All her life, Areum was and always nothing but an obedient daughter to her parents. She was raised to believe that she must do all her duties well because even if she's not the heir to the throne, being the princess still holds an important role in the nation. She knows how much responsibility she has to the people of the country so she makes sure that she does her best in everything that she has to do. She promised herself that she'd do what's best for the common good and she rarely disagreed with anything they asked her of. 

Most of the time she said yes because it was her duty to do so but today is one of those rare moments. 

“What?” The king blurts out because he isn’t sure if he heard it right.

"I'm not in favor of your proposal, your majesty." She says calmly even if she's screaming deep inside. 

"So you're saying you'd rather have our countries remain at war?" He insinuates and she clenches her fist underneath the table, trying to keep her composure, trying not to lose it right in front of everyone else. This is one of the worst things that could happen, her father guilt tripping her so she'd say yes. 

"No, your majesty. What I'm saying is the both of you should settle your disputes in other ways rather than meddling with the lives of your children. I believe we're at the right age to decide for our sake."

"Can you hear yourself right now? How can you be so selfish?"

Selfish? How is this selfish?

There are a thousand things she wants to say but she knows better than to let her emotions take over. The feeling of betrayal burns her very being because she still can't believe that her parents want her to marry just for the sake of politics. On top of that, her relationship with Jungkook is no secret in the palace and they know that they're engaged, promised each other that they'll be wed once they get a break from this long term war but they have the guts to tell this to her as if it's something trivial.

"We're no longer in the eighteen hundreds to act this way, your majesty. This is absurd. I know my duty to our people but⁠—"

"I know what you're worried about, my dear, but let me tell you something, Jungkook himself agreed to this." 

That's when her whole world stops. Her heart shatters, hands clammy as her father's words ring in her head. She doesn't want to believe it. Even Jimin, who's standing behind her, is shocked by what he heard and as much as she wants to deny it, she suddenly remembers how much Jungkook avoided her these past few days. He knew what was going on but he still kept her in the dark, didn't even bother to tell her what the two kingdoms had planned. How could he do this to her?

Maybe she really is easy to get rid of. Did fighting for what they have ever crossed his mind or was he that big of a coward to give up. There's a lot of questions running in her mind right now but she gathers herself to answer her father, gathers the remaining pieces of her being that's left intact.

"I don't care whether he agrees to this or not because I'm the one involved here, not him. I get to make the decision." 

The king pays her no heed and turns to speak to Vhrea's crown prince, asking for his response regarding this matter. 

"I see no problem with it but this can't proceed with the princess disagreeing with the proposal. This isn't a one way thing, your majesty." Yoongi says nonchalantly and she gives him a glare.

"It's alright. I think the princess needs time to process all of this. We'll give you a month to decide. Rest assured that Zlota will be untouched and the ceasefire still stands while she makes her decision." The queen of the opposing nation suggests and with that, they conclude tonight's affair. All her self control is about to snap when her father apologizes on her behalf for acting rude, even saying that she isn't herself today and she'll surely say yes once she's thought it over. He might be the king but he is not in the right position to speak for her and surely, she doesn't feel an ounce of regret for how she acted tonight.

Just when the guests are about to leave, their crown prince suddenly speaks.

"May I have a word with the princess." The royals look at each other, seemingly hesitant with the idea of leaving the two of them alone to talk but they agree anyway, having some of the guards remain in the room for security purposes.

Once the door closes, Areum glances at the prince, expression remaining stoic.

"Don't waste your time convincing me, your highness, because none of that will work." 

"Well, I won't call it convincing. I'm just going to tell you something they probably haven't told you yet, considering how persistent you are." He replies as he stands up, walking towards where the princess is seated and pauses for a while to lean down to her ears. "Your lover does keep a lot of things from you, doesn't he?" 

She pushes her chair back, creating a sharp sound when it scrapes the floor, and stands up to match his height. "Don't drag him into this." She hisses.

Yoongi takes a step closer. "No one dragged him into this, princess. He got himself involved."

Her eyes narrow, head tilting to the side as if questioning his statement and he scoffs at her expression. "This scar right here," he pauses and points at it. "this wouldn't be here if your beloved Lieutenant didn't attack me with a knife weeks ago and of all people here, you know what the consequence will be for someone who assaults a member of the royal family." 

Treason is punishable by death. 

Yoongi doesn't fail to notice the way her breath hitches. He knows that he just hit a sensitive spot in her heart that's good enough to make her facade break but she's so quick to mask it all. She tilts her chin up while maintaining eye contact, asserting her dominance. 

"I do know the law very well so tell me, your highness, why haven't you had him arrested?" 
"Meri will call off the war as soon as the alliance is formed and I told my father it seems fair enough to let him off the hook. It would be nice to start off with a clean slate."

The princess laughs. It's humorless, sarcastic, taunting, "And you think I owe you something because of that? Should I repay you by saying yes, your highness?" she mocks him and a part of him feels petty for wanting to argue with her all day because god, she really is something. People from Meri were said to be gentle, soft, well-mannered but she's far from that. She's cunning, smart, outspoken, and brave which is something he didn't expect.

"If you agree to this marriage, the people will get the peace that they desire and you also get to save your lover by using the alliance to pull some strings but if you don't, then war continues and you might as well say goodbye to Jungkook." 

Areum glares at him, eyes fiery, burning with rage. "You really intend to use him against me, huh? Let me ask you something then. If I was in your place, what would you do?"

"Why are you being so difficult? Our kingdoms finally decided to unite after the long chaos and here you are, worried about your personal life⁠—" 

"Difficult? Well, I'm sorry for being not that stupid to simply agree with everything that you want because we both know here that marriage is completely unnecessary and you had all the chance to side with me a while ago but you didn't. Have you ever required a member of a royal family to marry in every alliance that you form? I don't think so. I'm pretty sure you'd do the same if you were in my place so quit being blinded by that so-called peace that you're saying." 

Yoongi's expression hardens. "I agreed to this because I'm so sick of the fighting and I want it to end. If sacrifices are to be made then so be it. Besides, my father thinks that marriage irrefutably binds the nations together which is why it's the most secure way to form an alliance and one more thing, princess, I am more than sure that my father won't let go of Jungkook's case if there will be no agreement between our kingdoms. He's not a very forgiving man. So to answer your question, if I was in your place, I'd do everything to ensure that the person I love the most is safe."

And then there's silence between them. 

The prince knows he finally won against her. There are no more snarky remarks this time because she's left utterly speechless. His lips are curled up into a satisfied smirk, looking so smug and a part of Areum understands why Jungkook lunged at him with a knife because she kind of wants to do the same thing. Her lips are tight with anger as she looks at him with a scowl, trying to suppress the bubbling rage inside her. 

They are so close to each other right now, only inches apart and sending each other daggers with the look on their eyes.

"I'll take that as a yes, princess. I'll be expecting your response within a month." He mutters with a cocky smile before taking his leave. 

Areum is left dumbfounded, feeling defeated at the same time insulted by the outright display of disrespect. Where in the world did he get the audacity to turn his back at her in her very own palace, in her own territory? He's surely the most infuriating man she ever met but she should've anticipated that. Vhreans have always been arrogant, self-centered, indifferent, and vile. 

"Your highness, are you alright?" Jimin comes to her side immediately when Yoongi is finally out of sight. His face is filled with concern as he checks on the princess. He might be just her personal guard but she always regarded him as her best friend and she couldn't even spare him a look right now because she knows all her resolve will break.

She swallows the lump on and breathes deeply. " me to Jungkook's chambers." She says, voice shaking a bit. 
"But it's already late. It's been a long night and it's better if you get some rest⁠—"
"Jimin, take me to his chambers before I completely lose my mind." 

He sighs. He has no other choice but to give her what she wants because he knows there's a lot of things she wants to ask, questions that can no longer wait for tomorrow. They arrive at the soldier's quarters and she asks the servants, including Jimin, to wait outside so they can talk privately

.  

Areum barges in his room without a knock and Jungkook quickly stands up from his bed to greet her properly, shock evident in his features. She ignores it though and walks up to him without any hesitation.

"Why did you do it?" She asks through gritted teeth but she gets no response.

"Answer me, Jungkook." 

Silence.

"Since when did you become an impulsive to the point that you'll attack a prince?"

Another wave of silence. He keeps his head hung low, avoiding her eyes. He doesn't deserve to be anywhere near her at this rate.

"What is wrong with you?" Her voice finally cracks as she shakes his shoulders in frustration and this makes Jungkook look up to meet her gaze and he instantly regrets it. The princess looks so broken, close to tears. Gone are her quirky features as everything was replaced with anguish and pain that he all caused.

"I knew you'd say no." He mutters, voice low and laced with pure guilt. It's as if he's afraid to speak to her, afraid that his words will break her more and it did. 

"You knew I'd say no?" She repeats his words with disbelief. "You knew that my father has been planning this and never bothered to tell me a single thing about it?" She asks, tilting her head up to stop the tears from falling. He couldn't have gone this far just to force her to agree to marry a prince that she doesn't even personally know, lest a prince from their rival kingdom.

Areum waits for Jungkook's response and when he nods, all her walls crumble and fall apart. 

"You put your life in the line to coerce me into agreeing to this matter?" She finally snaps. Her hand forms into a fist and strikes him in the chest as she allows her tears to finally fall. 

"How could you do this to me?" 

She hits him again.

"I trusted you." 

Another hit.

"You are all the same. None of you really cared for how I feel." She utters weakly in between her sobs and continues to tirelessly beat him on his chest. It's starting to sting but Jungkook takes it all because he knows that it's nothing compared to how she feels right now. It breaks him to see her like this and he wants to take all her pain away, wishing that's him who's feeling all this instead of her.

"I hate you." I love you

Jungkook tries to hold her hand but she jerks away from his touch. He tries once again and catches her wrist this time, pulling her closer but she squirms from his hold. His grip is tight and she fails from shoving him away. 

He wipes the tears rolling down her cheek and gazes at her with nothing but sincerity before he speaks. "I'm sorry." and that's what all it takes for her to stop fighting him and succumb to his embrace. Areum buries her face against his chest and grasps his shirt tightly, body convulsing as she cries out all the pent up stress that she's been trying to push down. His arm encircles around her waist and the other rubs soothing circles around her back, whispering apologies that he prays she'll accept. 

"I was so mad after they laid out their plans," he starts when her sobs die down, careful and afraid that she'll fall apart again. "So mad at the thought that you'll be marrying someone who isn't me. I saw red when I looked at the prince and I just lost control."  

"I hated the thought that you'll be with him instead of me. I knew it's going to hurt you and I hated it so much but who was I to go against it? I'm just nobody compared to their ranks." He tells her while brushing his fingers against her hair. He feels her embrace go tight and god, if only the people were not at stake, he's more than willing to do whatever it takes for them to remain like this forever.

"Honestly, I don't know what went into my mind. I guess I wanted to avenge you for all the pain he's about to cause." He continues to explain. "I could've punched him on the spot but I chose to wound him so that every second of his life, he'll be reminded that even if he has you, a part of you will always remain to be mine. I regret it though because I might have hurt him but in the end, I still lost. I gave them the upper hand and I feel like absolute since that day." 

"Why didn't you tell me anything?" Areum pulls away from the hug and asks him.

"I knew you'd try to do something about it and it's going to hurt you more, disappoint you more because the royals were pretty much decided about it. Nothing can change their minds."

Her voice quivers when she asks, "What about us?" looking up at him and searches for answers in his eyes and all she sees is despair. Jungkook stays quiet for a while and closes his eyes as he leans his forehead against hers, savoring the moment where he can hold her close. 

He inhales deeply and tells her quietly, "To wish for us is like wishing for the death of many. Maybe we were never meant to be together in the first place." He doesn't dare open his eyes. He might not be able to bear the guilt of causing the person he loved so much all this pain and tears.

Areum doesn't know that it's possible for her heart to be broken a million more pieces all at once. She feels as if the shattered pieces of her heart were stepped on to crush it even more so that she'll be torn down beyond repair until she turns numb to all of it. The only moment when she wants to do something for herself would ensue more chaos and maybe it really is a sacrifice to be made. Maybe she really was meant to give everything up until nothing is left of her. Maybe this is her cruel fate. It is her duty to choose the common good, to make the people her priority, to make sure that they are safe and for the first time in her life, these duties feel like a noose that's tightening around her neck.