Chapter XXXVII
1473 Words
서른 일곱 번째 왕관 (37)
Jae Kyung wished she didn’t wake up in the middle of the night.
“You good for nothing slut!”
“Please, honey, please stop!”
“Stop calling me honey, you disgusting piece of s**t!”
“Agh! Please stop! Don’t hit me!”
“You die, b***h! Die!”
Eight-year-old Jae Kyung couldn’t do anything. She’s too weak to confront anyone, especially her father. She couldn’t do anything but cover her ears and cry in the corner as she kept on hearing the painful screams, groans, and grunts from her mother.
Jae Kyung wished she didn’t wake up in the middle of the night. She wished she didn’t.
She didn’t want to hear those shits anymore.
She saw her mother looking at her from the creak of the door. She gasped when she saw her mother’s bruised face as her tears fall down.
Her chest is throbbing in pain because even if her mother is in pain, her mother still managed to smile at her.
“Mama…” she couldn’t help but sob.
“Jae Kyung-ah…”
“Jae Kyung…”
“Jae Kyung…”
That deep, husky voice sounds familiar.
“Jae Kyung…”
“Hey, Jae Kyung…”
“Jae Kyung, wake up…”
“Jae Kyung, wake up!”
Jae Kyung opened her eyes and gasped. She looked around only to see Prince Yi Eul sitting on her side. She abruptly sat up on the bed and felt dizzy for doing so that she needs to hold her head and trying to adjust her vision and balance herself. “Damn, where am I?”
“You’re still in my room,” Prince Yi Eul responded. “You even forgot to turn off the TV and you’re watching some sort of cartoons that plays volleyball.”
“It’s not a cartoon. It’s anime—wait—huh? I’m still here? Ugh,” she groaned as she held her head trying to soothe it. She felt her head pounding, a sign that she really had a headache. “What time is it?”
“Nine o’clock in the evening,” Prince Yi Eul said.
Jae Kyung’s eyes widen as her mouth agape. “That long?”
She’s been in the Crown Prince's room since ten in the morning watching on Netflix and she couldn’t remember what episode of Haikyu!! she stopped watching because she didn’t realize that she falls asleep.
“Yeah. I even tried to wake you up for lunch but you didn’t budge. Seems like you’re tired so I let you be. You sleep like a cat,” he responded.
“Gosh, I’m so sorry…” she muttered as she fixed her hair. “I have to go home now.”
“You can just stay here, you know?” Jae Kyung looked at him. He cleared her throat. “Not that I want you to stay here. It’s just that it’s already late for you to go home alone. And besides, you have to stay here till Friday. Have you forgotten? We still have to deal with what we’re going to say in the press con.”
“Right…” Jae Kyung muttered and she sounded so tired, he observed.
“I woke you up since you kept on thrashing around…” Prince Yi Eul said and without thinking, he outstretched his hand and cupped Jae Kyung’s left cheek and rubbed it. “You even cried in your sleep.”
Jae Kyung didn’t respond and even if Prince Yi Eul will not going to ask about it, he knows what’s going on.
“You had a nightmare,” was the only thing he could say.
More like an unpleasant memory from the past.
“Yeah, a nightmare…” Jae Kyung muttered as she slowly hugged her both knees.
Prince Yi Eul shouldn’t care about Jae Kyung like this. He shouldn’t care about his employee because she’s nothing but an employee.
But he couldn’t help it.
His hand slowly went to her head, patting it gently. In all honesty, he was actually embarrassed about what he’s doing right now because this is so not him. He’s doing things unconsciously (figuratively speaking).
But of course, he will not be going to admit how embarrassed he is.
Jae Kyung just stared at him in silence, resting her cheek on her both knees and slowly closed her eyes which he was thankful that she did because it’ll be less embarrassing for him.
“You…” he trailed off. “You want to eat? I could tell the servants to prepare dinner.”
“Hmm,” she nodded.
A tiny smile flaunted on both of their faces.
It’s kind of strange that they could interact like this without picking a fight with each other.
For once, they could feel that they understand each other… for once.
“So… it’s okay to eat here?” Jae Kyung said as he looked at Prince Yi Eul who’s currently sipping his tea. They’re currently eating on Prince Yi Eul’s room’s balcony. He let his servants set the table on the balcony with some delicious food to fill their stomachs since both of them didn’t eat lunch.
She kinda admits that even if the night breeze is cold, she finds the scenery peaceful especially that they could see the full moon shining in the sky, emitting its light on the Crown Prince’s balcony.
“I wouldn’t let my servants serve our food here if it’s not. Common sense, Jae Kyung,” Prince Yi Eul said bluntly.
Jae Kyung glared at him and rolled her eyes as she picked up the chopsticks. “Okay, fine. Since I’m already hungry, I should eat with no complaints.”
“As you should.”
“Hmph,” Jae Kyung muttered as she picked some food. “You’re eating nakji bokkeum (Spicy stir-fried octopus)—wait, these are all Korean food.”
“Yeah, and what about it?” Prince Yi Eul asked as he ate some seolleongtang (Korean Ox Bone soup).
Jae Kyung stared at him in awe and broke into strings of chuckles. “Unbelievable.”
Prince Yi Eul frowned at her. “What’s unbelievable about me eating Korean food?”
“I was really expecting that you’ll gonna eat something fancier like you know, foreign cuisines in a golden platter,” Jae Kyung said.
“Ya, am I not that allowed to eat something like this?” Prince Yi Eul asked and stole some of Jae Kyung’s nakji bokkeum and ate. “Cuisines like those are already too boring for me to eat and it’s been a long time for me since I ate Korean food ever since I went to London to study.”
“Hmm, bet you’re living a life there since, you know, you’re a Crown Prince and all,” she said as she ate some of kimbap which she didn’t expect that the Crown Prince will eat.
“Not really,” Prince Yi Eul responded. “Being alone in a foreign country is not really a good feeling to deal with.”
Once again, Jae Kyung stared at him in awe. For someone who’s been with the Crown Prince for a while now and knows how goddamn stubborn and arrogant he is, it’s really the first time for her to see this side of him.
“I really like the feeling of being free and alone all those years but it’s kind of sick feeling, to be honest.”
“But at least now, you’re not alone anymore even if you find it people’s company annoying.”
Prince Yi Eul looked at Jae Kyung who’s now satisfied eating yaki mandu (Deep Fried Mandu). “Hmm. This really tastes so good.”
Prince Yi Eul just shook his head. “Yeah.”
Jae Kyung took a deep breath as he held her emerald-colored purse. She’s wearing a lace-trimmed tiered georgette gown from Gucci. She’s really uncomfortable with such an expensive dress, expensive purse, and even the white lacy gloves she’s wearing and even the shoes she’s wearing from Gucci as well.
But of course, she knows she couldn’t say anything against it because right now, she must look fancy in front of people… as the Crown Prince’s fiancée.
“I’m nervous,” she couldn’t help but mumble to herself.
“Don’t be,” she turned her head on Prince Yi Eul whose eyes were focused on the door. He looked good in his modern prince attire, she’ll gonna admit.
Prince Yi Eul side-eyed her before offering his arm. “Let’s go.”
Jae Kyung nodded as she clung to Prince Yi Eul’s arm and walked towards the door.
“Let’s welcome, ladies and gentlemen, the arrival of our Crown Prince Yi Eul and his fiancée.”
- Writer
