Seoul University —— 2020

Taeyong and Haeun were walking through the campus in their own bubble playing a lightning round of 20 questions.

If only she could hold his hand too. 

"Favourite colour?" He asked. 

She grinned, "Yellow. Favorite sport?"

"Soccer." He said with a laugh, "No, I swim. Not competitively but for fun."

Her eyes widened, she never knew he could swim, now she really wanted to see him in his swimsuit glistening in water, oh lord. Taeyong bit down on his smirk when he saw the way her lips parted, "What would you do if you win the lottery?"

"Travel everywhere. Even small lesser-known countries. What's something you'd never want to do again?" She fired back. 

He locked into her gaze with a slow smile, "I went skinny dipping drunk. I'd rather be drunk and full clothed or sober and but not both. Weird interests?"

Did he realize that he was driving her insane?

"Astrology. Love looking up horoscopes and reading signs and all that stuff. You?" She asked.

Taeyong pursed his lips in thoughts, "Feeding ducks. I know, I sound like a grandpa."

"Oh my god!" She said with a laugh, imagining him in a flat cap, sitting on a bench with a paper bag full of bird seeds, "That's so wholesome. Who's your hero?"

Taeyong's smile faltered a fraction before it melted into a wistful look, "My dad. Biggest fear?"

"Spiders. Or any bug that can crawl really ing fast." She shivered at the thought of little legs twitching. 

Taeyong made a face, agreeing with her sentiment as she thought of a new question, "Pet peeve?"

"People who knowingly hurt other people. What about you?" He asked. 

She looked at her feet, "Being forced to do something just because people expect me to. I like doing what I want."

He grinned, "Explains a lot about you."

"Oh shut up!" She said with a laugh, nudging his arm. "What would you change about yourself if you could?"

He chewed on his lip, "I want to be more outgoing, like Jaehyun."

"I don't know," she said in thought, "I like your personality just fine the way it is."

His face flush and he averted his eyes but the way his lips curled hinted that he was flattered by the compliment. "What do you want to do after you graduate?"

"I'm looking to intern at a museum or something. Or maybe be a research assistant for a historian. I don't really know. I applied for a bunch of positions in and out of the country." She said as they walked along the spiral pathway.

Taeyong furrowed his brows, "Outside the country? You'd leave?"

"Um...yeah. Maybe." She said quietly, feeling a heavyweight tug down on her heart. She'd be away from him and she wasn't sure if she'd be able to handle it but she couldn't handle being near him when he wasn't in love with her either. And with them out in the real world, she couldn't deal with the possibility of him finding someone else, "I don't know, depends on what other options I have. You?"

He slipped his hands into his pockets trying to ignore the sinking in his stomach, "I didn't really apply out of the city. But I applied for some research assistant positions at some labs. It'd be weird if you left."

"Oh...why?" She asked softly.

He shrugged, "Gonna miss not seeing you every day."

"Already?" closed up, trying to sound lighthearted, 

"Yeah, you're already a good friend, what can I say? I grow attached fast. It's going to not being around you and not being able to figure out adulthood together next year." He said it so easily like it wasn't thick with unbridled emotions.

"At this point, you should just come out and say that you'll miss me." She quipped.

He tipped his head and stared at her, "Yeah, if you moved out of the country, I'd miss you."

Her smile froze as she dug her nails into her thigh. How was he saying such vulnerable things without knowing how much it affected her? He didn't even know how she'd pick an internship in the city if he asked her to. He didn't know how she wanted to spend the rest of her life by his side, "Really?"

"Yeah." He said with a grin, "I wish we met earlier so we could've gotten to know each other for longer."

She wondered if he could see the longing in her eyes because if it was strong as the longing in her chest, it must be clear as day, "Well, I haven't gotten any offers yet. Maybe I'll end up right here."

"That'd be nice." He said softly and her heart flipped, "But you should always do whatever is best for your future. Just because we're apart doesn't mean we won't be friends anymore, right?"

Haeun nodded, "Right." Of course, the Taeyong in this life still wanted her to chase after her dreams. He'd never be selfish enough to ask her to stay just for him. "We'll always find each other."

He let out a loud laugh and it was so beautiful that goosebumps pebbled across the skin on her arms. "Exactly. Even if you're in another country."

Oh, but how badly she wanted to stay.

-----

“King Yoon Oh was pretty cool, by the looks of it.”

Haeun chuckled at Taeyong’s comment. They were tucked in the corner of a library working on their assignment. Conversation flowed easily between the two of them now, it was funny seeing Taeyong speak so highly of his best friend without even realizing it.

“Yeah?” She asked. 

Taeyong bopped his head, “Other leaders, no matter how good, have some type of dirt on them but this guy was incredible. He turned down donations or gifts from other kingdoms that probably came with fine print. He rarely flaunted his own wealth and was always interacting with the townspeople of his kingdom.”

“Yeah, he really was an anomaly for a King, but none of this explains why he didn’t marry.” She said. 

Taeyong picked up some of the archival papers she had photocopied and flipped through them. He scanned each one before stopping at one in particular. “Look at this. It’s sort of like an interview with him.”

He handed her one page that had a picture of a painting of King Yoon Oh. 

It made her nostalgic, like seeing an old friend, even though she saw Jaehyun every day.   His face was more defined and mature and he fit the Royal reds of his King’s robes so well. They weren’t as intricate as the robes he wore as a Prince, she remembered vaguely how his robe maker had stopped making his clothes and his father’s robe maker had taken over once he was King. 

She wished she had a picture of Taeyong when he was the King’s guard. 

He always aged so gracefully, only becoming stronger and more mature while retaining the gentle loveliness that always made her weak. She could tell that in a few years, he’d only look more devastatingly handsome. He was already sending her heart out of control when he’d run his fingers through his hair or give her slow smiles. 

Today alone, she’d find herself in a trance just watching him work.

“Look here, it says that he chose not to marry because he felt that marrying for the sake of forming alliances between states was wrong. He thought that any bride that he married just for that purpose would not become a Queen that would rule with the people’s best interest in mind.” Taeyong read. 

Haeun’s eyes widened, she didn’t know that about him, “Really?”

“Yeah and he was asked if there was a woman who would be a suitable Queen and he had said that a suitable Queen would be one that understood the people but that such sentiments, and I quote, ‘conflict with the values that are expected of royalty.’” He read. 

She tilted her head, “What does that mean?”

“I think he was being vague on purpose just to be diplomatic. The rest of his quotes are on his policy and love for his people. I think it’s a comment on class. That Royalty is expected to only be people from the upper class. Like Nobels or sires.” He said. 

Haeun’s smiled wavered as anxiety clawed up . She tried to choke out a reply, “We could use his quote and his decision to rule without a Queen as an example of how distinctly class was divided in that era. Then we can connect it to the rise of democracy which is supposed to be a system of government that is decided by the people.”

“That’s good. From a monarchy that gives power to people from a certain lineage to a democracy where people regardless of lineage decides who gets power.” His eyes sparkled, excited over their growing idea. “The working and ruling class still existed, but we can argue that King Yoon Oh helped dismantle a lot of it.”

She tried not to let the dark memories drown her in an attempt to keep her head above water. “Yeah, because of him, Noblemen lost all their power.”

The downside to vividly remembering past lives was that it wasn’t just the good memories that stayed with you.

Joseon Dynasty —— 1889

She should’ve known that today was going to be nothing but problems. 

It started when she knocked over a bowl of batter and splattered it all over her hair and clothes, so Haeun had to run up the stairs after the lunch rush to shower and change. Without having the chance to eat, she patted her hair dry, her stomach rumbling, when she heard a commotion from downstairs at the bakery.

Haeun dropped her towel on her bed and crept down the stairs. It sounded like someone was yelling and knocking things over. She cut through the kitchen and peeked around the door, her eyes widening at the sight in front of her. 

Her mother and Mark and holding each other, cowering behind the counter while her father tried calming the man down. He was older, overweight from the gluttony and greed. Based on the expensive robes and his many guards, he had to be a Noble. His face was flushed red, a vein straining against his neck as he screamed. A crowd was forming outside the shop, concerned townspeople watching from the doors and windows while the Nobleman’s guards stood motionless by the door. 

“How dare you!” He shouted, knocking over a display of bread, “You must think lowly of me. When the King requests cinnamon cakes you run to make it happen but when I ask, you’re all out?!”

Her father sighed, “Sir, it is not intentional, we have no more cinnamon and we haven’t gone to purchase more. It isn’t a personal attack against you, we simply cannot make any right now, even if we wanted. I assure you that if you come back tomorr—“

“Come back? You think someone as important as I, has the time to run back and forth according to you? Who do you think you are?!” He knocked over a stand holding muffins, “I will destroy this bakery so that you and your entire family are on the street. The King will not save you this time, I will personally make sure you that the King never frequents your shop ever again. You sewer rats will be right where you belong. Homeless, begging for mo—“

“That is enough!”

Everyone turned to Haeun, who stood behind her mother and Mark, hands trembling in anger. 

“Sweetheart, please don’t.” Her mother warned hurriedly. “It will only make it worse.”

Mark tried to hold her back, “Hae, don’t.”

She shook them off and stormed over to the Nobel, shielding her father, “This is an establishment, you have no right to cause a scene and damage our property. We cannot magically summon the cakes you would like, so either leave our shop or purchase something else.”

He scoffed, a disbelieving laugh, “You must be the famous unwed maiden. I can see now why no man would take you. You think you have the right to speak to me like that? I can buy your entire family to be my slaves.” 

“We’d rather be sewer rats.” She hissed. “You are nothing but a self-righteous, pompous fleabag who treats people like dirt when he doesn’t get what you want. Like a misbehaving child. We do not want to serve someone so pathetic. The absolute gall that you come in here and insult my family and our business is sickening. It is not us that belong on the street but you.” 

He sputtered intelligibly before growling and winding his arm back and striking her across her face. The pain exploded through her cheek as she stumbled back. She could hear her parents and Mark shout in worry. 

Fury could not describe what flowed through her. How dare a man like him lay a hand on her. She ignored the burning sting and spat in his face before yelling, “Go to hell.”

The man wiped his face with unbridled anger and fury. Her father reached for her, but before he could move her out of the way, the Nobleman grabbed a fist full of her hair and yanked. 

Haeun screamed and fell forward on her hands as he dragged her out by the hair. Her family ran out after her, trying to intervene, but his guards held them back. The crowd gasped and murmured as they watched him pull her to the middle of the square surrounded by people. 

“Look how docile and complacent you are now.” He growled with a harsh jerk, “Wouldn’t dare talk back now, would you?”

She glared up at him but groaned when he forcefully yanked on her hair. She could feel strands of her hair being ripped from their roots and her scalp hurt with every move.

“Now everyone will see what happens when you dare speak down to me!” He called out. 

Haeun looked over at her family with teary eyes, her mother was sobbing and screaming, her father and Mark looked anguished, trying to break past the guard, yelling for the man to stop, begging to give him anything to let her go. 

“No man wanted you before, I’ll make sure they’ll never want you after.” 

He tore off her robes and she shivered in just her underdress. Her mother’