True to his word, the prince stays by Yixing’s side, dancing with only him the entire night. He turns down any requests by anyone else, claiming Yixing for himself and denying anybody else from taking the smaller male from his grasp.

The whispers grow louder and more ludicrous as the night progresses, going from “He must be from another realm” to the more bitter “He must have bewitched the prince.”

Yixing keeps his head bowed and the prince seems to have overheard some of the rumours as after the third dance as he proposes for them to take a walk in the gardens, away from all the gossiping and prying eyes.

---------

Yifan brushes a finger over Yixing’s jaw once they had completed a silent lap of the first garden, turning his name over and over in his mind. “Yixing.” He whispers, testing the weight of it on his tongue, the boy called for lifting his head to smile shyly at the prince.

He spared a glance at the clock tower in the distance and is startled to find that it is nearly midnight. Slowly, he slid his hand out of the prince’s grasp in spite of the resistance Yifan placed in his grip. “You should return to the ball, Your Highness. The people will miss you.”

Yifan moved for his hand again, shaking his head. “I’d much rather be out here with you.”

He pulled Yixing flush against his chest, making the boy blush at the proximity, as he had done when they danced. Yixing leaned against the Prince's shoulder and sighed happily. There was no part of him that had felt that light in months, maybe even years, it was as though the world had slipped off his shoulders for that one night.

It was everything he dreamed of.

They stood like that, eyes riveted on the stars twinkling in the sky but never moving apart. Their breaths were meeting, their warmth was shared and the garden was quiet. A sanctuary for the night.

Far off in the distance, the clock chimed.

 One

Yixing gasped and pulled away suddenly, even as the prince’s reach sought after him. "What time is it?!"

"Midnight,” Yifan answered, looking confused by the question.

"I'm really sorry. I have to go!" Yixing his heel and fled, his heart thundering a mile a minute in his chest. He sprinted through the ballroom, fully aware of the Prince's cries for him to stop. The people dancing and socialising moved like the tide, forcing him back.

 Two

Yixing was in a state of sheer panic as he pushed his way through the resistant bodies ahead of him. He could feel the glamour of Minseok’s magic slipping away, his fairytale façade breaking down, already and he had only been a few beats over time.

He barged past a tall man who turned to look at him with large, scrutinising eyes. "Yixing?!" It was Chanyeol. Yixing fought to pass him by without a second glance, fear of being discovered fueling him onwards to the gradually nearing exit. "He's heading to the west doors.” Chanyeol yelled, his deep baritone attracting everyone's attention.

The guards that the prince had called to his aid turned immediately in the opposite direction, the ruse working on them. Once again, Yixing was thankful for his kinder stepbrother. Only the prince stood at the center of the ballroom, panting. His golden hair unfurling and falling into his eyes as his chest heaved, a devastatingly handsome sight.

"He went the other way." Chanyeol said, pointing in the opposite direction of Yixing's path. Chanyeol was sure the prince would listen but his eyes still searched the crowd as if searching for a jewel in the desert.

The prince barely glanced at him as he waded past him roughly, barreling out of the doors on the east that Yixing had taken.

Said boy sprinted down the stairs, stumbling in his haste to leave as the clock began to strike another time over. In the courtyard, Remedy reared, whinnying for his master to hurry as time thundered on.

 Three

"Wait!"

Yixing made the mistake of turning back at the sound of Yifan’s voice as his mask slipped with the violent motion of his neck twisting, something else falling to the floor but he didn’t spare it a thought, he had bigger problems. For a moment, his face is visible. There was a split second, a heartbeat, where his disguise was uncovered completely.

Yifan's eyes widened in recognition.

Yixing whipped his head around to the front, cursing his mistake audibly as he sprinted down the outdoor staircase, the mask that had concealed his face was pulled back up with a frantic push of his hands.

He scrambled onto Remedy's back just as the prince reached the bottom of the steps, barely ten metres away and he was advancing on the smaller male fast. The horse reared as Yifan came within reaching distance, causing the prince to duck away, yelling out profanities and shielding his head from the stray hooves. The stallion galloped away, Yixing clinging to his mane, hoofbeats echoing loudly on the cobblestones as he made his untimely escape. Excitement that he’d felt on his arrival was replaced with a frightening pain that was travelling under his skin.

Yifan stared after the white horse, despair written all over his face. By the time the guards had realized that they’d been misinformed and backtracked, all they found was the prince sitting dejectedly by the fountain, staring at a silver chain in his hands.

As Remedy dashed through the forest, Yixing could feel the curse taking effect again. Pain filtered through his every cavity, causing him to tighten his grip on Remedy's mane.

"Hurry." He murmured, pressing his face into his horse's mane, black spots danced in front of his eyes and he struggled to remain conscious, the torment so overwhelming that he felt as though he’d slip away any moment.

Remedy seemed to sense his master's growing pain and snorted, lengthening his stride and going as fast as his sinewed body would take him. By the time they arrived at the house, Yixing was barely holding on. Minseok helped him down from the horse, worry written all over his face. Yixing collapsed into his arms, whimpering in pain as Minseok helped him into the house. Remedy trotted away tiredly, the fancy equipment appeared to have melted off him as the magic disappeared.

The pain faded away along with the ballroom clothes that Yixing covered him, which left him in the tattered shirt that he had been wearing nearly 3 hours before. He laid his head down on the kitchen table as Minseok set a mug of warm milk with a cinnamon stick stuck in it on the table.

"Did you have fun?" He asked softly, his fingers through Yixing's soft curly hair in a way that Yixing had yearned for over the years.

"Yeah." Yixing mumbled as he raised his head to pick up the milk Minseok had prepared for him. He sat upright to take the thick, sweet drink, eyes glittering with faint happiness. "I met someone." Minseok raised his eyebrows but nodded for him to continue as he petted his hair. "He was so handsome. And so charming. I think I could fall in love." Yixing quirked his lip up, his cheeks pressed his eyes upwards to create moon shaped curves, "We were watching the stars. Then I had to go." His voice grew softer, sadder, as he let his gaze slip back down to the milk in his mug.

"Well there are still two more nights." Minseok reasoned, his voice more gentle than it had ever been in the 17 years that Yixing had known him.

"But he's a prince." Yixing mumbled, the tips of his fingers tracing a pattern on the wooden table absentmindedly, a fallen look of dejection on his face.

"And you're a lord. You are still of noble blood Young Master." Minseok petted Yixing's hair one last time before he stood to collect Yixing's mug, which had been completely drained of liquid. “Never forget that. Now it's time for bed. Go before your stepmother returns."

Yixing rose from his chair with him and wound his arms around him in a rare show of affection. He pressed a kiss against the elder's cheek and mumbled into his ear, “Thank you Minseok. For everything."

"No problem. Now off you go little star. It's bed time." Minseok smiled wider than the younger had ever seen and pushed Yixing away playfully.

Yixing didn’t sleep that night, only lying in bed with thoughts of blonde hair and amber eyes.