Eggshells crack and break under Princess Lucia's feet as she continues to dance around her budding feelings for a certain Sir Knight.
"Some things are better left unsaid, left behind in the past to return to nothing. And so, I leave my feelings for...
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LUCIA CAN'T TELL WHY she is so breathless as she swings down with all her might, the whoosh of her wooden sword cutting through the air sending a ping of satisfaction through her. Sure, she's practicing sword fighting and Seokjin is her teacher, that's pretty exhausting. But Lucia is sure that there's something more stealing her breath than that.
"Again," Seokjin's firm voice rings through the grounds and Lucia obeys without protest, swinging again and again.
It should not have shocked Lucia that Jin is all business when it comes to his job. Even when it came to teaching Lucia he toned down his usual teasing and jokes to help Lucia truly learn. Lucia is so fascinated by this side of Jin that she even refrains from ever complaining during practice. Amazing, she knows.
"Pause. Your form is off," Seokjin mutters, not unkindly, as he approaches.
"How? I've been doing the same thing for so long," Lucia whines and Seokjin chuckles, pulling her sore arms back up.
"Your grip turned in your last few swings because you're tired. It's dangerous to let your opponent see that," he hums, shifting Lucia's right hand a little to the left on the hilt of the sword.
So maybe Lucia should have actually paid attention to what Seokjin is saying, but alas, she isn't. Seokjin's expression is gentle as he makes minor adjustments to her form, unlocking her elbows and muttering for her to spread her feet a little more. When he finally allows for a small smile, he looks up, meeting Lucia's enamored gaze.
He smiles wider, pulling rogue strands of hair from her face and fixing them behind her ear with a hum. "What's that look for?"
And Lucia is dizzy with the sheer amount of love and fondness and happiness swirling within her like a storm. And of course she realises belatedly that what is stealing her breath is Seokjin and her growing love for him. She is over the moon in love with the man in front of her. He is her everything, her loophole in a palace of rules, her warmth in a land of insecurities. He is her one and only beloved in a kingdom of strangers.
Yuck, it sounds too sappy, cliche, and romantic for it to be Lucia but she is too many different levels of weak for this man.
And even when it feels as if he is slipping from her grasp, he is there, holding onto her tighter than ever. When she is drowning in fear and loneliness, he is there to help light the way in the dark.
With butterflies soaring in her stomach, up into her chest until they fill her lungs, she smiles. No amount of flowers or sunshine or ramen could ever amount to the soaring in her heart, in her soul, as she smiles at the man before her, tears that weren't there before bursting from her eyes.
"I love you, Jin."
And butterflies at last soar from her lungs out through loose lips into the air for him to hear. At last, the raging storm of her longing and love pours from within her, all for Seokjin to finally see. Lucia can't even be embarrassed at her tears when she meets Seokjin's own teary eyes and smile of relief and surprise.
