, the love he still had for you even through all his anger and insults.

But as it seemed, you were both fated to suffer together. Jaemin longed for you but his scars stopped him from getting close to you. He thought it to be pathetic. He didn’t know how badly you were hurting and what it was that you were going through. But Jeno knew that if Jaemin just knew everything, he’d understand and he wouldn’t hurt you this way. He would take care of you and love you the way you were meant to be loved. The way Jeno knew Jaemin was just dying to love you.

“Jaemin, I say this because we’ve been friends for a long time and we know each other like brothers. What you’re doing is not going to help mend your heart. You’re not going to feel any better at the end of this road. The day my sister suffers at your hands, you’ll regret it. And although I care for you deeply, I will not hesitate to do anything to protect her. She has her secrets, Jaemin, secrets that would make your broken heart as small as a paper cut.” Maybe he was belittling him but he had to grow up. Jaemin pursed his lips in a thin line. Not only was he rejected harshly by you but now even his own best friend treats his wound as if it were meaningless. Jaemin got up abruptly, making his way out but not before making a remark about your family.

“Why do you Lee’s insist on being so cold?” 

~

Preparations for the wedding were being set up a month later and it was agreed that it would take place at the Na manor by courtesy of Jaemin’s parents. Jaemin’s parents had felt terrible and embarrassed by their son's reaction and offered to set up the entire wedding. You were pulled left and right for decisions on your make-up and dress among other things. You tried your best to ignore the fact that it was Jaemin you were marrying and instead focused on the preparations. You had always dreamt of how a wedding would be like with the love of your life. You didn’t care about how grand the wedding would be. You preferred something smaller and more personal. At the end of the day none of that mattered as long as you were with the person you would spend the rest of your life with. But at this thought you started feeling sad again. You wanted to be happy with Jaemin. He was everything you never knew you wanted but you knew he wouldn’t make things easy. You had a feeling that Jaemin’s attitude towards you would worsen because now you had to face him everyday. You would be living with him from now on and it scared you more than you’d like to admit. 

~

“Jaemin, I don’t understand why you can’t just stop all of this. She hurt you once, I know, but you’re going to be a married man. It’s been what? Four years? Don’t you think this is getting a little childish?”

“Mark, you wouldn’t understand. At least the person you love reciprocates your feelings. And you were best friends too! But Y/N, she lied to me. She acted like she cared and pushed me away until all I felt was hurt. She acts all high and mighty but she’s nothing.” Prince Mark looked at Jaemin with pure disappointment. 

“Don’t you think she had a reason for pushing you away? She wouldn’t just change overnight and you know that. Deep down you know who she truly-”

“No I don’t. I don’t know who the princess is. She is a complete stranger. Isn’t that funny Mark? I’m getting married to a stranger.” Jaemin drank from his cup. The deep frown on his face made him look older than his age and Mark just wished he’d stop torturing himself and you.

“Jae, come on, you guys are getting married.”

“That doesn’t mean anything. Actually, it does. It means that I’ll be able to give her a taste of her own medicine.”

“What do you think you’re doing? Divine retribution? Jaemin, you know that isn’t going to work. You’re only going to make things worse.” Mark looked to his friend who groaned in frustration. 

“Why is it that everybody is scolding me? She hurt me. It's only fair if I return the favor okay? So stop telling me I’ll regret it because I won’t.” With disappointment written on his face, Mark got up and decided to meet with the other princes, leaving the boy to wallow in his pains and frustrations once again. 

~

The wedding was not grand just as you wished. You had pleaded with your family to not go too far. They complied although reluctantly. The wedding was held in the garden of Na Manor. It was quite beautiful really. The garden had a maze that was well memorized by the family. Jaemin had played in the maze plenty of times. For the wedding however, signs had to be placed so guests wouldn’t get lost. It was the most unique idea that had guests delighted and amused.

You remembered how you’d play in the small garden maze that Jaemin’s parents made especially for the two of you. The first few times you had gotten lost and cried loudly enough for Jaemin to hear your pleas. Before he was able to play in the maze his parents set up wooden signs with shapes of all kinds. Jaemin remembered them religiously so he wouldn’t get lost. He’d follow the sound of your cries and when he reached you he would hug you tightly, scolding you lightly for walking around by yourself. He would wipe away your tears and place a kiss on your cheek. Jaemin was always kind to you and you wished that you weren’t forced to give him up so early.

The ceremony took place in the heart of the maze. It was a large area that could fit about two hundred people. Different shades of flowers were placed in the maze’s bushes. A water fountain of an angel looking down, hands across its chest, stood at the opposite end of where Jaemin was.

Jaemin had smiled all throughout the ceremony. He had mastered the skills of keeping a facade thanks to you. He acted like he genuinely cared and he hated it. In fact he hated that his garden maze had to be turned into what he considered to be a monstrous disaster. His wedding ceremony was nothing but a terrible mistake he wished he could fix.

But Jaemin was a complicated fellow. He would continuously tell himself he hated it. That he loathed the whole ordeal. But his heart leaped when he saw you dressed in all white. The wedding dress covered your arms but left your shoulders bare. It was long and puffed out a bit around you. You looked small in it but at the same time it fit you well.

And then Jaemin remembered how much he hated himself. He’s always hated himself for being so weak for you. Seeing you in that dress he wanted to ruin it but at the same time he just wanted to drag you by your waist into his embrace and kiss you like he always dreamed. He wanted to have you completely and to give himself up to you. Your eyes bored into his and he couldn’t help but to think that everything was happening so fast. A moment ago he was spewing insults and now he was saying his vows to you. Until death do you part and all. Jaemin wanted to live in peace. But your mere existence ruined that for him. He was unsatisfied. All because you broke his heart and claimed that his reality with you was all but a fantasy.

He became better at hiding his anxious habits. He stood completely still as he watched you walk down the aisle, your arm looped through your father’s. He smiled softly. Hypocrite. He could hear the hushed chats of how beautiful you looked. It was true. You were someone so divine, so beautiful and so kind. It was a happy occasion that called for celebration. But no one knew the fear you held within your heart. The anxiety coursing through your veins. Sadness. It was all going to play out terribly because Jaemin would have to see you leave him once again. And this time it would be for good.

After the vows were said, Jaemin moved the veil away from your face. His eyes staring at your lips and his hands coming to your face to pull you closer. He placed his lips on yours, moving them slightly for a few seconds against yours. He cursed himself for wanting to deepen the kiss. Hate. I hate the princess. I hate...you. I… Jaemin didn’t have to say it, you could read it in his dull eyes when he pulled away. You wanted to apologize for ruining him. For hurting him the way you did even though you wanted to love him wholeheartedly.

But you and Jaemin had your own pair of tremendous flaws. Jaemin was a walking contradiction and you couldn’t be strong enough to mend things with him. He deserved to find someone and be happy. He didn’t need you. He didn’t want you. It was better this way.

Jaemin’s arms held you as closely as he could tolerate; your arms were wrapped around his shoulder as you went from speaking vows to dancing in the middle of the garden, the guests cooing at how beautiful it looked. 

“Don’t get too comfortable. This is all for show, you know.” You smiled gently.

“I am very much aware of that Prince Jaemin.”

“Did I ever tell you how much I hate you? I think you’d be better off vanishing than here.” Your eyes shifted towards him, mischievous yet angry. He wanted to get a reaction out of you. But you wouldn’t give it to him no matter how much his words hurt.

“The wait won’t be long Prince, your desires will be fulfilled because wishes are meant to be granted don’t you think?” It wasn’t the answer he was expecting to hear, it felt cryptic. It made no sense. You then returned your empty gaze to the speck of dust on his shoulder. 

It was strange. It was like watching two mannequins come to life, dancing with their faces void of any specific emotion. Or perhaps porcelain dolls. Fragile and easily breakable. The two of you had looked like little figures dancing in a circle in a beautifully intricate broken music box.

~

You hadn't fainted since the wedding. You were grateful but at the same time fearful of your next episode. All of your studies and Jaemin’s duties went along fine. Prince Jeno would visit you often, hoping that he won’t find you passed out in the mansion. 

It was a lovely day and Prince Jeno sat to your right in the garden maze, the angel statue behind you looking down upon your figure. 

“You haven’t had an episode in awhile. I fear that day when you do. I’m not sure what Jaemin would think of it but I know he wouldn’t just leave you.” You scoffed. 

“Jeno, I think Jaemin has made it pretty clear that he won’t care for me. That includes me fainting.” Jeno sighed.

“I don’t think that’s true. Jaemin is a lot of things but he isn’t that heartless. He’s just really stupid.”

“Only slightly.” Jeno looked at you, concern written all over his face. You appreciated how much he cared for you but you wished that it would go away. You always felt bad with Jeno, you thought yourself a burden although you never voiced this out. 

“Has he been treating you badly?” You could only let out a sigh.

“Prince Jaemin just works. Fulfills his duties as future King. I do the same. We rarely see each other nowadays.”

“Y/N,” you can hear the small edge in Jeno’s voice. He knew when you were lying. He didn’t have to look in your eyes or look at you in general. He could simply tell from the way you spoke. You were silent for a moment before you continued,

“Jaemin likes to talk a lot, you know that. I ignore it.”

“Then why did I have to hear from Jisung that you were crying uncontrollably after Jaemin let your sketchbook fall into the fountain?” Usually you were so composed but hearing that scenario relay from your brother, you let your body curl into itself. You felt a bit at loss with your words. You didn’t know what to say, it was Jaemin after all, he was the only one who could leave you with emotions swirling chaotically. 

Jeno lets his hand hold yours and says to you, “You can’t let him do these things to you. You have the maids from our manor to watch over you. Don’t walk around by yourself if you can help it Y/N.”

“...I was drawing him.” Jeno could only look straight ahead, his jaw tightening. Jeno felt pity for you knowing that your feelings never died out. The two of you were really just suffering when you could just spend the rest of your days happy. 

“I was on the balcony and he was in the garden speaking with Prince Mark. I guess he noticed that I was walking around with the book in my hand because the last place I left it was in my room. When I came to look for it, it was gone. I ran out looking for it only to find that all the pages were torn out and spread across the fountain…I couldn’t find the one I drew of him.” 

“That doesn’t mean anything.”

“I know.”

~

It was a very curious thing when Jaemin started to act slightly nicer. On a cold afternoon, Jaemin left a new sketchbook for you outside your door. A note he had left only said the words I’m sorry. It was curious indeed and you couldn’t help but think that he was planning something. But days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and eventually Jaemin had stopped insulting you completely. 

He was a little distant but slowly he’d let himself open up to you. He sat with you during eating hours. He asked if you were alright. If you needed anything. And then he’d reminisce about your past with him when you were kids. You kept wondering, why was he doing this? Just months ago he was telling you he’d never love you. Now he was making you laugh and smile. And you couldn’t help but feel selfish and listen instead of turning him away.

“Remember when we went to the hill behind Prince Mark’s mansion? You were ten years old. We found that beautiful lake with all the pretty flowers.” You smile confusedly, “I actually don’t remember that.”

“It was a really beautiful place. I want to go there again. Would you come with me? Mark let me use that place as my own. It looks different now but I know you’ll remember it.” When Jaemin looks at you, you remember the hatred he used to carry. But now, all you felt was kindness, maybe even love. And you nod shyly, letting him take your hand and placing a gentle kiss on it.

“Let’s be spontaneous. Come with me now, we’ll take some clothes and you can bring your sketchbook.” You look at him, eyes blown wide with an amused expression on your face.

“Jaemin, that's so random. How could we just leave now without planning?”

“Well I don’t have anything to do this week. It’ll just be two days. Come on, let's go.” You were surprised just at how quick Jaemin acted. It was all very sudden but you laughed, a genuine and childish laugh, when Jaemin held your hand as you ran through his home and up the stairs. He helped you put things into your suitcase and then went to his room to do the same. The servants watched the both of you, giggles escaping some of them when they saw the smiles on your faces. 

Jaemin had come a long way from being mean to finally being nice to you and they couldn’t help but sigh in content as their happy Prince came back to them. As you hopped into the carriage alongside Jaemin, you couldn’t notice how the heavens started to cry all of the sudden. You couldn’t feel it or know it but they cried because the angel they watched over was going to finally shatter into a million pieces.

~

When you arrived at the lake you gasped. He was right, it was gorgeous. The lake shone brightly from the reflection of the sun. It looked so clean and pure. The flowers were all of different colors. It looked absolutely gorgeous. In the middle of all the pretty flowers was a little cottage house. It was cute and very homely and your heart couldn’t help but melt at the sight.

This seemed like something out of a fairy tale. And Jaemin was at your side, very close, with his hand not intertwined with yours and leading you towards the cottage.

“It looks so beautiful. You did this?” Jaemin nodded.

“I always enjoyed coming back here. It’s very relaxing and I feel like I can get away from my responsibilities.” Walking inside you noticed how organized and well taken care the place was. Jaemin helped you get settled and finally as you two winded down he did something he’d never done before.

Jaemin used to tell himself what he disliked about you. He’d make himself angry at the thought of you. But having to live with you proved difficult in his hopes of hating you completely. He found himself trying to find you. He’d watch you from afar. And one night he walked into your room before you came out from the shower and took your sketchbook.

He knew it was wrong. But he wanted you to hurt. And he knew your sketchbook was special to you. So that night he walked out into the front of his home and ripped out your pages one by one, throwing them into the water fountain. But then he came across one page and his heart stopped. You had sketched him. You sketched Jaemin with careful detail, getting his eyes right and his lips perfectly defined. He was sitting in the picture, facing towards the right. From the outfit he noticed that you had drawn he realized it was from when he was speaking to Mark. You had been watching him. He ripped out the page without thinking, folding it and putting it in his pocket. He closed the sketchbook and threw it in the fountain with the rest of the drawings.

That was then. After the fiasco, Jaemin wanted to ask you about it. Why had you drawn him in such fine detail? Why were you so confusing? So Jaemin did what he did best. He put on a great show. He acted kindly towards you not realizing that the action would come back and bite him. 

But it was too late everything was already in motion as his soft plump lips moved forward to meet yours. You had gasped in surprise and Jaemin swallowed it, a groan escaping him. He kissed you feverishly, arms wrapping around you to bring you closer. You squeaked in surprise as he handled you gently, pulling you onto his lap. Jaemin left kisses on your jaw and down your neck then came back up take your lips again. You were so elegant and beautiful to him. 

You couldn’t say anything as Jaemin suddenly got up, holding you still in his arms as he walked towards the bedroom you both were sharing. You blushed profusely as whispered pretty words into your ears. You were overwhelmed with his touch and scent. Jaemin made you feel wonderfully loved and you hoped it wouldn’t ever end.

~

The following day you woke up in Jaemin’s embrace. You smiled widely seeing his hair messily stick out, his chest rose softly as he breathed. You were both wrapped in blankets. Jaemin acted the kindest he’s ever been with you. Helping you out of bed and into the bath which made you blush for the entirety of said bath as he helped wash your hair. When you had both gotten out he helped you into your clothes. At this point Jaemin was practically spoiling you completely, carrying you around because he knew you must have been a little sore. 

He cooked for the both of you. Feeding you and making you laugh at his funny antics. It was all so blissful. Like a dream come true. When it was time to go back home you felt like things were going to be entirely different. You couldn’t push him away anymore. Not after the way he loved you the previous night. It was impossible for you to be away from now. You admitted that you were selfish but if Jaemin could change then you could come clean and tell him the truth.

After a long ride in the carriage Jaemin helped you inside. He let his servants take up your things and his. He spent the rest of the day with you. He watched as you sketched him once again, your eyes tracing every corner of his face. He sneaked in a few kisses, some lasting longer than the others. He watched as you put on a new dress that had been waiting for you on the bed. Jaemin had gotten it as a surprise for you and had instructed one of the servants to leave it in your room for when you returned. 

“Darling stop it,” you laugh. Jaemin smiles as he placed more kisses down your neck.

“I,” kiss “don’t,” another kiss “want to.” His last kiss turns into a playful bite and you smack his arm.

“We’re in public. What if the servants came by?”

“You’re so cute when you’re shy.” It went on like that for the entire day. And when the day was coming to a close, Jaemin took you by surprise when he suddenly picked you up bridal style all the way into his room. Once again he claimed you as his and you fell asleep soundly in his embrace.

~

When you woke up, Jaemin was nowhere to be found. You were left alone in his bed. You called out for him a few times but heard no response. You felt shy after yesterday’s event and decided to clean up on your own. You blushed thinking about how Jaemin treated you. He had treated you like his loving wife and you couldn’t stop smiling. 

You called on one of Jaemin’s maids to help with your hair. She kindly agreed and helped you while also keeping you company. After you were done you walked downstairs to the dining room. You walked slowly through the house hoping to find Jaemin but you couldn’t find him anywhere. After a while you found Jaemin sitting in the front yard with a few of his friends that you recognized. Prince Mark, Prince Renjun, Prince Chenle, and Prince Jisung. They all seemed to be smiling happily and chatting away. You tucked a strand of your hair behind your ear and decided to approach and greet them. 

When you arrived the boys smiled at you. 

“Princess Y/N! How are you?” You smiled brightly at Prince Mark.

“I’m very well Prince Mark. Good morning to you all.” They all greeted you but you found it strange that Jaemin didn’t do so. He ignored you completely. The boys noticed the strange interaction. You walked a little closer, standing almost at his side.

“Good morning my prince.” You stood there, all shy and happily blooming waiting for Jaemin to acknowledge you. Maybe even grab your hand gently; but then you heard Jaemin laugh loudly as he threw his head back. He didn’t look at you but instead to his friends. He sat with his legs crossed and his body turned away from yours. The next few words left an icy feeling in your body.

“I guess sleeping with a girl makes her believe that you actually love her. Good morning my prince? Really? I see I finally fooled you Princess.” Jaemin turned slightly to see you from his peripheral vision and not directly. He feared he would regret doing so and ignored the little prickling feeling in his heart. However, Jaemin couldn’t stop now, this was the moment he was looking forward to. Breaking you apart was one thing but tearing your heart apart like you did his was just too sweet to give up. He was only returning the favor. What was it that Mark had said? Divine retribution? 

“What do you mean?” But Jaemin didn’t like hearing the softness and vulnerability in your voice. You were always so stone cold. But he had come this far, he had to see his plan fall through or he’d consider himself a coward and a traitor to himself. Jaemin smirked arrogantly.

“Did you actually think I loved you? How stupid can you be?” 

“Jaemin that is enough,” Mark said coldly but Jaemin wasn’t done. 

“You’re so gullible. I told you the first time that I would never love you as a husband loves his wife. And you actually fell for it.” Jaemin thought he should stop. He really did. He wanted to walk up to you and wipe away your tears and kiss you but that wasn’t the plan. The same word that stayed at the back of his mind surfaced again. Hypocrite. 

“Everything was a lie then?” Your voice was so fragile, Mark was actually afraid that you would break. He wouldn’t have blamed you, Jaemin had tortured you for too long and for what?

“My goodness Princess are you also deaf? That’s what I’ve been saying the whole time. What goes around comes around Princess. You could, ah, consider this as my formal wedding gift to you.” Your lips started to tremble as Jaemin turned to face you, smiling at you cynically. You had enough.

“Thank you.” Jaemin’s composure went rigid. What the hell? He just told you he’d used you and you were thanking him? He took a second before looking at you, the sight of you sending chills through him.

You were smiling. Tears were evident in your eyes and rolling down your face. The wind blew lightly at your face, your dress, the one he had given you, rippling. You looked too serene and Jaemin honestly didn’t know how to react. 

“I love you. I really do love you. I always have.” Jaemin’s lips parted in confusion.

“You’re lying,” but you could only laugh cynically just as he did. 

“I’m going to die, Jaemin. One day I’m going to fall asleep and never wake up and you won’t even know.” Jaemin felt his heart pound in his chest, as he sat up his eyebrows furrowed. Your tears didn’t stop falling and Jaemin was so confused and panicked at the words coming out of your mouth. This wasn’t what he had planned.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Jaemin couldn’t help but wonder if you were actually losing it, you seemed to become...unhinged. He noticed that in a way, you had become the spitting image of him when you had rejected him. Hurt, angry...betrayed. But you deserved it. You hurt him. And he was only trying to show you how it felt. But why was it that his heart was burning? Why was he sad too?

“Congratulations Jaemin. You’ve hurt me so many times but this one is the cherry on top. But don’t you worry,” your bitter smiles soon turned into hiccups as you cried harder and Jaemin realized he didn’t want this anymore, “I’ll go away just like you want me too. And it’ll be great because not only will you not have to see me anymore but I’ll be six feet underground at the prime age of twenty.” Jaemin breathing quickened, he realized that panic was surging through his body as he saw you break down completely in front of him. The other princes looked between the two of you in shock. You were full blown out crying and Jaemin looked like he was going to shatter any moment. He had told himself that this was what he wanted, what he had craved all along. But now all he could do was watch as you walked away from him, your shoulders shaking as you cried along the way. Your hands had been gripping at your dress and you almost felt your nails digging into your palms. You stopped and stood for a moment, Jaemin watched your every move closely as he was still stuck to his seat. You turned to look at him, the wind blowing your hair and your dress. It would’ve been a beautiful sight. It could have. If it weren’t so painful. 

You looked to Jaemin once more and turned away, treading back towards the mansion. Jaemin felt like you had knocked out all of the air in his lungs. He couldn’t properly process what you were saying but then everything was starting to make sense. It was humorous how old memories played back at the most inconvenient of times.

He remembered watching you faint not only once but a twice. He remembered the doctors that would come in and out of your home frequently. He remembered hearing crying but he realized they weren’t his cries. They were yours. You cried oftenly. And then they ceased. And you started to look into his eyes with emptiness. He couldn’t find your happiness. And now he understood. 

“Princess wait,” Jaemin stumbled out of his chair as he hurriedly ran over to you, reaching out and grabbing your arm as he came around to stand in front of you. You had to be lying just so he’d feel bad about using you. You couldn’t actually be dying. Not you. Not his little princess, the one who’d sing lullabies to him and hold his hands to keep them warm. Not the girl who he spent his whole life loving even after you’d hurt him. But Jaemin already had his answers even if he did want to ignore them. His expression softened guilt and fear now clouding his eyes. His breathing was still uneven as he cupped your face gently, tearing up at how your face scrunched up in sadness. You pushed his hands away harshly, a painful sob ripping through your throat.

“Y-Y/N tell me you're lying. Darling please tell me this is all a terrible trick you can’t-” but you didn’t let him finish. Your sad features were soon replaced with that same feral look he’d given you plenty of times.

“I regret ever letting myself fall in love with you Jaemin. I pushed you away because I didn’t want to hurt you more than I had to. You did it because you thought it would be funny to finally break my heart and congratulations you got exactly what you wanted. Now if you’ll excuse me Prince Jaemin, I have things to take care of.” You walked away and this time Jaemin let you. All of his childish tantrums, insults, and anger seemed so...pathetic. The actions of a child who thought vengeance would help wash away his pains. But he only felt fear and regret. He laughed as he fell on his knees, more tears falling. Jeno was right, he only made things worse.

~

Your maids had told you that it would take a week for Prince Jeno to come and pick you up. They tried to reason with you but with the way you had been crying and begging for them to take you home they couldn’t help but give in. You didn’t know but Jaemin stood in front of your door, listening to how you pleaded for them to take you away from him. Jaemin felt the pain of rejection at sixteen but this type of heartbreak was different. It hurt so much more than all the pain he held within him for the past six years. But he wasn’t going to let you go that easily. He spent the last four years making your life hell only to find out that you were already living it. You had already been condemned. He could spend the rest of his life repenting for those sins but he could spend his time now to keep you close and love you the way you were meant to be loved. And if that was selfish he couldn’t care less.

~

Jaemin woke up early the following day. He made his way to the grand kitchen. He told the chef to make an exquisite meal for his beloved wife which gained him many weird glances. News traveled fast in the house. They were surprised to see the Prince’s current mood changes from treating you coldly, being kind to you and for it to be fake and then treating you with more care and affection again. It was mind baffling but they obeyed his orders and soon the food was taken to one of the smaller dining rooms in the Na household. It was a more personal room and this way Jaemin could sit next with you with no interruptions. Jaemin sent the maids to wake you and alert you that breakfast was ready a little early on. He did warn them not to tell you that he would be waiting for you. Jaemin waited for ten minutes. After another five minutes passed a maid came by and informed Jaemin that you were going to eat in your room. Jaemin couldn’t help the frown that made its way to his face. He looked at the food that was set up and with a sigh told the maid to prepare your portion and send it to your room. 

Jaemin ate in silence. Soft sniffles made their way into the room and soon the entire floor could hear Prince Jaemin sobbing and shattering all the plates just as his heart did. Jaemin walked out of the dining room hurriedly, ignoring all of the worried stares, and slammed his bedroom door shut. Running his hands through his hair he couldn’t help but let out more cries. He caught a glance of himself in the mirror and stopped. Your pathetic Jaemin. The girl you love pushes you away and you decide to torment her. Fucking pathetic for a prince. You couldn’t even be a proper husband. 

Although Jaemin kept beating himself up for the things he did to you, he promised himself he wouldn’t stop. When it was afternoon Jaemin decided to stop by your room. He knocked and he heard you ask who it was. He didn’t answer, twisting the knob and realizing it was open.He walked in silently and closed the door behind him.

Jaemin remembered the nights he made you feel loved. You were so beautiful to him then. You still were as beautiful as ever. You looked more serene and angelic-like with your white gown. You had an air of purity and innocence around you. When you turned to see him, your expression remained stoic.

“Prince Jaemin, it is considered wrong for a man to enter a woman’s bedroom if he’s not family or a lover.” Jaemin looked at you as if you’d slapped him and then confusion dawned on his face.

“But we’re wedded. I’m your hus-” You cut him off coldly.

“You are not my husband. My husband would love me dearly and genuinely. You do not, therefore you are not him.” He knew he deserved that but it didn’t hurt any less.

“I do love you genuinely, that ring on your finger is proof of our union.” You scoffed.

“You lied to me and embarrassed me in front of your friends letting them know what we had done and this ring is proof of our arranged marriage. Thank you for reminding me, I should have taken it off sooner but you know how we spoiled and rotten children don’t like to let go of shiny new things.” You were throwing everything back in his face. He wished that you two would stop hurting each other this way. He longed to hold you with no ill intentions. He spoke again, guilt lacing itself with his tone.

“You are not spoiled or rotten. You're sweet and kind. You’re the most beautiful Princess and my best friend.” It had been years since you heard Jaemin call you his best friend. It sounded sweet coming from his lips. But it was too late. Everything was in motion and soon Jaemin would have to live without hearing your voice through the halls of the manor. Without ever hearing your voice for the rest of his life.

“Dinner will be set at the normal time. I hope to see you there.” 

“No thank you, I prefer to starve myself for my beauty.” 

“Stop doing that!” he cried. But you kept going.

“I’m not doing anything, I am simply stating the truth.”

“It’s not true! None of it is true. I only said that to make you hurt the way I did. I didn’t know what you were going through. I-”

“And that’s exactly why we aren’t meant to be! You’re only acting like this because you know the truth and now you feel guilty. You don’t love me Jaemin, you never did. Please just get out.” Jaemin looked towards you helplessly but gave in to your wish. He left but repeated once again that he hoped to see you for dinner even though he was sure you wouldn’t show up.

~

Jaemin had to try and talk things out with you before the week ended and your eventual departure. He did everything he could to gain your attention. He’d leave your favorite sweets in your room. He would place your favorite flowers outside your door. Sometimes he’d knock and ask if he could come in. It didn’t help because you didn’t eat the deserts, left the flowers to die, and answered with a simple no when he asked. Jaemin was starting to get desperate. 

The day before you were supposed to leave Jaemin did something stupidly dangerous but being the sweet romantic he actually was, he went through with his plan. Jaemin remembered the time you had told him that you thought it to be romantic for a boy to make his way to the window of his lover. You thought it was cute and funny but nonetheless you found it romantic. It was stupid.

So that was what he did exactly. Your room was on the second floor of the manor and with the help of his servants he was able to make it. How he did he had no clue but it worked. He brushed himself off and took a deep breath and knocked on the glass door. 

You  were surprised to say the least when you heard the knock against the door of your balcony. There was no reasonable way someone could have climbed up there. You walked over cautiously and when you saw the silhouette you thought your eyes were playing jokes on you

Na bloody Jaemin was standing on the second floor balcony, a boyish grin on his lips.

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

“I remembered,” he whispered gently.

“What?”

“I remembered what you said about a prince climbing to his lover’s balcony or window to propose their love or to be together like their own little secret. I remembered all of that.” You looked at him, he registered shock and then annoyance. You pulled him inside and closed the door. He wasn’t expecting you to start smacking his shoulder repeatedly, he started wincing from the pain.

“What in the bloody hell Jaemin? You could have fallen and hurt yourself. You could have broken your neck! You’re an idiot, an absolute idiot. Get out.” You were fuming at this point.

“Darling, please. I know you’re still mad at me but I still love you. I’ll do anything for you to forgive me. You tell me you’re dying but you won’t let me stay by your side. I don’t want to have to mourn you. I hate it. You should have told me. I need to be with you even until your last breath. I-I don’t even think I’d be able to survive without you my love.” Jaemin gazed down towards your lips, his fingertips gently grazing your sides. You didn’t like how helpless he made you feel when he was intoxicating you like this. But before he could advance you remembered how he easily lied to you and used you just so he could hurt you. All that pain came rushing back and you tried to push him away with the little strength you had. 

“Jaemin let go of me please. You don’t want this.” 

“Yes I do.” Jaemin dipped his head towards your lips to place a kiss on them, it was sweet and gentle. Slow and careful. You wanted to give in but you heard the slam of your door and instantly backed away from Jaemin. Your eyes fell upon Prince Jeno who wasted no time in delivering a painful blow to Jaemin’s jaw. Your hands went up in horror as you saw Jeno punch Jaemin repeatedly. You started seeing red and panicked as you tried to get Jeno off of Jaemin.

“Jeno, you're going to kill him, stop this madness!” But he wasn’t listening. All he saw was the boy he entrusted his little sister with and who had hurt you immensely. 

“I treat you like my brother and this is how you repay me? By treating my sister like some whore you sleep with! I should kill you for that Jaemin I really should.” Jeno let go of Jaemin’s collar and let him fall to the floor. His nose was bleeding and he had a cut on his lower lip. He could feel the throbbing pain where Jeno had punched him. Jaemin felt your gentle hands tend to his face as you cried, scared of what Jeno had done. Jaemin couldn’t help but want more but it all ended soon as Jeno practically dragged you away from Jaemin. 

“You don’t deserve her. You never did. Come on Y/N we’re leaving now.” Upon hearing this panic flooded Jaemin’s system. You weren’t supposed to leave yet. He got up, his mind a little hazy, as he ran to block the door. Jeno brought you behind him and Jaemin was upset that he was standing in between you two. Either way he spoke true words.

“Honey, you know I regret everything. I am so sorry for hurting you and taunting you. All of those insults and jokes I made, I regret them all. I never regretted loving you. I always loved you even when I wanted to hate you so badly. Please, stay with me. Don’t leave me. I know I won’t have anything else to live for if you leave now. I’ll die alongside you if I have to. Please Y/N, I’m begging you d-don’t leave m-me.” Jaemin choked on his last words and you couldn’t help but think back on the true nature of Jaemin’s heart. He always tried his best to be a good boy since he was a child. His mom’s favorite little boy and his father’s great little prince. Looking at him now, you missed those times where you could love and play with Jaemin freely. It hurt you seeing Jaemin get down on his knees, tears mixing with his blood.

But before you could say anything Jeno let go of your hand and practically pushed Jaemin out of the doorway, walking back to you and taking you away. You avoided looking at the boy who repeatedly said your name, your heart not being able to stand Jaemin’s shattered expression as you left him crying for you for the second time. 

“I should have protected you better,” you could see the anger that was taking over Jeno. 

“Jeno, you didn’t have to hurt him like that.” You flinched when Jeno stopped and you bumped into his chest. You saw his inner conflict of anger and sadness. 

“I know everything he did to you and I couldn’t do anything about it. I couldn’t protect my baby sister from getting her heart broken by someone I trusted like a brother. He doesn’t deserve you and he sure as hell doesn’t deserve your care for him just because I punched him. We’re leaving now.”

Jeno was not going to have this conversation with you. He simply could not take hearing you worry over how much pain he left Jaemin to feel. When you two arrived at the carriage, you looked back to the manor.

The last thing you saw was Jaemin running out the steps after your carriage, screaming, “Don’t leave please! Love come back to me! Please please!” 

It made you wonder if you were destined to fall just as Romeo and Juliet.

~

Before you could reach the door of your home, the illness took over your body and this time you felt it hit much more faster and ferociously. You fainted but Jeno wasn’t close enough to catch you and your body fell with a resounding impact on the ground. Everyone fell into action again as their Princess fell in her terrible state. Jeno let his things fall on the ground as he made his way to you. He felt chills run through his body as he realized how quickly your illness took over your body. 

He picked you up gently and walked through the door the servant had opened. Jeno tried to find the closest place to lay you down and decided on the couch in the living room. When your parents saw you they ran. 

“Did you two just arrive?”

“Yes, she fainted when she got to the door. Mother, I’m scared, she has never gotten this sick so quickly.” The King and Queen looked at each other's realization and horror dawning on their features. 

“Jeno, you need to contact Prince Jaemin immediately and tell him to get here as soon as possible.” Jeno was shocked at hearing this and almost started to deny the idea but his father silenced him immediately.

“Lee Jeno, you will inform Jaemin now. Your sister is dying and the only way we can help her is with Jaemin’s help. Go now!” As much as he didn’t want to, he obeyed his parents orders and got in contact with Jaemin through the telephone they had.

“Hello, this is the Na manor, how may I help you?”

“Is Prince Jaemin there?”

“Prince Jeno, yes Master Jaemin is here.”

“Can I speak to him now, tell him it’s an emergency.” Jeno was fidgeting as he waited for Jaemin to pick up the phone.

“What do you want Jeno? Are you going to-”

“Shut the fuck up Jaemin and listen to me. Y/N is not well and my parents want you to get here immediately.” Jaemin didn’t hesitate as he dropped the phone running to the stable and getting his horse. The servants and his parents came out screaming after him asking where he was going but he practically vanished as he made his way to you.

~

By the time Jaemin arrived you were moved to the comfort of your bedroom. Jeno and his parents waited in your room and were surprised to see Jaemin looking like an absolute wreck. He hadn’t cleaned up the wounds Jeno had left on his face. Jaemin didn’t know what he did in his life, in his past lives if he had any for him to be cursed this way. For your life and his to be entangled in so much destruction and pain. He just wanted for the both of you to love each other freely. 

Seeing you now, looking as though you were withering away, he wanted nothing more than to take your place. You didn’t deserve this. You who had graced little Prince Jaemin with the biggest smile, the one who gave into all of his affectionate neediness, the girl he stole a kiss from when he was six, the girl he never stopped loving. 

“What’s wrong with her? Why is this happening? I-isn’t there a cure?” Your parents looked towards each other, not sure how to explain the situation to Jaemin but trying their best to do so anyway. 

“Jaemin sweetie, you have to listen carefully. Y/N never meant to hurt you when you were children. She pushed us all away but because she knew what was happening to her and she didn’t want you to have to live counting down the days until she was going to die. Look, there might be a way. The reason Y/N got sick was because she might have touched a flower that was poisonous during the spring. We don’t know how or when but the flower is said to have a poisonous substance.” Jaemin looked back at you with his teary eyes and his hand holding yours. He tried to speak, his voice sounding sad.

“I remember we were walking around the lake and uh there was this little path that led to a garden. It was weird because there were many flowers that never bloom in the spring but they were all in full bloom. Uh, Y/N saw a flower that was a royal blue color. She said she wanted to show me something cool it had done but when I went with her the flower wasn’t there. She swore she had seen it but I just ignored it. I didn’t pay much attention to it.” This time around Jeno spoke up.

“Winter’s Mortem Ornamentum. That’s the flower she touched. The doctor said that it kills people instantly upon touching it. But it didn’t kill Y/N, he says it made her fall ill instead but that it would kill her either way. The flower that cures it is Spring’s Spiritus. It looks just the same but is orange instead. If that's where she saw the flower then that’s where it should be blooming now. Jaemin, we have to get that flower.” Jaemin looked at you, more scared than he’s ever been at the thought of losing you. He sniffed, wiping away at his face. 

“I-I’ll go and get it.”

“No!” Jaemin looks up at Jeno’s sudden outburst, “You can’t touch the flower, it'll kill you. You have to take her with you. We’ll get the carriage.”

“It’ll take too long! I’ll take her with me on my horse.” Jeno grew exasperated.

“Her skin is too cold, it’ll give you frostbite.”

“I don’t care about that Jeno, that’s nothing compared to what she’s suffering now. Let’s go! Now!” Immediately Jaemin took you in his arms, hissing at the freezing contact of your skin against his. He made his way out, Jeno already spitting out instructions to the servants to get the right things so you could be tied securely to Jaemin’s body. When they managed to get you up, albeit awkwardly, Jaemin took the reins taking one last look at you before focusing on the road ahead. Behind him Jeno had his own horse, trailing quickly behind him. Jaemin could feel his skin getting cold even through the blanket that covered you. Please don’t go, little princess. Stay with me please. I need you. I can’t go on without you at my side. 

~

When the boys reached the lake, Jeno helped Jaemin get you down from his horse. As much as he wanted to be the one who carried you, he knew he had to find the flower. Jaemin remembered the flower vividly from the way you described it. But he never saw it. Not until one day where he saw a beautiful flower blooming in a tree. Jaemin wanted to get to it but it was so far up he decided against it. He ran towards the tree far behind the little cottage he had built. When he looked up at the tree he didn’t see anything.

“It’s not here!” 

“What do you mean it’s not here!? Where is it?” 

“I don’t know!” Jaemin was starting to panic more. He needed to find that flower but where could it be. He ran around like a mad man trying to find a vibrant orange flower but it was hard. Even before Jaemin had picked you up from your home, it was snowing. Now it had gotten even worse, he didn’t have anything to keep him warm and the snow was almost blinding him. But suddenly he saw a blur of color in the lake. An orange hue. 

“It’s in the lake!” 

“How are we gonna get it? We can’t touch it ourselves, Y/N has to.” But even before Jaemin could speak Jeno growls at him,

“Don’t you even think about it!”

“I can take her with me. I’ll swim and I’ll put her hand over the flower.”

“You’ll get yourself killed! That water is freezing and so is she! You’ll both drown!”

“There’s no other choice!” Jeno barely fought as Jaemin took you into his arms and made it to the edge of the lake. He breathed in a few times and looked at your face. Your hair was so white it almost blended with the color of the snow. Taking a final deep breath, he sunk into the depths of the freezing cold lake, Jeno walked over, falling on his knees as he kept close watch on his idiotic friend and his dying sister.

Jaemin wondered if this was how you felt. Freezing from the inside out. It was terrifying but he willed himself not to panic badly. He was now swimming not only to keep himself alive but you too. It was easier to manage your body but it was hard having to drag you along with him in the water. He made it a few feet down and came before Spring’s Spiritus. He was dragging you, his fingers pinching your nose and palm over your mouth so you wouldn’t breathe in the water. He moved to bring you up to him. Jaemin could have almost said you looked ethereal as your white hair encased your face and your white gown rippled in the water. He held your hand as he enclosed it around the orange flower. Nothing happened. He brought himself behind you as he held you from behind and placed your other hand around the flower.

Please, please work. Come on. Y/N please come back to me. Don’t leave me. I love you. I love you so much.

It was as if his prayers were heard because soon the water started to look as if it were boiling around your hands. He mentally gasped when he felt the cold water become warmer. He saw an orange hue like mist spread from the flower and into your veins. Your body jerked, back arching slightly as your eyes blew wide open, bits of orange swimming in your pupils. You were unaware of your surroundings and instead of taking in air you felt the water enter your body. You thrashed around and Jaemin tried his best to get you to calm down but you didn’t realize you were drowning him alongside you. He didn’t notice when Jeno dived into the lake, helping Jaemin push you upwards and out of the water.

When you resurfaced and threw your hands out onto the edge of the lake you coughed, water coming out of your mouth and burning your nose. Both boys pushed you up and came out behind you. Jaemin let himself lay down next to where you were. You had turned around on your back after coughing out the water, looking up into the sky. The snow had stopped falling, the blue sky becoming clear. You flinched as Jaemin suddenly came into your view, kissing you fervently and repeatedly. 

“Don’t you ever scare me like that again. Don’t you ever think that it’s okay to deal with these things on your own. You would’ve killed me more at the thought of finding out you were dying and not telling me. Don’t, please just don’t.” You cried, nodding your head as you apologized over and over again. Jeno sat up on the ground, trying to rub his tears away as he laughed. You looked over at him and Jaemin moved away from you. He helped you sit up and when you did, you threw your arms around your big brother. 

It was all over.

~

The boys helped you into the cottage, Jaemin told Jeno that he had spare clothes in one of the rooms that he could use. When he saw that Jaemin carried you towards one of the other bedrooms he grew wary. You blushed profusely but scolded Jeno for trying to be an embarrassing older brother. 

“Don’t do anything wild kids. Or I’ll kill you Jaemin.” Jaemin just laughed worriedly, remembering how he almost got knocked out by Jeno. As he helped you settle onto the bed he grabbed one of the few gowns he had told you to leave in the cottage. He walked into the bathroom to change, not wanting to make you feel uncomfortable. When he stepped out, he made his way next to you, a mirror in his hand. 

“Darling, there’s something I have to tell you. Promise you won’t freak out?” You look at him with wide eyes.

“What?” Jaemin slowly brings the handheld mirror out and you let out a scream at your reflection. Your hair was now silver and your eyes were an ice blue. 

“My hair! My eyes! What the hell Jaemin!” he grabs your shaking hands.

“Hey hey hey, it’s okay love. It’s okay. Maybe it’s temporary. But even if it's not, I still think you look beautiful all the same.” He waits until your breathing calms. When you open your eyes again, he’s looking at you adoringly.

“I love you. I love you so much princess. Please trust me when I say this.” 

You smile at him tiredly, the warm smile you always had making him flush. He had you. He finally had you completely and lovingly with no repercussions.

“I love you, my prince.” Jaemin didn’t kiss you this time. He knew there would be plenty of time in the world to do that. But for now, digging his face into the crook of your neck, and hugging you closely was enough for you.

~

In the end Prince Jaemin and Princess Y/N became the most wonderful rulers in all of history. Prince Jeno married Princess Huang, Renjun’s older sister. It was a beautiful union and you were happy to have her in the family. Renjun and you were friends at this point, his little deal with Jaemin had been long forgiven. He was a kind man when he wasn’t being threatened by his best friend. 

Jeno sent word to Haechan that he had found the flowers. He also gave him the recommendation he desired but he wasn’t completely trusting of the young doctor. Haechan was able to get both flowers in the same year. In a few months, Haechan was able to conduct experiments in the room he lived in, courtesy of the prestigious institution he was accepted into. 

The flowers he wanted held strong and magical properties. With just the right formula he was able to create medicines that could heal any dying person. Its twin however remained poisonous and dangerous. Haechan had eventually become a dear friend of yours, as he realized that you weren’t at all bothered by his eccentric personality. He was a doctor but also a scientist. He craved discovery and you had given him a great opportunity. Eventually you learned that Haechan was actually Lee Donghyuck, the long lost prince of the Lee Dynasty. No wonder he carried himself differently. He did it purposely too, messing with everyone’s head seemed to be his cup of tea. You didn’t share the information, Haechan as he called himself, preferred to keep it that way. Maybe one day he’d be able to tell the other Princes’ but for now he was okay living a solitary life. His family had been killed in an assassination, his kingdom run by intruders. Haechan was the only son and he managed to escape. The neighboring kingdoms knew of this invasion and worked together to overthrow the evil doers. They succeeded and through a long session with the Kings and Queens’ they all agreed that they’d let Prince Mark’s older brother run Haechan’s family’s kingdom.

Everything was prosperous once again. You made a speech to tell everyone about your absence and terrible sickness. They gasped seeing as how your hair was white and your eyes icy blue. You explained what happened thoroughly and they all cried to the heavens in relief when you shared that you were now healthy. Cured of your disease and ready to be among your people and Jaemin’s people as well. 

Jaemin loved you dearly just as you did. No matter where you were or where you went he would always be by your side. You were no longer fated to the sufferings of Romeo and Julet. You were Y/N L/N and Na Jaemin, two souls intertwined with hearts beating as one.

#jaemin #na jaemin #jaemin angst #jaemin fluff #nct dream fanfic #jaemin prince au

[sugar-petals]

Hi Caro! How are you? I hope you're good and in a place where it isn't very hot (my friend living in England had a very rough time). I'm just here wondering why my type is cute subby twinks, and why is close to impossible to find them in Argentina (I still remember the day I took one of those online test about the type of men you like and the answer was twinks and I was like WELL DAMN I FEEL ATTACKED). My name is Victoria, idk if I ever told you, but everyone calls me Vik or Vicky (usually the first one, I guess it's more gender neutral so it fits me better). Sorry that I'm ranting, I really enjoy talking to you.

more than glad to answer, vic! 💙 hm... a philosophy on twinks and why they're appealing. time for a little essay.

first off, i wish there was a bi and straight term as well, they're not 100% the same as e.g. pretty boys or femboys — those categories are even more particular to a certain femdom aesthetic. pretty boys are defined by face, femboys by clothes hair and body, twinks by both.

my suggestion for a word would be "prince". it's positive, people get the gist intuitively, and it's derived from the groundbreaking artist who invented this whole game to the fullest after greek culture laid the foundation, shoutout to apollo. before leo (90s) zac efron (00s) and taemin (10s) paved the way, there was prince in crop tops, heavy makeup, heels, and poses few guys dared.

so, a prince, they're usually the anti-jock/bear, right. more petite in frame, often fashionable like an it-boy (see lucky blue smith), frequently gnc, and found in a 20-30 age group with some exceptions. but i think that's why they are appealing to us, it's a generation thing. just like t. chalamet, lil nas x, and troye sivan hit it big among gen z by sheer exposure, or the eboy/softboy fad in hetero media, although that one wasn't really femdom in spirit and just another brand of manipulative nice guy syndrome.

princes don't come across as physically imposing, they're more tongue in cheek and seductive or cute, the link to your zelda. that caters to somebody with a taste for subs/bottoms who'd rather have them sat on their lap than getting choked out by them which is almost treated as a given, same with spanking or rough sex. so, that notion of twinks has opened the door to something less compulsive gladly.

a prince can come with an edge, twinks and brats may have some overlaps depending on the guy, but at the end of the day, they're subs, both hard and soft. jonghyun has set quite the tone for it artistically, major credit due. he's broken the mold to say that it's so boring and restrictive to be a dominant guy and there's more out there than what the societal landscape offers.

thank god taemin has carried that on and continues to inspire others.

in recent times, the word also becomes more and more open to guys who are tall / fit or conventional-looking. i see this in how european football is received on tumblr where calling your favorite club `#twink fc (affectionate)´ is a thing on here 😆 and it's true. you haven't seen more collective prince energy as in the german national team. the gorgeousness is real and the ladies who date them... lucky af.

(^kai havertz - plays for chelsea fc)

(^joshua kimmich / leroy sané - play for bavaria fc. they both have 2+ kids with their gfs lmao you don't have to be a DILF or daddy, twinkness cannot be concealed 🤘)

the whole idea is not to be conflated with power bottoms, see aquaria on drag race who looks like a twink but tops, by the way. which is why taemin generates so much traction, he plays with switching and walks the line but always winds up with a submitting conclusion. ten, or yoongi, they’re mysterious to people in that regard, too. or wonho, who follows a jock aesthetic but offers himself as a fantasy with an 'open mind' and a cute personality in the mix, neither gentle giant, himbo, nor a skinny short king, just doing his own thing.

a twink or prince is easy on the eye for anyone who likes androgyny and is usually in favor of being gnc themselves, or is bored/turned off/disappointed or even frightened by the mainstream. argentina hasn't had that scope of pop culture industry to inspire trends, and prevailing structures of machismo and chivalry prevent androgyny in dress and behavior, especially outside larger cities as is also the case where i live (southern germany where christianity rules — you can imagine, it's not berlin).

where binaries, monosexuality and hypermasculine/homophobic/biphobic conduct is exaggerated, you won't find a twink able to do their thing or getting attention. sure, gnc people are always there and the world is slowly catching up in some places, although it feels like we're going ten steps backwards as a backlash these days which is unacceptable. that's why k-pop is such a refreshing element in the way that male performers present concepts and a female pov is embraced. nobody deems it punishable or strange if you walk up like this, in fact it's celebrated.

it also bursts the bubble of twink/prince = white and goes even further than just one specific aesthetic. it changes constantly and incorporates actual elements of kink culture rather than leaving men's submission unspoken as an ultimate taboo. it may be commercial, but it is also literal and encourages nonconforming styles and body types as the rise of shinee, skz, or nct exemplifies. the next generation prince/twink trailblazer is sure to be found there, my bet is on taeyong or felix, they're really owning the princeliness.

#and to answer the first question yes it's piping hot here nobody has an ac #but i try to stay chill in the shade and drink iced water au masse #kpop #jonghyun #jimin #taemin #felix #taeyong #skz #nct #prince #wonho #yoongi #ten

[star-suh]

5-way ticket

Johnny Suh, Lee Taeyong, Mark Lee & Nakamoto Yuta x Male Reader

cw: idol au; tops johnny, taeyong, mark and yuta; unprotected sex, breeding, facial, dumbification, musk kink, degradation, praising, feminization.

an: lowkey think this is a mess, writing 3+ -somes is so hard so ntm. also this is the only fivesome you would see in this account.

—

today it's the day where yn finally would see his favorite group, nct 127, at concert. he also won a vip ticket so he can go and meet them backstage.

yn went greeting each member and talking to them one by one but he felt something different when he talked to johnny, yuta, taeyong and mark… their stares were like those of a hunter looking for a prey…

it was time to say goodbye when mark suddenly whispered in a sexy low voice “see you here after the concert” his breath tickling yn's neck.

“fuckk!! i knew he was good for this” moaned johnny impaling his huge dick inside yn's hole.

“damn he really is” mark said while mouthfucking the fanboy.

yn felt like he was in paradise, having 4 cocks just for him; one in his mouth, other in his ass and the other two on each hand. their musk was like a drug for yn, it made him more eager to just be used by the four all the time they want.

they idols decide to rotate every once in a while, johnny would now put his cock in yn's right hand while yuta would now fuck his mouth, mark moves to the left hand and taeyong rims his ass to fuck him minutes later.

they rotate again, mark didn't waste time and put all his dick in at once “how are you still so tight after taking two dicks already” he started to jerk off yn while thrusting harshly.

“open up for me whore” yuta taps yn's thighs and the fanboy obeys, he clenches his hole into nothing as if it's asking impatiently for yuta's cock. he rubs the tip against the abused hole, yn whimpered impatiently with taeyong's dick stuffing his mouth.

minutes passed and the idols still were at it, yn was regretting it now they had a lot of stamina. being double penetrated back to back by every member has left his hole gaping and dripping a mix of fluids. every cock managed to brush his prostate making him seeing stars for how good he was being fucked. “i'm about to cum” yuta said introducing his cock quickly inside yn's ass and came inside he kept thrusting to ride his high. “move let me churn it and add some more” mark winked at yuta and fucked yn until he came inside. next it's the turn for taeyong and johnny while taeyong fucked the ass, johnny fucked the mouth. “you did so well prince” johnny praised while slapping his cheek lightly, “yeah… thank you for letting us use your boy-pussy” taeyong added emptying his balls inside, every throb of his cock making yn squirm in pleasure. “shit” johnny pulled his cock out quickly, leaving it resting on yn's face spurting ropes of thick cum on his face.

the other day yn woke up in a hotel room, the pain on his lower back killing him but it was worth it, not all days you get to be fucked by a member of your favorite group “hell, i was lucky i got four of them inside me”, he stood up from the bed ready to go to the shower when he found a little card with a number on the nightstand next to him “call us whenever you want to have a really fun time”.

#johnny suh x male reader smut #johnny suh x male reader #johnny seo x male reader #johnny x male reader #johnny seo x male reader smut #seo youngho x male reader #seo youngho x male reader smut #mark lee x male reader #mark lee x male reader smut #mark x male reader smut #mark lee smut #nakamoto yuta x male reader smut #yuta x male reader smut #nakamoto yuta x male reader #yuta x male reader #lee taeyong x male reader #taeyong x male reader #taeyong smut #male reader #kpop x male reader #kpop x male reader smut #smut #male reader smut #nct x male reader #nct smut #nct 127 x male reader #nct 127 x male reader smut #nct 127 smut

[dalivanmagritte]

NCT FIC REC : LEE JENO

back to the nct fic rec

Jeno fic rec part.2

lionheart (fav, smut, fluff, royal!au, knight!au, monarch!au)

premium boy-toy (fav, smut, stripper!au)

step on a crack, dr.lee's gonna break your back (fav, smut)

wanna know what it's like (fav, smut)

yours to tame (fav, fluff, smut, knight!au, princess!au, royal!au)

koi no yokan (fav, smut, abo!au)

slick pup (fav, pervert!au, smut)

prince of wolves (fav, smut, werewolf!au, vampire!au)

i suddenly realize my archnemesis is hot (fav,fluff, angstish, demigod!au, mythology!au)

pride & perjudice (fav, fluff, angst, smut)

secret (smut, fluff, sub!jeno (kink discovery))

my sunset is yours (fluff, hogwarts!au)

helping hand (fluff, hogwarts!au)

sweet lies (smut, angstish, ghost!jeno!au)

heatstroke (mechanic!au, smut)

transfiguration spell (smut, fluff, angstish, hogwarts!au)

sinking ships (smut, sailor!au, mermaid!au, horror!au)

tattooist!jeno (fluff, angst, tattooist!au, florist!au)

himbo (smut, himbo!jeno)

cute little intern (smut, ceo!au, intern!au)

mine only (smut)

possessive dad! (smut, pregnancy!au, soon to be parents!au)

ridin' club switching lanes (smut, streeracer!au)

sweet fury (smut)

rainfall (fluff)

the deal (fluff, college!au)

cigarettes after sex (fluff, angstish, suggestive, college!au)

just so you know x jaemin (smut)

change in you (smut, vampire!au, georgian-era!au)

puppy (smut, supernatural!au, werewolf!au)

sunshine (fluff, angst, mermen!jeno)

hit the breaks! (serie, smut, streetracer!au, mechanics!au)

rich purity (serie, smut, virgin!au)

the lucky one (fluff, angst, demigod!au, mythology!au)

son of morpheus (fluff, demigod!au, mythology!au)

son of apollo (fluff, demigod!au, mythology!au)

son of shadows (part of elysios serie, fluff, demigod!au, mythology!au)

the tale older than time (fluff, demigod!au, mythology!au)

late night company (fluff, comfort angst, demigod!au)

scream (smut (dirty smutt), halloween!au, ghostface!jeno)

possessive jeno (smut, roommate)

a different kind of exercise (smut, personal trainer!au)

the rock of gibraltar (smut)

jeno uses his strength against you (smut)

why dying my hair was the best decision of my life (fluff)

the bat & dove (smut, fluff, mafia!au, racer!jeno)

do you even know how to have fun? (angst to fluff, badboy!au)

take my breath (smut, abo!au)

puppy pound (smut, abo!au)

jealous (smut, abo!au)

sos x jaemin (smut, abo!au)

destiny (smut, abo!au)

i'm a mouse duh! x jaemin (smut)

they're roommates x jaemin (smut)

sos x jaemin (smut, abo!au)

stepbro alpha jeno (smut, abo!au, stepbro!au)

day6: overstimulation (smut)

day19: pet play (smut)

banana (smut)

guardian gloves (smut, angstish, boxer!au)

teddy bear (smut)

strong jeno (smut)

codename : monster (smut)

his order (smut, ceo!au)

sli(ck-p)up (smut, perv!jeno)

fireproof (smut, brotherbf!au, college!au)

size kink (smut)

only 'til dawn (smut, badboy!jeno, goodgirl!reader)

little wifey (smut, husband!au)

pretzel (smut, abo!au)

hard dom! (smut)

wrapped around your fingers (smut)

phone fuck me (smut, ghostface!au)

my first and last (smut, college!au)

the sequel x jaemin (smut, ghostface!au, halloween!au)

incubus!jeno (smut, incubus!au)

summer hair = forever young (smut, fluff)

cookie jar x jaemin (smut, stepbrother!au)

perv!jeno (smut, roommates!au, perv!au)

monster in hiding (smut, stalking!au)

can't take it? (smut)

can you handle it? x johnny, jaehyun, jaemin (smut)

ascention to the throne (serie, smut, royal!au, prince!au, political!au)

baby trapping (smut, sugardaddy!au)

shameless (smut, stepson!au)

undone (noncon, smut)

teddy bear -> our sick story, thus far x haechan (dubcon, smut)

stepbro!jeno part.2 (DUBCON, smut, stepbrother!au)

behind closed doors x haechan (smut, slight dubcon, stepbro!au)

the walls are thin x jaemin (DUBCON, smut)

shoplifter x mark (dubcon, smut, bodyguard!au, stepfather!au)

switch -> chain x johnny (dubcon, smut, neighbour?au)

arcade (continuation of switch/chain, smut)

#nct #jeno #smut #fic rec #fluff #lee jeno #jeno smut #jeno fluff #jeno angst #jeno scenarios #jeno imagines #jeno fic #nct jeno #jeno x reader #jeno oneshot #nct dream #nct fic #nct imagines #nct x reader

[herwonderland7]

CHAPTER 3 — KINGDOM OF ESTELLEA

CHARACTERS ― Riana Aera Morian, MJ (ASTRO), Cha Eunwoo (ASTRO), Moonbin (ASTRO), Rocky (ASTRO), Jung Jia Valentia Neolas, Kim Minhyung Noah, Kim Royoung Daniel, Aretha Anthia Morian, Elexis Violeta Doukas, Zen Alberto

GENRE ― fantasy, nct!prince, nct!royalty, nct!as!vampires, nct!as!wolves

WORDS ― 3152

WARNINGS/AUTHOR’S NOTE ― Mention of Blood and Stab Wound.

SUMMARY ― Aera finds herself in a surrounding where she isn’t too familiar.

Aera falls in a thud as soon as the portal opens – with her basically rolling out with a loud groan coming out from her.

“Argh..” Aera let out a groan with a mixture of a sigh. She thanked the gods that she was literally being transported to a bush rather than a concrete floor – since she is feeling a sharp pain somewhere below her body.

Slowly opening her eyes, the bright skies greeted her which explained why her sight was quite bright even if her eyes were closed.

As she tried to sit up, she was met by a sharp pain on her hip. Aera looked down and let out a sharp gasp – to see a knife basically stuck onto her own flesh. 

“That explains the pain.” She muttered to herself, gulping her own lump on her throat. She wasn’t afraid of the pain, she was afraid of the redness she is seeing now – which is her own blood  basically trickling down the stabbed wound.

“Freaking—

She cursed herself after taking the small knife out of her – now feeling the tremendous pain, throwing it aside as she tried to get her breathing to a normal speed.

‘It hurts to move,’

Aera tore out a part of her inner shirt – to make a bandage for the meantime for her wound. After finishing the small problem, Aera now fully looked around. She couldn’t tell if she was in Aerina. 

She didn’t even know if she was in Wonderland or not.

But all she knows is that she is somehow in a garden, a back garden – seeing a small statue surrounded by bushes leading to a path. Aera slowly stood up though it hurt.

Sighing, Aera took a step at a time while clutching onto her wounded part as she ventures out. 

‘It looks like nobody's around..?’ Aera looked around again, trying to see if there is anyone around but after seeing every corner, there is literally no one. 

Shrugging slightly, she followed the path and that’s when she was met by a short garden maze.

But her eyes followed to the front as her gaze met up. Though it was foggy, she could tell that she had stepped foot in a castle. Aera looked behind, and her eyes went slightly wide to see more fog appearing to where she was previously.

Aera quickly went ahead without looking back, and now her sight turned hazy the more she stepped forward – causing her to let out small coughs.

“Why does it turn foggy all of a sudden?” Aera commented, as she was swatting around the air. Now she thinks the surroundings were playing with her – it turns foggy purposely.

The more she walked ahead, the more her sight turned hazy.

Just as she took a step forward, she felt a tip of sharp blade right behind her back – which caused her to stand frozen. All of a sudden, the haze that was surrounding her started to disappear slowly.

Now revealing where she is standing.

In front of her, she could see the inside castle through the huge clear window.

Now she didn’t dare to look behind – not knowing what or whom is literally pointed at her. But she knows there is someone.

“Didn’t know someone had the guts to enter here, usually they would be killed instantly if trespassers come by.” Whoever this person is, he is sure is taunting Aera just by how his voice sounded.

Aera slowly held up both of her hands - though she felt a sharp pain on her wounded hip which caused both of her hands to gripped onto the wound, that’s when she felt the sharp blade again at her back.

“Okay, okay! Relax! I’m hurt!” Aera groaned annoyingly, at the same time turning back slowly while gripping onto her hip.

As soon as she turned around, she met with the man who was somehow taunting her. 

It wasn’t just one. There were two.

One of them gasps with his eyes widening the more he stares at Aera, “Oh my god, Binnie…” 

Aera looks at the both of them – judging how they were dressed. She could see an emblem on their collars, now she knows she is literally in a kingdom. But she couldn’t tell which kingdom it was. 

She couldn’t even remember the previous kingdoms in Wonderland.

‘I’m so dead.’

She could only gulp in fear while one of her hands was gripping onto her wound.

As she was staring into these two men hardened, she could feel her stance becoming nauseous. Aera could guess it’s either because of her getting weaker or because of the wound.

“I..” Just as she was trying to let out a word, she could feel her body collapse.

And before her vision turns into darkness, she could see one of the figures catching her – feeling herself in someone’s arms before she fully passed out.

“Thank you for the breakfast, I’ll get going now.” Jia thanked the royal housemaids as soon as she finished her breakfast, as always, before excusing herself as she grabbed her book. This was her usual routine.

Breakfast, have a walk around the castle, read the book by the back-garden, lunch, horse-riding, reading again, dinner, and head to bed. 

This has been going on for nearly a month since she just graduated from royal school.

She had been granted the green light by her father – by writing through letters if she could switch school to a public one, which was to her Uncle Doyoung’s school named School of Neo. 

She wanted to go since most of her cousins enrolled there, and knowing soon all of her own siblings will be enrolling there too.

Just as she had her usual walkabouts, Jia heard rushed footsteps coming from the back.

“Jia!” A familiar knowing voice called, and as she turned behind, she saw two familiar faces.

“Minhyung! Royoung!” Jia called, waving towards the two boys who were running towards her. Minhyung and Royoung are Queen Anthia and Prince Doyoung’s sons, they are the first born and they are twins.

“What are you doing here? Is Auntie Anthia here?”

Minhyung smiled slightly, “No. We are here with our father.”

Jia’s face fell slightly, “Oh…”

“Don’t be sad, Jia. You’ll see her soon, she’s just busy for now. Right, Min?” Royoung turned towards his twin who was nodding. The twins knew that Jia had looked up to the twins’ mother as a mother figure ever since Queen Aera left.

“Right.” Minhyung nodded, “Anyway, did anything happen yesterday?” 

Jia frowned slightly towards his question. “What do you mean?”

Minhyung glanced towards his twin – Royoung frowning down towards his cousin.

“Yesterday, in Aerina, the stars in the skies.. They were being.. Odd..” Royoung said slowly, head tilted slightly. Jia’s eyes widen slowly, now she gets his question.

“Oh!” Jia exclaimed. “In Neo too! I mean, yesterday, the stars were playing hide and seek too!” She explains, causing Minhyung and Royoung to look at each other.

“And I assume the barrier too..?” Minhyung looks at Jia with a slight wince, seeing her nodding.

Royoung clicked his tongue in confusion, “..But nothing bad happened yesterday, so why did the barrier appear?”

“That’s the thing, Ro.” Minhyung turned towards his twin. “..It means something happened. Don’t you listen to your history lessons’ in Dad’s school?” Minhyung looks at him in disbelief.

“..The barrier only appears when dark magic is involved. That was what the barrier is for. Protection from dark magic that Queen Aera had done before… she left.” Minhyung explains softly at the end, his eyes falling towards Jia who’s eyes were downcast.

“I miss her.” Jia muttered – she wasn’t afraid to be vulnerable in front of her cousins. In fact, they had seen the Jung siblings break down in Aerina’s tradition of celebrating Queen Aera’s birthday. 

“We all do, Jia.” Minhyung ruffled the young one’s hair, while Royoung had his arm on her shoulders’ – pushing her slightly into his arms, as he hugged her.

The twins had heard stories about Queen Aera – most of the stories were heroic, but most were quite funny regarding her everyday lives in the palace. Which is why she is loved by many, especially by King Jaehyun.

The twins accompany Jia on her walkabouts as they go to the main floor – that’s when she sees Yoel running towards their way.

“Jia! Jia!” Yoel yelled out, with Jia basically frowning towards the older one. “You know if the royal housemaids caught you running—

“Father is back! C’mon!” Yoel didn’t waste any time to grab Jia’s hand, as they ran off from the twins – which they decided to run after the Jung siblings.

“You sure it’s her? What if it’s the Ice Warlock doing—

“We’ll know if it’s his doing, MJ.”

“And besides, no one can duplicate a human’s blood. Look, and I don’t think it’s the Ice Warlock this time.”

“Eunwoo’s right. And look at her finger….”

“..She is really pretty not gonna—

“MJ!!!”

Aera frowns at the voices that didn’t even bother to whisper. It was as if they were having a full conversation, not minding she was there. She could feel her eyes fluttering, her vision starting to focus as well as seeing faces basically looking down at her.

Once her vision has turned focused, Aera out of nowhere sat up which caused some of the unrecognisable faces to shriek while taking a step back. 

Her eyes went downcast, seeing that she had fully changed into a white pyjamas-dress. Pyjamas in a dress. Aera frowned slightly, kind of little concerned about the fact that men had changed for her.

“Don’t worry, we had a female housemaid changed for you.” One of them states her worries, causing Aera to widen her eyes slightly.

“You can read minds?” Aera speaks quietly, the others kind of look towards each other.

“Well, we’re not vampires.” Another spoke, “..We are Estelleans. We are fairies, each one of us has powers and mind reading is one of them.”

‘Estelle… Which century is this?’

“Century sounds old, your majesty. First thing first, allow us to introduce ourselves. My name is Myungjun, in short, MJ.” He introduced himself first, flashing a wide smile.

“I’m Rocky, or you can call me Minhyuk. This is Eunwoo,” He pointed towards the prince-like looking one.

“..And this is Moonbin..” Eunwoo pointed towards an individual at the back who was leaning against the door – Aera could only look towards them, kind of in awe.

She quietly had her feet landed on the cold floor, she tried to stand up but her stance was wobbly causing some of the guys to go towards her – the first to reach her was Eunwoo since he was nearer to her.

“I’m afraid you have to lie down for now, your majesty. Your wound is kind of deep.” Eunwoo warned, eyes deeply gazed onto hers. Aera sighed softly as she was being sat on the bed.

“...How were you stabbed anway? How did you get into that situation in the first place?” MJ asked casually, earning a few disbelief looks from his own members. They were giving him the look of respect since he is literally speaking to the Queen of Wonderland.

Aera looks at him with a small smile – before sighing. “..By the Dark-Elf. I was stabbed by the Dark-Elf in my museum.”

Moonbin’s eyes widened, his eyes meeting his other members.

“W-wait, you’re saying the Dark-Elf was on Earth?” Rocky questioned in awe, which Aera nodded. “In-fact he disguised himself as Jaehyun – which got my attention.”

Eunwoo was now staring at Aera with full of concern – before he turned towards MJ who was already looking worried then turning towards Moonbin and Rocky who were standing at the back, mirroring the look of MJ.

“I think you need to inform the rest.” MJ turned towards Rocky and Moonbin who gave a nod towards the older one – before bowing towards Aera as they excused themselves.

Aera watched them leave. “Where are they going?”

“Writing to Neo, Athenian and—

“So I am in Wonderland!” Aera exclaims happily, earning a shocking look from Eunwoo as he chuckled to see how elated she is. 

“Yes, your maj–

“Call me, Aera.” She turned towards MJ. “All of you, call me Aera. We are way past the titles, after you saved me.” Her gaze turned towards Eunwoo who looked like he was in a daze.

Now he knows why everyone loves Aera – it’s her personality.

“For the meantime, you can’t move.” MJ winced as he looked at her hips. “So maybe we could tell you stories of what happened in Wonderland while you are here till you fully recover?”

“We know you would want to return to Aerina as soon as possible.” Eunwoo continued with a small smile, which Aera nodded with a wide smile.

“Something went wrong with the constellations last night. Has been fixed by God Leon. Apologies from the Athenian household, written by the twins, Prince Jonah and Prince Joel.” Anthia read from the neat-handwriting that was from the Athenian household.

“I wonder what happened.” Anthia muttered to herself as she folded the paper, looking towards the bright sky. The Queen of Aerina was sitting on her usual desk – going on her royal routine which was checking on the reports.

She checks on each update from different parts of Wonderland – seeing if Aerina needed to support some parts but so far, there was none thanks to King Jaehyun who had been travelling around Wonderland for the past few months by sea.

Anthia puts away the documents and letters neatly as a sign that she had concluded her day when her eyes travelled towards various moving picture frames. 

There were pictures of the big family of Neo and Aerina together, pictures of her own children with Aurelia and Aera’s children, and lastly pictures of herself and her two younger sisters. Anthia could feel herself smiling as she went through the pictures, with memories behind them.

The last picture, was a moving picture of Aera basically laughing, standing at the back-garden of Aerina. She was wearing a simple dress – she wasn’t in her Scarlet Witch form.

Anthia grabbed the picture frame of Aera, analysing her face that looked too happy in the future – it made Anthia smile naturally. 

‘I hope you are happy out there, Aera.’

Sighing shakily, Anthia quickly put down the picture frame as she stood up from her office chair – Anthia quickly got out of the office room, to already see a familiar figure waiting for her down the hallway.

“Everything good?” 

Anthia’s voice made the figure turn towards her way – seeing a small smile as she bowed towards Anthia. 

“Yes, I called one of the general’s in Neo Kingdom. They said everything is back to normal.” Violeta reassured with a smile, walking beside Anthia as they headed down the stairs.

“It’s kind of weird, don’t you think?” Anthia turned towards Violeta. “The stars are fading, and it reappears again. Not to mention the barriers activated itself..?”

Violeta sighs a little loudly, “.... To think about it, Wonderland has always been weird so I can’t say much about the stars. The Athenians are the ones responsible for that.” Violeta paused, as her steps started to slow down.

“As for the barriers,” As Violeta trailed off, this caused Anthia to turn towards the General with a small frown. 

Anthia started to work with Violeta ever since Aera left Wonderland – and now she understands why Aera trusted Violeta so much, even Aera had put her life in Violeta’s hands when she needed saving.

“...Jaehyun said it only activates when dark magic is involved.” Violeta whispered slightly, not wanting the housemaids that were walking passed by them to hear their conversation.

“I heard even Morian’s barrier has opened too, father called me just now.” Anthia informed quietly, which Violeta nodded. Now this made both of them frown deeply.

“..But, nothing bad happened yesterday.. So why...?” Anthia continued, while Violeta stood in front of the Queen.

“Maybe someone or something wanted to break into the castle, but failed to do whatever they were trying.” Violeta guessed, which Anthia shook her head while sighing through her nose. She was frustrated because it has been a while since this happened.

The last time it happened, she received direct news from Jia, one of Jaehyun and Aera’s children. It was revealed that the Ice Warlock was trying to enter Aerina but failed due to Aera’s protection barrier.

“It can’t be the Ice Warlock,” Anthia said in disbelief and Violeta was about to reply when rushed footsteps were heard – seeing a very familiar figure walking towards them.

“Zen, you look like you were being chased by maidens.” Violeta teased, wiggling her brows towards the Queen – seeing Anthia shaking her head to Violeta’s forever teasing towards Zen who was glaring towards the General.

“What is it, Zen?” Anthia looked towards Zen who was gripping onto a letter a little too hard. Zen’s composure straightens, he looks a little too nervous to say the next words.

“It’s from Athenian.” Zen said – Anthia gesturing Zen to continue his words. “They said that Queen Aera is in Wonderland.”

Anthia froze on the spot, while Violeta was looking towards the letter – she didn’t even ask Zen for the letter as she snatched it away from his grip. Her eyes moved left and right in a speed where no one had seen her read before.

There was a smile coming from Violeta as she turned towards Anthia, “Anthia, Aera is back! She’s finally back!” 

Anthia’s eyes fluttered in tears, as she broke out into a smile. “..Where is she now? H-How..?”

“That’s the thing, your majesty.” Zen quietly said before pulling another letter out towards the two ladies which Anthia quickly got ahold of.

Just like Violeta, she reads at a fast pace, causing her to gasp – a worried frown was shown on her face.

“What? What happened?” Violeta questioned at the same peering onto the letter – a look of concern formed slowly as she reads the letter.

I received a letter from the Athenian Kingdom that the Gods and Goddes of Constellations were supposed to transport Queen Aera to Athenian, but they made a mistake on transporting the Queen to Estellea. 

Queen Aera is in Estellea castle right now under Prince Eunwoo, Prince Rocky, Prince Moonbin and Prince MJ’s care. 

I have examined the wound from Queen Aera’s and it was from the Dark Elf. 

Prince Eunwoo has also told me that Queen Aera has been attacked by the Dark-Elf on Earth, which was impossible. As we have lived in Wonderland for centuries, we only know a powerful being could travel to Earth.

Perhaps our greatest fear has come true?

If it is, we have to get ready, your majesty.

Do visit Estellea to see Queen Aera as she is waiting for you.

Yours Sincerely,

Prince Jinwoo, JINJIN of Estellea Kingdom

𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 (𝐜.𝟐) ⤄ 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 (𝐜.𝟒)

her wonderland : for infinity [the 3rd adventure]

#nct royal #nct royal au #nct au #nct prince au #nct scenarios #nct imagines #nct prince #astro prince #astro scenarios #astro imagines #astro mj #astro eunwoo #astro moonbin #astro rocky #latest update !

[restlessmaknae]

enchanted [mark lee]

You have one goal when you apply for the yearly contest to get into the most prestigious wizardry school: to win just like your parents did 25 years ago. However, bumping into prince Minhyung who seems to remember you from your yearly visits to the palace seems to shake up your plan a little bit.

➳ Characters: prince!Mark x female!reader/you

➳ Genre: fantasy, fluff, magical kingdom au, magical contest au, magical school au

➳ Words: 19.7k

➳ Warning: mentions of injuries, burn marks, pressuring parents

➳ A/N: This story is dedicated to @dat-town. Merry Christmas, dear! ❤️ You've already read my little (?) letter, but really, thank you for everything! I love you so so so much. ❤️

Plus, I've gotten carried away, but this story was inspired by your prompt for the request event: “i’m not blushing” with mark lee

➳ NCT taglist: @s00buwu, @winterbeartaehyungbestboy, @sweetjaemss, @stories-inbetween-the-stars, @squiishymeow, @heyditseeey

You felt the air around you shift. You shifted it, the current leaving goosebumps on the skin of the judges as the temperature in the room dropped. You welcomed the familiar tug in your stomach as you gathered the threads of magic around you, pulling it towards you and taming it to your own will.

First was the change in temperature, then you sent out whooshes of air - towards the shelves, towards the candles on the judges' table, sipping the light from them, leaving the wick bare, then towards the windows, earning crackling noises as if something from outside wanted to come in. It was actually quite true for you were feeding on the energy of air, the oxygen in the room, but it wasn't enough. Not anymore.

A few seconds later, the crackling stopped as the two huge windows of the room flew open violently, and the otherwise peaceful breeze from outside wafted into the room. You held onto it, and it physically felt like holding onto it as if it was a rope and you were pulling it closer. As you sipped more and more air into the room, your body was trying to keep up with more and more energy rushing through you. It was a feeling akin to running - it was both freeing and exhausting at the same time. You pushed yourself more and more until you let everything accumulate in one big tornado in the middle of the room. It danced around like flames of a candle or that sweet treat vendors enjoyed making while children watched in awe as the dessert took form in the shape of a small tornado.

The difficult thing wasn't creating the tornado but rather not let it lose shape and eventually lose control. A wizard's magic didn't lie in its impressive complexity or array of skills, but in the way they could control whatever they possessed. At least, your parents said so. You concentrated on your determination to prove to them how worthy you were to wear the family name, how worthy you were as a female, and channelled it into the tornado in front of you, into gradually narrowing it until it was the size of a loaf of bread. Then, with a whip of your hand, the gust of air disappeared completely.

You didn't really register that you were sweating all throughout your demonstration until you could feel drops of sweat roll down your cheeks. You didn't waver though, you merely let out a long sigh and blew away the stray locks that fell into your eyes.

"Thank you for your demonstration," the woman on the left said. Your parents had told you about her - Kim Taeyeon, a member of the senate of the Four Kingdoms -, said to be able to tame all four elemental magic without any of them overpowering the other, so definitely a rare case. The man on her left was Kim Jungmyeon, a highly praised wizard professor from the Earth Kingdom. There was another man and another woman, but in your state, you couldn't recall their names.

"Thank you so much for the opportunity," you bowed deeply, and when you straightened, you tried to translate their facial expressions, but you couldn't for they masked their emotions perfectly well, no sign of being impressed or being disappointed about your performance either. Maybe it was for the better.

"We shall get back in touch with you within 5 days no matter whether you are chosen or not," professor Kim Junmyeon announced briefly, and that was enough for you to know that it was the end of the first round for you. Somehow, you noticed, the flames were back dancing on the top of the candles as if you had never put them out, and you wondered whether it was his doing.

You thanked them for the information and bid your goodbye. Only when you left the room, did you allow yourself to wipe the sweat off your face. As you walked down the corridor, your features softened, but you steeled them when you turned a corner and walked past the next contestants lining up.

When you had been lining up yourself, you had seen others coming out angry, frustrated, disheartened, and some had even come out crying. Some had come out boasting that they would make it for sure, while others like you had to act as if you weren't debating inside whether your efforts were enough.

To be honest, girls were looked down on when applying either way. Since a part of a woman's magic left her body when she gave birth to a child, some saw women as easily disposable wizard trainees. Some highlighted that it was a waste of time and effort to train them as their magic would lose some of its power upon childbirth, so when it was time for the yearly contest to get into the Four Kingdoms' United School of Applied Elemental Magic, there were always glances thrown around and nasty whispers whenever a girl showed up.

Despite your expectation to receive the same attention as you had done so when you had walked up to the entrance of the institution, no eyes were on you. Everyone was looking behind them, whispers half-muffled as their eyes darted between the corridor and a certain someone at the end of the line. As if they parted around him, you could see clearly who it was when you walked past him.

But he...

"Did he get into trouble?"

"Does he want to prove that he is as great of a wizard as his parents are?"

"Why did he apply though? There are always places reserved for royal children…"

The questions on the other contestants' minds were mirroring your own because you didn't understand either why Lee Minhyung, the golden child of the royal couple in the Air Kingdom was there, lined up for the yearly contest to study at the wizardry school managed by the Four Kingdoms. The Four Kingdoms weren't always so friendly with each other, so the fact that the royal families, the senate and the appointed professors could all work towards training the winners of the contest who would then study there for 2 years before becoming either advisors for their respective kingdom's royal families, consuls in the senate or professors in training at the school was symbolic enough of how big this application was.

On the other hand, the royal children were always excluded from the first round, meaning that they didn't need to apply and demonstrate their abilities in the first round. They were always selected in the 200 contestants who would go onto the second round, and no one questioned why because they supposedly had the best teachers in their own kingdoms and their own families were founders of the school.

So why… why was Lee Minhyung still there?

As the tale goes, the Four Kingdoms of Elemental Magic were once a united kingdom. They were built in a square shape, and there were no borders between them. Wizards in that era were said to have been the most powerful as they had access to all the four elements and they could tame their magic as they wished. There were schools for magic back then as well, but they were more like training schools, not educational institutions with a highly standardised application process. Everyone could reap the benefits of highly trained wizards.

Nonetheless, access to all meant that some took advantage of the situation, and wizards without properly controlled powers or those who felt like they were better than others used their magic to intimidate, hurt and manipulate others. Crime bloomed along the streets of the united kingdom, and it went as far as assassinating the then ruling King, leaving the Queen and her two sons to take control of the situation.

That was when the borders were put it place and the square shaped kingdom was divided into four small squares according to where each element was the most powerful - the Air kingdom with its windy weather and peaceful lowlands, the Earth Kingdom with its rich woods and lush fields, the Fire Kingdom with its majestically overtowering volcano and long nights that forced towns to provide constant light for visibility and the Water Kingdom with its high quality drinking water, mesmerising lakes and bustling seafood markets.

Magic became something to control as children were tested every year to see if they possessed any magic and if they did, what kind, so that they could be put into schools according to their abilities. Soon enough, wizards with the ability to tame all four kinds of magic became more and more rare, and even those were kept close to the royal family or the senate that was put together to combat crime, rebellion and manipulation of one's power in all four kingdoms.

You knew that given the circumstances, it was the best they could do, but you felt like it was unfair to those who didn't have enough money to send their children to a good wizardry school, those who could not afford to move closer to the capital city to make use of their talent but rather had to grind somewhere in a small town to be able to put food on the table each and every day. Not to mention those who wanted to travel and see the different kingdoms as it was prohibited for the common people to visit another kingdom but their own.

The gap between the rich and poor widened, and everyone was monitored, everyone was administered in order to avoid repeating the past. Vendors could only bring their products to the borders where the border officials took them and gave them a predetermined sum of money, families were torn apart due to the implemented borders, and the four kingdoms appointed the area on the border of all four kingdoms where once the capital of the United Kingdom had been ‘the Circle’. The Circle gave home to the newly built senate building, the council buildings for each kingdom to discuss matters between them when there was no need to include the senate, the newly built Four Kingdoms' United School of Applied Elemental Magic where each element could be well studied and practised as the magic was still the most powerful there, and the homes of those regularly staying and working in the Circle.

One of the reasons you applied for the school's yearly contest was because you had ideas how to change the current system, and as a 20-year old person, let alone a girl, you had no voice. Even if your parents were both parts of the senate representing the Air Kingdom, they didn't want to listen to you. They always said that this would be too costly, that would be too risky, so ultimately, nothing changed. The other reason was to prove to them that you were worthy, that you could be as powerful as them, both selected as part of the final winners in the contest 25 years ago.

"I've heard that this year, there were more than 500 applicants," your mother stated matter-of-factly over breakfast on the day you were supposed to be notified of your result. "And prince Minhyung was one of them. I definitely didn't see that coming from the royal couple, sending their child to the first round like that," she continued, her eyebrows furrowed in disbelief. Not that you had any say in applying because despite the fact that you had wanted to apply yourself, you knew all too well that your parents wouldn't have accepted a no as an answer either.

Even if you had gone to a good school in the Air Kingdom, this was different. The fact that there was a contest to get into the Four Kingdoms' United School of Applied Elemental Magic was proof enough that it was a huge deal; learning not just about your own magic but about the others as well. The schools in individual kingdoms weren’t as equipped as the united school, and the professors working there didn’t usually practise magic other than their own kingdom’s because those who did worked elsewhere - mostly somewhere in the Circle.

"Well, it was not against the rules. Their excludement from the first round is a privilege, not a duty," your father added between two spoonfuls of porridge.

"I've heard that the prince wanted to come on his own accord, that his parents didn't know about his decision until the very end," you blurted out, earning two pairs of wide eyes on you. You didn't usually believe the gossip from the streets and markets, but you had nothing else to do since the first round of the contest as you didn't have classes because your parents were sure that you would make it, so you had the past four days off. If you were to be selected, you would have a month-long competition ahead of you with daily classes and practices anyway.

"I doubt that's the truth. That would mean prince Minhyung is rather irresponsible, and that's not what I've heard of him," your mother shook her head as if she was disapproving of the whole situation.

Or rather brave, you wanted to say, but you bit your tongue. You didn't know why you felt the need to defend the prince, but he hardly looked like someone who had been there just to cause trouble and drama. He had looked like he wanted to be there, excited yet slightly nervous at the same time as he had been nibbling on his lower lip, his big doe eyes shining joviantly - he had looked just like everyone else.

Either way, you were about to find out what kind of a person he was because when the letter arrived from the Four Kingdoms' United School of Applied Elemental Magic, you were notified of your successful application and the time you would need to move into the dormitory for the second round.

"As expected of our daughter," your mother put a hand on your shoulder upon the news and gave you a triumphant smile. You weren't sure though whether she looked so proud because she felt like she was the reason for your success or because she was wholeheartedly happy for you. It had been a long time since you had heard genuine congratulations from them. For a long time now, it had always been 'as expected of our daughter', and truthfully, you didn't know how to feel about that.

When the day of your moving arrived, you were rather grateful to leave. After all, it would be the first time you would leave home for more than a few days at a time, and after the last few days of tormenting lectures about controlling your magic, concentrating on your energy levels and keeping out all distractions, you were ready to bolt. It was in a way very helpful to have highly influential wizards as your parents, but more often than not, it seemed like magic was the only thing they could talk about. In their eyes, if you didn't become a wizard like them, you would be a nobody.

No wonder you didn't shed tears like some others when bidding goodbye to your parents at the entrance of the school. You had to go through a couple of people with a couple of questions before you were given directions to your dormitory room and a key. The wizardry school had three main buildings: one for classes and training with specifically crafted walls and windows, some sound-proof, fire and water-proof while others budding with green spaces and individually designed structures to mimic slippery hills, sweep mountain hills and such fields to prepare you for possible battlefields; the second one for socialising including the dormitory with three floors of rooms, common areas and a grande canteen, and the third one for everything else: the teachers’ offices, an infirmary, storage rooms and a small shop where you could buy supplies for classes as well as little treats for yourself if you were still hungry after the meals in the canteen.

Knowing where to go and how equipped the school was due to your parents working in the Circle came in handy on the first day when assisting teachers and volunteering students were hustling and bustling with the administration rather than walking you to your rooms, so you took it upon yourself to find your room with the help of the signs indicating the different floors.

Realistically, you knew that housing 200 youngsters for a week wouldn't mean a room on your own even if you were to have your own room during your studies at the school if you were selected in the final, but you were still surprised to find two girls already in your room when you arrived.

"Oh, you must be from the Air Kingdom. The air around you is literally different," the girl who introduced herself as Dayoung mentioned as she made room for you to put down your baggage on the shared desk. She had long, strawberry-blonde hair and an almond-shaped face with a friendly, almost teasing smile and a laid back vibe.

"Or I'm just stern," you shrugged your shoulders, and they took your joke well as they both burst into laughter. Wizards from the Air Kingdom were said to be intimidating and strict, but not in the rebellious, wild way like those from the Fire Kingdom, but rather in a cold, unfriendly way.

"They say we're totally weirdos, so don't worry," Yoojung added joyfully after letting you know that they were both from the Fire Kingdom. They didn't go to school together, but their parents knew each other, so they had become quite the friends over the past few years. It was amusing to look at them as a pair - Dayoung with her blonde hair and Yoojung with her dark brown hair, the latter shorter by at least a head -, but they seemed like really good friends.

"Do you know anyone else coming from the Air Kingdom?"

"Uhmm..." You wondered out loud upon hearing Yoojung's question. You didn't have a lot of friends because of your strict training schedule, not to mention your parents telling you to focus on making connections with important people rather than simply friends. Needless to say, you couldn't care less, but you didn't even have a lot of opportunities to make friends, so you knew of those mostly whom your parents told you about. "There are two boys who went to the same school with me, and they've been accepted as far as I know...Prince Minhyung is coming, too," you listed, though the latter was obvious while the former boys they couldn't know about. Yohan and Yongha were both pretty talented and chill back at school, so you didn't think they would make any trouble.

"Oooh the royal kids," cooed Dayoung, and exchanged a glance with Yoojung.

"Did I miss something?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Yoojung protested with heavy hand gestures at the same time as Dayoung hollered: "Oh yeah, I've got a story for you."

It turned out after a little bit of bickering that Dayoung and Yoojung were both coming into the dormitory building at the same time as prince Hendery - from the Water Kingdom - and his so-called best friend Xiaojun did so, and Dayoung could swear that the prince had his eyes locked on Yoojung from the moment they met whereas the girl in question told her that she was simply being delusional. You could listen to their stories and bickering for hours, you felt, but then a boy showed up at your door, and blinked around, confused.

"Uhmmm.... I guess I got lost?" The boy, all raven-hair, boyish features and big doe eyes said, and for a moment, he seemed like a boy you could see on market days running between the different stalls, not the prince from your own kingdom.

You could already see Dayoung opening her mouth - to probably question if he was the so-called prince Minhyung -, so you saved everyone from the embarrassment and asked:

"Which room were you assigned to?"

"Third floor, fifth room to the left... or maybe it was the right?" He giggled nervously as the question hit him and scratched his neck like a sheepish boy. It was so in contrast to what you had heard about him - the golden child of the royal family, talented in everything from magic to public speaking and horse riding, in training to become one of the best wizards in his kingdom - that you felt your lips curl upwards in amusement.

"The boys' rooms are in the right wing as far as I know," you shared with him, and Dayoung agreed, telling a whole story about a boy named Seunghun who was in front of her in the line, and who was handsome by the way, and who was supposed to be on the third floor as well and in the right wing.

"Oh, okay, thank you," he bobbed his head in gratitude, then opened his mouth to say something only to close it a bit later. You all looked at him, puzzled, before he managed to speak up again.

"Haven't we met before?"

The question was directed at you, and both girls turned their heads towards you, eyes hungry for a story. You blinked at him, bewildered by both the fact that he remembered you and that he asked about it in front of others.

"My parents are members of the consul in the Air Kingdom and members of the senate. We give our blessings to the kingdom each year at the Festival of Light and Air," you told him, and even though he could have lost count of all the different faces, a hint of surprise crossed his eyes.

"Oh, I remember! Your parents always said that we're the same age. No wonder you're here," he articulated, totally in awe, his eyes lighting up.

You could see from the corner of your eyes that the girls were smirking beside you, but you didn't dare to look their way. You were glad that Minhyung pulled himself together quickly, and cleared his throat to bid his goodbye.

"Right wing then, thank you. See you around!" He smiled radiantly before turning around and leaving. There was a moment of silence before the room erupted with noise. You had to close the door to keep it in, and even though you couldn't say much more about your brief yearly encounters with the prince and his family when you all bowed towards them and said the same words to bless the kingdom, the magic of air and the royal family, you already had a feeling that you would be in good company here.

The first week was exhausting and noisy. It started with an introduction to the professors, a tour of the buildings, and the rules that you must follow (such as not hurting other contestants and not using magic on others, occupying trainings rooms to practise your magic only when a professor approved your request, and going to your rooms before curfew which also prohibited different contestants to sleep at another’s room). There were exactly 200 20-year-old students including the royal heirs, and even though you didn't meet everyone because the classes were held in small groups, meal times were for everyone, so the canteen was full of chattering and bantering.

You usually went to the canteen with Dayoung and Yoojung, but not all of your classes were together. That meant that you had even more to talk about because Yoojung had classes with prince Hendery, and despite the fact that Dayoung wasn't there, she was sure that the prince was all heart eyes for her friend.

You, of course, were teased by them because you attended a class together with prince Minhyung, and you actually talked. You didn't know whether it was because you were the first familiar face he caught sight of, but he asked if he could sit beside you, and you said yes. You didn't talk a lot though, but he seemed pretty grounded for a prince, and he didn't boast about his skills even though he was really good. Due to the fact that your main element was the same - air -, and you were learning how to tame the opposite one - earth -, you shared this class because the second round would be about demonstrating how you could control an opposite element as well as yours.

You could see how serious and focused he was when he was gathering and controlling his magic, but you could also see how easily distracted he was by outside noises. Indeed, the first round was held in silence, but you weren't sure that it would stay that way. After all, out of the 200 students, only 100 could pass the second round, more or less 25 from each kingdom. After that, 80 out of 100 would go on, and then the last two rounds’ numbers of winners wouldn’t be based on a specific number, but rather the number of students who fulfil the given challenges, so it could be 20 or all 80, but usually the average number of winners were around 30-40 each year.

It was a rule to give equal chances to all the four kingdoms, but it wouldn't be realistic to always stick to a predetermined number of students who could pass from each kingdom because there might be better students in a particular one and less gifted ones in another one.

However, having to calculate with around 25 students passing in your own kingdom's group made you feel nervous when the day of the second round arrived, and you were all waiting for your turn, gathered together in the canteen.

"How are you feeling?" Prince Minhyung inquired with his warm brown eyes widened, and you toned down the urge to push aside his fringe that was falling into his eyes. He was, in a way, a grown-up boy with hints of boyish features, and the duality of him - both his appearance and his personality - made you feel like you were in the wrong. Like you should have not paid too much attention to these details, yet you did.

"A bit nervous," you answered truthfully as you looked around yourself, seeing everyone in your group in the same white, loose pants and long-sleeved shirt. Each group had a different outfit and a different colour - white for Air with loose clothing that the air could sweep into, blue for Water with water-proof, body-fitting clothes, burgundy for Fire with inflammable jackets and sporty pants while Green for Earth with hiking boots and field clothes.

"I don't think you have anything to be nervous about. I'm sure you'll do great," the boy remarked, gentle and supportive as usual, and you didn't know what it was about him, but you wanted to believe him. So you thanked him before inquiring about his side.

"I'm a bit nervous, too. I mean, I've practised it enough, but it's like... it's like a scary test. I've never had to demonstrate my powers to anyone like this after preparing for a week. I've just had classes where I did all these exercises, but they were nothing like this," he elaborated, suddenly a lot more serious than before. You hummed, taking in his words. You didn't know what you had expected for the child of the royal couple to learn, but it wasn't this.

"That's why you've applied? To push your boundaries?" You guessed tentatively because you had no idea whether that was a button you could push or not. All kinds of rumours had been going around about why prince Minhyung was there in the first place, but you hadn't asked about his reason in the past week. Truthfully, you hadn't felt like asking about it.

On the other hand, the boy's features softened upon your question, and his eyes lit up, twinkling with something akin to gratitude.

"Yeah, exactly. I felt like my teachers went easy on me just because I am the heir to the throne, and I wanted to do it like everyone else from the start. Plus, I don't think it's fair that you have to apply for the first round and royal children don't. I have nothing to do with my ancestors' decision from a hundred years ago," he stated firmly, and now you could see that rebellious side of him that you hadn't caught on the day of the first round. You could see the fire in his eyes and hear the determination in his voice. Maybe it was due to all those lessons about public speaking, but you had a feeling that he could do everything he put his mind to just by the way he worded himself.

"Well, I know some people who believe that you did the right thing," you shared with a small smile, dissolving the solemnity in the air. The boy smiled back at you, and it felt like a gentle breeze swaying a field of poppies when he did so - so soothing, so reassuring.

"Thanks," he mumbled rather coyly, and you could watch this sight for so long, but your name was called, so you had to go.

With one last glance in the prince's direction, you headed towards one of the training fields outside.

After the usual formalities and rules of the demonstration, you did what you had done last time, but pulled the energy of nature around you just as well. Fallen leaves and trunks were dancing in the tornado you created until you let them touch the floor gently as if nothing had happened. Then, you pushed a current of air into the ground, so hard that it pierced through the surface, leaving a small hole in front of you. A hole, that once you let go of the air's energy, you mended with the energy of nature at your feet. It was still more exhausting to use it and recognise the pull of earth rather than the pull of air, but you had learned how to begin to tame each elemental magic before, at least the gist of it, so now you focused on deepening that knowledge. And it seemed to pay off as the ground beneath you mended itself, leaving no ghost of a crack behind to let anyone think that it had opened up before.

"Thank you very much for your demonstration, Miss Y/N. Please, wait for the end of the second round to get to know about your result," one of your professors who was a part of the judges announced, and you nodded, thanking them for the opportunity.

There was a tremble in your legs and a prickling feeling in your hands when you stepped inside the building again. You tried to shake it off, but it must have been the thrill of it all because the feeling faded only when you managed to calm the crazy beating of your heart. It also helped that prince Minhyung finished soon afterwards, so you could share your experiences in the hall where all those who had already finished gathered together. Dayoung and Yoojung also arrived a bit later, and you guessed that the so-called prince Hendery and his friend did too because prince Minhyung seemed to know him, and Dayoung kept giving her friend those googly eyes.

The rest of the waiting went by fast with more and more students accumulating around your little group, and soon enough, the representatives of the judges announced the results.

You realised how different it was when you had received the results through letters compared to now when the names of those who passed were called out. You squealed when Dayoung's and Yoojung's names were read out, and you gave prince Minhyung a wide, bright smile when his was, too. Then, there was Seunghun from the Fire Kingdom, Serim from the Water Kingdom, Yeosang from the Earth Kingdom and...

"Y/N from the Air Kingdom!"

You could feel your stomach drop in relief when your name was called, and you were embraced by both Yoojung and Dayoung at the same time, so much that you almost didn't even notice prince Minhyung's supportive little smile directed at you. Just almost though.

With the announcement of the selected ones, the theme of the third round was also announced. You would need to demonstrate your current ability of controlling three different elemental powers - so a stepping stone from the second round -, but this time, you couldn't prepare your own demonstration, you had to do what the judges would ask you on the spot. It would be both nerve-wracking and reassuring because they would ask more or less the same set of exercises from those who learned how to tame the same three elemental powers, so it would be easier to compare the students. At the same time, you were afraid that you wouldn't understand their request or it would be totally out of your league, and you would fail miserably. The thing is, even though Dayoung's brother had been a contestant two years ago, they could strictly not talk about the content of the contest, plus they were supposed to change up the structure a little bit every now and then, so you had no idea what to expect.

"I'm saying, we should focus on our classes and making memories rather than worrying about the end result," Hendery chattered at the canteen during lunch when he heard your worried words.

During the week and with the diminishing number of people, your little group of Dayoung, Yoojung, Minhyung, Hendery, Xiaojun and you had become quite solidified. The princes also asked you to call them by their names instead of their title since you were friends now. Though seeing Hendery and Yoojung's friendly bickering, you also thought that they might not have been just friends much to Dayoung's joy.

"If I were you, I wouldn't worry either. All royal kids are still in the contest," Yoojung pointed out rather frustrated, but it was because she had messed up her demonstration during the second round, and she had been down ever since.

Truthfully, you could totally understand her. If you wanted to be honest, you were terrified of dropping out - not because it would hurt your ego, but because you didn’t know how you would face your parents afterwards. You knew that Yoojung’s father was teaching magic at a school in the Fire Kingdom while her mother was part of their consul, so she had the same fears as you. Despite passing the second round, she had received a blow to her self-esteem, and even though you and Dayoung had tried to cheer her up, she hadn’t yet regained her usual cheeriness.

The air around you froze for a moment, and despite not mentioning your different backgrounds in such a bad light before, it was true that the royal applicants usually made it to the last two rounds safe and sound. You didn't want to jump to conclusions because your own parents were rather influential, and they were a part of the senate who managed the school, but you wouldn't be surprised if you weren't treated equally. After all, that first round exemption privilege was also not a thing of the past.

"You should have just said that my charms are irresistible, that's why I'm still here," Hendery shrugged with a teasing grin, and slightly nudged Yoojung's shoulder with his own. It could be seen how the girl's features softened a bit, but she said nothing before turning back to her food.

The slightly tense atmosphere was lingering in the air for the next few days, and Yoojung was still not back to her usual self. So when she didn’t come back to your shared room after classes one day, you decided to look for her in your dormitory building while Dayoung was looking for her in the canteen, the infirmary and such.

The dormitory had a tower on top, one that was surrounded by a circular terrace from where one could see the whole Circle. You liked to come up to calm your nerves, so that was the first palace that came to mind, and as you took the steps to the top one after another, you wondered if you would be like her if you messed up during a round. It’s not like it was a matter of life and death, but you knew how much pressure influential parents could place on their children - as if one single mistake or faltering weren’t your own, but it was a dismay to your whole family.

When you reached the top, you were about to reach for the doorknob when you caught sight of Yoojung and Hendery talking on the terrace through the transparent glass door. They were standing close to each other, and when you looked closer, you realised that Hendery was fumbling with his hands as if he wasn’t sure what to do with them, but he kept reaching towards the girl who seemed to be oblivious to that as her eyes were unfocused on anything in particular - she was just staring ahead of herself.

Knowing that Hendery was a good guy, and that your friend was in good hands, you decided to go against interfering, and descended down the stairs. You reached the bottom and you were about to turn the corner when you quite literally bumped into someone.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” you mumbled apologetically even before it could settle in who he was. When your eyes found the prince’s own shining orbs, you merely let out a giggle.

“Me too,” Minhyung added with a nervous scratch of his neck. He blinked at you as if he didn’t know what to say, and you noted that his eyes were exceptionally bright that day, twinkling vividly surrounded by the light of the corridor.

“Were you headed for the terrace?” You inquired just in case, and he nodded, albeit a bit timid. “Yoojung and Hendery are there, and they seemed to be having a moment, so I didn’t want to interrupt them.”

“Oh cool, great! I mean… it’s cool that they are there because I was just about to look for Hendery because he didn’t say where he went. But it’s also cool that they are there together. They seem to get along well.”

You could only agree with him, but it was rather adorable how he was tumbling upon his words even though he wasn’t the one in question who was having a moment. So why was his face getting redder and redder? Was it still the little bump’s aftermath?

“Yeah, I think so, too. Yoojung seems to like him.”

“As in like like him?” The boy’s eyes widened to double their size, his jaw hanging slightly. You bobbed your head, finding his bewilderment rather funny. “Oh my gosh, I think he likes her like that too, but he’s intimidated by her, so he doesn’t want to say anything. It’s like… you know… like… how there are some guys who are all cool and casual, but when they have a girl they like, they become different. It’s that vibe for me.”

The way Minhyung blabbered with wild hand gestures was quite cute, but the more he talked, the more he seemed to get carried away with his words, and in the end, you didn’t even know how you ended up getting to know stories about one of his palace guards’ love stories (a young man named Johnny who seemed to flirt with anyone and everyone), but there you were, listening to him with his lively intonations, watching his eyes shine and lit up whenever you reacted to his words, and it was just too surreal.

You were talking to a prince after all, but he was talking about the people around him at the palace as if they had been his neighbours. Maybe that’s why you enjoyed his company so much: apart from the warmth that he spread, he was a very down-to-earth person who didn’t judge anyone by their social status, but rather by their personality. Not all royalty were like that. One of the princesses had also joined the competition, and no one seemed to mind that she had not passed the second round because she had looked down on everyone around her.

In the meantime, you moved from the bottom of the stairs to an abandoned couch in one of the common rooms, time passing by quickly beside the boy. He was good at talking, but he was also an excellent listener, and you could always feel that he listened attentively for he always asked questions when he needed clarification or when he was merely curious about your side. This is how your reason for being here came up.

“Partly, I had no choice because of my parents, but I also came here because I wanted to. I feel like there are a couple of things that the Four Kingdoms could change to make magic more accessible for everyone and to regulate borders more efficiently, but my voice can’t be heard just by being my parents’ daughter. So I hope that I can be one of the students who can study at the school in the end, thus I can gain even more knowledge and let my voice be heard when I become a part of the senate or the consul.”

You weren’t afraid to share it with him because it was him after all, but at the same time, when he didn’t respond for a few seconds, the terrifying thought came to mind that your words might have implied that you weren’t happy with the way his parents ruled the kingdom. So you immediately turned to face him, but instead of shock being written on his face, it was actually awe painting his features.

“Wow, that’s so cool!” He blurted out, still a bit awe-struck, when he managed to pull himself together for a proper response. “From what you’ve just said and what I’ve heard from you already, I know that you would be able to make change in our kingdom and our systems,” he said so with a smile that could outdo the sun, and there it was, the warmth that you were speaking about. He radiated this gentle, calm, serene warmth, and it felt like a blessing that you could be a recipient of it.

“Really?” You voiced out, feeling a bit shy because those were big words, and hearing that from a prince - despite him being as humble as ever - meant a lot to you.

“Yeah, really. Absolutely. Totally. 100%,” Minhyung exclaimed, and you let your lips curl upwards as your heart swelled.

And maybe for the first time since you had applied, you could believe that there was someone else who believed in you - not because of your previous achievements like your parents, but genuinely because he knew what was the reason for you being here -, and that was enough reassuring to get you through until the third round.

One of the most difficult things about taming a power other than the one you had been born with was finding the right amount of control. For instance, you, who had come from the Air Kingdom, had a hard time regulating your control over fire - the third of the powers you learned to tame ever since being here - because fire was wild, rough and heavy compared to air. Taming air required a certain tenderness because you needed to know the right time and energy to hold onto it and shape it as you wanted whereas fire was unpredictable and holding onto it didn’t mean that you could hold onto it longer than a few seconds. It could easily blow out of proportion if you weren’t careful, but too little energy meant that you couldn’t keep the fire alive.

That’s why you were so afraid of the third round, and it didn’t help that the judges asked the most fire exercises from you out of the three powers you could be asked to demonstrate that day. It was reasonable though since you had already demonstrated that you could deal with air and earth to the extent that they had prepared you for, but still… the magic of fire still felt so unfamiliar to you, and a wizard was as good as its familiarity with its magic.

Despite your best efforts, you faltered when it came to a ball of fire that you were supposed to put out bit by bit. You had had the most difficult time with it during preparatory classes during the week too, and it didn’t help that it was the last exercise they asked of you. You lost control over the thread of magic, and the fire was put out sooner than you could think about how to resurrect it. There was no way you could save that, and you needed to gulp back a cry of shock when the fire vanished in a blink of an eye.

You could barely hear the judges thanking you for your efforts and asking you to join the others in a separate room. You could barely register your friends’ questions when you caught sight of them in one of the rooms because you were still replaying that moment of failure in your head.

“Don’t worry, I’ve totally messed up my air demonstration, too. I nearly made a judge fly from his chair, but come on, I’m used to fire,” Dayoung tried to reassure you, but if anything, the thought of both you and Dayoung being eliminated from the contest was even worse than just you messing up. Even if you didn’t make it, you would want them to make it, so you weren’t nearly as laid-back as her.

The others had similar experiences, so it seemed that demonstrating exercises that the judges asked of you instead of putting together your own demonstrations posed a challenge, and trying to showcase three types of elemental magic was tough for everyone, especially given that you had only one week to get to know the other two elemental magic types apart from your own one.

However, it was exactly the time limit that made this contest challenging, and that would signal to the judges who would be worthy to study at the school in the future. This whole contest was supposed to mimic how you could be challenged in the future - at the wizardry school and after finishing the 2 years here -, so you knew that you couldn’t always prepare to demonstrate your powers in front of a panel of judges, and you couldn’t expect to pass a physical ability test with flying colours when you weren’t used to using your power while exercising (something that you had every other day ever since being at the school), but it was frustrating to know how little it took to shake you and sway your power.

Little by little, your group assembled, and everyone had similar experiences - messing up exercises, losing control over their power and not being able to finish tasks in time -, so it seemed that it was a challenging round for everyone. Though since you knew that it could only get more difficult after this round as each was a bit more challenging than the previous one, you had to face the fact that the contest wouldn’t be as easy as you had thought before based on the success of the second round.

It felt like a lifetime before the judges panel gathered the remaining 100 contestants to announce the ones who could go on. There were familiar names and not so familiar ones, but your heart heaved a sigh when your friends were called one after one. Minhyung, Hendery, Xiaojun and Yoojung were all given the green light and asked to wait in the next room where the theme of the fourth round would be announced, so you stood back with Dayoung to wait for the rest of the list.

The more names were called, the tighter the knot in your stomach grew, and you felt weak in the knees when there were only 3 more spaces for students left, and both you and Dayoung remained. Out of the 100 contestants, only 80 could pass this time, so you prepared yourself for the worst, mentally preparing a speech to tell your parents after they would send you home.

“Miss Y/N!”

You felt like you were in a daze when your name was called, and you didn’t even have time to reciprocate Dayoung’s supporting words, you were already ushered towards the next room. Yoojung nearly jumped onto you when she saw you, but your little group’s joy didn’t last long because not long after you came in, the door of the room closed, and a blue-haired boy named Yeonjun from the Water Kingdom came in with the judges.

“Where is Dayoung?” Yoojung exclaimed, her eyes still holding hope but leaving room for doubt. You looked around wearily, but there was no way she could have gotten in without either of you noticing, so you had to come to the conclusion that she was… eliminated.

Your heart sank. You realised that ever since you had met the others, you didn’t think of the possibility of you not finishing the contest together. No matter how unrealistic it might have been, you had just not pictured it before, so now coming face-to-face with the fact that Dayoung didn’t make it was more than painful, it stung more than it would have done so if you had prepared yourself for this scenario. Oh, how foolish you had been…

“I appreciate that this was a challenging round for all of you,” one of the judges announced, dragging you out of your stupor. You shook your head, trying to concentrate on his words, but he seemed far away, everything around you seemed far away. “So I would like to congratulate you all even more because you passed the third round,” he continued, and there was a round of applause thundering through the room, but it wasn’t nearly as enthusiastic as after the second round. Only about a third of you were there compared to when you got to the dormitory, and it showed.

“The fourth round will be a physical ability-induced one. Similar to the tests you have every other day during gym classes, you will have to go through an obstacle course that tests both your physical abilities and your magical powers. So I advise you to become really familiar with the obstacle courses that the school offers, if you haven’t already, because one of them will be your demonstration next week,” he paused, letting the words sink in before continuing. “The equipment itself won’t change, but the judges might alter the magical elements a bit according to their own judgement, and you need to pass under the given time limit. More details will be revealed during your first gym classes, but those who can fairly pass under the time limit can move onto the next round, there won’t be a cap on the number of contestants who can proceed this round,” he explained in detail, and there was a murmur going through the crowd of contestants. No one seemed to particularly like the so-called gym classes even if they were supposed to prepare you for a possible magical fight, but to have it as the theme of the next round made it all the more nerve-wrecking.

Not that you could grasp the situation in that moment because you were going through many different emotions all at the same time, and it was similar to taming each different magical element you had practised before - it was difficult to put your hand on the fine line between them as it all seemed like one big mess when you were overcome by all of their energy. You still felt like you were just watching the events unfold from an outsider’s point of view when the crowd was prompted to move back to their rooms, both because you made it and both because Dayoung didn’t.

You had never given much thought to how quickly the losing contestants were dismissed because you had never walked anyone to the gate of the school to bid your farewell.

However, you only had a few hours to help Dayoung pack before the gates would close for the day, and you would need to head back to your dorms. Even though the girl wasn’t as disheartened by her departure as you all were, the atmosphere wasn’t as light as it used to be.

“Win the contest for me!” She made you promise with a wide smile, and all of you - Minhyung, Hendery, Xiaojun and you - nodded fervently. If anything, you would try even harder from now on because you didn’t want to get used to saying goodbye to the friends you made here, and you didn’t want to put the others through this again. “And promise to write to me when you’ll be attending the school, and please, pull a few pranks on Wooyoung for me. That guy annoyed the hell out of me,” she huffed by the end, and her faked annoyance made you crack a little smile. Gosh, days would be less lively without her and her googly eyes at you and Mark as well as at Yoojung and Hendery.

Since visits weren’t allowed between kingdoms, the only way you could contact anyone outside of your own kingdom was through letters. They were also inspected at the borders, but they could be passed through border control, so that was the only way you would be able to communicate with her from now on. However, until the end of the contest, letters weren’t allowed either to minimise the chances of anything getting out about the themes of the rounds, so if you were lucky, you could only connect her again when you made it to study here.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of him for you,” Hendery promised with a wink, to which Yoojung almost smacked him because she had been going on about how he should have acted like a prince instead of constantly teasing others (the girl included) and making trouble. Hendery always argued that here with you all at least he could be himself, just a boy, not a prince, and that seemed enough for Yoojung to bite back her response.

“I’ll miss you all, but don’t miss me too much, focus on the contest,” Dayoung warned you jokingly before you all embraced her in a big group hug. One by one, everyone bid their goodbye to her, and when it was your turn, you hugged her tightly once more, but before you would let go, she whispered:

“I’ve wanted to tell you later, but look around yourself every once in a while, Y/N. Someone might be falling in love with you,” she told you, a secretive grin on her face when she leaned back, but before you could ask her whom she meant by that, the guards by the gates notified you that you should say your last words to each other because it was time for curfew.

So you did let go of her, but Dayoung’s words rang in your ears every now and then, and you felt like you might have become a bit paranoid as you were trying to figure out who could like you. You didn’t receive flirtatious glances from boys at the canteen - well, Yeonjun was flirty, but he did give any girl a smirk who walked past him, so he didn’t seem like a likely candidate, and when you met Changbin’s eyes one day, he looked like he would kick you out of the contest sooner than have any romantic feelings for you -, and the only boys who were around most of the time were Hendery, Xiaojun and Minhyung.

You knew Hendery had eyes only for Yoojung, and the girl seemed to slowly realise her own feelings for him, Xiaojun was Xiaojun… and well, there Minhyung whom you thought was cute, warm-hearted and who could make you laugh and smile even after Dayoung’s departure, but he couldn’t be falling in love with you, right? He was a prince after all. Even though princes didn’t have to be with princesses, they should at least marry someone of high rank - a member of the senate, a consul or someone of such importance -, and you weren’t there yet. Even if you were, what were the chances of it working out? Both your parents and his parents seemed to be really strict, so that would most probably not happen.

Plus, ever since a guy provoked Hendery and Minhyung once during lunch, accusing the contest of discrimination because you were still in the contest with the boys (he didn’t seem to know of Dayoung already being eliminated), you wanted to keep your distance a bit. You didn’t need anyone to punch Hendery in the face again over something like that.

“I can’t believe he didn’t fight back,” Yoojung murmured during the following gym class when you were behind the three boys, and they were examining the bruise on their friend’s face. The girl was literally throwing daggers with her own eyes in the direction of Jaeeon who had provoked them, but the boy in question didn’t seem to take note of her glares. He had been given a warning that if something like that happened again, he would be sent home immediately, but that wasn’t enough to calm the petite girl’s nerves.

“You were the one who told him not to cause trouble because he’s a prince. He would have gotten into more trouble if he had punched back,” you reasoned as you moved along with the line, and while it was true that Hendery would have brought more disgrace to his family’s name if he had been the one to throw the punch, you wouldn’t have blamed him either. You were glad though that Xiaojun and Minhyung had been there to keep Jaeon off the prince, so the fight hadn’t escalated, thankfully.

Gym class was tough either way without any added drama because everyone was taking the obstacle courses seriously since none of you knew which one would be used for your testing in the fourth round. The fascinating thing about these obstacle courses wasn’t that they were made up of all these different hurdles, but how they stayed laced with magic. The technique beyond that was confidential, but you doubted that your teachers were working on keeping the magical parts of them alive - flames coming from both sides of a bridge that you were supposed to cross, water licking your feet as you were trying to jump from one rope to the other above a pool of water, a hill partly made of a steep side while the ground was shaking beneath you and such - whilst watching over you. Which meant that either they were enchanted in a way to store the magic in them or… you didn’t really know. That was beyond what you could imagine, and your parents didn’t tell you about such things.

One by one, you were supposed to cross the obstacle courses while using your powers to tame the magical elements or to bend them to support your journey along the way, and while you definitely improved from your first gym class, you still felt so out of control at certain parts. You would have a time limit in the fourth round, and that added pressure to the whole obstacle course, and when your mind was occupied with time ticking by, you couldn’t focus as much as you wanted, and that added more oil to the fire, and it kept repeating in a vicious cycle.

However, since you had witnessed the scene of Hendery being punched in the face and Jeeon provoking the boys because of their social status, you felt this bubbling rage inside of you which actually came in handy when it was your turn for the course that day. You channelled all that frustration and annoyance and bittersweetness into pulling the threads of the magical energies around you, into concentrating on the hindrances at hand, and sending enough power to the specific parts along the way to help keep you going - putting out the flames, tempering down the water beneath your feet, stopping the shaking of the ground and pacifying the wind around you. It worked because you managed to beat everyone’s record so far, but it also resulted in you being exceptionally weary after finishing.

“Oh my god, Y/N! You were on fire!” Yoojung hollered beside you when you made it through the given obstacle course for the day. You tried with a grateful smile, but it turned into more like a wince when you felt surges of pain shoot through your legs. Oh yeah, the all too familiar consequences of the adrenaline rush were kicking in, something that you had not yet gotten used to.

You took a few steps closer to the girl who was holding out a flask of water in your direction, but your legs felt wobbly, and you would have fallen if it had not been for someone catching your arms.

You looked up, half-expecting someone who was less of a stranger, not the boy whom you had been trying to stay away from since yesterday, but your heart betrayed you as it heaved a relieved sigh. It was silly, your brain told you, you only knew Minhyung for almost three weeks, you couldn’t have known him that well, and yet, your heart told you that you would be safe beside him, he got your back. But why? You had been searching for people’s hidden intentions all your life because your parents warned you not to make friends but rather allies because it was a cruel world out there after all, and yet… you could not find a possible hidden intention behind his big doe eyes twinkling and his lips forming the words, his brows furrowed solicitously:

“Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah,” you bobbed your head, your eyes wandering to your arms that were held by Minhyung’s own, safe and sound, steady yet gentle. You were so used to holding yourself up, holding your head above the water, and not accepting anyone’s help like that, that you were dumbfounded as to what to do next, how to put an end to this.

“Get moving, jeez,” someone behind you rumbled, but before you could turn around to see who it was, it was probably that someone who pushed past with their shoulder crashing into yours. You had no time to react, your legs moved forward automatically, yet Minhyung’s didn’t, and you ended up falling down… together. To be precise, you falling onto him, and him holding you up by the waist.

And then, your heart betrayed you yet again as it skipped a beat. Even though your lungs had been on fire just a minute ago, now they were on fire for a different reason, and it was difficult to grasp what it was when all you could see was the depth of his orbs like tiny lakes with clear surfaces yet mysterious bottoms. All the outside noises seemed to fade away, your surroundings numbed as your heart raced alongside his as if the obstacle course had not ended yet.

Pushing aside the confusion regarding your own feelings, the one thing that you noticed and managed to blurt out was:

“You’re blushing,” you noted, your lips slightly parted, and despite having seen him flushed beside you and around you, you somehow felt like it was new… it was different this time.

“I’m not blushing,” the boy objected, his face taking on an even deeper shade.

“You are, dude,” Xiaojun called, and when you recognised his voice, all the hustle bustle of the gym class and all the outside noises came back at you in full force, making you feel dizzy. Somehow, falling onto him seemed almost serene compared to the mess around you.

You were both up to your feet in no time, and despite your friends’ stares and teasing words, you couldn’t concentrate on anything other than the twinkling sensation that the boy’s touch left on your skin - it was as if he had marked you permanently, and you couldn’t get it off yourself.

It wasn’t only the room that you shared with Yoojung that became quieter without Dayoung’s presence, but the halls also became quieter, less lively. As if the walls could talk, students usually kept to themselves, and since you were scattered across different floors, the diminishing number of students seemed more striking. Now, you caught sight of the guards stationed by the entrance to the dormitory instead of being occupied with the conversations with your roommates, and the corridors seemed wider than before.

Everyone seemed tenser than usual, and it wasn’t limited to your little group only. Aside from Jaeeon, there had been a girl who had accused Gahyeon’s senate member parents of bribing the jury and had sent a streak of water at her who had managed to dodge it thanks to her quick reflexes, but the girl in question had only received a warning. You didn’t understand why, but your parents had warned you that it would be tough with all of the contestants wanting to make it to the final, and had told you that there were quite nasty incidents in the past, so the organisers had already seen a lot. That’s why disqualification was only after a warning or after a life-threatening move on a contestant’s side.

You didn’t think too much into it though, not until you were walking back to your room alone after practising for the fourth round, and the fire of the torches on both your left and right was suddenly put out. Since they were always on, it could only mean that someone put them out.

You listened to the approaching steps, trying to put your hand on the direction the sound was coming from, and as you turned around, you caught sight of Jaeeon walking towards you, his silhouette illuminated by the lights that he hadn’t yet put out.

You raised your chin, unwavering in the face of danger, because no matter how much Jaeeon thought that he had the upper hand, you weren’t a fragile little doll either. You felt your fingers prickling with the same kind of electricity it usually did before you unleash your magic, and just as Jaeeon was about to come to a halt a step away from you, you lit up the torches by your side. That much you could already summon with your ability to tame fire.

The guy let out a scoff, borderline amused, his eyebrows elevated slightly. His whole stance screamed hunger, hunger for control, hunger for a challenge, hunger for winning. Even though you weren’t supposed to use magic outside of practices or classes, let alone around others to manipulate the contest, you had already seen instances when it had not mattered, so you knew that the currently empty corridor wasn’t a completely safe space either. You forced yourself to stay calm though as you turned around, ready to get away from him - to ask for another student’s assistance or a guard’s help who could be patrolling the corridors at this time around.

“Are you really running away, little girl?” Jaeeon accused you, the nickname prickling at your skin. The implication behind his words sent an unpleasant chill down your spine, but you reminded yourself that it was exactly what he was trying to do: to trample on your ego, to make you question your worth and bravery. “You don’t have your little prince friends to protect you, and mommy and daddy aren’t here either to save you,” he continued relentlessly as he caught up with you, and even though you didn’t reach the end of the corridor, you were halfway through it.

“A girl like you is only wasting her time here. You should prepare to get married and pop out some kids, not to take someone’s place in a contest like this,” he added when you still didn’t speak up, and you bit down on your tongue to hold back what you were about to say. You knew that he wanted to rile you up, and you didn’t want to give him the satisfaction to see you give in, but still…

“Is it that hard for you to accept that a girl dared to beat all of the boys’ records in an obstacle course yesterday? Do you feel like by spitting this nonsense, I might feel scared and would rather pack my bags and leave?” You threw your questions at him as you threw him a side-glance. He was so annoyingly full of himself and the fact that he felt better only if he could bring others down made you sick to your stomach.

“Besides, a girl can enter the contest just as much as a boy can, and it is not against the rules,” you recited as you kept your gaze ahead of yourself instead of the boy walking beside you, but it was like talking to a wall. Just to prove to you that he didn’t play by the rules, the boy reached for your wrist and made you turn towards him.

“Do you think anyone cares here?”

His words were dripping with anger and frustration, but as to why he directed it towards you - when it wasn’t anyone’s fault that he felt threatened by those better than him even though he was the son of the head of the senate - was beyond you. Accusing you of still being in the contest was like speaking against himself too, but it might have helped him to sleep better at nights.

That didn’t mean that you had to put up with this, especially not when you felt his grip around your wrist getting… warm, and you winced when you felt the searing touch of his. He was using his fire magic on you, the burning sensation coming from his fingers directly, and you knew that he was stronger than you, so you didn’t have a chance to escape his grip, not when his touch was literally burning in the meantime.

Nevertheless, your rage regarding his audacity of using his magic on you was stronger than the pain you had to bear, and you felt a bolt of energy rushing through your body as the window beside you flew open, and you sent a gush of wind towards the boy. At first, it wasn’t strong enough to make him tear away, only to surprise him, but the more currents of air you could collect, the stronger your magic became.

You faintly heard someone calling your name in the distance, but all your focus was on the thread of magic inside and outside of you, and you shut everything else out. You concentrated on gathering all that power and channelling it onto the boy until you managed to push him away, making him fly a few metres before landing on the floor with a loud thud a few metres away from you.

You felt your legs wobble a bit after using all that energy in such a short span of time, and you might have fallen to the ground if someone had not held you up, framing your body. You had no more resistance left in you to push him away, but you were lucky that you didn’t because you got to know who he was a second later.

“Enough!” A thunderous voice could be heard in the silent corridor, and you looked up at the professor who taught you how to use the magic of earth, and who now assisted you to keep your feet on the ground. You saw another professor by his side, a woman who taught you how to train your mind to channel your powers, and they both seemed to be incredibly furious.

“Mr Park, you should have known better than to attack a student yet again. No matter who your father is, he isn’t here to save you, but the director will be waiting for you in his office. If you try with anything else on the way, just know that professor Choi and I were here to have heard how you provoked Miss Y/N. We could see how she tried to protect herself against you when you were breaking the rules yet again.”

“But professor Kim, I think she broke one of my ribs!”

“Speaking up in the right moments and keeping quiet when needed is a forte, Mr Park, and it seems that you do not possess it,” professor Choi warned him and she made her way towards the boy who was tossing on the ground like a kid who was throwing a fit. She had never seemed this intimidating during classes, but now you would have been afraid of her if her glaring eyes had been on you. Jaeeon seemed to get the message though as he got to his feet, though reluctantly and holding onto his side, but before he could even raise his arms, professor Choi snapped her fingers, and the boy’s arms were tied back by the sheer force of… magic.

Your jaw almost dropped, but you were too weary to react properly, so you just blinked at the duo as they were getting further away and eventually got out of sight after turning a corner. You still didn’t manage to pull yourself together when professor Kim started asking questions and ushered you towards the infirmary where a kind lady tended to your burn marks.

Even though you heard about healers who possessed a specific kind of magic that could undo such wounds, you had never met one, yet now you were blinking at your burn marks slowly fading and eventually disappearing.

“I… wow… thank you so much!” You blurted out, still in shock, but even her magic couldn’t erase the phantom feeling of the burning sensation around your wrist. You reckoned that it wouldn’t go away easily.

The lady smiled at you in a friendly way before putting some kind of cream on your skin, then wrapped your wrists in a bandage.

“Keep it on for the next two days, it will help to soothe all layers of the skin because I can only tend to the outer layer. Use the cream twice a day too, in the morning and at night, and it will heal completely afterwards,” she instructed gently, and you bobbed your head fervently as you received a pack of fresh bandages for changing and a tube of the said cream from the healer.

Professor Kim stayed beside you the whole time, but he didn’t say anything while the lady was tending to your wounds. He only spoke up when you were out of the infirmary, and he told you that they would station more guards in the corridors, but you shouldn’t worry because Jaeeon would surely be disqualified for trying to hurt you. Serves him right, you thought to yourself, but truthfully, so much had happened in such a short span of time that you felt like relief was a far away feeling in that moment.

“You were really strong back there. I have not seen your magic in such an intensity before,” professor Kim complimented with a fatherly smile of his, and you bobbed your head gratefully, albeit a bit timidly.

Well, it seemed that when you were in the face of danger, your magic didn’t abandon you or drain you, but rather, it empowered you, and despite the fact that it took Jaeeon to be disqualified, you could now believe that you were here for a reason. That you would be able to make a change while standing up for yourself and standing strong.

Needless to say, everyone got to know about your little incident pretty quickly because Jaeeon was forcefully sent home, and he sure made a hell of a show out of it as he sulked beside the guards who accompanied him through the corridors and outside the gates. The teachers also assembled the students to remind you all that rules had to be kept or else the consequences would follow. In their announcement, they briefly summarised Jaeeon’s wrongdoings including his recent attack which meant that all eyes were on you and your bandaged hand in an instant. Additionally, in order to set an example, they tightened security and stationed more guards along the corridors of the dormitory and even along the corridors to the training rooms.

Not that it mattered when your little group acted as if another Jaeeon could jump out from a drawer and attack you. It didn’t matter that you told them that you were fine, no permanent damage was done, and you could take care of yourself from now on just like you had done so before.

“My parents warned me that this competition would be a matter of life or death for some, so I should brace myself for such atrocities. I didn’t expect anything less,” you told them over dinner that night, and the chopsticks made a loud snapping sound when Yoojung dropped them on the table beside her bowls.

“Yah, why are those words something that you must accept? No contest should ever make you fear for your life. No contest is more important than someone’s life. This is not the war that had broken apart the United Kingdom of Magic,” she fumed like a bull, and honestly, in that moment, you couldn’t tell whether she was furious at you, your parents or at what had happened between you and Jaeeon.

It’s just… you knew that the girl meant well, but you had to give it to your parents that this contest brought the worst out of some people. Some of them really acted like their life depended on whether they made it to the finals or not, and if they had parents like you did (or the opposite, they had nothing, so they had to prove themselves and the others that they could make it despite their disadvantageous background), you would understand them. After all, part of the reason why you were here was because of your own parents.

“Yoojung’s right. You shouldn’t keep it to yourself if you’re frustrated or hurt. Just because these things could happen and might have happened in the past doesn’t mean that they should be the norm, that they shouldn’t change,” Minhyung reasoned once the silence that fell over the five of you didn’t seem that heavy anymore. The boy’s words were accompanied by fervent nods of the other two boys and your roommate as well.

“What can I do about it though? I can only hope no one else tries to attack me again.”

“Let us help you. You might think it’s silly to accompany you everywhere, but we definitely should do so for the time being,” Minhyung continued, his big doe eyes shining brightly. Even though you had tried to keep your distance from him and the other boys since their own incident with Jaeeon, it seemed futile now. You were too weary to push them away, and honestly, after what had happened earlier, you were glad to have allies by your side.

“Yeah, we’ll be like your bodyguards,” Xiaojun hollered as it was the best idea ever, but Hendery laughed his words off as if he had been joking. Xiaojun glared at him, slightly offended, but the other boy didn’t seem to notice.

“You? A bodyguard? Please, even I’m stronger than you.”

“What? No way! In your dreams, maybe.”

“I’m better at the obstacle course than you are, dude. It means either I’m physically stronger than you, or I’m a better wizard,” Hendery flashed him a grin, one of his eyebrows elevated in a teasing line, and Xiaojun could only huff in response since it was the truth.

“Oh god, they are worse than a group of girls,” Yoojung muttered under her nose and averted her eyes from the continuously bickering boys. She prompted you to eat up before your food would get cold, and you nodded. You didn’t have it in you to protest, and with Minhyung’s worried eyes still on you, you didn’t even want to make him more concerned, so you finished your dinner while listening to the bickering of Xiaojun and Hendery, something that managed to lift your mood a little.

As promised, the boys accompanied you and Yoojung to your room, and little did you know, that became a habit of theirs. At least until Xiaojun was sent home because he didn’t manage to finish the obstacle course in time (but he was pretty close, Hendery consoled him, taking back his words that he was better at that than the boy when you bid him your goodbyes by the gates), and so your little group was reduced from 6 to 4 whilst the number of contestants went from 200 to 32 in the past 3 weeks. Only one round was left, but you wondered just how many of you would pass the final round or be sent home.

Just like when Dayoung had departed, Xiaojun’s lack of presence was also palpable. Hendery couldn’t tease anyone since Minhyung wasn’t the kind he could bicker with because he wasn’t one who talked back (even playfully) to others. Minhyung frequently turned his head to the empty seat that was left behind when you sat in the canteen, and Yoojung seemed somewhat more protective over the remaining three of you.

You talked a lot with the girl at nights after you were done with your training for the day and after curfew, more or less serious topics arising in the darkness under the watching eyes of the moon. She was so similar in the way she was raised up, and her fears were also similar to yours, and it felt good to be understood by someone like her. It felt like you were less alone, especially after what had happened with Jaeeon and especially after how you had already needed to say goodbye to two of your friends.

Even though you hadn’t had any friends before, you would consider them your friends now, and it broke your heart that you might not end up making it to the wizardry school together. After Dayoung and Xiaojun had lost in the previous rounds, you didn’t dare to hope for a happy ending for everyone. Not when the next round’s theme was to compete against each other 1-on-1, but you would only know who your opponent would be on the day of the final round. You didn’t want to go against your friends, but there was still a chance that you might do so considering that there were only 32 of you left. So you not only had to worry about having to use your powers on another contestant, but also that it could be Hendery, Yoojung or Minhyung.

No wonder your nerves were more and more frazzled the closer you were to the day of the final round. Hence, you decided to escape to the terrace of the tower two days before the final round, looking over the buildings around - the senate building, the houses provided for the senate and council members, the building with the infantry and the canteen. It was crazy to think that 5 weeks almost passed by since you first entered the contest, and you were about to wrap it up soon.

A month ago, you had entered the gates for the first time that were now covered in the dim light of the torches attached to the walls and guarded by two muscular men, and you had been determined to make it to the wizardry school. Since then, you had managed to make friends, you had encountered enemies who had attacked you, and you had pushed your magic to the limit many times. You had been physically and emotionally weary, and you had wondered many times whether you would be enough, whether your magic and willpower to tame other kinds of elemental magic would be enough to be like your parents - to be a winner of the contest.

A month ago, you had wanted nothing more than to be over with it because you had been sure that you wouldn’t get along well with others, and you had been set on focusing on learning and wielding your magic only. After all, being part of the contest and learning from the highly influential wizards who were chosen as professors were already something that others could only dream of.

Yet now, you wanted nothing more than to stop time and enjoy being around those who had grown close to you because there was no guarantee that two days from now on, you would all stay together. After that, who knew when you would see each other again, especially with those who were from different kingdoms.

“Mind if I join you?” A gentle, all too familiar voice asked, and you snapped your head to look back at the sudden visitor. You were so lost in thought that you hadn’t even realised that someone else had showed up by the door to the terrace.

“Sure,” you replied, still a bit dazed, as you averted your eyes to the scenery in front of you. You heard Minhyung’s footsteps getting closer, and eventually, he sat down beside you.

He just sat there for a while without saying a word, his heart probably as heavy as yours. You couldn’t help but wonder whether he was also bitter about the contest ending because it was such a different experience for him compared to his time at the palace. A few days prior, he and Hendery had discussed how free they felt here because people didn’t watch their every move  here, they weren’t princes and heirs to the throne, they were contestants just like everyone else. Minhyung had also blurted out that this was the first time in his life he felt like he could be completely himself, and you hadn’t stopped thinking about that ever since.

“Are you scared of the final round? Of whom would you be up against?” You wondered out loud, hoping that he didn’t mind your question. Whenever your little group was together, it never came up, although you were sure that each and every one of you was pondering over the same. It was just difficult to bring it up when most probably everyone was anxious about the possibility of going against one another.

Minhyung looked at you, his big doe eyes wide in wonder and contemplation. Some said that the eyes were a replica of one’s magic, and it might have been true in the boy’s case because his eyes were bright like stars in the sky, and the onyx-black colour of them was like an endless, bottomless wonder. His orbs radiated warmth, and when he looked at you like that, it felt as if a gentle breeze embraced you. Yet, there was strength behind that warmth, strength that promised to keep you up, to reach out a hand if you were to fall down, and strength that would be able to move mountains if he wanted to.

“I’m just afraid it would be one of you. Other than that, I’m just sad it’s coming to an end. As much as it was difficult to endure, it gave me many good memories that I wouldn’t have had living at the palace,” he responded, his voice barely above audible. Maybe it was because of the early autumn breeze that danced around you two or because he wasn’t that sure about his answer, but he was quieter than usual. The looming uncertainty of the contest had its effect on everyone.

You bobbed your head nevertheless, taking in his answer. You couldn’t relate to him because you hadn’t grown up in a palace, but your parents had kept you pretty secluded from others apart from sending you to a wizardry school to tame your air element and outside of extra practices with other wizards. You had been told to be wary of everyone because you could never know what their intentions were, and even though you had long realised that your parents were over exaggerating, you had given up on making meaningful connections. That is until you had come here, and it had dawned on you that there was a whole world outside of magic no matter how much magic meant to you.

“If you had the chance, would you want to be reborn as someone else, not as prince Minhyung?” You found yourself asking after a few moments of silence, your own thoughts regarding your experience growing up making you curious about his side.

Minhyung clicked his tongue, unsure what to say for a few moments. Then, he let out a somewhat resigned sigh as he came to a conclusion.

“It’s difficult to say. I’m glad to have the life I have, but it has its restrictions, you know,” he shrugged as if he was fine with it, and you didn’t have a reason to question him. Then, he turned to you with his whole body, his eyes twinkling with mirth. “What about you? Have you never dreamed of being a princess?”

You didn’t know what to say for a moment, you were so shocked by his question. Truthfully, you had never really given yourself the chance to imagine yourself as a princess, maybe because you had always been so occupied with who your own parents were. That’s why you merely let out a wholehearted chuckle upon his question, a joyous sound that was swept up by the autumn breeze passing around.

“Oh god, no,” you shook your head, even just the image of you in all those fancy, tight-fitting dresses making you shiver. That was not a life you wanted for yourself. “I don’t think princesses have it any easier than me. Besides, they have to fake their smiles all the time, and I don’t think I could do that for a long time.”

“Fair point,” Minhyung tilted his head, his facial expressions returning to their previous solemn state, a sign that what he was about to say would be genuine and raw. “I think we have it bad at times too, but princesses…” He shook his head, and you could swear he shivered a bit. “They have it even worse. You too, women, do have it harder. I’ve always thought that might be an exaggeration, but I’ve heard enough here during the contest to know that it’s not,” he confessed, and his words took you aback.

Since he didn’t have a sister and his mother - the Queen - was treated very differently than an ordinary woman living outside of the palace, he might not have known just how difficult being a woman with magic was. There were significantly more men in the kingdoms’ councils and in the senate, and there were more male professors here as well, simply because women were supposed to give birth to children and with that, a part of their magic lived on in their children’s bodies, meaning that people believed that they were less powerful than men. Which wasn’t always the case because mothers with less magic than before could still be more powerful than men who didn’t tend to their magic, but people believed whatever they wanted to believe. Your mother had also fought hard to maintain her position as a senate member and to have the respect of the senate members, but it helped that your father was working in the senate alongside him.

So for him to admit something like that truly showed his maturity and his compassion. You had never heard anyone admit that women had it harder than men, and this confession coming from a man was even more admirable. Not to mention that he was a prince, and the royal families were famous for not acknowledging the faults in the systems they had put in place, no wonder your heart skipped a beat. If he had not already earned your respect, he would have definitely done so now.

“That’s something that I want to change if I have the chance,” you added, knowing that he wouldn’t be appalled by your words, and indeed, he was far from bewildered.

“You will,” he said encouragingly instead, and when your eyes met, your heart leaped. Somehow with him by your side, you could believe it, you could believe that you would be able to bring about a change. “Even if you won’t, I will help you change it,” he promised solicitously, the moonlight painting little streaks of dirty white lines onto his skin. As the prince of the Air Kingdom, he really did look like the epitome of air - you felt like you could breathe beside him, and it was a little easier and lighter to be around him than anyone else, his warmth filling up your lungs and planting little seeds of hope alongside your blood vessels.

More than ever, you wanted nothing more than to stop time and enjoy that moment just a little longer.

The rules were simple for the final round, though they were more like guidelines. You had 15 minutes to win over your opponent. You could use all of the different kinds of elemental magic that you had been learning how to tame, but you couldn’t use other weapons - such as knives or daggers -, so you had to rely on air, earth, fire and water solely. Your aim was to make your opponent say that they surrender, so you will automatically win the fight, not to kill them or hurt them badly. Each contestant’s fighting gear was designed to protect them against serious injuries, so you wore tight-fitted clothes that covered your legs, arms and even your neck. The material gave you enough flexibility to move around and channel your magic, and your training boots gave you enough hold in case you needed to climb or keep your feet on the ground against currents of magic.

On top of that, each pair was put in a training room that had the elements of an obstacle course dotted around - such as steep climbing walls, a pool of water and wooden boards -, and enough space to fight in the middle in case someone didn’t want to make use of the equipment around. Each room was designed to be able to gather all kinds of elemental magic, so no one could be at a disadvantage when calling for the kind of magic they wanted. If a fight got too intense or appeared threatening to a contestant’s life, the judges who would otherwise be stationed by the sides of the rooms would interrupt the game.

The judges also had the right to stop a fight, to disqualify a contestant for breaching the rules, or to select a winner if the time limit was up. In the case of the latter, the judges could choose whether they would give both contestants the chance to win, only one of them or neither of them. That’s why it was better if one could win the fight within the time limit because that would guarantee an immediate pass.

There were 16 pairs in total, and you would be separated into four groups, each group having the same room for themselves with the same set of judges overlooking the fight. If needed, the judges would move the materials inside the room around and clean up after between two rounds to ensure fairness.

Yet, the most important of them all was the final list of pairs that was announced after the judges read the rules out loud yet again - the same set of rules that they had introduced a week prior. The more names were called, the more anxious you became, and even though it seemed that contestants from mostly different kingdoms were put together, it didn’t help to soothe your nerves because only Minhyung could be ruled out. Boys and girls were also up against each other, not only same sex pairs were announced, so there was no way you could predict whom you could be up against.

“Kim Seunghun from the Fire Kingdom will be against Ju Haknyeon from the Earth Kingdom. Bong Jaehyun from the Air Kingdom will be against Kim Bora from the Water Kingdom,” the list went on, and you could feel Yoojung beside you becoming more and more uneasy. She started shifting her weight from her left leg to her right, and you gave her a half-smile when she caught you glancing her way.

“Lee Yongsoo from the Earth Kingdom will be against prince Minhyung from the Air Kingdom.”

You let out a relieved sigh when you heard Minhyung’s name being called, and turned to your left to see the boy doing the same. Yongsoo was a nice guy, not an easy opponent, but at least he wasn’t one of you. One down, three more to worry about.

“Kim Yubin from the Fire Kingdom will be against Y/N from the Air Kingdom,” the announcer listed, and you heaved a sigh. Yubin was pretty intense as most fire wizards were, but you and Yoojung had been helping each other to train, so you knew what weaknesses to look out for and what kind of techniques you could pull on her to make her surrender. You hoped that what you had been practising before wouldn’t leave you within those 15 minutes either. Most important of all: you weren’t up against either of your friends.

“Park Serim from the Earth Kingdom will be against Choi Yewon from the Air Kingdom. Shen Xiaoting from the Fire Kingdom will be against Kim Jibeom from the Water Kingdom. Prince Hendery from the Water Kingdom will be against Choi Yoojung from the Fire Kingdom.”

An audible curse word left Yoojung’s lips in the next moment, followed by some murmurs from the others around. Everyone knew that the four of you had become pretty close, so this exact pairing seemed to be the most interesting one for others so far. The murmurs grew so loud that the announcer had to order them to keep quiet before announcing the rest of the pairs.

You reached for Yoojung’s hand to squeeze it, but the girl didn’t squeeze back. Instead, she stared at something behind you, and when you followed her gaze, you could see that they were staring at each other with Hendery in shock. You could totally understand their bewilderment, and truthfully, you didn’t want to think about who would win the fight. They were both so powerful, so skilled, you could only hope that they would both make it after the time limit would be up. That was the only way both of them would be able to win, and honestly, if you could hope for one thing, it would be that both of them make it.

You had no time to ponder over the possible outcome of the final round as the list of the pairings soon came to an end, and the contestants were ushered in the direction of their appointed rooms. You shared a quick glance with Minhyung who directed an encouraging smile at you, and you tried to smile back, though you had no idea how nervous it might have turned out. In no time, you were separated from all three of them as your group headed in a different direction than theirs, so you could only keep them in their thoughts and hope for the best.

A chill ran down your spine as it dawned on you that this was it; there was nowhere to hide now, no way you could escape your future. Whatever lied ahead of you, however the final round would turn out, it would be over, and it would most definitely seal your fate. It was now or never, and if not for yourself or for your parents, you had to win for your friends. You wanted to enter the wizardry school, and you wanted to study with them. There was no other way it should play out, you had to win.

Within your group, Serim and Yewon were the first ones to go, and you would follow right after. Your opponent, Yubin didn’t say a word to you before you were called inside, but you didn’t mind. You weren’t friends to wish each other good luck, nor were you enemies to spit at each other before you would go against each other. Mentally, you tried to prepare for the adrenaline rush and the intensity of the fight, but nothing could prepare for what was about to come.

Those approximately 15 minutes until the doors to the room flew open again seemed like an eternity, and the more you tried to calm yourself, the more nervous you felt. The anxiety that had been going through your body in the previous rounds couldn’t be compared to how you were feeling now.

You sucked in a deep breath when you walked into the room, and despite the fact that you had been here before, it wasn’t the same. Not the setting, not your state, and definitely not what was at stake.

“Remember, you have 15 minutes. 3 minutes and then 1 minute before the time limit is up, we will let you know that the end of the round is approaching. Now, give it your all! Good luck!” One of your professors introduced and with a flick of his hand, the torches alongside the walls of the training room bolted, lighting up the equipment around, signalling the beginning of the fight.

You looked around briefly, taking in the sources of magic - the pool of water, the fire in the torches, the air sweeping through the ceiling that was open fully and the trees swaying on the other side of the floor-to-ceiling windows -, and the equipment that you could work with - a climbing wall, a ladder made of ropes hanging above the pool of water that connected a wooden bench to a smaller version of a look-out tower. There was a giant oak tree with lowly hanging branches - you had no idea how they managed to summon that inside as you had never seen one in an obstacle course before -, and there was a rotating circular platform with a variety of different sized pillars attached to the platform.

You could see from the corner of your eyes how Yubin took in your surroundings before she made the first move. As expected, she used her own magic to attack with first - throwing a fireball at you - and since you had a feeling she would do so, you swiftly reached out your hand in the direction of the pool and threw a ball of water against the fireball. The two currents of magic collided in the middle.

You gathered the threads of air around you and pushed it towards the girl who stumbled a bit backwards, but not enough to gain an advantage. So you gave it another push, forcing the girl to jump on the circular platform if she didn’t want to be thrown off by it. In the meantime, you made your way towards the tree, trying to gather as much energy from the earth as possible.

Your plan was to shake the ground enough for the girl to keep swaying after she got off the moving platform, but you couldn’t summon enough of its magic in time. Instead, Yubin threw another fireball at you, and it would have hurt you (but not burned your body apart from your face since your protective gear would take care of it) if you hadn’t managed to jump out of its direction.

Afterwards, you kept pushing currents of energy into the other’s direction, but no matter how hard you tried, the girl always stood up after falling down or managed to weaken your magic with her own - sending little drops of water back at you with her air current when you tried to send a rush of water at her or putting out your fire when you tried to burn the wooden bench beneath her feet.

“3 minutes left!” The judges shouted over the noises of your fight, and the knot in your throat became tighter. You had to think of something to use against her and to surprise her with because you might not be able to win against her in time if you didn’t do so.

So instead of attacking, you used the air around you to carry you towards the look-out tower at one end of the ladder with Yubin being on the other end of it. Thinking that you might want to burn down the ladder of ropes between you two, the girl started running towards you, but little did she know, that’s exactly what you wanted her to think so whilst you were summoning the magic of water in the pool beneath her. Despite the fact that water wasn’t your elemental magic, you didn’t need to think whether you could be gentle enough with it because you wanted the opposite: you had to use the water to lash out on her to make her falter, so that she would fall into the water.

“What the…” You could hear Yubin exclaim as the water beneath her started bubbling, and then you reached your hands out to aim your attack at her. The water shot into her and instead of falling down into the pool, the girl was thrown into the air carried by the wild waves before she was thrown off to the ground beside the pool.

You fell to your knees after the rush of magic left your body. It was as if the air was sucked out of your lungs, you had never used so much energy on one spectacle before. You fought for air just as much as Yubin did so, but the girl also coughed up water, her whole body trembling after she was basically thrown off by a huge strike of water.

You felt your heart hammering in your chest, your body screaming for rest, but it couldn’t stop, the adrenaline kept you going. So you got to your feet, holding up your hands to gather more energy, but when Yubin caught sight of your move, she lifted one of her hands, and announced, still panting:

“I surrender.”

The weight of the word didn’t even get to you at first, but when it did, you fell back to your knees - out of joy this time. You did it, you really did it. You won this round, and it meant that you were one of the finalists of the contest.

“Congratulations, Y/N! You won your final round,” one of the judges confirmed, but it felt like he was speaking from somewhere far away, you were still so into the game, your brain was still trying to come up with ideas to win, and that feeling didn’t go away easily.

You still felt jumpy as if you had to be prepared for another attack when you were instructed to leave the room and wait for the remaining two pairs in your group to finish. You didn’t know why, but each contestant was sent into a different room where a nurse tended to their potential bruises, cold bodies, slight concussions and such. You also had a few scratches, but you could barely concentrate on anything other than the fact that you made it.

No wonder time seemed to move differently when you were in such a dazed state, and it felt like only a few minutes passed by, not more than half an hour when you were called in for the wrap-up of the contest. Judged by the number of contestants called into one place, you guessed that they were the winners, and when you spotted Minhyung in the crowd, you smiled so wide, it almost hurt. The boy threw away any insecurities as he rushed to embrace you, warm and tight, before letting go of you when embarrassment hit him (hit both of you), blushing a bit.

“Sorry. I just…”

“No, no, that’s okay,” you waved off his excuses immediately, but your face flushed just as well. You gave him a nervous chuckle, and he did the same, and gosh, the certainty of knowing that you would spend the next 2 years studying at the same wizardry school as him warmed your heart.

After exchanging a few words with Minhyung, you looked around, searching for a familiar pair of fired-up eyes or the familiar messy locks of deep-brown hair. Truthfully, you hoped that Hendery and Yoojung would silently agree on waiting out the 15 minutes without announcing surrender, but judging by the frazzled up state of Yoojung’s, it didn’t exactly go like that.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” the girl held up her hand, frowning, before you could ask how it went, and even though you exchanged a confused glance with Minhyung, you decided not to push the girl for details.

Not that you had time to do so because the judges announced the end of the contest, and congratulated those contestants who were in the room because you were the ones who won the final battle and ultimately made it into the wizardry school. You saw a few familiar faces around - including the muscular Changbin, his equally muscular roommate Serim and their ever so flirtatious friend Yeonjun, the classy Xiaoting, the jokester Seunghun, the fierce Gahyeon, Tzuyu and Yeoreum who shared the room on your left, Yohan who was Xiaojun’s roommate - and there were other girls and boys whose names you couldn’t quite remember, but none of them was Hendery, so you didn’t want to pry until Yoojung was ready to talk about it.

“And now, you can bid goodbye to your peers who didn’t make it, and you can all pack up to head home before coming back here to study with us. See you in 2 weeks, our prosperous students, the future of the Four Kingdoms’ United School of Applied Elemental Magic!”

Loud cheers reverberated from the walls after the judges put an end to the closing ceremony, and you became one with the relieved crowd as you walked down the corridors to go back to your rooms.

The corridors of your future school.

There were a lot of different kinds of goodbyes. For the past weeks, you felt like you had experienced quite a lot of them. It wasn’t the same saying goodbye to your parents with the weight of their expectations on your soldier as saying goodbye to the friends you had made when they had been sent home or now when you were saying goodbye to the school building for 2 weeks before moving in again.

You all - both winners and the ones who lost in the final round - had one day to pack your stuff and leave the school buildings behind. The winners had to pick up their certification regarding their result as well, but it’s not like you were treated differently on your final day. You would have two years either way to get to know the professors, each other and all the little corners and corridors of the buildings that you hadn’t yet been to. You had all the time on your hands now despite the fact that you felt like you had been running against time week after week whilst being in the contest.

Thankfully, no one threw a tantrum, no one made a scene when the final results were out, so the day you had to pack and bid your farewell was spent in peace. Truthfully, you were immensely relieved that you had passed the final round, but you were also weary from using up so much of your energy the day before (and all the other days before), so you didn’t have a lot of energy left to celebrate. Yoojung was the same, she was rather frustrated over the fact that Hendery had purposefully surrendered, or at least, she thought so.

“It’s not like I didn’t go easy on him. I did so because I wanted us to hold onto until the end of the 15 minutes, so the judges would let us pass. Instead, almost right before the time limit was up, the boy shouted that he surrendered when I burned down the tree beside him. That’s it, I didn’t even hurt him seriously! He did it on purpose to let me pass, that dumbass. I was so angry at him because this wasn’t our plan! And when I asked him why he did this, he said that he had his reason. That coward, he didn’t even want to tell me!” She huffed, rolling her eyes in annoyance while packing her clothes into a bag.

Her usual chattering was replaced by her fuming, her wide smiles replaced by deep creases on her forehead. You knew that she wasn’t one to mess with when she was agitated (she was from the Fire Kingdom after all, her stare felt intense and flaming hot when she was mad), so you let her complain all about the boy. The best thing you could do was to not take sides, even when she claimed that she didn’t want Hendery to explain himself afterwards because he had his chance to do so, now she didn’t even want to see him again.

She eventually did so anyway because Minhyung and Hendery seemed to be waiting for you two in the hall, all packed up and ready to go home. Yoojung was stern like a rock beside you the whole time the boys were chatting about how they couldn’t decide whose socks were on the floor because neither of them had packed for themselves, it had been their servants from their respective palace.

As you listened to the boys’ chatter, you realised that Hendery didn’t look regretful, not at all. You assumed that he knew what he had done, and he took responsibility for it, so you didn’t want to question his actions. Instead, you joined in on the conversation when they were talking about their favourite memories from the contest, and eventually, you all walked through the gates of the wizardry school, leaving the school grounds.

You caught sight of your father standing idly by himself not far from the gates and there were carriages stationed around the giant fountain that symbolised the four kingdoms’ appreciation for the school - four different hands reaching for one circle in the middle -, so you guessed that courtiers were sent for the princes as well.

“Oh, I think I’ve gotta go,” Minhyung concluded as he looked around, and he scratched the back of his neck rather sheepishly when he turned back to you all. He did an odd hand shake with Hendery (did they come up with it themselves?), bobbed his head at the still frowning Yoojung, then looked at you, and suddenly, he looked completely unsure of himself, his fingers clenching and unclenching.

“I’ve gotta go, too. See you guys in two weeks!” Yoojung announced abruptly, then turned on her heel without further notice, and started walking further away from you. Hendery looked totally dumbstruck before bolting after the girl without saying a word to you.

You and Minhyung exchanged a glance after you had awoken from your stupor. Then, your lips turned into awkward little curves, the right words not appearing on your tongue. There was so much to say, so much to reminisce about, and yet… You just stood there awkwardly like two little kids.

You couldn’t help but be reminded of his warm hug after the final round, and deep down, you wished that he would do it again. If there was an embodiment of comfort, it would be him, and you were enchanted, under his spell, there was no other way to explain why you were feeling the way you did. You had been close to him before as well - when you had fallen over him during the obstacle course -, but it had been accidental back then. Yet, his hug could not have been accidental the day before.

“So…” The boy unclenched his jaw as he cleared his throat. “We’ll see each other soon, right? You know, take care until then… and try not to miss me too much,” he added belatedly with a wink, then burst into laughter. It sounded like birds chirping on a spring day, so joyful and so carefree. “Gosh, that was really bad, wasn’t it?”

“I mean…” you laughed along with him, this new, borderline flirty side of him blooming flowers of hope in your chest. “It was unexpected, but it wasn’t that bad,” you admitted between little fists of laughter, and your lips settled into a gentle smile. You would miss him, you could feel it in your core, but not being able to see him for two weeks before studying together for two years was a little sacrifice compared to what you would get afterwards.

“You too, take care,” you filled the silence before it could stretch further, and this time, it was you who closed the distance and embraced the boy. It was brief, it was a spur-of-a-moment decision, but you didn’t mind. Not when the boy’s face flushed like a torch afterwards and your heart was doing little somersaults. It was all worth it, and there was no denying anymore that you were enchanted by him.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed this story of mine! Let me know what you think.

If you want to read more stories of mine, let it be for NCT or for other artists, consider signing up for my taglist here.

Masterlist for the abovementioned request event can be found here.

Hope you have a lovely day/night! Take care! ❤️

#nct scenarios #nct imagines #nct x reader #nct x you #mark lee scenarios #mark lee imagines #mark lee x reader #mark lee x you #nct fluff #mark lee fluff #nct fantasy #mark lee fantasy

[justwritedreams]

Welcome to the Kingdom | Jeno

Chapter Eleven: We’re not ordinary bride and groom

Prince Jeno x Princess Reader, enemies to lovers au!, royalty au!

Word count: 3073 Genre: slow burn, suggestive Author: maari Warnings: There's a VERY suggestive scene like, jeno gets hard but nothing really happens because you know how I like cliffhangers. Note: I really needed to post this chapter even though it was short! Please remind me if I forgot anyone on the taglist I'm doing this constantly, sorry! Summary: What not ordinary bride and groom do in the night before their wedding?

<<< Previous | Masterlist |

⪢ NCT Masterlist

Taglist: @floweronacloud, @cookydream, @travelleratheart101​, @ilvaussie​, @tyongf-sunflower99​, @mings-cafe,  @n0hyuck, @waltermitty97, @jihoonismydad, @madaboutjunmyeon, @actually-vl , @neomooniez, @pvppyhao, @ikayyyyyy (can’t tag you honey 😞), @everloving-avenue, @moonchele,

Y/N stared at herself in the mirror with a mix of emotions. The semi-angelic figure reflected in the mirror didn't even look like her and she wasn't even ready, but that didn't stop the mother from sniffling in the corner of the room.

"You’re so beautiful!" The princess smiled and turned to face her mother. “Zuhair did a great job.”

“You said the same about the reception dress.”

“But it’s the truth.” her mother approached her, placing a few strands of her daughter's hair tied behind her ear so she could admire the front of the dress. “Although I liked the ceremony dress a little more.”

Y/N smiled, sharing the same opinion.

If she wasn't forced to wear two dresses to the wedding, she would wear the same one from the ceremony to the wedding reception.

After long visits from Zuhair Murad and endless hours of conversation, finally the princess's wedding dresses were there with her with all the adjustments made and ready to be worn the next day. Exactly the way she wanted.

She couldn't contain the hint of anxiety that had been settling in her stomach since the beginning of the week, although she managed to hide her facial expression, she couldn't say the same about her sweaty hands.

She is getting married tomorrow.

That alone was reason to be nervous.

But the whole context of the wedding and what it meant for her future made her even more anxious. Marriage was the symbol of her coming of age, getting closer and closer to the crown destined for her.

And well, her alliance with Jeno made her a little nervous too. All other attempts to bring the two kingdoms closer together had already failed, she didn’t want the marriage to trigger any retaliation.

She wanted it to work, for everyone's good.

“Now, you're going to take off that dress and go to the jacuzzi on the terrace.” the mother said, turning her daughter around to undo the buttons on her dress. “While I’ll take your dresses to my closet.”

Y/N frowned.

“Why for yours and not mine?”

The queen undid the buttons and helped her daughter carefully take off her dress.

“And we run the risk of Jeno coming into your room and seeing the dresses?” the queen raised her eyebrow, taking the dress to the bed where the bag was to store it.

The princess laughed.

“You don’t need to insinuate anything, you know this marriage is just a political alliance.” she recalled, defensively.

“I didn’t insinuate anything.” the queen turned to face her daughter who felt her jaw give way. “I just wanted to say there are some traditions I want to keep.”

Y/N swallowed hard and scratched the back of her head, while trying to defend herself from something her mother hadn't even said, she gave more signs than she should have.

"Why?"

The queen smiled.

“You’ll know right away.” she assured and the princess agreed.

The mother went to the door, where she called the maids to take the two dresses that were lying on the princess's bed.

“Remember to sleep well, you need to be relaxed.”

Y/N nodded.

She had been hearing this for a long time as she was preparing for the wedding, from the makeup artist, to the hairdresser, even Nana.

It was one of the reasons she chose to stay at the castle the night before the wedding, firstly because she couldn't take the risk after all they had caught the henchmen from the last attack on the kingdom but still hadn't been able to find the mastermind, and secondly she needed a little of peace and quiet on the last single night of her life.

Jeno, incredible as it seemed, understood the situation and still decided to do the same, denying all bachelor party invitations from his brothers and friends in his kingdom.

The princess found it strange, she imagined he was going to do something with the new maids who had already been selected, but so far she hadn't seen or heard anything.

She didn't know if she really believed what he said that he would only kiss her and no one else.

That was also why the queen was there at that time in the princess's room, she was so busy with the selections and other royal matters, she was only in the first conversation with Zuhair, who barely had time to see her daughter in her wedding dresses.

Y/N took the opportunity, in addition to relieving the anxiety of putting on her dresses one last time before preparing for the wedding, to get her mother's opinion.

"Goodnight my love." the queen spoke right after the maids picked up the dresses and Y/N smiled.

"Good night, mom."

The princess saw her mother close the door with a soft noise and took a deep breath, feeling her heart accelerate and turned to face her image in the mirror once again.

She was wearing a transparent white nightgown, lace details on the short sleeve, the nightgown didn't even reach halfway up the princess's thighs but she liked the light fabric, it gave her an air of freedom that she was looking for that night. Her hair was tied up in a high, messy bun.

But what she saw went beyond her appearance, she saw more than pure anxiety for the next day, she also saw hope and determination. She was no longer that teenager obsessed with becoming the perfect princess, she was about to take another step that brought her closer and closer to becoming the queen, to being the ruler that was born to be.

It seemed that only now had she realized that she had become a real adult and would have to act like one.

She took a deep breath and took a step towards the closet, ready to change her clothes and go to the jacuzzi as her mother had suggested, when she heard a firm knock on the door and snorted, throwing her head back lazily.

Believing that it was just one of the maids, she didn't even bother wearing her robe, after all, all the maids had already seen her in those outfits due to the dress fittings. She had nothing to be ashamed of.

However, when she opened the door, in addition to feeling her entire face burn with embarrassment, her jaw also dropped.

Because it wasn't one of the maids, but Jeno.

Dressed in a black shirt and gray sweatpants, with his hand behind his neck, showing his biceps.

“Wow, if I had known I would get this reception, I would have come sooner.” he smiled mischievously, analyzing the princess from head to toe.

Y/N rolled her eyes and hid behind the door, covering her exposed cleavage with the arm that wasn't holding the door. She felt completely naked in front of Jeno, as his dark eyes analyzed her as if she were… an ice cream in the middle of the desert.

"What do you want?" she asked, trying hard to keep her voice from sounding so weak.

“I came to check on you.” He shrugged, putting his hands in the pocket of his sweatshirt and the princess's eyes followed the movement, stopping at his hip, which seemed a little more... Wait a minute, Jeno wasn't wearing any underwear? “Y/N?”

"Huh?" She raised her eyes back to his face, which was smiling sideways. "What did you say?"

"Are you okay?" she raised her eyebrow at the question. “Last night as a single. Do you have plans?”

She laughed, half embarrassed and disbelieving at the same time for having seen what she shouldn't have.

“Actually, yes I do, and you’re slowing me down.” She made to close the door in his face but Jeno placed his hand on the wood before that happened.

“Are you going to get away, princess?” he teased.

She smiled evilly.

"And if I do?"

He acted disinterested.

“I could come along.”

She laughed quietly.

“Have you ever seen the bride and groom attend the same bachelor party?” she questioned and he shook his head.

“It’s just that we’re not ordinary bride and groom.” he remembered and she stared at Jeno to try to understand what he meant between the lines.

“Do you want me to invite you?” she asked, shocked. “Do you want to spend your last single night with me?”

Jeno took his hand off the door and leaned his shoulder in place, looking unassuming.

“Would it be that bad?”

Y/N crossed her arms, her figure still behind the door and she considered the request.

Bad? No. She just didn't know what to expect from Jeno.

But a part of her even liked the idea, Jeno hadn't thought of that for free, he was up to something.

And she was starting to do the same thing.

“Okay, Jeno.” She smiled slightly, to hide the naughty idea that crossed her mind. “Do you know how to get to the castle terrace?”

He shook his head.

“Your castle is a little bigger than mine, I haven’t memorized the map yet.”

God, she didn't believe she would do that.

“Okay, then follow me.” she said, feeling her heart speed up the moment she came out from behind the door to get her robe next to the bed because Jeno's eyes observed her in a far from discreet way.

She felt his gaze burn on her bare thighs and especially on her ass covered in fabric so transparent that it was obvious he would look, and that was exactly what she wanted.

Y/N put on the robe but didn't tie it and turned around, seeing Jeno's lips pressed together as he stared at her intensely. The princess didn't say anything and left the room, closing the door behind her, with Jeno beside her.

They walked to the terrace in silence, Jeno seemed tense and Y/N glanced at his face from time to time, she led him to the furthest part of the terrace, entering an area completely different from the rest of the castle.

Y/N walked to the jacuzzi and tested the water temperature with the palm of her hand while Jeno stood a little further back observing the room. It was more rustic, divided by windows that were covered by medium trees and wood, further to the side it was possible to see a corner sofa very close to the large smooth window with a space for a fire pit right in the center, also full of green, with flowers and a tree that passed the ceiling. The yellow lighting made the room much more cozy.

"Wow!" was all he said. “I didn’t know you had this here.”

“It was my idea but it was my mother who carried it out. It reminds me a lot of a chalet we have in the north of the kingdom.”

Jeno looked surprised and the princess laughed softly.

“I didn’t know you had a way with these things.”

She shrugged.

“I like rustic things.” she admitted and saw Jeno looking at her curiously.

"Oh, really?" he seemed very interested. "What kind?"

She smiled and took her hands to slowly take off her robe, making Jeno pay attention to her.

“You’ll have plenty of time to find out.” she replied, letting the robe fall to the floor and she shivered as Jeno's eyes looked her up and down again.

Only this time she let him admire her for a long time. Jeno became serious, his eyes clearly screamed desire and the princess couldn't deny that she liked that, the way he looked at her made her feel powerful and confident, enough to enter the jacuzzi the way she was, fully aware that the transparent nightgown would be even more transparent, because that's actually what she wanted.

When she sat down, she let out a low moan and looked at Jeno with an expression of false innocence.

“Aren’t you going in?” she asked quietly and Jeno laughed, unbeliever.

That would be a night of surprises then.

He just nodded and in one quick movement pulled off the black shirt he was wearing, Y/N's little smile quickly faded and she swallowed hard as she stared at his bare torso.

The other opportunities she had, Jeno was dressed, there was always something that prevented her from fully seeing his torso, but not this time. She could see every bit of exposed skin and it looked like Jeno had really been working out a lot because he looked so much stronger.

And she even tried to look away when Jeno grabbed the hem of the sweatpants he was wearing, but her curiosity got the better of her and she just watched him, exactly as he had done to her. He was wearing black underwear, different from what she had imagined, so she noticed that the bulge on his hip was slightly awake.

Oh God…

She felt the danger in the air but also the excitement and it wasn't something she wanted to stop, because that little game of seduction was too good for both sides.

Jeno entered the jacuzzi, facing the princess, and sat down as he murmured softly when the hot water came into contact with his skin. He stretched his arms to rest on the edge and smiled mischievously at her who blinked a few times before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

She was wet. And it wasn't even because of the jacuzzi.

What had she done?

In fact, she didn't even know why she had done it. She just followed her instincts, but she was waking up a monster that she didn't even know if she could handle.

The image of Jeno dressed only in his underwear would hardly leave her mind.

Y/N couldn't even stay lost in her own paranoia for long and felt the water in the jacuzzi moving beyond what it should have, when she opened her eyes she saw that Jeno was moving to stand in front of her with his arms on either side of her.

She lost her voice and just stared into his dark eyes closely.

“I know what you're doing.” he whispered and brought his face closer until he was millimeters away from touching her. “It was creative, I confess.” the princess's eyes fell when she felt his breathing so close to hers. “But I won’t kiss you.”

Y/N opened her eyes in shock.

"What?" the voice sounded slightly disappointed and Jeno smirked.

“Am I going to have to remind you of what I told you a while ago?” he asked and she opened her mouth to respond but no sound came out as Jeno moved his face to put his lips on her neck, Y/N tried to grab anything inside the jacuzzi that would make her legs regain strength.

Okay, she wasn't expecting that.

Much less that his lips were so warm against her skin. Her heart was beating so fast she didn't know if he could hear it.

“Jeno…” her voice was so weak that she didn’t even blame Jeno for laughing.

"Do you remember?" Jeno's voice vibrated against Y/N's skin and she rolled her eyes before closing them completely. “When you kissed my brother, what did I tell you?”

He didn't make Y/N's life easier and leaned his body as close as he could while he remained kneeling in front of her, involuntarily Y/N opened her legs so that he was between them. “I haven’t even touched you yet and you’re already giving in.” He gave Y/N a light bite on the neck that she couldn't control and brought her hands to his back. “Y/N, answer me!”

"What?" she tried to bring back the strength in her voice but it was impossible, not when Jeno started to bring his hips closer to hers.

“Do you remember, yes or no?” he moved his mouth to her ear, where he blew softly, sending goosebumps through her body.

Remembering? Yes she remembered, the problem was that she couldn't speak because of the heat she was feeling rising more and more and stopping in her belly.

"Yes." she swallowed the urge to moan when she felt him next to her body.

God, Jeno was torturing her and he was just leaning against her, he wasn't even rubbing his body against hers but he was standing exactly where she wanted him.

“Then speak.” he ordered and she dug her nails into his back.

“I’m going to have to beg.” she replied, quietly.

Jeno turned his face away, a sideways smile on his face as he watched the princess's desperate expression up close.

“See, you just need a stimulus to remember.” he teased.

“If you think I’m going to-” Jeno moved his hips against hers and the moan came out a little choked.

The temperature of the water felt much warmer and Y/N felt how hard he was, she had to close her eyes tightly to keep from giving in any more than she already had. She was losing her mind!

“You will, not today, but you will.” he promised and she opened her eyes, raising her eyebrow.

“What makes you so sure?”

Jeno took a hand to the princess's face and lifted it, making her look into his eyes.

She saw nothing but desire, pure and carnal.

“The fact that you tried to seduce me.” he caress her cheek gently. “Trust me, it worked, you look really hot and you don’t know how difficult it is for me to control myself now seeing your body like that.” she had an idea thanks to his hips pressed against hers. “But I won’t kiss you until you give in completely.”

Y/N swallowed hard. She wanted to but something stopped her, maybe her pride.

And then, all that heat and fire that surrounded the two quickly ended when Jeno stood up. Y/N bit her lip at the image of him standing in front of her, wet and hard. She knew he noticed the way she looked at him but he simply walked away, leaving the jacuzzi.

Y/N's uneven breathing seemed more evident now that she had her personal space back, but her eyes searched for Jeno.

And he was there, waiting for her with a confident smile.

“Don’t worry, this time it wasn’t a dream.”

#jeno scenarios #jeno imagines #jeno imagine #lee jeno scenarios #jeno scenario #lee jeno smut #jeno smut #jeno fanfic #jeno x you #jeno x y/n #jeno x reader #nct scenario #nct imagines #nct scenarios #nct imagine #nct suggestive #nct series #nct smut #nct fanfic #nct x y/n #nct x you #nct x reader #kpop scenarios #kpop imagines #nct royal au #kpop x y/n #kpop x you #kpop x reader #kpop fanfic #kpop smut

[jwirecs]

RECOMMENDED ARRANGED MARRIAGE AU💍

hello, hello! here are my arranged marriage au - nct recs! hopefully these beautiful stories get more recognition as well as the writers💝

requested by anon (i literally went through 44 pages of my svt tag and i dont think i’ve read any skz arranged marriage aus, so for now, its just nct..)

** anything in parentheses and bolded are my thoughts that can be disregarded if needed **

🔞smut || 💔angst || 💕fluff || ✅completed || 🔄ongoing || 💯favorite

Before I Go || @yutaholic​​​​​​🔞💕💔✅ (doyoung x reader)

↳ The day has come for you to marry Doyoung and life as a princess is not what you expected. Your new husband is distant and there is trouble stirring within the monarchy. Now more than ever, you are determined to kindle a romance with the prince, but you soon learn that your marriage will be put to the test in ways you could never have imagined.

Binding Bonds || @jaedore​🔞💕💔✅ (jaehyun x reader)

↳ Being the daughter of a top fashion brand, an arranged marriage isn’t what you’d expect coming out of your mother’s mouth. Especially when she says that it’s with Jung Jaehyun, the son of the CEO who owns one of the biggest trading companies. Of course he’s a heartthrob, a ladies’ man, and prince in the media, but in reality, he’s a royal pain in the ass. Your patience, emotions, and sanity is tested when you’re forced to share a life together. Will it crumble to the ground of the empire you’ve build or will there be a change of heart?

Coming Home || @cupofjae​​​​​​🔞💕💔✅ (yuta x reader, smau)

↳ an arranged marriage between two of the most powerful families drives a son away from the only home he has ever known. however, two long years past in success until his past comes knocking on his door, literally.

Lucky Number Seven || @paintmebare​🔞💔✅💯💯💯 (johnny x reader)

↳ When your less than lovely cousin makes a jab at you, you finally snap and tell her that you're dating her ex-boyfriend (even though you haven't spoken since high school). Johnny agrees to play the role of your boyfriend, though the longer you pretend to be in love, the more you realize you might actually be crushing on him.

MOON RIVER || @ppangjae​​​​​​​🔞💕💔✅ (jaehyun x reader)

↳ Your mother warned you of many boys. She’s warned you of the immature ones, the players, and even the fools and cowards. But man, she has never warned you of guys like Jeong Jaehyun, the President’s son, who seems to be falling in love with you with every passing day even though he’s already engaged to someone he’s been set up to marry.

***Seeds of Pomegranates || @/anashins​​​​​​​🔞💕💔✅ (jaehyun x reader)

↳ (this was also included in my feb-march nct fic recs, so please do head over to that post! this isnt under the arranged marriage type of au, but it gives off the vibes of it to me!)

Anon Request || @alluringjae​🔞💔✅ (jeno x reader)

↳ Anon: “ hi dear for the birth months special can you do this as angsty as you can. angst “ you weren’t there...why weren’t you there? I needed you! I needed you! And you weren’t there!” and “All I wanted was a happy ending.” + prompt ‘As you begin to fall asleep, you feel a gentle kiss pressed to your temple and a blanket draped over you’ THANKYOUUU

** if there is any fics that you guys would like to recommend, please do! i am slowly running out of fics to read **

#nct scenarios #nct 127 scenarios #nct dream scenarios #nct fluff #nct angst #nct smut #nct 127 fluff #nct 127 angst #nct 127 smut #nct dream fluff #nct dream angst #nct dream smut #nct arranged marriage au #nct fic recs #nct recs #nct: asks #nct 127: asks #nct dream: asks

[neochan]

before i leave this site completely, i want us to have one more year of nct fics & filth. if my happiness for writing returns while doing this, i may keep my presence on here longer.

regardless, below are the fics that i have planned / half written / outlined / thought up. over the course of the next year, i will be posting the ones you vote on.

once you read over the fics, please use the link at the bottom of this post to vote for your favorites.

THE PICK ME CHRONICLES WILL BE FINISHED IN FULL REGARDLESS!

(STANDALONE FICS)

no synopsis, but i can offer: toxic exes au, street racing, using his rival as a means to make him jealous, he is insanely possessive.

okay, so maybe hooking up with a masked stranger wasn't the brightest idea. but you didn't expect him to actually blow your mind. unfortunately, the only clue as to who he is lies in the jacket he left behind. now, with the worn leather that still faintly smelled liked him in tow, you're on the hunt to find your prince charming...but you know what they say: if the jacket fits.

no synopsis, but i can offer: christmas au! flirty hyuck, friends to lovers, comedy(?)

after seven years, haechan still has a crush on you, but you seem to only have eyes for jeno, and haechan isn’t good at controlling his jealousy. (harry potter au)

no synopsis, but i can offer: incubus!jaemin

(SERIES)

according to your parents, it's all for the business. get married to the competitions son so the companies can merge, and business will be fruitful, and you'll be rich. easy, right? wrong. it'd be easier if the person you were marrying was someone you didn't know, but you knew jung jaehyun, in fact, you knew him a little too well, and you didn't particularly like him. though his bestfriend peaked your interest the first time you met... and the second time... and the third. (can change the pairing to dream members)

spend a summer at camp with nct dream as demigods, captured within five different stories

son of hermes!hyuck x daughter of athena!reader

son of ares!jeno x daughter of eros!reader

son of posiedon!renjun x daughter of aphrodite!reader

son of aphrodite!jaemin x daughter of hermes!reader

son of apollo!mark x daughter of hades!reader

THIS IS MY FAVORITE WIP!! after the tragic death of punk rock band PARASOCIALs leader, lee minhyung, the label is desperate to piece the teenage dream back together again. in an attempt to revive their chart breaking success, they've reached out to you - a rising star already signed to their sister label. but what happens when you realize they're nothing like the press paints them to be? has the band slipped too far out of the limelight for you to save them? GENRE ▸ angst, smut, rockstar!nct dream, band au, vocalist!renjun, guitarist!jeno, drummer!jaemin, vocalist & bassist!haechan

my one shot 'rule breaker' is a prequel to this series.

no synopsis, but i can offer: dysfunctional family vibes.

illegal street fighter jeno

graffiti artist renjun

street racer & addict haechan

thief mark

drug dealer jaemin

!!!!! VOTE HERE !!!!!

#nct smut #nct dream smut

[mins-fins]

missa solemnis

&&. it's not everyday that you waltz with the prince that wants to rip out your tongue, but life is just full of surprises.

pairing: lee donghyuck x m!reader

genre: fairly random really, royalty au, enemies(?) to lovers

warnings: explicit language, reader and hyuck threaten each other the whole time, reader and hyuck both suck so bad but they both want each other so bad

word count: 1k

notes: this whole thing is just one scene from a bigger thing i wrote during the christmas break that i scrapped because i didn't think people would read it.. also because i'm not very good when it comes to writing people as enemies, also it was HORRIBLE i almost throw up every time i even glance at that mess 😞 anyway to celebrate nct dream reincarnation royal au i decided to just take this chunk and edit it so now at least it makes a little more sense 😭?? not my best writing truly but prince hyuck has not left my mind, i need to start writing more royal aus

"if i didn't know better, i'd think you wanted to kiss me right now".

there's a taunting tone in your voice that makes donghyuck glare, but he still doesn't get distracted, keeping up the same momentum he's had since you two began dancing no more than a few minutes ago.

there's a few good reasons you assumed he wanted to kiss you, mainly the direct contact he was making with your lips, he looked like he was about to move forward and connect his lips with yours with absolutely no shame, no regard for his reputation, his soon-to-be-wife, or his supposed "hatred" of you.

"you are an absolute moron".

"aren't i correct?"

donghyuck's poker face doesn't falter, no matter how much you tried to get a smile out of him with idiotic comments or jokes. "nope, wrong as always".

you hum at the princes response, somehow able to stay focused on waltzing as the two of you made your way around in a circle. donghyuck will never understand your way of easily multitasking, how you were somehow able to focus on annoying the absolute shit out of him as well as focus on not stepping on his foot at all.

he has to give it to you (begrudgingly though), it's impressive.

"so what is it then, your highness? you were just staring at my lips because you were bored? lost in your head?"

donghyuck's grip on your hand tightens at the sound of you using his title in such a mocking manner, oh he hates you, he hates you so much that if he had to choose, he'd rather kill you himself then have someone else do it.

you piss him off so much, your words piss him off so much, he wants to punch you, he wants to set you on fire and watch you burn, he wants to so badly stomp you into the ground and watch you suffer—

but holy shit you are absolutely gorgeous.

donghyuck can't even deny it, even with how much denial courses through his veins about topics such as this, anyone with two functioning eyes could see that you are just such a work of art. donghyuck can't even blame all the women that flock to the gates of your palace, hoping to score just one date with you.

"i was too busy thinking about the several torture methods that i could put you through".

"ah i am so hurt, you don't love me sweetheart?"

donghyuck has to use every single bit of patience remaining in his body to not step on your foot and leave you in pain on the dance floor.

the only reason he was dancing with you in the first place was because of a promise he made to his mother, his fiancée was off doing something else, gossiping with the servants, he assumes, she did always enjoy that, a favorite activity of hers that he's learned about from observing.

a dance like this should truly only be preserved for lovers, people who can stand each other, a pair who, with all things considered, won't bicker whilst they were supposed to be focusing on the music.

you two, with all things considered, are an example of everything opposite of that, you can't stand each other, you bicker all the time, and you are truly the furthest thing from lovers.

"call me that again and next time your head won't be attached to your body".

"i like to think you threaten me because you love me".

donghyuck snorts, finally, and you felt a surge of pride in your chest, you'd gotten a smile out of him. "your mind must be the messiest place ever.." he resorts to muttering, not knowing what other specific threats he could tell you. "an idiotic one too, do you ever think clearly? logically?"

you hum, displaying a lack of offense at the words. instead, you just lean closer, the distance between you two minimizing. "i only think about you, sweetheart".

a scoff leaves the prince's lips, he's absolutely done with you, but there's still a good minute left to the song, meaning there's still a good minute of you two waltzing in this ballroom left.

"i just cannot wait for this to be over.."

"you don't say!"

your enthusiasm pisses off donghyuck, but he doesn't step on your foot like he wanted, instead pulling you forward harshly, causing for a yelp of surprise to escape your lips. his arm remains around your waist, ensuring that you won't fall, but you two do bump foreheads.

"jesus! are you crazy!?"

there is absolutely no reason for you two to be pressed this close, your fingers still very much intertwined, just one trip up and your lips would touch.

you wonder in your head if donghyuck is slowly regretting his brash decision.

"what? you don't know how to waltz anymore?"

you always find a way to jab at him, comment on something he did, joke about a little things that you knew got under his skin.

oh lee donghyuck absolutely despises you.

that doesn't explain why he still clearly wants to kiss you, though.

"you're just—" he pauses in the middle of his sentence, suddenly very interested in your facial features, features that he could now clearly see up close. "a moron, an idiot".

"as you've said before".

donghyuck doesn't respond anymore after that, the song isn't even done, a good 25 seconds left before it's ending, but donghyuck was clearly done, as he pushed you away, taking in a breath.

"that's enough of you, have a good night your highness".

the words leave his tongue bitterly, his glare is less of a genuine one and more full of mixed emotions, but he doesn't give you any more time to stare at him, just turns around and walks in the direction of his fiancée.

you watch him walk away, and he doesn't make an effort to even save you one final glance.

the song isn't even over yet.

but he's done, very done.

#lee donghyuck #haechan #nct #nct 127 #nct dream #nct imagines #nct drabbles #nct scenarios #haechan imagines #haechan drabbles #haechan scenarios #lee donghyuck x reader #lee donghyuck x male reader #haechan x reader #haechan x male reader #𑁍 ࣪˖ 𓂃 isa's works!