"How have you been holding up?" I asked Nighter as we walked to a certain destination in the park on the outskirts of town.
"Pretty good," he replied, looking around in awe. I held back a smile. Maintained by all, the park we were at was the most beautiful park in the whole country. Even those down South took care of the park. The park was the symbol of valor. Connected to the green landscape was the cemetery. Every royal, every local, every criminal, was buried in the cemetery. "Why are we going to a cemetery?"
"Paying respects," I replied, opening the gate for him. I guided the way to my mother's grave.
"Kim... Sunghee?" he asked.
"My mother," I put forth.
"Oh...OH," he exclaimed. "Wait, you're an orphan?! Shit, that's not what I was supposed to say. Um... I'm sorry."
I let slip a smile at his flustered state. As serious as the situation was, Nighter's lack of mental filter definitely lightened the mood. "It's alright. Yeah, I'm an orphan," I replied. I could swear I heard a 'me too,' but I wasn't sure, so I didn't question it.
"Should I walk away for you to... pay respects?" he asked. I shook my head in response and placed the daisies on her grave. The royals were buried along with the locals to symbolize the equality that the country ran on. Although there was a ruler, everyone was treated equally. No royal had the special treatment of a fancy tombstone, and anyone could visit the grave of a royal.
"She used to tell me a story when I was three. Claw's Bridge was the name," I started. I opened the small bag I was carrying and removed a book. "Claws resemble strength and great balance between the body and mind. The story however, portrayed them differently."
"Ferocious, painful, dangerous," he listed. "A bridge to balance and everything that stops you from crossing it."
I smiled. "Precisely," I said. I handed him the book. "It's a good story. Short, but really good."
"Dotty Randers? A different name for a Hitzorian," he pointed out.
"Mother's nickname. She wrote the book," I said. "Randers was the nickname of her childhood friend who died. They came up with the story together, but my mother finished writing it after his death."
"Sentimental value," he said, running his hand over the intricate features of the cover. "Are you sure you want to give me this book? I can be really clumsy."
"I trust you with it. Once the book started to wear out, I got copies of it made. I kept the original for... well, mother's handwriting is aesthetically appealing," I replied.
"Your father, I'm guessing?" Nighter asked, pointing at the adjacent grave.
"That's Randers. Mom wanted to be buried beside him. My father was cremated on the royal grounds. He didn't deserve to be buried under the grounds of pure souls nor on the royal premises, so we got rid of him entirely," I said. I moved to the left of mom's grave. "That's my grandfather. He died a few months after my mother."
"Oh, I'm sorry," he said, pulling his coat to cover more of his arms as the wind picked up.
"Thank you. Can I ask you something?" I asked. He hummed in response, giving me his undivided attention. "You stopped trying to leave. You're more open to conversations with us, deeper conversations. Before, you refused to even look in our direction and now... you're not cussing us out anymore. Why is that?"
"I-I don't know. I think I just gave up. I have no place to go, and I can't reject you. I don't have an option, do I?" he said, shrugging. I felt a tug on my chest, knowing that we caused him so much pain when we were supposed to make him happy.
"Can you give me some time alone?" I asked. He nodded and walked towards the entrance of the cemetery.
^Jungkook's POV^
Everything was going according to plan.