Royal Pain | PJM • slow updates

Chapter 20

The mood in the room was tense, and Eunjae could tell by the set of Jimin's jaw that as every minute ticked by, he was growing increasingly more irritated. His fingers drumming against the table were the only disturbance to the awkward silence that filled the meeting room.

One and a half hours. It'd been one and a half hours since the designated time Jimin and the Lee prince had agreed to convene passed, with no appearance from the latter and no word sent ahead about their delay. The coffee was now cold, Eunjae's feet ached in her heels, her fingers stubbornly remained curled around her pencil, and Jimin's patience had run dangerously thin.

A low growl erupted from Jimin as his fist thumped against the table. His fiery gaze settled on the poor guard by the door. "Where is he?!"

The guard gulped in terror, visibly quivering at being the current focus of the prince's frustration. He timidly bowed before weakly responding, "Your highness, we have not received-"

Jimin stood from his chair abruptly, almost tipping it backwards onto the floor with the ferocity of his action. "You said that already!"

The guard looked like he wanted to cry. Eunjae pitied the unfortunate soul.

"I'm sorry, your highness-"

"Apologies do nothing to assist the situation, nor do they give me back the time I've wasted!"

The guard's mouth opened, then closed, then opened again, reminiscent of a fish gasping for water. He didn't know how to respond to the unreasonable prince, aware that no matter what he said, it would only earn him an earful. Eunjae decided to intervene.

Stepping away from the wall she had been against, adjacent to the table Jimin occupied, she dutifully made her way towards the prince who's lips were pressed together. The click of her heels drew his attention, and as she neared him his gaze was set upon her. Jimin's shoulders seemed to relax a tad, his blazing eyes losing some of their ferocity.

Eunjae took a brief glance at the other people in the room; Namjoon, being Jimin's advisor, was observing the scene from his place behind the prince with an exasperated expression, and Jungkook was attentively stood beside the entrance. She then bent her head in a semi-bow to whisper to Jimin, "Your highness, I know you're aggravated, but there's no need to take it out on the guard."

Jimin's sharp eyes pierced into her. "Who are you to tell me how to behave?"

Eunjae shut her eyes for a moment and sighed. She grazed a hand over Jimin's shoulder in consolation, so quickly it barely happened, but enough for Jimin to lessen the tension that had remained and widen his eyes at the action.

"I know I have no place, but you're causing unnecessary stress not only to others but to yourself, as well. It's out of all of our hands."

Just as Jimin went to answer, both doors to the room were thrust open and a guard from the corridor announced, "His Royal Highness Prince Lee Taeyong has arrived, accompanied by His Highness Prince Lee Mark."

Eunjae practically jolted at the sudden commotion, hastily straightening her back and returning to her place against the wall. She flipped open her notepad and clutched her pencil, ready to diligently take note of the encounter.

Boots thudded against the floor and in strode a man with the amount of confidence only a prince could have. From the way his chin ticked slightly upwards, his lips curled upwards in a sly smirk, to his hands clasped behind his back, Eunjae could tell this man brought trouble wherever he passed. Behind him came a man who seemed younger, with an innocent face compared to the older's sharp features.

Jimin watched Taeyong enter with his teeth clenched and had to physically stop himself from rolling his eyes. He had had problems with the other prince for as long as he could remember, all due to Taeyong's troublesome attitude and cocky demeanor. The younger prince, Mark, not so much, however.