She opened the wooden door, expecting to be greeted with some sort of annoyance that came from him be it a lame joke or his over-the-top humor.

But instead she was greeted with silence. The wooden door creaked as she gently closed it; the sound echoed throughout the small house as if no one was there.

"Seunghyun?" She called. A few days ago he suddenly said that he liked it when she called him by his first name, so she thought if she do it he'll appear somehow.

"Hello?" She stepped into the kitchen where her huge cauldron was located, and inspected the surroundings. The book upon the stand was opened. A heavy smell hung in the air. But no signs of him anywhere whatsoever.

A strange, uneasy feeling wrapped around her stomach. Running up the wooden stairs, she couldn't find him either. Possible scenarios played themselves in her mind, and without a second to waste she bursted out the door into the forest.

"Seunghyun!" She called loudly, startling the birds perching on the branches. Her voice reverberated throughout the forest. She ran blindly, the leaves crumbling under her feet.

"Seunghyun! Where are you?!" She couldn't understand why she was searching for him. She couldn't fathom why she felt scared. All she knew was that he could be lost somewhere and she had to help him.

She tripped, falling to the ground as her left foot started to ache. She panted, her chest heaving up and down steadily as she gasped for breath. 

She stared at the blue sky above, and it took a while of laying there for her to acknowledge that he was gone.

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1 month later....

He sat there, staring blankly out the window at nothing in particular. The chatters and noises of the castle seemed to fade away. 

"Your majesty?" 

The voice of a female servant pulled him from his trance, and he turned around to face her.

"Yes?"

"Princess Jiyeon is requesting to see you."

His jaw clenched, and he heaved a sigh.

"Tell her I'm tired." He turned to the window again.

"Yes your majesty." The woman curtsied and went out the door.

A few moments later, Jiyeon opened the door. Seunghyun was irritated as he turned around to look at her.

"I said I'm tired didn't I?"

"You don't look tired." She said, making herself home as she sat on his bed.

"What do you want?" He asked, his face impassive.

"Mother and Father are planning a public procession to announce our marriage two weeks from now. They ask me to tell you and see if it's good with you."

"Do whatever you want." He replied, returning to gazing out the windows again.

Jiyeon got up, and silently approached next to him.

"What's so fascinating out there?" She asked, surprising him with the close proximity.

"Why are you so close to me?" He asked, frowning.

Jiyeon seemed amused as she turned to look at him.

"Why? Afraid you can't resist me?"

"Don't even dream about it." He said harshly, standing up and walking away to sit on his bed. Jiyeon laughed, the sound resonating throughout the room.

"We're going to get married soon, Prince Seunghyun. You should start getting used to me now." With that she closed the door. He sat there, more and more irritated the more he thought about things.

"Why am I thinking about her?" He said, running his hands over his face as he lay on his back.

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The loud noises and chatters and shouts in the air were enough of an excuse to make her go home. But everytime she turned to leave Hyori would be there to drag her back while lecturing her in the meantime.

"Bom you have to see this." Hyori stated authoritatively.

"Why?" She whined.

"First, you're an inhabitant inside this kingdom. Second, I want someone to be there when I see the prince and faint."

"Technically, I'm not really an inhabitant inside the kingdom since I live in the forest. And second, tons of people are here. Someone else'll be there for you before you hit the ground." She tried to leave, but Hyori pulled her wrist.

"Hush. You know what I mean. We need to see this." Then Hyori's face changed into an excited expression. "You and I both need to see how dreamy the prince is." Hyori went into her fanstasy again.

Bom could only shook her head at her best friend as they stood there amidst the crowd on both sides of the wide paced road waiting for the public procession announcing the Prince and Princess marriage. The people were talking excitedly, undoubtedly about how the Prince looks as well as how beautiful the couple will be like together. A lot of young women like her and Hyori were excited to see the Prince, who was said to be extremely good looking.

"I don't see the point in this. Can't they just announce it like any other normal people? A public procession? Really?" She exclaimed exasperatedly as the crowd around her got even more crowded.

"Oh stop it with your morose attitude Bom. You know you've been even more gloomy ever since that merchant or whoever left." Hyori started to nudge her playfully. "You miss him huh?"

"I don't." She stated, her face emotionless as she replied. Truth was, she did.

Somehow, she missed having another person in the house. She missed how he annoyed her constantly. She missed his smile and his deep brown eyes. Although she would never admit it, she missed looking at him secretly.

She really wasn't right in the head. Maybe it was some sort of sickness that caused her to be like this.

Trying to put it in the back of her mind, she looked on as the loud horns sounded signaling the approach of the procession. The crowd on both sides started to cheer loudly as royal guards marched down the center of the paved roads. After them came the drum players and the saxophone players. Out of nowhere there was confetti flying in the air, and farther down the road the movement of a carriage could be seen.

And there it was: the royal carriage slowly descended down the center of the road as the shouts and cheers got louder. The beautiful carriage was etched with gold and red carvings, intricately designed and beautifully decorated with white flowers. And standing on it was the Princess, breathtakingly pretty in her long flowing gown. Her hair was smooth and chestnut-colored dotted with a few rose stems.

Beside her was the Prince.

At first, Bom couldn't see because of the crowd and the distance. But when the carriage was right there next to her she saw it.

She saw Seunghyun standing there waving his hand at the people, his arm linked with the Princess. She saw him turning around to wave at her side of the road. She saw the momentary surprise on his face as his eyes landed on her. It seemed like the rest of the world faded away as they gazed at each other. The noises seemed to be blurred as she looked at him speechlessly. 

The carriage passed by, and he turned away. She stood there dumbfounded as she looked at the retreating carriage. Even when it disappeared out of sight further down the road she couldn't stop staring in that direction.

"Oh my gosh! Did you see him?! Did you?! He's so handsome ahhhh..." Hyori exclaimed dramatically next to her stunned best friend. "What I would give to be the Princess and be held in his arms."

She didn't say anything, and just stood there as her red hair flew gently with the wind. 

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