With his fire of desire stirring, Jonghyun understood the meaning behind Jinki's request. What they both needed was but a moment of privacy. Escorting his husband up the stairs, Jonghyun waited for Jinki to make the first move, hoping he wasn’t mistaken. 

"Jonghyun, I wanted to spend some time with you before the announcement"

"My Prince, your pleasure is mine"

"Let’s dance together"

As the music continued to play, Jonghyun took Jinki’s hand and swayed with him. They were so close that they could hear each other’s hearts racing. As Jonghyun saw the smile that lit up across Jinki’s face and brought his face closer to kiss him, the inevitable happened. The fanfare had begun, which was the sign that the princes had to report back to the main hall.

With a wry smile, Jonghyun took Jinki’s hand and led him back down the stairs to the applause that welcomed them.

"I would hereby like to announce the wedding of our very own Prince Jonghyun, with Prince Jinki. As per his request, Prince Jonghyun’s coronation will take place in a few months"

Taking the fire opal ring from his chief courtier, Jonghyun slid it into its rightful place on Jinki's ring finger. 

After spending the next couple of hours talking to the guests and mingling, Jonghyun and Jinki finally had time to talk.

"Thank you for this beautiful ring, I'll always wear it"

"A fire opal is the most suited for someone with a fiery nature, such as yourself"

His breath got caught in his chest as Jinki stepped closer to him, Jonghyun was almost surprised though he knew what would come next. Jonghyun's heart started to pound as he felt Jinki's lips on his. If he ever had any sort of doubt before, they were all displaced, by this one kiss that made him realize that they were indeed, made for each other. Almost losing it when Jinki started to nibble on his lower lip, Jonghyun sighed and grasped Jinki by the waist, bringing him even closer. When they broke away, both princes were left breathing heavily, trying to regulate their heartbeats. Jonghyun recovered first and placed a tender kiss to the top of Jinki's head.

"Goodnight, my prince"

***************************************************************

Jinki stayed awake, thinking about all of the wonderful feelings that the kiss had evoked. Why hadn't he initiated this earlier? Looking at the opal ring on his finger, he was reminded of the expression of wonder on Jonghyun's face when he saw Jinki walking down the stairs. Based on the way everyone seemed to love Jonghyun, it seemed as though Jinki had really hit the jackpot when it came to choosing a husband. As he closed his eyes, Jinki made a promise to himself that when the dawn broke, he would tell Jonghyun about his secret identity. As he dozed, Jinki awoke to the sound of someone in his chamber. Sitting up in bed and cursing the fact that he'd refused to have any kind of weapon with him, Jinki looked around for something he could use to intimidate the intruder. As he stood up, Jinki saw another person enter his chamber and felt a sickly sweet smelling cloth pressed to his nose and felt his legs give away from under him. Savoring his last breath, he whispered "Jonghyun-ah..." before all went black.

When Jinki awoke, he found himself tied to a chair, with a rag in his mouth. What he wasn't prepared for, was when the assailants uncovered their faces. Jinki knew who they were, but not why they had kidnapped him. Princes from two neighboring kingdoms who had been defeated by Jonghyun at the tournament.

"Do you think his husband would come for him?"

"I don't think so. As far as I've heard, they don't even like each other"

"What about the money? Would he pay for this one's release?"

"It's worth a try"

"If he doesn't pay, then we can think of something else"

For the first time in years, Jinki actually felt afraid for his life. He hadn't even told Jonghyun about his true feelings. Since his hands and legs were both tied, Jinki didn't have a way to escape. 

*****************************************************

"My lord, my lord! Please wake up"

"What is it, lad? Can't a man sleep an hour longer?"

"Prince Jinki is missing"

His sleep all gone, Jonghyun jumped out of bed and rushed towards Jinki's chamber. Judging by the scattered pillows and sheets on the floor, he'd been awake when he was taken. As far as he knew, Jonghyun didn't have many enemies as he'd always tried hard to ensure friendly relations between the neighboring kingdoms. Why hadn't he remembered that the thief hadn't been caught? It could have easily been the vagrant he'd fought earlier, but his style wasn't kidnapping. Whatever be the case, he had to find Jinki before anything bad could happen to him. Though it was a loss of face for him, Jonghyun didn't care and instantly announced a reward for anyone who had any kind of information on Jinki's disappearance. Each minute he waited seemed like an eternity, and Jonghyun soon got the information he needed. Someone had seen strangers carrying a rather large sack on horseback a few hours ago, and since the sky had been clear, the tracks were still intact. Saddling his horse and sheathing his sword, Jonghyun set off to bring his husband back. Though he knew it would be better to wait for others to join him, Jonghyun's horse was fast and he didn't want to waste another moment. As he followed the tracks, Jonghyun realized that this area seemed very familiar to him. There was an abandoned millhouse where he used to spend hours as a child, playing with his older brother. Would it be possible that Jinki was held there? Was the kidnapper so foolish to use an area in his own kingdom? As he slowed his horse down to a trot, Jonghyun saw something glinting in the sunlight. Jumping off, he walked towards the object and picked it up. It was the opal ring he'd given his husband. Any doubt he had was blown away. He knew for a fact that Jinki was here. Tying his horse to a tree, Jonghyun walked towards the millhouse as quietly as he could, so as not to alarm the inhabitants.