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Wonshik had seen him from afar. The man, clad in what appeared to be in his finest fabrics, had accepted every person’s invitation to waltz in the center of the ballroom. Whether he was leading or being lead, he was a true vision, a gold and white twinkle that deemed to be the only person worth batting an eye for. It was the perfect way to be portrayed, considering it was the kingdom’s yearly holiday ball.
Still entranced by the other’s endless grace, Wonshik had forgotten he was already accompanying someone, a woman who was tapping her heel impatiently. She had approached Wonshik in hopes of dancing with the leader of the king’s guard, but his mind was somewhere else. It was swimming with visions of dancing with the man across the way, of hearing that angelic laughter right by his ear… Wonshik sighed wistfully before a heel dug deep in his foot, causing him to yelp.
“You might want to reconsider ignoring a lady’s advances, Sir Kim.” The woman huffed, picking up her skirts before marching into the crowd.
“Miss, wait -”
“Don’t bother,” A hand slammed on the back of Wonshik’s shoulder. “Your eyes will just move past her again. You must be joking if you think any lady here would enjoy being accompanied by a man who only has eyes for the prince.”
“Do I have to send you back to the barracks, Sanghyuk?”
“Ah, ah,” The younger man grinned. “You have no charge of me tonight. King Cha decreed this to be an event free of status… besides for the royalty of course.”
“And of course you’re using it to your advantage.”
“Perhaps.” Sanghyuk cackled when Wonshik groaned. “You can worry about my insubordination another night. What you should do now is invite Prince Hakyeon for a dance.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Look at him.” Just then, the prince had been brought into a fit of giggles, his hand coming to cover a soft smile and crinkling eyes. “He wouldn’t even spare me a glance, much less join me for a waltz.”
“You’re the knight his father trusts with his life . Of course he wouldn’t mind a dance. I bet you two could even talk afterwards.”
“He wouldn’t recognize me without my helmet.”
“And whose fault is that?”
Wonshik cast his eyes down. “He always seems so downcast when I enter the throne room.”
“That’s because you are there to plan battle strategies with the king. He hates war, not you.”
“But Sanghyuk, he -”
“I’ve had enough of your poor excuses.” Sanghyuk straightened up his collar and shirt cuffs. “Wait here.”
Before Wonshik could respond, the other knight stormed off, leaving him alone with the food and drinks for the night. He picked at a few hors d’oeuvres, shifting to the side whenever another guest came to peruse. They all exchanged small greetings, the blush rising in Wonshik’s cheeks each time they asked if he was waiting on a special someone.
“Nothing like that… Just a friend.”
Quite some time passed before he heard a voice that made his body tense.
“Where are we headed to?”
“Almost there, Your Majesty.”
Time slowed as dancers made space for Prince Hakyeon to pass by comfortably, creating a clear aisle between him and Wonshik. The knight somehow kept his jaw closed as the prince approached, but his mind blanked out completely.
“Sir Kim?” Prince Hakyeon’s voice was even more heavenly up close, causing the knight to tremble as he nodded. He had no words, shocked that the prince knew who he was without his equipment.
“My captain wishes to discuss a matter with you, Your Majesty.” Sanghyuk winked at Wonshik.
“Is that so? Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Sir Han.”
“Always at your service.” The young knight bowed. “I’m sure Captain Kim would care for this to be private, so... “
“Of course. You are dismissed.”
Wonshik and Prince Hakyeon watched Sanghyuk scurry off, immediately clinging onto Jaehwan, one of the resident kitchen aids.
“Quite a handful, isn’t he?”
“Y-y-yes, Your Majesty.” Wonshik wanted to fall through the floor; the prince was staring at him, head tilting in confusion.
“Is everything alright? This discussion isn’t anything dire, is it? Should I go fetch my father?”
“No,” Wonshik clamped a hand over his mouth when he heard himself in a tone much too loud for the party around them. He held his head down, wondering if the prince would reprimand him for being rude to the other guests. Instead, he heard a chuckle.
“Did I startle you?”
“A little.”
“My father can be quite intimidating during your discussions.”
“Ah,” Wonshik scratched the back of his head. “Yes, that was it, Your Majesty.”
The prince squinted, a mischievous grin emerging when he saw Wonshik trying to look away. “I see… I’m sorry to have rustled your nerves. Perhaps a dance or two might help calm you?”
Wonshik’s eyes widened. Prince Hakyeon blinked curiously at him, arm outstretched to take his hand. After an awkward pause, the prince’s gaze appeared downcast.
“Ah, perhaps I can find a lady here to accompany you?”
His nerves were really going haywire, but Wonshik realized that he probably wouldn’t have this opportunity again if the prince thought he was only interested in the ladies at the ball. He mustered up the courage to hold Prince Hakyeon’s hand with both of his own, surprising the other man. “The dance… was actually the discussion my subordinate mentioned earlier.”
Prince Hakyeon’s cheeks reddened. “Does that mean you wish to dance with me, Sir Kim?”
“Absolutely.” Wonshik began to walk forward, pausing when he realized that he had addressed the prince poorly. “Apologies, Your Majesty.”
“No worries,” the prince, suddenly filled with more energy, moved past the crowd ahead of them, dragging a stunned Wonshik behind him. “Feel free to call me Hakyeon.”
It had taken a lot of reassuring from the prince, but Wonshik had reluctantly accepted that he was the only one given explicit permission to call the heir to the throne so casually. The rest of the guests had given them leeway, more than enough room to waltz in the center of the ballroom. Wonshik had felt all the eyes on them, causing him to wrap his arm around Hakyeon’s waist nervously.
“This can’t be your first waltz, Wonshik.”
Hearing his own name from Hakyeon’s mouth somehow made the moment even more embarrassing for him. “It’s not.”
“Come on, then.” Hakyeon fixed Wonshik’s posture, smiling once everything was perfect. “Show me, oh illustrious knight.”
“Are you making jabs at me, Hakyeon?”
“Perhaps,” Despite Wonshik’s quick movement, Hakyeon still took his step back to initiate the dance in full grace. “And I still might once you’re done.”
Wonshik couldn’t help but pout, feeling the prince anticipate his every move. He wasn’t leading as much as he desired to, more as if he was still following Hakyeon listlessly. Hakyeon found amusement in Wonshik’s increased efforts. His laughter accompanied the light string instruments echoing through the ballroom, the sound having the knight forget about all the teasing. One song turned into many, silent wihspers becoming boisterous conversation. For Wonshik, dancing with Hakyeon was everything he imagined and more, wondering how he had kept the prince’s attention to himself for so long.
“Wonshik.”
“Hm?”
“Are you okay?”
“I feel fine,” Wonshik felt himself sport a goofy smile. “Why do you ask?”
“You’ve been limping for a while now.” Hakyeon pulled away, pointing down to one of Wonshik’s feet.”
“Oh. That. Well, you see… “
“Did something happen?”
“More like someone happened. I had a lady from my mother’s company join me tonight.” Now that the injury was mentioned, Wonshik could still feel the piercing sting. “She didn’t enjoy that my attention was focused on, um -”
“Me?” Hakyeon’s smile turned cheeky, but Wonshik could only sigh in response.
“Yes, you.”
“Well dancing with you has certainly been a pleasure, but we don’t want to worsen your possibly swollen foot. Follow me to the fountain?”
“But the guests -”
“I have greeted them all already. It will be easier to tend to you without all the distractions here.”
“If you say so.”
“Wonderful. Let’s be off then.”
Both men excused themselves outside, passing by some of Wonshik’s men who volunteered to keep watch outside. All of them shared a knowing glance at their captain, whistling when they saw him being lead by Hakyeon to the vacant part of the royal garden. Wonshik had a second thought to yell at all of them, but he had enough time to do that another day. As of that moment, he was more preoccupied that once he had settled to sit at the edge of the fountain, Hakyeon had kneeled down, carefully removing Wonshik’s shoe.
“Hakyeon, what are you doing?”
“Oh dear,” Hakyeon gasped. “It’s quite swollen. Let me just…” The prince didn’t hesitate to take out his handkerchief, dipping it in the water before wrapping it around Wonshik’s foot.
“Wait, you don’t have to do that.”
“But I want to.” Hakyeon was only satisfied when the wet cloth was evenly spread across the injury. “And to be completely honest, I’m sort of glad that we were able to move to a private area.”
“Why’s that?”
“No one can object when I do this.”
Without warning, Hakyeon grabbed the edge of Wonshik’s shirt, pulling him down for a chaste kiss. The knight gasped, wide-eyed when he was able to pull away. Hakyeon blushed when Wonshik kept quiet, staring in disbelief.
“I’ve been wanting to do that for a while,” Hakyeon admitted. “I hope I didn’t get the wrong idea-”
It was Hakyeon’s turn to be surprised, not expecting for Wonshik to lean in for another kiss. “You sure know how to stir a man’s heart, Your Majesty.”
The prince and knight were too lost in each other to go back to the party. Hakyeon took his place beside Wonshik, linking their hands as they talked under the light of the stars above them.