Mark found himself back in the library after another awkward brunch with his fiancé.  This time, he managed to eat all his food quickly so he wouldn’t miss Jinyoung.  Sooyoung seemed confused but decided to let him go.

Jinyoung didn’t really specify a time he would be here, so Mark decided to just hang out there all day just to make sure he wouldn’t miss him. 

Mark sat in an armchair trying to find a casual looking position.  He crossed one leg over the other and then uncrossed it.  He rested his head against his hand and then set it back down on the arm of the chair.  He was ridiculously nervous, he felt like it was already his wedding day.

After Mark had fidgeted in his chair for almost forty minutes Jinyoung finally appeared in the library.

“Mark!  You’re here!  You’ve passed phase one.” 

Mark jumped when he heard his voice and his body ended up in the most awkward, non-casual position yet. “I’m sorry, what?”

Jinyoung noticed how he tried to discreetly arrange himself in a normal position and laughed a bit.  “Phase one of me determining whether you’re a good guy for my sister.  I asked you to meet me here today and here you are!  I didn’t even have to wait.  Punctuality is an essential trait to have.”

“Oh yes, of course.”  Mark wouldn’t exactly call himself punctual; he had just been anticipating coming to the library so much he ended up arriving early.

Jinyoung walked to pull another armchair across the room so that it faced Mark and sat down across from him.  “Now phase two!”

Mark was frightened at the setup.  “Is this an interview?”

“I would rather refer to it as a deep conversation to learn more about you and if your personality traits mesh with my sister.”  Jinyoung said in a smooth voice.  Mark had to pull his eyes up after he caught himself staring at his lips.

“Isn’t that a bit pointless?  We’re still getting married either way.”

“I guess that’s true… but I’d still like to know what kind of guy you are.  I mean, you came here today.  I’d hope you’d try to enjoy my company just a bit.”  Jinyoung pouted and Mark felt guilty.

“No!  I enjoy your company; it’s just that… never mind.  Go ahead!  Ask me things!”  Mark shifted into an overly cheery mood and Jinyoung just kind of looked at him confused.  He sank back into his chair after he realized he’d been acting completely unnatural again.

“You’re an interesting one, Mark.  Different from all the other guys…” 

“Other guys?” 

“Well, Sooyoung hasn’t been properly arranged to be married before this but we’ve had many people asking to be her suitor.  All of them have been creepy guys who just wanted her for her looks.  They were disgusting… I couldn’t let them have her.”  Jinyoung crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, a displeased look on his face.

“So you were able to get them to leave her alone?” 

“It wasn’t that hard.  A bit of dramatic acting a few choice words and they would be begging to not be a part of this family.  Sooyoung wasn’t always too happy with me, though, she seems way too willing to just marry anyone.  She was the one who asked to be fixed into a marriage as soon as possible.”  Jinyoung’s pouting was starting to look less angry and more adorable by the second and Mark had to reign in all his focus to keep the conversation going.

“Is that why Sooyoung doesn’t like you?”  Jinyoung looked shocked at this accusation and Mark immediately retracted his words.  “I mean, she didn’t think you liked her that much when I talked to her at dinner.”

“I love Sooyoung, always have, she’s my baby sister.  The thing is; I love her too much.  It was all cute and fun being the protective older brother until she hit puberty and suddenly I went from being someone she admired to just being plain annoying.  She’s been distancing herself from me ever since.” 

Jinyoung looked hurt as he talked.  It was obvious how much he cared for his sister.

“It was even worse after I’d chased away all those guys she insisted on marrying.  I think she forced herself into this arranged marriage just to spite me.”  Jinyoung looked his straight in the eyes and smirked.  Mark tried to keep himself from avoiding his glare even though he knew he was starting to get flustered.  “Looks like her plan failed.  She ended up getting paired with a decent guy.”

“Ah, um.  Thanks?”  Jinyoung laughed at his reaction.

“Are you embarrassed?  You’re really cute.  Where did they find a guy like you?”  Jinyoung scooted back up to the front of the chair and leaned into Mark.  “Anyways, all you’ve done is ask me questions.  I’m supposed to be the one asking the questions.”

Mark instinctively leaned back as Jinyoung got closer, but that just caused Jinyoung to lean in to match his movements.  “You can ask me a-anything, I guess.”

“Prince Tuan.”  Mark tried not to think about how Jinyoung lowered his voice and said that in a teasing tone.  It didn’t turn him on.  Nope, not at all.  “You’re such an enigma.  Tell me, what’s on your mind?”

What was on his mind?  A lot of things, like how great Jinyoung looked today with his bangs pushed up off his forehead, or the fact that his eyes were such a beautiful shade of brown, and his skin looked so soft and inviting and…

Jinyoung tilted his head to the side, awaiting an answer.

“Nothing.”                                                                                     

“Nothing?  How can you be thinking about nothing?”

“I just… there’s nothing to think about.” He probably sounded less than thrilling right now but his mind refused to come up with any thoughts that were not centered on how infatuated he was with Jinyoung.

“Alright then, what about Sooyoung?  I know the marriage was arranged but what do you think of her?  You’re obviously not fawning over her like most guys.”

Mark tried to think about what Jinyoung would like to hear than what he actually felt.  “She’s nice and beautiful.  She’s great.”

“Stop lying.”  Mark was immediately taken aback by how calmly he said that.

“Excuse me?”

“Don’t lie to me.  I can tell you’re hardly interested in her.  It’s obvious from your body language, even from just observing you two once at dinner time.”  Mark must’ve looked like he just got caught committing a crime.  “Don’t worry.  I’m not upset; I just want you to be honest with me.”

Mark realized that lying any further would only make the situation worse.  “Honestly, I do think she’s a nice a girl.  I’m just… not attracted to her, in a romantic way?”  Mark kept his eyes on the ground, not wanting to know what Jinyoung thought about his confession.  “Sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize to me.  Love is not always the first priority in an arranged marriage anyways.  You both agreed to this regardless of personal feelings.  I prefer you over any of those guys who were just eyeing her like she was prey.”  Jinyoung reached out and grabbed his chin to lift his head to face him and Mark shifted his eyes away from looking directly at his face.  It felt like he was staring into the sun.  “So, you’re really not attracted to her at all? She’s regarded as one of the most beautiful princesses in the entire kingdom.”

“No…”

Jinyoung was still holding his chin as he inched his face closer to Mark’s.  “Interesting.”  Mark was trying not to look at him but he could tell how close he was when he felt his breath against his face.

Mark regretted the moment his eyes finally looked forward and met Jinyoung’s.  Mark’s heart was beating out of his chest as his eyes scanned Jinyoung’s face.  After a second of intense staring from both parties Jinyoung’s eyes crinkled up and he started to giggle before he finally let go of Mark’s chin.

“Sorry, it’s really funny to tease you.  It almost seems like you’re more nervous around me than my sister.”

Jinyoung’s ability to read people was scarily accurate, or maybe he was just being too obvious.  Mark could only reply with a high-pitched nervous giggle and Jinyoung wouldn’t stop smiling at him. 

“I like you.”  Jinyoung told him through his laughter and Mark abruptly stopped laughing.

“What!?”

“I like you!  You’re really funny.” Not exactly the response Mark was hoping for, but it was a start.  

“So,” Jinyoung leaned in, engaging him in conversation. “What do you like to do for fun?”

Talking to Jinyoung was different from talking to others.  Conversation flowed naturally as he didn’t pressure him to talk when he didn’t want to, and always gave him time to express himself before trying to talk over him.  It was refreshing.  He wasn’t sure how long they had talked for, probably hours.  It was hard to keep track of time when you were enjoying yourself this much.  He was sure he hadn’t even talked to someone for such a long time in his entire life.

“Jinyoung!”  A voice yelled snapping them both out of the conversation they were both deeply engrossed in.

“Huh, Jaebum?  Why are you yelling?”  Jinyoung immediately got up from his chair, as if he’d been caught breaking rules.

“I’ve been trying to talk to you normally but it seems that you were too busy to hear me.”  Jinyoung looked at Mark then back at Jaebum, an ashamed expression on his face.

“Sorry, what time is it?  Is it time for evening lessons already?”

“You’ve been here for five hours; you need to go downstairs immediately.”  Jaebum finished, before walking out, certain Jinyoung wouldn’t disobey him.

Jinyoung looked back at Mark apologetically.  “I guess I have to go then...”  Jinyoung seemed as though he was reluctant to leave.

Mark stood up and bowed to Jinyoung.  “I’ll see you then…”

“Tomorrow, same place, same time?  Unless, you don’t want to hang out with me anymore.”  Jinyoung was purposely acting cute and Mark wasn’t sure if he knew how much he was driving Mark crazy. 

“No!  I’ll be here.”

“Alright then… Mark.  I can call you that right?  We’re friends now.  You can call me Jinyoung too if you want.”

“Alright, see you tomorrow… Jinyoung.”

Mark thought he saw a bit of pink on Jinyoung’s cheeks after he said his name, but he was sure he was imagining things.

“You’re so stiff.”  Jinyoung said to him, calmly.

“W-what?!”

“You know stiff… standoffish.  You need to loosen up.”  Mark made a mental note to get his mind out of the gutter.

The next day they had met in the library but Jinyoung said they shouldn’t stay cooped up in there forever and pulled him out to one of the gardens instead, ignoring the weird looks from the workers as he literally dragged him down the hallways.

“Sorry, I’m not that great at conversation.”

“You’re good at conversations once you’re comfortable with someone, from what I’ve observed.”  Jinyoung and he were sitting on the grass under a tree.  Jinyoung said he often liked to come here to read or study. 

“Are you saying that I’m comfortable with you?”

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”  Jinyoung smiled and Mark resisted the urge to reach out and squeeze his cheeks.

Mark wasn’t sure what to say and Jinyoung decided to set his head on Mark’s shoulders.  

“I’m comfortable with you.”  Jinyoung said, and he nudged his body closer and settled his head higher up on Mark’s shoulder towards his neck.

Mark wasn’t sure if he wanted to melt into the ground or superglue Jinyoung’s head to his shoulder because he never wanted to be separated from him.

“Do you know why I like it here?”  Mark nodded ‘no’ and Jinyoung pointed in front of him to part of the fencing that surrounded the entire property.  “See the vines growing all over the fence?  Just before the spring is over they’ll bloom into flowers and cover the entire fence.”

Mark looked from side to side and couldn’t see where the fences ended or started, the property was huge.  Beyond the fence, there was a dense forest that seemed to go on forever.  “Hope I’ll still be here to see it.”

Jinyoung lied down on the grass on his back, and Mark tried not to be too upset about the fact that his shoulder was now empty.  “You don’t have a set date for the wedding right?”

“No, they just said a couple of months.  I should still be here to see it…”  Mark thought about how he would be moving out with Sooyoung once he was married.  He glanced over at Jinyoung who had his eyes closed, completely relaxing and realized what he was feeling was dangerous.

He pushed down thoughts and feelings, hoping they wouldn’t resurface and ruin the moment any further. 

Mark lied back down in the grass next to Jinyoung and closed his eyes as well.  He felt comfortable like this; neither was saying anything but the atmosphere felt so natural he didn’t want to get up. 

Just as he thought he might doze off he heard Jinyoung start yelling.

“Youngjae!!”  Jinyoung was sitting up, wrestling with a dog that refused to stay in his grip. “Come get your dog off me!”

Seconds later Youngjae was running up to them and pulling the white fluff ball that Jinyoung had said was a dog from him.  “Sorry!  She just ran off, I couldn’t keep up…”

“Does she have some sort of vendetta against me?  She only listens to you.”  Jinyoung took notice of how intently Mark was staring at the dog Youngjae was cradling in his arms.

“You’re allowed to keep a dog?”  Mark asked.

“Oh no, technically she’s not my dog… she’s a stray.”  Youngjae admitted.

“Youngjae found her one night and decided to feed her, she won’t stop coming back now.”  Jinyoung finished.

Youngjae set the dog down in front of him and she excitedly ran up to him.  “Her name is Coco!  She seems to like you.”

Mark instantly forgot about anything that didn’t pertain to the dog.  He reached out to pet her as she excitedly tried to jump up on his lap.  He started laughing and picked her up in his arms and hugged her.  “Coco!  Hi!  I’m Mark!”  She didn’t try to escape and Mark snuggled her into his cheek.

“Why do dogs only hate me?”  Jinyoung reached out and tried to pet her but she instantly avoided his touch and clung to Mark.  “Coco, why do you hate me?”  He spoke directly to the dog.

Mark got up and put Coco on the ground next to him and walked around experimentally.  Coco followed obediently.  “Coco!”  Mark set off running across the garden and Coco just started running after him.  The way she stumbled over her feet trying to run was absolutely adorable. 

He was running all over the place lost in a world that consisted only of puppies and happiness until he looked up and saw Jinyoung just staring at him and smiling.  He failed to notice the planter on the ground in front of him and ran right into it, tripping and falling on his face.

“Oh my god, Mark!”  Jinyoung and Youngjae both ran over to him as Mark turned over and groaned.  Coco had crawled on him and started his face in comfort.

“I’m fine I’m- Coco stop, that tickles.”  Mark pulled Coco off his face but she just kept climbing back on him so eventually, Youngjae had to pull her off.

Jinyoung dropped to his knees and ran his hand across his cheek.  “You have a scratch here…”  Mark was suddenly aware of hose close Jinyoung’s face was and how his hand was caressing his cheek and he could feel himself start sweating more than he already was from the running.

“Sorry, got a little carried away.  I’m fine.”  Jinyoung moved so that Mark could pick himself up.  “Dogs are my weakness.”

“I could tell.”  Jinyoung chuckled while helping Mark up.  “It’s cute.  It’s as if you’re in another world.”

No, you’re the cute one.

“You wouldn’t get so carried away you’d forget all about me, right?”  Jinyoung smirked and playfully hit his arm.  Mark took a second to process the teasing tone and the playfulness.  Is he trying to flirt with me… no, I’m imagining things.  There’s no way.

“Of course not, I wouldn’t ever forget about you.”  Mark grinned while he said this, mimicking the way Jinyoung talked to him.

They were just staring at each other while smiling, stuck in a trance until they heard a meek ‘excuse me’ coming from beside them.

“Uh… should I leave?”  Youngjae asked, standing awkwardly with Coco squirming in his arms.

This time, Jinyoung was the one who got flustered while Mark just laughed it off.

It became a ritual for them to meet every day in the library. 

Jinyoung spent many hours studying but when he was free he was always with Mark.

They toured the palace together, hung out in the gardens, and played sports.  Yet, nothing was better than the days they spent hours in the library just talking.  He never thought he would enjoy talking, of all things, but Jinyoung was just so cute, they both loved to tease each other and by the time they finished talking Mark’s face would hurt from smiling too much.  Conversation flowed easily between them.

He was starting to really appreciate his time and the Park residence.

For all the wrong reasons.

It was always lingering over their shoulders.  The elephant in the room that neither of them dared to bring up.  The fact that he hardly spent time with his future fiancé or the fact that the time was ticking down to the day of his wedding, the way he dreaded the day he would have to leave Jinyoung. He kept everything bottled inside to not ruin the present.

Today as he walked up the library he stopped in front of the door when he heard shouting coming from inside.

“Jinyoung!  You’re not getting any younger; I don’t understand why you haven’t pursued anyone yet.”  A man’s voice could be heard.  “Your mother and I are worried that by the time you’re ready nobody will want you.”

“I told you, I’m not ready to get married yet.  I have one more year of studies, that’s what I want to focus on.”  Jinyoung was in there as well.

“That’s not an excuse, you can continue with studies after marriage.  Look at your sister, so willing to be arranged for marriage!  You should be ashamed she’s to be wed before you.”

“We’re two different people.  Just because she wants to get married doesn’t mean I’m ready.”

“Then when? Jinyoung when are you going to be ready?  I’m arranging for you to meet with some more girls—“

“No!  I’ve said no a million times, I’m not meeting with them.”

“Then you shall be arranged to a marriage, it’s the only way.”

“I disagree.  You can’t force me to do it against my will.”

“You’ll agree to it, I know you’ll make the right decision.”  Mark heard footsteps approaching and he barely as able to get out of the before the door opened in his face. 

He met eyes with the man and immediately fell into a 90-degree bow. “King Park.”

“Oh, Prince Tuan.”  He nodded to him.  “Do you know where Sooyoung is?”

“Sorry your majesty, I do not know.”  Mark bowed again after each sentence.

“Do you not care?”  Mark made the mistake of making eye contact with him, his stern expressed scared him.

“No…I…”  He was at a loss for words.

“Forget it.  Maybe you can talk some sense into the disgrace in there, at least you’re sensible enough to know when it’s time to become useful to your family.”  With that, he walked out, and Mark didn’t dare to move until he was completely out of sight.

Once he was sure the coast was clear he ran into the library and found Jinyoung crouched down beside a shelf staring at the ground.  “Jinyoung…”

“Am I broken?”  Mark had thought he had been crying, but his voice was clear.

“What?”

“No matter how hard my parents try, no matter how many girls they introduce to me, no matter how many years it’s been, I’m not interested.  I’ve seen others find their wives, get married and live happily.  I’ve been waiting for that moment too, when I find the person I want to be with for the rest of my life, and my heart just knows.”

Mark stepped closer to Jinyoung and crouched down beside him, laying a hand on his shoulder.  “And you haven’t experienced that yet?”

“It’s weird, I feel like all these years I’ve been waiting for something to happen and when it finally did I tried to deny it.  My heart disagreed with my brain and it’s been an endless battle trying to sort it out.”

Mark felt his stomach turn.  He was shaken by how closely Jinyoung’s words resonated with him.

“I kept telling myself that maybe marriage isn’t for me, maybe falling in love isn’t for me, and maybe my happy ending doesn’t exist.”  Jinyoung turned to face him and the emotion in his expression made Mark falter. “I was wrong, though.”

“What made you change your mind?”  Jinyoung settled on his knees and drifted towards Mark.  Mark wasn’t expecting it so he fell over onto his backside.  Jinyoung just kept getting closer, until his face was directly in front of him.

His breath ghosted over Mark’s face as he answered in a tone so soft Mark could barely hear him.

“You.”

A/N: First of all, I need to thank you guys so much for 100+ subscribers!  I'm shocked this many people are interested in this honestly... I love you guys a lot.  Secondly, I am going to be very busy with school due to term projects and exams from now until the 28th of April, so I wouldn't get your hopes up for an update anytime between now and then, truly sorry about that!  Don't you guys worry though, this story is my baby and as soon as I'm finished with school I'll get right to work on this!  Again, thanks for all the support and I hope you have/had a fantastic day! <3