A Somewhat Different Fairy Tale

{ Unwanted Solution }

The last day had passed faster than the boys wished and what they had feared was becoming true. There were only a few hours left until Onew's execution day.

Jonghyun and Minho were sitting unmoving in their friend's cell, staring in the air with lifeless eyes. They felt scared, sad and angry; but most of all, they felt guilty towards Onew. They couldn't help him even though they had tried everything to find the real murder. They couldn't persuade the King to delay the execution either since the Princess' husband – the King of the neighbor Kingdom – was going to visit his wife's family next week. The problem was a mythos that the King family had believed in for centuries. It said that if noble blood flowed while two Kings were in the same castle, a terrible war would happen between two Kingdoms.

Since last night, Jonghyun and Minho had stayed with Onew. They didn't know what to talk about in such a situation, but it was just clear that they have to stay together right now.

"Where is Key? Doesn't he want to see this old man one last time?" Onew asked, laughed at his own joke, while the other boys didn't show any reaction and only looked him in disbelief.

Off all people, how came that Onew was the one being so fearless? It was as if he had resigned to his fate.

"He has been in the kitchen since yesterday and cooked none stop. No one could get him out there. Perhaps it's his way to overcome the situation." Minho explained.

"Poor boy, he makes me feel so sorry." The older boy's statement caused Jonghyun to jump up in anger.

"Seriously? Is that what you're thinking now? Shouldn't you worry about yourself? Stop acting like you're not scared. Do you think you're brave when you do that? That's so annoying." The Prince yelled loudly in frustration, rushed out of the cell, leaving his shocked friends behind. As soon as he reached the stairways, someone bumped into him hard.

"Bummie," said Jonghyun surprisingly. "You here?"

"Isn't it improper to behave like that, Jjonggie?" Kibum asked with a serious expression, but very soon he looked softer and held Jonghyun's hand gently, leading the Prince back to Onew.

"Don't be like that on such a day, please." He said with a sad voice.

It was a mystery how Jonghyun would do everything this boy asked for. Maybe it was his gentleness, his puppy eyes or his soft touch.

"I heard that you guys haven't eaten anything yet?" Kibum asked as he entered the cell with Jonghyun and just like Onew, he acted like nothing bad was going to happen. However, his red and puffy eyes were something he couldn't hide.

"Hello, Kibum. It's so nice to see you," The older boy greeted, forced a smile that, however, faded immediately.

"What is this sweet smell? What do you have there, Kibum?" asked Onew, pointed at the small bag in Key's hands.

"Ahm a special banana cake, but why?" Kibum asked.

"I know this scent," murmured Onew and Key shook his head.

"No, it can't be. I baked it by a recipe of my mom and I haven't baked for years. Stepmother doesn't like sweet."

"But I did smell this before when I... when I passed by the library and found ... your mother." Onew said while the boys listened to him with widened eyes.

"What are you talking about, hyung?" Jonghyun asked impatiently.

"I almost forgot this. When I entered the library there was, in fact, this sweet scent, but as soon as I found your mother I didn't pay attention to it anymore and forgot about it completely." The older boy told his friends.

"But everyone knows it's forbidden to eat in the library. Besides, you said there wasn't anybody but you and her." Minho questioned thoughtfully.

"Yes, and it was really like I said. I didn't see anyone else," answered Onew.

"Does that mean someone was there before you came and instead of helping Bummies's mother, he ate banana cake?" The Prince said. "That's nonsense, if it was like that, he should have seen the murderer."

"Another question would be, why has that person kept silent all the times?" Minho added.

"You guys forgot that it wasn't any banana cake, but a special cake that the only mother knew its recipe. Onew hyung, are you sure that it was the same scent?" Kibum asked.

"Yes, I am. I don't joke when it comes to foods," answered Onew, laughed alone.

Kibum, in contrast, was deep in his thoughts. Slowly, everything started to make sense - the sweet scent, the open locker door, the missing keychain and the mysterious thing in the locker... An assumption that could explain everything came into his mind and he paled.

"I think I understand what happened," said Minho suddenly and Kibum bit his lower lip nervously.

Did Minho really know what Key was thinking too?

"You do?" Jonghyun asked with shining eyes.

"It's just an idea, but it would explain all of our questions until now. The locker door that was suddenly open and the missing keychain, do you remember what we said about that?" Minho asked.

"Yes, we said that the killer came back for the keychain and found something in the locker that was so important that he had to take it with him." The Prince answered and in the same second, he thought he knew what Minho was trying to tell them.

"Wait a second; do you really think that in the locker was... a witness?" The young Prince questioned unsurely.

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm thinking. And I think it has to be a kid because the locker is quite small and it would also explain the sweet scent Onew hyung smelled, even though everyone knew it was forbidden to eat in the library," explained Minho and all of sudden a small light of hope appeared in the boys.

"But why should a kid hide in a locker and how came that he or she had Key's mother's cake?" Jonghyun asked thoughtfully. The more they found out, the more questions came up and time to solve all those problems was something they didn't have.

Silence filled the room for a long time until Key broke it.

"Because ... mother had promised him to make his favorite cake on his birthday .... and because it was a stormy day and he always hides in a closet when it thundered." He said with a cracked voice as tears started to form in his eyes.

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[This is only a script. It doesn't have to show up in the next chapter word for word.]

"I don't want you to blame yourself. None of you did something wrong. Do you hear me?"

...

"Thank you for everything. I'll never forget you, my friends."

...

"Selfish, yes, that's what you are, Kim Kibum. He is my cousin, my friend, my family."

...

"I'm sorry, Jonghyun, but he left."

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[A/N] No Jongkey moment in this chapter TT^TT Oh~ I miss them