Work Text:
Written on March the tenth.
Hopefully sent on the same day.
Your Grace,
I hope this letter reaches you before the newspaper does.
My uncle, intending to create new alliances, has decided that marriage was the best option. He, of course, didn’t choose my brother as a sacrifice - he is far too valuable and important to lose.
The King was kind enough to arrange for a man to become my spouse - his words, not mine.
I vehemently refused which resulted in me being placed under very tight protection.
I am now forbidden to leave the room I have practically been locked in, and I am not allowed to have any kind of contact with anyone except my maids and my dear family. Knights have been posted under the windows of my room and the attached bathroom. Others are stationed near my bedroom door, and one has been ordered to stay in my room and keep an eye on me, ensuring that I do not spend too much time in the bathroom.
This very letter was written on my bathroom floor, hidden in my clothes, and went through the hands of two maids, a cook, and two knights.
Do not worry - my next letters will not go through the hands of the exact same people.
However, I am afraid I cannot take the risk of receiving letters. A fact that only saddens me, but I was not left with a choice.
For now, all I can tell you is that the wedding is supposed to take place in two weeks, on the twenty-fifth.
I have already thought of multiple ‘escape plans’ and will keep you updated when I finally decide on one.
None of your clothes smell like you anymore,
Your one and only
—————
Written on March the fourteenth.
Unsent against my will.
My one and only,
Your letter somehow did reach me before the official announcement.
I am nothing short of furious, but I believe in your ability to escape if necessary. However, I do hope that you stay careful and take care of yourself.
All I have left is a bottle of your cologne but it pales in comparison to the memory of your scent,
Yours
—————
Written on March the nineteenth.
Sent, despite the King’s orders, on the same day.
Dear Duke,
I apologize for contacting you so late.
I am writing to inform you that I have, in fact, decided on an escape plan.
Having put more thought into it, I believe it is better to let the King think that I am complying and thus not try anything until the wedding day.
I cannot refuse to marry my fiancé and risk a war, the people do not deserve that.
After the ceremony, I will be allowed to have some time to myself to prepare for the wedding night.
I will use this opportunity to escape.
That would mean that my goal is to disappear.
But I am not worried, I believe in your ability to find me no matter the obstacles.
With the hope that you find me before I forget the sound of your voice,
Your lover
—————
Written on March the twenty-third.
Unsent. I will hand you this letter myself soon enough.
My Prince,
While I do not doubt in your ability to escape, I cannot accept seeing another man bound to you by marriage.
I will be present at the ceremony.
And although I would have, in fact, been able to find you had you escaped alone, that will not be necessary.
Do not dare forget my voice,
Your soon-to-be
—————
Written on June the sixth, after many changes.
Unsent. You will hear these words in my wedding vows.
Dear Ilay,
There are a lot of things I could say about you.
You are an infuriating know-it-all asshole who only thinks about achieving his ridiculous goals, no matter the cost.
But you are also the most ridiculously kind, most generous, cutest and most beautiful man I have ever met. I do not think I have thanked you enough for seeing me as Jeong Taeui and not just as someone’s brother or nephew.
I have no doubt that you will tease me for this, but my sentimental self wouldn’t allow me not to mention the one thing I am most thankful for.
My almost-wedding was a mess.
All I could think of before and during the ceremony was your smile when you looked at me, how your cold gaze softened and only seemed to focus on me and nothing else.
I remember feeling empty during the ceremony and deciding to look around in the stupid hope of meeting your gaze.
When I did meet your eyes, hidden under a knight’s helmet, all I could think was : What is this idiot doing here ? He is putting himself in danger. Does he even have a plan ? He is definitely about to do something stupid.
And yet, I couldn’t help but feel reassured and smile. You were here and I knew you had a plan for us to get out.
You did, in fact, have one. It was chaotic, involved an unnecessary amount of threats and running, but it got us where we are.
Since then, all you have offered me was safety and happiness.
You somehow bought us a small house away from politics and power, and made sure I had a family and love.
I cannot stress enough the fact that I have never been as happy as I am with you.
Thank you for everything.
I love you and promise to stay by your side until nothing is left of us,
Your husband
—————
Written on June the sixth.
Unsent, but I will allow you to read this if you ever feel the need to be reminded of our wedding.
My lovely Taeui,
I do not know much about what you are supposed to say in your wedding vows. All I was told is that I need to profess my love with the goal to make you cry with happiness.
Knowing you, you will be crying by the end of your own vows, but I will still try my best to make more tears roll down your adorable cheeks.
You are the kindest person I will ever meet. You are generous, caring to a fault, lovely, terrifyingly beautiful and oh so bright.
I have not once, since meeting you, been able to look away from this beautiful smile of yours. Were you aware that you get a dimple on your left cheek when you laugh without restraint ?
As uncharacteristic of me as you might think it is, I believe now is the time to tell you how much I love you and how the very thought of you makes me feel almost giddy.
I am well aware of my inability to express myself, and of all my shortcomings. I am also aware of how much I frustrate you.
Yet despite this, you always seem to somehow look at me with love.
The way your gaze always softens no matter how annoyed you might feel has always managed to make my heart skip a beat.
I swear to always stay by your side, no matter what might happen. I promise to take care of you, protect you and make you happy forever.
I will not allow even Death to tear us apart.
Forever yours