02

Hongdae, Seoul, 8:30

The sleeping couple was woken up by a loud knock on the apartment door. Seoyeon groaned in protest, poking Sehun to wake him up. "Door. You open it," she muttered, eyes still closed. Sehun sighed before kissing her on her forehead and climbing out of bed, putting on a shirt before getting the door. 

"Why so early, man.." he complained, unlocking the front door and opening it.

"Good morning, sir. Is Park Seoyeon present?" a man asked dressed in a suit, hair slicked back with a clean, shaven face. 

"Who are you?" Sehun asked, sleepily rubbing his eyes. 

"I'm Jung Jaehyun, the driver sent by the Royal Palace. I'm here to bring Ms. Park to the palace to meet Prince Jongin," the man said, suddenly causing Sehun to be wide awake. 

, completely forgot about that.

"Listen, I'm her boyfriend. She's not going to marry anyone that's not me, alright?" he said sternly, pointing his finger at the man. 

"Sehun? What's going on?" Seoyeon said in a tired voice, appearing behind Sehun. 

"Are you Park Seoyeon?" the man asked her. 

"Yeah, who are you?"

"Jung Jaehyun. I'm here to bring you to the Royal Palace to meet the prince," he repeated. 

Oh, . It's seriously real, huh. 

"Uhm, yeah, uh, could you wait outside? I have to get dressed first-"

"Oh, right. The queen has sent you an outfit to wear for the meeting, if you don't mind putting it on," Jaehyun interrupted, handing over a garment bag.

Great, she not only had to be woken up early to meet some prince, but now she had to wear something she didn't want to wear, as well. 

She accepted the bag, excusing herself and closing the door to get dressed. 

"This is so stupid. Why does this have to happen to us? We were perfectly happy. God, they need to get rid of this stupid monarchy it's seriously ruining my life," Sehun complained, watching Seoyeon put on the presumably expensive, white, dress. 

"I feel weird," Seoyeon remarked as she observed her reflection in the mirror.

It was a beautiful dress, not too long but not too short either, with long sleeves. 

It fit her body perfectly, worrying her a little bit about how they know her size, but she figured that was her parents' doing, as well. 

"You look beautiful. You look like a princess," Sehun wrapped his arm around her waist and pressed a kiss on her cheek, giving her that warm feeling she loved.

 

"My princess."

 

The Royal Palace, 10:30 

She was expecting a castle, honestly, but was surprised to find out the Royal Family lived in a mansion. Not that it mattered, it was still a hundred times bigger than her own house. The car came to a halt on the driveway with the sound of tires over gravel following behind. She sighed quietly, staring out of the window. 

She was meeting the prince, the man she would most likely be marrying.

And all she felt was fear. 

The door opened and Jaehyun held out his hand for her to take, helping her out of the car. 

Once she was actually standing in front of the palace, it really hit her. 

 

None of this makes any ing sense. 

 

Once she entered a group of young men and women rushed to greet her formally. 

"Welcome to the Royal Palace, Ms. Park."

She shyly greeted them back, not used to being treated like this. It felt weird. Just yesterday, she was a normal college student who was worrying about photographing some random guy who happened to have a crush on her. And now, she's in a palace, meeting the crown prince. 

"Ms. Park, welcome. My name is Choi Siwon, Prince Jongin's butler. Allow me to bring you to meet the prince," a much older man said, walking alongside her through the gigantic mansion. 

Every hallway was covered with artwork, pictures, and portrait paintings. 

She recognized the king and queen, and soon saw a picture of the crown prince. 

Pretty handsome, not gonna lie.

The sound of her cheap heels hitting the tile floor filled the hallways, replacing the silence that would otherwise take place. 

She found an old pair lying around in Sehun's apartment, probably from when they got home from clubbing and she forgot to bring them home with her. 

Compared to the dress, it was worth pocket change.

It just further proved that she was out of place here, a goose amongst swans. 

Plus, she didn't even want to be here. 

Siwon suddenly stopped, knocking on a hardwood door. "Your Highness, Ms. Park has arrived."

Your Highness. 

He opened the door and stepped aside to let Seoyeon enter first, something she was reluctant to do. But again, not much of a choice. 

 

The room she entered was presumably the 'living room' of the royal family, as there was a big fireplace and a large couch, paired with a coffee table and a few lounging chairs. Though it felt more like a presidential suite of a luxury hotel. 

The prince was sitting on one of the lounging chairs and quickly got up once she had entered, holding out his hand for her to shake. 

"Kim Jongin, pleasure meeting you," he said, an emotionless smile on his face. 

"Park Seoyeon. Nice to meet you, your Highness," she said, not sure whether to shake his hand or bow, so she did both. 

"Please, have a seat," he said, gesturing towards the lounging chair opposing him. 

She glanced at Siwon who nodded and left the room, but could be heard standing right outside at the door, leaving the two of them 'alone'. 

 

"I hope you do not perceive me as rude, because I am not, but I am afraid I cannot marry you, your Highness," Seoyeon said once she had sat down. 

"Why not, if I may ask?"

"I already have a boyfriend, and I was unaware of the fact my parents signed me up to be your fiancé," she explained, sitting as upright as she could. 

Her body was tensed up which made sense, she was nervous as hell. She was afraid he would lash out and get upset, but none of that happened. 

"I want to tell you for the reasoning of this marriage. Would you like to hear it?" Jongin asked her.

She nodded carefully, not sure what to expect. 

"The king, my father, has fallen ill. He will not recover, which means I will soon have to take over the throne," he started off, a hint of sadness in his eyes as he talked. He paused for a brief second before continuing.

"His last wish was for me to find someone to marry before I become the next king. I don't have any interest in dating nor marriage, so I asked my mother, the queen, for suggestions. Her suggestions, however, were quite literal. She had handpicked a few hundred women for me to potentially married, but I was disinterested."

Okay, so..?

"I chose you. For no apparent reason. I thought my father would like you. You're pretty, smart and take good care of yourself. I decided a queen like you would be good to have by my side during my reign," h