*Jaejoong's POV*

I slowly opened my eyes, not knowing when they’d closed. The morning sun seeped through the thin drapes. I looked to the empty space at my side. He was gone.

Regret tugged at my mind. I barely uttered a word to him. I hadn’t seen him for more than 5 minutes and hardly spoke a proper sentence to him. Now he was gone to the palace. Or maybe he left last night. I wouldn’t know.

I hauled myself out of bed. I didn’t have time to mourn over lost time. I had work to do. I was probably already late.

The day dragged on, the effects of yesterday lingered with me. I loved my work and I loved interacting with the new people I met, but today, my mind was somewhere else. It was a bleak inescapable place something like sleep but with no rest. I tried to push past the heavy empty weights, but it felt like a losing game of tug-of-war against something invisible and infinite.

I worked through the day with a small amount of energy that I could muster. I was thankful that Changmin was at least there, or I don’t think anything would’ve gotten done. He sent me a few puzzling glances but didn’t say a word. However, he was quick to help whenever I fumbled with or forgot to do something. It wasn’t until we closed for lunch when he spoke up.

“Are you okay?” The question stung like a horrible memory. I nodded anyway.

He bit his lip.

I reached for the door to leave.

“Did I say something that upset you yesterday?”

I paused.

I quickly turned to him.

His face was stiff with nervous eyes.

My eyes slowly widened. “I’m sorry.” Were the first words that came from my mouth. I was lost in my own feelings, my own thoughts, my own emotions, I didn’t pay attention to him. How my sudden change in behavior affected him. “I’m so sorry.” I felt guiltier than before. I made him uncomfortable and he hadn’t done anything wrong.

“You didn’t say or do anything that upset me.” I promised. “I was just thinking, that’s all. I’m sorry for allowing my thoughts to get the best of me. I should’ve been more considerate.” I felt horrible., but I was glad by the relief that washed over his face.

“Well…” He rubbed the back of his neck, more nervous than before. “…if something is bother you…” He looked off to the side as if something invisible forced him to. “…you…you can talk to me…about it…I guess…” His ears burned red.

I smiled, warmed by his sincerity. “Thank you.”

He turned to me in shock.

“But I would like to try another one of those secret food stands that you know, right now.” I suggested, trying to lighten him from his embarrassment.

He slowly nodded, “Yeah. I know some more.”

After lunch, the day went by much smoother, I was more conscious about my behavior, which was much easier to do than before. My thoughts from earlier lost its effect enough to where I could at least be a little more joyful, at least for Changmin. I was relieved when it was time to close the shop for the day. It’d been a strangely exhausting day.

As I locked the front door for the evening, a large golden carriage pulled up before us. Changmin and I looked at each other then back at the carriage, both confused by its sudden appearance. I assumed that it was probably for the younger.

Someone hopped down from the carriage, dressed in a black and red Fire Kingdom royal guard uniform.

It was Junsu!

He bowed to us in greeting. “I’ve been sent to pick you up.” He turned to me.

I furrowed my brow at his sudden formality. “Um…It’s okay. I’ll just walk.” I turned down. Changmin and I usually walked home together, and I didn’t want him to walk alone, especially since it’d be getting dark soon. Plus, I doubted Changmin would’ve been comfortable taking a ride with a stranger.

Before Junsu could respond, the carriage door swung open and Yoochun’s head poked out. “Come on! We’re going on a trip.” He waved me over.

My brow scrunched deeper in complete confusion.

“We already took care of everything. Everything is all set up. All we have to do is leave.” Yoochun explained.

A trip? Why all of a sudden?

“Go.” Changmin suddenly said, snapping me from my thoughts.

I turned to him.

“I’m fine by myself.” He shrugged.

I didn’t like the sound of his words. I didn’t want him to be alone.

I opened my mouth to object when Yoochun spoke again. “We have to go, so we can get there before it gets too dark.”

I turned back to Changmin, but he was already walking away.

I let out a defeated sigh before stepping onto the highly decorated carriage.

The inside was surprisingly warm, with small cute bronze lanterns nailed to each corner. It was off-white with cushioned seats and velvet walls. It felt way too elegant for me to be in. “What is this?”

“Just a carriage we borrowed from the royal family.” Yoochun smirked.

I raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to go on, but he didn’t. Instead, he climbed out the carriage. “We’re heading to the countryside. If you need anything, let me know.” was the only other information he gave before shutting the door and climbing onto the front seat with Junsu.

I peeked out the curtains of the window to get a final look at Changmin. However, a slow crowd surrounded the carriage with people trying to peer inside to see who it was.

I quickly shut the curtains and sunk into the thick cushion. They were probably expecting a royal family member to be inside.

A trip to the countryside? For what?

I knew it was Yunho’s idea. He’s the only one who’d plan a spontaneous trip like this without any warning.

It was a 3-hour ride to the countryside and another hour and a half to get to the designated place that Yoochun briefly mentioned during our first and only stop for a break. It was a small cottage far from the other houses, with several acres of land.

I climbed out the carriage first, when we pulled up in front of the small cottage. “What is this?” I asked again when the other two hopped off.

Yoochun shrugged, “I only know that we were forced to wear these stupid uniforms and take you here.” He grumbled referring to his and Junsu’s formal attire.

I chuckled a little, it was out of character for him to wear any uniform at all. But I was surprised that Yunho somehow actually got Yoochun to put on a uniform. I’m pretty sure that there was no kind of threat that could make him wear it. The prince must’ve bribed him.

“Whelp, this is where my services end. Come on, Su. Let’s hurry up and get out of these stupid uniforms, I don’t want anyone else to see me in these.” Yoochun hopped back onto the carriage.

“Wai wha-,” However, they took off before I could finish. My lips pouted in slight frustration, but I walked up to the small house anyway.

To my surprise, the front door was unlocked.

“Hello?” I cautiously stepped into the cottage. My eyes widened at the humbled sight. The inside was surrounded by cream-colored walls and light brown carpet at the bottom. There was a small dining room to the left of the entrance and a small family room with cream couches surrounding the dark brick fireplace. A few pastoral watercolor paintings were hung against the bare walls with a few glass decorations in glass casings in the dining room. The house was dimly lit, with most of the light beaming from the kitchen.

I scrunched my nose at the smell of something burning. “H-Hello?” I stepped further into the house, praying that I hadn’t intruded into the wrong home.

“Jaejoong!” Yunho suddenly popped from the kitchen.

I raised an eyebrow. There were scuff marks on his cheeks, and sauce stains on his shirt.

“I didn’t hear you come in.” He frowned in disappointment.

I walked up to him and wiped the mark off his cheek with my thumb. I pressed the flesh of my thumb against my lips. Sauce? “Are you cooking?” I speculated.

He rubbed the back of his neck shamefully, “Something like that.” He murmured.

I walked past him into the kitchen. A gasp immediately escaped my lips at the sight of the black crisp food and burnt pans.

“It’s harder than it looks!” He defended before I could say anything.

I busted out laughing out of both disbelief and amusement.

His shoulders fell in disappointment.

I couldn’t even fathom he idea of him cooking, even if it was possible to imagine it would’ve still been a disaster. “If there’s still any untouched food leftover, then dinner can still be saved.” I assured him, rolling up my sleeves.

He gave a less enthusiastic nod.

I nudged my head, directing him further into the kitchen. “I’ll let you help me.” I gave him an encouraging smile.

I washed my hands and threw out the unusable pans, dishes, and undigestible food. I searched the cabinets, gathering ingredients for a quick and easy dinner.

Yunho worked next to me as I taught him how to cut certain vegetables and do other menial tasks. He still seemed down but loosened up when he got into the swing of things. He was still pretty bad at it, but it wasn’t something a little extra guidance couldn’t help.

“I can’t believe I messed that up. You made it so easy.” He sighed when we sat down to eat. I settled on making a vegetable soup, since it was simple and somewhat quick to make, and still turn out delicious and filling.

“I’m not too surprised.” I chuckled in amusement.

He frowned, not finding anything amusing. “You weren’t supposed to make anything.” His frown deepened on his lips, as he lazily stirred his soup in further dejection. “You were supposed to just relax. Everything was supposed to have been ready before you came.”

I watched him, studying him with soft eyes. He really seemed upset about it and was beating himself up over it. “I think it’s better that we cooked together.” I assured him. “It’s more fun this way. I would’ve been bored doing nothing.”

He blushed a little, taking a sip from his spoon.

“Now that we’re on the topic, what is all this anyway?” I finally asked.

“This is my family’s cottage. My great grandfather built it for the royal family to stay in whenever they visit the people in the country. I’ve only been here once as a kid. Only my dad comes here every now and then to check on the people here.” He shrugged.

“This was kinda last minute. I had other plans for us but changed them. I didn’t know why you were upset yesterday. I know you said not to worry about it. But…I couldn’t…I felt restless knowing that someth