Sungmin was always stubborn.

With myriads of lands separating between him and his fiancé, he always insists to his self that Kyuhyun had never crossed his mind. But Kyuhyun promised him one thing before he left, and with the academic schedules and duty as a young prince, Sungmin found those promises as form of survival.

Suddenly, he feels like his stubbornness is slowly leaving him.

Kyuhyun patiently wrote letter by letter and Sungmin always read them away from his parents scrutinizing eyes and away from Hyukjae’s unmanly giggles. One thing that Sungmin hates about those letters is the weird pictures of bees, flowers and trees yet he can’t stop giggling when he saw the scribbles of Sungmin and Kyuhyun forever with bits of hearts around it.

Then Kyuhyun, during summer and vacations gave Sungmin a visit, and during those times, he makes sure he will practice riding a horse with Sungmin and Sungmin will practice swordsmanship with him. The soft skin of Sungmin’s arm touching against Kyuhyun’s slightly hairy ones creates an incredible heat inside Kyuhyun, that kind of feeling that he just wanted to cage Sungmin in his arms and protect him.

But for Sungmin is a different case because that day when their horse stepped on a soft mud and Sungmin hold on to Kyuhyun that it choked the other boy, something in his stomach swirled, like a thousand butterflies dancing in it but then he dismissed it as a strong form of fear.

Who wouldn’t get scared when your horse lost its balance and they are just traversing the banks of River of Jin.

And when it is time to go back again to Kyuhyun’s homeland, Sungmin tried his best not to utter a small cry.

Because, Sungmin promised his self that he will never cry in front of Kyuhyun.

Sungmin still denied vehemently any idea that might suggest that he was starting to accept Kyuhyun. Moreover if the idea suggested that he even started to love Kyuhyun. The only reason why he waited for each letter was only to ensure himself that Kyuhyun had not done something terribly stupid and killed himself. It would be messy if he became a widow before even his marriage officially took place. The only reason he always stared outside the window was because Kyuhyun often failed to notify him of his coming. It would be rude if he arrived without anyone to greet him. And the reason why he was so eager to wait for Kyuhyun's phone call was only because he oftentimes found himself bored, and hearing Kyuhyun's idiotic ramble was better than hearing his teacher preaching some subjects they only half understood themselves.

But people around him did not seem to understand or share his logic. There was always a rising of an eyebrow from his mother, accompanied by an amused smile whenever she watched him reading any letter from Kyuhyun. There were always some happy giggles from brothers, Prince Hyukjae and Prince Yesung whenever they saw him staring out the window, expecting the arrival of that idiot named Kyuhyun. And there was always an understanding smile from the maid who told him he got yet another phone call from his fiancé in Aries.

To sum it up, everyone with eyes could see that Sungmin of Northern Lights was very much in love with his fiancé, Cho Kyuhyun. Yet the boy himself was apparently oblivious to his own feelings. It was somewhat an irony. His Highness Prince Sungmin of Northern Lights was a very bright boy. His amazing insight and cunning mind were acknowledged among his peers. Even his elder brother, Prince Yesung, could vote on that matter, considering that Sungmin always managed to beat him in horse racing no matter what strategy he opted. Yet now when he watched Sungmin silently pining for his fiancé, he allowed a small smirk to appear on his face. Sungmin might always manage to see through his strategy in horseback riding but his dearest little brother could not even see through himself and realize his own feelings for that Cho Kyuhyun.

Yesung sighed. Living in too much denial was not healthy for someone. He just hoped that Sungmin would soon be able to just accept that he was indeed in love with his fiancé before he was forced to live with permanent wrinkles on his forehead even before he reached his thirtieth birthday.

But actually, it was kind of cute, Yesung thought as he swept a shade of red to his newest painting that captured the image of his dearest little brothers Hyukjae and Sungmin in a field of roses. Young love was always sweet. And the fact that it was Sungmin who was involved in said love made it even sweeter. With a smile he made a silent promise in his heart. When Sungmin finally got married to Kyuhyun, he would surely make a painting capturing them in their joyful day.

Thinking of how beautiful they would appear on his canvas in all their wedding glory, he couldn't help a chuckle. He could not wait for that day to arrive.

“Oh , why did I use brown for the Sun?”

But first he must continue his painting.

The redness of camellias made a striking contrast against the white. The vivid red on white, as being portrayed by some scattered petals of those blood red flowers lying on the lacy white tablecloth, was beautiful. Sungmin watched the scene with a bitter smile. It had been a week since those flowers were given to him from the hands of a certain boy with chocolate brown eyes that he had grown to lo… to tolerate.

Sungmin narrowed his eyes. His mind often times played some tricks to him lately. It had to be the weather, he concluded. He always felt extra cold somehow during winter. Sometimes, he need the royal physician to help him overcome this abnormal adaptation.

"So the flowers have withered away."

A gentle voice came from his back and startled him. Sungmin turned his body to the source of the sound and he faced his older brother Kangin walking to his direction. He smiled at him as his greeting before he turned his attention back to those flowers again. His fingertips gently caressed some of those proud red flowers that still refused to wilt.

"It has been a week, after all," Sungmin said.

He recalled in his mind the event that took place a week prior when Kyuhyun, without any form of notification beforehand, suddenly appeared on the doorstep of his private quarters, giving him a bunch of blood red camellias and wishing him a happy twelfth birthday. That time he only gaped and he needed full five seconds before his good manner kicked in and made him step aside to grant Kyuhyun entry to his quarters.

And he knew that those five seconds pause was not intentional, unlike what his weather beaten mind had suggested that maybe that time he was waiting for the predictable kiss on cheek that usually followed the flowers.

"That boy was so sweet, was he not?" Kangin asked with a teasing voice.

 "To think he would travel from Aries only to wish you a happy birthday even though he was expected to be back on the following day. And I heard he always brought you flowers in each visit."

Sungmin lowered his face. Indeed it was true that Kyuhyun always brought him flowers in his every visit. But in truth, it was not really as romantic as what people believed. His fiancé really had a radical view of the popular quote that said 'say it with flowers'. The red camellias were pretty and Sungmin really appreciated the bouquet of purple delphinium Kyuhyun once brought him. But more often than not, his fiancé's choices of flowers were extreme. Take the example of those mutilated sunflowers he gave him the first time they met. And then there were those water lilies complete with water and whatnot in a round copper jar. And then there was that twig of blooming cherry blossoms seemingly ripped from the tree in such a crude fashion. But he could not deny the fact that indeed Kyuhyun always gave him flowers whenever he visited, though the reason behind the act was beyond his comprehension.

"Yes, but…" he said to Kangin. "It's not as sweet as it seems to be, really. More importantly, Kangin hyung, may I inquire what have brought you here? Is mother expecting my presence?"

Kangin only smiled. "No, I'm coming here to give you something."

Sungmin silently questioned his older brother but instead of an answer, Kangin only gave him a white envelope with a handwriting he recognized so dearly on it. Seeing that, a smile was blossoming on his lips as he took the envelope from his brother's hands.

A soft whisper of 'Kyuhyun' escaped his lips when he held the letter lovingly in his hands.

Prince Kangin felt like snorting out loud at seeing his brother apparently so much in love. But he knew Sungmin would not appreciate him doing that so he only patted his brother's head and smiled at him.

"I will wait for you at lunch, Sungmin," he said. "Please do enjoy your letter."

After Prince Kangin left the room, Sungmin wasted no time in opening the envelope carefully and reading the letter inside. Like usual, he kept the envelope with care in his drawer before he proceeded to read the letters.

Kyuhyun's letters lately came not as often as it used to be in the past, so Sungmin treasured every letter that was delivered to him. He still remembered how in the beginning of their relationship… er… in the beginning of their acquaintance, he would receive Kyuhyun's letters at least twice a week. Gradually, it became once a week. And at present, he was content with a letter every two weeks or so. Kyuhyun had told him that he was busy taking some test or preparations to enter some institution so he could understand the receding frequency of the letters.

In fact, it only made him treasure Kyuhyun's letters even more than before. And now, when he ran his fingers on those sheets of papers, seeing Kyuhyun's not-so-neat handwriting on them, he felt a tender affection blossoming in his heart. Attentively, he then read the letter, all the while picturing the image of him whose hands wrote the letter in his mind.

His expression changed according to what he read in those sheets of papers in his hands. As usual, Kyuhyun began his letter with some records of his daily life. Sungmin's lips turned into a smile as he read how his fiancé spent his day miles away in Aries. He had an expression of worry on his face when he read that Kyuhyun had a small accident during his flight back from Northern Lights after his visit to give him those flowers. But his fiancé assured him that his condition was not bad though Sungmin knew better. Kyuhyun would always say he was all right even when he was on the verge of passing out, he knew it from experience, really. His fiancé was really one big idiot.

All in all, the letters held nothing exceptional except for one foreshadowing sentence that Kyuhyun put at the end of his letter which said

'I'm sorry but I think I won't contact you so often after this, Sungmin'.

He felt like ripping the letter off but he can’t because at the very very very end of it, written was,

Kyuhyun loves Sungmin, Forever.

Springtime brought happiness to the world, but Sungmin of Northern Lights did not share that sentiment. It had been three months an