A/N: Long chapter ahead :)
.
Jeonghan arrived to a huge apple garden. It was near the village, but he wasn't entirely sure how he ended up there. He made a mental note to go back to the village later so he can find his way back to Gothel's castle.
Apple trees were blossoming everywhere he looked as he walked on the fluffy green grass. He enjoyed the sun's warmth on his skin and the smell of fresh wind and flowers filled his nose. He sighed contently.
He stopped behind a tree when he suddenly heard noises. A horse (or rather a small pony) arrived trotting and loud chattering and giggling filled the silence of the garden that was previously only broken by the birds' chirping and the sounds of the river splashing. Jeonghan peeked out from behind the tree.
The pony that stopped in the garden had beautiful white fur and had some flowers clumsily braided in her mane. Jeonghan could tell her owners love her and take good care of her. But what surprised him that three little boys were sitting on the horse's back and now jumped off one by one. They all patted the pony's fur and continued giggling and talking. Jeonghan contemplated whether he should go over or not. The kids didn't seem to be older than 4-5 years old. Where are their parents?
'Minnie, Hao, look! Apples! Let's pick some for Botticelli!' suggested the black haired little boy, probably referring to their horse. The other two kids, a dark brown and a light brown haired boys nodded excitedly. The first boy rushed forward. As Jeonghan was watching him from his hiding place, suddenly the kid disappeared from his sight with a loud scream. He fell down into some kind of hole or trap.
'Oh no! Gyu!!' screamed the light brown haired boy and started running after him. Jeonghan stepped out from behind the tree and rushed there too.
'I'll bring hyung to help!' shouted the third kid who was already back on the pony's back.
'Hurry up!' yelled the other brunette and kneeled down where the other boy, Gyu fell. Jeonghan caught up to him and kneeled next to him.
The place where the boy fell indeed seemed to be some trap. It was several meters deep and was probably masked with some leaves and branches to camouflage it. To his luck the little boy managed to catch a root that was growing inside of the trap and he was now hanging inside, only holding himself with his hands.
'Hold on!' said Jeonghan. 'I'll help you!' he added, even though he had no idea what he can do to help. The boy was looking up at him with teary eyes. Jeonghan reached his hand forward.
'Grab my hand!' he said. The boy tried to reach his hand, but he didn't dare to let the root go with his hands.
'I can't!' he cried. Jeonghan tried to keep his voice composed. The kid can't see that he is panicked too.
'Let go of the root with one of your hands!' he instructed.
'You can do it, Gyu!' said the other kid next to Jeonghan. Gyu looked up at them, then carefully let go of the root with one of his hands and reached for Jeonghan's hand.
'You're doing great!' assured him Jeonghan. Finally Gyu's small hand reached Jeonghan's bigger one. He caught the boy's hand and with all his strength he pulled him up while Gyu supported himself with his legs on the wall of the trap.
Gyu was almost out of the trap when suddenly his foot slipped. He let out a scream as he slipped back. Jeonghan gasped when he felt himself losing his balance too. Both of them are going to fall-
Suddenly two strong hands grabbed Jeonghan's waist and he was being pulled back. He held Gyu's hand strongly until both of them were standing on the ground. The other two kids both jumped on Gyu and tackled him into a hug.
Jeonghan gasped for air when he realized what just happened and he fell on his knees on the ground, trying to catch his breath. That was really close. He heard the other person who saved them join the group hug with the kids.
'Mingyu! Be careful next time!' said the other. It was another man. He had a smooth voice. Jeonghan still didn't look up, but he heard him pressing kisses on the kid's face and the three boys giggled. Then the other probably realized that Jeonghan was still in slight shock and he went over to him, crouching down next to him.
'Are you okay?' he asked worriedly, putting a hand on Jeonghan's back. Jeonghan finally looked up. The other's breath got stuck in his throat as he was finally able to look at the person who saved his brother. He had never seen such a beautiful man in his entire life. At first he even thought he was a lady, probably because of his shoulder-long blonde hair and slim figure. The blonde's eyes were full of curiosity and kindness, and of course a bit of panic. His cheeks were tinted a rosy color as he stared back at him. He looked like a sculpture, a masterpiece. He just couldn't stop staring at him. He was beautiful.
But the same was true to Jeonghan. He just couldn't take his eyes off of the other man. He had never had an ideal type, especially since he had never met anyone his age, therefore he didn't really think about dating... but now he realized that his ideal type was just in front of him.
The other had big doe eyes with long eyelashes, staring into Jeonghan's soul. His face was blushing, Jeonghan assumed from the previous excitement. His body was well-built and he wore some simple clothes that's ideal for... chasing kids in an apple garden. Jeonghan just couldn't help but stare...
Oh shit, he was staring. And the other is still waiting for his answer.
'Uh, um, yes, I'm okay' Jeonghan stuttered out and stood up carefully. The other man stood up too.
'Thank you for saving my brother' he said.
'I-It's okay' mumbled Jeonghan. 'And thank you for saving me' he added shyly.
'It's nothing' said the other boy smiling at Jeonghan brightly. Jeonghan quickly looked away. He stared for too long already.
'Are all three of them your brothers?' he asked looking at the kids that were now trying to pick some apples. The brunette boy was sitting on Botticelli's back as that was the only height they could reach the tree branches from.
'Yes' sighed the other looking at them too. 'They can be a handful. They are triplets' he added. 'That's Seokmin and Minghao' he gestured at the light brown haired boy and the one on the horse's back. 'And you already know Mingyu.'
'They are cute' said Jeonghan.
'On a good day' laughed the other. Then he looked at Jeonghan again. 'Are you... new here? I don't think I've seen you before' he asked. And I'd definitely remember if I would've seen you, he added in his mind. He tried to put it in a neutral way. The blonde didn't recognize him nor his brothers immediately. He was treating them like any other person. He must be new.
'I've never been here before' admitted Jeonghan. 'This is my first time in this kingdom.'
'Are you from Shawol Kingdom?' furrowed his eyebrows the boy. Jeonghan looked at him curiously.
'No. I don't think so' he said.
'You don't think so' repeated the man. 'Are you Key's spy?'
'Who's that?' asked Jeonghan. The other smiled amusedly.
'The king who made the trap' he explained.
'Why would someone do something like this?' asked Jeonghan in concern.
'Well... Key believes that my- I mean our Queen did bad things to him in the past.' The two of them meanwhile started walking towards the kids slowly. Jeonghan liked it. He wished he could walk with him some more. Just the two of them.
'And she actually did so?' asked Jeonghan.
'No!' The other seemed to be offended.
'But if she didn't, why don't they just talk it out?' asked Jeonghan in confusion.
'I'm afraid it's too late for that' sighed the boy. 'This has been going on for like two decades now. Ever since I was little.' Jeonghan made a mental note that they must be around the same age. 'Their conflict can only be stopped by violence now. They don't talk at all.'
'It seems to be dumb' said Jeonghan. The other looked at him in interest and with a hint of admiration in his eyes.
'You think so?' he asked. Jeonghan nodded. They were suddenly snapped out of their thoughts when they heard shouts from the direction of the triplets.
'Gyu! Give it back!'
'No! I found it first!'
'Seok, Gyu, stoppp iiiit!!'
'Uh' scratched his nape the man in front of him awkwardly. 'I think I'm needed. I'll be back in a second' he chuckled looking into Jeonghan's eyes. Jeonghan smiled at him, resulting in both of them blushing and diverting their gazes. The boy rushed to his brothers to save them from killing each other.
Suddenly the bell in the village's church started ringing. Jeonghan gasped turning there.
'Oh my, it's so late already?' he whispered to himself. He looked towards the man and the kids. He doesn't have time to say goodbye. But he was sure he's going to come back next day. He turned around and started running towards the village.
He didn't spot Gothel's weasel that was following him all the way there.
.
A/N: I decided to go for a king and a queen in this story. I got some suggestions from you guys previously, and I decided to go with Key as the king. But thank you everyone who suggested idols <3 Who knows, I might use them in future books!
Thank you for reading, see you in the next chapter!