Work Text:
'Dad you can't do that' Mingyu was fuming with anger and sadness as he argued with his father.
'I can do anything and you know that Mingyu, either stop meeting him or face the consequences' Mingyu's father said with a stern voice.
Mingyu could see his brother from the corner of his eyes, helpless and frustrated knowing he couldn’t do anything to help his brother. Mingyu was tired and he was on the verge of losing everything he had.
'As a prince, you know that you are not allowed to even speak with a mere commoner alone fall in love with them, but you, you fall in love with a commoner, and that too from the southern region'
Mingyu didn't say anything, he was tired he couldn’t keep up with all of this again and again. He shut his eyes trying to calm down. He slowly went to his room and locked his door. He went inside his comforter trying to sleep but all he could see was nothing but all the time he spent with his wonu hyung. How his wonu hyung makes him feel normal, how he can be himself, and how calm he makes him. Not that his brothers do not love him or anything but what could they do his brother was the crown prince and his other brother was posted to other places. He was alone inside the castle. He was cast alone almost all of the time because others saw him as the weird and freak prince of the kingdom. His only friends were his butler Seokmin and his husband Jisoo the butler of the crown prince, they were the only ones who made him feel normal inside the palace other than his brothers.
He remembers how his wonu hyung would let him lay in his lap and how his hand went through his hair, how that would make him feel free and comforted. He remembers his wonu hyung’s citrus scent. He remembers how his wonu hyung would calm him down by rubbing his ear softly, how they cuddled on the small couch at Wowoo’s home, how kiss felt. He felt his cheek getting, he didn’t even notice he was crying. He was yearning for his wonu hyung’s touch and hugs how that would calm him down in any given situation. They were not in a relationship but they knew what they had were more than friends and even more than brothers they were each other’s halves, and they complete each other. Mingyu could do nothing but cry and cry with his low whimpers and soft sobs. He heard his name being called from the outside knowing it would be his butler he opened his door slowly letting him in.
‘Oh baby, come here’ Seokmin said opening his arm widely for a hug
Mingyu just hugged Seokmin and cried like a baby snuggling in Seokmin’s neck.
‘Shh, it’s okay. Let it all out. Hmm,’ Seokmin drew a circle on Mingyu’s back while comforting him with all the soft whispers and soft words.
‘I really love him, Minnie. I do and I-I can’t live without him, Minnie. What do I do?’ his voice was shaking as he spoke.
‘I know baby, I know you do’ seokmin whisper
‘b-but dad, he would never let me love him, Minnie ‘
‘it’s your feeling baby, it’s okay shh. You love him alright?’
Seokmin brought mingyu to his bed and laid hm tucking him slowly patting his hair like how mingyu likes. His eyes were getting heavy and slowly closing his eyes.
He woke up with slightly heavy head and red eyes. He was determined to meet wonwoo tonight. He knows that his wonu hyung would always be there for him no matter what. He did all the things that were told that day and didn’t complain about anything, he went along with everything his father and even met his suppose fiancé.
‘Minnie I want to go to bed early tonight. ‘ he says simply.
‘Yes, your highness’ later replied shortly.
When they reach his bed chamber and went inside seokmin asked him
‘Are you okay gyu? You don’t seem yourself’ seokmin was worried how mingyu was acting the whole day.
‘I’m okay minnie. I guess I m just tired’ mingyu replied.
‘okay but tell me if anything bothers hmm?’ mingyu just nodded and went to his bed and tried to sleep.
As the clock strike midnight, he knew he had to proceed his plan. He put some of his coins inside his bag and put the things that his wonu hyung gave him and what he held closely. He slowly went through his room’s hallway. Before his butler would accompany him but this time he did not want to bother seokmin at all. He could hear his heartbeat loud and clear when he tries to go through the back side of the palace. He did succeed in getting out of the castle with nobody catching him. He decided to walk till the northern gate.
When he reaches the northern gate he wait for some time for the guards to go back to there shelters. After a minute and half, he crossed the northern gate and now he was out of the capital. He knew the way by heart to his wonu hyung’s home. When he reached wonwoo’s house he sighed in reliefed in hope that he will atlast be in peace even that was for only some time.
He knocked on door waiting patiently for wonwoo to open the door for him. Wonwoo open the door with his disheveled hair showing he was sleeping. When he saw mingyu at his door he frowned.
‘mingyu what are you doing here? At this time?’ wonwoo asked him
‘hyung I came here to spend time with you’ mingyu answered shortly as if it was a matter of fact.
‘you know you shouldn’t be here. right?’ wonwoo said looking intently towards mingyu.
Mingyu was a bit taken back at how his hyung was acting with him. They wee still standing at the door. He started getting anxious at how wonwoo was looking at him. Wonwoo neer looked at him like that. He usually looked at mingyu ith fondness and full of love.
‘hyung what do you mean I shouldn’t be here? I’m supposed to be with you. Right? You told me I should be where you are. Right hyung?’ mingyu said with his voice a bit shaken up with the anxiety crawling upon him.
‘mingyu why are you still holding onto those empty words? You know that we would never happen and even if we do happen we will never work’ wonwoo’s voice was filled with coldness.
‘h-hyung y-you are joking, right? You said you would never leave my side. Hyung tell me please you don’t mean it please hyung at this point he crying.
‘mingyu stop this right now. we will never happen stop this before it gets deeper’ Mingyu was already in deep he was not going out ever. ’let’s say we even ran away together your father will never leave my family alone you know that and who will take care of my family?’
‘h-hyung…….I never said to run away’ Mingyu said with a small voice, he just wanted to spend some time with Wonwoo before he was forced to marry someone he didn’t know.
‘but you meant it no? you came here all ready with your bag and all. Let me tell you Mingyu, I’m not like you. I can’t just leave my family because of someone I just met a few months ago’ Wonwoo was losing it also.
At this point Mingyu was a sobbing mess. ‘ h-hyung i-its not l-like that at all’ he tried to let that out.
But before he said anything more the door was already closed at his face. He was broken, more than broken. He felt like the last thing that ever held him also left him. Yes, he was desperate for Wonwoo because he was only sting that he was holding on to his life. Wonwoo was the one who had saved him all his life. Wonwoo gave him the reasons to live every day. Wonwoo was the only ray of hope and a ray of light in his life where people kept looking down and cast him like he was not even normal. People in his life kept making him feel small and worthless his entire life. Wonwoo was the only one who made him feel normal, cared for, and loved more than anyone in his life. He felt he wanted to live. First time in his life he didn’t want to die.
Mingyu was sitting at the beach, the most southern point of the entire kingdom. Sitting there all he could think about was the time he spent with Wonwoo, with his brothers, and lastly his mother. He was missing his mother a lot at that time. He felt numb, his heart stopped hurting, tears were running down his cheek yet he didn’t feel anything at all. He felt like he was a burden to all of them. To his father, to his brothers to his wonu hyung. Deep down he wants to believe that the words from Wonwoo do not mean at all. But he heard it all loud and clear with his own ear. He wanted to die at this point. He stood up and slowly went towards the sea where he played with Wonwoo and his brothers lastly, he remembered how he played with his mother when he was little. He was cursing the fate so much.
‘mama I’m finally coming to you, where I truly belong’ he whispered to himself and went towards the sea leaving all the things he brought with him at the shore.
The kingdom was in chaos, and one of the princes, the prince kim mingyu was missing from the palace.
Interrogations were happening everywhere. Seokmin was looking for Mingyu franticly. Then it hits him. He went to wonwooWonwoo’sdirectly. He was knocking on the door aggressively. Wonwoo opened up and was shocked to see Mingyu’s butler in front of his door.
‘tell me Mingyu is here, please’ Seokmin was out of breath.
‘what happened seokmin?’ wonwoo was worried with how Seokmin looked.
‘Tell Me Mingyu Is Here!!!’ seokmin raised his voice when he didn’t get the answer he wanted ‘Please tell me he is here, MINGYU ARE YOU IN HERE? PLEASE ANSWER ME GYU. I WON’T TELL ANYONE TELL ME YOU are safe at least……’ seokmin was crying at this point.
‘NO NO HE IS NOT HERE SEOKMIN!!, Get a grip of yourself, what happened why are you here? And why would he be here, he already went back, I thought he was with you’ Wonwoo said with panic building in him at how Seokmin was acting.
‘NO WON NO HE IS NOT WITH ME. I should have stayed with him yesterday I should have.’
Wonwoo didn’t believe what he was hearing. He thought after their argument yesterday Mingyu should have returned to the palace. He hastily went towards their spot at the beach where he and Mingyu often hang out. He was running fast, he could feel Seokmin behind him but he couldn’t care less. When he reached there he saw the bag Mingyu brought the other night. He was devasted by how he acted yesterday. He connected the dot immediately. Wonwoo hugged the bag and cried out knowing what happened and he blamed himself.
-flashback-
‘your royal majesty, what can I help you with for your sudden visit’ Wonwoo asked bowing
‘I want you to stop talking with Mingyu’ the King replied shortly.
‘w-what are you talking about? Your Majesty’ wonwoo was taken back
‘you know what I’m talking about wonwoo shi, you are smart and if you don’t follow the king’s order you know the consequence’ the king said and left the house without hearing anything.
Wonwoo was glued in his spot he could not believe what just happened. Yes, he loved Mingyu with all his being but his whole family was dependent on him. He could not imagine a life without Mingyu in it but again he loves his family too.
‘wonwoo tell me you are not going to do what you are thinking right now’ his mother asked him, knowing his son and what he would do.
‘or what mom leave you all to fend for yourself, you know I would never do that’ wonwoo back
‘but son, its mingyu we are talking about. You love him son’ his mother soften his voice.
‘mom I don’t know anything anymore’ wonwoo sighed
-the night where he and Mingyu argued-
He closed the door, he couldn’t see his Mingyu crying because of him. He was also crying, his forehead on the door. The image of Mingyu crying kept replying in his mind, he kept crying. After some min, he opened the door. Mingyu was not there anymore. He thought he went back to the palace. That night he kept crying and couldn’t sleep. He wanted to run after Mingyu and hold him in his arms and tell him that those were not empty words, he meant every word he had told him before and he loved him too much, and if he told him to go away with him he would but he didn’t, instead he cried himself to sleep remembering how Mingyu felt in his arms and how Mingyu would blush at the little compliments he gave him.
-back to the present-
They had found the body after a search for 5 hours. He looked pale not his usual golden skin. He looked like he was in deep sleep. The crowned prince, Choi seungcheol was crying hugging Mingyu’s body while his fiancé was rubbing his back. Seokmin was crying in Joshua’s arms. His mother and his brother were also crying. The king did not cry just looked at the lifeless body of Mingyu.
After a whole year seungcheol was crowned the king alongside Jeonghan as the prince consort. Seokmin and Joshua quit their job as butlers after mingyu passed away and live in the southern part quietly.
Everyone moved on from the death of the prince but Wonwoo couldn’t. he still
Blamed himself for Mingyu’s death. After his family settled down after his brother also settled down he went to his and mingyu’s spot in the beach he sat there till the sunset cursing the fate ‘why would you even let us meet when you wouldn’t even let us be with each other.’
