3rd person POV

It had been two and a half weeks of training and what was left was the trial. They had been taught the map of the palace, gardening, cleaning and sewing; all that was left was to test them. If they passed it, they would be qualified to become the servants of the palace. Jaejoong managed to cope with his life without Yunho because his friends made him feel at home. However, there was still a space in Jaejoong's heart that was still longing to see Yunho... So how did Yunho feel about this tiny separation then?

Yunho POV

I looked through the piece of document and placed it on the pile of paper on the right hand side of my desk. I reached for another piece of paper and sighed. I felt lonely. Being trapped in this office of mine was no joke. After I finished a stack of document, my dearest chamberlain would walk through the doors indifferently and slam a heap of paper right in front of my eyes, blocking my view.

I was sick of that face of his. I missed the energetic Jaejoong that I would see after all the work that was done. Going back to an empty room just did not make my day any better. Yoochun who used to come by occasionally stopped visiting me after that incident. I could not go and meet Jaejoong because... Firstly, I was stuck in my office with endless work to do. Secondly, if I did go and find Jaejoong, I bet people will get suspicious. I could not find Yoochun as well. What would I say to him then?

"I'm sorry I fell in love with Jaejoong and we had ?" I thought.

There was no way I could say that. Loving Jaejoong was not a misfortune, but a gift.

I could not concentrate on my work. Putting down the paper, I rested my head on the table and closed my eyes. I imagined Jaejoong smiling at me. Subconsciously, the corners of my mouth moved upwards into a grin. If you saw me grinning from ear to ear, you would probably be creeped out. After thinking about Jaejoong, I gained back my strength and lifted my head. I saw my chamberlain again. Great, there was more work. Did I mention that the pile he brought in every time got higher and higher until it was blocking his own view?

I chuckled. There was just no end to this.


Jaejoong POV

Training ended. No more super long talks by our Matron Lee and difficult practices.

"Isn't wonderful?" I thought.

Not. Why was I stuck in the kitchen doing washing? I took out my gloves and threw them to the ground. Seriously, I came out of Yunho's room to only be confine in another room known as the kitchen all day long. I could not even move around until it was break time. My back and arms hurt. I was certain that hunting would not be as tiring as squeezing soap and scrubbing some circular objects. I missed Yunho. More importantly, I missed his soft and fluffy bed. Those days that I rolled in bed, doing nothing but watching TV.

"Ahh... Those moments..." I dreamed.

"Hey, Hey! Start scrubbing! There would be more coming this evening!" yelled the cook.

I still remembered those days when I just had to show her my pitiful look and she would give me food. I sniffed. She used to say 'Aww...' and placed her hand on her cheek. She was being very kind and gentle then. Ocassionally, she would pat my head, saying how cute I was. Now, she treats me like a slave.

"Wait... I'm slave... I'm a maid," I thought.

I laughed sadly.

"Yah! Hurry and start scrubbing!" She shouted.

I picked my gloves and slipped my hands in. I started washing the dishes again. Pulling a giant pot out from the heap of dirty dishes, I then scrubbed the insides. It was so big that I could even stay inside there. The upper half of my body had to be in the pot just to scrub the base.

"Is there how much the royalties eat?" I wondered.

It was my first day in the kitchen and I could not be more surprised. They would probably be enjoying some scrumptious delicacies while I was stuck in the corner, cleaning after them.

"Yunho is among them as well. Oh... Talking about him again, I'm starting to miss him all over again," I thought.

When I was done with the pot, the aroma of food filled the kitchen and my stomach growled.

"It's their dinner time, I guess," I mumbled.

I willed Matron Lee to walk into the kitchen and say that it was break time with the high-pitched voice of hers, but she never did. Our meal time was no longer fixed and we could only have our meal when she told us to do so.

Dinner had been served to the royalities and the dishes were sent in to be washed. It was not so bad after all. Why? I laughed. The leftovers were the best tasting meal ever for the past two weeks. They were the best. When the first bite of food entered my mouth, I squealed in delight. The excitement of having delicious food filled my thought. Suddenly, my ears and tails appeared. I thought I was trouble but, looking back at it, I have a wig so there were just two bumps on my head and the long dress covered my tail. There was no problem at all but I still panicked nonetheless. I had my hand over my head as I fidgeted in my stool. I continued eating anxiously. When I popped the last piece of food into my mouth, Matron Lee marched into the kitchen. Startled, my ears and tail disappeared.

"Jaejoong, it's your break now," Matron Lee said firmly.

I stopped chewing. When she turned around to leave, I chewed it a couple of times and swallowed hard. Then, I left the kitchen. After having all the good food, my appetite grew bigger. I just had room for more.

When I closed the kitchen door behind me, I heard the woman cook's voice booming across the kitchen.

"Where are all the leftovers?!" the cooked bellowed.

I tensed up and removed myself away from her sight quickly.

"Oops..."

3rd person POV

The next day, night time....

The phone rang and Matron Lee picked it up.

"Hello," the person at the other end said.

"Good evening, Prince Yunho. How can I help you?" asked Matron Lee politely.

"I will like a cup of coffee in my office. Thank you," requested Yunho.

"Certainly, Your Highness," said Matron Lee and ended the call.

The trainees were behind the wall, eavesdropping on the conversation. They looked at each other, confident that they would be picked for the task. After a moment of silence, they started fussing about the situation.

"Did you hear that?" one of them asked.

"I certainly did," Sunny said.

"Kyah!" the tiny crowd behind the wall screamed.

"By the way. Where's Jaejoong?" questioned Minah, looking around for her friend.

"Who knows? Since she isn't here, we may have a higher chance," a girl from the first room said.

"Total ," Hyeri murmured.

Matron Lee walked past the girls and cleared . She saw that it was a chance to test the competency of her trainee, however, was it alright to send such unprofessional-like maids to serve the royals? Who would she send?

"Did you see that? Is she planning to do the job herself? I believe that the prince will prefer a ier and younger maid to serve him," the person who spoke before Hyeri scoffed and swept her hair behind her.

"Oh... This !" Hyeri raised her voice. "I can almost imagine my knuckles meeting that pretty face of hers."

Hyeri raised her fist. She was ready to strike at the arrogant woman when Yura caught her arm in time.

"Hyeri yah, please don't cause trouble," Yura convinced.

Knowing that Yura was concern of her well-being, Hyeri loosened her fist and let her arm down to its original position, by her side. She gritted her teeth to control her anger. Then, she stomp her way back to her room; Yura was following close behind. The conceited maid smirked.

Back in the kitchen...

"Did Matron Lee forget about me?" Jaejoong whined.

The cook had left for home and there was only Jaejoong in the kitchen. Suddenly, the door creaked opened. Jaejoong's eyes sparkled and he turned his head swiftly to the door.

"Matron Lee... You're finally here. Can I go back to my room now?" asked Jaejoong exhaustedly.

Matron Lee nodded. Jaejoong took out his gloves and dumped them into the bucket and dashed past Matron Lee.

"Wait..." Matron Lee said.

Jaejoong stopped in his tracks and turned around slowly.

"Can you help me send some coffee up to Prince Yunho's office?" Matron Lee asked.

Jaejoong's eyes widened. He was floored. He was given a chance to see Yunho again. He was speechless.

"I will take the silence as a yes then," Matron said.

She was rather happy that Jaejoong did not react much unlike her other trainees.

"Maybe Jaejoong can handle this well. I shall test her," thought the matron.