Shopping trip

 Luhan double checked himself using the bathroom mirror.

“You’re looking fine Lu.” He winked to himself. And indeed he was looking suave with his chestnut coloured hair all styled up and his casual yet striking clothes. He picked up his jacket which he had draped onto the central heating and went downstairs to prepare himself some breakfast.

For the first time since he had started his new job, Luhan looked forward to the day. He didn’t have to rake his brain trying to think of horrible things to say anymore- he could be himself. He also felt like a huge boulder had been lifted off his shoulders now that he was surer than ever that Yoona was definitely not involved in his father’s murder. Sure he didn’t have any solid evidence but Luhan didn’t really need that anymore. Yoona’s thinking was far too straight forward. She wouldn’t be able be part of something so twisted and deceitful. Her father on the other hand…

Luhan had decided he would try to grasp more of the King’s personality today. He hadn’t found out much concerning the murder since he had started the job even though that was the reason he applied to be Yoona’s bodyguard. Yoona had been high maintenance these past couple of days so he found he didn’t have the time to sniff up information about the King. Maybe the perfect person to get that info from had actually been Yoona all this time.

“Did something good happen?” Mr. Kang asked curiously when Luhan appeared in the kitchen with a huge smile playing on his lips. Luhan however was oblivious to this fact so was slightly confused when Mr. Kang proposed that question.

“Good? Not really…” he eyed Mr. Kang cautiously. “Why?”

“You’re smiling so much. It’s rare to see you smile you know.” Mr. Kang chuckled. “I’m guessing it’s a girl.” He added sneakily.

Luhan shrugged nonchalantly as he poured cereal into his bowl. “I guess it is a girl.” He smiled to himself. Mrs. Lu looked up expectantly, curious about this ‘girl’. Luhan had never talked about any sort of girl ever. Mrs. Lu didn’t even know if he had ever had a girlfriend either. Luhan was always one to keep those things private.

“But not in the way you’re thinking.” Luhan clarified, disappointing both Mr. Kang and his mother and even Jae Hee who had been sneaking glances from the newspaper she was reading to Luhan.

“Aww, what a shame.” Mrs. Lu shook her head. “Have you ever actually had a girlfriend?”

“Of course!” Luhan answered defensively, whilst he dug into his cereal. He didn’t realise that this was probably the first proper conversation he was having with his new family. “I’ve had loads!”

“Really?” Mrs. Lu raised an eyebrow. “You’ve never talked about them or even brought any home.” She sighed with a disappointed tone.

“That’s because it’s my personal business.” Luhan muttered coldly. Why would his mother even be interested in those trivial things anyway? She wasn’t ever interested in him but she was interested in his girlfriends?

Mrs. Lu chuckled to Luhan’s reply. Mr. Kang noticed the tension in the air so tried to make small talk again.

“You know the most unlikely friendships can turn into something bigger. Who knows maybe you’ll even date this girl that’s making you smile!”

“No…I don’t think so.” If only Mr. Kang knew who he was talking about. Luhan and Yoona? Pfft, never in a million years. For one Luhan kind of had a younger sister image of Yoona. He felt like he had to protect her from the real world and such. And then she was the crown princess which made things totally impossible.

“Anyway what’s your new job?” Mr. Kang changed the subject.

“I’m a bodyguard.” Luhan replied. He had finished his cereal by now and proceeded to wash the bowl.

“Bodyguard? For who?”

“Crown princess…”

The whole room stopped.

“What?!” Mr. Kang, Mrs. Lu and Jae Hee all shouted in unison. Luhan was slightly taken aback. He hadn’t really expected this reaction. Then again he viewed the crown princess a lot differently from everyone else. He had never thought anything of it when he had applied to become her bodyguard.

“W..wait, you never told us this?” Mrs. Lu choked.

“You never asked.” Luhan muttered.

“Do you know Jae Hee practically idolises the princess?” Mr. Kang laughed. “You can just see the jealousy in her face!” Luhan glanced at Jae Hee curiously who had quickly turned back to her newspaper.

“D..dad!” she stammered. Her face was flushed pink. Did she like the princess that much?

Because Luhan had been around people who didn’t really hold high opinions for Yoona, he was quite surprised by his family’s ordeal. Although this was your typical response because the royal family was well loved. People would talk about how respectful and kind Yoona and her father were. Luhan wasn’t sure he could agree to any of them.

“Anyway, I have to go.” Luhan excused himself after he had put his bowl away. Mr. Kang and Mrs. Lu bid him goodbye though Luhan didn’t pay much heed to it.

“Wow…you sure are…” Luhan trailed his eyes over Yoona. “…covered up.”

Yoona was dressed in jeans, a zipped up hoodie (with the hood pulled over her head as much as possible), had the darkest shade of the biggest pair of sunglasses covering half of her face and then a white mask over . It was a complete 180 degrees change from her usual chic and expensive attire.

“This is for your own good.” Her voice came out muffled through the mask. “People will flock to me otherwise.”

“Right…” Luhan coughed. “Shall we go then?”

It was incredibly awkward watching the usual posh looking Yoona walk around looking like she jumped out of a trash can. Luhan couldn’t get used it. He almost got scared when she entered the car after he did.

“God you scared me!” he ran a hand through his hair.

“Why?” Yoona raised an eyebrow. “Have you finally lost it?”

“I didn’t recognise you for a second…”

“You just saw me before.”

“It’s hard to get used to this.” Luhan muttered. He started the car and then began the journey.

Yoona kept the window wide open and threw her face out of it. Her hair was blowing furiously with the wind but she seemed to be enjoying it.

“This feels so great after being cooped up inside that place!” she stated loudly so Luhan could hear her over the wind and her mask.

“I doubt that anyone would call it being cooped up considering the palace is bigger than a school.” Luhan smirked.

“Well it is to me. After all I’ve been living there my entire life.” Yoona muttered as she took off her mask.

“Oh the things people would do to be you.” Luhan pointed out. “It doesn’t seem like you like palace life much eh?”

“Hmm…well it’s not bad I guess.” Yoona pulled her head back in. “It’s just sometime…it feels too much. Sometimes I want to try a simpler lifestyle.” She glanced at Luhan who looked like he was fully concentrating on the road. “Why am I even telling you this?” she huffed.

Luhan shrugged with a smile. “Maybe because you finally realised what great company I am!”

“Pff, as if!” Yoona scoffed. It felt pleasant being casual like this with Luhan. Yoona had long forgotten how it felt like to talk to someone like this. With Luhan she didn’t have to worry about status because Luhan didn’t judge over that. It was a huge breath of fresh air.

“You know…how is the King like?” Luhan asked suddenly. “His personality and all I mean.” He added. He tried to sound as casual as possible. It worked because Yoona thought he was asking plainly out of curiosity.

“Father?” she cocked her head backwards slightly. “Hmm…well he is the complete opposite of me really. He’s nice, caring, kind, forgiving and righteous. I don’t know how I’m even his child sometimes.” She laughed.

Nice, caring, kind, forgiving and righteous? Those weren’t really the words Luhan would use to describe him. He was pretty sure the King was the total opposite of them seen as how he could murder his own best friend.

“Really?” Luhan mused. “Maybe you got your qualities from your mother.” He was waiting for Yoona’s remark but he didn’t get one back. Glancing at Yoona, he saw she was staring out of the window. He couldn’t see her face so he couldn’t read her expression albeit the silence said enough.

“What exactly happened with your mother…?” Luhan trailed cautiously. He had been curious about this for a while now.

“Nothing. She simply passed away after living the life of a filial wife.” Yoona turned and pulled a smile. It was clearly a fake one. Luhan could see right through it. The way she said the words…Luhan guessed Yoona really didn’t like her mother. But why? It seemed she wasn’t willing to open up to him about that though so Luhan didn’t press her any further.

“We’re here.” Luhan finally announced when he could see the view of shops.

 “Miss…are you sure you’ll be able to afford all that?”

Yoona had dragged Luhan to one of the most expensive shops in Seoul. He would never dream of buying an item from here because of the outrageous price, but Yoona had five items she was ready to buy. The shop assistant however didn’t really believe she could afford it all considering her attire. Luhan had to hold in a chuckle at the remark. Yoona probably never had anyone say that to her.

“Err…I think I can.” She laughed sarcastically. “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” She whispered to the shop assistant with a cheeky glint in her eyes.

Ohh good comeback! Luhan perked up his ears at the conversation. What would the shop assistant say back?

“Sometimes…you have to.” The shop assistant trailed as she led Yoona and Luhan to the counter. She sent an apologetic smile to Luhan. Luhan would usually smile back but he could tell her smile was less than good will so he didn’t. She was probably wondering what he was doing wasting his time hanging around a girl dressed like a hobo.

“Its xxxxxxxxxx won.” The assistant smirked triumphantly. She waited eagerly for Yoona to stutter and apologise because she couldn’t afford the items.

Yoona fished her purse out of her bag pack and pulled out her card to the assistant’s surprise. The assistant’s smile was weaker now but still there. She was sure Yoona wouldn’t have the sufficient amount of money in her bank.

Yet Yoona managed to pay for the items easily, without even flinching at how much she was spending and with a wave and smirk she left the shop and the baffled assistant.

 "Where do you want to go next?" Luhan asked. 

"Let’s go there!” Yoona pointed enthusiastically. “I’ve never been there before. In fact…I think it’s new!”

“A jewellery shop?” Luhan piqued. “Let’s go then.”  

The shop was dimly lit inside and so Yoona and Luhan had a hard time navigating. Thankfully each piece of jewellery was placed in a well-lit box. The shop had all sorts of jewellery and styles Yoona had never even seen before.

“Wow…this sure is unique…” Luhan commented as he eyed the pieces. He wasn’t exactly a jewellery enthusiast but could tell these pieces were very different.

“I know…” Yoona agreed. “It’s a style I don’t think I’ve ever seen or worn before and I’ve seen and worn pretty much everything.” She continued to look at the jewellery until her eyes caught notice of a pair of matching necklaces. There was a white shimmery bird attached to both and if you put them together, the birds would circle each other.

“A couple necklace…”

Luhan and Yoona looked up abruptly to see a strange looking man scratching his chin. He smiled at them when they noticed him and gestured to the necklaces.

“They would definitely suit you two.” He winked. “I make my pieces with a story behind them and there’s only one of each piece.”

“So it’s totally unique?” Luhan questioned. The shop keeper nodded proudly.

“The thing is when I see people that match the story perfectly; I give them the item for free. I haven’t seen anyone match a piece as perfectly as you two!”

“Us?” Luhan raised an eyebrow. “We’re not a couple.” He clarified. But the shop keeper wouldn’t listen and continued talking.

“There was once a princess and a servant who fell in love with each other. They both met secretly because they knew the King would not allow them to be together. One day the King found out about their secret meeting and so forced the princess to get married to a prince of a faraway land. However on the wedding day the servant and the princess eloped together. The King was furious and chased them down into a forest. The pair climbed up a tree so that the King would not be able to reach them but alas the King had soldiers trained in archery who were to shoot the pair down.” The shop keeper paused for dramatic effect.

“And then…?” Yoona trailed, totally into the story. Luhan rolled his eyes and sighed. He had heard this tale many times before.

“And then a miracle happened and the princess and servant turned into two majestic white birds and flew away from the King’s grips forever.” Luhan dully finished. Yoona scowled at him for ruining the story with his less than gripping narrating.

“Yeah…that.” The shop keeper waved. “Anyway, you two seem to fit the story perfectly so I’ll give you these for free!”

“We’re not a couple.” Luhan repeated. Yoona on the other hand bit her bottom lip as she eyed the necklaces.

“Can I buy one of them?” she asked, surprising Luhan. “I’ll pay more than the initial price!” The shop keeper shook his head firmly.

“N-ope!” he winked. “I will only give these out to both of you for free.” He stated.

“What the heck…” Luhan trailed. This dude was seriously weird. Who would give away their merchandise for free when someone was willing to pay for it?

“Please…?” Yoona pouted. She really liked the necklaces.

“I told you no.” The shop keeper sighed. “If your boyfriend really cares about you, then he’ll be willing to take it for free.”

“I told you we’re not a coup-” Luhan was about to protest but then glanced at Yoona. She was staring at the necklaces with such intensity. “Fine…I’ll take it.” Luhan sighed. Yoona’s face instantly brightened leaving Luhan feeling satisfied.

“One for you and one for your boyfriend!” the shop assistant grinned slyly. Luhan just rolled his eyes and didn’t bother to correct the man anymore.

 Luhan and Yoona came back to the palace very late. They had visited practically every shop in Seoul and Luhan was exhausted. He had been carrying Yoona’s massive shopping load around because she refused to carry some herself and now his shoulders felt like they were about to fall off. He was greeted by a very amused Jinwoo who felt happy that someone apart from him also had to suffer the wrath of Yoona’s shopping.

“How was the day?” Jinwoo smirked slyly. Luhan dropped onto a chair gratefully.

“It was tiring.” He sighed. “But it was fun as well.”  

A/N: Welp that was the longest chapter so far I think. Anyway the introductory chapters are done now so we'll get moving with the plot soon.