#ah yes. brace for emotional baggage

[kiaroscuro]

Title: as the world caves in

Warnings: descriptions of violence, major character death

Rating: Mature

Main Pairing: Ren Amamiya / Arsene

Main Tags: post-canon, zombie au, angst, hurt / comfort, road trips

Warning: gore

· · ─────── =^.^= ─────── · ·

Four days later has Ren finally finding success, body weary and battered. After continuing on further north-east, Ren's managed to track down three garuda, circling lethargically in the air until he attracted their attention, after which they started circling him like vultures. It had been raining for the past day, and Ren's soaked to the bone and dragged down by the weight of his clothes, but he doesn't stop his relentless pursuit of the mutated until he managed to clip the wings of two and dismember the third, his sniper rifle still hot and smoking at the muzzle before he hurriedly stoves it away next to his things -- hidden in a tangle of brambles.

He engages the bird-like shadows with his dagger and handgun, tries his best to wound and not kill, hopes that at least one of them has enough brainpower left to use a healing skill targeted at the group so that Ren can benefit from it.

He stumbles as one lunges for him, catching his side with its beak before they crash, and Ren has barely any time to ram up his gun to catch it before it tried to go for his neck, eyes empty. There's flowers lodged in its throat, the petals falling past the gun and onto his cheek with its saliva, and Ren closes one eye while he struggles to move the arm pinned underneath its foot, dagger in a reverse grip. The other two are approaching, one of them dragging itself on the ground because he'd gotten its leg, and Ren panics and rams his knee into the groin of the one that is trying to bite him, dislodging its foot before he guts it open, gore splattering into his front as it falls to the side, limp.

Ren breathes heavily, rattled, jumps to his legs before kneeling because he's out-of-breath, aiming his handgun for the head of the closest approaching one, the echoing bang-! loud in the silence of the forest. "...come on, heal yourselves...!" Ren mutters, clutching at his sluggishly bleeding side, vision growing wonky because of his exhaustion and the harsh rainfall. "Please," he adds, kind of helplessly. The gutted one is dying, he's blown out the brains of another, and only the one that was dragging itself along is still close to being 'fine' -- if they don't cast the spell, Ren will have to find others, and he doesn't think he can survive another week of stark silence without going completely mad.

The last garuda groans, drags itself close enough to Ren's side that he's readying his dagger already, before the soft glow of Amrita Drop surrounds it. Ren watches in fascination as some of the flowers seem to peel off of them, watches as wounds try and fail to close -- it's a spell against ailments and not physical injuries, after all, though it helps with alleviating pain -- and then finally feels it wash over himself.

Ren's breath gets struck in his throat as he waits, silently. A beat passes, then two--

static crackles in the air, a mazio unloading, and Ren's muscles tense as he watches in disbelief how the one-legged garuda shrieks as it rights itself up, pain visible in its dull eyes. He feels the electric-type damage wash over his skin, hyper-conducted through how wet he was, feels it travel over his shoulder and his shut eye and--

the static drops as quickly as it had appeared, and Ren curls into a ball with his forehead to the ground because his whole right side hurts, tears gathering in his eyes. Something sharp touches over his curled spine, but Ren's unresponsive, muscles spasming and side burning, his eye feeling as if it was cooked out of his skull. "Oh Ren..." Arsene's voice murmurs, low and sad but there. "...what stupid thing did thou do?" He asks, his claws pressing deeper against Ren's spine. Ren whines, fingers clutching deeper against his side, the pain making him delirious. But Arsene was there, Arsene was back, and --

Ren loses consciousness while he feels Arsene shift, feels the claws travel towards his chest and the persona's other hand towards his knees before he blacks out, welcoming the bliss of a painless silence.

--

He'd been able to see everything that kept happening to Ren as if through a kaleidoscope, impersonal and not-quite-there, sometimes missing hours if not days while he tried to stay aware, unable to interfere through the thick molasses of their addled mind, could do nothing but watch until Amrita Drop washed over them and broke Arsene free of the shackles, only to see his user--

Arsene sighs, cradling Ren closer to himself, the human's skin fevered with flush and bleeding from too many cuts and wounds. The persona had surveyed the grounds of slaughter before he'd carefully ambled over to where Ren's hidden his supplies, awkwardly grabbing everything and adjusting it onto his form without leaving his human out of his grasp, before he re-oriented himself into a north-east direction and started walking, his innate sense of direction as precise as a compass. Ren is burning up, whimpering at every movement, curling himself tighter against Arsene's chest in a feeble effort to feel safe even in his dreams, and Arsene mantles his wings over Ren to the best of his ability, the rain making the soft down stick together while it pearls off in rivulets. His fire burns low, a flickering thing while he continues forward, and he doesn't notice that he's thrumming in worry until Ren unconsciously smooths the palm of his hand over Arsene's chest as if to comfort him.

Warmth seeps into the persona at the connection point, something soft curving the line of his back, and he feels both incredibly fond and also unbelievably disgusted with himself, for not noticing the danger that the Nagoya settlement had turned into. Arsene chirrs softly when the rain turns to hail, glancing heavenwards and wondering where he should take Ren to, where there was a dry shelter the human could rest in. He's wary of any groups, be they human or shadow, would rather squirrel away his user and hide him from all of the hurt of the world.

The hail plinks against his mask, the break in his horn starting to smart from the cold, but Arsene soldiers on with his senses wide open and wonders.

An hour later something rustles to his right, the structure of the overgrown forest giving way to cliffs and sparser trees, conifers starting to dominate over the leafy ones. They're entering something of a more regular forest, the scent of magic subsiding as they pass whatever invisible border mother nature had decided was enough for her megafauna to terrorize, and Arsene can hear the soft chitter of regular animals instead of the groaning of the infected.

A shadow emerges from the tree-line, soaked through and with its armor in disarray, a little cat-shaped samurai. It is uninfected, but stares at Arsene as if he's the mutated one, though he probably showed a sight. "Greetings, shogun." Arsene says, inclining his head even while his claws tighten in the fabric of Ren's clothes and his wings press closer, until he can feel the hot fever past his feathers.

"Hullo. You're not sick," it says, eyes wary. Arsene nods.

"We wish you no harm; we're only seeking shelter," he murmurs, voice catching and throat smarting. Speaking loudly scrapes at his wounded throat, and he can feel blood and ichor amass behind the seams of his mask the more he speaks with the cat, doesn't know how much of it is physical and how much is psychological pain. But Ren needs somewhere dry so that Arsene could inspect his shoulder and his abdomen before the fever turns into an infection, so he will try.

The cat frowns, and something behind it moves, another neko shogun appearing. A nekomata follows, as does a bugbear and an alice, and Arsene finds himself tense as he notices that he's run into a rather large group of survivors. "Where are you headed?" The nekomata asks, one of her ears missing.

"To Tokyo."

"It's dangerous to cross over the forest. Stick to the human ruins." The first shogun says, and Arsene nods. The hail still falls, but it has stopped its relentless assault. Still; Ren's clothes are completely soaked.

"The city is in shambles, but there's survivors banding together everywhere, be they human or shadow." The nekomata continues, and his fire purses into a thin line.

"Thou've been there?"

She nods, tail swishing. She looks frightened, malnourished. "Near Odaiba. Everything went under when the bay expanded two months ago; I fled and ran into bugbear. It's a long way to Tokyo, and winter is close, avian. Now we only wish for a shelter where we'll not be separated."

He nods, aware of the impending winter that they hadn't managed to out-journey. "Stay as far away as ye can from Nagoya's settlement; it is a cannibalistic cult particularly unfriendly to shadows." Arsene shifts, clutches Ren closer to offer what little body warmth that he can, the steady rise and fall of his user's breath the only balm on their shared soul right now. "There's a camp near Tsu called Tsu-Aki that takes in shadows and humans alike." He offers, because these shadows had given him invaluable advice about the road ahead.  

The group glances at each other, before the nekomata and the shogun bow. Arsene inclines his head, thinking their amenable exchange over, but the alice speaks up next, her dress soaked dark and her hair cut uneven. "We've taken shelter inside an abandoned airplane wreck some two days' foot-journeyfrom here, further uphill. It's been rapidly overtaken by nature, but it should be a useful shelter to wait out the next few days of rain and hail." She eyes his wings. "It might be dangerous, but flying should cut you down to only a few hours. That human of yours looks to be in a bad shape."

Arsene stares. He's not used to kindness from strangers they encounter on the road, his own throat and broken horn a testament to that. "Thank you," he chokes out. The alice smiles softly, curtsies, and then they're off. Arsene hopes that they'll make it to Zenkichi, suddenly full of sentiment. He's not been in existence for even two years, though the past months feel like a whole lifetime. Some of these shadows are multiple times his senior, have seen the cruelty and whimsy of humanity in a way he as a persona never really has, and they still try to help Ren because he's cradling his human close. He wishes them the best before carefully shifting around the packs -- the backpack is resting awkwardly on his back, and Arsene's never been as glad that his wings set out from his lower back than now -- but he manages to somehow get airborne after a few embarrassing starts and sets out to find this airplane wreck in the hopes that it's at least somewhat dry.

First << >> Next

[jamaisjoons]

intro: her XII ⤑ knj | m

⟶ 𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑦:〝 you enter namjoon’s life in the most unexpected of ways, but will you be able to stay, especially when he comes with three adorable but chaotic children, even more chaotic best friends and a bitch of an ex-wife? not to mention your own emotional baggage. 〞singe dad au.

❥ 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔: single dad!namjoon x marine vet!reader

❥ 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑟𝑒: light angst ⋆ fluff

❥ 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡: 5k

⟶ 𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠: its basically just full of fluff, like nothing but fluff, reader is kinda stressed, but mostly fluff, minor possessive/jealous namjoon at the end

➵ 𝑎/𝑛: yeetHAW SURPRISE !! I managed to finish it off while on my break at work !! so here you go !!!

⏤ thank you to my love @shadowsremedy​ for beta reading this for me !

⇥ Previous || Masterlist || Next

Eyes strained from the hours of paperwork, you sink back into your seat before exhaling deeply, and rubbing your tired eyes, your shoulders deflate wearily. Lately, work has been even more exhausting than usual: the aquarium transferring two nurse sharks to the exhibit. However, as the head veterinarian, it meant that everything falls onto you to make sure it runs smoothly: that the sharks are healthy and well looked after, that they’ll acclimatise to their new tank properly, that they won’t undergo any major stress of any kind; just general things like that. Though, the last one was easier said than done. Moving and handling of any animals would cause them stress.

Taking another deep breath, you roll your shoulders - working out the kinks in them. Once done, you look back at the huge stack of paperwork. Thick manila files are piled one on top of each other - and all of them need to be read and signed. Different though they are, whether they be health records, or the transfer document or even just general admin work make up the stack - they all have one thing in common. Every single one of them mocks you ceaselessly; the foreboding tower reminding you of the amount of work you still have to complete.

Defeated sigh escaping your lips, you decide to get back to work. After all, lamenting your workload isn’t going to deplete it. Though, before you can start looking at the next file, your phone rings from beside you. With a side glance, you sneak a peek at the contact ID, only to perk up when your boyfriend’s name flashes across the screen. Work long forgotten, you automatically move to pick it up; your finger sliding across the screen as you answer the call.

“Joonie! Hey,” you answer enthusiastically. Already, you can feel the tension in your muscles fade - the sounds of Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook yelling while Namjoon hushes them instantly soothing you.

“Hey babe, do you know what time you’ll be done today?” Namjoon’s deep voice echoes across the receiver.

Eyebrows furrowing, you glance at the clock that hangs above the door to your office. Seeing the time, your eyes widen. It’s already half six; you were supposed to be done half an hour go. “Oh shit-” you breathe out, “I didn’t even realise the time. I’ve still got a bunch of work to do though,” you continue, almost despondently. It’s a Friday evening, which means that you have the weekend to look forward to - but, you can’t leave until you’ve completed at least the more important paperwork.

“Ah- okay. Will you be coming over or going home?” Namjoon asks.

You hear Jungkook yelling in the background, cries of ‘No! Come over,’ echoing across your speaker. Biting your lip, you stare at the pile of paperwork. Once again, it mocks you - letting you know you can’t clock out until it’s done - no matter how much you want to go home to Namjoon and the boys.

“I- I’m not sure. I may finish really late and I don’t want to disturb you or anything,” you reply, barely trying to hide the upset in your voice.

Hearing your tired, strained tone, “Come over Angel, we’ll have a quiet night in. It’s also Yoongi-hyung’s birthday tomorrow, so we’re probably going to do something,” Namjoon says. Face crumpling, you nod - a quiet night in with your boyfriend sounds just like the stress relief that you need.

“Babe?” Namjoon calls out.

Realising that he can’t see you, “Oh! Sorry- yes, that sounds great. I’ll come over when I’m done. Do we need anything for Yoongi’s birthday?” you ask, a slight frown on your face. The stress of work had clearly gotten to you - you had no idea that it was already Yoongi’s birthday. It seems like you were just celebrating Hoseok’s birthday yesterday. Not that you’d done much - he’d just wanted a quiet dinner; which of course, was easier said than done, when half the guests were toddlers.

“Hmmm no- although, Taehyung mentioned wanting to bake Yoongi-hyung a cake. But that sounds messy, and I don’t really know how to bake so,” Namjoon replies offhandedly.

Perking up immediately, “we can do that! Please, Joon? Can we bake? Pretty please?” you practically beg. Across the phone, Namjoon pauses, before you hear a soft laugh.

“Someone’s excited. But alright, we can do that. Well, you can. We both know I’m useless in the kitchen,” Namjoon answers. Suppressing a yelp of victory, you pump your fist in the air before stilling. Cheeks searing with the heat of embarrassment, you silently thank whatever guardian angel is watching you. At least your boyfriend hadn’t seen that. “Alright, I have to go. Taehyung wants a snack and he looks like he’s about to cry,” Namjoon continues.

Laughing, “well you better go then. If Tae cries, that’ll only set Chim off too,” you respond knowingly.

“Yeah, exactly. I’ll see you at home then,” Namjoon says. Then, with a sweet goodbye, he hangs up the phone.

Placing your phone back onto your desk, you turn back to the huge stack of paperwork. Invigorated by your conversation with Namjoon, and the thought of going home to your boyfriend and his sons - not to mention the prospect of baking - you suddenly feel a renewed fire in your stomach. Hastily, you grab the next file before you begin reading it. All of a sudden, you have a reason to finish up your work.

As you’d planned, after you’d completed all the important paperwork, you’d gone home to grab your baking equipment before driving straight to your boyfriend’s home. Seeing the stress on your face late last night, Namjoon had gathered you into his arms before taking you to bed - the boys already being fast asleep by the time you had arrived. You remember Namjoon helping you change, and how attentive he’d been the entire night; however, you don’t remember falling asleep. As a matter of fact, the only thing that you do remember, is that you haven’t had such good sleep in over a week. Somehow, falling asleep in Namjoon’s arms, had melted all the stress of your hectic week and you’d woken up feeling completely refreshed.

Thus, you find yourself in Namjoon’s kitchen the next day. Namjoon sits at the kitchen counter, his laptop and various pieces of paper scattered on the surface as he tries to get some work done. Tried, being the keyword. Really, he’d given up a while back and instead, his eyes are glued to your figure as you flit about his kitchen. You’re still dressed in your pyjamas and, well, so is he. In fact, no one had really felt like getting changed, and so even his sons are still running about in last night’s clothing.

Still, his eyes rake over your figure. With your hair piled into a messy bun on the top of your head: stray flyaways flying about everywhere as you concentrate on baking Yoongi’s cake, and dressed in a pair of loose flannel bottoms and his hoodie: the large grey article of clothing hanging from your frame; you’re the epitome of comfort. Flour stains the material, and he can see little gooey strings of eggs in some spots. You’re nothing but an unkempt mess - but still, you look incredibly endearing.

Soft melodious music echoes through his speakers, your body softly swaying to the beat as you hum along to the tune and involuntarily, Namjoon finds his eyes softening at the utter ease in your figure. The sweet scent of vanilla wafts through the air, causing Namjoon’s mouth to water at the sugary, enticing smell. You’re in the middle of icing the cake - Namjoon’s eyes following your graceful movements as you cover the sponge with the creamy frosting.

Helpless under your enchantment, Namjoon decides to abandon his work: it’s not like he was getting anything done in the first place. Standing up from his seat, he crosses his kitchen and within a few moments, you feel your boyfriend behind you. Namjoon’s strong arms curl around you, his hands loosely resting on your hips. At the feel of his comforting presence, you instinctively relax further, your back moulding against his chest.

His head immediately drops down to your neck, his nose nuzzling the flesh as he presses his feathery kisses to the column of your throat. Feeling his plush lips brush over your supple flesh, “Joonie, stop that,” you giggle.

“No,” Namjoon pouts, pressing another kiss to your skin - this time just under the corner of your jaw.

Playfully batting his face - Namjoon narrowly dodging - “I’m trying to concentrate!” you reprimand, thought from the light laughter in your voice, Namjoon knows you’re not really mad. So, instead, he lets out his own teasing growl before squeezing your hips.

“So was I, but you distracted me. So, now I’m going to distract you,” he replies. You roll your eyes at his logic, but don’t say anything else. Rather, you return back to frosting your cake.

Namjoon steps a little closer to you, his arms snaking around your hips so he can hold you in his arms. You feel his large palms intertwine before resting against your lower abdomen. Softly, his body sways with yours, the two of you moving to the beat of the music. Namjoon knows he’s not the best dancer, yet, with you in his arms, he can’t help, but follow the gentle swaying of your body - the movement coming easily to him. Meanwhile, from beside the two of you, Taehyung’s little form peers over the edge of the counter, his little hands braced on the marble countertop as he pokes his head over the ledge. “What are you doing now?” he asks, his eyes following your movements curiously.

“I’m crumb coating the cake - so that none of the cake crumbs gets on the outside later on,” you reply without skipping a beat.

“Do you like baking, Noona?” Taehyung’s soft voice continues as he turns to you in intrigue. Breaking from your concentration while you run the stainless steel palette knife over the edge edges, you glance at Taehyung.

“Mhm, it’s one of my favourite things,” you reply. Taehyung nods his head, but turns back to the half iced cake. One eyebrow raising, you attempt to suppress a little giggle. “Do you want to help me, Tigger?” you ask. All of a sudden, Taehyung perks up before nodding enthusiastically.

From behind you, Namjoon uncurls his arms from your frame, only to pull one of the barstools closer before picking his son up and depositing him onto the cushion. Once he’s sure his son is safely on the stool, he turns back to you - only to be stopped when Jimin tugs at his trouser leg. Motioning to his father with grabby hands, Jimin looks at his father with wide eyes and a soft pout. Immediately, Namjoon bends over, and stepping to your side, easily lifts Jimin up into his arms.

Turning his eyes, Namjoon lets out a soft chuckle at the sight of his final child. Unbothered, Jungkook sits with his back to one of the cabinets - his eyes glued to the screen of his game and a bowl of snacks situated next to him. Unlike Jimin and Taehyung, it seems Jungkook couldn’t care less about the cake. Though, he supposes, it makes sense: since it was originally Taehyung’s idea - and Jimin always wanted to do whatever Taehyung did - and vice versa.

Namjoon turns back to you - just in time to see Taehyung reach over to grab the bowl of icing. However, in his son’s enthusiastic haste - he almost knocks into the cake. Acting on reflex, honed from years of chasing his troublemaking twins, Namjoon’s hand shoots out and steadies the cake - his fingers gripping the cake board to prevent it from toppling over.

Turning to his middle child, Namjoon looks at him with soft reprimanding eyes, “be careful, Taehyung, we don’t want to ruin ____’s hard work now, do we?” he says.

“Sorry, daddy,” Taehyung says sheepishly.

Seeing the slight pout, and the way his eyes darken, “It’s alright! We got it in time, didn’t we?” you say, winking at Taehyung while petting his hair. At your words, and realising you’re not mad at him, the sadness in Taehyung’s eyes fades away. Once he’s perked up, you angle the handle of the palette knife to Taehyung.

Eagerly, but with more restraint this time, Taehyung grabs the utensil from you. You help him dip it into the bowl of icing - then, wrapping your large hand around his, you both begin layering the frosting over the rest of the cake. With the two of you frosting the sponge, Namjoon and Jimin stand next to you both - Jimin pointing out different places that need more buttercream while Namjoon simply watches. Though, every now and then his eyes dart to the buttery icing, his mouth salivating at the mere sight of it.

Eventually, once the cake has been iced, you drop the palette knife back into the bowl before pushing it to the side. Unnoticed to you, Namjoon’s eyes follow the movement, his eyes lighting up when he notices a soft mound of the buttercream still left over. Briefly, he contemplates whether he can sneak some away from you and his sons - but that will have to come later.

Meanwhile, you cross the kitchen, and grab your bag of store-bought decorations. If you had more time, you’d consider making them yourself - but sadly, that wasn’t the case this time. Upending the bag, you scatter the boxes and packets across the counter. Immediately, Taehyung and Jimin squeal - their small pudgy hands moving to grab the different packets.

“This one!” they both shout simultaneously, holding up different packages of cake decorations. With a laugh, you nod at both of them.

Stepping back slightly, Namjoon watches as Jimin and Taehyung move in closer to you, their knees perched on the barstools as their hands and chests lean onto the counter. Taehyung’s face is a picture of concentration as he hands one of his embellishments while Jimin points out where you should put them before they swap, Jimin handing you one of his decorations and Taehyung pointing out where you should put it.

There’s no real rhyme or reason to the way the boys garnish the cake and shortly, it’s covered in a plethora of random decorations. Soon, both rainbow coloured and chocolate sprinkles clutter the top, various different embellishments, from chocolate buttons to sugar flowers, litter the cake edges sporadically; and the borders are piped in different sized peaks of soft buttercream. Namjoon knows you love to bake: you’d mentioned once in passing that you used to do it as a stress reliever during university, and he also knows that cake decorating is one of your favourite things: your Instagram feed chock-full of random pastry chefs and amateur bakers. Yet, you still listen to his sons - entertaining their chaotic creativity as you adorn the cake with a plethora of confectionary and colours.

Jungkook is the only one still not involved, by some surprise, and with a quick side glance, Namjoon sees his son’s eyes still glued to the screen of his game console, his hand reaching for his snacks every now and then. Realising both you, and all three of his sons, are otherwise preoccupied, Namjoon turns back to the bowl of icing left forgotten on the side of the counter. Instantly, his eyes light up, and with sneaking glances towards you and his sons, he licks his lips before turning back to the bowl.

Slowly, Namjoon steps away from you - moving purposely so as not to arouse your suspicions. For most of it, you barely notice him, too engrossed in your cake - however, his strange actions garner Jungkook’s attention. Putting his game down, Jungkook watches as his father sneaks across the kitchen, only to quietly pull out a spoon and dip it into icing. Slowly, Jungkook waddles to his father, eyes trained on the way Namjoon licks up the sugary cream from the spoon.

“Daddy, can I have some?” Jungkook asks as he tugs his father’s leg - trying to draw Namjoon’s attention.

“Okay, but don’t tell Noona,” Namjoon quietly whispers. Easily, he picks up his son, only to place him onto one of the seats before pushing the bowl towards him. Jungkook quickly nods - but doesn’t say anything else, instead, poking his little fingers into the frosting.

So engrossed in your cake, you barely notice Jimin sneak away - leaving you and Taehyung to your devices as he joins his father and younger brother. However, after a little while longer, Taehyung disappears as well. Nonetheless, you chalk it down to getting bored and continue to finish up the last of the cake. Once it’s done, you let out a little victory cheer before looking up. However, the first thing you notice, is that Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook’s fingers are all in the bowl, their lips stained with the white buttercream frosting.

“What are you doing? You know that’s basically all sugar - it’s not good for you. What would Namjoon say-” you automatically begin reprimanding. However, when you spot your boyfriend next to them, looking equally guilty - plush lips wrapped around a metal spoon - you let out a little sigh and shake your head. “You know what, he won’t say anything because I have a feeling he’s the reason you’re eating plain buttercream in the first place,” you continue, looking at him pointedly.

Immediately, the three boys nod.

“Daddy said not to tell you! It’s all his fault!” Jungkook says, pointing to his father.

“Yeah! Daddy said we could,” Taehyung chimes in. Swiftly, you pull your bottom lip between your teeth and bite down on it in order to suppress your giggle.

“I saw Daddy and Jungkook eating it, so I wanted to as well,” Jimin butts in.

“Jimin! Taehyung! Jungkook!” Namjoon gasps, looking at his sons in utter betrayal. The sight of his shocked eyes causes you to splutter, and then, immediately you’re laughing.

“Oh my god, they totally ratted you out,” you snicker. Across the counter, Namjoon pouts, his sons giggling to themselves too.

“I can’t believe this. My own sons sold me out to my own girlfriend,” Namjoon teasingly laments. With another snicker, you cross the kitchen and towards him. Standing in front of him, you wind your hands around his waist and leaning on your tiptoes, you kiss the tip of his nose.

“It’s what you deserve, letting them eat plain sugar like that,” you answer, your eyes twinkling with mischief. Naturally, Namjoon’s arms wrap around you as he draws you closer to him.

Dipping his head down, he brushes his lips against yours, causing you to gasp. Reflexively, you poke your tongue out to lick your lips and a breathy moan falling from your mouth when you taste the sweetened vanilla on your lips. “It’s not funny, my love. I’m really hurt, you know. Will you kiss it better?” Namjoon asks, a roguish smile curling onto his lips. His warm breath fans across your face, your eyes fluttering as the saccharine aroma of both Namjoon and the buttercream wafts through your nose.

Breath hitching in your throat, your hands trail up his chest to curl around his neck, pulling him closer to you. “It’s a figurative hurt, where am I supposed to kiss?” you reply cheekily, your own eyes twinkling with mischief as you look up at him through the thick of your lashes.

Once again, Namjoon hums. It’s deeper this time, however - a little more sensuous. “I think I know,” he replies. Then, without giving you any time to think about it, his lips descend onto yours.

Cake box in one hand, and Jungkook holding your other, you walk into the lobby of JinHit’s building - Namjoon ushering in his twins behind you. As soon as you get in, you notice Seokjin and Hoseok standing, speaking to each other.

“Hyung!” Taehyung calls out, tugging on his father’s hand as he tries to run towards them. Immediately, Seokjin and Hoseok turn around, greeting the five of you with a wave.

“Oh wow, did you buy a cake?” Seokjin asks, peering at the white cake box in curiosity.

Immediately, “Noona baked it! Hyungie and I helped!” Jimin says proudly, a bright smile on his face.

Hoseok quirks his eyebrows, “did you now? And where was Jungkookie in all of this?” he questions, turning to the youngest.

“Playing games,” Jungkook simply shrugs, not thinking anything of it. His deadpan answer causes Hoseok and Seokjin to laugh before they nod.

“Alright, and I assume you just watched?” Seokjin chuckles while clapping Namjoon on the back.

Before he can reply, “watched? More like distracted me and then ate the rest of the icing,” you snort - once again looking at him pointedly. Namjoon’s mouth curls, his ears burning bright red as he pouts.

“Oh yeah, that makes sense,” Hoseok replies, nodding sagely, “did he try eating sugar out of the spoon again?” he continues. Both you and Seokjin snicker, Namjoon letting out a sigh of exasperation.

“Can we just go? We’re here to celebrate Yoongi’s birthday, not make fun of me,” Namjoon pouts, a slight whiny tone to his voice. Seeing the sheepishness in his eyes, you adjust the cake box in your hold before shuffling closer and kissing his jaw in comfort. Head angling down to you, Namjoon smiles softly in thanks before returning your kiss - his lips brushing against your temple.

“Gross,” Hoseok gripes playfully, causing both you and Namjoon to stick your tongues out at him.

“Alright, alright. Let’s go, Yoongi’s probably wondering where we are,” Seokjin says - playing peacemaker in Yoongi’s stead. Then, he gestures the lot of you to follow him.

Contrary to Seokjin’s words, however, Yoongi was in no way waiting for you. Walking into the meeting room upstairs, you come to an empty room - Seokjin letting out a sigh of frustration. “God damn it! I told him to meet us here. Did he forget?” Seokjin grouses, his eyebrows furrowing in exasperation.

“Knowing hyung, he’s still in his studio,” Hoseok points out. His words, however, only causes Seokjin to let out a sigh of frustration.

“Let’s just go to his studio,” he replies before ushering you out of the room. Once again, he navigates the lot of you through the various corridors of the building - before you come upon a large wooden door. A gold plaque hangs on it, the words ‘Genius Lab’ embossed in black on the metal plate.

Aggressively, Seokjin begins knocking - practically banging his fist against the door. “Yah! Min Yoongi! Did I not tell you to be in the meeting room?” he yells. Instantly, the door swings wide open, Yoongi standing in the doorway.

Quirking an eyebrow, “I was waiting - but you’re like ten minutes late - so I decided to do some work,” Yoongi replies, his face passive as usual.

“Sorry, there was a bit of traffic,” you apologise with a small bow. Yoongi opens his mouth to reply, however, before he can say anything, Namjoon’s sons are running up to him.

Jimin and Taehyung wrap their arms around each one of his legs, Jungkook standing between them and winding his own arms around Yoongi’s waist. “Yoonie hyung! Happy birthday!” they sweetly chorus at the same time. Immediately, Yoongi’s face softens, and instinctively, he pets their heads, a shy smile on his face while he nods at them.

A bright grin plastered onto his face, “Noona, Hyungie and I baked you a cake!” Jimin says proudly, causing you to shyly hold up the cake box. Yoongi’s eyes twinkle slightly before he’s stepping to the side. Taking his cue, you all quickly enter his studio.

Swiftly, you unbox the cake, and while Hoseok holds it up - you sing happy birthday. The entire time, Yoongi’s cheeks are bunched up under his eyes, his bright gummy smile on display while he bounces in place. After you’re done, and Yoongi’s cut his cake, everyone sporadically finds seats around Yoongi’s studio. Hoseok, Jimin and Taehyung sit on the floor, the younger twin in the older man’s lap as Jimin happily eats his cake beside them. Seokjin sits on the sofa, Jungkook in his father’s lap - leaving you to sit on the sofa arm besides Namjoon.

“So, are you working on anything interesting?” you ask, idly chewing on your cake while addressing Yoongi.

Nodding, “I’m actually working on a new song - do you want to hear?” Yoongi asks. Eyelids blowing wide open, you freeze in place before your jaw drops open.

“A-Are you sure?” you stutter out. Was he really offering you an exclusive sneak peek of his future track? God, sometimes you really forget that your, now, closest friends are huge musical celebrities. Sure, your own boyfriend is a famous rapper, as is Hoseok, but other than that discussion about their upcoming tour, you’ve never really gotten involved with their jobs. Namjoon rarely tended to bring it up at home, wanting to focus more on his sons and your relationship. Besides, Yoongi had always been your favourite rapper - and just the thought of getting to listen to a demo of his song has your heart racing.

“Earth to ____?” Seokjin says, waving his hand in front of your face with a playful laugh. Quickly, you bat his hand away before glaring at him with a pout, your cheeks heating from embarrassment.

“Look at her! She’s blushing like a little girl, oh my god,” Hoseok begins taunting, then he pauses. “Wait- didn’t you mention Yoongi is your favourite rapper when we first met?” he asks, a knowing smirk curling onto his face.

Features twisting into a scowl, you sneer at him, “well it’s definitely not you. You’re too mean to me,” you snidely reply, before sticking your tongue out.

Wincing jokingly, “ouch, you really wound me, ____” Hoseok dramatically sighs, clutching his heart and shaking his head.

“It’s because I’m the nicest to her,” Yoongi chimes in, nodding sagely.

“Hey! I’m nice to her,” Hoseok yells in indignation.

However, ignoring Hoseok, “Wait- Yoongi, are you sure I can listen?” you ask, remembering Yoongi’s first question.

He turns back to you before nodding and rolling his chair a little to the side. “Yeah, come on,” Yoongi beckons. Eyes lighting up with joy, you shoot off the sofa and over to him in an instant.

The moment you move, Namjoon blinks at the unexpected movement. The entire time Hoseok had teased you, he’d felt a little upset. Of course, he’d always known Yoongi is your favourite rapper - and he’d never begrudge you for it. Nonetheless, he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t just a little upset that he’s not your favourite. Gaze trained on you, Namjoon watches as Yoongi pressed one of the headphone speakers to his ear, offering the other to you, before opening up the track and clicking play.

As soon as the beat begins, your eyebrows knit together, your lips a firm line. He knows the expression well: very rarely do you bring home paperwork - both of you prefer to keep work out of your relationship - but the few times you have, he’s watched that exact same expression of concentration, your pen flitting over the papers. Every now and then, your eyes twinkle, a short gasp falling from your lips as you nod to the beat. Unable to help himself, Namjoon cannot stop the swell of jealousy, sadness and a slight twinge of possessiveness that wells up inside him.

When you shuffle a little closer to Yoongi, your ears pressed together as you share the headphones, Namjoon knows he can’t watch anymore. Quietly, he passes Jungkook over to Seokjin before shuffling out of the room. Hoseok and Seokjin look at each other, exchanging a brief knowing glance between themselves. As soon as you spot Namjoon’s movement from the corner of your eye, before you watch him softly slam the door shut, you draw away from Yoongi.

Turning to the other two, “Is he okay?” you ask, your eyebrows knotting together in concern.

“I think he’s a little jealous,” Seokjin replies softly. For a moment, you almost dismiss him, until you see the seriousness in his eyes.

“What? Why?” you ask, confusion lacing your voice.

“Just watching you and Yoongi, maybe? Like we all know there’s nothing going on, but like, yeah,” Hoseok tries explaining, rubbing the back of his head. “He’s probably a little mad too,” he continues. Seeing your face fall, Hoseok quickly shakes his head, “Not at you! At himself for feeling the way he is- he’s probably just trying to control himself and needed a breather,” he finishes. Placated by Hoseok’s words, you nod, knowing he’d never lie to you. However, his words don’t stop your heart clenching in your chest, your stomach dropping. You’d never wanted to make him feel upset - or jealous.

“I think I’ll go speak to him,” Yoongi cuts in, already getting up from his seat. Quickly, you shake your head, already shooting up to your feet.

“No!” you abruptly interject. Shuffling over to the cake, you cut a large piece of it before placing it on a paper plate. “It’s okay. I think it’d be better if I go. Watch my boys for me yeah?” you say once you're done, before shooting out of the room, not even waiting for a response.

The moment the door slams shut, the three of them turn to each other. “Do you think she noticed she used ‘my’ or…?” Seokjin asks.

With a wistful smile, “No, I don’t think she did,” Yoongi replies, shaking his head fondly.

“Well, looks like your Noona may become your mommy soon,” Hoseok chimes in as he directs his attention to the boys.

Ecstatically, Taehyung turns in Hoseok’s lap, looking at the older man in wide-eyed wonder. Standing up in his lap - Hoseok wincing when the entirety of his weight pushes down on his legs - Taehyung presses his pudgy hands against Hoseok’s cheeks before squishing them together, “Really?” the toddler asks, his voice full of excitement and hope.

Laughing, Hoseok nods his head in Taehyung’s hold, “really,” he replies. Seokjin and Yoongi nodding along to his sentiment.

a/n: this was actually supposed to have smut in it but like it got so long without it that i’ve just decided that the next chapter will be solely smut 🤡 so owo look forward to that !! whenever it comes out !!

Kofi | Masterlist

[officiallandofnostalgia]

if i could pull the cord, i would

toxins travel through the IV tubes, inching closer to my arms’ veins. eyeing the flow of the fluids instinctively tensing up bracing myself for another dose of medication you prescribed. you blankly stared a my figure, satisfying your obsession, fulfilling your twisted desire to keep me sickly. ah yes, the oh so familiar sensation— that familiar burning sensation a resurgence of a painful reminder: i’m alive unable to enter the Aether alone as i’m bound to your figure—flesh wrapped around bones. if i could pull the cord, i would i beg of you, reduce me to ashes though i fear death, and leaving you. who would replace me if i left? no one. i want to recover—metamorphosize and grow. but you forbade me from doing so, distinguishing every spark of self love self confidence and self esteem. so tell me, are you happy now? are you happy that i bleed poison from damaged veins? happy that i’m frail like the spine you possess degraded from the emotional baggage you narcotize me with to stunt my healing process? why do you love me special? trust me, if i could pull the cord, i would. but what would you be without me? i am your diseased mind, keep me sickly, though i’ll never die. -amelie (instagram: @_.am.elie_)

[ieechans]

Checkmate | Royal Guard!AU | Pt. 3

Summary: checkmate (noun): a check from which a king cannot escape; a final defeat or deadlock Word Count: 5,254 Genre: honestly? a little bit of everything Pairing: Yoon Jeonghan x Reader  TW: none i can think of! let me know if you need anything tagged

Pt.: 1 | 2 | 3 | soon™

A/N: this isn't an nct fic i swear,, i just got a whole lotta love for lee taeyong. because i’ll be gone indefinitely, i pulled this out of my google drive and forced myself to finish it. it’s not proofread but it’s the best i can do at the moment. i hope to see you all soon !

“You do realize that you have your own room, right? One that’s bigger than mine?”

You said something in response, but your reply was muffled by the sheets. You only buried yourself deeper into the pile of blankets, avoiding your older brother’s gaze. Seungcheol rolled his eyes and forcibly unrolled you from your cocoon.

“C’mon, tell me why you’re bothering me. I have to attend a meeting in an hour.”

You sat up and tugged at the blankets, but Seungcheol was clearly stronger than you. You still hadn’t told him about what happened a couple of days before, but Jun finally convinced you to say something. You pulled your knees up to your chest and looked away, avoiding his gaze.

Seungcheol sighed and sat down beside you. nudging you gently with his shoulder. “I can't guess what's wrong, Y/N. You have to tell me.”

You lowered your head. “Prince Lee Taeyong wants to marry me,” you mumbled.

“What about prince Lee Taeyong? I’m going to need you to speak up.”

“He wants to marry me,” you repeated, barely raising your voice.

“Y/N.”

“Prince Lee Taeyong wants to marry me,” you finally said, falling onto your back. You braced yourself for Seungcheol’s protective tendencies, but oddly enough, he remained composed.

“One of the princes from the Lee Kingdom?” he asked. You nodded and watched as he got off the bed. “Oh.”

You stared at him, confusion clear on your face. “‘Oh’?What do you mean by ‘oh’?”

“I already knew that,” he said nonchalantly, heading over to his dresser. He pulled out a towel and hung it around his neck. “Is that all?”

��You already knew!?” you exclaimed, practically jumping off the bed. “What --”

“Well Jeonghan has been complaining about him often, so I figured something occurred during the coronation,” Seungcheol said. “That, and dad has been mentioning something about an alliance with the Lee Kingdom lately. I put two and two together and --” he shrugged -- “I guess it was gonna happen sooner or later.”

You were at a loss for words. You stood there, gaping like a fish at your older brother. You tried to search for a response, but you had nothing to say.

“Are we done here?” He nodded his head towards his door. “I need to go wash up.” He made his way out into the hall and you followed.

“Does that mean that this is technically an arranged marriage?”

“No,” he responded. “Dad wouldn’t put you through that. But I’m just saying that Prince Lee Taeyong is a suitor with great potential, not only for you, but for the country as well. The decision is entirely yours.”

You opened your mouth to speak, but you heard the sound of someone coming down the hall. You turned around to see Maid Seungwan.

“Good morning, princess,” she greeted you. “Our guest is requesting your presence.”

“Guest?” you asked, taking a step back towards Seungcheol. You didn’t recall any guests coming into the palace.

“Yes, Prince Taeyong asked to see you.”

You whipped around, looking at Seungcheol with panicked eyes. Seungcheol pressed his lips into a tight line and you faced Maid Seungwan, dismissing her. Once she was gone, you hit Seungcheol’s shoulder.

“What?” he asked, not flinching.

“Did you know that he was staying with us, too?” you accused, pointing a finger at him.

“Well he’s a prince and he’s planning on marrying you. What, do you expect for a prince to stay at some hotel in the kingdom?” Seungcheol tapped his head. “You spent twenty years of your life studying. Think for a second!”

You pouted at him. “Seungcheol, you’re supposed to be helping me out here!”

“I don’t know what you want me to do, Y/N.” He began to walk away, clearly over the topic. “This is for you to figure out, I have business to end.”

You huffed as you watched him leave. Although he was right, you didn’t want to admit it. You figured you would go bother Jun about it later.

You cautiously stepped outside, unsure if Maid Seungwan was just joking with you. Much to your surprise, she wasn’t, and Price Taeyong himself stood underneath the arbor that lead to the flower gardens. The scene was undoubtedly like a movie: a handsome young man surrounded by pastel flowers on a beautiful sunny day.

He wore a white button up, the sleeves rolled up to expose his forearms. He paired it with black slacks and dress shoes, a gold watch gracing his wrist. He ran his hand through his black hair and your breath hitched. It was almost as if he was dressed too formally for a simple walk in the gardens, but it wasn't like you were complaining. He seemed to finally notice you staring, and made eye contact with you. You quickly tore your eyes away from his, your face slowly becoming more flushed. From the corner of your eye you could see a smile spreading on his face, and you swore he heard your heart hammering in your chest.

“Princess Y/N, good morning!” he greeted you, giving you a small wave.

You regained your composure and walked towards him, mustering up a smile. “Good morning, Prince Taeyong. Why the sudden invite?”

He shrugged and held out his arm for you to hold onto. “Just wanted to talk to you for a bit, is all. I hope I’m not interrupting your schedule.”

“Don't worry, you’re not,” you reassured him, linking your arm around his. “I was actually just bothering my brother.”

“Ah, Prince Seungcheol,” Taeyong noted. “How is he, by the way? The last time I saw him was at your after party, and even then we didn't get the chance to talk.”

“He’s just been really busy,” you sighed. “He has very little time to socialize in between his meetings and his training.”

“I see. Don’t you get lonely, Princess?”

You pursed your lips in thought. “Not at all, actually. My maids are always there to talk to, as well has my mother’s guards. There’s never a shortage of people to talk to in the palace.”

The prince let out a small chuckle. “I wish I could say that. You’d think with a palace full of guards, maids, and princes, I’d have a plethora of people to befriend.” He looked straight ahead, his eyes trained on the cobblestone path laid before you two. “It’s nothing like that at all.”

“I don't mean to be nosy, but why is that?” you asked curiously.

“Well, everyone’s always busy doing one thing or another,” he replied. “That, and with a multitude of princes, there's bound to be competition. Only one of us can get the throne once King Sooman is gone.” He looked at you with a smile, but you could tell that there was sadness behind his eyes. “I guess you could say that I’m not the most popular amongst the people to become the next king. They’d rather much prefer someone like Prince Lee Minhyung. I’m sure you know him as Prince Mark.”

Your mind trailed to what Jeonghan had told you the week before about Taeyong, and you couldn't help but wonder why exactly he made Jeonghan so upset, or why he wasn't a ‘favorite’ amongst the people of his kingdom. You seemed to be so caught up in your thoughts that you couldn't help but realize that the silence between you two had gotten a bit too long.

“I’m sorry if I’m being too personal,” he finally said, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. He avoided your gaze and looked over the flowers. “Look at me, planning on being a suitor yet piling emotional baggage on you the week after we meet. I’m sure you’re uncomfortable, I’ll stop.”

Your eyes widened and you shook your head. “N-no, I’m not uncomfortable at all!” you exclaimed. “I-I mean, I’m very glad that you trust me enough to tell me this, and I’m sure that you’d be a great king, regardless of whether it be in your kingdom or mine.”

As if you flipped a switch on him, you noticed a playful glint in his eyes that followed the blush that slowly crept up his neck. “Are you implying that you can see us getting married?”

It was now your turn to blush, but you refused to let him see you flustered. It was your turn to be coy. “Play your pieces right and we’ll see.”

Taeyong grinned, and any instance of awkwardness before completely diminished. “Aren't you a flirt, Princess Y/N.”

“Not to just anyone,” you mused. “And you don’t have to call me Princess, it feels too formal.”

“In that case, don’t call me Prince either,” he beamed.

You felt yourself inching closer to him, your hold on his arm simply becoming more comfortable. As you continued to walk, you discussed more things about your kingdom, yourselves, and anything else that came to mind. He was so easy to talk to that it was almost like you had known him for years. In fact, you were so distracted by your conversation with the prince that you had barely noticed that you were no longer in the flower gardens, but in the training gardens instead.

You saw the steps that lead up to the viewing platform and asked Taeyong if he’d like to relax for a bit. He agreed and you both went up the wooden steps that lead to a clearing with garden chairs and tables. Taeyong waited for you to take a seat before taking the chair next to you, and your voices lowered to a whisper as to not disturb the boys training.

Below the platform, team Seventeen was working on their sparring, the White Pawns practicing against the Black Knights. A White Pawn let out a groan as the dulled rapier hit his shoulder, and he threw his own weapon down in frustration.

“This definitely isn't fair, you guys are Knights!” Seungkwan complained.

Hansol nodded in agreement. “Yeah, and I don't get why we still have to train when we’re Y/N’s guards already. We passed all of this!”

“She didn’t give us any orders for today,” Jisoo replied. “That, and Seungcheol is attending business. This is a lot more useful than just lounging around, right Jeonghan?” He nudged the boy beside him, who was seemingly distracted.

“Yeah,” Jeonghan mumbled, his brow furrowed in thought.

Jisoo paused, realizing that something was off. He called for a five minute break, and all but the two dispersed throughout the garden. Jisoo crossed his arms and faced Jeonghan, concern overcoming his features. “Something's up.”

“No kidding,” Jeonghan retorted, brushing his bangs away from his face. He looked up at the sun and squinted. “I don’t know why, but my instincts are telling me that something is not… right.”

“If this is about what happened last week between you and the princess, I’m sure she’s forgiven you by now,” Jisoo responded, placing a reassuring hand on Jeonghan’s shoulder. “You should go find her and talk to her.”

“As if she wants to talk to me,” he scoffed. “She goes to either Seungcheol or Jun for all of her problems, not me or any of the other White Pawns. Is there something we’re doing wrong? Does she hate us?”

“I highly doubt it. Even if she does --” Jisoo was immediately hushed by Jeonghan, who pressed a finger against his lips.

“Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

Jeonghan hushed him once more, his eyes narrowing. “There it is again.”

Jisoo raised an eyebrow at Jeonghan and looked at their surroundings. He then heard a faint giggle coming from the viewing platform and looked towards Jeonghan, who had also found the source of the sound.

“That laugh is too familiar,” Jeonghan mumbled, immediately heading towards the steps to the viewing platform.

Jisoo followed silently, part of him uneasy as to what would happen next. The pair went up the steps of the platform, not making a single sound as they ascended. They peered into the clearing to notice Prince Taeyong leaning close to your ear, his hand covering the side of his mouth like he was telling you a secret. You stifled yet another giggle and your eyes trailed to where Jeonghan and Jisoo stood watching. Your expression dropped immediately, but Taeyong didn't seem to take notice.

“Princess Y/N, what are you doing out in the gardens unattended?” Jeonghan asked with an edge to his voice.

Taeyong jumped in his seat a bit and quickly leaned away from you. The playful boy that you worked so hard to pull out of his shell immediately retracted and was replaced by his former nervous self.

“I’m not unattended,” you replied coolly. “I’m here with Prince Taeyong.”

“You know what I mean, Princess.” He gave a halfhearted bow to the prince before resuming his conversation with you. “I suggest you go back inside. It’s almost time for lunch.”

Much to Jeonghan's annoyance, you tapped on Taeyong’s arm and asked to see his watch, confirming the time.

“You’re right. I think I’ll head inside now,” you replied, giving Jeonghan a smile. You got up and smoothed out your dress, turning to face the prince. “Would you like to come too, Taeyong?”

Jeonghan almost twitched hearing you say his name without his title, clearly indicating that you two had gotten a bit too close for him to be okay with.

Taeyong’s eyes darted between you and Jeonghan, and the let out a nervous chuckle. “O-of course.” He got up and you immediately linked your arm around his, brushing past Jeonghan and Jisoo as you pulled him towards the steps.

Jeonghan stared daggers at the prince as you two went by, scowling the second you were out of sight. “She’s still upset,” he said through clenched teeth.

“But why are you so bothered that she’s spending time with Prince Taeyong?” Jisoo asked. “Wouldn't it make sense if they did? I mean, he is a suitor.”

Hearing that set off something inside of Jeonghan. “He’s a what?”

“A suitor,” Jisoo replied as he went back down the steps. “Did you not hear Seungcheol mentioning that the Lee Kingdom plans on making an alliance with ours? Considering how Prince Taeyong is one of the many princes competing for the crown, marrying Y/N will not only create a favorable alliance, but will also likely give him a one way ticket to the throne.”

Jeonghan’s jaw dropped, speechless that he didn't know of this information until now. He heard Jisoo call all the boys back to continue sparring, but he remained glued to the spot in disbelief.

Much to your disappointment, Taeyong had clammed up after the encounter with Jeonghan and quickly receded back to his room the second you returned to the building. You ate your lunch and with nothing better to do, retreated to your room and spent the rest of your day on your phone. Maid Seungwan attempted to get you out to eat dinner, but you dismissed her and told her you weren't hungry.

You let out a bored sigh and plugged in your phone for the umpteenth time, watching as the battery painstakingly filled up. You set your device aside and stared at the ceiling, wondering what you could possibly do for the rest of the night. It was barely seven, and you weren't exactly tired. Then again, it wasn't like there was anything you could do in the palace. You lie in your bed, staring at nothing until you heard your ringtone go off.

You almost fell off your bed and you looked at the ID to see who could possibly call you. The number was unknown and you furrowed your brow in confusion. It was a private number, and only your closest friends knew. Going against everything Seungcheol had lectured you about talking to strangers, you picked up.

“Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Taeyong,” the voice on the other end said. Relief washed over you, glad that it wasn't some serial killer. You felt a smile tugging at the corners of your lips.

“How’d you get my number?”

“I, uh --” it was like you could picture him getting flustered -- “I had to ask around for it,” he responded sheepishly. “Anyways, this is super impromptu, but I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight?”

He seemed to be more at ease, and was now the Taeyong you recalled spending the day with. “I’m not, why do you ask?”

“Word around the palace is that your kingdom has a pretty cool night market,” he said playfully. “I wanted the princess of the Choi Kingdom herself to give me her opinion on it.”

“Well, I wouldn't exactly know,” you admitted. “I’m not really allowed outside the palace unless it's for a special occasion.”

There was a long pause before you heard Taeyong speak again. “Would you say a date with me would be a special occasion?”

You pictured his flirtatious smirk and you felt your heartbeat quicken. “I-I guess I could consider it as such, but I don't think my guards would see it the same way.”

“Ever considered sneaking out?” he joked, followed by his melodious laughter.

You bit your lip, seriously considering the option. You knew he was just messing around, but you couldn't help but wonder what your kingdom’s night market was truly like. After all, you were the princess. Wouldn't visiting the night market at least once in your lifetime be beneficial?

“Anyways, I’ll just leave you be then. Sorry for bothering you at --”

“Let’s go,” you said, cutting him off.

“What?”

“Let’s go to the night market,” you insisted. “Let’s sneak out.”

“Y/N, I was joking around,” he chuckled.

“I’m not,” you responded, unplugging your phone and heading over to your closet to find an outfit that wouldn't be a dead giveaway that you were the princess. “Meet me in the flower gardens in thirty minutes. Don't wear anything too flashy.”

Thirty minutes later, you entered the flower gardens to find Taeyong waiting for you where he was earlier in the day. Instead of a button up and slacks, he wore a basic white t-shirt and blue ripped jeans. He still wore his gold watch, and you couldn't help but smile to yourself and hug the bundle of fabric closer to yourself as you approached him.

“Are white shirts all you own?” you teased, gesturing at his top.

“I own a couple of black ones,” he said matter-of-factly. “So how are we going to get out of here undetected?”

“Easy.” You smiled and him and handed him a navy blue cloak along with a matching brooch. “My male servants usually wear this when they leave the palace.”

He accepted the garment from you and wrapped himself in it, securing the cloak in place with the brooch. “And what about you?”

You unfolded a matching maroon cloak and draped it over yourself. “Simple as that.” You slipped on a pair of gloves and pulled the hood over your head, then reaching up to pull up Taeyong's hood as well. “You ready to go?”

“After you, Princess,” he replied with a twinkle in his eyes.

You grinned and took his hand into yours, leading him out the garden and into the courtyard. From there, you cautiously made your way to the entrance gates, making every attempt to avoid any passing servants. As you approached the gate, you lowered your head upon realizing who was guarding the gate that night. It was Pawn Dongho.

“Hello you two, where are you headed?” he asked, his signature smile apparent as you neared.

“The night market,” Taeyong replied casually. “It’s been awhile since we visited it.”

“Ah, great choice,” Dongho responded, tugging on the lock. “It’s a wonderful place to go for a date.” He then gave you both a wink as he pulled the gate open.

You heard Taeyong's nervous laughter and you leaned closer to him to avoid any kind of suspicion. Dongho ushered you through and shut the gate once you two were outside the palace. You felt Taeyong let out a sigh of relief and you gently nudged his side.

“He’s not wrong, this is technically a date,” you giggled, squeezing his hand a bit.

“Doesn't make him any less intimidating,” Taeyong mumbled, avoiding your gaze.

“White Pawn Kang Dongho? Intimidating?” You let out a laugh and pretended to wipe a stray tear from your eye. “He has to be the least intimidating of my mother’s guards.”

“So who's the most?”

You pursed your lips in thought. “White Pawn Minki for sure.”

“But isn't he a White Pawn?” Taeyong asked, clearly confused by the opposing connotations.

“That’s exactly the reason why.”

Jeonghan paced back and forth in his room while Mingyu watched. The latter was getting tired of his roommate's constant paranoia about the visiting prince, and decided to speak up about it.

“I’m sure she’s fine.”

“If she’s getting close with him, she isn't,” Jeonghan shot back.

Mingyu rolled his eyes and threw himself onto his bed. “Whatever you say. You're overthinking, Jeonghan.”

“And what if I am? I’m just caring about her well being, Mingyu. I’m doing my job.”

“What you need is a break,” Mingyu responded, completely dismissing Jeonghan's last statement. “I’m going out to the night market with a few others. You should come.”

Jeonghan let out a sigh through his nose and stared out the window where he could barely see the lights from market past the palace walls. Admittedly, it had been a while since he attended the nightly event. “Who’s going?” he asked finally, and Mingyu’s face lit up.

“Me, Jun, Hansol, Soonyoung, and Dokyeom,” Mingyu listed, counting the boys off his finger.

“And Jisoo?”

“He said he’s too tired.” Upon seeing Jeonghan lose interest, Mingyu immediately sat up. “Team GFriend is coming too!”

Jeonghan quirked an eyebrow, his interest piqued once more. “They are?”

“Yeah!” Mingyu said excitedly. A blush began to spread on his face as he dwindled his thumbs. “I-I mean, I invited Eunha, but I didn't want her to be uncomfortable so I told her it was going to be a group thing.”

Jeonghan recalled interacting with Eunbi during your after party and remembered how cute she was. It had also been a while since he went on a date as well, seeing how he was caught up in your matters.

“I guess I’ll tag along, then.”

With your fingers laced with Taeyong's, you weaved through the crowd of people, occasionally stopping from stall to stall. You marvelled at the hustle and bustle around you, taking in the friendly, welcoming ambience. Children ran about giggling and you were surrounded by laughter. It had to be impossible to not have a good time at the night market.

Jeonghan strolled casually beside Eunbi, the two a bit further behind the rest of the group. He occasionally pointed out a few things to her, offering to buy her a small trinket or a treat. As time went by, she slowly inched closer to him and linked her arm around Jeonghan's, but he didn't object. Any thought of you and Taeyong had left his mind, and he had to admit that he was actually enjoying himself for the first time since the incident at the after party.

You and Taeyong stopped at a stall to buy some food, finally giving into the aromatic scent of the popcorn chicken. As you left the stall, someone brushed past you and made you drop your skewer. You frowned, visibly upset considering the fact that you were looking forward to eat.

Taeyong took notice of this and held up a piece of skewered chicken to your lips. “I’ll feed you,” he smirked, waving the skewer in front of your mouth. “Aah.”

You rolled your eyes playfully and opened your mouth, biting off the meat from the stick. You let out a content sigh as you chewed. “I’m convinced my kingdom has the best popcorn chicken.”

“Oh really?” Taeyong remarked. “I don’t know, the Lee Kingdom may not have a night market, but our seasonal festivals are pretty next level.”

“I guess I’ll have to come visit when there’s a festival, then,” you replied. “Either way, I’m loyal to the Choi Kingdom’s chicken.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Taeyong said, pushing another piece of chicken to your lips. You giggled and pushed the skewer to his mouth instead.

Eunbi watched this exchange and nudged Jeonghan gently. “Aren’t those two cute?”

Jeonghan watched as the maroon-hooded servant accepted defeat and allowed for the navy-hooded one to feed her. He felt a smile form on his lips, and he leaned closer to Eunbi. “That could be us, but we’re royal guards.”

Eunbi returned the smile, squeezing Jeonghan’s arm gently. “It’s nice to think about, though. Actually having the time for a relationship.”

Jeonghan nodded, and glanced once more at the couple. He noticed the design of both cloaks and came to the realization that they were both servants from the palace. Oddly enough, he didn't seem to recognize either of the two. He began to zone out, his paranoia slowly rising. Once again, he felt that something was wrong. In hopes of confirming his suspicions, he glanced at the hands of the maroon-hooded individual. However, their hands were covered with gloves.

You and Taeyong had made a right turn, but the group of royal guards made a left. In an attempt to follow you, Jeonghan gently pulled on Eunbi’s arm.

“Let’s get away from the group a bit, I know a really cool place you need to see.”

Eunbi quickly glanced at the group that was slowly disappearing into the crowd and she shrugged. “Sure thing.”

Jeonghan scanned his eyes over the crowd, his eyes immediately falling to the two individuals with the colored cloaks. He followed a good distance behind them, casually stealing a glance every minute or so as he continued to converse with Eunbi.

You and Taeyong had finished your chicken, but were now craving something sweet. You stopped at a booth selling one of your kingdom’s prized desserts and immediately bought one in hopes of impressing the prince.

“This, Prince Lee Taeyong, is called a Milky Bun,” you said proudly, handing him the treat.

“Interesting choice of name,” he remarked, eyeing the dessert in his hands. “This is literally just a jelly donut filled with ice cream instead of jelly. Anyone can make this.”

“Well, prepare to eat your words, Taeyong,” you grinned. “And also prepare to want to eat fifty more Milky Buns.”

Taeyong lifted up the treat to his lips and opened his mouth. You watched him eagerly, waiting for the expression of awe to form on his face. However, he immediately clamped his mouth shut and gave you a mischievous smirk.

“I’ll try it if you feed it to me,” he bargained. “I mean, I did feed you all of that popcorn chicken.”

You narrowed your gaze at him and removed your gloves, taking the dessert into your hands. You then held the milky bun to his lips and watched as he took a generous bite, absolute satisfaction washing over his features.

As you began to tease him for proving himself wrong, Jeonghan glanced at your now exposed hand. The glint of the silver ring and dazzling diamonds only confirmed that you were, in fact, Princess Y/N. The one in the navy cloak threw their head back as they laughed, the hood slightly slipping off their head. Jeonghan’s eyes widened upon realizing who it was, but was then distracted by Eunbi pointing out something being displayed at a stall. He gave it a quick glance before turning back to find you, but in the few seconds he spared looking at whatever was being displayed, the two hooded figures had disappeared.

“Seungcheol always said he’d take me here when we were younger,” you sighed, watching the lotus flowers float down the stream. “Then we both grew up too fast, and I was never able to send my own flower.”

“It’s a good thing you get to be here now, then,” Taeyong murmured, gently placing a white lotus flower that he had bought from a vendor into your hands. “How does this work?”

“There’s an old folk tale that says if you come here during the night with someone you love deeply and you both send a lotus flower down the stream, you and that person are bound to be together forever,” you explained, running your fingers across the edges of the petals. “It doesn't have to be romantic, it can be platonic or something along the lines of that. That’s why Seungcheol promised to take me here: so he’d always be by my side.”

“Well,” Taeyong said, his voice gentle, “May I have the honor of sending my lotus down with yours?”

You gave Taeyong a warm smile and nodded. “Of course you may.”

You both approached the stream and crouched down, placing your flowers on the surface of the water. You then stood back up, watching as they slowly began to flow downstream along with the flowers left by others. You turned to face Taeyong once more and took his hand into yours.

“Thanks for suggesting we go to the night market,” you said. “Tonight was fun.”

“I should be thanking you for giving me the guts to sneak out,” he chuckled, giving your hand a light squeeze. “The Choi Kingdom really is a whole different world from mine, and I had a lot of fun, too. I’ll be really sad when I have leave in a few days.”

“We should head back,” you said quietly, earnestly wishing that you wouldn't have to go back to the palace. “It's getting awfully late.”

“Of course,” he replied. He then paused, licking his lips before speaking. “Can I just tell you one thing?”

“Go ahead.”

“This is straightforward of me to say, but you're the first person who didn't judge me based on rumors,” he mumbled, avoiding your gaze. “It doesn't seem like it matters much, but it means everything to me that you wanted to get to know me better. Yes, I could propose to you right now, I could give you all the riches you could ever want, but it just wouldn't compare. I don’t know how I could possibly thank you for giving me a chance as a human being.”

You stood there, speechless as you looked at his blushing face. Mustering up all your courage, you took a step closer to him and let go of his hand to cup his cheek, forcing him to look you in the eyes. You pulled him closer so that you could feel his breath softly against your lips.

“I-I know how you could thank me,” you whispered, shutting your eyes.

Taeyong swallowed thickly, closing his eyes as well. He slowly leaned forward, and it was as if everything was in slow motion. Your lips slowly inched closer, the gap between you two getting smaller and smaller until --

“Princess Y/N!”