Crimson Crown

⌠45⌡

Jinyoung found himself waking up yet again, still in his familiar bed. He'd been in and out of sleep the entire night as he recovered from the events of the day before. His body was still not at 100%, but he felt better with the more time that passed.

"Good morning. Finally awake."

The prince tilted his head, his gaze landing on the vampire who at some point had returned and taken his seat in that chair again. "Morning... you're still here."

"Did you expect me to leave?"

"I hoped you wouldn't."

"Well then, I suppose you're happy I'm still here." Jackson stood, making his way to the bed. He gazed down at Jinyoung, his fingers reaching out to brush strands of hair away from his forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel..." The latter trailed off. He wasn't really thinking about his injuries anymore, rather he was more interested in what had transpired since he'd been out. He still feels clueless about the status of the war and whatever else may be going on, he needed to get some answers. "...I feel like I need to get up and see what's going on--"

As Jinyoung tried to sit up, Jackson's strong hand forcefully pressed at his shoulder, keeping him down. He drew out a sigh while shaking his head. "I will tire of repeating myself. You are not to go anywhere."

The prince scoffed. "But, I have to--"

"You are suffering a still healing stab wound. You need to rest. I won't hear any more about it."

Jinyoung faltered, his glare challenging Jackson's unwavering gaze. Yet again he and the vampire were clashing, and though Jinyoung wanted to tell him to stand down, he felt that he had little right to say much of anything after the burden he'd been on everyone.

He let out an annoyed huff as he leaned back against his headboard, arms folded over his chest. Jackson hummed and gently patted his shoulder, his lips curving into the faintest smirk of amusement.

The click of the doorknob caught the two's attention, forcing them to break their eye contact.

Jinyoung's servant yet again stood in the doorway, faltering this time as he tried to assess whether or not the pair were in the midst of their affection again.

"Hello... I'm not interrupting... am I?" Youngjae hesitantly asked through the cracked door.

"N-No." Jinyoung quickly answered, the crack of his voice forcing him to clear his throat. "Come in."

The servant's eyes shifted to Jackson who nodded in approval before he finally stepped in. He quickly approached the bed, standing just beside the vampire. "Good morning prince. How are you feeling?"

"Trapped." Jinyoung grumbled.

Youngjae let out a dry, apologetic chuckle. "Well, you are bedridden until you're fully healed, so apologies if you feel constricted..."

The prince sighed, his gaze drifting to the ceiling. "I want to help my kingdom."

"You've risked enough."

"I agree." Jackson chimed with the nod of his head. "You helped all you could. Some things are just bigger than you can handle. Does not mean your effort went to waste."

It wasn't difficult to see through those words meant to be reassuring. Jinyoung could tell that neither of them favored his actions. "...you two still think I'm foolish for trying to stop two nations from going to war..."

Youngjae quickly shook his head. "Not foolish--!"

"I think you are in over your head. If you call that foolish, well you said it, not I." Jackson replied.

Youngjae scoffed, shooting a glare at the vampire for such harsh words.

The prince waved them away, unphased. "Do not worry Youngjae, Jackson is the brutally honest type."

The servant sighed, his arms folding over his chest. "I'm just saying, what you did was insane and scared the very people you were trying to protect. They think--"

"Hush."

Jinyoung instantly frowned as he looked over at Jackson who stopped Youngjae mid-sentence. His brows knitted together as he looked between to two who shared some sort of knowing glance.

"What?" He urged, encouraging the younger to finish.

Instead, Youngjae shook his head, a soft smile gracing his lips. "Nothing. You need a bath and those bandages changed, I'll go heat the basin--"

"No!" The prince's loud protest snapped the other twos' attention. "You two will not hold anything more from me. Both of you have hidden enough, I deserve to know every little detail about anything you know."

Youngjae faltered, letting out a soft sigh. He looked over at Jackosn who shook his head in defeat. His eyes then met Jinyoung's piercing with determination to gain information.

"The kingdom..." He began, faltering midway, unsure of how to phrase his next words. "...the kingdom thinks you are dead... they think we've lost the heir to the throne."