-Chungah’s POV-

“Chungah!”

I woke up suddenly, startled by the voice, and Minwoo burst into the room, waking up Doyoung as well, who seemed to have slept next to me the entire night.

“Are you alright?” he asked me worriedly, shaking my shoulders as he looked around for any bruises.

“I’m fine. Is your brother okay?” I asked and he nodded.

“He’s still sleeping. What’s going on here?” he looked down and I saw that Doyoung and I were holding hands. I quickly pulled my hand away and tried getting out of bed, in which Doyoung and Minwoo immediately stopped me.

“There’s no way you’re going to work in this condition,” Doyoung said.

“You have a day off today,” Minwoo declared.

“But Minwoo--”

“No but’s. I won’t allow it. Until you’re fully healed, you won’t working at all. Got it?” Minwoo bent down and looked me in the eye. I took the chance to give him my puppy eyes look, then switching to a pleading one. When it didn’t work, I sighed.

“Fine.”

“Very good. Doyoung, I can trust you to take care of her?”

“Of course,” he said, bowing as Minwoo left the room. I sat up as he turned back to me. “To the lake?”

“You read my mind,” I grinned and stopped him when he tried to help me. “I’m fine I told you.”

I managed to get out of bed and walk to the door. Peeking out, we saw it was clear and walked to the lake. We sat in silence until he broke it.

“Tell me more about yourself,” he requested.

“There’s not much to tell you,” I said. “I was raised by my grandparents, I never knew who my parents were. I don’t know if they’re still alive or what. My grandparents never told me anything about them except for the fact that they went missing. They gave me to them, telling them I should live a normal life without knowing who they were.”

“Have you tried looking for them?”

-Doyoung’s POV-

I saw her look down at the ground.

“I’ve tried so hard. Looked for clues, hints that would lead me to them,” she said quietly, her voice breaking. A sniffle and then I could see tears rolling down her cheeks. I leaned her head onto my shoulder as she cried, eventually embracing her, which made her cry even harder. When she had calmed down, she slightly laughed.

“Look at me. I’m pathetic,” she said. “Not being able to protect the prince properly, letting him get bruises because of me. I’m as weak as a twig.”

“You’re not weak!” I said a bit too loudly, making her look up at me. In a quieter tone, I continued. “You tried looking for them. You managed to keep the prince in decent condition while taking the rest. You cry. I think you’re stronger than you think.”

As she gave me a watery smile, I could see that she wasn’t convinced. I lifted her chin up so she was looking at me. Her eyes were a dark brown and she had a petite face, her long hair making it look even smaller. I leaned closer…

-Chungah’s POV-

I saw Doyoung leaning in closer and quickly covered my mouth.

“I shouldn’t,” I said, my voice muffled. He froze but chuckled, leaning back.

“Don’t worry, I won’t do it without your permission. I’m assuming you have your heart set on someone else?”

“N-not really,” I said. “I should get going.”

I stood up and so did he. He supported me all the way back until I was back in my room. It was perfect timing because Minwoo burst into the room again.

“Are you leaving Doyoung?” he asked.

“Yep, I should get going now,” he said, bowing before taking his leave. The door closed and Minwoo turned to me.

“I just want you to know that I’ll be turning one year older next week,” he said proudly.

“Oh, that’s right,” I said. “I hope I’ll be healed enough to help with preparations.”

“You know...” he said, before leaving my room. “Get prepared for a surprise.”

“A surprise?” I repeated but he just grinned and shut the door. What’s he on about?

-1 week later-

The whole kingdom was celebrating Minwoo’s birthday. I followed him around as he greeted the villagers, kindly trying rejecting their gifts before accepting them. As I watched, he seemed to have matured more than the last time I had seen him on his birthday. Well he is getting older… I wondered when his surprise would happen. As night fell, we heard a loud bang and the sky exploded with color. As I watched the fireworks, I felt a hand on mine and then I was being led away into the darkness.

“Minwoo? Is there something wrong?” I asked when I saw able to see clearly. He shook his head.

“I just want this off my chest and tell you in person,” he said in one breath. Taking one last breath, he began talking normally. “Chungah, I like you. Not as a maid, not as a friend, but… uh, romantically. I know that you might like someone else so I want to say it quickly. I won’t get my hopes up but I don’t want you to see me as a brother but as a man you can rely on. But if there’s a day when you realize your true feelings, please… choose me.”

He left quickly, leaving me standing there alone. I was slightly shocked at his sudden confession and heard something near me move. Turning, I saw Joonhwi’s eyes looking into mine before leaving.