The Hidden Prince {BBH}

The Hidden Prince

No one knew a great deal about him; hardly anyone- with the exception of the royal family- even saw a great deal of him. To the people, he was "The Hidden Prince". To me, as time would have it, he would be… something closer than what he was to the rest of the kingdom.

There was nothing extraordinary about me- although not everyone had rose quartz hair and sunny sky eyes. I was, as an addition, highly educated for a middle-class citizen.

Well, higher-up-middle-class citizen.

Due to my quick wit, the higher-ups grew to have a great deal of respect for me. When a problem simply needed solving, they would call upon me almost immediately. I was something of a lifesaver to them, I suppose.

Soon enough, the royal family heard of my sharp mind and requested my visit over "a matter most urgent". I understood they were the royal family, so I expected the matter to be small to a lower-classed person, such as myself. The higher-class was, indeed, rather petty and picky about every tiny thing. This visit, however, was about a more pressing matter.

The prince- The Hidden Prince- needed guidance. He needed someone to teach him how the kingdom- his future kingdom- worked. It was true, I had studied the economics and systems of the kingdom a great deal, but could they not find a high-ranking teacher for their son? I inquired this most politely, more to seem humble than anything, and they replied with a roundabout way of telling me they could trust hardly anyone. I gave them a most polite and gracious bow, to which I received a smile and an innumerable amount of thanks. They would introduce me straight away, they said, and I was to follow them.

Had I expected to meet him that very day, I would have gotten a bit more sleep the night before, in order to meet him with the most amount of energy I could. Even so, it would be hard to talk to him. If his own parents had attempted, in vain, to teach him themselves, how was I to help him? I had never even spoken to him before.

The only memory I have of the prince is one time when he was caught standing at a window of the castle, just looking out at the crowds. The gasps and murmurs around me are what caught my attention, leading to my perception of his presence. He just stood still, until he turned at what must have been a scolding voice, his back then facing the window as he shrunk into himself. Swiftly, he pulled a curtain over the window and was not seen again. Many people stirred up rumors about his death, which were then shut down by their majesties.

I thought back to this memory as I was led through the halls by the king and queen themselves. Such an odd thing, fate; you never know quite what to expect from it, except that all will work out in the end. The royal treasury was offering me a handsome reward if I could teach the prince properly.

The click of the door dropped me back into reality and I lifted my gaze from my feet. There appeared to be no one in the bedroom we had entered, so I opened my mouth in question.

"Baekhyun," his mother called, "Do stop your hiding, you are a prince. We have a guest to meet you, someone who can help you."

There was the rustling sound of hesitant shifting from behind the bed, which then halted. Silence dusted over the room for the few seconds that followed. I turned to the queen slightly, and she gave me a hopeful smile. You know, the kind where her eyebrows went up sympathetically and her lips were perked only in the corners. Gently, she leaned over to my ear and whispered for me to go to him. In the meantime, she and the king would return to the room we had previously occupied, the throne room.

I did as she said and she raised her voice to give a farewell to her son. The two of them exited the room, leaving an icy tension hanging still in the air. I took silent steps toward the bed, only to jump at a voice coming from where the shifting had been.