vii
No More PrincessSmelling, looking, and feeling fresh, Kai walks out of his room after a shower, his hair still a little damp from towel-drying it. He expects Jihyun to be in one of two spots: the kitchen or the couch, since both of those places is where she likes to spend her time (Jongin's been teaching her how to do laundry upon her request, so the laundry room is blending in with those two favorites). He finds her sprawled out on the couch, her resting on the arm, and a lightweight blanket pulled up to her chin with her eyes focused on the screen of his phone, which he let her borrow again. Kai chuckles silently at her position. Oh, how she's changed.
He walks to the end of the couch her feet are at, shoves his hands into his pockets, and starts to watch the show on the TV.
"What'cha doing?"
"Playing Solitare."
"Again?"
She grunted in response.
"You look bored," He says, eyes still turning back to the screen.
"Just a little." She mumbles, then gasps sharply.
Kai's head snaps in her direction. "What?" He quickly asks, a little panic seeping through his voice.
He finds Jihyun sitting up now and grinning at his phone. "This better be an eight, because then I think I can win the game." The smile stays on her face as she continues, even when Kai scolds her for "scaring the out of him."
"You could probably give someone a heart attack like that." He says.
Jihyun ignores him and jumps up from the couch, the blanket falling to the floor, throwing her hands in the air and exclaiming, "I got it!" She moves her arms from above her head to around Kai's neck.
"I didn't know you'd be this happy about winning a game of Solitare." Kai says into her hair.
She sighs with happiness and relief that her battle is finally over. "You don't even know."
Kai doesn't answer, because no, he doesn't know. It amazes him how much he wants to. He continues to watch the show on the TV, and Jihyun seems to finally notice it and watch with him, although he doesn't know what the show is called or necessarily about. All he sees is men in suits, computers, and humor every now and then. Once the scene changes to a bloody body, Kai decides it's one of those crime shows.
He thinks it's amusing that she's watching it. Or, at least turned the channel to it.
They continue like this, watching the episode in silence, Kai behind the couch and Jihyun sitting comfortably on it, the atmosphere never getting awkward or uncomfortable (or, at least, they're so engrossed in the show to even think about if the atmosphere is awkward or uncomfortable). Then, Kai smiles as an idea comes to mind.
"You wanna learn something, since you're bored?"
Jihyun looks at him. "Like what?"
"A dance."
Her eyebrows furrow for a moment, then she laughs. "You dance?"
"Sure do."
"What kind of dance?"
He contemplates telling her, decides against it. "You'll find out when I start teaching you." He offers.
She squints playfully, then agrees. After pushing the blanket off her, she stands from the cushions, smooths her clothes (her new ones, since Kai took her shopping after their visit to Luhan's), and stands in front of him in the empty space behind the couch.
"It's better if you stand next to me, so you won't be doing the moves backwards." He pulls her beside him. "So, first, you're going to stand like this." He gives his feet a bit of distance, Jihyun following suit. "Okay, now do exactly as I do. Put your arm out like this." He leans to the right, his right arm stretching out, in front of Jihyun, his right knee bent and in the same direction his hand is pointing. "Good," He says when Jihyun mimicks the move. "Swing your arm above your head like this," He swings his arm like he's performing a routine in ribbon gymnastics, and at the same time, his right foot grazes the floor, meeting with his left foot as his right arm finally comes down to meet his left arm.
Jihyun stares at him, not moving. "Can you go through that one more time?"
Kai grins, "No problem. Okay, start in the first position I showed you. Remember that? Okay, bring your arm in, swing it in a circle--Yep, just like that. Now try that again, but bring your foot back in. No, your right foot. Yeah, good. Once your right foot hits your left, shoot your arm down to the left, almost like you're clapping your hands together." He laughs. "You don't actually have to clap them. It was good, though. It looks cooler if you put your head down at that last part, too, like you're acting shy, you know?"
"Like . . . " She tries what he suggested, hears the smile in his voice.
"Exactly."
She smirks, "You may not be the only good dancer in the room, it looks like."
Kai lets out a chuckle, "We'll see. We haven't finished the dance yet."
He shows her the rest of the choreography, guiding her along and giving pointers when needed, even grabs her arms to show her how to pop.
"Hm." He watches her try it one more time. "Popping isn't your thing. You still look like you're getting electrocuted."
Jihyun laughs, snorting by accident.
"A pig getting electrocuted."
"Oh, stop."
He doesn't try to hide his grin.
"This is the last part; it's going to end in a partner dance."
Jihyun's eyebrows raise. "Really?"
"Yeah. Ready for it?"
"I guess so,"
"Okay. We're going to start from the last move I showed you" He redemonstrates it, stepping to his right fluidly and waving his hands through the air like he's outlining a butterfly's wings. "When you do that, you won't be looking in my direction, so I'm going to grab your hand like this," He grabs it, "Give you a spin," Spins her, "And pull you close." Crashes her body against his, his hand naturally going to her waist, hers to his shoulder.
He stares right in her eyes, entrancing her. "This is better, isn't it?" He asks.
It takes her a moment. "Yeah, uh . . . yeah." Why can't she think? She needs to get her brain working again so she can actually answer him in coherent sentences rather than blubber like an idiot.
Great, she thinks. He probably thinks I am an idiot, since he's smiling at me like that.
Why is he smiling at me like that?
He clears his throat, "Wanna move on?"
Not trusting her voice, Jihyun nods.
He needs to get away from her, Kai thinks. Good God, his heart is racing. Stop, he orders. Go your normal speed, goddamn it.
It isn't working.
Should he stop teaching the dance? He pauses, contemplates, decides to hell with it. A new experience, this is. One he'd like to dive further into. Even if he is a little hesitant.
Again, to hell with it.
To prove his point to himself, he brings her hand to his lips, kisses it, grins.
Since he's already in this, might as well go a few more extra miles.
"Now you step forward with your left foot, and I step back with my right. A little more than that. Good. Step back. I'm gonna step forward with my left foot while you step back with your right."
"Are you teaching me the tango?" A small smile plays on her lips.
"Something like that." Kai spins her out, brings her back in. "Bend your right knee and jut your left foot out to the side. Glide it on the floor as you bring it back in. Slowly, you wanna look y, not like you're trying to get a bug off your leg."
She hits him lightly on the shoulder. "I'll try again. Is this y?"
He examines her second attempt, nods. "Yes, it is."
He catches the small blush on her cheeks before she hides in his shirt. "What next?" She mumbles.
"Well, you're going to hook your leg around mine like this," He moves her right leg to circle his left, and hooks it around his knee for her. "Then I'm gonna lift you up a little so you're off the ground for a second. When that happens, put your left leg between mine--"
"And kick?"
He snaps his head up. "No, dear God, don't kick."
"Okay," She holds in a giggle. "No kicking."
"Not in this house. Ever. You're just going to keep your leg straight, and let me steer the ship."
"Yes, captain."
He shoots her a look, but smiles. "Let's try it, shall we?"
When his arm tightens around her waist for a better grip, Jihyun prepares herself as he lifts her for the mere second he mentioned, then points her left leg between both of his and he bends over, his hold on her firm as he lowers her to the floor.
It's a quick move, one that catches Jihyun slightly off guard and she gasps, but recovers just as fast as he dropped her.
He holds her like that for a few more beats (although the ones from his heart are pretty fast), studying her face, searching her eyes. He finds . . . affection? Attraction? What is it, exactly?
And what is it that he's feeling right now?
Slowly, he lifts her back up, gaze still locked on hers.
"That's the dance," He mutters, barely a breath from his lips.
As slowly as he lifted her back to her feet, he cups her face, watching for any negative reaction telling him to stop.
Just as he hopes, there is none.
Time to go an even exra mile.
He takes with his, softly, gently, just enough to show how that dance, that close proximity made his heart beat, just enough to show how he feels.
Which he's still hazy of.
Never would he have guessed that this princess, Byun Jihyun, a damn runaway figure of royalty, would ever open a part of him he didn't even know existed.
Jihyun kisses right back, matching his feelings with her own, moving her lips with his. Her body is pressed against his, Kai's hands are in her hair, and she imagines the floor must have been dragged right from under her feet.
She answers his need, his want, with her own.
They break apart, panting only a little, their heart beats fast against each other's.
Kai breaths, "Should we try the whole thing from the top?"
She smiles slowly, a sultry look illuminating from her. "That sounds like a good idea."
As they practice the routine again, Jihyun realizes when he kissed her hand earlier, she didn't pull away, cringe, or politely decline and excuse herself, didn't even care. Didn't think to care; she could only focus on him.
She decides that if she's with him, it's okay she's away from the castle. If she's with him, here, she never wants to leave.
I hope you guys could follow the dance! I tried to make it as easy to follow as possible and still try to make the text run smoothly. And the reason I haven't updated in a while: we're moving and my graduation is coming up! I've been pretty busy, but now everything seems to be slowing down, so I'm pretty sure I'll be updating regularly again. :3
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