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The kingdom of Krouton is one of the most beautiful kingdoms. The land around the kingdom is breathtaking, and the views are spectacular everywhere you go. You could just stop and admire what’s around you; it’s a place full of life. Yeonwoo works in the stables with his parents.
He just so happens to be with the most feared knight in the kingdom, Kang Haesol herself. Everyone knows not to get on her bad side or to mess with those she cares about, especially him. People have seen what happened the last time someone hurt him. Sometimes someone will mess with him. Still, usually he chooses not to tell Haesol since it usually isn’t a big deal, just insults.
Haesol will often come by the stables. Sometimes it’s because she needs to use a horse, and usually it’s just to see him, often bringing a flower for him.
Yeonwoo smiles with his eyes closed as he breathes in the scent of the morning air in the grassy field he’s lying in. He feels the grass between his fingers. He enjoys the feeling of the warm sun on his face. He opens his eyes to see Haesol standing there, staring down at him in her armor, only her helmet off. She is just holding it. Her armor is one of a kind; it was specifically made for her. She wanted it to be lighter and easier to move around in, but still good enough to protect her.
“I figured I’d find you here.”
He quickly stands up and looks at her face. The morning sun is shining on her face. He glances at the scar on her cheek from a fight two years ago, where she got cut while protecting him. He can still remember having to tend to it himself because she kept acting as if it were no big deal.
“Oh, hi, Haesol, wh-What, uh, what are you doing here?”
“I just wanted to see your pretty face.”
A smile forms on his lips, along with his cheeks turning red. She’s called him pretty and other things so many times, and he still blushes every time, but before he can speak, she says something again.
“Let’s go get a horse. I found something I think you’d like.”
She says as she attaches her helmet to her side using a strap, then grabs his hand and walks over the stables, finding a horse and leading it out of the stable. Once they are out, her hands go onto his waist and lift him up onto the back of the horse before climbing on herself.
“Make sure you hold onto me tight.”
She says as his arms go around her tightly as they start moving the horse, galloping at first, then slowing down to a trot as they get on the trail leading to the forest, his grip loosening when they slow down, meaning he's relaxed.
“Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
She glances at him over her shoulder quickly just to make sure he’s doing okay before keeping her eyes on the trail. Just in case of an ambush by a small group, typically they won’t attack this close to a town, especially one that's near a castle. They don’t usually just attack two people on a horse; it’s usually a wagon, but it’s better to be safe.
They travel for around 30 minutes before they stop. She gets off the horse and helps him off the horse. She brings him to a small lake in the forest, where the water is a beautiful shade of blue.
“How’d you find this place?”
She grabs two bags off the horse before she answers.
“I found it the other day when the horse bucked me off because it got scared. When I looked for the horse, I found it here, and I figured you’d like the place.”
He looks around it, taking in its beauty.
“It’s beautiful”
“Yeah, it is.”
He looks over at her, noticing she said that while staring directly at him. He wonders if she was talking about him or the lake. It’s common for him to catch her just staring at him.
“We will eat here, then go back before it gets dark, hopefully.”
They eat, talk, and make out a little before they ride back into town as it gets dark. Coming into town, they see the lights heading towards the stable, going in and getting off the horse.
“I have something to do. It won't take long, so I'll be seeing you shortly."
Haesol says, leaning down and kissing his forehead before walking off.
He watches her leave the stable. After she leaves, he brushes the horse that was just used, and he goes around cleaning the stable, checking on each horse. Not long after he finishes, a drunken man comes into the stable.
The man is holding a bottle of alcohol, and he notices Yeonwoo and starts walking over to him, getting closer to him.
“Hey, pretty lady!”
The man reaches his hand out, thinking Yeonwoo is a girl, but before his hand touches him, his wrist is suddenly grabbed by Haesol, who is no longer in her armor, and she glares at the man.
“Touch him, and you’ll regret it.”
The man looks over, recognizing Haesol. The glare scares the hell out of him since he knows what she can do to him if she doesn’t hold back. She lets go of his wrist watches as he runs off. She looks over at Yeonwoo. Her face softens as she comes up to him. She holds his face in her hands. She sees the fear in his eyes; the fear slowly went away from her being there.
“He didn’t touch you before I came in, right?”
Seeing him shake his head, she lets out a breath of relief, knowing he’s okay, just a bit scared. She hugs him tightly, and he hugs back. Both of them are just silently hugging for a while.
“I’m glad you're okay.”
They slowly pull away from the hug, walking out of the stable together. She brings him in a certain direction and into an open field right next to town.
“The sky is clear today, and you can see all the stars.”
She lays down on the grass, motioning for him to do the same as he does, and looks up at the stars. The sky really is clear tonight; it's a beautiful view.
“What a beautiful view, right?”
"Yeah, it is gorgeous.”
He glances at her, only to see her staring at him with a small smile. He clearly enjoys the sight of him more than the sky, his face turning red because of it.
“Ha-haesol I meant the sky, no-not me.”
He looks away, embarrassed by her staring at him; she’s not even trying to be subtle about it. He feels her hand gently go on his chin, bringing him back to making eye contact.
“Yeah, that’s beautiful, but you are even better to look at.”
Her thumb runs across his bottom lip before her hand moves, and she brushes some hair behind his ear. She rolls onto her side, ignoring the sky and focusing her attention fully on him.
“It’s quiet out here; we should sleep right here.”
He says he is smiling as he looks into her eyes.
“You’ll get a cold if we sleep out here.”
“That’s why I have you to warm me up.”
She lets out a small laugh and shakes her head at the fact that he really does love her warm body. Sometimes she thinks he acts cold on purpose just so she’ll hold him. She will never complain about being able to hold him.
“We’ll stay out here for a bit longer, but we’re going to sleep in our bed first.”
She scoots closer to him, pressing her lips against his, and starts to kiss him. After a few seconds, they move with her on top of him, her hands in his hair, and his hands on her arms as they make out under the stars.