LAY

The next morning, I passed by the hallway where Jinhae’s bedroom chamber was. We haven’t seen her after she fled and neither did she show up for supper, but after we’ve eaten, I passed by the pantry and saw her at the back gardens, sitting under one of the willows, sobbing. I didn’t know exactly what set her off, but I was sure that her conversation with the minister triggered it. It tugged at my guts seeing her like that. She had always been vivacious and good-natured since the first time I’ve met her, apologizing for every little mistake she does which we all found endearing. I guess she finally felt the pressure sinking in. It was a good thing that Xiu Min was just as amiable as she was and didn’t harbor animosity towards her despite of what was done. I guess that was how lovable she was. She never failed to make us all smile, even Yi Fan.

I just hope it didn’t have anything to do with having to choose one of us. Pretty soon, one of us would be pressing suits to court her since it was the way things should be, but aside from that, who could help it when it was actually Ahn Jinhae. She was beautiful in and out and I was worried about how it would turn out among us nobles once she finally chooses. We all have quite strong characters, not to mention the other six nobles from Korinthia. Surely, one of them was bound to fight just to have her. Such rare jewels like her were worth waging wars for.

I’ve finally reached her bedchamber, about to raise my hand to knock, but I withdrew the moment the idea hatched into my mind. Instead, I leaned my forehead against the door, keeping my eyes shut tight as thoughts pestered my mind. Lu Han and Yi Fan had specifically ordered everyone to give her the space to reflect upon things. She was always free to take the side of the Guardians. I was worried about that, but if she chooses our side, she would be in danger; all of us would be in danger. She would be sacrificing her life the moment she finally makes up her mind for either side. I felt angry about that. She didn’t deserve to be laid on the line just because of her father’s follies. The prospect of it made my blood boil. The least thing I could do when she chooses us is to make sure that she would be spared from all the pain it would cause.

“Zhang Yi Xing!” her familiar voice suddenly rang through my ears. Now I’m even imagining things and this time, it felt real. She liked calling everyone with their real names and as far as I know, she enjoys making fun of them. I smiled to myself sighing.

I heard her chuckle. “Not responding to your real name anymore, I see.”

Now my own mind is talking to me. I just ignored it.

“So they’ve been calling you ‘Lay’ for too long that you’ve forgotten or are you trying to play games with me?”

“No, I’m not.” Now, I’m answering my own thoughts.

Just then, I felt something poke me on the side. I looked up and saw Jinhae standing there, torn between laughter and a frown.

“Yah! Are you still asleep?” she asked me, a small smile tugging at her lips.

“Oh.”

She arched a brow at me then took a step forward. To my surprise, she touched my forehead with her right palm and looked at me with a curious look about her. “You’re not sick, are you?”

I shook my head slowly. “I don’t feel like it.”

She withdrew her hand and giggled. “I guess you’re still asleep.”

I couldn’t help but smile despite of my embarrassment. “Good morning,” I greeted her, noticing her eyes. They were drooping and red-rimmed.

“Morning,” she answered. “Do you need anything?”

“No.” I narrowed my eyes at her. “Did you sleep well?”

“Most definitely. And you?”

Instead of answering that, I said, “You look like you haven’t gotten any.”

She pouted at me then. “Gosh, Lay. That’s not such a good thing to say to ladies. No wonder you don’t have a girlfriend.”

“Girl…friend?”

“Well, yes. It’s okay if you say it to me since we’re friends, but don’t ever say that to other girls because it doesn’t sound good, alright?”

She could get really silly at times. She was worried about my relationship with the opposite gender and yet she wasn’t paying attention to what we were talking about. I offered my arm to her and she took it without hesitation, linking her arms with me as I led her to the banquet hall.

“Why are you telling me those things?”

She blinked curiously at me. “Well, I must say that you don’t know how to deal with girls so I’m guessing that you’ve never tried courting one.”

I frowned at that. “I’m only twenty years old, silly.”

“Old enough to have had at least one girlfriend or suffered heartbreak for getting dumped.”

“Heartbreak? Dumped?” I arched a brow at her. “How many times should you suffer the humiliation?”

She chuckled. “As many times as you can.”

“What? Wouldn’t that be excruciating?”

“Well, yes, at first, but it is how you would learn to handle a mature relationship.”

I shrugged. She speaks of the matter in a very stranger manner. “I don’t wish to get married yet.”

She scoffed, removing her arms from mine, stopping our progress. “Who says you have to marry them?” She looked irked, but eventually, her face broke into a grin. “Your notions in this world are really funny, you know.”

“If I don’t marry the girl I court then what do I do with her?”

“You date them.”

“Date? What is that?”

She linked arms with me again before answering. “It’s the phase in a relationship wherein you would get to know each other. You go out, talk and do things together for fun.”

“How is that different from being just friends?”

She frowned. “You date for a common goal which is to make the relationship last and that’s when you decide if you’re serious about the person.”

“Serious? You mean to tell me that it’s like a mock relationship.”

“Not really, but there’s no sense of permanence or commitment. You could either decide to go on or break it up if it doesn’t work.”

“How long does it take?”

“For as long as you see it fit.”

“Years?”

“Yes.”

“How will you know when to decide?”

“You never know,” she said whimsically.  “You’ll just feel it.”