Sister's Suspicion
Cupid at Heart
A knock against the door sounded, but the door remained closed.
“Your Highness, I was ordered to accompany you to the bathing chamber,” Hoya spoke from the other side.
Hyunmi understood her father’s love for her, though it seemed irrational and selfish at times. In the end, parents wanted what was best for their children. Though he had her locked up, she always received first rate treatment for a princess.
She opened the door, seeing Hoya’s face. His lips were pressed tighter than usual, and his pupils diverted in ways to avoid any eye contact. The behavior aroused her suspicions at once.
“I am aware of your plans with Princess Biah,” she spoke as they descended the long spiraling staircase.
He stopped in front of her, turning to her completely appalled and blanched out. He rubbed his hands together to plea. “Please forgive me, Your Highness. I do not have any intention to hinder the king’s plan to wed Prince Dongwoo off. However, you understand how much I love the princess.”
“I do not have any intention to turn you in either,” Hyunmi replied, lifting the side of her lips to a playful smirk. She passed him, leading the way downwards. "If I were to marry Prince Sunggyu by force, perhaps I would have done the same thing.”
“Your Highness,” Hoya trailed off, following after the princess. He was at such a loss he forgot his duty to remain in front of her as a knight.
“The only reason my brother is willing to wed Princess Biah is because he thinks he is saving my relationship. However, I would not be able to live with myself knowing that my happiness made other people suffer. We will find a solution.”
Though her backside was the only vision he had of her, he could imagine the determined flicker in her eyes. Princess Hyunmi was the most obedient princess who could at the same time be the first to initiate a rebellion. For once, he treated it as a good thing.
“We are exchanging letters to each other,” Hoya confessed. He wasn’t a man of many words, but he trusted her enough, believing she would appreciate the knowledge of their progress.
“Courting letters? How wonderful.” Hyunmi clasped her hands together, remembering the time when Woohyun had confessed by reciting his version of a courting letter to her.
She genuinely hoped their happiness could stretch onto an endless measure.
Hoya escorted her back to the high tower chamber where she would remain imprisoned until her father lifted the ban. Knowing Woohyun would visit at night, she did not object to the punishment.
When she opened the door, she was greeted with a peculiar sight. Both her sisters were sitting on her bed, the purple cat on Soonkyu’s lap. They greeted her with frolly eye smiles and loud cheers. Hyunmi was confused.
“We were so worried about you and wanted to see how you were doing. This place seems to be quite alright, though not nearly as beautiful as your old room,” Hyoyeon told her. She got up and spun around the room to let the skirts of her dress flutter in circles. She dismissed Hoya, grabbed Hyunmi’s hand, and led her to sit on the bed between both sisters.
It reminded her of the time when they had appeared to congratulate her on her engagement to Prince Sunggyu. There was so much excitement in their tone to believe their congratulatory message was genuine. For the princess who had never received authentic sisterly affection, the slightest act of love made her a fool to their play.
“We have always known about you and Cupid. Oh how wonderful it is to see the truth with my very own eyes. You two make a remarkable pair,” Soonkyu spoke, grabbing both of Hyunmi’s hand in hers.
“We shall convince father to release you and lift his order over Cupid’s exile. We want you two to be happy. You deserve the best, sweet sister,” Hyoyeon added, placing a hand on her sister’s shoulder.
“Really?” The youngest princess blinked her eyes with hope. The ones whom she suspected would go against her turned out to be her greatest allies. In her moment of bliss, she missed the cat rolling its eyes.
“You must tell us, we beg of you, how did you and Cupid meet? How did you fall in love?” Soonkyu showed such desperation to learn of her story.
Whether she wanted to learn the meaning of love, or needed to hear a lovely tale, Hyunmi easily revealed everything to her sisters. Their positive reactions compelled her to expose more and more, until finally, they knew the entire tale.
“That is truly wonderful. He appeared to make you fall for Prince Sunggyu, but fell in love with your beauty and decided to keep you all for himself,” Soonkyu began, nodding her head in approval. “As expected of Cupid.”
“As long as it keeps our sister happy, we shall not complain,” Hyoyeon added.
Hyunmi was momentarily lost. Where had their earlier excitement and approval gone off to? It seemed their words bore a hidden underlying meaning.
“What are you implying?” She uttered in a small whisper. Part of her wanted to know, but another part knew curiosity killed the cat, except for Sungjong.
The two sisters were surprised, exchanged a look with one another, and turned to their sister with worried frowns sinking in their forehead.
“He is the god of love and desire who can make any woman fall in love for his desired target. If he wanted you to fall for Prince Sunggyu, he would easily complete the task on the first day,” Soonkyu elaborated.
This got Sungjong to look up from her lap, its eyes gleaming with alertness. Even his tail had stopped dancing and laid idle by his side. They were on to something, and he found himself agreeing.
“Woohyun told me his abilities could not be used against our will. An existing affection is needed in order for his power to work. Considering the absence of my affection towards Prince Sunggyu, it was bound to fail,” Hyunmi explained, losing confidence in her own voice.
“And you easily believed that?” Hyoyeon shot.
Hyunmi parted her lips to say something, but her voice was unwilling to argue.
“You may have gotten older by the year, but you are as naive and gullible as you always have been, little sister,” Hyoyeon continued, exhaling deeply on her behalf.
Hyunmi felt their arms around her shoulder—heavy like the world’s burden had been added to her weight. In the silence, she heard her heart race itself to a non-existing finish line. She was suddenly afraid.
“What is it you truly want to convey?” She asked, her voice more timid than she had meant it to be.
“Sister, there is no easier way to confess our suspicions,” Soonkyu said, shutting her eyes momentarily. “We want to be genuinely happy for you, but a part of us are afraid he used his abilities to make you fall for him.”
Impossible. It was an outrageous thought. Woohyun’s feelings for her were sincere. He couldn’t possibly deceive her. Not after the bond they shared. Not after last night.
“You must retrace your memories and find out when you started falling in love for him. Why did you fall for him in the first place?” Hyoyeon added.
“Why?” Hyunmi repeated the question, trailing off as she set her gaze on the floor.
Why? She did not know why. She had come to believe no logical explanation was required to be in love. One day, those feelings blossomed like a budding flower blooming in the springtime. All of a sudden, he had invaded her thoughts, made her heart flutter, and elicited her happiness through his presence alone.
“You can’t even remember, can you?” Hyoyeon asked in disbelief, shaking her head out of shame. “It is a definite sign he is using you. You are not genuinely in love with him—you are under his spell.”
Hyunmi did not want to believe it. Her heart weighed like an anchor, not knowing where to attach herself to. Her eyes screeched shut against the pain, filtering warm tears as it pooled on the side of her eyes. She did not want her sisters to find her in her most vulnerable state, yet they did.
“Dear, we care about you as much as father does. Perhaps you should try to see things from his perspective. No father would let his daughter wander with an unknown man,” Soonkyu spoke, rubbing soothing circles on Hyunmi’s back to comfort her. “If you wish to go against father’s command and choose to follow the man who forced your love, we won’t be there to stop you.”
“Cupid’s power is strong, after all. We understand if you’ll turn against your family and choose his love instead,” Hyoyeon added, obviously steering her answer to a particular direction. She put her head against her sister’s for a final show of support.
They decided it would be best to leave Hyunmi for now and have her ponder in her thoughts. The two princesses left, but Sungjong stayed behind. He had morphed into his human form, assuming she needed a human friend to talk to instead of a feline.
“You must think I am foolish. I don’t know what to believe,” Hyunmi opened up to him. She always did. Though he had a runny mouth and easily spread gossip, she still trusted Sungjong as her confidant.
The human cat sat on her bed, biting his lips to the point it would tear his delicate skin. His own mind was conflicted. Hearing the sister’s words, as poisonous as they may be, brought him to a certain extent of agreement. He was quite fond of Woohyun, but he couldn’t put his full trust in him.
“Please say something, Sungjong,” Hyunmi finally pleaded. She turned around, finding herself on her knees against his feet. She rested her hand and chin on his lap, staring at him with teary eyes. She needed any statement to confirm she should trust Woohyun wholeheartedly.
“I do not think you will appreciate what I am about to tell you,” Sungjong began. There was no hint of playfulness on his face, which she understood as a warning. He knew something.
This would end up killing her someday, but she proceeded anyway. “Tell me.”
Sungjong hated himself for it, but knew he’d despise himself even more if he kept the knowledge to himself. With a heavy heart, he recalled the memory.
“Do you remember the day when we visited Aphrodite’s temple, and I returned inside to retrieve my missing bell?”
“Yes.”
“I overheard Cupid and Aphrodite talking,” he confessed, swallowing down his saliva. He could not retract his intention to inform her. “They were talking of a plan, of a mission.”
“What is it?” The princess asked, her pupils seemingly shivering against the tears forming inside.
Sungjong took in a deep breath and shut his eyes.
“A mission to make you fall for Cupid, and ensure it wouldn't be the other way around.”
His words struck Hyunmi like a lightning dagger, stabbing her fragile heart over and over again, yet it couldn’t bleed. Because it needed to keep beating in order to hurt all over again. The tears flowing from her eyes could not amount to the immense pain and shock she felt, so they froze in her eyes like a night creature refusing to see daylight.
It must have been a mistake, she was certain of. He spoke every word laced with undeniable affection. He provided her a surreal sense of safety and security. He risked his life and broke the rules to be with her. He kissed her with such tenderness. He made love with such passion. He taught her the meaning of love. He loved her.
Of course, those feelings could easily be fabricated when a love potion was used.
She recognized her similar symptoms to that of Seulyi’s. Authentic feelings were a thin line away from forged ones, and perhaps she had been feeling an illusion all along. She was the true fool. He misused her trust and abused her love.
Yet, it didn’t stop her from loving him. As much as he was the devil in disguise, she loved him too much to hate him.
The potion was too strong. She couldn’t think clearly in accordance to her logic when her emotion was heavily under its influence. She needed to break free, and an idea sprung to her mind.
“Call Seulyi for me,” she told Sungjong.
“What? Do you expect me to descend all those stairs only to return here afterwards?” Sungjong showed his great reluctance, letting himself fall spreadeagled on her bed.
Hyunmi was too consumed by her mixture of feelings to haul over his refusal. She stomped her way to the door, pulling the handle open, only to find Seulyi standing outside with her arm raised for a knock. What an impeccable timing.
“Perfect! I need you,” Hyunmi declared, pulling her head maid inside and shutting the door behind her. She requested Seulyi to take a seat next to Sungjong as she continued prancing in front of them, deeply in thought.
“What is this about?” Seulyi whispered to the male beside her.
“Apparently Cupid used a love potion to make the princess fall for him,” Sungjong replied in an equally soft whisper.
“What?” She breathed a loud shock. “Why would he commit such treason?”
Sungjong decided not to answer this one, hoping cupid could offer a proper explanation before his image completely shattered through a bad reputation.
“I have made up my mind!” The princess shouted, pumping her fist against the palm of her hand. She turned to the other two with a crooked smile on her face, happy at the solution she had obtained, but unhappy she had to seek one in the first place.
“I need you two to visit Myungsoo and retrieve the antidote of a love potion.”
“Antidote of a love potion? How will we possibly get there? We do not know the way and—”
“You can count on us, Hyunmi!” Seulyi showed an entirely different reaction. She clenched Sungjong around his neck, preventing him from withering the princess’ intention. This was her golden opportunity to see the love of her life, and no talking cat would prevent it.
“Hyunmi,” Sungjong began, breaking free from Seulyi’s grasps. “For whatever reason do you need the antidote for?”
Hyunmi sighed, solemnly staring at the bottom of her long dress. She wasn’t sure of the answer, but thought it was the best possible solution for now. She loved Woohyun, that she was certain of. And perhaps, it became the root of all problems.
“I want to test the genuinity of my feelings,” she spoke, her voice as calm as the sea before meeting a raging storm. “I will consume the antidote. If my feelings do not waver, I know it was genuine after all.”
Yay! Won the bid today! I hope you will enjoy the story~ Would love to know your thoughts, so please do leave comments too~ Thank youuu <3
Comments