"So there's going to be a new bodyguard?" Suho asked conversationally. "When are you goin to choose?"

"Tomorrow." Baekhyun muttered, looking completely displeased. "I'm not looking forward to it."

"I remember the times when you liked these bodyguard election things." D.O. recalled. "Had to choose the prettiest bodyguard, I remember."

Baekhyun turned red and Byul rolled her eyes. She shot him a look and Baekhyun shot a look at D.O. in return.

"I was stupid then okay? I thought by playing around with so many girls it would seem as if I'm manly or something." Baekhyun muttered. "I only wanted Dahae's attention."

"Dahae." Byul muttered under her breath.

Baekhyun heard and leaned closer in interest. "Did I hear some jealousy in your voice right there?"

"No, it's the same tone everyone of us carries when we talk about her." Kai smirked. "Thank goodness for us that she had decided to marry that Indian Prince and she's not around any longer."

"That's mean." Sehun frowned. Kai raised his brows at the maknae's sudden burst of righteousness when Sehun broke into a playful grin.

"But I agree!" Sehun beamed.

Kai rolled his eyes. "I'm embarrassed that I'm even called your cousin." He muttered.

D.O. grinned. "I wonder who it was that was so worried the other time when Sehun-gun didn't return from the hunting trip and was trapped in a trees with the tiger under it?"

Kai cleared his throat and looked away as if D.O. wasn't talking about him.

Sehun pouted and slapped his hyung's arm. "You cold hearted hyung." He muttered. "I guess the only person you'd worry about is that Kim Minhee huh."

All eyes turned to Kai as he spluttered and choked on his own saliva. "What?" He shrieked, a little too loud. "Why are you talking about her all of a sudden? I have no interest in her. None whatsoever." He harrumphed.

"So you won't mind if she just heard everything you just said? Because she's standing at the door." Baekhyun pointed.

Kai gasped and leaped up from his seat in panic. "It's not what you think-" he faltered at the empty doorway. "What?"

"Guess it's really not what you said huh." Suho guffawed. "You so obviously like her."

Kai sent a pissed look but didn't succeed in intimidating.

"When are you going to say anything to her about it?" D.O. asked, pouting. "You've been liking her since before Chanyeol's imprisonment and he's nearly out. Six months. What were you doing this whole time?" He shook his head in disapproval.

Kai reddened and buried his face in his hands. "I just...can't.."

"Oh don't you dare talk about can't, boy." Baekhyun wagged his finger. He pulled Byul closer. "If you're concerned about how you're a prince and she's a maid, look at us. This girl was once my bodyguard." He grinned.

Byul ignored Baekhyun's sneaky kisses. "But really Kai, Minhee is a nice girl. If you like her, you should say something about it before someone gets to her. From what I heard, some of the guards actually like her."

"I know." Kai groaned. "It's luck that she hasn't accepted any of them yet."

Suho smiled encouragingly. "Don't think of it as luck, maybe she was just waiting for you to step up about your feelings." He beamed. "But you can't continue to keep her waiting."

"But..." Kai struggled with his words. He wasn't someone who could easily put what he felt into words, like Baekhyun.

That Crown Prince easily expressed his feelings for Byul in such an annoyingly straightforward and not bashful manner that the other princes were sick of hearing how he was the luckiest guy in the world.

They already got it, alright?

Even when Sehun was in danger the previous time during the hunting trip and he had been so worried that he could have peed in his pants, he never said it much.

Kai wasn't the sort who showed his feelings. Despite how he was cool and seemingly unaffected by everything, he wasn't.

The cool prince was actually shy inside.

"Hey, she's right there at the door." Baekhyun whispered.

Kai rolled his eyes. "Don't you dare fool me again hyung. I know she isn't. If you dare say it one more time I swear I'll break your neck-" he stopped short when he saw Minhee putting down six cups of tea for them.

She blinked at his words and looked puzzled at Kai's sudden expression of violence. Kai reddened and shot Baekhyun a look, of which the latter shrugged with a "I-tried-to-tell-you" look.

"Here's your tea, your highnesses. Enjoy." Minhee bowed and excused herself.

Kai sighed softly and watched as she went. They talked more than they did in the past now, but still...she wasn't his. Yet.

"Say it, Kai." Suho murmured. "If you're going to look at her with such longing every time she appears, why not just say it and get it out of your chest?"

"Minhee?" Kai croaked out. He was momentarily stunned by how he sounded and mentally smacked himself. Chill, Kim Jongin.

The maid stopped in her steps and turned to look at him. "Yes, your highness? Would you like some other cakes to go with your tea?"

Kai his lips that turned dry really easily in such cases. "I uhm, don't need cakes." He murmured. "I need company. Stay, don't leave yet." he managed to blurt.

Minhee's eyes widened and she blinked several times, as if not believing what she just heard. And then her cheeks fired pink and she blushed prettily. "Neh, your highness." she went back to him and stood by his side awkwardly, shifting on her spot.

Kai glanced at her once before quickly shifting his gaze somewhere else. "Why don't you sit down?" he offered. "And how many times have I told you not to call me your highness when no one else is around?" he asked. "Just call me Kai."

"Neh, your-" Minhee squeaked. "I mean, Kai." she sat down, stiff as a pole.

Kai wondered if he was that scary to her that she would behave in such a manner. Or was it because of his princely status?

He liked it when she let go of the differences in their status once in a while, forgetting that she was a maid and he was a prince and actually started to joke around with him and behaving like herself. Those were the rare times that Kai actually really let himself go as well.

And then there were the times when Minhee would be too aware of the differences in their statuses, like then. Kai sighed softly and massaged his temples. How was he supposed to tell her?

Minhee looked at him curiously and bit her lip. "Are the cakes and tea not to your liking, your-Kai?" she asked in concern. "If you want, I can return to the kitchen to request for more." she rose from her chair and Kai's hand immediately shot out to grab her arm, pulling her down.

"Stay." he repeated.

Minhee blinked confusedly but nodded, her cheeks pinking again after regaining their calm not too long ago.

Kai played with his fingers under the table and cleared his throat. "Uhm." he muttered. "I heard from Eunhyuk that there's this other guard called Yesung who's pursuing you at the moment." he snuck a glance at her. "And you rejected him."

The maid swallowed. "N-Neh."

"Well uhm," Kai continued. "I heard from him that actually quite a few other guards expressed their interest in you but you rejected them all. Is that true?"

He looked at her and Minhee lowered her gaze, not daring to meet his eyes. "Neh."

"I uh..." Kai squeezed his eyes shut. "Actually I...about that...I..."

"Kai?" Minhee whispered, frowning.

"I like that you did what you did." Kai blurted. Minhee raised her brows at him in confusion and backtracked. "What did I do?"

"What I just said!" Kai nearly shrieked in uncomfort. Minhee stared at him. "That I rejected them?"

"YES!" Kai nearly sighed in relief. He fanned himself discreetly under the table and bit his lip hard. Damn, he was cool every single second of his life until he met Kim Minhee. He could never be cool in her presence because he was too aware of himself and he cared too much of what she thought.

"Oh." Minhee's gaze darted everywhere but at Kai's face.

Kai glanced at her and pursed his lips together. "Aren't you going to say anything about it?"

"About what?" Minhee swallowed.

"About my," Kai gulped. "Confession!" Minhee's eyes widened till they were the size of saucers. She stared at him in surprise and was no doubt replaying their entire conversation in her head once again. "You did?"

"I didn't say it out in words," Kai pointed out. "But I meant it indirectly and you were supposed to get it. Why do you think I like that you reject other guards?"

Minhee gaped at him. "That was your way of telling a girl you like her?"

"Well, yeah." Kai shrugged, trying to preserve his pride. "You can't expect me to spell it out in direct words-" Minhee sent him a look and Kai cringed. "Okay maybe you can expect it, but you have to understand how difficult it is for me to, you know, say things like that."

"Now I know." Minhee murmured under her breath. "If I didn't like you so much, I wouldn't even be sitting her and continuing to listen to your-" she faltered and snapped her eyes to him. "Unlisten that."

"Un-listen?" Kai leaned forward, a small grin surfacing on his lips. "Does that word even exist?"

"From now it does." Minhee shifted away. "I'm just a lowly maid, your highness, it doesn't matter what I feel or think because you're a prince and-"

"I care." Kai shrugged simply. "Maybe to other people, what you think and feel doesn't matter but to me it does. In fact I care a little too much which is why I'm often a dork around you."

He suddenly realized what he just said and turned self-conscious. "Well? Are you willing to try it with me or not?" he asked gruffly. "Baekhyun hyung and Byul have already set the trend, so we should follow, don't you think?"

"Oh, so it's all a trend." Minhee bit back a smile and pretended to be mad.

"No, not a trend." Kai reached for her hand and gave it a little squeeze. "It's our destiny."

Minhee smiled back at him widely. "Destiny? I like the sound of that."