Promise- Minsung

Chapter Twenty Nine

"Of course," Minho stood to see her off. "Don't work too hard!" he called out. "It's not good for the baby!"

"I'll be fine!" Jeongyeon called over her shoulder.

Minho watched her go, before he settled back down.

Right as the door opposite to the one Princess Jeongyeon had exited from burst open and an entire parade of boys marched in.

"That's insane," Yongbok was muttering to Min-hyung. "Who does he think he is?"

Slightly behind them followed Master Seo Changbin and Prince Jisung who were whispering between themselves.

The four sat down before the food that Minho had asked to be set out. "Is this it?" Min-hyung cried. He motioned for a servant. "Bring more to eat out here."

"What are you guys doing?" Minho asked, dragging the scroll from out of his robes and setting it out once more, eating as he read. "What's the big commotion about?"

Yongbok glanced at Master Seo and Prince Jisung across the table before leaning in. "The public crowds are demanding that the Crown Prince, soon to be King Han Jisung, marry another person, a woman, and have her as co-ruler with him. They're demanding that and that you be sent to a different palace, while the crowned Queen who would be Prince Jisung's wife take over this one and rule and produce children with Jisung."

Minho's hand frozen halfway to his mouth for a few seconds, before continuing. He looked up only for a moment to see Jisung's face, who was staring coldly down at his soup.

He felt emotions building up in his chest.

He couldn't really tell what they were.

He didn't say anything more to Yongbok and continued reading as he shoveled more rice into his mouth. He then stood, snapping the scroll closed. "I'll have to excuse myself, then. Please pardon my untimely exit. I really must send a letter to my brother," he walked out of the room quickly, leaving his brother and friends behind him.

"You shouldn't have told him that!" Min-hyung turned to face Yongbok as soon as he was gone. "Now he's going to feel unwanted here."

"But isn't he?" Yongbok sent a glare at Jisung. "Nobody here but his Lee people like him."

"That's not true-" Changbin shut up with one look from Jisung. He turned back to his food with his head down.

Jisung was also staring down at his food without a word.

"Prince Jisung, what are your feelings on this matter?" Yongbok challenged, staring right at the younger prince. "Are you truly going to marry a new woman and kick my brother out?"

"Nothing is decided," Jisung muttered. He set down his spoon. "I have work to do. I'll have to talk to you later," he too stood and walked out of the room, leaving Min-hyung, Yongbok and Changbin alone.

"Well," Min-hyung muttered, spooning soup into his mouth. "I guess that's that."

~oOo~

Jisung stalked through the palace. Who were those peasants to tell him what to do? Demanding for a queen? He wouldn't give them one! He raged as he walked towards his room. He was feeling a mix of emotions: rage, confusion, longing, agreement, sadness, curiosity. Could he really marry a woman that easily and make her queen?

Or would that break the tie they were trying to make with the Lee Province? If he were to cast Minho to the side, he would surely create more enemies in the Lee Kingdom than he already had.

His head hurt. What was he supposed to do?

He flung the doors open, only to find his husband sitting inside the room, his head tucking into a book at the desk. He stopped for a moment only to continue in, closing the doors behind him.

"What are you doing?" he asked, walking towards his own desk.

"Nothing of importance," Minho muttered, not looking up. He kept scribbling down whatever he was trying to write and ignoring Jisung who sat down across from him, keenly staring at his face.

Jisung hadn't really taken in his handsomeness before, but Minho was quite good looking.

There was a patter in his chest. "What did your parents look like?"

"What?" Minho looked up. "Why do you want to know?"

"All your siblings are good looking too... I'm just wondering what your parents looked like."

Minho took him in, before turning back to his book, much to Jisung's frustration. "I don't know. Don't remember seeing them at all. They both died in a fire at our palace when I was only a few months old."

"Oh..." Jisung felt dumb for asking. "I'm sorry, I had forgotten that you had lost your parents at a young age as well."

"Yes, well... I always was grateful that I didn't get to know them."

Jisung stared at him in shock.

"I think losing them would have hurt more if I had gotten to know them. I heard they were good people, it would have been too hard of a loss. My siblings suffered much more than I did."

Jisung shut his mouth, drinking in his words. "I suppose you have a point. At least you have your siblings."

"Not out here, I don't," Minho muttered, just loud enough for Jisung to hear.

Jisung huffed and pulled out his own scrolls, setting to work reading through them and approving or removing propositions.

They worked through the day, all of fifteen feet away from each other, without saying another word. They didn't need to, nor want to. When Jisung got up to eat lunch and dinner, Minho stayed behind, drowning himself in work and studies.

"Minho!" Yongbok arrived with a plate full of food. "You have to eat, you're going to be too skinny!"

Minho didn't look up as he set the tray down beside the desk. "Eat at least a little bit," Yongbok urged.

Minho didn't touch it.

Jisung arrived back and set a candle on fire, placing it down on Minho's desk. "You can stay up if you'd like. I'm going to bed," he turned away from Minho and headed to the back of the room, taking off all his robes.

All of them.

He pulled on a new set of white ones seconds later, tying them firmly at his waist before walking back to the silk bed that lay in the middle of the room. He settled down on his side, his back facing Minho as usual.

Minho worked for another hour before he looked up. He found Jisung breathing deeply in his sleep. He set his brush down and stretched. What time was it? He looked outside. The sun was down.

He licked his fingers before putting out the candle. He too walked to the back of the room, quietly so he didn't wake Jisung. He pulled over the colorful outer robe and kept the smaller, white one on. Not having a new one to change into and not wanting to bother, he walked back to his side of the bed and sat down carefully.

Jisung didn't stir.

With a sigh, Minho slung his legs into the bed and pulled his side of the silks up to his chest. He turned, his back facing Jisung. "Husband... how much longer are we going to do this?"

He didn't get a reply, just as he had predicted.

He sighed deeply and closed his eyes, falling into an uncomfortable sleep.

In the night he flipped over onto his other side. Deep in slumber now, he didn't notice as Jisung turned to face him as well, his eyes still closed but his breathing normal.

Silently, they slept facing each other all night.