Prince Kyungsoo paces like a madman, trying to keep the budding panic at bay.

He paces back and forth on the tiles of the bathroom floor, teeth furiously chewing at what little nails he has left. His long robes gently sway behind him as he turns around to head to the other side once more, small groans escaping his lips.

It was one time. One ing time.

He glances once more at the stick he just peed on ten minutes ago, the word pregnant still flashing in bold, black letters, prompting him to switch to bite at the nails on his other hand.

He shakes his head as he walks, not believing the word on the little stick until he feels a bout of nausea course through him. He breathes in deeply, trying not to get a second taste of his breakfast like he has been for the past two weeks.

He thinks about his next course of action, the thought only leaving him more frustrated—because technically…he doesn’t really know Jongin.

Prince Jongin, he corrects himself, and he only groans louder. 

The only things he knows about the male whose child he’s now apparently carrying is that he’s the future king of their region, and that his last name is Kim. That’s literally it. He doesn’t know what the other male likes to eat, what genre of movies he’s into, or if he prefers books over television. He doesn’t know anything about his current husband.

Kyungsoo understands that their arranged marriage was a calculated move to strengthen the alliance between the two kingdoms. His father, King Do of the Eastern Providence, promised King Kim his second born son as a means of gaining political traction. Not that his father is a power hungry monarch, but it doesn’t hurt to gain it nonetheless.

But now a wrench has been thrown into the mix—more specifically, a baby. So much for consummating the marriage to complete their union. Kyungsoo remembers their wedding night as a passionless affair. Prince Jongin had been gentle with him, but there was no spark between them. No burning need to become one with the future king, even though their bodies had connected.

In the two months Kyungsoo has been married, he’s embarrassed to admit he doesn’t know his husband at all. But he also can’t blame himself completely. After all, Prince Jongin is…cold. The male sports his signature rigid expression, and he doesn’t speak more than he has to. He’s too closed off to those around him, including Kyungsoo, and that makes it that much harder to know him.

The more Kyungsoo stresses, the worse his stomach flips. It’s too late to change what’s happened, the only thing he can do now is focus on the upcoming months where he’ll be forced to deal with this life-altering situation. Although he won’t say it out loud, Kyungsoo is scared less. What’s even scarier is that he might have to do this alone, since the last time he and Jongin even spoke to each other was a week ago—and that only to keep up appearances at a party they attended together.

Kyungsoo’s knees hit the tiled floor as he stresses himself out to the point of throwing up in the toilet bowl. He can’t tell if it’s the morning sickness or his nerves, but either way he feels terrible. After cleaning up and discarding the pregnancy test under layers and layers of toilet paper, he leaves the bathroom even more unsure than when he first entered.

***

It’s been a week since he found out, and Kyungsoo hasn’t said a word to anyone about it. He doesn’t exactly know what he’s waiting for, just that he isn’t ready for the world to know about the heir yet. Hell, he still has to come to terms with it, even though three more positive tests have confirmed the diagnosis.

However, he has begun taking a more proactive approach in what he eats and how much exercise he limits himself to. His job as the husband to the future king doesn’t entail much nowadays, leaving him with a lot of free time to explore some hobbies here and there. He had recently taken up horseback riding, but that will have to be put on hold until further notice—all that bouncing can’t be good for his vulnerable ball of cells.

Kyungsoo makes his way to the Parliament room where King Kim has called a family meeting. One thing he has noticed about the Kims is that they love holding family meetings, even for something as small as celebrating little Rahee finally taking a in the toilet like a big girl—okay, that might be a slight exaggeration but still, this family holds too many meetings.

He slips into the room quietly, noticing that King Kim has already begun discussing whatever they’ve all been called to hear. He tries to be as inconspicuous as possible, taking a seat beside Princess Jang-ah, Jongin’s older sister, and smiling at Rahee who sends him a toothy one of her own.

The King is talking about some upcoming festivities that will be held at the palace soon, which Kyungsoo tunes out within the first five minutes. He’s slightly more focused on the way Rahee glances at him and grins, and then immediately hides behind her mom’s shoulder, only to repeat the action ten more times. It’s so endearing, and Kyungsoo can’t help but play along, bringing his hands up and hiding behind them, peering out when Rahee does.

He notices how wide and round Rahee’s eyes are, the blackness of her hair that’s tied into two tiny pigtails, and the bronzeness of her skin that matches Princess Jang-ah’s perfectly. He finds himself thinking about the little girl’s unborn cousin that now resides in his stomach. Would he or she also have that beautiful, golden skin? Would the hair also be as dark as all the Kims’ or a lighter shade of brown like his own? Would their cheeks be round and plump, with tiny rolls of baby fat all over their body?

“Kyungsoo?”

Kyungsoo hears his name being called, and he jerks out of his thoughts as he peeks out from behind his hands that are still held up to his face. The whole royal Kim family is looking at him, and he feels his cheeks burning a hot red from having all the attention on him.

He chances a glance at Jongin, who’s also looking at him with his trademark cold expression, except this time his eyes feel like they’re piercing into Kyungsoo’s soul. Kyungsoo feels slightly unnerved, looking away and at the King himself who’s just smiling at him.

“Y-Yes?” he stutters out, never one for liking too much attention. It’s a miracle he was born second, Kyungsoo could never take having all eyes on him all the time. He’s thankful his older brother is the next in line for their kingdom instead of him.

“Sweetheart, we’re asking when you want to have your clothes tailored?” Jongin’s mother, the Queen, speaks up, sending him an encouraging smile because Kyungsoo looks like he might just throw up.

“Why?” he asks, feeling dumb for spacing out earlier. He wonders if pregnancy brain is a real thing this early on in the game.

“For the upcoming party,” laughs Jang-ah, adjusting Rahee in her hold as the little girl squirms, reaching out for Kyungsoo.

“Oh, right.” Kyungsoo sends the others a sheepish smile. “Um, anytime is fine.”

“Ok, great. You and Jongin can get your measurements at the same time then. The party is three weeks away, plenty of time to plan and get everything settled,” the Queen says, jotting stuff down on a notepad.

Kyungsoo nods, flushing a little as he looks at Jongin again, only to have the prince staring right back at him once more. He turns to face Rahee, the girl practically in his lap at this point, and Jang-ah lets go of her. Kyungsoo brings his arms around his niece, holding her close as Rahee rests her head on his shoulder, eyes closing promptly.

“Oh, she’s finally going down for her nap,” Jang-ah lets out a sigh of relief. “Bring her by my chambers once she’s out, will you Kyungsoo?” she asks, getting up and ruffling his hair before planting a kiss on her daughter’s head.

She heads out of the room, meeting officially over as the others begin to scatter as well. Kyungsoo remains in his seat, feeling the soft breaths hitting his neck as he brings up a hand to slowly pat the little girl’s back, a soft smile spreading on his lips.

“You’re so good with her, Kyungsoo,” the Queen says as she stands up as well, glancing over at her husband speaking with Jongin about something before turning back to him. “You’ll be a great parent once you and Jongin have one of your own.”

Kyungsoo turns red at that, only smiling nervously as she heads out as well. He ends up sneaking another look at Jongin, who’s now finished talking with his father and is the only one left in the room with him. He watches as Jongin collects some papers on the table and stuffs them in a folder before standing up.

Their eyes meet once more and Kyungsoo flinches, feeling as though he’s been caught doing something he isn’t supposed to. His heart picks up pace, scrambling to stand up from his chair as he breaks the eye contact, making sure he doesn’t wake Rahee up as he pushes the chair in. He can’t control the muscles of his eyes as they rotate upward to look at Jongin again, the same feeling from earlier making his heart beat faster. He looks at him for just a moment longer before he finally wills his legs to move, walking out of the room and away from the male who—just by looking at Kyungsoo—is making him feel weird things that he has never felt before.

***

Kyungsoo tosses and turns as he struggles to get comfortable on his large bed. His mattress is comfortable enough, but his thoughts are what plague him enough to elude sleep.

He thinks about his life at the palace. Kyungsoo isn’t homesick like he expected to be. The Kims are extremely caring towards him, and even though he’s not the most social or talkative person, they always make sure to never let him feel left out of anything. Kyungsoo can’t help but be grateful to be surrounded by people like that, he figures it could be much worse like being alienated or having to work hard to earn their affection. They give it so freely that Kyungsoo doesn’t feel lonely or misses home like he usually does whenever he goes somewhere.

He thinks about his family and kingdom back home. The Eastern Providence has been ruled by his family for generations, and it’s the place where Kyungsoo was born and raised. Of course, ever since he married and moved to live with the Kims, he definitely misses his fathers and brother, whom he will get to see when they come for the party they’re throwing in two weeks’ time. Kyungsoo can’t wait to be reunited with his family.

He also thinks a lot about the unborn baby he’s keeping a secret from the world. It’s been two weeks since he peed on the stick and his status changed from newly wedded Prince Kyungsoo to future parent. The thought is daunting—he’s going to be a father. Within seven months’ time, there’s going to be a little creature who’s going to require all his attention and love and Kyungsoo doesn’t know if he’ll be a good dad. Hell, he’s only twenty-three years old and still a daddy’s boy himself, how is he going to handle it all?

But the one thing—or rather, person—he avoids thinking about is Jongin. Because whenever the prince’s image pops up in his mind, it sends a rush of feelings that Kyungsoo can’t quite name. They make his heart pump faster, blood rush through his veins, palms sweaty, and something unexplainable happens in his southern region.

But why? Kyungsoo can’t comprehend why his body reacts this way when he barely knows Jongin. He is a practical man, he can see for himself that his husband is very handsome—okay, unbelievably attractive—but Kyungsoo has never been one to fall for looks. When did he start feeling this way about someone who’s still a stranger to him despite being married?

Kyungsoo remembers their wedding night, how careful Jongin had been with him. It was his first time and he was beyond anxious, but Jongin had made sure that Kyungsoo was completely sure of everything. It was to the point where Kyungsoo had ended up initiating things, and the rest is history. But Kyungsoo knows that’s not when he felt anything for the male.

So when was it? Was it during the time Jongin cleaned him up and tucked him into bed that night? Or when Kyungsoo woke up the next morning and the first thing he saw were the soft, innocent features of Jongin’s face blissed out in sleep—and deciding it wasn’t a bad view to wake up to every morning for the rest of his life?

Too bad that was the first and last time Kyungsoo woke up to Jongin’s pouty lips and soft snores because they haven’t slept in the same bed since. Kyungsoo understands that Jongin is busy learning the ropes of ruling their kingdom, and the male spends every night in his office down the hall, staying up to the early morning hours and eventually passing out there as well.

Kyungsoo convinces himself that it’s because Jongin is a hard worker and wants to be the best ruler he can for their people, and not because he was scared away by his morning breath that day.

Kyungsoo turns in bed once more, sitting up when he decides he’s not going to get sleep anytime soon. He picks up his phone from the bedside table, the clock reading 1am as he unlocks it. He scrolls through his contact list, stopping when he sees his dad’s name and wonders if it would be a good idea to call so late. There are so many things going through his mind, making him feel vulnerable and scared, and he just needs to talk to his father.

“Hello?” comes a groggy voice from the other line, and Kyungsoo’s heart twinges at the sound. He’s not homesick but he’s definitely missed hearing his dad’s voice.

“Daddy?” he says in a small voice, suddenly feeling like a lost child. He feels fresh tears spring to his eyes.

“Kyungsoo? What’s wrong, baby? Why are you calling so late?”

Kyungsoo swallows thickly, trying to keep his voice even. “Nothing, I just missed you. Sorry for waking you up. I’ll let you get back to sleep—”

“No, it’s okay! But how is everything? Are you okay?”

Kyungsoo smiles at his dad rambling off questions without pausing to take a breath. “Everything’s fine, daddy. How’s dad and Seungsoo?”

“They’re well. You know, one’s busy teaching how to rule and one’s learning it.”

Kyungsoo chuckles, knowing his father’s rolling his eyes. Back home, he was his father’s favorite because they did everything together, while Seungsoo was with their other dad going to meetings and sitting in on negotiations with important people. He knows his dad misses his company a lot, now that Seungsoo’s gotten even busier and Kyungsoo is at his new home.

“Same thing here, Jongin is busy learning how to be a king too.”

“Is he being a good husband too?”

Kyungsoo bites his lip, chewing on it thoughtfully because he can’t really say he’s a good husband, but also not a bad one either. He’s just neutral—like the stupid expression he wears on his face 24/7. Kyungsoo doesn’t think he’s ever actually seen Jongin smile.

“He’s good. Caring and smart, like the rest of his family.”

“That’s good to hear. I’m so happy to hear your voice, Soo. I know things get in the way and we get busy, but I want you to know you can call me anytime and I’ll be there.”

Kyungsoo feels that ball of feelings lodge in his throat once more, and he can practically taste the words that are now settled at the tip of his tongue. I’m pregnant. But for some reason they don’t make it out.

“Thank you, I’ll make sure to call at 4am the next time,” Kyungsoo jokes instead and he can hear his father whisper laughing through the line, trying not to wake up the sleeping king beside him.

“I rescind the offer,” his father replies back, still chuckling under his breath and Kyungsoo breaks out into a smile.

“Goodnight daddy, get some sleep.”

“Goodnight, my sweet boy.”

As Kyungsoo hangs up, he feels his stomach turn, the sting of bile suddenly hitting his throat and he scrambles off his bed, heading to the bathroom to empty it all out. Thankfully he reaches the toilet bowl just in time to unload, retching the disgusting contents and watching them splash into the water. He groans as he grabs his stomach, the nausea hitting him full force as he feels his knees becoming weak, eventually sitting down and resting his head on his hands.

He sits there for a few minutes recuperating, trying to gain back the strength he lost. His head feels light and he just wants to fall asleep right there, but he manages to pick himself up. He flushes the toilet and cleans out his mouth, stepping back out into the bedroom once he feels refreshed. He wonders how long he’s going to be re-tasting his food during this pregnancy. Perhaps another month or so till the nausea subsides.

However, as he makes his way back to bed, his stomach rumbles and this time it’s because he’s hungry. Kyungsoo groans once more, deciding that the little royal inside his belly really needs to make up their mind about wanting food to stay in his stomach or not.

He turns course toward the kitchen, hoping he can find something good to snack on in the dead of night.

***

Keeping such a big secret from the family proves to be quite difficult for Kyungsoo. Whenever he sees their smiling faces, a big guilt arrow shoots right through his heart, and he’s left feeling bad afterwards. They deserve to know, but he’s still holding out. Why? He doesn’t know himself.

Maybe it’s because even though he and Jongin are getting fitted for their outfits for the party, his husband doesn’t say more than a simple greeting. And it makes Kyungsoo feel a little disappointed.

He watches as the prince stands in front of the mirrors, broad shoulders on display through a crisp white collared shirt, black slacks complimenting long legs, a vest snugly fitted around his thin waist—his husband looks like a whole snack and Kyungsoo’s kind of hungry.

When he catches a hold of his thoughts, Kyungsoo almost slaps himself. Focus!

“Kyungsoo-ssi,” the tailor says, getting his attention. “I’d like for you to try this on,” he says, holding up a shirt and pant combo. “It’s tailored to your previous measurements so it should fit nicely.”

Kyungsoo stands up, thanking the male before walking into the fitting room. He begins to undress, slipping the black slacks on and feeling the blood pool in his cheeks as he tries his best to button the pants. He’s only two months along and his stomach barely shows, but apparently it’s enough to give him a hard time with his pants.

Finally, he manages to close the button, and works on the collared shirt next. The real problem arises when he tries to close the buttons of his vest, but it’s definitely too snug around his midsection that he doesn’t want to force it close. After trying various methods that don’t involve in his stomach completely, he gives up and walks out, holding the vest out for the tailor to take.

“It, um, doesn’t close,” he says, fighting hard to keep his blush from blooming.

“That’s odd,” the tailor murmurs but takes the vest nonetheless, inspecting it to make sure he didn’t mess up on the seams somewhere.

“I probably gained weight,” he smiles awkwardly, turning around to inspect himself in the floor-length mirrors.

“It suits you,” comes Jongin’s voice from behind, and Kyungsoo freezes in his spot, eyes traveling to look at his husband in the mirror, who looks just as surprised as he is.

He doesn’t know what to do or say as Jongin stands up, the prince mumbling about waiting in the car for him, and then he’s gone. Kyungsoo remains still, eyes following the male out the door until he focuses back on himself, noticing how incredibly bright red he’s turned.

Did he hear Jongin right? Did the prince just compliment him? Kyungsoo taps his cheeks with his palms, trying to calm down the storm that’s now brewing inside his heart.

After getting re-measured, the tailor promises to have the new vest ready by the next day, and with that, Kyungsoo heads out to the car, heart still thundering the closer he gets. He tries not to stumble as he walks, mind a steady haze as it swirls the three words around. It suits you.

Kyungsoo blushes, fingers grazing against his stomach as he stays lost in thought when the driver comes around to open the door for him. He wonders if that’s what Jongin’s into—short, chubby men. If that’s the case, Kyungsoo doesn’t mind tearing through a whole cooked cow if it means it will fill him in all the right places.

He slips inside, settling on the leather seat by the left window while Jongin remains on the right. Kyungsoo visibly swallows, a silent tension permeating the air in the car. He keeps his eyes on the road as they take off, fighting to keep a smile from appearing on his lips.

Ten minutes pass like that in silence, and usually Kyungsoo is okay with it. However, today is different as his mind stays hooked on what occurred moments earlier at the shop. It doesn’t even mean much, probably, but for Kyungsoo who has never heard Jongin speak to him of his own accord, it means something.

“W-What is the party being held for?” he asks with a stutter, mentally kicking himself for sounding so unconfident—like a teenager talking to his crush—which he technically is, just slightly older.

He turns to look at Jongin, who’s now giving him the same expression that he always wears, but his eyes are different. They seem…thoughtful. As if Jongin’s contemplating whether to answer or not. After a minute of not receiving an answer, Kyungsoo sighs under his breath and moves to turn away, only to stop when he hears the prince speak up.

“My parents’ wedding anniversary.”

Kyungsoo whips around, eyes wide as he stares at Jongin. “Really?”

Jongin looks mildly taken aback but nods his head in response.

“Oh wow, I didn’t know,” Kyungsoo says, looking down and fumbling with his hands nervously. “Now I feel dumb.”

He can feel Jongin’s gaze on him as the prince speaks. “Why?”

“Because I didn’t even congratulate them, or offer to help with the party,” he replies, looking back up at Jongin, only to realize his mistake because his heart almost leaps out of his throat when he finds himself face to face with the male, not knowing when he scooted closer to him.

Something in Jongin’s expression changes, and Kyungsoo can’t help but stare deeper into the chocolate brown eyes of the prince as he opens his mouth to respond. “You still have a week.”

That’s when Kyungsoo finds his lips splitting apart to reveal his pearly whites, corners turning up to form into his famous heart-shaped smile as a soft chuckle comes tumbling out. “I do, huh?”

With that, Kyungsoo turns away smiling even though Jongin is still staring at him blankly, head and heart a jumbled mess as he realizes he just talked to Jongin. It wasn’t much of a conversation but it’s enough to let Kyungsoo know that he can hold one without turning into a stuttering mess.

***

A few days pass and Kyungsoo finds himself waking up in the middle of the night with an incredible urge to devour mangoes. His mouth is salivating and his stomach is relentlessly flipping on itself, forcing him out of bed and towards the kitchen.

The party is this weekend and all the decorations have been set up. When he went to ask his mother-in-law if he could help with anything, she cooed at him first, then proceeded to take him under her wing to explain her role in the party-planning—which was basically hiring all the right people and making sure they finished on time.

He walks past it all and straight to the fridge, praying with all his might that he finds what he’s looking for inside, otherwise he doesn’t know what he will do. Cry, probably.

He sifts through the various items, jumping a little excitedly when he spots the fruit. He takes out three and moves to the counter, finding a knife in one of the numerous drawers and beginning to cut. He hasn’t stepped inside a kitchen in a while, but Kyungsoo sure knows his way around one. He has always enjoyed learning recipes from their chef back home, but he hasn’t gotten a chance to make anything for the Kims yet.

In the middle of contemplating what sort of cake he could bake for his in-laws’ anniversary, a noise from behind makes him jump in his chair. Kyungsoo turns around, cheeks puffed out with the slices of mangoes, eyes landing on Jongin who walks into the kitchen still rubbing his eyes like he just woke up from sleep.

The prince, dressed in grey pajamas and a plain white T-shirt, stops upon seeing Kyungsoo. His eyes squint as they get used to the light before recognition hits him. Jongin’s eyes widen, unsure of what to do as Kyungsoo takes that moment to chew and swallow as much as he can.

In the minute that it takes Kyungsoo to clear his mouth, he observes Jongin carefully. This is the second time he’s seeing Jongin not dressed up in royal robes. Instead, the disheveled bed hair, the loose pajamas, and the bare feet do something to him. He wouldn’t be surprised if Jongin knew he was practically undressing him with his eyes.

“I was hungry,” he finally gets out as Jongin begins walking again, towards the fridge.

He doesn’t get a reaction as Jongin rummages through the shelves, pulling out some of the leftovers from dinner earlier and walking to the microwave to heat it up. Kyungsoo pouts slightly, wishing Jongin would at least acknowledge him but the prince remains standing with his back to him, waiting for his food to warm up.

He goes to stab at a piece with his fork, munching on it even though his mood is slightly dampened. He decides its best to hurry up and finish and return back to his room before the awkward tension in the room can grow. He watches quietly as Jongin retrieves his food and grabs a spoon before walking over to the table and taking a seat across from him.

The close proximity only stresses Kyungsoo out more, and he proceeds to fill his mouth to the brim with more pieces of mango so he isn’t tempted to break the lingering silence with words. Kyungsoo doesn’t do well under stress, and his need to rectify that usually ends up embarrassing him further.

They both eat in silence, Kyungsoo noticing how Jongin glances over at his plate every so often. He’s in the middle of cutting the third mango when he decides he just needs to ask the million dollar question.

“Would you like some?” he asks, gesturing to his plate as Jongin looks up at him.

Looking at his husband, Kyungsoo swears Jongin looks much younger than him despite being older by three years. The way his chocolate eyes waver the longer they stare at each other, the way the corner of his lips quirk just the slightest bit—

Was that a smile?

Lost in thought, Kyungsoo doesn’t realize when the knife slips and slices his finger, letting out an unmanly yelp as blood begins dripping down. Jongin reacts quickly, moving to grab the towel near the sink and coming around to Kyungsoo. He takes the now bloody hand in his, wrapping the towel tightly until the blood circulation cuts off enough to slow the bleeding.

Kyungsoo groans under his breath, looking on the verge of passing out because the sight of blood always makes him really woozy.

“Are you okay?” he hears Jongin ask, and Kyungsoo nods as he puts his head down on the table, letting the light-headedness pass. “Wait here.”

After a few minutes, he hears Jongin come shuffling back into the kitchen, and he raises his head to see a first aid kit in his hands. Kyungsoo feels drained, the blood loss coupled with his inability to stomach the sight of blood rendering him weak.

He looks away as Jongin unwraps the quickly soaking towel, knowing for certain he will faint if he sees the bloody gash on his poor finger. He lets out a whine when Jongin pours a saline solution to clear the cut, using some gauze to dab at it before uncapping some ointment and applying it gently to the finger.

This is probably not the best time to think about how Jongin is holding his hand as he cleans, the touches leaving Kyungsoo’s skin all tingly—or it could just be from the loss of blood. Either way, Kyungsoo can’t help but look at Jongin’s concentrated face, eyebrows cutely scrunched together as he slowly wraps clean gauze around the laceration, teeth pressed into his bottom lip—it has Kyungsoo mimicking the action, pulling his own bottom lip into his mouth—otherwise he’ll probably squeal.

“Feeling better?” he hears Jongin ask, and Kyungsoo shakes his head to clear his previous thoughts, focusing back to his husband who’s looking at him seriously.

Without thinking twice, Kyungsoo lets out a huff, lips forming a pout as he whines, “It hurts…”

He doesn’t catch on to the way Jongin stiffens, instead looking down to inspect the dressing. That’s when he flushes a bright red, noticing Jongin’s long, slim fingers still holding his hand, and his heart skips several beats.

“Thank you,” he half-whispers, pulling his hand out because any longer and he might combust.

“Be careful next time.”

Kyungsoo tries to fight his smile as he nods. “I’m actually pretty good with knives. I guess I was distracted.” By you. It’s your fault, Kim Jongin.

“Good like cooking wise or killing wise?”

Kyungsoo pauses, not believing his ears. Did the cold, broody prince just try cracking a joke?

“I can’t kill with a knife,” he then responds with a small grin. “Too much blood,” he says, holding up his finger and rolling his eyes back to pretend like he’s about to faint again.

That’s when he hears it. A small chuckle coming from Jongin. It’s so light and airy that he almost misses it. Is this what Heaven feels like?

Kyungsoo joins in with a laugh of his own, trying to keep his whale noises from coming out like they usually do when he truly laughs. It takes a lot to contain himself, wanting to burst at the seams from the happiness that’s blooming throughout his body.

He made Prince Jongin laugh. He figures the nasty cut on his finger was worth it after all.

“No but really, I’m a good cook,” he says after a while, gaining Jongin’s attention again.

“Really,” Jongin states rather than questions, as if not believing Kyungsoo’s statement.

“Really,” Kyungsoo reiterates. “If I wasn’t debilitated right now,” he says holding up his injured finger, “I would cook you something to prove it.”

Jongin looks like he’s fighting back another smile when he leans back in his chair and crosses his arms. “Okay. We’ll just have to wait until you heal then.”

Is this for real? Does Jongin really want Kyungsoo to cook for him?

“You’re on,” Kyungsoo challenges, already coming up with a few dishes to blow Jongin away with.

He watches as Jongin glances at the clock before turning back to face him.

“It’s late,” he says, picking up his dishes as well as Kyungsoo’s and going to drop them in the sink. “You should, um, get some sleep.”

Kyungsoo notices the 3:30am on the clock, deciding its time he retired back to bed. He gets up from his chair, heading over to the exit, but before he leaves he turns again. “You too. And thank you again,” he says, wiggling his damaged finger at the male before turning and leaving, face threatening to break as his lips finally stretch into the smile that’s been fighting to spread on his face.

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a/n - brought to you early by a very persuasive friend *cough you know who you are. anyway, i hope you guys liked? i think this fic is gonna go like a hundred different directions, cliche'd af--but ive been wanting to read something cliche and ended up writing it instead hahah thank you for reading! :3 i will begin writing part 2 whenever im not dying from work~