CHAPTER V
The Princes and the Peas.

 

 

 

 

 

Jina had sent a merchant and horse to the cottage to deliver the message of Jongin staying at Mistlethwaite. The two boys were excited about their sleepover, especially Kyungsoo- as it was his first ever sleepover with a friend. He wasn’t sure what one was supposed to do at sleepovers, but he hoped Jongin would chase away the monster in the house that cries out for him every night. Jongin’s mother was glad that the boy had a human friend to share stories and play with, which was a change from him bringing home fox cubs and rabbits every now and then.

 

When they heard that the message had been accepted by Jongin’s mother back in the cottages, the two boys looked at each other and giggled with the brightest smiles on their faces. Kyungsoo grabbed Jongin’s hand and dragged him across the looming corridors running, and the action caused Jongin to scream in shock before bursting into giggles again, surprised at the usually timid boy’s sudden change of character.

 

Meanwhile, Kyungsoo felt a surge of relief and extreme happiness that he was no longer alone in the seemingly haunted, isolated mansion. He wanted to run around the whole vast space and fill the corridors with the sound of laughter and Jongin’s voice. He loved Jongin’s voice, especially his laugh, and wanted to hear it for as long as he could while Jongin stayed here to destroy the usual haunting silence, so he made conversation.

 

“I would like to show you to my favourite room,” he looked at Jongin with excitement in his eyes and a knowing smile.  “I have counted each door and there are around eighty I think, but there could be more. I haven’t explored most of the house as I’m not allowed to- but I imagine it’s filled with doors waiting to be explored- just like the gardens in the moors! ” he rambled on giddily.

 

“I should like to see it,” Jongin smiled at his friend with his eyebrows raised. Light astonishment showing on his face from how talkative the other has suddenly become.

 

 

Kyungsoo took Jongin by his hand and dragged him up the long staircases, through the narrow corridors until they reached Kyungsoo’s pride and joy. The library. Jongin stared in awe at the mountains of books, he let his fingers dance along the spines of the old covers as he walked around the room. He had never seen so many in his life, and he wondered what stories they told. Kyungsoo ran towards the window and opened the curtains, letting sunlight beam into the large room. Dust particles swam in the air, dancing and twirling in the light. The warm glow shone in Kyungsoo’s eyes and Jongin couldn’t help but stare at his golden brown orbs.

 

“How many have you read?” He asked curiously.

 

“Almost fifteen since I have been here, but I read all of the books in the library back at the orphanage,” Kyungsoo smiled, feeling rather pleased with himself.

 

He walked towards the fireplace where a book was resting by the armchair. “I’m currently reading this one.”

 

The book’s spine was missing and the edges were worn down. Kyungsoo opened to his last page and showed Jongin the picture, the illustration of the toad made Jongin smile.

 

“What’s it about?” his eyes fixated on the letters and yellowed, dusty pages.

 

Kyungsoo pointed at the animals in the picture. “The Toad has three friends; a mole, a badger and a rat. They go on many adventures together, it’s such a funny story!” his expression was so lit up in excitement and voice had such an animated tone as opposed to the timid, monotonous demeanour he usually had.

 

Jongin almost felt shy, and a little intimidated. Seeing Kyungsoo be so confident and passionate about reading made him feel small and uneducated. He wished he could’ve read a whole library, but he can’t even read a single word. A lost look and a frowning pout showed on his face, he felt ashamed.

 

Several minutes of only Kyungsoo talking and reminiscing about the collection of stories that he had read eventually came to a stop as the boy noticed the silence from Jongin.

 

“Is something the matter?” he mirrored Jongin’s frown.

 

“No, sorry. It’s nothing,” Jongin looked down at his hands and fiddled them awkwardly.

 

“I may not understand when people feel distressed, but I know you’re lying, Jongin. You’ve gone unusually quiet and you keep fiddling with your hands whenever I read,” he noticed.

 

“I just feel so...dumb around you,” Jongin squeaked. “You’ve read entire libraries and your vocabulary and diction is so developed, when I can’t even read,” he smiled sadly.  

 

Kyungsoo put the book down onto the wooden desk with a thoughtful look. He remembered Jina telling him about Jongin not being able to read, and the sadness he felt when she first told him. He can’t imagine what that must feel like, but he does know what it feels like being in an unfamiliar environment.

 

“Remember when you first showed me how to Whiskey?” he met Jongin’s discouraged eyes. The elder nodded, biting his bottom lip.

 

“I was so scared of him, and seeing you talk to him and care to him made me feel so small. You made it look so easy, I was jealous of how good you are with animals,” he smiled as he thought of the first time he heard Jongin talk to the horses and the other field animals as if they were human, about what he did that day and even asking them questions.

 

He remembered how Jongin sounded when he laughed after one of the birds twittered something to him in response, it reminded Kyungsoo of wind chimes that twinkle through breezes, hiding in the depths of forests, but nevertheless, enchanting onlookers. He had never heard such a warm, magical laugh.

 

In a forest so empty, Kyungsoo felt less alone with the discovering of that sound and the person behind it, seeing Jongin look at the animals with those warm honey-brown eyes made Kyungsoo feel giddy, he reminded Kyungsoo of the princesses that he had read about in Brother Grimms’ stories, the ones that sing with animals and laugh with a warmth that makes the sun’s rays jealous. His pretty smile and pretty eyes could blind someone.

 

“...Kyungsoo..?”

 

Kyungsoo hadn’t realised he was still smiling to himself and staring thoughtfully at Jongin until the other had an amused look on his face with some confusion buried in the furrow of his eyebrows. He looked like he was waiting for an answer and Kyungsoo suddenly turned red from embarrassment of getting caught staring at and daydreaming about the other.

 

“Hhm? What?” his doe eyes grew bigger in panic.

 

The laugh was back, a mix between a giggle and exasperation. Jongin loved Kyungsoo’s surprised face, the animated eyes as big as an owl’s.

 

“I said that Whiskey and the robin love you, and that you’re good with animals. All it took was some getting used to,” he had a comforting tone in his voice.

 

“But I scared them off at first... and I’m not as charming as you,” Kyungsoo says the second part quietly, unaware that he had said that out loud. He gasped to himself, worried that Jongin had heard, but calmed down when the other showed no surprised reaction.

 

“Maybe at first, but you learnt really quickly and soon became comfortable with and liked them.”

 

“That’s because I liked you straight away,” Kyungsoo replied thoughtlessly. Realising what he had said, he covered his mouth bashfully, head turning towards the ground in order to avoid eye contact.

 

“I liked you straight away, too,” Jongin smiled.

 

Kyungsoo’s cheeks matched his hat, growing hotter and redder by the minute. He squealed quietly before diverting his attention to his book, outlining the golden carvings of the hardback front cover with his finger, an involuntary giggle escaped his heart-shaped lips. He could not look at Jongin, try as he might, but the big stupid smile on his face would not go unnoticed.

 

Jongin lit up and laughed more sincerely, a pink shade matching his naturally pouty lips appeared on the curves of his cheeks. Kyungsoo’s blushy face and reaction was so cute that Jongin couldn’t help but laugh and match the blush, butterflies tickling the insides of his stomach and chest in giddiness. The chuckle twinkled in Kyungsoo’s ears, it drew him so effortlessly that his eyes automatically looked up at Jongin’s.

 

The two boys shared an embarrassed smile, and minutes passed before Kyungsoo came to his senses, there was a point to this conversation and he needed to turn the attention back onto it. He gulped before replying.

 

“So... what I mean is that it took practise for me- so it will take practise for you!”

 

Jongin, on the other hand, had forgotten the topic of the conversation. It was his turn to look lost, “wh- what?”

 

“Reading,” Kyungsoo made an effort to quickly change the subject and be rid of the embarrassment. “You said you can’t read or write a single word, so I’ll teach you!” crescents formed in his eyes as he smiled enthusiastically, a pink shade still covering his ears and neck but dissipating from his cheeks.

 

Jongin was brought back to his senses as he gasped in excitement. “Really?!” This quickly passed as he thought, “but what if I c-” he paused and sighed, he doesn’t want to embarrass himself in front of Kyungsoo. “… no, it won’t work, you’ll grow tired of me,” the frown and pout returned to his face.

 

“I would never! Anyone can read or write if they’re taught! You won’t learn in a day, but we have all day and night so it’s a start, and we can make a game out of it!” Kyungsoo was aware of how loudly and enthusiastically he was talking, he was probably scaring Jongin immensely.

 

He cleared his throat before linking his hand with Jongin’s, fingers crossing over, he smiled encouragingly. The other was shocked by the sudden contact, but immediately relaxed when he felt the softness of Kyungsoo’s nimble fingers soothe over his knuckles.

 

“Come on, it’ll be fun,” his voice was practically a whisper, paranoid after having shouted in excitement before.

 

The butterflies in Jongin’s stomach had not fully dissipated prior to Kyungsoo’s skinship so, needless to say, he still felt giddy and felt his heartbeat ring in his ears. But he could see how happy Kyungsoo looked and how much he wanted to help him, for the life of him, Jongin could not turn him down.

 

“Okay,” his eyes had a hint of wariness in them, but his timid smile grew bigger when Kyungsoo laughed in relief and excitement.

 

The two sat by the fire, as the sun was setting across the moors. Kyungsoo picked up a notebook from the bookcase, a calligraphy pen hooked through the loop at the side of it, before sitting down beside his student. Jongin tried to ignore the giddiness mixed with fear when he saw how professional that pen and how elegant the pages of the notebook looked, aware that he will ruin those pages soon with his lack of practise. It was a beautiful book, emerald green cotton covered the hardcover with a picture of a poppy painted in the bottom hand corner. The spine had a very detailed pattern in gold and Jongin couldn’t help but run his fingers over it.

 

“Do you… not have a different notebook or pen?” Jongin scratched the back of his neck. Kyungsoo frowned at the question. “I don’t want to ruin something so expensive and beautiful,” the shy tone reappeared in his voice.

 

Kyungsoo merely smiled at that. “I have plenty more, don’t worry. You won’t ruin anything, it’s part of the learning process,” and it will be cute having your first record of writing in my personal notebook Kyungsoo thinks to himself but this time succeeds in not saying out loud.

 

“Alright, let’s start,” Kyungsoo monotonously states, like a professor about to start a lecture. Seeing Jongin get worried about this, however, made him break the facade and he looked towards him before smiling and wiggling his eyebrows.

 

Jongin returned the smile and laughed. He soon stopped to think about Kyungsoo’s comment from before, wanting to know what he meant by that. “So how is this supposed to be a game?”

 

“Simple,” Kyungsoo smiled. “For each letter of the alphabet, think of a word in this room that you see.”

 

“And what if I can’t think of one?”

 

Something in Kyungsoo’s eyes showed a playful glint that Jongin had never seen before from him, the boy really was good at hiding parts of himself.

 

“You get punished,” Kyungsoo ominously stated, a smirk blossoming on his rosy face, eyebrows raised in mock fear.

 

Jongin could only blink at that, he really had stumped the boy this time. He thought over it very clearly before relaxing his face, a teasing smile appearing on his face, and replied, “Oh yeah? And what can YOU do to hurt me, I’m practically twice your size!”

 

“No you’re not!” Kyungsoo scowled.

 

“Am too,” it was Jongin’s turn to smirk.

 

“Are not,”

 

“Am too,”

 

Kyungsoo started to giggle, knowing that Jongin would join in and be distracted, “are NOT!” he kicked Jongin in the shin as he replied, causing the other to fall mid-laugh and guffaw.

 

“OWW!” he whined, his usual pout becoming parodically over-exaggerated, amusing Kyungsoo even more than he had anticipated.

 

However he was not done in abusing the other and pulled his middle finger back in front of Jongin’s forehead. Jongin had noticed this and gasped, clasping his hands together. “No! Please, mercy, mercy! I’m sorry! You are the tallest and grandest in all the land-”

 

Kyungsoo showed no remorse and flicked Jongin’s forehead with his small, nimble finger, a snap sound could be heard from metres away.

 

Much to Kyungsoo’s dismay, Jongin didn’t scream or recoil straight away in fear like he had anticipated. Instead the elder somewhat slumped forwards, still kneeling down, and brought them forward so that he could sit on his bottom, hugging his knees. He had a sad look on his face, a seemingly real pout, and...tears in his eyes?

 

Something churned in Kyungsoo’s stomach, causing him to feel sick, he stopped the act and knelt down to Jongin’s level. “Oh, no… does it hurt that bad?” Worry consuming his face, he placed his hand over Jongin’s red forehead, fingertips grazing over the dent from the impact.

 

Jongin moved his head down, placing his forehead on his- still raised -knees, sniffling.

 

Kyungsoo’s confusion increased,”...Jongin… are you alright?” eyebrows burrowing together in a frown.

 

Suddenly, a muffled giggle could be heard from underneath Jongin’s lowered head and he rapidly started to tickle Kyungsoo’s sides, the volume and intensity of the giggle increasing.

 

Kyungsoo, however, was having none of it. He squirmed and wriggled away from Jongin’s touch. “Get off me,” he automatically slapped his hands away.

 

Jongin recoiled, startled but still laughing, until he noticed the uncomfortable look on Kyungsoo’s face and proceeded to look at the other questionably.

 

“Are you alright?” it was his turn to ask.

 

“Don’t do that, I don’t like it,” Kyungsoo dead-panned, a scowl forming on his mouth.

 

“You’re not meant to enjoy a tickle fight. The tickle monster disposes of the weakest!” Jongin teased, but quickly changed to serious when he sought no response from the other. “Do you really hate it that much?”

 

“I thought you were hurt. I’m just confused, and it takes longer for me to understand jokes like that,” he explained. “I don’t like delicate touches, my sides are really sensitive and I feel very uncomfortable when someone touches me like that,” he made eye contact with Jongin, as the other looked back thoughtfully.

 

“But I’ve touched you before, and I hug you a lot, do you feel uncomfortable then?”

 

A rosy blush appeared on Kyungsoo’s ears as he recalled the countless times Jongin puts his head on his shoulders when they hug and his warmth relaxes Kyungsoo’s shoulders.

 

“No, I don’t,” he looks away from Jongin, fiddling with his fingers.

 

Jongin notices the behaviour and fully takes advantage of the situation, broad smile making his eyes form crescents. “Oh, is that so?”

 

Kyungsoo nods abruptly, looking at the ground, neck proceeding to match the colour of his ears. “I prefer firmer touches so that the sensitivity of my skin subsides,” as he blabbered away, he realised he was digging his own grave when he looked up at Jongin’s mischievous smile.

 

“Do you like it when I….. do THIS,” Jongin asks rhetorically before moving behind the other placing his chin on the top of Kyungsoo’s shoulder, right next to the spot on his neck where he usually places his head when they hug- Kyungsoo’s favourite place.

 

Kyungsoo tries not to squirm, a bigger -but still shy- smile forming on his face as he nods.

 

“How about… THIS,” Jongin folds his arms around Kyungsoo’s stomach from behind, and buries his face into the crook of his neck. Hearing the other squeak only encouraged him to continue making him flustered and he nuzzled into Kyungsoo’s neck.

 

“Jongiiiinnnn stooooop,” Kyungsoo whined. This time, however, there was no discomfort in his voice, only a flustered tone followed by a series of giggles.

 

Jongin would not stop, he held the younger in a tight, but warm, embrace. The two figures relaxed and Kyungsoo leaned his back into Jongin’s chest, spooning vertically. Kyungsoo inhaled Jongin’s familiar honeysuckle scent and sighed further into his chest.

 

They sat there for a minute, the redness on the smaller spoon’s neck and ears gradually dissipating before Jongin went for one final attack. He pressed his lips into Kyungsoo’s neck in a small peck.

 

Kyungsoo gasped and started to squeal, releasing himself from Jongin’s touch, and brought his knees up, face burrowing into his kneecaps. Jongin was in fits of giggles, no shame in his face whatsoever from the -totally uncalled for- action.

 

Feeling proud of himself for managing to make the other this flustered, he started to celebrate. He taunted Kyungsoo, not realising that the younger had recovered, before Kyungsoo grabbed Jongin’s cheeks and squished them, bringing his lips into a pout. He puckered them and gently placed a soft kiss on the elder’s own. As soon as they parted, shock prominent on Jongin’s face, Kyungsoo giggled and ran out of the library.

 

Jongin was left stunned, eyes wide, sat down on the rug, faintly touching his lips, the fire flickering from the log-burner emitting more heat into the room. Not that he needed to be heated up, it was his turn to be left completely astounded, and he hadn’t expected Kyungsoo to retaliate. As it turns out the boy was more of a threat than he had thought. He had to get his revenge.

 

Jongin stood up and made his way out of the library, and ran down the corridors. He could smell dinner being prepared, his instincts waking up and rumbling his stomach. Naturally, he moved towards the smell as messing around with Kyungsoo drained a lot of his energy.

 

It seems as though the two boys were on the same wavelength, for Jongin emerged into the dining room, only to see a raven round ball from behind one of the chairs. He stopped, smirked and squatted down before taking a stomp forward, “I’ve got you nooow!” he singsongs, before laughing mischievously “mwaaHAHAHA!!”

 

Kyungsoo met Jongin’s level of hyperactiveness and started to jump from chair to chair, standing up on each one to swivel his hips and dance arms raised in the air and hands proceeding to do move forwards as he raised his knees, a dance that Jongin hadn’t seen before, all whilst maintaining the most serious expression that he could muster on his face. Jongin, however, could not contain himself, and burst out into the loudest, most obnoxious girly laughter after seeing his friend’s astounding performance on the dining room chairs.

 

Albeit, he was not distracted from his mission. He focused on the target, eyes squinting and stance prepared to attack, waiting for them to be distracted. Jongin smirks to himself after confirming that the target seems to be invested in his performance and, remembering what he had said about wanting more firmer touches, grabs hold of his torso, aiming to pick the other up.

 

Although Jongin was taller than the other, he had greatly overestimated his ten-year-old self’s strength, as when he lifts Kyungsoo up from the wooden dining chair, he fails in lifting him over the back of it, and causes them to fall onto the floor along with said chair.  Kyungsoo screams as he loses his balance on the cushioned chair, however Jongin’s firm grip, arms looping underneath Kyungsoo’s armpits, prevented him from falling onto the hardwood floor.

 

Instead, the two boys land on the tapestried carpet in front of the fireplace as Jongin grunts, surprise evident in his tone of voice. It was a miracle that they managed to avoid landing on the rack of fire irons, or anywhere near the fireplace for that matter. Both were too stunned to say anything as Kyungsoo lay on top of Jongin, back pressed against Jongin’s front.

 

They lay like that for a short while, Jongin’s diaphragm expanding, causing Kyungsoo’s back to be lightly pushed by the other’s stomach. Their breaths were gradually evening out before Kyungsoo hurriedly pushed himself off of Jongin and twisted round to see where he had landed, crawling up slowly to his knees and pinning his hands on either side of Jongin’s small form on top of the elegantly patterned tapestry, simultaneously silky and coarse on the pads of Kyungsoo’s fingers.

 

Their eye contact lasted a good thirty seconds, Kyungsoo’s startled widened gaze contrasting Jongin’s shameless casual glance. The previous events before the fall soon dawned on Kyungsoo, and he quickly turned from startled to feigning annoyance. He started to hit Jongin as punishment, albeit whilst laughing.

 

“You’re such an idiot,” Kyungsoo giggled whilst hitting him. Jongin could only smile sheepishly, stress disappearing from his chest over the impacts of the fall.

 

Unfortunately, their laughing and teasing got cut short by a dramatic gasp. A looming shadow cast over the two giggly boys, faces only centimetres apart one on top of the other with hands pinning the other’s shoulders down.

 

“What on earth- ?!” shrieked Anne. “Get up from the floor this instant!” her carefully, sharply plucked thin eyebrows rose to the top of her forehead, eyes wider than an owl’s.

 

The boys frantically got up, panic quickly returning from before after the frequency and volume of the housekeeper’s shrill voice ruptured their eardrums, and she continued to squawk like the hawkeye that she was. Kyungsoo scowled to himself at her arrival, before seeing the almost parodic shock on her face. He coughed in an attempt to stifle his laugh, and shifted his eyes towards Jongin who looked like he was about to burst from holding his breath, shaking from trying to contain his hyperactivity.

 

She had a disgusted look on her face as she eyed both of them from top to bottom, keeping her unsatisfied gaze on Jongin for a bit longer, before continuing, “look at the state of your clothes. Luckily, a bath is being prepared for you after dinner,” she looked at Jongin matter-of-factly. “Now, pick that chair up and get a hold of yourselves, and sit down, dinner is about to be served,” her signature condescending tone dripped from her thin, scowling lips.

 

The two boys shared a knowing look and sat on opposite sides of the table. It still looked too empty, seats waiting to be sat on in the vast, lonely dining room, but Kyungsoo felt more comfortable eating with someone he trusted instead of having to dine in silence under close surveillance of The Scornful Hawkeye.

 

Tonight's meal was roast chicken, and Jongin had never seen such a huge plateful before. His eyes widened at the dish as he sat down beside Kyungsoo, who had already picked his fork up purposefully. He noticed that Kyungsoo played with his food a lot, pushing the meat away from his vegetables and separating each of them.

 

They started to eat enthusiastically as the waiters continued to place the napkins at a very precise angle, which Anne stated was compulsory to satisfy the full etiquette of appropriate dining. Kyungsoo rolled his eyes whilst Anne continued to explain the upcoming schedule of tonight’s events followed by the type of linen they need to collect in order to prepare their beds. They tried to eat in a comfortable, sensible silence until they began to laugh, sniffing through their noses under their breaths after smirking at each other, each planning a scheme to get this woman to shut up.

 

She had her back towards them, assuming her supposed masterly stance, and as Kyungsoo began to pick at his food, something lit up and showed on his face when he thought of a genius idea. He picked up two baby carrots from his plate and stuck them between his gums and mouth to make him look like a walrus, complementing the parody by pulling stupid faces and mimicking Anne’s neverending speech and making an effort to look as mockingly scornful as possible.

 

Jongin snorted, dropping his fork, causing it to clatter against the plate, then covered his mouth to pretend he had sneezed and started to shake from holding back so much laughter. He calmed down in order to proceed with his own idea, placing a pea onto his fork and aiming it towards… Anne’s backside. Jongin waited until she finished her speech, very focused from listening to the sound of her own voice, Kyungsoo’s eyes widening in disbelief, entertained by the suspense and covering his walrus mouth before he could choke on his carrots. Jongin flicked the fork and the pea flew and hit her right where he had wanted it to, but it unfortunately- or fortunately, depending on who you asked- had a tight hold onto Anne’s dress and stubbornly remained there, but it was the perfect timing as she was walking out of the door.

 

This was the cause of Jongin’s and Kyungsoo’s shortness of oxygen to the lungs as they were almost light-headed from holding their breaths. It reminded Kyungsoo of the Princess and the Pea, only Anne was no princess. He thought to himself that she was more fit to resemble a moody gremlin, and because of this, it was Kyungsoo who couldn’t hold it in anymore, and he let out the most obnoxious, bellowing laughter, holding his sides from how much they ached.

 

Jongin was proud of his feat, and for making Kyungsoo this entertained, a wide smile prominent on his face. He continued to try to make Kyungsoo laugh and placed two peas into his nostrils. However, the more he focused on trying to enhance the comedy in comedic genius, the less genius remained. The initial plan was to launch the peas from their ‘cannons’ towards Kyungsoo’s plate in attempt to start a Food War, but he became so distracted from the technical element of the launch and focused on the chubbiness of Kyungsoo’s cheeks caused by his sides of his lips pulled into a beaming heart-shaped smile as he continued to embark on his amusement, head leaning slightly back with a scrunched nose and eyes. Cute. Is all Jongin could think and he breathed in sharply, forgetting that he still had the peas in his nose.

 

Jongin choked, tears watering in his eyes. Kyungsoo opened his own eyes again to see the startling image and didn’t know whether he should be concerned or refrain from holding back another wave of laughter- the elder looked so ridiculous it was unbelievable, like a cat coughing up a hairball.

 

“Did you forget how to breath or something?” he tried to appear concerned, failing and letting another astounded giggle come through.

 

The other picked up a napkin and blew his nose to be rid of the green, mushy residue, embarrassment overtaking any pride he had before.

 

“I-i umm, I-” god, he sounded so stupid. Where had his logic gone? He chuckled embarrassingly. “I forgot which way forward was,” he cringed mentally, what did that even mean?

 

Nonetheless, he succeeded in his goal of getting Kyungsoo to laugh harder, the poor boy was crying and red in the face. Jongin joined in, catching Kyungsoo’s contagious bellowing and eventually both had tears streaming down their faces, high-pitched noises resembling amused responses, far too hysterical to be close to laughter by this point. Their food was long forgotten and grew cold from the lack of consumption. They sat there trying to regain their strength before giving up on trying to eat before eventually rising from their seats.

 

They circled the dining table, imitating Anne’s obnoxiously posh walk, nose lifted in the air, and moved to sit at each end of the long table just like Kings and Queens and raised their small glasses of water. They each downed their water to try and emit the heat from their flushed, aching faces.

 

Once they had quenched their thirsts, Jongin rose from his seat and gestured for his companion to do the same before kneeling down and addressing him.

 

“Your Majesty,” he exclaimed respectfully. Kyungsoo abided to the game and curtsied after he got off his throne, placing his hand in front of him, palm open gesturing for Jongin to stand up and grab hold of it. The two boys linked hands, their attempts at humble, princely facial expressions matching each other, eyelids lowered with a proud smile and raised eyebrows. They walked hand in hand out of the room and skipped down the corridor giggling.

 

After their supper, Jina put the two boys in the Victorian bathtub, which was big enough for the two of them. She put in some extra droplets of lavender oil to make it more bubbly. Jongin scooped up a handful of bubbles and placed them on his and Kyungsoo’s face to represent Father Christmas.

 

The younger beamed brightly and chuckled when Jongin lathered up his own hair into a shark fin and splashed around like a fish out of water. However, when Jina attempted to rub the shampoo into Kyungsoo’s hair, he flinched and softly wined, but then Jongin took his hands and showed him how to blow bubbles using a bar of soap as an attempt to distract him.

 

The distraction helped, and Jina was quick to scrub the dirt from his scalp. When the water started to go lukewarm and the bubbles dissolved, the two boys were dried down and put into their nightdresses. Jongin had to borrow one from Kyungsoo, which was a little short on the arms and only reached his knees.

 

Jina felt a wave of anxiety when she looked at Kyungsoo’s hair, it was severely tangled and would only get worse if she was to leave it - and she desperately wanted to cut it all off in his sleep. But perhaps Jongin would be able to help her, as Kyungsoo seems more relaxed in his presence.

 

Jongin sat down on the floor by the fire and Jina sat up on her knees behind him, gently brushing his hair. She could see Kyungsoo looking rather uncomfortable in the corner of her eye, but his eyes diverted to Jongin’s face and saw that he was not in any pain or discomfort. Jongin’s hair was longer than Kyungsoo’s, the soft waves sat almost on his shoulders but it was always bouncy and shone in the sunlight.

 

When it was Kyungsoo’s turn, tears had already crept into his eyes and his body started to shake. Jongin was first to embrace him into his arms and comfort him.

 

“It won’t hurt you, master Kyungsoo. I’ll be right by your side.”

 

The soothing words relaxed the boy, along with Jongin’s scent and warm hands in his own. When Jina started, Kyungsoo began to sob quietly and shook his head in protest. Jina looked at her brother with worry, she felt ever so sorry for the boy.

 

Jongin thought quickly on his feet and walked towards the bedside, he abruptly picked up one of Kyungsoo’s books resting on the table near the armchair.

 

“Why don’t you read to me?”

 

With more tears threatening to leave his glassy doe eyes and stream down his chubby cheeks, Kyungsoo nodded and began reading, hiccupping along the way. Jongin sat beside him, one hand holding Kyungsoo’s and asking him questions about the story.

 

The young boy was so immersed in talking and reading to Jongin that the comb through his hair felt like a feather to his skin and the loud bristles tugging through his knots were as quiet as a whisper. Jina’s eyes sparkled with glee when she had finished, she parted his hair on one side to show his cute round face that was always hidden behind wisps of hair.

 

As the evening drew on, the two boys were sent to bed after a mug of warm milk. Neither of them were sleepy, and both had planned to stay up all night telling ghost stories and giggling until sunrise. As soon as Jina left them with a single candle burning, Kyungsoo rolled over to face his friend.

 

“I’m glad you’re here with me.”

 

Jongin smiled at the boy, the candlelight flickered against his milky skin and his long eyelashes created a shadow over his cheeks.

 

The house creaked and made ever such odd noises, Jongin looked around the room, still in complete awe of how big it was compared to his tiny room in the cottage.

 

“Do you ever wonder about the paintings?” he asked Kyungsoo, who sat up and stared at one that was above the fireplace.

 

It was a portrait of a man and a woman, dressed in frilly frocks and odd looking hats.

 

“Yes. I wonder who they are and where are they now, they look like the lords and barons in the stories I’ve read,” commented Kyungsoo.

They spent hours talking, sharing stories of their lives before they met. Kyungsoo wanted to know everything about Jongin and didn’t hesitate to ask many questions. Their excitement from earlier in the day seemed to have catched up on them quickly, their bones and eyelids feeling heavy.

When it was near midnight, the fire was on its last log. Kyungsoo was half asleep when he heard a distant cry down the corridor. It was short, but still made the hairs on his arms stand up. A small whimper escaped his mouth, and he buried himself further under the duvet. Jongin immediately went to his friends aid, and took hold of his hand.

 

“Don’t be scared Kyungsoo, I will protect you,” he soothed, patting the back of his neck. “Don’t fear the noises in the dark, they’re just sounds, they can’t hurt you.”

 

The fretful boy began to tangle his fingers through his hair and tug, Jongin noticed this and thought that it looked rather painful. He leaned down and kissed the boys head and the hand that was tangled in dark locks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A/N: I'm so sorry this update took forever. 
thank you to soohaite for helping me with this chapter, i probably would have given up on this story if it wasn't for you. ♡♡