Starfall. |Lee Know

Sixteen.

Dabin tried to help. She really did, but the girl was clueless about what she might help with in a kitchen as she had never entered one and never cooked a meal.

She messed up a couple of things and failed to follow Minho's instructions. She spilled some oil and almost ruined the pasta. She was once close to cutting her finger while trying to chop an onion but ended up crying from the onion's juices. All that was happening while Minho was having the time of his life. The boy never laughed that hard in his thirty years of life. She was a sweet mess that he felt the urge to protect from her own self.

When finally the clumsiness and the mess were over, the two royals sat in the backyard of the private palace, barefooted, with no table or seats. They were sprawled on the green grass, with their plates of pasta and steak in their laps, and glasses of wine beside them. Their tiaras left their heads and rested beside Minho on the grass, while their heads dropped back down to watch the stars above them.

"Are you sure this is okay?" Minho asked her, afraid she would be in trouble if her family found out she was spending her evening alone at his private palace.

Dabin pulled her phone out of her purse, unlocked it, and showed it to him. There was a single message from Changbin, asking her if she was having fun and that's it. "See? They don't care." She shrugged and dropped her phone by her side. She then took a spoonful of the pasta and shoved it in her mouth, dancing in tiny at the strong taste of it. "This is one of the most delicious plates of pasta I've ever tasted." She pulled the wine glass to take a sip.

She had never had a relaxing dinner like that. Even when she dines alone in her room. She never felt at ease like that.

"You are good at playing the piano," Minho said. His plate was empty by then, resting by his side and the wine glass in his hand.

"I'm not." She chuckled. "I stopped the lessons at the age of fourteen. I just remember that piece all too well because I used to love it." Dabin pulled a little at one of the hairpins that were still holding her hair up. She seemed to be irritated by them.

"Do you want to take them off?" Minho questioned.

"What?" Dabin jolted.

"Those pricky things in your hair." Minho elaborated. "They don't look comfy. Do you want me to remove them for you?"

Dabin hesitated for a second but she was really in bad need of letting her hair down. "If that's okay with you." She gave him a sheepish smile.

"My pleasure, Your Royal Highness." He smiled sweetly at her.

Dabin turned around, giving him access to her back. Immediately, Minho placed his wine aside and started pulling out the pins carefully, allowing her hair strands to fall down one by one. He heard how she hummed in satisfaction as her hair fell down. That sound tickled his ears.

"That was a torture." She sighed once all her hair fell down. She ruffled it, massaging her scalp and combing it with her fingers. Minho watched that long black sable hair finally sway and breathe with the wind. It was pitch dark that it looked exactly like the night sky above them. It just needed some stars and you wouldn't tell the difference at all. Dabin turned around and faced him with a smile. "Thank you."

"Uh, it's okay." He smiled back and immediately shoved his face away to hide the redness in it.

"Can I ask you something a little personal?" Dabin questioned. Earning a nod from Minho, she resumed with her question. "Is living here by yourself a choice? Or you were obligated?"

Minho gave her a bitter smile. "It was a choice I was obligated to choose." He sighed and then dropped himself to the grass to lie flat on it. "I wasn't welcomed there. My presence wasn't favorable for the King and the Queen. Plus, I was almost assassinated there once."

"What?" Dabin gasped. She never knew it was that bad.

"Someone poisoned my food." He looked at her. "That's why I cook my own. I don't trust anyone with my food anymore."

"That must've been awful." She softened for him.

"It's okay now. I'm comfortable on my own." He chuckled. "They are not expecting anything from me anyways. I can live as I want as long as I'm not getting in the way."

Scoffing, Dabin dropped herself to her back to lie down by his side. "Just like me." She mumbled.

"By the way," Minho talked. "Thank you for earlier. If you didn't push me to the piano, I would've messed the whole event up. I really wanted it to go smoothly."

"No, I'm sorry for what I did." She sighed. "I wasn't supposed to act on my own."

"You saved the day, Princess." He chuckled, still looking at the starry sky.

"You saved it with how you played the piano too well." She replied. "And in all honesty, I loved that project of yours. It's something that your people would surely appreciate."

He let out a short breath. "I'm not sure. But I did what I thought of."

"Why don't you expand this project?" Dabin questioned and looked to her right at him as he looked at her

"How?"

"You made a culture center. I say you build a library that is fee-free too. That would be very helpful for the students." Dabin looked excited as she talked. "As far as I know, you don't have public libraries here. So, why not have one now?"

"It's a good idea, I have to admit. But I'm not sure if I will receive any support for it."

"You will!" She clapped her hands and sat upright. "First, you will have to make the culture center a success. And then, they will give you all the support you want once they see the impact of the center."

Minho giggled and sat upright to face her. "You got too excited, Princess."

"Cause I want you to make it. I want you to receive the trust and recognition you deserve." She said too honestly.

"Why?" Minho softened and tilted his head at her.

"Cause I know you'll make a good king one day. You just didn't have your chance to bloom and show your kingdom your true colors."

Minho smiled. "Just like you." He mumbled.

"Just like me." Dabin mumbled back.

Right then, her eyes fell on the two tiaras behind Minho. She smiled as she realized how similar they looked. Simple, star-shaped silver sparkling tiaras that looked more like headpieces than Royal Tiaras.

Minho looked over his shoulder, realizing what she was looking at. He smiled.

They looked really similar.

Just like their owners.