“Does it still hurt?”

Jungsoo asked Baekhyun, carefully redressing the wound on his arm. Baekhyun shook his head. “Only a slight bit. It’s all internally healed now I guess.” He said.

“Then you can leave for the capital I guess.”

Both Baekhyun and Jungsoo turned to see Kyungsoo standing by the doorway, his arms folded across his chest and the guy leaning casually against the door frame. “Oppa!” Jungsoo hissed. “No I mean you are a soldier on you duty, and just sending a messenger to inform your condition to the palace won’t be enough I guess, since you are a noble too.” Kyungsoo continued to give reasons to chase away the man he despised and didn’t want to have around his sister at all.

Baekhyun chuckled. Although he didn’t clearly know the reason why this young physician disliked him, he was absolutely sure that Kyungsoo had something against him and hated him alot. Shaking away the thought, he smiled at the guy casually.

“I’m leaving tomorrow morning. As soon as the sun rises.”

That morning was when Jungsoo had ordered him to stay in, and since then, he had followed her around like a kid who follows his mom, going to the district judge’s office and returning home after sending a message on his behalf, and from then on, he followed her to the kitchen to watch her prepare lunch, to the small medicine store in there house to see her choose new herbs for him, to the patch of herbs they had grown behind the garden to get fresh herbs to make a new tonic and so on. The girl was cheerful and was fun to hang around with, she casually talked about everything with him as if he was a friend of hers for a long time, and made him laugh with the most childish jokes that a girl of that age could possibly make. Baekhyun loved her company, and for a few hours, he forgot every single problem that was running in his mind, and spent the day happily laughing and feeling absolutely carefree, which made him secretly want to stay for another few days in the physician’s house.

“Are you sure you can ride a horse like this?” Jungsoo asked Baekhyun worriedly, not noticing the death glare her brother was shooting her.

“It’s fine, I’ve faced worse before.” Baekhyun said with a smile. “Your nursing was so good that I healed faster than any other time before, so let’s say it’s all thanks to you.” he flashed her his most bright smile, and Kyungsoo noticed how his sister’s ears turned slightly pink.

“Jungsoo, omma wanted your help to make dinner. She’s doing everything alone so why don’t you go to the kitchen now?” he asked interrupting the two at once.

“Ah, yes oppa,” she stood up quickly, and walked out of the room in hurried steps. Kyungsoo shot a careless glance at the soldier sitting on the bed, and left without uttering a word. Baekhyun didn’t seem to mind him at all as well, and he lied back on his bed leisurely.

* * * * * * * *

Sehun led his horse along the road ahead, which he was sure to reach a small village soon. He looked down at the girl sitting in front of him on his horse, who was staring ahead of the road in silence, and not even breathing aloud, let alone uttering a single word.

His eyes travelled down to her dress, and then to her feet beneath. Just like the first day they met, her dress was all battered, and from her feet were dangling two straw sandals, half broken and revealing her wounded pale feet.

One of the two sandals slid off her foot and fell to the ground. Sehun stopped the horse and jumped down, picked up the worn of sandal and put it back on her slightly bleeding foot. He didn’t utter a single word in the meantime because there were too many thoughts working in his head right now, and after tying up the straps he looked up at her face, which was turned down and was staring at the reins of the his horse.

Tears were streaming down her pale face without stopping.

Sehun still didn’t say anything, and got back on the horse to sit behind her on the saddle. He gave the horse a light kick and it set off on the road again, taking the two travellers who chose to remain silent for the rest of the journey.

“Let’s stop here for the day. We can’t travel at night.”

Sehun spoke up for the first time in a several hours, as he jumped off his horse at the entrance of an inn they found on their way. The sun had set by that time, and the inn was lit with lanterns, and filled with people having dinner.

He held her by the waist, and brought her down to the ground even before she could even think of getting down. “Let’s go.” He led the way dragging his horse, towards a small stable besides the inn’s main building.

“Two gukbap bowls imo.” He gave the inn keeper lady his order, and looked up at the girl who was sitting across the table in silence. “You can order if you want more okay?” although he spoke quite less, she could still feel the kindness and concern laced in his voice.

And tears started welling up in her eyes again.

Two bowls of gukbap was placed on their table after a while. “Agassi you look so weak and frail! You must eat well!” the lady gave Ying a cheery smile and left them to have their meal.

“Eat.” Sehun muttered, as he took the spoon and started having his own soup.

Ying stayed still, staring at the steaming bowl in front of her, and the tears that filed her eyes started trickling down her cheeks again. At first Sehun didn’t notice, but once he lifted up his head to check on her, she was silently crying her heart out in front of him, not even daring to touch her meal.

Sehun sighed and placed his spoon on the table. “Do you even have strength to cry? How can we travel for another whole day if you don’t eat?”

She didn’t look up at him, and wiped away her cheeks with her dusty sleeve.

Sehun sighed again and stayed watching her for a while. “Let’s go. At least have some sleep you’ll pass out at this rate.” He walked around the table and held out his hand for her to hold and stand up. She refused his hand and stood up on her own, and he led the way to the room he had paid and checked into before.

“Don’t feel uncomfortable and sleep. I don’t have any other choice but to stay in the same room as you, because you are in too much danger.” Sehun said, putting aside his sword and spreading the mat that was placed in a corner of the room. “I’m not gonna sleep, I have to stay alert, so you can have some sleep here.” He placed the small pillow on the mat, which he found in a corner of the room. And he sat beside the mat after confirming for himself that the door was properly locked, and leaned against the wall behind him and closed his eyes.

Ying watched him doing everything, without interrupting him with a single word, and once he had sat down and had his eyes closed, she too, sat on the mat he pr