Wheein should have known this wasn't going to be an ordinary tour of the royal grounds.
She lets out a heaving sigh as Taehyung drags her under a cherry blossom tree in the palace gardens, already quite sure of what is about to happen. The fox spirit prince clears his throat shyly and peers into her eyes with a determined gaze, holding her hands tight in his own and repeating the same question he's already asked her five times today in their previous stops on the impromptu tour. "Wheein-ah, will you marry me?"
"Tae," The exasperation is evident in her tone of voice, as she sits down on the plush grass beneath them, Taehyung immediately following suit. "This garden is beautiful and all, but you need to stop proposing to me at every place you take me to see around the palace."
The pout that settles across Taehyung's lips is clearly a new tactic he hasn't tried out just yet, but it might just be the secret weapon he needs, because the longer Wheein finds herself staring at it the more she begins to wonder if saying yes could be all too bad. Then she remembers that yes, it could be very much be that bad. She doesn't even want to get married, for fuck's sake. Curse that cute face and those disarming puppy eyes. "But- But-"
Wheein reaches up to fondly ruffle his hair, unintentionally grazing the set of fluffy fox ears that sit atop his head. The fox spirit prince lets out an involuntary shudder in pleasure, eyes closing and a soft happy whine slipping from between his lips as he leans in to encourage her to continue. "I'm very honored that you've chosen me, Tae Tae, but like I said, I'm not ready to get married just yet. Marriage is a lifelong commitment, one for someone you want to spend the rest of your days with. You have so much of your life in front of you, I don't want you to jump into this only to have regrets later on."
"I would never have any regrets! I want to spend the rest of my life with Wheeinie!" Taehyung insists, a soft rumble of happiness emerging from his vocal chords as Wheein continues to scratch lightly at the base of his ears. "Only Wheeinie can make me happy for the rest of my life!"
"Sweet talker," Wheein mutters. It seems using genuine human logic is a waste on the fox prince currently all but curled up in her lap to give her better access to scratching at his ears, his fluffy tail brushing up against her arm every now and then as it whips around in uncontrollable joy. Despite the mild exasperation in her tone, her gaze is fond as she cards his fingers through Taehyung's hair repeatedly. With the way he cherishes her, it really is too difficult to not fall a little deeper every time they meet. But Wheein is too cautious of a person, and every moment she spends with the fox spirit feels too fleeting, too good to be true. She needs more time to process, more time to trust. "You need to be patient, Tae. Humans... humans can be cowardly sometimes, afraid of the what-ifs of the future, of getting hurt. We're not as brave as you all, so willing to love and give your all to someone you care about. It's selfish of me to ask, but could you wait for me a little longer?"
"For you, I can wait forever." Taehyung murmurs sleepily.
Wheein's hand stills momentarily as her heart skips a beat at his words, before going back to running through Taehyung's tousled hair. "Thank you."
Thank you for loving me.
"This- This is my room," Taehyung introduces shyly as he shoos the curious servants away with a wave of his hand in order to open the doors to his chambers himself, looking at Wheein expectantly for her reaction.
It takes all of Wheein's willpower not to coo at the other's actions. Whenever he's over at her place, he never fails to make himself at home and get comfortable. Yet it's almost as though he's done a complete one eighty at the moment as he shows her around the palace interiors, trying to gauge whether or not Wheein approves of the place. Upon actually entering his room, her eyes widen. "Holy shit."
Taehyung looks panicked as he looks back and forth between her and his chambers. "Is- Is it too messy? Too small for your liking?"
"Too small?!" Wheein can only gape as she stares at the room before her. "Taehyung, your bedroom is the size of my house!"
"Oh." Taehyung appears to have calmed down upon hearing her words. "So you don't hate it?"
"Why- Why on earth would I hate it?" Wheein's voice is filled with awe as she takes in the beauty of the architecture and interior design of the luxurious bedroom. A place like this in Seoul would probably cost millions, even billions of won. She's never stepped foot in a building so grand. "It's beautiful."
Taehyung lets out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank god. I wasn't sure if we needed to move into a different chamber when you move in. I'm glad you like it!"
"... What?!" Wheein's shriek is shrill as she reaches over to slug Taehyung in the arm, cheeks flushed bright red. "Who said anything about moving in?! E- Even if I were to live here, I wouldn't be sharing a room with you!"
"Of course you would." Taehyung states in a matter of factly tone. "How would I cuddle with you if we were in separate chambers?"
"You-" Wheein sputters, "Don't say things like that so casually! What would happen to your reputation if you were caught saying things like that?!"
"Oh, don't worry about that. With his temperament and personality, it's not like he has much reputation left to protect in the first place," A snort of amusement sounds from behind them, the newcomer leaning with his arms crossed against the doorframe.
"Yoongi hyung!" Taehyung's face brightens upon seeing who their visitor is. He excitedly guides Wheein so they are standing together in front of the other, gesturing between the two. "Wheein-ah, this is Yoongi hyung. He's going to be Namjoon hyung's advisor once he's crowned as king! Hyung, this is-"
"I know who she is, you've only talked about her every time you see me." Yoongi rolls his eyes, but his tone isn't unkind, clearly holding affection for the younger prince. He bows and offers a gentle smile. "It's very nice to finally meet you, Miss Wheein."
"The pleasure is mine," Wheein nods with a smile of her own. "I'm sorry for showing up uninvited so suddenly."
"No, no, you're really doing us all a huge favor by being here." Yoongi shakes his head in what appears to be disbelief. "I can't even remember the last time our meeting went so smoothly since Taehyung finally did his part of the work. His Majesty was absolutely over the moon, said that your influence was unparalleled."
Wheein coughs in embarrassment, glaring at a guilty looking Taehyung. "I'm sure from now on, Taehyung will act more properly and finish his duties first like he should, isn't that right?"
"But I want-"
"If he doesn't, I simply won't speak to him ever again," Wheein finishes with a threat, gaze sharp as she looks at the other sternly. "Taehyung, not only does avoiding your duties look bad on your brother's reputation as the crown prince, but reflect poorly on other people's opinions on the human world and me. Do you want that?"
Taehyung's tail droops sadly. "No."
"Good. Then finish all your work before coming to see me, okay?" Wheein reaches up to pat him on the head gently. "You know I'll make time to hang out with you no matter what."
"Okay." Taehyung hangs his head but he lights up once Wheein takes the initiative to hold his hand, looking at her with a goofy smile on his face.
Yoongi is shocked. How much consoling and bargaining have him and the others in the palace had to do in the past just to get the spoiled prince to agree to the bare minimum of his duties? Yet all it took was some firm scolding and an affectionate gesture from a human girl to have him agree to doing all of his work promptly? "My god, if I had known he would listen to you so well, I would have invited you to the palace sooner."
"I'm flattered," Wheein giggles. "The next time you catch him slacking, just inform me and I'll make sure he regrets it."
"Nooooo, Wheeinie," Taehyung whines sadly, puppy eyes wide and imploring. "You're supposed to be on my side."
"This is for your good." Wheein reminds him. "You're not someone with all the time in the world, you're a prince and in a position of power, and with power comes responsibility. You need to be responsible for your duties and support Namjoon oppa."
"What about me? Then- Then that means you're in charge of my happiness! I'm only happy when I'm with you! You have to take responsibility for my heart!"
Wheein's face colors. "When was that my responsibility?! Don't say stuff like that in front of others!"
Yoongi lets out a short bark of laughter. "It's okay, Taehyung has always been quite shameless and spoken his mind, I'm quite used to his random outbursts."
"Even so," Wheein grumbles as Taehyung finds it absolutely necessary to take her in his arms as he hugs from tightly from behind, resting his chin lightly atop her head. "It's only a matter of time before he says or does something he shouldn't."
"There's nothing wrong with telling the world how much I care about you!"
"You almost fought a stranger when he held the door open for me!"
Yoongi's expression is warm as he watches the two of them interact and bicker. "You're good for him, Wheein-ah. Thank you for accepting him for who he is."
"I haven't-" The words of denial die on Wheein's lips. "I.... It's only natural. He makes it quite hard to dislike him."
"Mmm," Yoongi's eyes flash in amusement. "You'll make a great princess one day."
"Right?! Wheeinie will be the prettiest princess in the kingdom!"
"I- princess?! Who said anything about being a princess?!"
author's note;
it's been quite a while >,<
thank you to everyone for still showing this fic so much and support despite the hiatus! this fic will probably not be updated too often because i'm trying to focus on thick as thieves at the moment, but i hope you all will still enjoy the story regardless! for more wheetae, please feel free to check out the oneshots in four season;s!
have a wonderful thursday!
Less than three,
PalmerPie