Crossed Hearts | Stray Kids Royal AU Fanfic

The heart of the kingdom

Seyvon = Minho
Ronan = Jisung
Prince Zayyan = Hyunjin
_________________________________

The night didn't stop there. Seyvon put all his trust in Ronan when he let him lead him down to the outskirts of the village. Seyvon advanced feeling dread squeezing his lungs. The night was almost over, the sun was expected and his father was soon to be awake and notice his empty bed. He wanted to turn around, go to his safe home and close his eyes, accepting the past events as some sort of a fever dream. But he didn't want to let go of Ronan's hand. He wanted to see more. To swallow his fear and follow him.

"Is this... the market?" Seyvon looked around at the boots carved in fir wood. "Why are we here before all the salesmen?"

"This is the heart of the kingdom. Not the church or the castle. Here. Where all sorts of people gather to exchange food and jewels and wood. In my former village there was a tradition. Every year on your birthday the neighbors would form a circle around you and sing and dance. It had to be in the heart of the village."

"I do not know how to dance." Seyvon shook his head.

"I'll teach you." Ronan grabbed him by the wrist and drew him closer.

It was a repetitive move of coming closer and splitting apart, then leaning to one side with a few clumsy steps and twirling until their backs glued to each other and their hands found their way to each other once more. And the dance continues with the same moves, peaking with another twirl that brough them face to face and so on.

Seyvon was unease, trying not to mess a step and hear the boy laughing at him. Ronan, however, was in ecstasy, his head falling back on Seyvon's shoulder just to see the stars diminished under the heavenly light of the sun. He felt like home again. For a brief span of time. But he did.

"Thank you!" he said all of a sudden, after sitting down to watch the first salesman placing his merch at his boot.

"For what?" Seyvon asked confused.

"For dancing with me. I needed that. I haven't done that since mother died."

"It's your birthday, isn't it?"

"Was. It's over now." He smiled at the dawn rising from behind the mountains.

"And you spent it with me?"

"It was certainly better than alone. One thing I enjoy about this view is that every salesman has a wife, a daughter or a son that joins them. They are doing it together. As you do with your father. My father comes here by himself to sell fish and I am sent to steal food. I cannot do that for the rest of my life. You were right about one thing. I search for the easy way. I would rather be guilty of sloth than work all my life for this life."

"That's why you don't hope for a long life." Seyvon watched how Ronan's eyes became glassy.

"I love this place. I do. I love having the stars above me, the forest and the sea next to me. I love seeing all these people smiling and enjoying another dawn. Yet... none of these things belong to me. Everyone can open their eyes and see them, admire them, pray to them. I have nothing of mine to make me live longer." He whipped his eyes fast with his sleeve and forced a smile, biting the inside of his bottom lip in the process.

Seyvon remained paralyzed by the fight in his chest between the urge to comfort the boy and the fear of scaring him. Hesitation won in the end and he got up on his feet, ready to go back to his normal life.

"I must go now. Father is waiting."

"I shall come with you." Ronan stumbled on his feet as he tried to lift himself up.