A week has passed~
"On your way to meet your darling?",taehyung asked as he met hyun with his horse at the entrance..
"I could ask you the same thing,hyung",hyun replied as he eyed the King who was seated on his own horse.
"But i'm not~I'm going to the cliff right now.",taehyung replied as he eyed hoseok who was commanding something to the soldiers.
"I don't know what is really special in that cliff,hyung. You always go there atleast once in a week",hyun said as he slightly patted his horse who was getting bored.
"It is my energy boosting spot,hyun.Moreover,it has many beautiful flowers which are really rare.I'm going to collect some and prepare a crown out of those.I'm sure that Jungkookie is going to love it",he said dreamily.
"How romantic~".
"Offcourse, i am!Learn from me,hyun.You might need them for impressing your brat",taehyung said with a smirk which instantly made hyun to blush.
"Hyung!He is not a brat!He is literally an angel maybe with some devil characteristics. That's all.And moreover, he is just 9.So why would i impress a kid?",hyun said as he lowered his head.
"What do you mean by that,hyun?You like him,right?".
"I like him,hyung. I do.But he's just 9 who doesn't even know what love is.Doesn't that refer me as a pedophile,trying to hit on a 9 year old?",hyun said which instantly made taehyung to laugh at him.
"Oh,hyun~You think a lot.What if he doesn't know what love is?Make him fall in love with you,hyun.Make him understand what love is,how much you love him.Geonie is more cleverer than you think. He'll understand you sooner and for that you must try your best.He makes you happy, hyun and don't even try to say otherwise. Its been a long time you've talked to me freely like this and it is all thanks to him.And didn't you hear him say that he's going to be 10 and no more a kid?Cheer up!",taehyung tried to cheer him up.
"Everything you said is right, hyung. Yes,he makes me happy.Yes,he made me to behave like me.But he's still a kid.I don't see a big difference between a 9 and a 10!",hyun pouted as he said.
"Hyun!If he's a kid then what are you?An old man who is 50?You're only 13 for god's sake which means you have only a 4 year gap!God!!",taehyung screamed as he was really frustrated by now.
"Calm down,hyung. Don't be frustrated",he tried to calm him down but it only fueled his frustration.
"You are the one making me frustrated!You were going to meet Geonie, right?Go meet him.I'm going to the cliff now.I need to calm myself before your head is swollen by me",taehyung said and rode off in his horse without a single thought of hearing the other's reply.
"Oof~this boy made my blood pressure to attain its peak within a minute. Oh god!Why is he so dumb?He's talking as if he's some middle aged man who has 2 wives with 10 children and suddenly guilty for falling for a kid who is only 9.If he is 9,he is just 13.Whatever~I hope he gathers his thought before it is too late.....Why am i thirsty all of a sudden?There is a lake within a few meters. Let me speed walk before i would faint because of dehydration",he mumbled to himself and walked fastly. And if you ask about his horse,the answer is,he made him to be on its own at the very beginning of the forest as he wanted to reach the cliff on foot as he thought that his body required some exercise as he didn't have time to do the real one.
As he reached the lake,he was awed to see the beauty of it.The sun rays made the water to glisten and he was amazed by the scenery the place held.But more than admiring the scenery,his throat which was drier than the hottest desert pleaded him to do something before it catches fire.So he immediately bent down and started gulping greedily but was startled when suddenly something dived from the water and fell on him,giving him a heart attack on process.
Meanwhile at the market....
"Geonie!",hyun called out as he reached the stall of jeons.The whole week from their meeting at the castle, he was visiting the stall without fail and today was not an exception.
"Hyunie?I thought that you won't be coming today.Why are you late?",euigeon asked as he pouted and hyun was resisting himself from pinching those chubby cheeks.
"Hyung was talking with me,Geonie. That's why i was late.But tell me why you are kneading the clay now?Didn't you say that you didn't get any punishment from your papa?",hyun questioned as he saw euigeon kneading the clay with his small hands.
"Offcourse i didn't get any punishment, hyunie.Kookie being the best brother he is didn't tell papa anything that i didn't do.I'm kneading it because, this morning i completed a small figurine which turned out really nice which means more such figurines are going to arrive this evening",he said and kneaded the clay more enthusiastically which brought a small smile on the elder's face.
"You made a figurine?Why didn't you show me till now!?Show me! show me!",hyun chirped as he was really excited to see the younger's creation.
"Oh right!I'm seriously forgetful nowadays, hyunie.I was planning on showing it to you the moment you arrived. But as you didn't show up at the time you would normally arrive,i became sad.So, i forgot about everything when i saw you.Wait a minute. I'll show you my work",he said and went inside the stall leaving hyun at the entrance whose heart was beating violently because of his words.
"What are you doing to me,Geonie?Do you even know what you're doing to me?",he asked to no one in particular as he held his chest with a smile.
"Look, hyunie. Isn't it really beautiful?I did this by myself without kookie's or papa's help",euigeon said as he brought back a figurine with him.
"Mm....what's this,Geonie?",hyun asked as he couldn't figure out what it was even after examining for 5 whole minutes.
"Look at it with your art eyes,hyunie. ",he said as he patted his shoulder,as an act of encouragement.
"I don't know,Geonie. Please tell me by yourself. I'll buy you your favourite candy",he bribed.
"Fine.I should have figured it out that you won't be able to understand my creative mind.It is a cat,Geonie. Look at it carefully and you will see it",euigeon said which made the other's eyeballs to literally fall out.
"A CAT!?Why is a cat standing like a man,Geonie?And also,what's with these lines on its stomach?",he asked as he traced those lines with his hand.
"He has abs,hyunie.I wanted my ori to stand like that,but he couldn't.So i made a figurine of a standing cat by myself.Isn't it mindblowing?",he answered,looking as if he had created a masterpiece..
"Ori?".
"Yeah.Ori.My kitten.",euigeon said and glared at hyun as if he didn't know the most important fact about him.
"Ori means duck,right?",hyun asked as he was puzzled by the choice of name.
"So?",euigeon asked as his glare on the other got intensified.
"Nothing!So what is his name?",hyun asked and pointed the figurine,trying to change the subject which he accomplished successfully.
"Oh!His name is puppy!Isn't he so cute,hyunie",euigeon jumped up and down which made the other to smile at him widely.
"Yes,he is so cute,geonie.So cute that it urges me to hold him so dearly for the rest of my life",he said softly as he eyed euigeon who was still jumping.
"Then you can take him with you,hyunie.Hunnie,yeolie,chanie and even wonnie asked me but i didn't give him to them.I was waiting for you,you know",euigeon said as he handed puppy to hyun.
"Why were you waiting for me?",hyun asked as he glanced at him shyly which totally went unnoticed by the other.
"Because i knew that you will like him! And also i didn't want you to be dissapointed if you didn't have him!And most importantly, you are my bestest friend,remember? You will be my first priority,hyunie. It will always be like that!",euigeon said and was soon hugged by hyun.
"Thank you so much,Geonie.",he said as he felt tears threatening to fall.
"Why are you thanking me for this,hyunie?Have it as my gift.A symbol of our friendship?And come on,i'll teach you the skills for making a figurine so that you'll be able to prepare one and gift me.",he said as he peeled himself off from the hug.
"And one more thing,hyunie...When you hugged me,i felt different. Like,i felt really happy and something happened in my stomach when you hugged me.I've never felt like that before.What does that mean?Does it mean that i love you?",he asked excitedly, excited with the new feeling unknowingly making hyun to be a flustered mess.
"You are the one to find that,Geonie.You have to realize that on your own. I can't implant my thoughts on you",hyun said once he calmed himself down which made euigeon to pout.
Back at the lake...
"MY GOD!!",taehyung shouted due to the sudden shock.
"Jungkookie?",he called once he noticed that it was only jungkook and not some alien creature which popped out all of a sudden.
"Your Majesty?",jungkook said as he tried catching his breath.
"What were you doing under the water, Jungkookie?You startled me to death!",taehyung said as he took in how jungkook looked really beautiful right now.He glistened more than gold as his whole body was soaked in water.
"I came to the cliff,Your Majesty",jungkook said as he squeezed his clothes.
"Then what were you doing inside the water?Do you have any short route there?",he asked which made jungkook to instantly roll his eyes.
"Nice joke,Your Majesty. hahahaaa.I laughed. Happy?",jungkook said as he sat down beside taehyung who was sitting on the bank.
"Are you criticizing my joke?".
"Not at all,Your Majesty. See my stomach is aching because of your 'joke'",he said as he held his stomach.
"But seriously, what were you doing there,Jungkookie?",taehyung asked.
"I just came to drink water ,Your Majesty. Then i thought, why not test my breathing skills.So i went inside the water and guess what,Your Majesty?I managed without breathing for 100 seconds!",jungkook cheered.
"So you decided to go inside the water while you're fully clothed?Aren't you cold?",taehyung asked with his eyebrows furrowed.
"I just jumped in without thinking,Your Majesty.How long can you stay without breathing?".
"Mmm....i don't know.You count once i get inside. Let's see how long i could last",taehyung said to which the younger agreed immediately.
So right now taehyung was inside the water and jungkook was counting continuously. But as his counts increased, fear started developing within him.There was no movement inside the water and now he was worried for the king.
"Alright, Your Majesty. Its enough.come out.I've counted 200 already!",he shouted but got no reply.
"Your Majesty!!Come out!",he shouted a bit but got no response.
"If you're trying to fool me,i've clearly fallen for that.Just please come out",he pleaded as tears formed in his eyes,clearly afraid for his safety.
"PLEASE, YOUR MAJESTY!!COME OUT!!",he shouted and jumped immediately into the water when he didn't hear any reply.
Once he was deep inside the water,his soul literally left his body when his eyes met with taehyung who was floating lifeless.He immediately took him out of the water and laid him carefully on the ground as he kept crying.
"Wake up!wake up,please!!",he cried as he shook the elder who laid there like a stone.
"Taetae,please wake up!",he cried hysterically and hugged the older but stunned when he felt the elder hug him back.
He was totally shocked when he saw the king smiling at him as his hands caressed his cheeks,wiping the tears.
"Y-yo-ur M-ma-ma-jesty?",he called out with wide eyes as tears continued flowing.
"Isn't it taetae for you,my dear?",taehyung asked as he sat up with jungkook on his lap who was bewildered by his words.
"D-id-n't y-ou dr-own aw-h-ile ag-o?",he asked as he hiccuped due to the intense crying.
"I didn't, Jungkookie. I just tried pranking you.I'm so sorry,my dear.I didn't know that you would be crying like this",he said as he patted the other's back but was startled when he was hugged tightly by the other.
"I was frightened to death, taetae.Don't ever prank me like that!",he said between his cries as he hugged the older who hugged him back happily, happy that his feelings might be reciprocated.
"I promise, my seventh heaven.I would never do such things hereafter",he said with the brightest smile and stood up with jungkook still in his arms.
He gently carried jungkook to the cliff all the while saying sweet nothings to the small boy who just calmed down.
"Are you feeling cold,my dear?",he asked to him as he gently laid him down.
"A bit.But i can manage it,taetae. My clothes are almost dry.",jungkook said as he looked up at taehyung with big eyes and red cheeks because of his long crying.
"But till then you'll be cold!Mmmm....i have a solution for that!",taehyung said as he hugged the smaller male tightly who snuggled closer to the larger one,too tired to think anything straight. Within seconds he drifted off to sleep in taehyung's warm embrace leaving the said male to smile sweetly at him.
"My sweet Jungkookie",he said softly as he planted a gentle kiss on the other's cheek and admired the beauty before him while smiling dumbly.
So,as i said this chapter is longer than the last one,heheeee~
Hope u liked it!
Don't forget to express your thoughts about this chapter!!