Jungkook and Jenni were sitting at the dining table, getting ready to eat lunch, while Taehyung stood beside Jungkook, maintaining his stoic posture.
"Hyungie, eat with us," Jungkook ordered the elder, but Taehyung didn't budge. He was on duty and didn't want to do something that was not allowed, again.
"I am fine, his royal highness," he deadpanned.
Jungkook frowned and pouted, looking at him.
"I think my bodyguard has the audacity to deny a royal, not only once but twice," Jungkook threw his last card. He was aware that the elder was loyal to his duty and could never, in a million years, think of defying the orders of the royals. That would be considered a sin by Taehyung.
Taehyung panicked and kneeled in front of the younger. "May light strike me before I defy your orders, his royal highness."
Jungkook didn't like it at all. He felt his heart drop watching the elder kneeling in front of him.
"You just defied my order in that sentence itself," Jungkook said. "And you are not allowed to kneel in front of me or anyone else, and it's an order," he added. Taehyung felt his heart warming at such a sentence.
Then something struck Jungkook's mind.
"Wait, there is an amendment: get on your knees only one more time in your whole life, that too only in front of me," Jungkook said, smiling while showing his bunny teeth.
Taehyung was confused by this weird order. He stood up with a confused frown on his face.
Jenni was watching the duo with sharp eyes. She looked at Taehyung's confused face and muttered under her breath, "this dense bish ," shaking her head in disappointment.
"Now, come sit," Jungkook patted the seat near him.
Taehyung slowly walked and sat. Only then did he realize how close the prince and he were sitting—so close that the prince's leg was touching Taehyung's.
Taehyung immediately tried to create distance, but he felt a hand wrapping around his bicep, pulling him towards the prince.
"Don't you dare move," Jungkook glared at him, pointing a fork at him with one hand while the other was on the elder's bicep.
Taehyung breathed out a heavy breath and started eating with his trembling hands.
He couldn't believe that he was touching royalty. He considered it a sin. According to him, the royals were untouchable and should be respected. In his view, touching Jungkook was a disrespect to the prince, but he couldn't do anything. This cute prince was stubborn.
Jenni watched the whole scene unfold in front of her with squinted eyes while eating. She observed everything—the way the prince glanced at the elder and then suddenly got shy and looked away. She could only come to one conclusion, and her eyes shot up when she hit the target.
"Oh my God!" she suddenly shouted, causing both Jungkook and Taehyung to flinch.
"Are you okay, baby?" Taehyung asked worriedly, and Jungkook's soul officially flew to the sky. Immediately, blood rushed to his cheeks and neck, painting it scarlet.
"Baby?" Taehyung asked again when he received no reaction from the younger.
"Oh, yes, hyungie, I am good," Jungkook assured while looking everywhere but at him.
"Um, noona, what happened to you?" Jungkook asked her to divert his mind from that 'baby' word. Jungkook was bold and confident, only until Taehyung did something, and then all of Jungkook's boldness went out of the window, leaving him only shy.
"Oh, nothing, my prince. I just remembered something, nothing important."
The lunch went like this.
"I need to use the restroom," Jungkook said to Jenni.
"Follow me, my prince," Jenni said.
Taehyung started following them.
"Are you going to follow his highness to the restroom too?" Jenni asked Taehyung sassily.
Taehyung's cheeks turned pink, along with his ears.
"N-no," he stuttered and spun to the other side, embarrassed.
Jenni looked at the prince, just to see his cheeks scarlet.
"Um, let's go, noona," he said while pinching his ears, a habit he has when embarrassed or nervous.
They both entered a cute room, and Jenni showed him an attached restroom. "I will be on the balcony, my prince," she said.
Jungkook came out of the restroom to find no one in the room. His eyes roamed around, and he noticed something of interest. His feet led him to Jenni's desk. He picked up a Karoumi miniature. "Pretty," his lips spoke.
He put it down to see a photo frame on the table. He took it to see clearly, but his hands trembled looking at the photo. His heart raced, tears filled his eyes, and his legs lost all strength. Without his knowledge, tears started rolling down his cheeks.
"My prince," Jenni called the younger, just to see the prince crying silently.
"My prince, what happened?" Jenni asked, panicking.
"No, I... I am fine," Jungkook said in a strained voice, grabbing his lips between his teeth to stop himself from crying.
"My prince, you are definitely not fine," Jenni said worriedly.
She saw a photo frame in the hands of the younger.
"My prince—"
"I... I am sorry to look at your personal things," Jungkook said hastily and put the frame down.
"I... I am sorry again," the prince said, feeling guilty.
"My prince, it's not something you shouldn't see," Jenni said, trying to console him.
"You should have told me, noona, that you and hyungie are d-dating, so that I would have given you both some personal time. Oh, I have been a third wheel this whole time. I am sorry, please pardon me. If I had known hyungie forgot about me, I would not have made advances on him. I even told him to call me baby. I am so sorry, noona, I don't want to come in between you both," Jungkook rambled, tears continuously rolling down his cheeks. He felt like a vamp of a melodrama.
"You are misunderstanding, my prince," Jenni tried to make him understand.
"No, I am sorry, I am so sorry, please, I beg your pardon," Jungkook started his ramble again.
"He is my brother, my prince," Jenni said while holding the younger's arms.
Jungkook's eyes shot up, looking at the elder immediately, asking her as if what she was saying was the truth.
"Yes, my prince, he is my brother, my younger brother," she said, assuring the younger, not expecting Jungkook to break down again.
He launched himself onto the elder and hugged her.
Jungkook cried this time, but in satisfaction.
"I am so relieved," he said between his sobs.
"I thought I lost him, I thought all these years of yearning were wasted, noona. Thank you, thank you so much."
Jenni patted his head and calmed Jungkook; soon, the sobs stopped.
Jenni looked at him.
"Do you like my brother this much?" Jenni asked while patting his head.
Jungkook just nodded his head like a little kid.
"I hope my jerk of a brother soon understands this," she said while breathing out.
"Don't call Hyungie a jerk, noona," Jungkook complained, pouting.
"Hmm, already so protective of your Hyungie, I see my brother-in-law," Jenni chuckled.
Jungkook's heartbeat quickened. He put his hands on his cheeks to stop himself from blushing.
Jenni cooed, looking at the adorable prince.
"Let's go, his highness's bodyguard slash future husband is waiting," she said.
"Noona," Jungkook whined while blushing, hands still on his cheeks.
Jenni was having the best time of her life teasing the little prince.
They both made their way to the living area where Taehyung was waiting for the prince. When he saw the prince, he stood up quickly from the sofa in a straight posture, but his eyes fell on the puffy eyes of the younger.
He ran to the younger.
"What happened, baby?" he asked the younger, worriedly looking at the younger's eyes, and Jungkook forgot to breathe.
"Ahem," Jenni interrupted the duo. They both looked away.
Jenni wiggled her eyebrows at Jungkook.
"I... some dust particles got into my eyes, Hyungie," Jungkook made up a lie.
Taehyung was not a fool to buy it, but he didn't say anything. He knows he can get the truth from his sister.