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When Jisung is bored — and he means, really, really bored, which rarely happens when he's surrounded by guards and a lively kingdom — there is one particular thing he enjoys doing: teasing his boyfriend.
In fact, every day is a beautiful day to tease Jeongin. There's just something so… adorable, about the way Jeongin pouts when he knows he's being teased, lips out and so plush. It makes Jisung want to kiss the pout away until it breaks into a shy smile. Then maybe chase it further, to the dimple on Jeongin's left cheek, again and again just to hear him giggle and squirm under all the affection.
He just loves kissing Jeongin.
And, really, that's the whole point of his existence.
But that's just tiny details.
The real point is, Jisung is bored now, and his boyfriend is nowhere to be found. That leaves him with one more task.
"Good evening," Jisung greets the guard at the entrance of the castle, as nonchalantly as his mission requires. Though, he bows first, something he learned after spending most of his time with Jeongin and his parents. The guard must be new, around Jisung's age, but he quickly straightens upon seeing who just greeted him, red and golden outfit crinkling at the movement.
"Good evening, Jisung-ssi." The guard — Hyunjin, his tag reads — bows ninety degrees.
Jisung smiles, albeit a little awkward at the fancy name and gesture. It must be uncomfortable for Hyunjin to bow in that uniform.
Ever since Jeongin's return to Corona, the kingdom's eternal gratefulness for Jisung has taken him off guard (quite literally). It was a complete whiplash, to say the least. Jisung never thought he would be received with open arms in the same place everyone wanted him to, well, die. Even Leebit, the kingdom's horse that chased Jisung around for months, liked him now. He guesses bringing back the Lost Prince and falling in love with him had its perks.
(Besides kissing him, of course.)
At least they haven't called him something utterly crazy like 'Your Highness'. Yet.
"Please, Hyunjin, Jisung is just fine," he tells the kind guard at last.
Hyunjin's eyes widen. "Oh. Um. I'm not sure if I can—"
"If they say something," Jisung whispers, interrupting Hyunjin's train of words. He glances both ways around the castle as if telling a secret, even when he knows everyone here is too kind to tell this young guard off. "Just tell them I said it was all right, okay?" he asks. "Besides, we're the same age."
Hyunjin nods, a smile making a quick appearance on his face. It's charming, contagious, and Jisung can't stop the mirror smile that follows him.
"Thank you, Jisung."
Jisung sends him a wink, watching Hyunjin's face flush at the gesture. The big, golden doors of the castle open at Hyunjin's request, and Jisung thanks him with a polite, sincere smile before entering the place.
"Wait," he pauses mid-step, turning back to the guard who looks at him with wide, wondering eyes, "Do you, perhaps, know if Jeo— the Prince is here?" he corrects himself at the last minute. He might get away with these guards calling him by his informal name, but he knows they have great respect for the Prince. He would like to keep it that way.
Hyunjin's eyes light up. "He went out with Felix-ssi a couple of hours ago, Sir." Jisung raises his eyebrow, subtly teasing the man for his politeness. The man flushes again. "Sorry, I'm just… used to it, but anyway," he quickly changes the topic. "he should be back soon! The Prince, I mean."
Jisung smiles. That should leave him enough time to fulfill his mission. "Perfect. Thank you, Hyunjinnie."
"Of course, Jisung-ssi." Jisung looks at Hyunjin again, eyes and mouth ready to remind him that he, in fact, could call him Jisung. However, the smirk on Hyunjin's face tells him he's being teased.
Oh, Jisung's so planning on befriending this man. Jeongin would love him, too, he thinks. He will have to introduce them together one day — or maybe Jeongin already knows the guard. Sometimes Jisung forgets his boyfriend is actually a Prince, and probably knows most — if not all — villagers. For now, he has important duties to attend to.
Jisung is meticulous with his work. Subtle when he needs to be. He greets any guard he finds roaming the castle, and they greet him with such enthusiasm that he's still getting used to it. He asks them about their wives, husbands, kids, and if they're young, he compliments their looks. For some reason, the youth always love to hear how well they fit their uniforms. It always works to distract them.
He's fast when he gets to the main room, where he knows Jeongin likes to keep the crown when he's not on Prince duty. But he freezes when he gets to the door.
A guard is standing right in front of the crown, and Jisung curses. It shouldn't be a surprise that the crown is guarded twenty-four hours a day. It is pretty understandable after… You know… everything that happened before finding Jeongin. But for this specific mission, Jisung would've preferred succeeding without having to face any guards.
He braces himself for the chaos, before stepping into the room.
"Good eve—"
"Oh my goodness!" The guard exclaims upon seeing him, promptly interrupting Jisung's greeting. "Jisung-ssi, what an honor. Please, what do you need, kind sir?"
Kind sir?
Jisung blinks, left stunned once again. Have they forgotten who Jisung is — or was? Jisung knows it's been a little over six months since the return of the prince, but… he also thought it would take the Kingdom a while to get over Jisung's crimes. He was even prepared for a little resentment, for all the things he did wrong.
Are they all that forgiven? Where, exactly, is the catch?
Whatever it is, he's on a timed mission.
"Hello.." he looks at the guard's tags. "Chan-ssi?"
The guard nods, posture straightening before bowing slightly at the mention of his name. Thankfully, he doesn't go ninety degrees like Jisung did.
"I'm just here to retrieve the crown." He flashes his charming smile, the one that tends to work a little too well. He hopes that's enough to get him what he's looking for, to be trusted with something so delicate as the crown. After all, he's only using it to make his boyfriend — the Prince — smile. He's sure Jeongin will laugh at him once he retells this story.
To his surprise, the guard is quick to obey. "Of course!" He says and turns to the crowd. He pulls a small device from his pocket, one Jisung has never seen before — he supposes it's a royal mechanism of sorts. Chan uses it to deactivate the alarms that surround the crown.
When Chan gets to the box, he opens it. "Here," he says as he turns back around, a precious golden crown in his hands. Before he hands it to Jisung, who's casually leaning against the door, holding his hand out to take the crown, he says, voice serious. "I trust you will take care of it, Jisung-ssi."
Jisungs nods instantly, eyes wide and earnest.
Chan smiles, dimple making him look younger than he may be. He places the crown on Jisung's hand. "And give the Prince my greetings."
Jisung bows in respect. "Thank you."
The journey to Jeongin's chamber — his and Jeongin's chamber, per Jeongin's request — is nothing short of boring, but the thrill of sneaking around is enough to make Jisung giggle under his breath.
When he gets to the big colorful door — one of many Jeongin has painted — he looks both ways, making sure the hallway is free of any guards, or parents. He knows he's being a bit ridiculous, but that's the fun of this secret mission. That, and the adorable reaction he's anticipating from his boyfriend. If Jeongin were to find him now he would roll his eyes playfully and call him stupid hyung.
To no one's surprise, Jisung would love it.
As soon as the door is closed behind him, he lets out a breath of relief.
"We're finally alone," he says, eyes closed and bringing the crown to his chest. His shoulders relax, the tension melting as he—
"Who are you talking to there?"
The unexpected voice makes Jisung yelp, his whole body jolting off the ground. He turns around, eyes wide, his heart in his throat.
Jeongin sprawled on the floor, looking up at him with a smug glint in his eyes. He looks so beautiful in a casual black shirt and jeans, golden hair making his brown fox-like eyes stand out. Jisung almost forgets what he was even here for, getting lost in the sea of Jeongin's eyes.
Though, his eyes flicker from the crown on his hands to his boyfriend — who wasn't supposed to be here yet! — and quickly decides.
The crown is on his head in less than two seconds. He straightens, chest puffed out, clearing his throat for a dramatic pause as he slips into character. "Bow to me, thief!" he declares. "I'm your princess now."
From the floor, Jeongin looks unimpressed, rolling his eyes at Jisung's antics before he finishes toeing off his shoes — the ones Jisung gifted him their first week back in the kingdom. All with his own money, okay? He did earn it.
"How did you get my crown?" Jeongin asks as he stands up, eyeing Jisung suspiciously.
"That's… not important now."
Jeongin raises an eyebrow. "Have you been hanging out a lot with Hyunjin-hyung?"
Jisung huffs, ready to correct him, but it dies quickly when their gazes meet. Even with his teasing, Jisung can see the fondness radiating from Jeongin's own eyes. His heart sings when he recognizes it's the kind of fondness that is reserved just for him — and Foxiny, Jeongin's small fox pet, but Jisung's made peace with that by now.
Just as quickly as he got up, Jeongin takes two quick steps and pulls Jisung by his arm. Right to the edge of the bed and pushes him down. Jisung goes easily and watches in fascination as Jeongin settles in between his open legs, closing some of the distance between their bodies. He winds his arms around Jisung's neck, looking down at him, then up at the crown.
Jisung swallows nervously — something he's caught himself doing a lot whenever he's around the younger. He didn't expect Jeongin to react this way; demanding and taking the lead. Though he's not complaining, this side of Jeongin is way better than what he was expecting.
He's dying to get his hands on his boyfriend's waist, fingers twitching where they're placed on the bed, but he stops himself. He needs to play his part, at least for a few more minutes. He opens his mouth to speak, but the Prince has always been faster.
"So," Jeongin interrupts whatever Jisung was about to ask — something about Hyunjin, but he can't exactly remember now. Not when Jeongin's looking at him like that, his expression soft yet playful as his eyes flicker down Jisung's face, gentle fingers reaching for the crown. "Am I dating a princess or a man who steals crowns as a hobby?"
There's something in Jeongin's eyes that makes Jisung cheer internally. He's playing the game, enjoying the banter between them. Jisung's heart swells with eternal love for his boy. "I can be both for you, m'lady."
"Aren't you supposed to be my lady, in this case?"
Jisung shrugs, looking up at his boyfriend through his eyelashes. And because he knows it will annoy the younger, he brings out his mortal weapon; the smolder. He tilts his head, pursing his lips and raising an eyebrow.
"We can be each other's ladies, if you'd like," he flirts, voice slightly strained from holding the expression.
Jeongin pulls a face and hits his shoulder slightly. "Hyung! I thought we prohibited the smolder!"
"So you're saying you don't want me?" Jisung whines, placing a hand to his wounded heart.
Jeongin rolls his eyes fondly. "I did not say that."
Jisung pouts, hoping to achieve something with it. His hands finally settle on Jeongin's waist, like they've been wanting to do since he had Jeongin so close. Jisung pulls him a little closer.
They look at each other for a second. Then another. A strand of Jeongin's blonde hair falls into his face and Jisung forgets how to breathe. He's so beautiful, soft smile making Jisung want to kiss him.
A giggle pulls him out of his thoughts. "Thank you, baby," Jeongin says — and when did he get so close?
"Did I say that aloud?" Jisung asks, already knowing the answer.
"Maybe…"
Jisung groans, but catches the moment Jeongin's eyes slip from his own, down to his lips. He licks his lips.
"So…"
"So what?" Jeongin breathes.
"Will this princess get a kiss?"
Jeongin hums, leaning in until their noses brush, close enough that Jisung can feel his breath against his lips.
“You’re already getting too much,” he murmurs.
Jisung whines, but it comes out weaker than intended. "Please?" He is not above begging when Jeongin is involved, his grip tightening just the slightest around Jeongin’s waist.
But when Jeongin leans in and closes the distance, crown falling somewhere onto the bed, Jisung doesn’t think he’s ever been this doomed.