na jaemin?

"yes, it's me, princess. did you not hear me saying 'see you tomorrow'?"

right, he did say that. it's just yuri was too sleepy to absorb what he said. forget about that, most importantly, na jaemin is going to be her guard, 24/7. and that's a relief. she didn't realise that she wasn't breathing for that moment till she breathed out all of the air in her lungs.

"see, told you. you are going to be fine. it's part of the plan all along." taehee said as she pulled yuri for a hug and rubbed her back, realising that yuri almost wanted to breakdown. yes, so close. yuri could hear jaemin approaching them from the door. her eyes searched for that pink-haired prince as he leaned on the pillars of the bed right beside them, crossed arms.

"jisung saw a day from your future yesterday during training. so, after discussion, doing this might be the easiest way to find out about the king." yuri couldn't care less about their plan with the king, she's delighted about the fact that she has two people by her side whom she trusts. so after pulling away from the hug with taehee, she pulled the clueless prince for a hug, tightly.

"i hope the things that happened from yesterday wasn't a dream. i wouldn't want to wake up from it and face the same uneventful things every day." yuri regretted not bringing the pink rose from the base; it's probably the only evidence that all of these wasn't a dream. but as she thought further, she wouldn't want to destroy that precious treasure in this gloomy castle. she then felt hands awkwardly trying to hug her back, but instead, it became a pat at her back. yuri pulled away from the hug and looked at jaemin's pink hair.

"maybe this could be it." she said as she ruffled jaemin's hair, not aware that jaemin's heart was beating fast, his face blushed red. even though he didn't understand what she meant by 'it'.

taehee noticed this, and could only smile from the sight.

hopefully, he doesn't wither like the flower does. yuri thought.
____________________________________________

the next few days felt different after the princess found out the truth about the castle and also the fact that jaemin hold on to her father's words; being with her 24/7. not only she has to act normally, but she has to act as though she doesn't know jaemin. taehee, or taeri, would continuously try to make the princess focus so that it wouldn't look suspicious. it was hard at first, but eventually, yuri got used to it.

she finds it harder to learn history now. on one particular day, she was taught about how the diamond family would abuse their power to torture the people of their kingdom. there were instances where yuri almost wanted to roll her eyes in front of her royal teacher. even though she just met the princes from the base, she believed them instantly. that's a good thing for the princes because they expected her to hesitate before deciding who to side with. however, for jaemin, this advantage could be worrying.

jaemin realised how naive and innocent the princess is. things that are lies or fake, she accepts it without any uncertainty. for example, the princess wanted to visit the library to borrow books about flowers. however, she was stopped by the royal guards. they were instructed not to allow anyone to enter as the king was with a distinguished guest. jaemin could tell upfront that they were lying from their facial expressions and gestures. plus, there's more than the usual two royal guards, guarding the door. it's too unusual for jaemin. but the princess accepts it and walks away like it was nothing.

back in the room, jaemin then asked, "don't you think that incident at the library was weird."

"hmm? there's nothing wrong though."

"are you sure? the way they talked and the fact that there are too many guards at one place?"

the princess looks at him weirdly instead.

"seems pretty normal for me."

sometimes, she finds jaemin's detective nature excessive. but, again, she'll get used to it someday.

jaemin could only sigh from the response he got from the princess. he prays that this character of hers wouldn't be jeopardising her in the future.

despite this, her innocence and obliviousness also made her the most adorable person jaemin has ever known.
firstly, from the hug, she gave the second time jaemin entered the castle. that reveals she isn't aware of certain boundaries. she willingly extends her love to people who she trusts.

jaemin is naturally flirty, and he acknowledges it. he does it with the princes sometimes, but he finds himself flirting and teasing the princess even more. her reactions are invariably brutal. brutal in the sense that the princess didn't even know that he was teasing or flirting in the first place. hence, this is the second reason why she's adorable.

the princess missed a step that one time and almost fell down the stairs. as though everything was in a slow-motion, jaemin desperately grabbed yuri's arm and pulled her to his arms; his right arm being on her waist. jaemin couldn't help it but smile at yuri's shocked expression; of which he thought was from the hug.

"oh god, thank you. i wouldn't want to fracture my arm again."

"again? i can't believe how clumsy you are, princess." still holding on to her waist. the fact that the princess didn't retract as though this is normal amuses jaemin. so hopefully, by pulling her even closer and whispering to her left ear might make her stumble.

"i hope you don't clumsily fall for me."

"i hope so, i wouldn't want you to be injured too." jaemin facepalms internally. he knew this was going to happen. it's princess lee yuri we're talking about. jaemin naturally let go of his grip, and both of them fixed their crumpled clothes before walking to their original destination.

talking about clumsiness, it's incredible how the princess is still in one piece despite the number of times she almost tumbles. she could be just tripping over the air at any time. and of course, all of this is why jaemin thinks she's adorable.

not because he's falling for her.