You know, sometimes, even people like me need some break.  We’re also human, okay? So don’t ask me why I’m skipping my lessons.  Don’t ask me why I’m outside in the castle’s garden, reading a book while I lie down on a bench. 

Because truthfully, it gets really tiring.

Sighing, I cover my face with the book, closing my eyes.  I had each of my arms behind my head and on my stomach, the most comfortable position I can get close to on a bench.  Nobody actually goes looking for me on a bench in the garden, they think it’s too obvious of  a hiding place if I were to run away from my lessons.   

Now, let’s get some sleep.  Some really, really nice and comfortable slee—

“Skipping lessons, Your Majesty?”

The book is quickly yanked away from my face, exposing my eyes to the bright sunlight.  A woman peers down at my face and my heart does this weird skipping I’ve been having a lot lately.  Only one person can make it go slightly crazy.

Okay, not slightly, quite a lot, really.

“Hana,” I squint at her peering face, which was smiling down to me, a mischevieous glint in her eyes.  “Hana,” I groan then, covering my face with my hands.  “What did you call me again?”

“Scoot over, Your Majesty,” She pats my leg.

“Hey,” I swing my legs off of the bench, providing space for her to sit on.  She sits, inspecting my book.  I snatch it from her hands and have my own breath snatched away as she tilts her head towards me. 

“Black Beauty, huh?”

“Shut up,” I look away, hiding the book.  “And no, I’m not skipping my lessons.  I’m taking a break,”

“Sure you are,” She chuckles, leaning back on the bench.

“Speaking of which, why aren’t you in your working clothes?” I frown.

She’s wearing faded jeans, a plain white tee and.. my jacket over it.

“Because,” She stands up, pushing her knuckles into the pocket of my jacket (which she is wearing, thank you, yes, hello) “I’m asking you out on a ride,”

I blink at her, not registering her words.  “You’re aski—wha?”

“Don’t be an idiot, come on,” She grabs my wrist like the other night (and you know, my heart goes zoom, exavctly like the other night) and drags me along with her, towards the stables.

I catch up to her strides and find her still holding on to my hand, even though I was already running by her side.  I glance at her face and smile to myself when I see her expression.

Nothing beats her love for horses.

She lets go of my hand (which is really a pity) when we enter the stables, and while she runs towards Chestnut, she loudly says, “Race you out again!”

My awareness kicks in and I rush towards Red’s space, putting all the riding gears on her, periodically glancing at how Hana’s doing. 

Darn, that girl is fast.

I mount Red quickly and kick open the door, urging her to make her way out.  By the time I’m out, Hana is already on the riding grounds, Chestnut shuffling smugly under her.

“Ei, you had a lead start,” I stop by her side.

She shakes her head and wiggles her finger at me, her face bright with amusement.

She’s obviously having fun.

“Are you sure you’re secured safely?” I glance at her reins, her bridle, her saddle, all her riding gears.  “Ah, here we are,” I lean forward and reach out to tug at a strap that tightens her riding hat.

Her hand goes to the top of her hat and she looks away, obviously blushing.  I chuckle and cluck my tongue, Red going forward in response. 

“Idiot,” I hear her mutter and again, I chuckle, slowing down to let her catch up.

“What did you call me?” I peek at her face, which she keeps out of my view.

“Your Majesty is an idiot,” She repeats, still muttering. 

“Hmm?”

“Your Majesty is a total idiot,” She looks at me then and commands Chestnut to accelerate into a gallop.

“Hey!” I laugh, galloping after her.

The riding grounds is a plain field, little hills here and there, decorating the lush, green grass with its structure alone.  It looked out to the forest behind the castle, a green space of a lot of hectares my father had conserved.  Hana rode forward, onto the hills, around it, just everywhere, going against the wind.  Chestnut rears back as they neared the borders and I can hear her evident laugh when her horse’s hooves fall back onto the ground.

“Kyungsoo! You’re not coming?” She shouts, waving her hand up.

“Yeah, yeah,” I trot towards her, smiling at the way she said my name.  I dismount my horse and offer my hands to her as she slides off her horse (cutely, I might add.  She made a some sort of an ‘ehe’ kind of sound which really kills me on the inside).

Still with her hands in mine, she looks up to my face and grins.  “That was fun,”

“Mm,” I look down at her, unconsciously squeezing her hands.

She really isn’t aware of the fact that she isn’t letting go of my hand because she walks towards a tree and rests her back on it, pulling me beside her.  Only after she sighs contentedly, her eyes widen (yes, okay, I was paying attention to her face all the time) and she abruptly pulls her hand away, setting it awkwardly on the ground before thinking about it twice and latching it together on her thigh.  “S-sorry,”

“Stop apologizing, Hana.  You didn’t do anything wrong,” I chuckle, sitting comfortably.

“Iit’s just, I kind of forget, sometimes, that I’m supposed to be a housekeeper here,” She grimaces, speaking quietly.  “Even worse; a stable keeper,”

I frown at her strange choice of words but shake my head, dismissing the thought and responding to her words.  “Really now.  I wouldn’t have you call me by name if it were wrong from the start,”

“Mm,” She mutters.

The silence turns comfortable around us, the blowing wind making the leaves rustle, the distant chirp of birds adding slight colors into the scenery.  I feel something hard rest on my shoulder and my suspicions were right; Hana was getting sleepy and now, she’s sleeping on my shoulder.

I was flustered, at a loss of what to do.  We had to go back, the sun was setting.  Red and Chestnut had to go back to the stables too.  And she’s sleeping on my shoulder.  She’s sleeping on my shoulder, for God’s sake.  We’re that close.

Okay, Do Kyungsoo.  Calm down.  Calm.  Down.

I, very slowly, slip away from her, placing my hands behind her neck and behind her knees, hoisting her up and letting her head rest on the crook of my neck.  I eye Red and tell her to kneel down, setting Hana on her back.  I grab Chestnut’s reins and mount Red, positioning myself behind Hana so that she doesn’t fall off.  My arms go around her to hold on to the reins and like that, slowly, so that she does not wake up from her sleep, we walk towards the stables.

Chestnut obediently enters her space and Red into her own, with me and Hana on her back.  I dismount her and catch Hana before she could topple off, carrying her on my back. 

“Where am I supposed to bring her?” I whisper to Red, only thinking about it now.  Red snorts and I make a face at her, walking out the stables as I juggle all the answers to my question.

The keeper’s quarters? No, there’s bound to be talk if they see her with me like this.

Keep it here in the stables? Heck, would I really let her sleep in the stables?

My room? Well, I have a sofa in my room, and my room is behind a door, so we’re technically sleeping in different rooms and not together.  And it’s the only place I can have privacy.  When she wakes up, she can go out the door like she just took my orders, like any normal house keeper.

I jump when Hana mumbles in her sleep, making out words like ‘idiot’ and ‘Kyungsoo’.

I smile to myself at the thought of her dreaming about me and make my way towards my room, making sure that no one is around anywhere near me to see me have her asleep in my arms like this, and moreover, making my way towards my room. 

Up to my floor, all clear.

Up to the door of my room, all clear.

Up in my room, not clear.

“Kyungsoo?”

I gasp quietly and quickly set Hana on the sofa, covering her with the blanket draped on the armrest.  It’s a good thing that she has a small frame and that the sofa’s back faces my room’s door, because when my mother comes out of my room, she’s completely out of sight.

“Yes?” I answer, composing my expression and toning down the panic.

“Where have you been, young man?” She steps towards me and I step towards her, grimacing at the look she’s giving me.

“Out in the gardens, mom,” I answer.

“Do you know that you had lessons to attend to?”

“Yes, mom,”

“Then why were you ‘out in the gardens’, hm?”

I hate it when she’s like this.  It really scares me.  “I’m sorry, mom.  I had a headache and I needed a break,”

“I’m sure that there’s a lie somewhere in that sentence,” She folds her arms and raises her eyebrow at me.

“Okay, I just needed a break.  I got tired of the lessons,”

“Good,” She nods, turning at her heels.  “As long as you come clean.  Skipping the lessons is quite okay, but it wouldn’t be if you had lied to me about why,” She stops at the door and blows me a kiss.  “I’ll tell the teachers to tone it down a bit with you.  I admit, they’re cramming too much things into your head,”

As the door closes, I heave a huge sigh of relief and realize that Hana is still covered in blankets.

Rushing over to her, I throw the blanket open and find her sleeping peacefully, her hands tucked underneath her cheek.

I pull the blanket up to her shoulders and brush a strand of hair away from her face, wondering how she could turn even prettier when she’s asleep.

“Is she lacking sleep? I should tell mom to lighten up the keeper’s duties,” I mutter to myself, tucking a pillow under her head.

I really hate leaving her side, but I’m also getting tired from all the day’s activities.  Bathing and changing my clothes, I enter my room after a glance at Hana, quietly wishing her good dreams.

And I sleep, looking forward to seeing this woman in my dreams.