Crimson Crown

⌠54⌡

"I do not see anything wrong."

Yugyeom pulled back from Jinyoung, the latter closing his mouth after having his throat inspected.

Youngjae worriedly hovered over the doctor's shoulder. "Are you sure? He had fainted suddenly, and he is looking more pale than usual, and Mark says he is a bit slower during training--"

"If something were wrong externally I would see it. Internally, I'm not completely sure, but you say you do not feel any pain, right?" Jinyoung nodded in response while the doctor put away his tools. "I'm thinking it's just fatigue. It could be a problem that I cannot detect, but I do not see any unusual signs."

The doctor visited the evening of the next day when he had available time while Jinyoung rested the entire day away, bored out of his mind. He felt fine, and though the whole check-up was unnecessary, he couldn't find it in him to argue with the people who he had worried so.

"So what are we to do?" Jackson, who stood against the wall with folded arms, asked.

"Lots of rest, I'd say." He turned to Jinyoung as he spoke. "Take your daily routines one step at a time and be more aware if you are feeling anything strange. More information would be helpful to me."

The prince let out a tired sigh. "I told you all, nothing is wrong."

"Thank you, sir Yugyeom." Youngjae mumbled, obviously still worried despite the lack of negative news.

The doctor hummed while slinging his sack of belongings onto his shoulder. "Do not hesitate to fetch me if you need anything. I'll come by in two weeks or so to check up on him."

"Ah-" Jackson pushed off the wall, suddenly approaching the doctor. "I am unsure if I had the chance to thank you for trying to help Jinyoung that day..."

Yugyeom smiled, shaking his head. "I did nothing, you're the savior."

"Still, you did all you could. Thank you."

The vampire bowed in appreciation and respect. Jinyoung was taken aback by the action, but immediately flushed when he absorbed the fact that it was being done on his behalf.

"If you or he need anything, Jinyoung knows where to find me." The doctor replied, bowing in return. "And— part of me simply would like a chance to give a vampire a thorough examination, out of pure curiosity."

Jackson smiled, for once at someone who was not Jinyoung. "If I am ever unwell I will surely come to you; you may learn as much as you want."

Jinyoung's brows naturally furrowed at the interaction. His eyes darted between the two, chest tightening at the way they both smiled at one another. Why did a mere friendly exchange annoy him so much?

"Not that Jackson often needs a doctor, so there probably will not be many chances..." He blurted out.

All eyes in the room turned to him in response to his outburst. He was suddenly hit with a wave of embarrassment— he didn't know why he said that; it just came out.

Yugyeom simply chuckled, playing off his words as a joke. "Still, my clinic is open, come to me if either of you do."

"I'll walk you out." Youngjae offered, leading the doctor out of the room.

The door shut behind the two, leaving Jackson and the prince alone.

Jinyoung stared down at his knees as his legs swung over the side of the examination table, listening to the vampire's heavy footsteps approach. Part of him wished Jackson would go away so he would not be forced to face the embarrassment of his own actions, but that was simply wishful thinking.

Instead, the vampire nudged his head up, forcing him to look into his dark, amused eyes.

"What was that about?" He asked.

Jinyoung let out a shaky breath. "I do not know what you refer to..."

"Jealousy?" Jackson guessed, the smirk the climbed to his face making him look irresistible. He cocked his head, pupils glimmering with mirth. "An envious prince, all because I said some friendly words to the doctor..."

Jinyoung's breath caught in his throat when Jackson's thumb brushed over his reddened ears. His touch felt like pure fire across his skin. "I have n-nothing to be jealous of..."

"Exactly, so why are you?"

"I am not-"

Jackson leaned in closer, his nose brushing Jinyoung's. "It's cute, but unnecessary."

Jinyoung could feel Jackson gently pulling him closer, the latter also closing the distance between them. As much as his lips craved to touch Jackson's, at that moment he was torn about his feelings. There was no doubt that he enjoyed the vampire's company, but he had no idea exactly how deep his own feelings went, and the brief feeling of jealousy that passed through him from such a minor interaction earlier only confused him more.

He turned his head away from the kiss that he would have normally gratefully receive, his eyes focusing on a wall instead of Jackson.

The latter instantly frowned, his playfully teasing demeanor dissipating. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I should probably go rest." He flashed a small smile as he slid off the table, slipping past the vampire.

He half expected to be stopped, but surprisingly, Jackson let him go with no argument. Either Jackson was worried by his reaction, or holding himself back due to the prince's condition. Jinyoung couldn't tell which it was, but still felt bad either way— it truly was not anything personal against the vampire, he just needed to clear his head, that was all.

He stepped into the hall, letting out a breath. Finally he escaped the infirmary, and hopefully he wouldn't be back in there any time soon.

Just as he turned to head outside for some air, he was met with his parents. He did not usually see them this often, but they cut back on travel due to the war, and are probably trying to keep a closer eye on their troublesome son.

Jinyoung paused as soon as he spotted them, unable to avoid them now that he'd been seen.

"Oh Jinyoung! Are you okay?" His mother asked, her steps quickening.

"We were just on our way to see you but, you look to be fine..." His father mumbled.

Jinyoung nodded, allowing his mother to squeeze the air out of him when she approached and embraced him. "I'm fine. Just got dizzy and fainted."

"I told you that you needed rest, you look so unwell!" The queen whined. She pressed her hands all over Jinyoung's face to feel his temperature.

The younger backed away from the pair, letting out a sigh. "It is difficult to stay put when there should be something being done about our kingdom and Cornelia's temporary peace."

"We are working on a strategy, Do not worry." The king assured.

Jinyuong's brows rose in interest. "What? what kind of strategy?"

"Nothing for you to worry about." His father retorted. "You must go rest, I'm canceling your training from this point forward until you are fully healthy."

The younger scoffed at the sudden bombshell; it felt like one thing after another was constantly being taken from him. Did everyone seriously mistrust him this much? To the point where he was not allowed to move even a single a muscle without permission? "You cannot do that! I need to train!"

"You need to regain your strength. Plus, sir Tuan has other responsibilities that I need him to focus on, he will not have time to overexert you." His father replied.

"He didn't do anything. I pushed myself, and I'm fine, so-!"

"Just go lay down, it's been a long week for you, Jinyoung..." His mother softly interjected before the two got any more heated. She rested a gentle hand on his shoulder, a silent plea to walk away.

Jinyoung huffed, shooting a glare at both of them before brushing past them.

He hated this— hated being shut in, shut down, and babysat. He could do nothing, no one trusted him, no one believed in him.

He was utterly useless.