Work Text:
sunlight started to peep through the uncovered parts of the window, slowly getting brighter and brighter. with a groan, taehyung gets up, he hated how he was required to ‘rise with the sun’ and get to work right away. ‘what a stupid saying’ taehyung told himself, but often nobles are stupid, and that’s just something he has to live with. being a commoner he does not have much of a choice, in order to survive, his job is to listen and in his case, in order to succeed, to listen to the one that has the money.
taehyung was a clever man, he knew how to con people well, and was well versed in pickpocketing. he’d be charming the living daylights out of the lovely lady at the well known fabric shop in his village where he used to work, and not only come back with the empty tray and cup but also with the shiny ring the lady was wearing. being beautiful as well as being as sly as a fox had it’s benefits. as years went on, taehyung's actions caught the attention of the highest noble of his village, lee dong-gun of the northern kingdom, and instead of imprisoning him, they offered taehyung a proposition. he knew taehyung was a cunning man so he offered him to aid in getting his daughter to marry the only heir of the kim clan. it was a big task for taehyung, however it did not stop him, it meant more money, and more power, so he took the opportunity. and that’s how taehyung ended up here, disguised as a worker in the palace under the Kim empire.
taehyung slowly rose from his bed and got ready, making sure his clothes looked as neat as possible. the head librarian, sung-ki was a stickler for keeping things neat which meant how he looked as well. taehyung was lucky enough that he managed to find a way to read, as when he was younger, he would often steal books and he would eavesdrop on lessons while hiding at the corner of school. taehyung enjoyed reading so he’d often frequent the school, so when a teacher found him sneaking around outside trying to learn, he was nice enough to allow taehyung in. he was smart enough to pick it up quickly, much to the teacher’s appreciation. when dong-gun knew that taehyung was able to read and write, and was good at it, he knew it would be perfect to send taehyung to work at the royal library. the prince often frequented it, giving taehyung the opportunity to influence him.
for many days taehyung would work endlessly, organizing the mass amount of books, writing and noting down information. the head librarian was an old man, and often times reading the small writings was hard for him, and taehyung, being the only young man to join the library in ages had the task of doing so. he didn't mind as he enjoyed reading, but he had to remember often the reason why he was here.
‘its been weeks and the prince hasn’t visited yet. how am i supposed to do dong-gun’s task?’ taehyung whispered to himself while organizing books in the far corner of the library, away from old sung-ki. frustrated he slammed closed the book he was holding a bit too loud, only to be scolded harshly from sung-ki.
‘how many times do i have to tell you boy, be careful with the books!’ the old man yelled
‘sorry, i won’t do it again,’ taehyung apologized, bowing down, hoping to cool down the man’s anger, but instead he went on rambling.
‘i honestly don’t know why that noble suggested you, i’d rather send you back then keep you here if you keep messing up!’
taehyung genuinely started to worry, he had a bigger task than this, and if he messed up he would be met with something far worse than this grumpy old man, he’d be met with the wrath of a dong-gun.
amidst the commotion of apologies and yelling, someone had walked into the library, amused at the situation in front of him.
‘-ahem- what is going on here?’ his voice coughed out.
‘who is- oh! prince seokjin, my apologies!’ sung ki rushed out while bowing down to him, ‘we did not see you there, please dismiss our small argument, the new worker seems to be having slight issues, but how may i help you, your highness?’ seokjin waved his hand in dismissal at sung ki, and turned to look at the new boy in the library, and was met with taehyung staring directly at him.
taehyung heard that the prince was extremely beautiful, but seeing him in person couldn’t do words justice. seokjin had dark black hair, part of it elegantly knotted, held together by a silver headpiece, with a dragon embellished on it, eyes both piercing but also kind, and soft looking lips, he really was a true beauty, and taehyung could stare at him all day. realizing that the prince was acknowledging him, immediately bowed down, hoping he wouldn’t mind his delayed sign of respect. seokjin smiled softly at the other’s actions.
‘who might you be?’ he asked.
‘i’m taehyung, the new library assistant, your highness, apologies for the scene you had to see earlier.’
‘it’s okay, but remember to not do so again, you are new here and need to respect sung ki, it won’t be taken so lightly next time’ seokjin warned.
‘shit’ taehyung thought to himself, here he is supposed to be on the prince’s good side and he’s already started at a bad spot. ‘no worries, i can bounce back from this’ he reassured himself, he knew how to work from here, as he has many times before.
‘understood,’ taehyung replied and turned to go back to his work, thinking of ways to win over the prince’s trust.
seokjin went to talk to sung-ki about a new poetry book he was looking for, and sung ki, happy to have a helper do his work, called over taehyung to guide the prince to his book. taehyung grinned to himself, sometimes opportunities presented themselves, as much as he hated doing everything for the old man, perhaps it’d be the best way to win seokjin’s trust.
taehyung went to find the book, seokjin sat down at the seat by the window, like he always does, enjoying the view of the ducks over the pond. seokjin was lost in his thoughts when he was interrupted by taehyung’s voice calling him to give him the book.
‘oh sorry,’ seokjin says, a bit startled, ‘thank you’ seokjin smiles, as an attempt to be a bit nicer to the boy, as he felt he may have been to harsh earlier on. the boy couldn’t be that old, he only looked a few years younger than himself, and seokjin was known to be very reclusive, perhaps he could try to make a new companion in the palace. taehyung could only silently bow down and turn back to his work. seokjin feeling a bit dejected, went to reading the new poetry book. it had been a while since he was able to visit the library. his father hounded him for reading so much, when he should be spending more time listening into the palace affairs as the next king, but seokjin could care less sometimes, he often wished he had an older brother to take his place instead. after weeks of listening into boring political affairs that could be solved easily, he was finally able to visit his safe haven of the library again, only to take out his frustration of his father out on an innocent worker. as seokjin read the poetry, he told himself to be nicer to the boy.
day after day, seokjin and taehyung would run into each other in the library, and oftentimes taehyung would shy away, not wanting to rush into gaining his trust. he knew how reclusive the prince was, and jumping right into gaining his trust would only build suspicion in the prince’s eye. he knew that he would have to wait until seokjin would approach him, so the best he could do is get the prince curious enough about his presence to approach him. after days of seeing seokjin delve into countless poetry books, taehyung decided that another way to pique his interest was to show he also loved reading poetry books. it came easy to taehyung, to make sure he was somewhere in the prince’s field of vision, reading a book during his small breaks, making sure it was a book that the prince lent to read before.
usually when seokjin would come to the library, he would be met with a comfortable silence, other than the ruffle of papers from the librarian, and he grew used to it, but now with the new worker, he had to listen to the constant pitter patter of feet around the library, the binding of books,and the occasional arguments between the young man and the old librarian. at first, seokjin was annoyed, it was too distracting at first but after some time, he started to get used to the additional sounds in the library.
one day, seokjin noticed taehyung reading on the steps of the entrance, and to his surprise it was one of the books he previously read. he wondered if maybe, taehyung also enjoyed the same books as him. since then seokjin would often notice a new book in his hand, many of which were ones that he read, and some newer ones that he was interested in. the prince wanted to talk to him about the books, but he wondered how he could approach him. seokjin never got the chance to talk about his love for stories because growing up the only heir, his father often dissuaded him from being too friendly with others, over the fear of him being used, leading to the prince living a bit of a lonely life. but taehyung seemed like someone he’d be able to talk to, and seokjin knew that that the king never cared much for the library, so he couldn’t stop him from being a bit friendly here.
taehyung continued on his plan and keeping contact to only a bow hello and giving him books that he request be brought to him in his corner of the library, but making sure he was seen reading by the prince. it wasn’t hard at all for taehyung, he loved reading, so it was an enjoyable way for him to pique the curiosity of seokjin.
taehyung hummed to himself, looking for the book that was requested, picking up a book for himself on the way. as he went forward to give the book that was requested, he was stopped after turned away after giving the book bounded by green silk,
‘taehyung, wait here for a minute will you?’
‘yes my prince, is there something else that you need?’ taehyung inquired, turning around after hiding his small grin.
‘not necessarily, i would just like to ask you, how did you manage to work here?’ seokjin asked, with a stone cold face, he needed to know if taehyung indeed was a good worker, and not just here from ulterior means, if he got a lousy answer he would know that perhaps he should stick to reading alone.
‘oh! a kind noble in my village knew that head librarian wanted some help here, and i enjoy books alot! so he suggested i work here, your highness,’ taehyung replied with a smile. he knew that the prince would like hearing this, and technically he wasn’t completely lying, he did love his books.
‘ah, so then what’s your favourite reading then?’ seokjin questioned.
‘definitely the works of heo nanseolheon and yi kyubo’ taehyung replied truthfully, going on a ramble about his favourite piece, without realizing, and abruptly stops talking, he couldn’t help but contain his excitement about it, he hoped it wouldn’t turn seokjin away.
‘hm, interesting, they are both great poets, i like them as well. you seem to know much about these works’ seokjin nodded in admiration, a soft smile adorning his face.
‘well, i do work at a library, i wouldn't be here if i didn’t know about them, wouldn’t i, your highness? ’taehyung joked, smiling a bit wider at him, hoping that the prince would not go back to his stone cold expression, he didn’t mind his rambling about poetry, surely he wouldn’t mind joke!
the cards love to play in taehyung’s favour, as seokjin let out a laugh, covering his mouth immediately.
‘sung ki did tell me you had a bit of a sharp tongue, but yes you are right, perhaps if you don’t mind, i would love to speak with you more often about these poems, there is not many in the castle who tend to read the poems, and frankly speaking’ seokjin paused to look around even though no one was around and whispered, ‘i don’t really want to talk to an old grumpy man about poetry’
now it was taehyung’s turn to laugh, he was glad to know that he wasn’t the only one who found the head librarian a bit of a bore.
‘but your highness, won’t it be a bit improper? i’m just a common worker, people will talk, plus sung ki would yell at me for ages if he sees me not doing work.’
‘taehyung, i think you forget that i am the prince of the palace, sung ki can’t go against my requests, and do not worry about what people will say, no one really comes to the library anyways, but unless if you rather bind books all day then for sure, i won’t stop you’ seokjin ended with a nonchalant shrug, going back to reading his book, purposefully ignoring taehyung’s face, knowing what would come next.
‘wait,’ taehyung started, ‘apologies for my wariness before, but yes, i would love to talk about these poems with you, it would be an honour to’ taehyung replied, immediately bowing down.
seokjin smiled to himself, happy to finally have someone to talk to,
‘don’t apologize, it was understandable, i will talk to sung ki today and let him know not to bother you about taking some time off to read with me.’
‘thank you, your highness, i appreciate it’ taehyung replied, standing awkwardly, bouncing on his heels, not sure if he should stay or leave.
seokjin tried not to laugh at the boy’s awkwardness, it was a bit cute really. he smiled and dismissed taehyung, and went back to reading his book, grin still on his face.
when seokjin finished reading, he called taehyung over again to give the book back, but mainly to make sure of their plans for tomorrow.
‘thank you for accepting my offer taehyung, i will see you tomorrow then?’ seokjin questioned as he proceeded to get up to head back to the main palace after handing the book back.
‘yes! i will see you then your highness’
as seokjin got to the door, he turned to give a small wave to sung-ki and scanned the room for taehyung to give him a small wave good bye as well. seokjin tried to hide his smile at how excitedly taehyung waved back. walking back to the palace, seokjin felt content, after years of not being able to form a friendship with anyone, he could see himself finding a good friend in taehyung. he couldn’t lie, he was a bit excited himself, and he knew that this time his father couldn’t stop him from building a friendship as the king didn’t had no interest in the library. seokjin understood his father’s wariness, but there was something about taehyung that seokjin felt that he could trust, all he hoped for was to not prove himself wrong.
late into the night, taehyung couldn’t fall asleep. he went over the events of today, thinking if seokjin knew his ulterior motive, but all he could remember how genuine his laugh sounded, how he liked his cuter actions and how attentively he listened when he went on a ramble about his favourite poem. taehyung often prided himself in being able to see through people, but in seokjin all he saw was genuinity. he couldn’t help but feel a bit bad for doing this, after all he still had a heart. in the end a deal was a deal, and money is money, taehyung couldn’t risk feeling a bit of pity over his own life that that dong-gun wouldn’t hesitate killing.
however there was nothing against having a little fun during the process, ‘what harm would it do to talk about something he enjoys with the crown prince, if anything it would just make him trust me more’ taehyung reassured himself, and with that fell asleep, hoping that tomorrow would come a bit faster.
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the first couple of times they had their small reading discussion, the only thing readable in the room was the awkwardness between the two. unsure on how to fix it, they both decided to read in silence. after seokjin left, taehyung was left to think while binding the books. he knew the prince was a bit quiet and shy, so perhaps the best thing is if he was a bit more outgoing, but taehyung worried that his outwardness might shy him away even further. the next time they met, they continued reading in silence. he tried to think of a time to interject and start some small talk, but he was unsure of when, this was the crown prince, and one thing out of line, taehyung could lose all respect, and then fail in his main mission. just as taehyung was lost in his thoughts, loud quacks were heard, starting both of them, seokjin a bit more. the prince yelped and jumped, dropping his book and equally himself off the bench he was sitting on. taehyung found it a bit funny, seeing someone of such nobility get scared over a simple quack.
‘don’t laugh or else i’ll have you imprisoned,’ seokjin groaned as he sat up on the floor, looking up at taehyung’s amused face with his tight lipped lips stopping him from laughing.
‘i won’t i promise your highness, it is not funny at all to be scared over a quack’ taehyung stifled his laughter, reaching his hand out to help the prince up.
seokjin let out a small hum of annoyance, took his hand to get up and dusted his clothes off with his hands, smoothing out any wrinkles left from falling on his hanbok. he sat back down and looked over to taehyung, who was still smiling at the prince. he could tell that he was trying his best not to laugh.
‘just letting you know, i’m not scared over some silly quacks, it just startled me, and if i remember correctly, you were too,’ seokjin explained.
‘of course you aren’t scared, it would be silly to be afraid of some ducks, especially someone as royal as you,’ he teased back.
‘i am NOT afraid of ducks, in fact i love them very much!’ the prince blurted. the prince did have a soft spot for the ducks, he couldn’t have taehyung believing he’s scared of them.
taehyung only nodded and bowed his head down, noting that the prince liked ducks, thinking of a way to use that to gain more of his trust. seokjin, reluctantly went back to reading, wanting to talk more to taehyung, but unsure on how to do so. taehyung picked up on his side looks towards him and after a while of reading, taehyung decided to say something to break the silence between them.
‘my prince, if you do not mind me asking, was i a bit too out of line earlier?’
seokjin looked a bit confused, but later realized, that as the prince, everyone was to speak to him with utmost respect, but to him, during that moment, seokjin felt happy, not upset at all, he didn’t want taehyung to be so upright with him all the time.
‘no, it was not actually, it was quite fun actually! it was quite silly’ seokjin smiled at him, hoping taehyung would understand and loosen up.
‘that’s good to hear your highness,’ he paused wondering if this would be a good time to be a bit bold, knowing the prince was already loosened up.
‘if i may, can i say something, possibly a bit bold?’ taehyung questioned.
‘of course, speak please.’
‘truth be told, it is getting a bit boring and awkward just reading quietly in your presence, i could do that on my own, and so could you.’
seokjin agreed, he did feel that he was just continuing on his library visits from before taehyung was here, he knew there was an awkwardness between the two, but he hoped that taehyung would have been the one to break the ice. he realized now that it would not happen until he allowed it to.
‘you are right, what do you suggest we do then?’ the prince asked, wanting to know if taehyung did want to stop their small little book club before it even properly started.
‘if i may suggest, perhaps we should get to know each other a bit more to get rid of this awkwardness, don’t you think?’ taehyung smiled back, looking at the prince hopefully.
seokjin was glad he didn’t offer to stop their little meetings. ‘i think that is a great idea, i will go first’ seokjin said excitedly, glad to get over the awkwardness, he was starting to feel like he was stuck in a class, and not with a friend. ‘i am crown prince seokjin, and i am 22, i would much rather read than listen about politics of the kingdom’.
‘and you’re not afraid of ducks,’ taehyung joked, ‘these are all things everyone knows of, tell me something that i don’t know please my prince’.
seokjin looked at him with surprise, a bit unsure of what to tell him, not expecting for taehyung to ask more. after pausing and thinking for a bit, he thought of something that not many people know.
‘i actually like to stargaze a lot. i have a nice view of them from my room’s window. sometimes i like reading about them, the science, the myths.’ seokjin admits shyly.
‘the stars are a beautiful and interesting thing indeed’ taehyung nodded in agreement. ‘the sky in my village was such a beautiful sight indeed’.
‘tell me about you, i don’t know anything about you other than the fact you have good taste in poetry, for all i know you might be as boring as the sung ki’
‘i sure hope i am not for your own sake’ taehyung laughed, ‘you’d have to go back to talking about the poems with him’ as he said this, seokjin made a face.
‘well, my name is taehyung, im 20, and other than reading, i enjoy writing some poems of my own sometimes. i also know a lot about the best outfits, i used to work at a the best silk shop before coming here to the palace, so if you ever want a new outfit, i know the best styles!’
‘i will keep that in mind taehyung, and i hope you do not mind me asking, could i read one of your poems?’ seokjin asked, he was curious to see what the sweet boy in front of him would write about.
taehyung, feeling a bit shy now shook his head no. though showing some of his poems could gain more of the prince’s likeness, this wasn’t something he had to do, his poems were too personal for one to see. not only that, taehyung often wrote about his life and the work he does, one slip up, and if seokjin were to see his entire plan would come crashing down.
‘i am sorry your highness, not now, but maybe one day, i hope that is ok,’
‘of course, do not feel pressured to show me!’ seokjin rushed, he did not want taehyung to feel that he was demanding him to show his work. ‘if you do not want to show me at all, it’s okay.’ he continued to reassure him.
‘thank you, you know, you are very kind, quite contrary from the rumors of you’.
seokjin felt reassured, he knew that he was known to an intimidating and aloof man, but it was something he couldn’t help. he was brought up this way from his father. his mother tried her best to keep seokjin open and kind, but ultimately, his father ruled over the kingdom, which included him and his mother. the older he got the more he didn’t want to be this way, it was hard for him to break out.
the rest of the time they continued to talk about each other, getting to know the other’s favourite food, to random stories about each other. they didn’t know how long it was until sung ki interrupted them.
‘your highness, i know i said i would not bother you, but it has been some time, and is getting late. your father will start to ask for you soon, it is best to go before you get into trouble’.
seokjin glanced outside, and saw that the sun was slowly setting, and realized he had been here for hours. seokjin was reminded of the time when was younger and how he would hide away in the library after his lessons, leading him to get into a lot of trouble. he nodded to sung-ki who left the two alone again.
‘i am sorry, i should take my leave now, i hope you don’t mind the time i took away from your work taehyung,’ seokjin apologized.
‘please don’t apologize, it was my pleasure my prince, i look forward to the next time we meet’ taehyung said as he bowed his head down in respect.
seokjin felt pleased, taehyung seemed genuine, but his fears still lingered in the back of his head. it was hard for him to disregard the words he heard growing up, but he really wanted taehyung to be the one exception.
‘may i tell you something,’ seokjin whispered lowly, leading taehyung to nod curiously.
‘honestly speaking, it gets quite lonely in the palace, knowing that many are after me for power, but i still want to get to know you more, you seem like someone i can trust,’ a pause filled the air and seokjin locked eyes with taehyung and questioned, ‘i can trust you, right?’
‘of course you can! my loyalty is to you and you only, all that i want is to be with my books’ taehyung beamed, his huge grin covering his lie.
‘then i trust you enough to not break it, please don’t let this end up being a mistake.’
‘i promise’.
they both share a fond smile, and as seokjin leaves, taehyung’s smile drops, and he reminds himself, that as sweet as the prince may be, he knows where his true loyalties lie.
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days become weeks, and they blur into months, and taehyung and seokjin get closer. seokjin would often frequent the library a couple times a week, earlier in the day to ensure he wouldn’t annoy his father for being late on his princely duties, and also not to annoy the head librarian for stealing away his assistant for a bit of his day. in the end, sung ki, as grumpy as he is, promised to not tell the king that his son is spending his time relaxing more with taehyung instead of reading.
many of the times they would talk about poems and their meanings, having deep conversations of the beautiful pieces. it was their own little book club of two, both learning more and more about the works they found so precious. more than books they started to learn more about each other, getting closer everyday.
sometimes they would forego reading halfway to enjoy some tea and they would often talk about other things in their daily life, like how bored seokjin is of hearing the other nobles argue about silly things that could be solved with easy democracy, and sometimes go on tangents about a new thing he learned about the science of the stars and in return taehyung would tell him stories from when he was younger, which seokjin listened intently, interested in the life outside of the palace.
sometimes on days where there were meteor showers or a clear sky on a non-busy day, the two would sneak out to the pond at night and watch the stars flying through the sky together. seokjin would ramble on about how they fell, and stories about the stars, and taehyung seemingly listening with interest would instead look at the reflections of the stars in his eyes. during these times taehyung snap back into reality, remembering the real reason why he would be here.
there were times when seokjin would leave, taehyung would sometimes acquire a new ring, and once a small hairpin of seokjin’s. he’d make sure that they were on rare occasions so that the prince would never notice. he grew up an excellent pickpocketer, it was hard for him to break the habit. taehyung knew that at least with this, he had some proof to show to to dong-gun that he wasn’t just here having fun.
as time went on, taehyung had to often remind himself of why he was actually here. in his letters that he would secretly send to dong-gun, disguised as written to his uncle, he’d often lie in his updates about how he praised him to seokjin, when in reality most of the time they spent together talking was about everything but him. he’d send small things he’d pickpocketed to please dong-gun, but taehyung didn’t have the heart to give away the hairpin. there was something so beautiful, and innocent of the tiny pink flower and beads that accented the pin, and how it reminded him of seokjin, it made him want to keep it for himself.
as taehyung sat in his room writing his next letter of updates, he worriedly thinks about his mission, he needs to start convincing seokjin to marry dong-gun’s daughter, eun hee. but the more that taehyung gets to know seokjin, he questions whether he should be doing this or not.
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one day, seokjin visited the library after a few weeks, and seokjin suggest the two forego reading, and instead feed the ducks and the pond by the library. taehyung secretly was very happy that he suggested so, truth be told he missed the prince, and wanted to spend more time with him. that and he needed to convince the prince soon about eun hee, he was tired of hearing the noble’s demands over and over again in the letters.
they both headed to the small pond side by side. it had orange leaves scattered around it and some were floating on the top, looking like small paper boats from a far. the autumn air was crisp, and the breeze kept adding more leaves around the pond, creating a serene view.
they sat at the edge of the pond, breaking off small pieces of the corn for them the ducks to eat. sitting together in a mutual silence, taehyung could feel that something was off with the prince, he looked more down, as if something was clouding his mind. it bothered taehyung and wished he could help him feel better somehow. after a while of sitting and feeding the ducks, seokjin’s voice echoed through the silence.
‘taehyung-ah do you remember when we first got to know each other, i had a scare over the ducks quacking?’
‘how could i forget? even though it has been well over a year, still thinking about it makes me laugh a bit’
‘you act as if you’ve never been scared before’ seokjin complains.
‘that’s right, i’m not scared of anything,’ taehyung boasts, knowing that he’s lying, he’s afraid of many things, including how beautiful seokjin looks sitting amongst the colorful leaves. he fits right in, just like a painting.
‘you know, i’m a bit scared right now’ seokjin admits.
taehyung looks at him confused, hoping that somehow he didn’t read his inner thoughts.
‘what do you mean my prince?’ he questioned, curiously looking at seokjin’s confused face.
‘i'm scared of my father’s demands’ seokjin confesses, ‘he’s been on my back about me getting married, and every time he gets more upset at me. it’s not my fault that i do not like any of the women, what do i do now, i’m scared of his anger, but i also don’t want to rush my life like this.’
taehyung looks at seokjin’s worried face, and feels bad for the prince, he knows how much seokjin likes learning and studying, especially about the science of the stars, and taehyung wants nothing more than to comfort his prince, but he’s hit with the reality that this is the perfect time to speak of eun hee. taehyung wished he wasn’t here because of dong-gun, and that he wasn’t scared of his threats, because then he could’ve been a true friend and comforted him. instead he has to play devil’s advocate, and side with the king, something he wishes he did not have to do.
taehyung playfully hits the prince’s back, ‘your highness, if i may be blunt, the king has a point,’ to which seokjin face flashes disappointment, and before taehyung could let him speak, he stops him, putting his hand over his mouth, ‘let me finish! i know you do not want to get married right now, and i’m sure the king is bringing all these boring women, but i know of great lady, that too of noble’s who would be perfect for you!’
seokjin mumbles against taehyung’s large hand on his mouth, making taehyung laugh at the sensation.
‘come on, you’re almost 23, you need to get married whether you like it or not, so why not just trust me, i know she’ll be great for you’ taehyung says while smiling fondly at the prince.
seokjin felt that he could hear his heart shattering slowly. perhaps all those moments they spent together, the moments where they looked at each other too long, that seokjin was wrong to think that there was something more. he hoped will all his heart that there was a possibility that taehyung felt the same way that he did, felt the same way when they laughed, when they talked, but here taehyung was telling him to marry someone else. as much as seokjin wanted to cry, wanted to confront taehyung about his feelings, he worried that doing so would make him lose the only person that was so precious to him. he couldn’t bear the idea of that, so reluctantly seokjin nods.
still looking a bit dejected he goes to speak, when taehyung realizes his hand is still covering seokjin’s mouth. letting out a small oops, and removed his hand to let him speak.
‘fine, i’ll trust you, what’s her name?’ seokjin quietly asks, afraid that if he spoke too loud, taehyung would be able to hear his breaking heart.
taehyung knew seokjin was still upset, but he had to do this, and so he went on talking about how great eun hee is, how she was a childhood friend of her’s, lying about her interests, such that it would fit seokjin’s. as he went on talking about how nice and kind lee dong-gun is and family is to him when he lived in the village. he could see that seokjin was faking his interest and as much as it hurt taehyung, he went on, hoping to convince seokjin. in the end, after asking his questions, and listening to taehyung go on about her, seokjin asked,
‘i wonder taehyung, do you like her? you speak so highly of her, it makes me wonder if you should be marrying her, and not me’
‘aha, well maybe if you asked 11 year old me, but i am grown now, she is just now a good friend, plus she never liked me that way, and i’m over her, the only love that i need are my poems and books’ taehyung joked, ‘plus if i were to ever ask for her hand in marriage now, i think she will just remember how annoying my young self was, it’s better if you do.’
seokjin didn’t say anything, staying quiet looking onto the ducks, deep in his own thoughts. taehyung joined him in looking at the ducks, not wanting to hurt seokjin further.
‘it would be nice if my only love could be books as well’ seokjin sighed dejectedly. ‘regardless you have a point, at least you put it much nicer than my father. i trust you taehyung-ah, i will invite them to the palace next week.’ seokjin said after a few minutes of silence.
‘you’ll definitely like her, you have my word’ taehyung grinned.
taehyung went back to happily feeding the ducks, laughing at how quickly they would eat up the corn, his laugh louder than the quacks of the ducks asking for more. seokjin stared at the boy in front of him with his huge boxy grin, unknowing of how to tell him. he was so enamoured with him, and the more he looked, the more he wished that taehyung loved him back. he could only look and wonder why his own emotions decided to hurt him like this. not bearing to look at him more he gave a small curt smile and got up to take his leave and deliver the supposedly good news to his father.
that night, taehyung wrote the letter to dong-gun of the good update, and told him to instruct his daughter to show a big interest in the stars, amongst various other things seokjin liked. while writing, taehyung dropped his hand for a bit, slowly coming to the realization that he did not want eun hee to have him. he was the one who knew what his favourite poem was, he knew what his favourite food was, he was the one who knew how despite his sneezing seokjin would still love to look at flowers, he was the one who knew that his ears would burn red whenever he would compliment him, and he was the one who saw how seokjin’s eyes twinkled just like the stars above whenever he would talk about them. he was the one who knew seokjin best, why does someone else, who does not even care for him get to have him. taehyung dropped his head to the table, staring at the half empty letter. taehyung wished once again he wasn’t here like this, he wished for something more, something he ultimately could never have, no matter what, unless he wanted to write his own death in the hands of dong-gun.
with a tear falling off his face onto the paper, the least he could do was convince dong-gun not to dispose of seokjin so quickly, and instead be happy with the fact that he now has power. if he couldn’t be by his side forever, at least he could see him like this.
____________________________________________
after dong-gun and his daughter came to the palace, and the courting began, taehyung saw less and less of seokjin. it was understandable, but after the teary realization that he felt more for the prince that he should have, it hurt too much. taehyung’s mood changed, he was more quiet and reserved, and the rare times that seokjin did visit the library, they only talked about the poems, and taehyung would only get small replies about how his courting with eun hee was going. but rumours spread around the palace, and taehyung heard about how well the two fit together, in fact he had to hear it directly from dong-gun. dong-gun loved boasting about how thanks to taehyung, soon power and money will be his, and taehyung already tired of hearing it, made sure to let dong-gun know that if he truly intended on killing the prince, he’d lose all of that just as quick, being a major suspect and all. at least with this he could ensure seokjin could hold onto his life.
taehyung’s bitter mood carried onto work, where he would usually read in his spare time, he would instead coop up in his room right away, not eating since he felt too upset to, confused on what to do. sung ki even started to notice taehyung’s mood, and tried to cheer him up, much to taehyung’s surprise.
‘come sit here and have tea with me taehyung, you are always rushing to your room’ he kindly invited.
taehyung reluctantly walked over to the mat and sat with sung-ki. taehyung poured sung-ki his tea and then some for himself, smiling awkwardly at the old man.
‘ah what has happened to you taehyung, a month of not seeing the prince has gotten you this quiet? i would rather hear your smart remarks about what kyubo’s poem’s actually meant instead of having to see your sulky face around.’
taehyung could only look up and sung ki and laugh, there wasn’t much he could tell this old man, what would he know about love, he never married.
‘i know what you’re thinking, why should i tell this grump anything? but taehyung i’m not dumb, you like the prince don’t you’ he said comfortingly.
taehyung sputtered out his tea, ‘wha- no of course not! what are you talking about?’ taehyung went on, acting nonchalant about everything.
‘taehyung, my child, you know i never married because i was like you, i fell in love with a high noble, but i was naive then and thought it would be best if i never told him. i have eyes, i know you like him, and despite all the happy rumours of prince seokjin and eun hee, i can tell that perhaps the prince likes you too. do not make the same mistake as me and lose the one you love’ he spoke calmly with as much tenderness in his heart.
taehyung felt that he was embraced by words of a loving father that he never had, and uncontrollably, taehyung’s eyes filled with tears. he brought his hand to his face and felt the tears on his face, shocked that sung ki knew all this time, and instead of reprimanding him, he reassured him.
‘its not that easy,’ taehyung choked out in sobs, ‘i put myself in such a mess, i don’t know what to do, i really am stuck,i’m such a bad person and it hurts so much it hurts so much.’
sung ki simply moved around the table and wrapped taehyung up in a warm hug. he rubbed his back in soothing circles, reassuring him to let it all out and to hold him as the sobs shook his body. after the tears subsided, sung ki let him off.
‘taehyung, you're not a bad person, you never were.’
____________________________________________
seokjin’s birthday was coming up, and as much as taehyung wanted to do something for him, he knew how busy he would be at the main palace. last time he wasn’t able to attend the party, but surprisingly this time around an invite was placed at the library for both him and sung ki.
‘taehyung, it has been some time, and i would love to see you at the party, please come.’ was written inside taehyung’s invitation. unsure on whether to go or not, taehyung stared blankly at the invite.
‘you should go taehyung, show the prince what he’s missing’ sung ki jokes. since the day he cried in sung ki’s arm, they've gotten closer, and taehyung knew that once sung ki’s mind is set on this, he would not back down. so he reluctantly agreed.
for the party, taehyung wore his best robe, made specially for him before he left the fabric shop, with soft blues complimenting the dark. the place knew and respected sung ki, so no one questioned taehyung, instead he got more looks of appreciation, some of those from both unwed and wed women. as they would pass those groups they would hear small whispers of his looks. sung ki nudged taehyung knowingly, laughing at his shyness.
the party was nice, and taehyung made some small talk with other officials, many of whom asked about life at the library. However, taehyung was distracted by seokjin. he sat by his father, in his royal blue hanbok, looking as ethereal as ever, thanking the nobles who came to greet him. when they finally met eyes, seokjin’s eyes lighted up, smiling wide at taehyung, causing his heart to do backflips. he gestured taehyung to come over, and taehyung, worried looked over to sung ki to take him as well to congratulate the prince.
when they went up, taehyung could not stop staring at the prince, he knew that he was always pretty, but today, seeing him dressed in full royal attire was doing things unexplainable to his heart, and when he tried to give out his birthday congratulations, taehyung stumbled over his words. embarrassed he kept his head bowed down in respect. this way he wouldn't have to deal with staring at seokjin’s face.
‘father, this is taehyung, he helps out at the library and he is the good friend who told me about eun hee’ seokjin said introducing himself to the king, still remaining in his respectful bow.
‘in all honesty, i did not like the fact that my son frequented the library so much, but i have to thank you, you found my son a good lady, speaking of which i have important news to share with everyone.’ the king exclaimed, ushering taehyung and the head librarian down to where the others were. seokjin looked over at his father pensively, wondering what news he’s to share today.
‘everyone, my loyal followers, i have some good news to share to all of you!’ echoed the king’s voice. muted whispers of what the announcement was travelled across the floor, one of which taehyung was dreading to hear. he closed his eyes in hopes that it would not be so before the king spoke again.
‘i’m happy to announce that i have decided on my son’s marriage! it will proceed in a month’s time so please start the preparations!’
the king’s cheerful voice echoed into taehyung’s grieving heart, and amongst the cheers in the crowd, a tear fell down taehyung’s eye. he couldn’t be here any longer and he looked towards sung ki with pleading eyes to take him out of here. they both quietly left the cheerful crowd without being noticed. as they were leaving, taehyung couldn’t bare to see seokjin’s face, in turn missing his shocked face at his father.
____________________________________________
back at the library, taehyung couldn’t contain his tears anymore, and they flowed out like a river. sung ki could only reassure him with his soft voice, telling him it would be ok, urging the boy to drink some water to help calm his paining heart. after finally calming down the poor boy a bit, sung ki made him change into more comfortable clothes, and held him like he was the child he never had, telling him old folklore to lull the boy to sleep. when taehyung finally fell asleep, sung ki didnt have it in his heart to wake him up to take him to his room, so he covered him with the blanket from his room, gently pushing the pillow under his head, letting him sleep on the common ground of the library.
late in the night, a knock on the door woke up taehyung, and groggily he went to the door, with a candle in his hand to see who would be here at the middle of the night. opening the door, he was met with none other than seokjin, and as much as taehyung wanted to slam the door on his face, he couldn’t.
‘why are you here at god knows what hour,’ taehyung groans.
‘its been a while, i wanted to see the stars with you.’ he replied simply.
taehyung could only stare blankly at seokjin’s face, frozen in place. the prince took his hand and took him to the pond, after seeing how taehyung was not budging. they were both met with sky filled with stars, twinkling, that being their own light, minus the soft glow of the candle that shone in their faces. after a while of uncomfortable silence, they both started,
‘taehyung-’
‘my prince-’
they both looked at eachother and gestured at each other to go first, earning a small shared smile between the two.
‘let me speak first,’ seokjin started, still holding onto taehyung’s hand from earlier. ‘i want to apologize, i know i have been avoiding you for the longest time, but it was not my intention to hurt you ever. i thought i was doing the right thing, but i wasn’t. i don’t know if you remember, but that day when we were feeding the ducks and i said i don’t like any of the women, i meant all of them. taehyung in reality it was always you. i always liked you- no in fact loved you.’ seokjin’s eyes started welling up with tears as well as taehyung’s and seokjin used his other hand to wipe the tears off taehyung’s face lovingly.
‘you were the only one i could trust in the whole palace, everyone else just wants my power, not you though. but that day i felt that you did not like me back in that way, so to me the only logical thing was to force myself to be happy with eun hee, only because you said too. i couldn’t bear being with you because my heart hurt too much, and i was afraid. so afraid. and today, i did not even know my father would announce this, but i saw your face, and realized that maybe, i was wrong. taehyung please tell me that this isn’t my false hope, that you do see me the same way as i do, you do don’t you taehyung-ah?’ seokjin tearily confesses.
taehyung did not know what to say. he was so overwhelmed with emotions that the only logical thing his brain could think of was to lean forward and kiss him. the kiss was so gentle, no words had to be exchanged between the two to know how much they felt for eachother.
tears filled taehyung’s face as he was hit with the sudden reality of the situation, and the love in the kids was replaced with extreme guilt. he knew that seokjin should not trust him, but here he was confessing that he was the only one he trusted when in fact he was the one after money in the beginning, but somewhere along the way his lines blurred into wanting love. he wasn’t sure on how to explain this to seokjin. he wanted to tell seokjin how much he wanted to protect and save him from the hungry eyes of power. taehyung removed himself from the kiss, only to start sobbing completely.
‘taehyung-ah don’t cry please, i’m here now. and i’ll always be here for you, please let’s run away, i know where we can go, please, it’s your turn to trust me now,’ seokjin pleaded.
taehyung only shook his head no violently, unable to speak.
‘no? why? my dear please speak it’s ok now,’ seokjin comforted him, bringing taehyung into a hug, softly brushing his hands through his hair.
taehyung pushed away, sobbing while he spoke, ‘you should have never trusted me, i am sorry,’
‘what do you mean?’
‘i mean you should not have trusted me! you’re right everyone wants you for power and money, including me, i was here to convince you to marry eun hee so that the lee family could gain your riches and power, and that way dong-gun would give me the money, i’m sorry’ taehyung choked out between sobs.
seokjin froze up, slowly moving away from the hug. he felt dazed, he hoped that this was some sort of nightmare, but it wasn’t, he was awake, in front of a crying mess of a boy. as the shock settled in, seokjin could only glare furiously at him, this was supposed to be someone he trusted, someone that he loved, but here he was, telling him that his worst fear is now his reality.
‘is this a cruel joke or something?’ seokjin scoffed, not wanting this to be true.
the boy who he supposedly loved shook his head no. ‘i’m not but my prince, please listen i have to tell you that i-’ taehyung tried to rush out.
‘tell me what? that making you fall in love with me was part of the plan too? that hurting me like this was part of it too?’ seokjin spat in anger. from what once used to be loving soft eyes towards taehyung turned into something ugly and harsh. taehyung tried to explain but once again was cut off by the prince’s harsh voice.
leave’ the prince’s solemn voice spoke. he never felt this much anger before. taehyung tried to continue explaining one last time, coming closer to him, only for the prince to shove him away.
‘didn’t you hear me? i said leave. i don’t want to see you again.’ he sneered.
‘my prince please. please listen-’ taehyung tearfully pleaded.
‘this is ENOUGH!’ seokjin yelled, later softening his voice to a stern manner after remembering they are outside after all.
‘i could have you executed, but i can’t do that to you, because despite all this, i still for some reason love you, i will pretend that the moments we spent together weren’t in vain. i want you to be gone from the palace tomorrow, and i’ll tell sung-ki to tell the palace that you went home to tend to your sick “uncle” if anyone asks. do me this favour at least, that’s all i ask of you before you break my heart even more with your words.’ seokjin ended looking at his lover, vision blurred with tears pooling his eyes. with one last look he turned away wiping his tears, rushing back to the main palace.
taehyung was left frozen in shock, for how many times must his heart break today? he turned back to the library to see sung-ki looking at him with pity. he slowly brought himself to sung ki who once again reassured him like always.
‘taehyung, i will tell you once again, you aren’t a bad person, i know how much you love him, and he does too, he is just shocked. i know where you can go and stay safe, but promise me that when you stay there, you’ll wait for him. he’ll come, i know he will.’
taehyung tearfully nodded, walking into his room with sung-ki to pack. he needed to leave when it was still night to not be caught.
‘sung ki sshi, can i ask you one favour before i go?’ the librarian nodded, and taehyung went to grab the nearest paper and start writing. he took some other papers and sealed it into an envelope.
‘please can you give this to him, he needs to read it, please make sure he does.’
‘of course i will, now, go, and go safely please.’
____________________________________________
the next day a stone faced seokjin entered the library, scanning it to see if he could see taehyung. instead he met sung ki’s down face.
‘you heard everything, yet you still feel sad for the traitor?’ seokjin questioned angrily.
‘my apologies your highness, i know you are upset, but i would suggest you read this before speaking further, if he fulfilled your last request, i think you should do the same.’ the library replied sternly.
seokjin wearily looked at the envelope, tempted to rip it in shreds, but also curious to see what he could have put to make the most loyal worker in the palace be upset with him. then again taehyung could have been cunning enough to trick the librarian as well.
he took the envelope and wordlessly left the library and went to the privacy of his own chambers. seokjin sat at the edge of his bed, staring at the dark blue envelope. he didn’t have it in him to read it. seokjin grabbed the candle by his bed and lifted it to the envelope, he didn’t want to see what other lies taehyung wanted to feed to him. his heart was loudly beating in his ears like a drum as he brought the envelope close to the edge of the flame, only for at the last moment to hear his heart stop. he threw the envelope down, he just couldn’t do it. unknowingly tears fell down seokjin’s face once again. he slowly got up and took the envelope and kept it safe in his small drawer, and went back to his bed to think about what taehyung had said.
‘what do i do about eun hee and dong-gun now’ he groaned to himself, throwing himself onto his back in his bed. he didn’t want to deal with any of this right now, all he wanted to do was stay under the covers by himself.
seokjin managed to feign his sickness over something he ate at the party, allowing him to stay in bed for some days. he thought of multiple ways of how to deal with the lee family, he was so upset, he just wanted them executed and gone. if they hadn’t existed then perhaps taehyung would never have hurt him like so. deep in his angry thoughts, a knock interrupted him. he allowed the person in only to see eun hee. seokjin was fuming at this point, the last person he wanted to see right now was her, he shifted his body and turned, facing away from her.
‘my prince, how are you feeling today?’ she asked timidly, to which she got no reply.
‘i hope you feel better soon my prince, it hurts me to see you so ill.’
seokjin felt frustrated, as if she really cared. he could have her executed as soon as he opened his mouth to say the truth, but he just didn’t have the energy in him right now. as much as he was angry with taehyung, no matter how much he tried over the past few days he couldn’t get over him. he at least deserved a few days to grieve.
‘my prince, is there anything i can do?’ she asked again.
seokjin didn’t want to hear her call him her prince again, instead he missed hearing taehyung call him that, he wanted to hear taehyung call him that instead.
‘why are you calling me that,’ seokjin seethed.
‘what’s wrong, my prince, am i bothering you?’
‘am i bothering you,’ he mocked purposely, getting up to face her. ‘do you really think i’m that stupid. for you to trick me like that?’
eun hee looked at him shocked, she wondered how seokjin could know. before she spoke, seokjin interjected.
‘i know everything, how could you do this to taehyung, because you and your families greed you made him turn to it too, why could you trap someone as innocent as him, why? why? why him?’ seokjin cried helplessly. ‘because of you he’s gone, i sent him away, and here you are asking, am i bothering you? of course you are! i want you all executed but it won’t bring him back will it?’
eun hee looked at seokjin with pity, slowly understanding the situation in front of her and said, ‘you love him don’t you?’
seokjin glared at her, ‘what does it mean to you?’
‘tell me, did you listen to taehyung before you sent him away?’
seokjin shook his head no, regretting the fact that he didn’t hear what taehyung was burning to tell him.
‘then perhaps i hope you don’t make the same mistake and that you listen to me before you decide to execute me as well.’
seokjin paused, contemplating if he should let her speak. reluctantly he allowed her to speak, curious to see what she would say next.
‘i want to apologize to you, on my father’s behalf, and when i mean on my father’s behalf, is that i never wanted to do this, especially to taehyung.’ seokjin wanted to interject but eun hee was ahead of him. ‘before you say this is some sort of blaming game, listen.’ she begged.
‘i’m sure taehyung told you we were friends when we were younger, we would often play together, until my father got mad at me and restricted me from it. taehyung was truly one of my only friends, until my father took him away from me, just as he did with you. i often knew of the troubles taehyung would be up to around the village, but i would never report him, i cared too much for him to get into any serious issue.’
seokjin did not want to agree, but he saw the point she was making, but he feared he was being too naive to believe her so soon, but he was curious to hear more.
‘when i found out taehyung was going to be used in order to get to you, i was upset, but it is nearly impossible to speak up to my father. i never wanted to be apart of this plan either, but whatever my father says has to go. i was stuck here, and so was taehyung. he was never a bad man, it was just his situation. i genuinely mean all of this, dear prince, as much as you hate my father, i hate him tenfold, but if you still wish to punish me and him, then so be it.’ she finished.
the prince was unsure on whether to believe eun hee or not. as much as he didn’t want to, there was something genuine about her that he wanted to believe.
‘how can i know this isn’t part of your elaborate scheme?’ he challenged.
‘because, i’m sure if you had listened to taehyung before he left, you would know that he asked me for a favour early on, and it was to protect you no matter what. he could care less about himself, the only thing he cared about was you.’
seokjin regretted even more not listening to taehyung one last time. he remembered then that there was still taehyung’s envelope he hadn’t opened.
‘eun hee, for now give me some time. there is something that i remembered. if i end up seeing that your story matches from what i know, perhaps we can work on something, but for now, please go.’
eun hee quietly left the room, leaving seokjin distraught in his bed. he wanted so badly to believe that taehyung cared and the more the thinked about it, how could one cry so earnestly like taehyung did that night.
slowly he went to pick up the envelope from the drawer to read it. he opened to find many papers stuffed inside a bigger paper all spilling out onto his bed. seokjin looked at the bigger sheet of paper to see a long letter written by taehyung.
‘ my dear prince, i know you are upset with me, but as my last and only request, please read this letter. i want to explain everything to you, and as much as your anger and distrust towards me is valid, please read this with the big heart that you have.’
the letter went on to explain taehyung’s true childhood, how he grew up poor, and stealing was the only way he managed to climb his way up, and in the beginning he took this opportunity to gain more power. seokjin read how it was dong-gun’s plan to steal seokjin’s inheritance by marrying into his family and then killing him shortly after his heir was born using both his daughter and himself to do the task. taehyung’s role was to get seokjin to trust him, so he could influence him to marry eun hee. eun hee was to be the stand in for dong-gun’s way into power. taehyung explains later on in his letter that he often times questioned his actions and wanted to stop, but he feared for his life, so the least he could do was use his skills to influence dong-gun to not kill the prince, it was the least he could do for betraying him like this. the letter matched up with eun hee’s story and it went on to explain that the truth is that he really loved seokjin.
but seokjin did not want to believe him, for all that he knew this letter was another ploy to get him to continue trusting him, but seokjin kept reading on, he couldn’t stop himself. he reached the final part of the letter, reading it slowly, trying to convince him to not trust him again.
‘prince seokjin, i know you are thinking if this is all a lie, but i promise you that this is not. i truly love you, and it was always you for me. i am sorry it took me so long to tell you. i am sorry for so many things, but i want you to know that i love you, and always will. it’ll always be you who i love, it was always you. enclosed i have my poems, i told you that one day i will show you and i think you should read them and if you do choose to forgive me, please come to me, i will be waiting for you, go to sung-ki, he will help you, and for now i will wait for you my love.’
seokjin stared at the pile of folded papers beside the envelope. he shakingly took the first one and opened it. it was a poem about seokjin’s love for stars, and how his eyes glimmer just like one. he opened another one gingerly, and read it. it was a poem about watching ducks with a lover on a cool autumn’s night. seokjin started to feel the tears pool again in his eyes. every poem he picked was a love letter written about him. poems about his beauty, poems about his loving heart, poems about his soft laughter. seokjin sat on his bed in disbelief. poems like these could not be written overnight, poems like these could not hold any lies, it was a fact that taehyung did love him, he genuinely loved him, but seokjin did not listen to him last night, and instead he pushed him away. he picked up the poems again, reading through them over and over again with trembling lips and eyes full of tears.
seokjin dropped all the poems and fell, crying his heart out like a child. his tears wracked through his whole body, leaving out violent sobs of his mistake. he needed to go to taehyung, he never cared about wanting to be king either way, he wanted to run away, run to taehyung but for now all he could do was cry.
____________________________________________
after realizing that eun hee was telling the truth, he went to meet her to devise a plan that would benefit them both.
‘you dislike your father don’t you’ he started as he sipped his tea.
‘i hate the tyrant’ she grumbled back.
‘then wouldn’t it be nice to take the only thing he wanted away from him?’
‘what would that be, your highness?’ she inquired knowingly.
‘power’ seokjin grinned menacingly. ‘honestly, i never wanted it, but why let someone like your father have it, wouldn’t it be nice if you took it away from him?’
‘it would, but how would i do that?’
‘ill let you become queen, and only you will have that power. we can let your father watch and suffer as you take all that he owned away from him, we can choose to secretly banish him, or if you’d like have him killed, it’s up to you.’ he shrugged.
‘it would be nice to take away what he wanted, but why give it to me?’ she curiously asked.
‘like i said, i do not want to be here, all i want is to go back to my taehyung, but i need someone reliable to take the throne. i’ll be here until i see dong-gun perish, and until i know that you are a capable ruler of this land. when you are the loved queen by all of the kingdom, i will take my leave, and when that day comes, you will need to help me fake my own death.’
____________________________________________
seokjin made his way to the library to meet a knowing sung ki who embraced seokjin knowing why he was here. sung-ki told him how to find taehyung and get to him safely, and how to leave the country after they meet, but the librarian had a question lingering on his mind.
‘my prince, you know how to get to taehyung, but how will you leave this palace safely? and what will you do about eun hee?’
‘don’t worry i have an idea i need your help with,’ seokjin asked, to which the librarian nodded. seokjin went on to explain his plan that he devised with eun hee,
‘when that time comes and i know the kingdom will be safe with eun hee as queen, i will supposedly die during my travels for more books with you from an unknown disease, and my ‘dying’ request will be to have eun hee in power. the kingdom will have already loved her by then, i just need to stay for some years to make sure she doesn’t switch sides on me’ seokjin said. as much as he believed eun hee would not lie to him, he feared the worst, he needed to make sure that no one turned on him again.
the librarian understood, and agreed to seokjin’s plan, and proposed that he would help as much as he can to ensure eun hee would be a good leader. years went by, and seokjin realized that he could fully trust eun hee. he was surprised to see how ruthless she could be, opting to kill her own dad, for a punishment of her suffering when she was younger. seokjin saw how smartly she lead the land, and he realized that perhaps now is the time to be reunited with taehyung at last.
‘eun hee, are you going to miss me?’ seokjin joked as he was packing for his trip with sung ki.
‘god of course not,’ she playfully joked back. she paused and continued, ‘honestly, maybe i will, after taehyung, i think you are my only other friend, and as much as i wish you and taehyung could stay here i can understand why you do not want to.’ she admits
‘you are a good friend to me too, thank you for everything’ seokjin smiled back.
before seokjin left he teased the queen once more, ‘just remember, feel free to remarry once i’m gone, i know you have your eyes on young-sik, that painter.’
eun hee playfully gasped, pushing seokjin lightly towards the door.
‘you should go now, taehyung has waited too long.’
____________________________________________
waves crashed loudly at the shore against the rocks. the tide was coming in strong and fast. taehyung stood at the beach like he always does, waiting. it had been a few years, and he heard of how great the new king and queen were. despite all of this, taehyung did not lose hope, this was his own promise that he would keep. over the crashing sounds of the waves, taehyung felt someone was calling his name. it would often play out like this, he would imagine seokjin call out his name. he would turn and realize it was only a dream. a dream that would repeat on days end.
when taehyung turned to the faint voice like he always does in his dreams, he’s met with a figure of a person. taehyung rubbed his eyes as he sees the figure walk up closer. he had to pinch himself, was it actually his prince?
‘taehyung-ah, i’m here, i’m here now’ dream seokjin called out as he got closer.
‘is this a dream?’ taehyung asked dumbfoundedly.
instead he was met with a pair of arms around him and tears.
‘taehyung, my love i’m sorry it took so long, but i’m here, it’s me it’s not a dream’ seokjin gets out between sobs.
‘my love i’m sorry it took too long,’ seokjin says as he gently caresses taehyung’s shocked face, ‘forgive me please, i wanted to make sure i could get here safely for you.’
‘it’s really you,’ taehyung’s voice finally cracked out.
‘yes it’s me, i’m here’
seokjin’s voice is cut off by taehyung surging into kiss him deeply. they hold onto each others face with the fear that if they let go the other will disappear. the kiss is filled with all the emotions they both kept for years.
‘i love you my dear prince’ taehyung says smiling into another kiss. ‘or should i say my dear king’
‘at least now can you say my name?’
‘seokjin, i love you, i will always love you.’ taehyung confesses once again.
the waves continue to crash loudly against the rocks, but all the two heard amongst the crashes was their beating hearts and confessions of love.