You slip out from underneath your covers and put on slippers. The chilling wind from an open window causes you to cover your bare arms with your hands before taking shaky steps toward the source. You lock it and close the blinds, rubbing your fingers over your arms to warm yourself up.
A sudden wave of disappointment washes over you when you make a quick scan of the bathroom and realize Taehyung is actually gone.
You frown.
He could have just told you that he was leaving early so you didn't have to fret so much over his disappearance.
With a deep sigh, you clumsily slip out of your dress and put on a silk nightgown. The hairs on your arms stand up with goosebumps until you plop back onto your soft mattress and cuddle with a bundle of blanket.
That'll replace Taehyung.
You close your eyes and attempt to fall asleep again, but for some unknown reason, you're fully alert and unable to calm down.
You shift around several times, tugging on the blanket even when there's no one to fight over it for, until a three-beat knock sounds on your door.
Your head immediately flies up, wide eyes watching the gentle creak of wood and meeting with...
The maids?
"Yerim? Ijoo? What are you doing here so early?" you ask with a frown.
An unsettling feeling invades your insides when you notice their usual uplifted smiles turned downward. Hani steps forward and bows completely horizontal, and that's when you notice the man behind the girls.
Your breathing intensifies with every passing second; you pull the blanket up to cover the exposed skin on your chest, and your frantic eyes search the maids'. "W-What's going on?"
"Lady Sooyun, please get up for an inspection," Hani says monotone.
They refuse to make eye contact with you, and this scares you even more. "What do you mean?" you ask breathlessly.
Now, the man dressed in all black and with his face covered steps forward, right beside your bed. "Miss, you are suspect of illegalities and under interrogation ordered by the royal family. Please stand up." His voice is loud and thundering, and it hurts your head to hear in the early morning.
Your heart pumps wildly, an ache in your chest trying to break free from the restraint of your rib cage.
You look back at the maids, breathing intensified, before cautiously moving your feet to the ground and standing up. Your hands sit protectively on top of your chest, and they move up and down periodically with your heavy heartbeat.
Suspect and interrogation? That doesn't mean anything bad, right? You haven't done anything wrong, right? Even if you did, they didn't know yet—yes, that's the point of interrogation: to prove you're not innocent. They didn't know anything yet! You're fine!
The man coughs, and you're startled into a jump, muscles tense and defensive.
The mystery man, with no change of emotion or a single movement, then orders, "Take off your clothes."
You choke. "E-Excuse me? I'm not going to take off my clothes in front of you." You grimace and turn your head to the side, noticing Hani and Yerim's pleading eyes.
"Please, Miss, they're orders from the royal family. It's just to see if you're still pure; we'll be here."
You flinch back when Hani comes near you and touches the strap of your dress with her pale fingers.
See if I'm pure? Fucking hell, I thought I was over people examining my private parts for their stupid games.
"Hold on," the man suddenly says with his hand up. "Have you ever had intercourse with Crown Prince Taehyung?"
Your lips part, and your cheeks turn pink with embarrassment. Not the kind of embarrassment when Taehyung kisses your nose and tells you that you're pretty—the kind of embarrassment when a man you've never met before insists on looking at your vagina for some verification of purity, and your three best friends are standing beside him with such deep frowns that you'd think someone was dying soon.
"No," you reply.
"Ok, get her on the bed. You know the procedure, legs apart." He gives a nasty smirk and turns around, ushering for someone to come in, when his focus suddenly shifts away, and he gets down for a bow. "Your Highness."
And your hopeful, teary eyes lock onto Taehyung's as he's stepping into your room. His very presence gives you comfort, and you stare at him for the validation you desperately need. "Taehyung," you cry softly in place, afraid to run into safety of his arms like you want to. "What's going on?"
He ignores you. "Don't check her. She's fine," he says to the two men standing outside your doorway.
"But, Your Highness—"
"No. That's an order."
He walks away without another word, not bothering to give you an explanation of what's going on or even sparing you a glance. The two men disperse accordingly, closing your door before the gentle thuds of their footsteps disappear completely.
You take a second to process everything, slowly blinking while staring at the door.
Ijoo's voice snaps you out of your daze. "Are you alright, my lady?"
"No," you breathe. "No, and I've asked a hundred times, but no one will tell me why the three of you are so downcast and why a group of random men were sent to test my virginity again." You choke.
"We're so sorry, Miss," Hani apologizes, voice laced with genuine concern. "We promise we don't know either; we were just sent here from the King and Queen to assist in the test and to get you dressed for today."
You laugh bitterly. "At 7 AM?"
"Yes, my lady. I'm sorry but we need to hurry. Please wash up in the bathroom while we get your dress."
They leave your room in a straight line, signaled with the soft sound of wood clashing, and you mindlessly walk to your sink to clean up.
You let out a breath of air, taking in your messed hair and dark under-eye bags in the mirror.
No one told you anything, yet you felt as if there was something much worse to come today.
Something that you wouldn't just comply with and obey like a brain dead zombie. Something that'd throw off your very moral compass and leave you with too much in your hands at once.
"Miss?"
Her voice startles you. You press your lips into a thin line as the other two reel in your dress, still covered in what looks like an expensive garbage bag. "Let's see what it is this time," you attempt to say in what turns out a humorless statement.
Yerim and Ijoo unzip the bag, and the worried feeling in your gut grows.
"Oh, it's an all-black dress," Hani says. "That's odd."
The girls help you into the soulless, dark fabric of the dress, and they give you the simple, mandatory makeup of everyday. Within 15 minutes, you're looking like a confused dark queen with your long, black hair strands reaching your mid-back and your eyes adorned with smokey black shadow.
A joke comes to mind when you see your face in the mirror, but you hold it in and continue wordlessly as the girls walk you out of the room.
"Her Majesty said to meet up in the Women's Room," Hani sighs softly.
...
"Ah, you've arrived ladies," the Queen claps her hands and smiles. "Is it time yet?" she asks a nearby advisor.
The woman nods, her features desert of emotion and her gaze focused on the blues and pinks in her vision.
You shift your gaze to the left corner, noticing Lua, Estelle, and Yoora in dresses as equally black as yours and with equally dreary expressions.
They stand several meters away from you, but you catch onto something from their conversation. "I saw her in the morning, I'm so scared to go out there," Yoora whispers.
"It can't be true, Yoora. You must have dreamt of it," Estelle gets out with choked fear. More hushed apprehension is voiced in their circle, and you notice that even Lua appears to be scared for once.
"Hmph," you let out a humorless hum, eyes slowly moving away from the ladies and toward the Queen steering orders at the staff.
"Get him out of there, and make sure he witnesses his sins."
...
A short few minutes pass by, wherein you close your eyes and control your breathing in preparation of what comes beyond the large doors. You hear soft murmurs and rushed footsteps between the walls.
The maids all stand behind you with silence, and you prefer it that way. For some reason, you felt hurt and betrayed by the girls who have stayed by your side since the beginning.
Truly, they had no fault or control over anything, but you had to take your frustration out on someone, so you ignore them.
Tick tock.
Tick tock.
Tick.
The door to the palace front opens a sliver, and the head of a gatekeeper peaks in. You realize it's Namjoon. "We're ready, Your Majesty."
Your breathing intensifies as you follow the Queen, maids, and other ladies out of the room, until the space is vacant. You fist your hands and close your eyes while your field of view is blocked by bodies.
As soon as you step out, you hear deathly silence, leaves rustling and wind cooing while a large group of people are seated in wooden chairs. You push Lua out of your way, earning a grunt from her, when you see a stage amidst it all.
Your eyes finally focus on all the colors, and a small scream escapes your throat when you see a body in the center of the stage, head covered in a black bag and arms tied behind her back.
You step back.
"What the f-fuck," you tremble.
"Watch it, Sooyun," Lua hisses. Her eyes quickly go soft, and she bites her lip. "I'm sorry."
Sorry? You frown.
Why was Lua apologizing to you?
With your horrified eyes trained on the girl in the center of the stage, your muscle memory follows the line of women down a row of chairs, and each one stops at a seat, one by one. You're left last, without a clue on where to go, until you see a shining face, a hint of hope among all others.
The color in your face returns, the trembling momentarily stops, and you walk over to Taehyung. He gives an emotionless nod and sits back down, ushering you to the sit beside him.
"Taehyung?" you say softly.
Your words attract the attention of the woman beside Taehyung—the Queen, and to her right, the King. A chill is sent up your spine.
"What's happening?" You ask, but your weary heart is tortured to no end when even the glimmering light in times of darkness won't give you a response, his eyes clouded and features set to stone.
Why was everyone else in a state of fear or sadness when you were still confused? Did they know what was going on? Who that girl was; what's happening to her?
You don't try again.
Your eyes search the area. You, the ladies, and the royal family sit along one row in the front. Behind you sit the maids and advisors. And at the back are servants, palace workers, and...
Your parents?!
"Mo—"
"Ladies and gentlemen, our dear royal family," an announcer on the stage cuts you off. You turn back to the stage with frantic eyes, blood pumping through your veins and throbbing in your neck. "We're gathered here today to uphold the law of our land, and give punishment where punishment is due."
The man walks up to the covered girl and swiftly pulls off her mask.
When you see her face, your eyes shut themselves closed painfully tight, you grip onto the sides of the chair and refrain from falling unconscious.
"N-Nayun."
To Be Continued...
(A/N ...🏃🏻♀️💨
Queue me trying suspense but failing miserably)