Returning back to her room, Tiffany sat down quietly by the edge of the bed. Her mind was blank at that time.

Hearing all those things from Taeyeon—at first she had been confused, and when she finally processed what Taeyeon told her, she started to panic in the inside and all sorts of negative thoughts and imaginations had appeared in her mind.

At that moment, she wanted to scream and yell at Taeyeon’s face—yell at her for bringing her into this mess, for only telling her about it now. But all she could do was stare helplessly at the blonde—at the woman who remained cold and looked at her like she meant nothing.

Tiffany couldn’t remember how she managed to walk back to her room in one piece from all those distracting thoughts in her head. She remembered walking out of the room without saying a word to Taeyeon, and really, that was all that she could remember. 

And right now, as she sat there motionlessly, lifeless eyes looking down at the carpeted flooring, she started to fear what was going to happen to her soon. She thought about how pathetic she was, how unlucky she had been to have met Kim Taeyeon.

If only…

If only Kim Taeyeon had not existed, she would not have been placed into this situation.

Her eyes welled up and before she knew it, she started to sob into her hands as her tears stained the sheets and the ground.

***

It had been two weeks—fourteen days of not seeing the blonde woman—and also, it was going to be the day that Taeyeon’s brother was finally returning.

The servants could be seen rushing around when Tiffany had gone down to the kitchen for breakfast. Some of them that passed by her had given her a look as if they knew what was going to happen to her soon.

If she had some idea of what they were thinking, Tiffany was definitely not showing it on her face.

These past two weeks, she was able to stop herself from crying over the matter, and had self-assured herself that it couldn’t really be as bad as what Taeyeon had said.

In front of her friends, she managed to put on a strong front and show them that she wasn’t really affected by what Taeyeon had told her, but in reality, her inside was shattered and she found herself sleepless for many nights because she was constantly thinking about it.

When she had first told Seohyun and Yoona that she knew why she was kept captive and not thrown into the dungeon, Seohyun had apologised to her profusely and even teared up because of how she couldn’t actually do anything about it.

At that time, the taller woman had even disclosed to her that Viktor was not hers and Taeyeon’s biological brother. And because of that, Seohyun had even spilled out that Viktor wasn’t their biological brother but was the king’s biological son and that was how she found out that the two sisters were part of the royal family, or in exact terms, a princess.

When she had asked Seohyun how did Taeyeon and her end up here, the raven-haired woman became quiet and immediately changed the subject, which made it known to Tiffany that the topic was off limit, at least for now.

As the aroma of the food hit her, Tiffany slowed down, plastered on a smile before entering the kitchen.

Like usual, her friends turned to greet her with the exception of Seohyun. To that, she couldn’t help but ask about her absence since the raven-haired would usually be here as well. “Where’s Seohyun?” She asked, making eye contact with Sooyoung who became flustered and her eyes started to dart elsewhere.

Raising an eyebrow, Tiffany took a seat next to Yoona before giving her a questioning gaze.

“She has some administrative duties to deal with,” the taller woman answered, “I don’t think we’re quite able to see her today.”

“It’s… going to be a busy day,” Sooyoung continued on with a nod.

Tiffany hummed at the answers as she leant forward to grab a toast and the jar of strawberry jam. “Because of her brother’s return, right?”

At the nonchalant question from Tiffany, the other two froze.

Noticing how quiet it suddenly became, Tiffany glanced at them before asking again, “Right? Because I remember her telling me about it.”

She spread the jam onto the toast, not noticing how taken aback Sooyoung looked.

Yoona glared at the taller woman for being too obvious. “Yes, that’s right.” She replied before quickly switching the topic and shared about how beautiful Seohyun had looked this morning in her sleek white dress.

***

The day had been pretty uneventful for Tiffany, except for the few occasions where she could actually hear the shuffling of feet right outside her door.

It was actually fine for her at first, because she knew how the servants had to go around preparing for their prince’s return. But, what really annoyed her was that it had been continuing for about three hours now.

And, since Yoona and Sooyoung had to go about to do their own duties, she was left alone in her room with nothing to do except stare at her ceiling.

She was actually starting to fall asleep as her eyelids began to droop, and she was actually glad about it since she hadn’t gotten to have much sleep.

When she heard a soft click sound, Tiffany didn’t pay much attention to it since she was really tired and thought that it must have been someone outside that made the noise.

But, when she felt a presence beside her and a shadow casting over her face, her eyes immediately fluttered open due to alertness.

A gasp escaped her lips when the first thing she saw was a head of golden blonde hair.

Immediately recognising who it was, Tiffany sat up tentatively, wary eyes staring at the woman standing in front of her who was dressed in a short sleeveless black dress, with a white veil hanging off the side of her waist running down her ankles, and a pair of black stilettos heels.

Tiffany hadn’t been able to see Taeyeon for two weeks, and right now, having her right in front, all dressed-up, the brunette couldn’t help but to stare at the blonde beauty with a mouth slightly opened in awe.

It took a slight tilt of head from Taeyeon for Tiffany to finally stop staring.

The brunette looked away immediately, feeling her cheeks heat up. She was about to apologise when she remembered that she was still furious and upset with Taeyeon. So, instead of apologising, she glared and snapped at Taeyeon, “What are you doing here? You didn’t even knock.”

Rather than answering, all Taeyeon did was place down the box—that Tiffany had just noticed her carrying—next to her.

The box was of a black colour with a hot pink ribbon wrapped around it, and Tiffany noticed that it was strangely a container that was kind of huge.

Knowing well that that couldn’t have been a gift from Taeyeon, Tiffany grew suspicious, her eyes scanning the container, looking for any traces of hint.

“There’s a dinner tonight at seven. Yoona will come by and bring you there.” With that said, the blonde sauntered away and out of the room before Tiffany could ask any questions.

Honestly, Tiffany was growing frustrated at whatever kind of cold and emotionless game Taeyeon was playing, but right then, her biggest concern was the box next to her.

Her hand glided over the silky ribbon, slowly untying before curiosity got the best of her as she instantly grabbed the cover and lifted it up.

***

When Tiffany got out of the bathroom, she saw how Yoona had dramatically dropped her jaw at her entrance and couldn’t help but giggle.

She looked down at her own short, strapless, black dress that hugged her body tightly and accentuated her curves at all the right places. With the help of her friends, she was able to get make-up products from them and apply some on herself. Finishing it off with a pair of black and gold heels, Tiffany had to admit that she felt confident about herself tonight.

“Wow…” Yoona mumbled out, eyes looking up and down Tiffany with an approving nod.

“How do I look?” Tiffany smiled and gave a little twirl.

“Amazing!” The taller woman exclaimed, causing Tiffany to chuckle.

She went to the desk that had the black lace venetian mask and grabbed it, placing it on herself.

While she was checking her own reflection at the full length mirror, Yoona commented, “I can’t believe that Taeyeon got you this dress, the heels and the mask.”

“I’m not sure if she’s the one that got it but she did bring it to me.” She gave a final adjust before finding it a perfect fit. Turning around to face Yoona with a grin, she asked, “Ready to go?”

The taller woman smiled, “Of course. I was just waiting for you.”

***

Tiffany could remember correctly that Taeyeon had told her that it was “a dinner”.

But from the mask and dress that she got from her, she knew before that it wasn’t really just “a dinner.”

And from the looks of the ballroom that she just walked into, the soft classical music playing from the pianist and violinist at the front, together with the posh decorations around the room and last but not least, the people that were dressed to the nines around her, she was affirmative that this was more than just “a dinner”.

At first, Tiffany was feeling excited about attending a masquerade party (or dinner), but when she slowly noticed the amount of people staring at her, she felt like she was a live bait among a sea of sharks.

She knew that those people around her weren’t humans. She knew that they could distinguish that she wasn’t a part of them, but was something that they all crave for.

Unknowingly, the arm that she had around Yoona’s tightened and the taller woman seemed to notice the discomfort from Tiffany.

“Hey,” Yoona leant down to whisper into Tiffany’s ear, her hand finding Tiffany’s that was held onto her arm with a death grip. “It’s alright, they won’t do anything to you here—not when the greatest warrior in this place is right by your side.” She tried to joke lightly to lessen the brunette’s tension and when Tiffany did let out a soft and short laughter, Yoona smiled to herself.

“Right. I nearly forgot that you’re my protector.”

“Well, you won’t be able to forget because you’re stuck to my side the whole night. Guess you won’t be able to get lucky tonight,” Yoona sighed out playfully, feeling how Tiffany slapped her arm.

“Yoona! I didn’t know you’re such a .” Tiffany chuckled as the taller woman led the both of them to the corner of the room after getting themselves drinks.

“Everyone’s got a little ert side to them—even the most innocent ones also do.” Yoona wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

The brunette shook her head although the smile was still on her face. “So, you’re really staying with me the whole night?” Yoona nodded. “Don’t you have anything that you have to attend to?”

“Nope. I’m off duties for tonight.”

“But, don’t you want to spend the time with Seohyun?” Tiffany questioned with a warm smile as she watched Yoona’s face turn a shade darker for the first time. “She looks beautiful tonight, by the way.” She looked over the sea of people and found Seohyun conversing to a group of people.

Right beside the woman, stood the blonde that had managed to steal all of Tiffany’s attention at that moment.

On Taeyeon’s face, was a mask that looked similar to Tiffany’s, and for some reason the brunette just wanted to believe that what she was wearing were all a gift from Taeyeon.

As if Taeyeon could sense someone staring at her, her head turned and Tiffany let out a squeak when she knew that the blonde had caught her.

Looking away and up at Yoona, she saw how the woman had an eyebrow lifted up.

“What?” Tiffany blushed at how intense Yoona’s gaze was—as if she knew what she was thinking of and who she was staring at a moment ago.

The taller woman blinked a few times before turning away, “Nothing.”

Somehow, the mood around them became a little awkward. In order to lighten the mood, Tiffany tried to tease again, “You’re really not gonna go over? I think she’ll be delighted to see you.”

She saw how Yoona’s eyes went to Seohyun a few times before she shook her head affirmatively. “Nah. I’ll get to see her after the dinner or maybe tomorrow, anyways.”

“Really? I’ll be fine on my own, you know?”

Yoona smiled a little. She knew of Tiffany’s effort and she really appreciated it. But, at the same time, she knew how petrified Tiffany was even though she was by her side, and who knows what could happen if she did leave the brunette’s side?

“Like you’ve said, I’m your protector, and I intend to cling onto you—”

Before Yoona could finish her sentence, the lightings around the room dimmed and a spotlight was flashed at the front of the room.

Standing in front of the microphone was a man that Tiffany didn’t recognise—a man with slicked back blonde hair—like Taeyeon’s although a few shades darker, high cheek bones, piercing brown eyes, wearing a sharp-looking tuxedo.

“May I have your attention, please?” The man spoke. His voice catching the attention of almost everyone in the room.

“Tonight is the night that I want all of you to enjoy yourselves, to have a fun night, and to let yourself be free.”

Tiffany turned to Yoona and was about to ask her about the identity of the man when she saw how the taller woman had her eyebrows knitted.

“It’s been a while. I could say about three years since I’ve been out of here. And tonight, I am proud to say that I, Viktor Black, has returned home with victory and another territory in my hands.”

At the smirk that appeared on his face, Tiffany felt her blood run cold. She gulped nervously and didn’t seem to relax until the man finished speaking and Yoona had pulled her out of the ballroom to the garden outside.

For a while, none of them spoke. Because first, Yoona really didn’t know what to say at that point. She knew that she couldn’t ask Tiffany if she was alright, because obviously she wasn’t. And secondly, because Tiffany herself was still too shocked to even speak.

They sat down in silence for about twenty minutes, feeling the cold breeze hit their skin.

“Taeyeon’s brother…” Was what Tiffany said after breaking the silence. “It’s hard to believe that they aren’t biological siblings because they actually look so much alike, huh?” Tiffany tried to make light of the situation by joking.

Yoona was not having it though. She knew how this was just a mask Tiffany was putting on to show that she was strong, and that she wasn’t scared. But on the contrary, she knew how afraid Tiffany was feeling, how apprehensive she felt about what was going to happen.

“This… I shouldn’t have brought you here. I knew that there was a high possibility that he’ll be here and yet…”

“It’s not your fault, Yoona. I would’ve met him sooner or later. Seeing him now can actually put a picture into my mind on how he looks like.”

“Stop it, Tiffany.” Yoona said sternly, her voice straining. “I know that you’re scared. I know that. So, you don’t have to pretend to be strong in front of me. You can tell me how you really feel; I’ll be here for you.”

“What help would that do, though?” Tiffany questioned. “I know you’re just trying to help me, Yoona, I know and I appreciate your effort. But, I don’t think anything you do is able to change anything.” She looked up at the dark sky.

“I just… I don’t want you to feel like you’re alone—like there’s no one here that you can turn to.”

Tiffany smiled. She placed a hand onto the taller woman’s shoulder. “I’m not alone. I have friends here that I know I can count on.”

Yoona moved a little closer and enveloped the brunette in her arms. “We’ll always be by your side.”

I know… Tiffany thought to herself but didn’t say it out.

She had her chin comfortably placed on top of Yoona’s shoulder when a cough was suddenly heard.

Pulling away, the two of them turned to see Taeyeon standing there, with the wind blowing the white veil hung on her waist.

“I need to speak with you, Tiffany.”