A Royal Mess

Part 13

A week has passed.
Thankfully, my feeling was wrong. Nothing is out of the ordinary.
I've been spending my time with Jungkook since morning until night.
Initially, it was very awkward. He kept pushing me away, telling me that he didn't need me. However, after a while, he started to get used to my constant presence & welcome my assistance.
It's not easy for me too, especially since I have to touch him & be in close proximity with him all the time. Such as when I help him raise his head & feed him. There were moments when I felt him staring & couldn't help but remember his past misdeed towards me. However, I tried my hardest to squash my anxiety & slowly I became less afraid of him.
His attitude has changed 180 degrees. And so far, it's stayed that way. I haven't heard one mocking or irritating word from him all week, which is very surprising.
The old Jungkook would throw insults at me at any given chance, but not the new Jungkook. He's kind, considerate, & polite. Basically, someone who old Jungkook wasn't.
People say that don't judge the book by its cover. Well, they should change it to "don't judge a book by its first few pages", because a bad prologue might be followed by a good story.
After breakfast today, Jungkook asks me to get some documents from the library for him.
"Will you be alright? I can ask the servants to do it." He calls out in concern.
"Don't worry. I won't climb any ladder today. I'll be back soon." I wave at him & close the door behind me.
The sunlight beams through the huge windows lining the hallway. It's another beautiful cloudless day.
I can see the main garden from here. Colorful flowers are blooming among the neatly trimmed hedges, which makes me think of Taehyung.
I promised Tae that I would help him work in the garden. And now it's been a week. He must think that I've forgotten about it, which I kinda have. Maybe that's why he stopped sending the daffodils. Maybe he's mad at me. Ugh, I'm such an awful friend.
I scold myself inwardly while making a mental note that I will find time to visit him again.
As I'm walking pass Jungah's bedroom, I see a familiar figure approaching from the opposite direction.

Speaking of the devil..
"Oh, Y/n ah!" Taehyung excitedly waves at me, a wide grin splitting his face.
"H-Hi! What are you doing here?" I ask.
Somehow, I've become nervous & awkward around him. Maybe it's because I'm hiding the fact that I've been spending time with Jungkook, who used to be our common enemy.
"Delivering flowers for the princess. You?" He raises the bucket filled with hydrangeas & daffodils.
Daffodils. He's stopped sending me flowers but he still delivers them to Jungah. Goes to show who's more important to him.
"I'm going to the library. Btw, I'm sorry that I haven't been able to visit you again. I- I have a lot to do during day time so.."
"Oh. I see. What are you up to these days? Are you still serving Jungah?" He asks.
It was such an innocent question, yet my pulse begins to race because I know that I have to lie to him again.
"Well, just this & that. Anw, I have to go now. Bye." I hastily excuse myself.
"Wait, Y/n ah. If you can't visit me during day time, how about at night?" He snatches my wrist & stops me.
"At night?"
"Yes. You're free to wander around on your own now, right?" Hope fills his voice.
"I- I don't know. What if we get caught? The princess will be mad." I reply, hesitant.
"Jungah? Why would she be mad?" He knits his brows, looking genuinely confused.
"Uhm.. well.. Aren't you guys-"
"Oh shit, someone's coming. We have to leave now. I'll wait for you at the garden tonight, ok? See you!" He whispers before continues walking towards Jungah's room.
Huh.. I guess I have to sneak out tonight & meet him.
The sense of burden catches me off guard. Since when have I become so unenthusiastic to meet Taehyung? I used to grab at every chance of spending time with him.
Guilt gnaws at me from the inside.
First, I lied to him, then I keep breaking my promise, & now, I feel reluctant to meet him. What kind of a friend am I?
I need to come clean to him tonight so that my conscience is clear & we can go back to the way we were.

Night
I cautiously rush to the garden once I've finished tending to Jungkook. Thankfully, the hallways are empty at this hour. Nevertheless, I keep feeling like someone would jump out from behind the pillars & catch me.
The moon shines its blue light upon the path I'm walking on, lessening the eeriness of the looming trees & hedges in the deserted garden. I pick up my pace & arrive at the gate to Taehyung's garden.
"Tae? Are you there?" I call out, but there's no response.
"He hasn't forgotten about our meeting, has he?" I mumble to myself.
"Y/n! I'm here!" Taehyung waves at me & whispers from the door of the shed.
"What are you doing there?" I ask while stepping closer to him.
"I was making you a bouquet. Ta-da! Do you like it?" He presents me with a small bouquet of pure white gardenias.
"Woah, it's so pretty. Thank you so much." I gasp, touched by his kind gesture.
"I'm glad you like it. Let's sit down." He smiles.
Both of us sit side by side on the bench & look up at the sky, the sultry scent of gardenias wafting in the air. However, there's still this awkwardness hanging in between us, which makes me uncomfortably squirm in my seat.
Come on Y/n. Say something.
"How are you?" I break the silence.
"I'm fine. You?"
"Me too."
Another stretch of silence follows.
Have we reduced down to two people who only ask each other customary questions? I sadly think to myself.
"It's a very beautiful night, isn't it?" He suddenly asks.
"Y-Yes, it is. The moon shines so brightly tonight."
"No, it's because you're here tonight." He says while staring right into my eyes.
My cheeks instantly blush. Butterflies soar from my gut to my chest, increasing my heart beat. For a moment, I can't seem to move my gaze away from his deep dark eyes. The tension is so thick that I feel like I can cut through it with a knife.
Stop it. He's Jungah's man.
The thought breaks the spell, causing me to turn away from him.
"Ya! Since when you've become so cheesy?" I nudge him & chuckle to cover up my nerves.
"Uh.. Hahaha, sorry. It was too much, wasn't it?" He sheepishly scratches the back of his head.
"Yeah, it was so unlike you to say such words. Anw, how have you been?" I swiftly change the subject.
"Same old, same old. Life has been pretty boring without you. What about you? Are they treating you nicely?"
"Actually, they are. Surprising, huh?"
You need to tell him about Jungkook now before he finds out on his own & thinks that you're a traitor.
I'm nervously fondling with my fingers, contemplating about how to tell him about the recent development between your & Jungkook's relationship, when Taehyung asks out of nowhere.
"How about Jungkook? Has he tried to hurt you again?"
"No. Well, actually-"
"You need to stay away from him. He's evil."
The disdain & anger on his face stop me from speaking the truth.
Maybe, this is not the right time.
"Tae, what actually did he do to you?" I cautiously ask.
He looks down at his fingers & scoffs, as if recalling the bitter past.
"Come on, Tae. Tell me." I urge.
"You really want to know?" He turns to me, his expression grave.
"Yes." I firmly nod, despite my growing anxiety.
"Fine." He rises from his seat & starts unbuttoning his shirt.
"W-What are you doing?" I immediately close my eyes & turn sideways in surprise.
"You said you want to know, right? Now, look."
Hesitantly, I turn my face back at him & open my eyes.
"Oh my God!" I gasp.
His body, front & back, is covered with scars of various sizes & shapes. Some of them are so prominent that I flinch, imagining the pain when they formed.
"These are all directly & indirectly caused by him, but they're nothing compared to the emotional abuse. He enjoys torturing me, crushing my hope, taking away everything that's mine. Once I found a stray puppy & secretly took it in, he found out about it & killed it in front of me. Ever since then, I stopped caring about anything because I know that he would rob it from me. That's why I was scared of him figuring out that you're my friend." He explains as he puts on his shirt.
"I'm so sorry Tae. I really am." My eyes inadvertently tear up. He must have suffered so much on his own.
However, a sliver of doubt hinders me from believing him fully. If he had told me about this a week ago, I would've joined him cursing Jungkook with contempt. But now that I've seen a different side of Jungkook, I can't believe that he could be that cruel for no reason.
"Why don't you run away then? There's a door right there, you can just leave & disappear." I ask.
"What's the use? They'll find me & drag me back to torture me even more. I told you my life isn't mine. I can't even take my own life if they say that I'm not allowed to." He snickers.
"Tae.."
"You don't need to feel sorry for me. I only want to show you how cruel he is so that you'll keep your guards up at all times." He smiles flatly.
A stubborn question pricks the back of my mind, refusing to go away. In the end, I can't stand it anymore & ask.
"Why did he do that to you? I mean, why is he so mean to you?"
"Because he wants to & because he can. That's all." He shrugs.
"There must be a reason. Maybe because someone told him something that made him hate you. Like, maybe something about your father-"
"Oh God. What did they tell you?" He widens his eyes.
Right then, I realize that I've made a mistake.
"Nothing. I-"
"Did they tell you about my father committing treason?"
"Well- Yes, but-"
"And you believed them?!" He exclaims loudly, startling me.
"Tae, I-"
"How could you?! I thought you were on my side!"
"Tae, listen to me-" I grab onto his arm but he violently shakes my grip away.
"They were the ones who betrayed my family. They turned everyone against us, while they rose to the top. So if you want to believe those bastards, suit yourself, but our friendship ends here."
With that, he turns on his heel & storms out of the garden.
"Tae! Tae!" I call out but he keeps going until he disappears beyond the gate.
"Oh God, what did I do?" I cover my mouth as regret washes over me.