Hongbin sighed as he turned back. He hesitated to end the call, but in the end, he put the phone back to his pocket.

He wasn't sure if the prince was already and really okay. Jaehwan was that scared of ghosts and he was witness of it. He himself never knew the story behind his fear. All he knew was Jaehwan always cried at night because of that nightmare, that was why he had his bed beside Jaehwan back in the apartment. Jaehwan could never calm down whenever he would dream about it. But after he calmed down, he would stop remembering those images, as if nothing happened.

Back in London where he grew up, the maids and other helpers were not able to help him when he had anxiety attacks. All they could do is to give him a pill that could calm him down. Then Hongbin arrived in the mansion where Jaehwan was living. His father asked him to go to London from Korea so that they could be together.

Hongbin never met his mother. According to his father, she was long gone and that she left them. And he was not interested to find her anymore - she never cared about him anyway. He was a very lonely boy with no friends at all. But then came Jaehwan to his life. He was prince, but he was cheerful and friendly. He was the one who approached him and made friends with him. He hesitated but in the end, he accepted his friendship. Until they grew up together until they reached their current age. When his father died, he took the responsibility of being Jaehwan's butler. He was asked by his father while on his dying bed to take care of Jaehwan and to never let him alone.

But despite his position, Jaehwan still treated him as a friend and not a butler. And he would admit that he had been attached to the prince.

***

"So, you were the one who played the piano."

Almost thirty minutes had passed. Jaehwan was finally calm. His arms and legs were already relaxed and he was not shaking anymore. Meanwhile, Prince Leo was leaning on the wall and sitting on the floor a yard farther from Jaehwan.

There was no response to the question, so Jaehwan spoke again, "I am sorry for troubling you. You might want to go to class now."

Instead of answering, Prince Leo stood. Jaehwan thought he was leaving so he also stood.

"Don't leave me," he pleaded as he held Prince Leo's forearm.

"I don't want to go to class anyway, so might as well stay here, right?" He said. Then he looked at where Jaehwan was holding him. "You can seriously let go of me now."

"Thank you, Prince Leo," Jaehwan held the prince's arm tighter as he looked intently at the prince as if he would eat his soul alive and Prince Leo got goosebumps but he didn't act as he felt. "I called Hongbin and he was about to go here."

Not that he was interested, he wondered who Hongbin was. "Who's he? Not that I am concerned, but you've mentioned him for two times already."

"Apparently, you are counting," Jaehwan said as he laughed and removed his hand from Prince Leo. "He's my best friend.

"Best friend," Prince Leo repeated in a skeptical tone.

"Yes, best friend," Jaehwan nodded. "Hongbin was, is and will forever me my best friend."

Prince Leo didn't speak in response. Instead, he changed the topic. "Why are you afraid?"

"I honestly don't know why," Jaehwan answered in a serious tone, trying to recall why he acted like that. "I totally don't remember."

"Seriously," Prince Leo hissed and looked away.

"This may sound ridiculous but... but I feel like there was something... something missing in my memory. Someone erased them to make me stop panicking," Jaehwan told Prince Leo who ended up looking back at the former after he had finished talking. "But when they mentioned the word... I immediately remembered something. Something that would soon be gone after I calm down."

Prince Leo didn't react to that, but what Jaehwan told him made him think about it. Jaehwan was cheerful, noisy and friendly, but the fact that this cheerful lad had some hidden history made him pity him.

"Oh well, I am okay now. Just do not mention anything about such and I'll be fine," Jaehwan gave the prince an assuring smile. "Can I ask another favor, Your Highness?"

He wouldn't want to say 'sure' or 'go ahead', but he just nodded.

***

"I know you're hesitant to call me your friend because I know you're a prince, but, can you still be my friend?"

It was a difficult favor to do,

At least for him, a prince who didn't have a real friend.

He didn't make friends not because he was a prince, not because he was afraid to be taken advantage of but more of he was careful in picking who he could trust. He knew how his father made friends with almost everyone in and out the country but he knew how these 'friends' viewed his father. The eyes of these so-called friends were always judging, as if picking noses was illegal and was subject to being decrowned as a King.

He believed that everyone had to remain as an acquaintance or else he would end up hurting.

He had not made friends either, not only in Jaehwan's case.

Jaehwan was not a bad person either. Yes, he was annoying sometimes, he was still a kind-hearted and honest individual.

However, it was still too soon to call him a friend. It was the answer that he gave Jaehwan. The latter accepted his reason and told him that he would think of ways for them to become closer.

The class he skipped was finally over so he and Jaehwan decided to go back to their respective classes. Jaehwan already got his glowing smile back and rest assured, everything was okay between them.

While waiting for his next class, he received a call.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Taekwoon."

He blinked as he recognized the voice. It was Princess Amanda who just called him with his birth name. "Hello, Princess."

"I thought you would not recognize me," Princess Amanda let a graceful laugh from the other line. "Waiting for your next class?"

"Yeah, sort of," Prince Leo answered as he stood to find a quiet and isolated place so that his classmates wouldn't have to hear their conversation.

"I know how it feels. I am waiting for my next class too," the princess asked. "How are you?"

Prince Leo didn't reply until he was able to find a quiet place. "I'm fine, thanks."

"You are really a man of few words, Your Highness," Princess Amanda commented. "Anyway, are you available later? At seven, perhaps? Your father told me that we should have a dinner over our place so I guess tonight is a perfect timing. Unless, your father was wrong about your schedule or you had something else to do."

"Later?" Prince Leo clarified as he ran through his schedule in his mind. "I guess I am fine later at seven."

"Alright then," Princess Amanda said.

"Shall I pick you up?" Prince Leo asked. He was not sure how to keep the conversation up so he asked that question even if he himself wasn't sure if he was allowed to do that.

"If you may then you could. But I prefer not to. They would make a big f