On a chilly and quiet night in late October Jungkook found himself strolling in the small park across from the castle. He breathed out the cold air in relief, he appeared to be the only one out there. The photographers from that afternoon had all disappeared, and the only sound came from the prince's all black timberlands. Many people had tried various ways to get him out of those certain shoes, but none had succeeded, they had all given up after a while. Coloured leaves were crunching under those favourite boots of him, although their colours were faded by the darkness of the night. He followed the path in the park. On either side were small benches placed and a tree was standing between each pair of benches. It had always seemed like a pleasant place to be.
His feet carried him towards one of the benches and he sat down with a sigh. With his feet resting on the earth's surface, his eyes darted towards the sky. A galaxy of stars was being admired by these curious and wide eyes. The sky was very clear, causing the stars to shine brightly. They seemed to be dancing in front of his eyes, so vivid and alluring. He closed his eyes and leaned the back of his head against the damp wooden bench. What if he couldn't do it? What if he couldn't be as tough as his father? What if he couldn't handle the pressure? He didn't even want to think about it, about these upcoming nerve-wracking events, about what was going to be his responsibility. He refused to think about it. Instead, he observed the way the wind seemed to tickle his skin like a feather would do as if to remind him he was still alive.
Suddenly he noticed it, the soft snoring his ear caught on the left side of the bench he was currently sitting on. The snores were almost soundless, almost. Jungkook's eyes opened slowly and his eyes followed the soft sound. His head tilted toward the left and when he narrowed his eyes, he could spot the outline of a silhouette. The prince himself wasn't known as a social man as he found peace in staying in quiet places, but somehow he was drawn to the silhouette next to him.
And before he knew it his feet had carried him right in front of the snoring person. His eyes had already adjusted to the darkness and he could clearly see the features of the sleeping boy in front of him. He had a dark blanket draped over him, although the poor boy was shivering from time to time. Pieces of art were spread around the bench; small paintings, big paintings, doodles, detailed sketches, abstract art. The boy himself was a piece of art with the blonde mop of hair that covered his forehead, the sharp jawline he seemed to possess and the full lips, which were slightly pouting.
Jungkook took a few steps back and started thinking. Was this boy homeless? Why was he sleeping outside in this kind of cruel weather? Where was his family? And did they care he was living here outside in the open? The boy couldn't have been much older then he was and he was starting to feel sorry for the guy. Unfortunately, being the reserved guy he was, he just stood there, and after a while he walked away.
Back to the enormous castle he lived in, back to the soft bed he desired to slip into. But lying there, under the feathery covers, he couldn't help but feel guilty whilst hearing raindrops clatter on the roof.
✽ . ✽ . ✽
The next day the maid, Jasmine, woke him up. She told him he had to pay his father a visit instantly because the matter was extremely significant according to her. After hearing this he quickly put on a pair of sweatpants combined with a white shirt, before heading to the king's room. He knocked twice and after being invited in, he opened the door and stepped in. Jungkook bowed respectfully and greeted his father with a small smile, which he didn't return.
"Son," he began with his invigorating deep voice, he sat down and motioned at him to do the same, which he did. "You're fully grown up now, and I suppose the time has come for you to marry a decent woman. My time has almost come, I can feel it coming and as I'm getting older I get weaker. No one wants an unsteady king, and that's where you come in. Because you're my favourite son, I'll be making a special arrangement with you. I'll give you a year to find the woman you want to marry. If you do not succeed in finding one within a year, I'll arrange one for one and you'll not be able to decline. Do we have an agreement?" He asked, his eyes narrowing and observing my every move. I nodded and replied with a 'yes father'.
"Then that's settled." the king said, rubbing his hands together in thought. "Oh, one last thing. I'll be organizing a ball each month to help you out. I'm sure you could find the perfect lady at one of those; I'll be inviting the whole town, there must be someone out there who sparks your interest. You may leave now." He said with a hand gesture and a barely noticeable smile. Jungkook bowed once again before leaving the room full of responsibility.
He needed to clear his head, he needed some fresh air. It was still early in the morning, not many people would be able to notice him, so he headed out once again. It was storming, he felt like the wind could lift him up any second and throw him somewhere far away from South Korea. He found himself strolling through the peaceful park again. His feet carried him to the place he had reached the day before. The blonde boy was nowhere to be found, the paintings scattering the bench were the only traces he had left behind. Jungkook looked at the only ruined painting, the others seemed to be in perfect condition still, it had been slightly deformed on account of the rain.
The face drawn on the painting seemed familiar yet so far away from him. It possessed the same fluffy looking jet black hair, parted in the middle and blending in with other parts of the painting it shouldn't have been blended with because of the raindrops. It had the same coffee coloured eyes, the same eyebrows and the same bunny smile. The smile had also been fading away. The face on the painting was supposed to be his face, but he couldn't see it. The person on the painting was a whole other person, it wasn't him. It was drawn too sweet, too soft, too kind, too much colour. It didn't feel like him, he didn't feel warm like the painting portrayed him to be. After one last glance he left the bench and walked back to the castle.
Photographers were standing in front of the castle, with their large camera's and microphones, waiting for some action to happen. Jungkook could've used the secret backdoor, but he didn't because he'd already been spotted.
"Prince Jeon, over here!" "No, look over here!" "Prince Jeon, is it true that your father wants you to get married?" "Prince Jeon, do you have a secret relationship with one of the maids?" "Prince Jeon, I heard there was going to be a grand ball in this place in a few days. Is that correct information?" "PRINCE JEON JUNGKOOK, LOOK OVER HERE!" The shouting came from all the different directions with the camera's all pointed at him, closing in on him. The shouting got louder, the pile of questions grew larger and his breath shortened. Before he could muster out a word, he felt someone pulling him forward into the castle. He fell forward on something, or rather someone.
Jasmine had pulled him forward causing him to fall on her and taking them both down. He was lying on her while the photographers were having the time of their lives taking photos of the two for their new tabloid papers. Jungkook stared right into Jasmine's brown eyes and looked behind them right into the flashes of the enormous camera's. He felt his cheeks heat up and he rolled off of Jasmine and closed the door in one movement. His back was leaning against the cold material of the door and he slid down, down, down until his behind reached the floor.
"Why do these things always happen?" he asked himself.
