Heart of Ice

Homecoming

Soonyoung looked different; the spirit that was once in his eyes was now gone. One look at him told Yewon that this trip had not been as rewarding as Soonyoung had hoped.

When Yewon came to greet him, she found that Wonwoo was already there trying to speak with him.

"Why are you back?" Wonwoo asked. "Are you planning to return? Did you even arrive where you wanted to go? Why aren't you answering me?"

Indeed, Soonyung was not answering. He was not even looking in Wonwoo's direction, and that seemed to irritate Wonwoo a lot.

"For God's sake, Soonyoung!" Wonwoo exclaimed, looking prepared to tear his hair out of his head.

It was only when Yewon drew closer that Soonyoung lifted his head and glanced at her. It was an eerie, and evocative glance that gave Yewon chills; she couldn't imagine what it meant, but she had a feeling she would find out very soon.

-

As was custom, a sudden banquet had to be thrown to celebrate Soonyoung's return. Yewon thought that maybe a banquet would return the life into Soonyoung's eyes. He had always been the one who loved banquets most after all.

Soonyoung was seated at the table, bowing his head robotically to the people who came to welcome him back. Since he arrived, Soonyoung had only said a few words. He refused to answer questions about what happened to him while he was gone, and only talked to servants when he wanted something from them.

It actually unnerved Yewon a little to know that Soonyoung was back so soon. She hadn't expected to see him again for a very long time, but within a few months, he was back. She mostly wondered what had happened to Seokmin– he could not have possibly come back with Soonyoung; if he came back, the spies would have most definitely seized him. She wanted to ask Soonyoung just be reassured, but she didn't have the opportunity to catch him alone. Plus, a part of her was afraid of hearing what he would say.

As the night progressed, Soonyoung did indeed loosen up a little. Yewon saw him talking with women like he usually would during banquets. He was flirting with them with obvious intentions, and so Yewon deduced that Soonyoung was not over his addiction.

She should have seen it coming that Soonyoung would set his sight on one particular woman. When he saw Jinye, it was as if there was no other person in the room but her. Of course, he would set his sights on her: Jinye was one of the forbidden ones, his brother's ex-fiancée, and Yewon knew exactly how much forbidden women excited him.

She didn't expect any better from Soonyoung, but it seemed like even Jinye seemed to welcome his advances.

One glance at Wonwoo, and Yewon knew that he was furious about what was happening. At one point, Wonwoo stormed out of the banquet hall and never returned.

-

The following morning, Yewon needed to talk to Soonyoung and get answers about what happened with Seokmin. It was a concern in her heart that troubled her the entire night, and she couldn't wait any longer to find out. She thought she could get him alone that morning, completely overlooking the very likely possibility that Soonyoung was not alone that morning.

And indeed, as she made her way towards the door to his bedroom, she saw Jinye walk out. Jinye's dress was loosely tied and her hair was a mess. She looked only slightly ashamed as she bowed towards Yewon and scuttled away.

Yewon took a moment to get over her surprise. She avoided making any judgements and instead knocked on Soonyoung's door and asked if she could have a minute.

From behind the door, Soonyoung told her to come in and stay at least ten meters away from him.

She entered and saw him sitting on the bed, his shirt loosely hanging over his shoulders. He was writing in a familiar notebook, the same one she remembered he had written in before he left. His hair was a mess and there were clothes scattered around the bed, some of which were clearly Jinye's.

She bowed to him, but he didn't tear his eye from his notebook. She could tell from the way his quill moved that he actually wasn't writing; he was drawing.

"Prince Soonyoung, I just came to ask–"

"You want to know what happened to Seokmin," Soonyoung cut her off immediately as he put the quill to the side. He lifted his head to make eye contact with her for the first time since she entered.

She nodded her head, feeling stiff from the eerie way he was looking at her. There really was no light in his eyes; he was not the cheerful Soonyoung that she had known before.

"Maybe you can tell me what happened to him, your highness," Soonyoung told her. His voice cracked as he said it, as if he were recounting some traumatizing memory. Yewon suspected the worst and froze, her eyes gathering moisture as she waited for Soonyoung to explain.

Soonyoung closed his book and bit his lower lip, which had been trembling. With lowered eyes, he finally recalled what happened: "A masked man choked him before my eyes. Seokmin's dead, your highness."