Chapter 10 - Mystery
Small Distance
Kwangmin's POV:
As I collapse onto my large, fluffy bed, I intake the light smell of roses, which makes my head spin even more than before. When I feel the bed shift under the pressure of new weight on it, I turn to look at the person who made it do so. With unclear eyes, I spot Youngmin, lying face down before rolling uncontrollably on the bed. I lean in closer to try to ask him what he is doing, but he suddenly shoots up from the bed, almost hitting me as he does so.
"Nice room! So, what are we going to do?" Youngmin shouts in a cheerful voice, jumping up and down on his knees. I sit up as I try to think about an answer, but my brains decides to do summersaults in my head instead, so I fail to do so. The more I try to think, the more my head pounds and the less I actually can think.
'What did he say again?' I wonder, staring blankly at him before hiccuping due to the more than healthy consumption of something I shouldn't have even been drinking. I feel my hot cheeks, seeing that Youngmin is probably feeling the same warmth I am feeling right now as his cheeks are as flushed as mine are.
"Cheeks... red...! Can't... take?" I say in a slurred voice, not even understanding what I myself am saying.
Youngmin smiles at me, causing me to smile awkwardly back at him. "Me? At least I can still speak!" Youngmin brags before laughing loudly, poking me multiple times in the stomach. I laugh along with him before I suddenly feel myself being pushed onto my bed, my back being pressed against the warm, thick covers of my bed. I try to process what is happening, but my brain still feels fuzzy and blurred. I look up to see Youngmin overshadowing me, poking my flushed cheeks as I feel them turn redder in embarrassment. "Your cheeks are much redder than mine! Besides, we look practically the same! We could be related if we belonged to the same kingdom!" Youngmin exclaims, somehow sounding both overly excited and annoyed at the same time.
I look at Youngmin in surprise that he would say something like that, Youngmin looking back at me in realization of what he had just said. "That... would be impossible. Just a coincidence.". Youngmin nods quietly, turning his head away before he looks back at me with his large, piercing eyes.
Youngmin leans closer with an unreadable look on his face, pushing me harder against the bed with a surprising amount of strength. "Too similar... similar eyes... similar nose... similar mouth..." Youngmin whispers in an mysterious voice, lightly tapping his fingers on the said areas before stopping at my lips. "Hmm... I wonder if they would feel the same too?" Youngmin giggles curiously, looking intensely at my lips before his own.
By the time the idea actually processes in my mind, I can feel Youngmin's soft breath gently flutter against my lips. My mind thinks much slower than I want it to, not letting me react as fast as usual (not that he reacts fast to anything normally...). I freeze, slightly bewildered before feeling a sudden pressure against my shoulder. Youngmin had fallen asleep. And I almost just died from a heart attack.
*The next day~*
Author's POV:
"Ah Kwangmin my dear boy, why do you look so dead?" King Kim asked Kwangmin in a worried voice, as Kwangmin and Youngmin walked by him. Kwangmin glanced back and shot a stare at Youngmin, who was yawning loudly as he stretched his arms up towards the sky.
"...nothing dad... just stayed up a bit late..." Kwangmin replied in a hollow voice, trying not to remember what had (almost) happened yesterday. "My boy, even with some guests over you must remember that you need to get well rested to wake at dawn each day! You must not get behind on training for the sake of the kingdom!" King Kim exclaimed in a heartfelt way, patting Kwangmin on the shoulder which caused him to flinch in surprise. King Kim stared at Kwangmin for a second before patting him again and saying "Run along now boy.", Kwangmin doing a quick bow without looking at his father before quickly walking away from his father, Youngmin dragging his feet as he followed.
"How can you stand getting up so early in the morning? And you guys have to train too? Crazy I tell you! What's up with you and your dad anyways?" Youngmin said sleepily, letting out another yawn as his clutched the side of his head in pain (from last night). "Yeah... we all have to. Donghyun and Minwoo are much better than me though... And what do you mean what's up? Me and my dad are perfectly fine..." Kwangmin replied, unable to face Youngmin.
"Well first of all, you looked like you were actually going to die while talking to him and... Hey! Why don't you look at me when I'm talking?" Youngmin exclaimed, grabbing Kwangmin's arm and keeping a tight grip on it so that Kwangmin would finally look at him as he spoke. Kwangmin's eyes wandered from Youngmin to the ground before he finally managed to look at Youngmin directly in the eye. "I just wasn't sure if he... he... never mind. And you really don't remember anything yesterday? Nothing at all?" Kwangmin asked, wanting to make sure Youngmin wasn't just pretending to not know.
"Not a thing after we ate, I already told you! How many times do you need to ask?" Youngmin said in an annoyed voice, wanting desperately to know why Kwangmin didn't want look at him, as if he was some sort of disease or other disgusting thing.
They walked down the hall, Youngmin yelling at Kwangmin as he refused to say anything much more than "It's nothing.", before reaching the gates which lead to the training grounds outside of the castle. There, a gate keeper opened the gates for the two, Kwangmin explaining that only the royal family, their instructor and some other special exceptions were allowed into the space.
Suddenly, an arrow flew right in between their heads, coming out of nowhere. "Sorry!" Someone exclaimed loudly, Youngmin instantly recognizing the voice of his brother, speedily rushing up to greet him. "Ahh sorry, I didn't hurt anyone did I?" Jeongmin asked in a worried voice, quickly apologizing to Kwangmin as he saw him run after Youngmin. Kwangmin and Youngmin shook their heads and said "No." at the same time, earning a large grin from Jeongmin. "That's good! My aim isn't th-" Jeongmin began before being cut off by an angry voice. "Are you trying to kill someone!?! You are supposed to be aiming at the target, not people's heads!".
They all turned their heads to see Minwoo stomping towards them, huffing in great annoyance. "It's not like I was trying to get anyone killed, I'm just trying to do as you said!" Jeongmin exclaimed, trying to reason with Minwoo as his nervously scratched his head. Minwoo snatched the bow in Jeongmin's hand before taking an arrow from Jeongmin as well. "Why do I have to deal with all of this?" Minwoo cursed quietly, only loud enough for Jeongmin to hear, causing the latter to have to restrain himself from punching Minwoo in the face for being a jerk.
"This is how you do it." Minwoo said in an aggravated voice, positioning the arrow before letting it go, the arrow piercing perfectly through the center of the target (which was much father away than the one Jeongmin was trying to aim at). Jeongmin stared in awe for a while, but after staring long enough he felt an even stronger urge to punch the kid for being able to make things look so much easier than they actually were (jumping past the border, archery, who knows what else this kid could do).
"Youngmin, why'd you leave me with this show-off?" Jeongmin cried with a pout, forgetting who his "show-off" was supposed to be to him. "Well hyung... he is your boyfriend." Youngmin replied confused, not knowing what to say. Jeongmin paused, letting out an awkward laugh as he nodded his head. "Ahh... yeah... boyfriend...".
Minwoo quickly grabbed Jeongmin's hand, feeling the danger of the situation, saying, "Oh, I need to go teach... my sweetest honey... the basics of archery (that he should already know)! We'll see you guys later~!" before leaving Youngmin and Kwangmin behind in complete confusion.
"Okay then... Minwoo and Jeongmin seem busy, so where's Donghyun and Hyunseong? Youngmin asked Kwangmin, feeling a bit awkward again now that they could think properly. "Oh, Donghyun never comes to train here. He hates spending time in the castle actually. They're probably in town together or something." Kwangmin replied nonchalantly, knowing that Donghyun was the most rebellious (possibly the only rebellious) person in their family since young. "Aww..." Youngmin pouted, wanting to see his other brother as well (because they are a tight family).
While Youngmin pouted he looked back towards Kwangmin to realize that the other was not paying attention to him at all, the other staring at the Kim King asking Minwoo to speak with him. Before Youngmin had a chance to ask, Kwangmin had already started sprinting towards the two, being careful to not get noticed as he did so. Youngmin let out an exasperated sigh, too tired (and lazy) to follow Kwangmin, deciding to let the other tell him when he came back.
Kwangmin's POV:
'Why is dad asking Minwoo to talk with him?' I wondered, pondering the thought before seeing that they came to a stop around the corner of a hallway. I noticed right away that something was wrong. They were talking privately, and that was never a good thing with my dad. I had to push the millions of thoughts swimming in my head to listen to them speak for now though.
"What is it father?" Minwoo asked, with the serious look on his face that he always had when talking to an adult.
"I am... worried for you son." My dad replied putting his hand on my brother's shoulder. "That boy, the second prince of Lee, must you be with him? Is he truly what you heart desires?"
"Why must you ask? Father, I had made my decision." Minwoo said in a unwavering voice, one that I would never manage in front of our dad. I was shocked. Minwoo had never made a decision that was purely his own before, especially one that our dad had never really supported.
"Oh my precious child, he is not good for you! If you are to continue this, soon all the other kingdoms will know and look down on you, on us! What about carrying on the family line? If your two brothers were to die, what would you do? Son, I am only trying to help you escape a horrible decision that will only lead to disaster. You, and our kingdom, can not afford such an idea when we are just reaching our prime of having one of the strongest kingdoms in the entire land! Son, do not be selfish for your own desires at this sensitive time. You have never failed me before, and I wish for you to continue that for the rest of your life." My dad explained, expressing how he really felt about Minwoo and Jeongmin's forbidden, possibly even sinful relationship. I could feel the tenseness in the air, the same cold feeling that always appeared when my dad spoke to us privately. Surprisingly enough though, Minwoo appeared to be smiling, as if he were amused by what dad had said.
"Oh father, do you not know me well enough? Do you truly think I am with him because I love him? Do not make me laugh father, love is for weaklings. As you have always said father, keep your friends close... and your enemies closer."
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Surprise, a deeper twist?!?! Is he speaking the truth to his father or is it a cover-up for what they were (apparently) doing for Donghyun and Hyunseong? Maybe even both?
Thanks so much for reading! Special thanks for my friend Norishinee for helping me with the first part of the chapter! Love you~ ^^ I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I can't wait to hear your feedback on it! ;) Ha ha, see you all next chapter!
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