a/n: Dedicated to Annem and Shanti <33 I'm sorry this a) took ages and b) isn't very interesting T__T Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy!

Drabble 34: Sukai medieval au

Junmyeon shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Someone was watching him—he was sure of it. But who? It was impossible to see who could be looking at him from the throngs of nobles seated in his father’s banquet hall, whispering quietly in the shadows of the torchlight.

Junmyeon glanced down the High Table, and then back at his plate. He didn’t think that there was anyone seated here who would find him worth watching—it was just his parents, himself, and the sons of a neighboring estate, Jongin and Jongdae. Junmyeon risked another glance up and down the high table.

Junmyeon nearly gasped in surprise when he made eye contact with Jongin. Jongin stared at him intensely, and Junmyeon felt blood racing up to his cheeks. Jongin looked at him almost as if he wanted to—to—

Junmyeon let out a small breath of relief when Jongdae knocked Jongin’s shoulder to get his attention, and Jongin looked away. Junmyeon looked back down at his plate and slowly toyed with a piece of turnip.

“Junmyeon?”

Junmyeon snapped to attention at the sound of his mother’s voice. “Yes, mother?”

“Are you alright? You looked rather pale.”

“I’m fine.” Junmyeon forced a smile and quickly took a bite of turnip. “Nothing to worry about here.”

“Hm.” Junmyeon’s mother gave him a look that told him that she was clearly unconvinced, but thankfully, she let the matter drop.

The rest of the evening passed in a blur. When dinner was finished, there was dancing out in the courtyard, all manner of courtiers flocked up to his family, and there was general gaiety and amusement. However, Junmyeon couldn’t stop thinking about the look Jongin had given him. Eventually, Junmyeon felt so shaken up that he slipped away from the festivities back into the shadows of the mansion so that he could spend some time alone and collect himself.

Junmyeon snuck off back through the dark corridors of the mansion as night set in. He paused at the bottom of the steps of the atrium that led up to his rooms. The stairs were terribly dark, and the halls upstairs were probably darker. Junmyeon didn’t want to risk tripping over something and breaking his neck, so he reluctantly turned around so that he could go get a candle from one of the servants.

Junmyeon shrieked and instinctively swiped at the dark figure standing right behind him. He hadn’t heard anyone coming into the atrium!

The figure yelped and ducked in response. “Calm down! It’s only me.”

Only you. Junmyeon nearly snorted at the irony of it all—he’d snuck away from the courtyard to get away from the very man that was facing him in the dark. “Sir Jongin?”

“Just Jongin.” As Junmyeon’s eyes adjusted to the dim lighting in the atrium, he realized that Jongin was watching him and smiling.

“What are you doing back here?” Junmyeon asked as politely as he could, even as he heart hammered away in his chest.

“I saw you leave, and I wanted to make sure that you were alright.”

“Well,” Junmyeon said, smiling politely and drawing himself upright, “I am perfectly fine. I was just going to retire early.”

“I see.” Jongin stood awkwardly for a moment, and Junmyeon let the awkward silence extend for a few more seconds before taking a step to the side. “Good night, Jongin.”

Jongin didn’t move, and Junmyeon felt a cold sweat break out on his forehead. He could risk going up the rickety steps without a candle, or he was going to have to go back past Jongin, which would be awkward. Junmyeon valued his life far more than an awkward incident, but still…

Just as Junmyeon was about to move, Jongin spoke. “Since you have retired early, I hope that you would do me the favor of dancing with me tomorrow night.”

“What?” Junmyeon stared at Jongin. How horribly awkward and disjointed this encounter was! “I mean…of course.”

“Thank you.” Jongin bowed to him. “Rest well.” And then he faded back into the shadows of the hall as if he had never been there, leaving Junmyeon quite alone at the bottom of the stairs.

Junmyeon patted his cheeks, and was suddenly grateful that the hall was dark. Jongin had sounded so sincere when he thanked him, and Junmyeon had blushed quite violently. Junmyeon quietly began picking his way back across the hall to go downstairs and fetch a candle. Jongin had told him to rest, but Junmyeon had the feeling that he would be far more occupied with thinking about their encounter than with sleeping tonight.

a/n: I'm sorry I haven't posted in ages! And I keep promising new works T__T But I've finally started a personal project that I'm interested in, so hopefully that comes along. And I have three fic exchange fics coming up in August! So those will be posted then...things might get a bit crazy in the next few months because I'm also starting college in August (omg!) but I'll do my best to keep posting. And I'll definitely try and update this drabble dump more! Thanks for reading and all my love to readers <3333 You guys always keep me inspired. Comments are always appreciated, and feel free to leave some ideas in the comments for new aus!