Taehyung's first period of commoners' school turned out to be a complete and utter disaster.
While it was true that he had caught up on multiple school years in only a matter of few weeks, it was nowhere near enough for what they were currently being taught. All the confidence he had built up through intensively studying all of Jungkook's old school material literally evaporated as soon as he saw the first equation on the blackboard.
Of course, he had a very good amount of basic knowledge now, he was an extremely skilled and an extremely fast learner, very gifted in a lot of subjects. But vectors, square roots, variables and fractures were something he had yet to catch up on.
The fact that Jungkook's maths teacher was a strict man that forced students to the front deliberately did not help.
Luckily, he wasn't the only one who seemed to be having problems. Literally every single student stared at the equation with question marks over question marks clouding their faces, the teacher sighing in annoyance.
"Come on, kids. This is nothing but simple revision. Let's do this step by step." He looked through the rows of desks inquiringly. Then, he tapped on the first part of the equation.
"You. New kid."
Taehyung froze in his seat. The teacher was looking straight at him, and classmates were starting to whip their heads around at him which made the breath catch in his throat.
Does he want me to...
"Step by step. First part of the equation, what's the square root of four?" He remained frozen, his breath catching in his throat. Square... root?
Hands were raising around him, students finally seemed to be getting the question. Everyone except for him. He could feel his palms sweating, it seemed like everyone was looking at him. Everyone must be thinking he was stupid now! Was he?
"Square root of four, please. What did your previous school teach you?," the teacher tutted, and Taehyung hung his head down in shame. He felt embarrassed and enraged simultaneously. Why did he have to be picked? It wasn't his fault he was behind, after all! And it wasn't like he wouldn't catch up sooner or later.
In Elysium, his tutor would have been patient and careful, explaining whatever this was into most specific detail and making sure he actually understood. But apparently, things were different in this world.
"The square root of four is two!," Jungkook butted in to save him, making the maths teacher glare at him. Having been a student of his for several years, he knew the man could not stand students blurting out responses without their hands raised. But right now, he didn't care. Taehyung was being humiliated and he could not bear to see it.
"Yes, Jungkook, thank you for your input. I don't recall me calling your name and I think you've visited this school long enough to know I don't tolerate speaking without being spoken to," the man snarled and decided that he did not wish to question Taehyung any further and decided to move on to another student.
The prince let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, feeling his heart rate visibly calm down.
"I cannot believe this. How could I embarrass myself like this in my first lesson? Unbelievable!," Taehyung squeaked after the lesson had finished. "You must explain this square root thing to me, Jungkook. As soon as you can."
"Hey, hey. It's okay, you take your time to catch up and ignore Mr. Ma, he's a dick. Like a real-life Severus Snape," Jungkook reassured, munching on a chocolate bar. Taehyung furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "I beg your pardon?"
"Oh yeah, I keep forgetting you actually come for a different world. What I meant was, don't listen to that idiot, he's mean to everyone. And have some chocolate, it'll help loosen you up." He pushed another chocolate bar towards the prince, the latter reluctantly taking it just to cope with the shame he was feeling.
"For fuck's sake," the brunette muttered when he registered his classmates staring at him oh-so-secretively yet again instead of simply coming up to him and actually talking to him about their thoughts and doubts about him.
"I hate these stupid kids. Let's go out, I'll show you the courtyard."
Jungkook rose from his seat and reached out for Taehyung's arm to pull him up along with him, the latter consenting with a relieved nod.
°○●○●○°
"My lady, would you be willing to lift your head a little?"
The night of the crown prince's marriage and flee, his sister Princess Sojung was seated on the rosy silk sheets of her queen-sized canopy bed, a frown etched upon her face and her gaze directed towards her own nightgown-clad knees. She sighed.
"I simply cannot comprehend, Yuna. Why would he do that? Publicly humiliate himself and our entire family, doing such unspeakable things?," she exclaimed, complying and raising her head so that her handmaiden could tie ribbons into her beautiful raven hair, which would result in luscious curls on the following morning. Something Sojung usually appreciated and looked most forward to, but she could not seem to care at the moment.
"Unspeakable things? Princess, is it really that unspeakable?," the handmaiden asked shyly, taking another strand of her lady's hair and grabbing a brush to soften it even more.
"Why of course it is! He abandonded his wife on the altar, a woman's most viscious nightmare! Princess Eunbin must be devastated, humiliated! And-- my heavens, he locked lips with the ring-bearer! A man!" Her tone was most aghast and exasperated.
"Is that... is that very bad?," Yuna inquired carefully, almost feeling her hands shake out of nervosity.
"Bad... it is not possible! Against the laws of nature, against everything we have ever been taught! I really do wonder what made him do it. And I cannot help but worry about me suffering the same fate as Princess Eunbin with my future husband."
Yuna nodded slowly. "My lady, I can assure you that no man would leave you on the altar. Prince Taehyung is... quite different from other men, I suppose. Do you recall the kitchen maid's words? I believe... the crown prince had real feelings for this boy, do you not?" The princess gasped.
"But how could that be? It is simply not possible!" The handmaiden shrugged.
"My lady, there are things about love that no one has ever taught you. It comes in many different shapes and forms, it is never quite the same. What I mean to be saying is, that form of attraction is possible, although I imagine it to appear strange at first." Sojung furrowed her eyebrows.
"But how..."
"I am aware that as a lowly servant, my opinion on this matter seems not to be relevant. However, I am certain that two people loving each other shall not be forcefully torn apart. Family, class and wealth should not matter. And neither should your being a man or a woman. If two men or two women find solace in each other and truly wish to be together, who are we to stop them?" Yuna blushed, feeling she had talked far too much.
But the princess did not seem to mind, looking pensive. "I am starting to understand your point of view. I suppose love should not be forbidden if it is most sincere and genuine. But my brother? Loving a man? I cannot imagine... Yuna, you have such a surprising way with words and ideas! They just make me think all night long! You ought to be princess instead of me, for you are more beautiful, smart and well-mannered than I ever could be!," she exclaimed.
Yuna gasped. "My lady, you flatter me too much. You are an excellent princess, by all means. And I am perfectly content being your devoted handmaiden, serving you for eternity. There, your head shall be with the most handsomest of curls next morning." She stepped away, inspecting her own work on her lady's head.
"I thank you. Do you suppose you could--" All of a sudden, there was a slight knock on the door which caught Sojung off guard as no one tended to visit at this time. "Yes, do enter?"
In stepped another woman, one that made the handmaiden almost drop the bowl of moisturizer that she was holding out of shock.
"Good evening. I hope I am not disturbing you?"
A smile bloomed on the princess's face as she saw her best friend standing in the doorframe. "Princess Yerin! You have not departed yet?"
The other princess shook her head.
"Mother and father were too tired after the... preposterous events that occured today. And one of our horses has fallen ill, returning by carriage in this situation seems highly improper. We are using one of your guest chambers, if you do not mind." Sojung shook her head wildly, her handmaiden secretly smiling widely.
"I certainly do not mind! You are always welcome to stay, it is so much less lonely with you for company. Can you stay? I am in desperate need of comfort after my brother's disappearance." Yerin smiled and nodded, closing the big and heavy door behind her.
"Oh, but you can hardly be lonely with such an amazing handmaiden always taking care of you!" She met eyes with said handmaiden, who almost dropped the bowl out of shock again, feeling a blush creep up her ears.
"Of course, Yuna always makes sure I don't get too lonely, forgive me. Her ideas always make me think, she has very interesting thoughts that change my entire way of thinking sometimes."
"Truly? How fascinating!" The princess smiled and met eyes with the handmaiden again, who felt a strange flutter in her chest and worried that she might be falling ill, quietly placing the bowl behind her.
"Yes, yes. We were just talking about my brother and his actions today."
Yerin sighed. "I have known Taehyung all my life and not once has he acted improperly. For him to run away like this? He must have suffered in silence for too long, until he could not bear it anymore."
"I just don't understand. We did grow apart, but whatever pained him he could have confided in me with. Yuna suggested that he was in love. With that servant boy who was the ring-bearer at the ceremony." Yerin gasped at that.
"Of course! He was in love with someone he was not allowed to! How very romantic!" Sojung widened her eyes in shock.
"I am most surprised at your reaction. You seem to be thinking perfectly alike with Yuna. So you have no issues with two men loving each other? They cannot bear children, how will they start a family?" Yerin shrugged, sitting down on the bed next to her friend calmly.
"Well, maybe they cannot bear children. But they can still be happy with each other, can they not?" She looked at the handmaiden again, who felt a stronger urge to leave the room out of panic by the minute.
"Simply because society thinks something is unacceptable does not mean all of us shall have to condemn it, I believe. Everyone deserves a right to their own view. My family wants me to marry a prince because it would be only proper for a royal, but do I, too?" She giggled. "Absolutely not! You know I despise men, I would rather wed a lady." At that, she winked.
Sojung gasped in shock. "Do you hear the words that are coming out of your mouth, dear? I think you are too exhausted from my brother's failed wedding. We shall talk about this another day." Yerin laughed again.
"Exhausted? No. Entertained? Yes. You know better than anyone how much I enjoy impropriety and scandals, they light a fire within me. It prevents a much too boring life. "
Her friend shook her head gravely. "You surely are undaunted." She then looked towards the window and the dark sky outside, Yuna covering it with the thick dark velvet curtains in order to distract herself from possibly suffering a heart attack.
"Oh, Taehyung. How I wish he is not hurt, despite his scandalous impropriety. I hope he will return soon. If not, we must find him and bring him back."
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(A/N: soo just to clarify in case i wasn't clear both parts were written in different timelines which is kinda dumb from me but i'm not writing a 27472882 page novel where every event is sorted chronologically so yeah😭
also i feel like sneezing all the time and you have no idea how friggin annoying that is like i'm not sick and i don't feel sick but something inside my nose keeps itching? like wtf i don't suffer from hay fever either but anyways that's irrelevant
gotta go to bed for ✨school✨ tomorrow, i hope you'll enjoy your school day more than i will and thank you very much for reading, you're amazing and ily good night💜💜)