Royally Yours (Jikook AU📱📲)

3

The crown prince came back to Andriana Palace from his outing.

[Adriana Palace—built only for the Prince to live]

One servant rushed to take off his jacket while Jungkook tossed his car key to one of his guards. He was tired from the long drive he took to have some time by himself. Rubbing the back of his neck, he was stepping toward his bed to give his body some rest when the head butler approached him.

"His royal highness, should we prepare—" The crown prince cut off the sentence with a growl.

"LEAVE! Don't allow anyone in my room."

At the crown prince's irritated tone, the servants and guards left the room at once.

'So fucking tired!'

Jungkook threw himself on the bed.

He snugged his head on the pillow and was about to close his eyes, but his phone vibrated, still in his pocket.

'Seriously?' He checked the phone.

It was a message from his fiancée, Princess Jisoo.

The already tired crown prince became even more irritated getting a message from someone he would rather not talk to at all.

"RAHYE!"

One of his guards opened the door.
"Your royal highness, you called for me?"

The guard almost missed the phone when Jungkook tossed it to him as soon as he entered the chamber. The poor guard's soul almost left his body.

"Chat with the Princess. I'm tired..."

And the guard started sweating profoundly. His complexion became pale.

It was not the first time the crown prince had asked him to do that, but every time, it was a life-and-death situation for him.

'I'm so loyal to you, your royal highness! Why do you want to kill me so bad!'

Before Rahye could even take a step back, the phone started ringing. The name "Princess Jisoo 👑" flashed on the screen.

"Your Highness, she's calling!" he whispered nervously.

Jungkook groaned. "If I ignore her, she'll just keep calling. Fine."

He snatched the phone from Rahye's trembling hands and lazily accepted the call.

"Hello," he said flatly, his tone dry and emotionless.

"Jungkook," came Jisoo's calm yet sharp voice. "You didn't reply to my message."

"I was driving," he lied.

"Driving? Again?" Jisoo's voice tightened. "You were supposed to attend the council banquet tonight. Every royal family member was there except you. Do you realize how embarrassing it was when everyone asked me where my fiancé was?"

Jungkook rolled onto his side, staring blankly at the ceiling. "You could've told them I was doing something important. Like saving a cat from a tree."

"Jungkook!" she snapped, frustration slipping through her usually composed tone. "Do you ever take anything seriously?"

He yawned. "Not really."

There was silence for a few seconds—heavy, cold silence that made even Rahye, standing quietly by the door, hold his breath.

"Sometimes I wonder," Jisoo said finally, her voice quieter now, "if you even want this engagement at all."

Jungkook smirked faintly, though it didn't reach his eyes. "You already know the answer to that, Princess."

Her voice trembled slightly, but she kept her tone steady. "This marriage isn't just for us, Jungkook. It's for the alliance between our kingdoms. Can't you be mature for once and at least try?"

He turned his head toward the window, where the moonlight poured across the floor. "Maturity's overrated. And alliances built on pretending don't last."

"You think this is all pretend?"

"Isn't it?" he said quietly. "You and I—we both know we're just playing our roles. You, the perfect princess. Me, the disappointment of Seoulvenia."

"Don't call yourself that," she said softly, but he could hear the strain in her voice.

"Why not? Everyone else does."

For a long moment, neither spoke. Only the faint hum of the night breeze outside the palace walls broke the silence.

Finally, Jisoo sighed. "I don't know what happened to you, Jungkook. You used to care. You used to try."

His throat tightened at that, a flicker of memory flashing through his mind—his mother's voice, her tearful goodbye. "Be a good man, Jungkook-ah."

"I stopped caring," he said slowly, "the day I realized caring doesn't change anything."

Jisoo's voice softened. "Then maybe one day, someone will make you care again."

The line went silent after that. She had ended the call.

Jungkook lowered the phone, staring at the screen until it dimmed. His chest felt oddly heavy, though he quickly brushed the feeling away.

"Your royal highness...?" Rahye asked cautiously.

"Don't say a word," Jungkook muttered, tossing the phone aside and pulling the blanket over his face.

As the room fell into silence once more, Rahye quietly stepped out, closing the door behind him.

Under the covers, Jungkook whispered into the darkness, barely audible even to himself—

"I didn't choose this life... it chose me."

And for the first time that night, the prince, who was feared for his arrogance, looked more like a lonely boy trying to escape the weight of his crown.