LOVE THAT BURNS

YOUNG MASTER

                   CHAPTER ONE
              

        It was the wee hours of the morning. Boom shouldn't be out sweeping yet. He knows that.

    But this was one of the few ways he could see young master without drawing attention from anyone.

    The pre-dawn mist hung low over the cobblestones, wrapping the grand estate in a shroud of quiet gray.

     Boom kept his head bowed, the steady, rhythmic shuck-shuck of his coarse broom against the stone the only sound breaking the heavy silence. His hands, calloused and frozen by the biting morning air, gripped the wooden handle tightly.

   He knew he risked much by tending to his chores at such an ungodly hour. The head housekeeper would surely have him dismissed, or worse, if he were discovered loitering about the master's private quarters before the sun had even breached the horizon.

     Yet, this perilous hour was one of the only sanctuary he and young master had to themselves. It was one of the few stolen moments with young master, where they could both be their selves with each other, away from the judgement of the world and the court. Just them, no matter how fleeting it is, Boom would give all for it.

     A soft click echoed from the terrace above. Boom’s heart quickened. He did not dare lift his gaze too quickly, lest some watchful guard notice his impertinence. Instead, he merely shifted his sweeping toward the shadow of the ivy-covered stone pillar, waiting with bated breath for the young master to appear.

    The terrace doors groaned softly as they parted, and a figure draped in silk and velvet slipped into the gloom.

     Young Master Aou. The Duke’s only son and a royal heir by blood—did not belong on the cold cobblestones at this hour.

    Yet, he descended the stone steps with a desperate, hurried grace, his boots barely making a sound.

    Boom’s breath hitched. The rhythmic scraping of his broom ceased entirely, leaving a deafening silence in its wake.

      Every rustle of the wind felt like a footstep; every shadow looked like an approaching guard. They were playing with fire, a single misstep away from complete ruin.

    For a royal, discovery meant an unspeakable scandal and banishment, for a servant like, it meant a gallows rope or even worst an execution.

      Aou did not hesitate. The moment his feet touched the damp earth of the courtyard, he darted into the deep shadow of the ivy-covered pillar, throwing caution to the wind. He grabbed Boom by the rough fabric of his coat, pulling him back into the darkest corner of the stone alcove.

    "Aou" Boom gasped, the royal title slipping away in his terror.

   "You madness... if the night watch turns the corner..."

"Let them look," Aou whispered fiercely, though his voice trembled with an undeniable rush of adrenaline. His chest heaved against Boom’s.

     His eyes, bright and frantic in the dark, searched Boom’s face. "Let the whole world wake. I could not endure another hour inside those walls, the thoughts of you filled my mind." Aou hands were trembling, cold from the morning air but burning with a frantic energy.

    He reached up, his fingers tangling in Boom’s hair, tilting his face up. The sheer bravery of the act, the reckless defiance of the crown, the country, and the court sent a jolt of pure electric fear through Boom’s veins.

     A sharp latch clicked from the servants' quarters across the courtyard. Both men froze, their breath caught in their throats, hearts hammering in a chaotic unison against their ribs. Aou didn't retreat. Instead, he pressed closer, his lips brushing against Boom's ear, a desperate, forbidden promise whispered in the dark as they waited to see if their lives were about to end.

    The footsteps grew louder, the heavy thud of leather soles against the flagstones vibrating through the very wall they leaned against.

    Aou's grip on Boom’s shirts tightened, his knuckles white. The adrenaline that had fueled his descent now curdled into a cold, sharp dread.

    A lantern's glow began to bleed around the edge of the adjacent corridor, casting long, skeletal shadows that danced toward their hiding spot.

     Aou pulled Boom deeper into the alcove, their silhouettes merging into the thick ivy. The proximity was a dangerous necessity, every frantic heartbeat a reminder of the chasm between their stations and the lethal consequences of this meeting.

    As the guard’s shadow stretched across the ground just inches away, the sheer bravery of Aou's defiance hung in the air a silent, desperate challenge to the laws of the palace.

  The lantern light flickered and then began to recede as the guard turned back toward the main gate.

    The immediate danger passed, but the rush of the near-miss remained, leaving them both shaken and breathless in the fading night and desperate for each other