There were six people on the boat and one of them being Hong Bin who was trying to navigate his way. The waves were particularly choppy that night and Hakyeon didn't take it that well. Taekwoon sighed and held the seasick boy dearly in his arms, using his free hand to draw circles on his back.

"I get that Jaehwan and Wonshik want to follow me and leave our district, but Sang Hyuk-ah, why are here too?", Taekwoon asked.

The youngest one shrugged and pointed to Hong Bin. Did they know each other? Maybe. Taekwoon didn't press on further and dozed off.

When Taekwoon opened his eyes again, it was probably around sunrise and he scanned his surroundings to find that they were already approaching the shore. He carefully turned his head to admire a little sleepy Hakyeon that was in his arms. His mouth was opened ever so slightly and his hands were wrapped around Taekwoon's.

"Good morning, Hakyeon-ah. We're almost here," Taekwoon called him.

Hakyeon blinked his eyes and lifted himself up, only to come closer to Taekwoon and lie down on his lap.

"Good morning!", Hakyeon greeted and smiled as he rolled over and placed a small kiss on Taekwoon's belly. At least he wasn't seasick anymore.

The prince chuckled and lightly smacked the older one. He then looked over to Jaehwan and Wonshik, whose legs were both tangled together as they huddled closely to one another. It would have been a cute sight... If only Wonshik wasn't snoring loudly. Seriously how could Jaehwan even sleep with that amount of noise.

"Rise and shine love birds! Jaehwan wake Wonshik up and shut his mouth so he can stop snoring," Taekwoon mentioned as he casually played with Hakyeon's strands of hair.

Jaehwan pointed a finger towards Taekwoon and muttered something about Wonshik being perfect or what not. Just then, the boat bumped against the harbour and rocked everyone off their seats. Hyuk laughed and apologised as he helped Hong Bin up.

"I know how to drive these things, but not park them. Who cares, we're here," Hyuk said to Taekwoon who was glaring at him for making Hakyeon fall over.

They unloaded their things and followed Hong Bin to where Taekwoon's mother was. Half way through, Taekwoon became really silent and not that it was unusual, but Hakyeon could sense that he was nervous about something. The older male held Taekwoon's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Taekwoonie, breathe. Everything's going to be fine, okay?", Hakyeon grinned and Taekwoon brought the back of Hakyeon's hand to kiss it.

He felt like the luckiest person alive to be with Hakyeon. Taekwoon relaxed and calmed his nerves down. Besides, he had other things to worry about.

"So uh," Hong Bin started," Basically long story short, your mother is still a Queen. She rules this district with a King, of course. We all have great respect for her because most of the people here were once slaves. They live normal lives now, all thanks to our Queen."

Taekwoon nodded and thanked Hong Bin for the heads up. He noticed Hyuk staring at Hong Bin from a distance, and slowed down his pace, allowing Hyuk to walk beside him. Taekwoon smirked.

When they reached the palace, Hong Bin let them into their own rooms where they temporarily stayed in.

"Turn to your left, one level up, then continue left. The Queen will be waiting for you there," Hong Bin said as he left with Hyuk.

Taekwoon threw his luggage aside and jumped onto the bed. He yelled into a pillow as he heard laughter coming from Hakyeon. Hakyeon came over and kissed Taekwoon. It was a quick one though.

"Go with me, I don't want to be alone. Please?", Taekwoon asked.

"Of course," Hakyeon agreed and hooked his arm around Taekwoon's.

The prince got to the room Hong Bin had told him about and gave it a little knock. The doors opened and Taekwoon was greeted with the sight of his mother. She was still the same to Taekwoon, beautiful and long black hair and charming sharp eyes.

"E-Eomma...", Taekwoon's voice came out shaky as he rushed to the woman, engulfing her in a hug.

The Queen hugged back as the both of them shared a mother and son moment. Hakyeon smiled and was happy for Taekwoon. He stood at the door, giving them time to settle down.

"I've missed you so much my son, come sit down. Who's that you've got there?", the Queen asked.

Taekwoon smiled and introduced Hakyeon to his mother as his boyfriend. The Queen clapped her hands and congratulated them.

"So when's the marriage?", she asked playfully.

Hakyeon was taken aback and laughed while Taekwoon face flushed red as he coughed. She shook her head.

"So... why haven't you've been home for a long time? Everyone thinks you're dead back home."

The Queen held Taekwoon's hand and sighed deeply. She explained how she was forced to marry that man even though she'd hated him. At that point of time, she was already carrying Taekwoon, but the father wasn't the king.

"What?! That is infertile? So which means... he's not my biological father?", Taekwoon asked, flabergasted.

The Queen nodded. "I've been living with your real father but sadly he's on a business meeting elsewhere. Don't worry you'll have plenty of time to catch up with him. That "" you speak of wouldn't let me bring you away with me."

Taekwoon nodded. In a short amount of time, he'd learned that his mum had been sending agents to his old district to save slaves and bring them here. Hong Bin was the leader and guided every mission successfully.

"Okay, go rest my son, you've had a long day," Taekwoon's mum said.

Taekwoon hugged his mother one last time before leaving. Hakyeon waved goodbye and followed his boyfriend to their room.

"Undress yourself, I'll help you run the bath," Taekwoon said and Hakyeon tugged his wrist.

"Take a bath with me," Hakyeon whined.

Taekwoon got shocked but agreed to Hakyeon's request. The shorter male jumped happily as he went to pick his pyjamas. Taekwoon giggled and got everything ready. He removed his clothes and tossed them aside. Taekwoon then felt a warm embrace from behind and smiled.

"It's done, get in," Taekwoon said softly and helped him get in.

The prince took a moment to gaze upon Hakyeon's back that had scars from before. But other than that, his tan golden skin was flawless and contrasted deeply with his own pale skin. Taekwoon leaned against the back of the tub such that Hakyeon sat in front of him and made sure the other male was comfortable.

"Stop staring at my back I know they're full of scars," Hakyeon said defensively.

Taekwoon hugged him from the back and shook his head. "Aniyo, I love your golden coloured skin. I love you, most importantly. "

"Aish, you're cheesy," Hakyeon laughed.

Taekwoon just hummed in response and kissed the back of Hakyeon's neck. They spent their time washing up, playing with bubbles and well, kissing. Hakyeon was in utter bliss and realised how happy he was to have Taekwoon. He had never felt so appreciated by someone before.

After their bath, Hakyeon was the first to knock out on their shared bed. Taekwoon however, went off to find Jaehwan and Hong Bin to help him with something he had in mind, for a very long time.