The cool breeze blew through the open window in the carriage, ruffling the curtains and brushing against Donghyuck's cheeks pleasantly as they rode along the path. All of Donghyuck's original methods of curbing his boredom that he had used during their first day of traveling—which included, of course, annoying Jeno, talking to Jeno, and making fun of Jeno—had quickly grown stale for him, and he found himself becoming restless even more quickly than he had the previous day. When he poked his head out of the carriage window, Jeno had given him a skeptical look, expecting to be barraged again, but the omega stayed silent long enough that Jeno eventually lost interest and shrugged, riding a bit ahead and out of talking distance.
After a while of watching the rolling hills pass by, Donghyuck discovered that if he tilted his head just right, he was able to see Mark riding on his horse near the front of the carriage. He was next to John, and the two of them seemed to be having what looked like pleasant conversation, laughing and chatting and generally enjoying their time together.
Without realizing it, Donghyuck found himself staring, taking in the king's features. He rested his chin on his hand and let his eyes scan across Mark's face, from his thick eyebrows and bright brown eyes down the slope of his nose, all the way to his lips that were parted in a brilliant smile. He watched his black hair move with the wind and remembered his scent, thick like smoke but warm like a cozy fireplace. He imagined his familiar pheromones billowing towards him, floating in through the carriage window and making the space smell like him, wrapping him in a blanket of feeling protected and safe.
He blinked in surprise, startled at his own thoughts. He tried to push them away, shaking his head and trying to think of anything else. Mark isn't safe. Mark isn't familiar. He's the selfish jerk who kidnapped me and took me into his world without even considering how it might affect me.
But once he started, he realized that it was nearly impossible for him to stop. His thoughts kept drifting back towards the king against his will, running through his head at the speed of light. He stared at the side of his face and found himself imagining what it would be like to mouth at the side of his jawline. He watched Mark's lips move in conversation and daydreamed about them moving against his own mouth instead, soft and sweet at first and then later, hard and demanding, tongue dominating his mouth and sending heat shooting towards the pit of his stomach. He found himself biting at his own bottom lip and squeezing his thighs together, his imagination drifting and envisioning Mark above him, spreading his legs and sliding between them like he belonged there, whispering soothingly into his ear before his mouth moved down to sink his teeth into his mating spot on his neck, holding him close as he knotted him—
The train of thought ended abruptly, and all of the sudden, Donghyuck felt like he was going to be sick.
"Jeno!" He called out with as much strength as he could manage, his stomach lurching with a sudden onset of nausea that caught him by surprise. His own scent must have been already been potent enough to catch the guard's attention, either from his erotic daydreams or his current discomfort and panic, because it seemed that Jeno had already been staring at him in concern. As soon as he heard Donghyuck call for him, Jeno immediately pulled up next to the carriage window as close as he could.
"Yes, Your Highness? What's the matter?" He asked hurriedly. Donghyuck clutched the side of his seat as another wave of nausea crashed over him, his body starting to tremble.
"I don't... feel so good all of the sudden..." He managed to whimper quietly, inhaling deeply as his head started to spin. Jeno's eyes widened in panic before he lifted his head, turning towards the two soldiers in the front that were holding the reigns of the horses pulling the carriage.
"Stop! Pull over immediately!"
The guards obeyed instantly, and the carriage lurched to a sudden halt. Donghyuck clapped a hand over his mouth and whined at the movement, cold sweat starting to break out across his brow from the effort of keeping himself from vomiting. The door to the carriage then swung open, revealing Mark with panic and concern written all over his face.
"Your Highness, what's wrong?"
"Move," Donghyuck managed to grit out, shoving Mark to the side and stumbling out of the carriage and onto the grass. He landed on his hands and knees and tried to breathe deeply as his stomach twisted in pain, his whole body feeling warm and feverish.
Mark seemed to catch on to what was going on almost immediately, because he looked up at the soldiers around them and started barking commands.
"Step back! Give him some space!"
All of the guards that had originally been approaching the omega with curious looks all stiffened and obeyed, backing away a respectable distance. Mark came and kneeled down next to him tentatively, placing a reassuring hand on the omega's back. Mark's scent filled his senses—the very same one he had been daydreaming about only moments before—and it oddly seemed to calm his body down. He felt something akin to comfort wash over him as the king got closer, and he found himself reaching out and grabbing onto the hem of Mark's coat before he could think twice about it.
"Stay," he whimpered, his body continuing to tremble with sickness. Mark's eyes widened with momentary surprise, but then he wiped the look off his face and moved closer, rubbing the omega's lower back gently.
"I'm here, I'm here. I'm not going anywhere," he soothed him quietly. Donghyuck turned and buried his face into Mark's side, inhaling his scent shakily over and over again until his body slowly started to calm down. Mark allowed him to and didn't say a word, just kept a comforting arm around his waist and held him for a long moment.
After a while, the nausea faded completely, and all that was left was the shaking of his arms and legs in the aftermath of his body fighting off whatever strange illness he'd just suffered from. With a deep inhale, Donghyuck pulled away, his face flushing now that he was alert enough again to feel embarrassed.
"Are you feeling alright now?" Mark asked, features still etched with concern as he scanned Donghyuck's face for any signs of distress. The omega nodded slowly, looking everywhere except directly at Mark.
"Yeah... I think I'm okay now. I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me," he muttered shamefully. Mark shook his head emphatically.
"Don't apologize. I'm glad we stopped and gave you the time you needed to feel better. Did you get motion sick from the carriage?"
Donghyuck frowned. He had never experienced motion sickness before, he used to have no problem with long car rides or anything like that back in his world. If it was not motion sickness, then what had caused his sudden problems in the carriage?
"I... I have no idea," he admitted, "I've never gotten motion sick like that before. I have no clue what happened or what got me sick."
Mark matched his frown, looking confused and concerned. "Do you think you'll be okay in the carriage for another few hours until we stop for the night?"
Donghyuck looked back over his shoulder, glancing wearily at the carriage. It was hard to forget the way he had felt right before they pulled over, like the walls were closing in on him and the air was too stuffy to breathe, like he was trapped. He shuddered at the memory, realizing that getting back in the carriage was the last thing he wanted to do.
Mark must have noticed, because his expression shifted, and he was quick to offer another suggestion. "Would you like to ride on one of the horses instead?"
Donghyuck's eyes widened in alarm at the idea.
"I can't... I've never actually ridden a horse before," he muttered, "I'd just slow everyone down."
"You wouldn't be riding one on your own. You would just sit with one of us on the back of our horses. All you have to do is hold on and enjoy the ride."
Donghyuck paused, pondering the idea for a minute, before he nodded slowly. "Okay... who would I be riding with?"
"It's your choice. Choose whoever you'd be most comfortable with. You can choose me, or John, or any one of the guards."
Donghyuck glanced up at met the king's eyes hesitantly. The unspoken words hung in the air, the offer of Mark allowing him to ride on his horse with him. Donghyuck was mad at himself for how bad he actually wanted it, how he wanted to wrap his arms around Mark's waist and bury in face in the back of his hair and inhale his scent as they rode along.
He shook it off, trying to blink the fantasy away. It was troubling, how he was all of the sudden daydreaming about Mark of all people and wanting every opportunity to be around him and get closer to him. It went against everything he had been trying to stand for while he had been here, how he had been trying his best to prove that he was independent and defiant and didn't need a stupid alpha, no matter what his body told him.
But with every act of kindness, every brush of their hands, every comforting smile sent his way, he found his resolve breaking down. Mark was getting inside of his head and taking him apart piece by piece, so slowly that he hadn't even realized it had been happening until his imagination had run wild in the carriage this morning.
He had to put a stop to it.
"I'll ride with Jeno," Donghyuck said quickly, ignoring the immediate disappointment he felt even as he spoke the words. His fantasy of riding off into the sunset on the back of Mark's horse like some sort of cheesy fairytale princess dissipated, and he tried to tell himself that it was for the best.
Mark's face changed, only slightly, and for a moment Donghyuck wondered if the king was sharing his disappointment. But then it was gone before he could clock it, and Mark was nodding diplomatically as he stood to his feet.
"Alright. I'll help you, and then we'll take off again."
John and Mark both came over to help lift Donghyuck onto the back of Jeno's horse. The omega squeaked and immediately hugged Jeno's waist as soon as he was up, feeling nervous as he realized how far off the ground he actually was.
Mark's gaze lingered on Donghyuck's arms around Jeno's torso, his jaw twitching and his eyes flashing with something unrecognizable, but Donghyuck was too busy trying to situate himself to notice. John glanced at Mark out of the corner of his eye, with a look like he knew exactly what Mark was thinking, but the king resolutely ignored him as he walked back over to his own horse and hauled himself up on top.
"Let's head out, everyone."
┈ ୨ 👑 ୧ ┈
A couple hours later, Donghyuck had gotten used to the feeling of being on the horse, and his nerves were quickly replaced by excitement. He was chatting with Jeno loudly, teasing him and laughing and never giving the poor man a moment of peace. Jeno acted like he was bothered, but Mark could see the hint of a fond grin tugging at the corners of his lips, something that made his head spin with jealousy. Jeno and Donghyuck were a few feet in front of him, so he couldn't hear what they were saying, only the bright peals of laughter Donghyuck let out. He was gripping his reigns so hard that calluses were forming on his thumbs, when John suddenly pulled up beside him and broke his train of thought.
"You're quite fond of him, aren't you?" John said easily, his voice lowered as to prevent anyone around them from overhearing. Mark's emotional defenses went up immediately, scoffing as he tightened the grip on his reigns until the leather dug into his skin painfully.
"What gives you that idea?" He snapped back. John merely rolled his eyes.
"You can't take your eyes off of him, Your Majesty. I also worry for my soldier, because if looks could kill, Jeno would be a dead man."
Mark blinked, his face heating at John's words. He hadn't realized he'd been so obvious.
"What point are you trying to make here, Captain?"
John listed his head, looking at Jeno and Donghyuck thoughtfully before turning back to face his king. "I merely think you should open up to him a bit more, practice some honesty. You might be surprised with how your relationship could progress if you confessed your feelings to him."
Mark bit into his own lip as he sighed, his body slowly sagging in defeat. There was no point anymore in denying that he felt something for Donghyuck—especially around John, who oftentimes seemed to know him better than he even knew himself. "I can't. You know as well as I do how Donghyuck feels about me. Any feelings I have for him are meaningless, he will continue to push me away and reject all of my advances."
"I don't know about that, Your Majesty," John countered with a smirk, "I caught a glimpse of him looking out his carriage window and staring at you earlier today. He looked quite smitten, if I do say so myself."
Mark's face immediately went bright red, turning to look at John in disbelief. "I don't believe you. Don't you know him? He would never be caught dead looking at me with anything except disdain."
"It's up to you whether to believe me or not, Your Grace," John hummed, "I merely pointed out an observation I had made. You may do whatever you please with that information."
John ended the conversation by pulling forward, riding towards Donghyuck and Jeno to check on them. The omega smiled brightly as he talked to John, with a brilliance like the sun that made Mark's heart ache in his chest.
Maybe he would learn from his father, from all the alpha kings before him, and would take a more serious and assertive approach to courting Donghyuck, and dedicate all of his time and resources to convincing Donghyuck to love him and become his mate.
After all, at this point, what did he really have to lose?