The Accidental Monarch

Beginning

The audience roars with applause and laughter when Yoon Seri pulls the cherry stem out of her mouth with a successfully tied knot in the middle. Never one to back down from a challenge, the Grand Slam actress took the opportunity presented to her by the avid host, knowing the risqué implications that come with it. She places the stem back down on the plate with a cheeky laugh.

"Well, that certainly answered the question every man in South Korea wants to know," the host chuckles with a knowing expression, sending everyone into hysterics once again. "Now, let us talk about another thing people want to know about you. As we all know, you have played the role of Princess Deok-hye in your last movie."

Thunderous applause immediately follows the statement to which she genuinely smiles and nods. The work she had put into the movie had taken a lot of her strength, physically and emotionally. Knowing that it was well-received by the people is nothing short of rewarding despite her numerous successes in the box office.

"Yes, it is a film that I am very proud to be a part of," she replies.

"However, this does not seem to be your first brush with royalty," he continues to say, intriguing both the audience and his guest. He pulls out an enlarged picture of a group of students lined up for their annual class photograph, and she immediately understands what he was implying. "Am I correct in assuming that this is you over here in the lower right while this is His Royal Highness, Prince Ri Jeong-hyeok, in the upper left?"

A thousand miles away, in a remote army base, the man in question watches the television screen with interest and a handful of sunflower seeds. Several heads turn towards his general direction, startled by the mention of his name in an interview with their favorite actress, making the prince fight off an amused smile at the comical expression on their faces.

Jeong-hyeok pops several seeds into his mouth as he waits for her answer, feeling both apologetic and proud that she seems flustered by the question. So, she does remember him. He was afraid that she might have forgotten him after all these years.

Back inside the studio, gasps and whispers break out in the crowd at the mention of the most popular member of the royal family. Ri Jeong-hyeok, the second son, the spare of the crown, the most eligible bachelor in all of South Korea, and now apparently a former classmate of the nation's most beloved actress.

Seri knows how an association with another famous personality will play out in the gossip columns if she does not handle this properly, but the mention of the prince had sent her mind and heart into a tizzy.

"Now just where did you get that picture?" she accuses the host in jest, bringing out her acting chops and hoping that she pulls off being passive about the whole thing. She forces out a laugh while brushing her hair back over her shoulder. "I have forgotten all about that. But to answer your question, yes, uh, there was a time that the prince and I attended the same school."

The host prods on. "Did you get to interact with him at all?"

"No," she lies smoothly, acting regretful about the missed opportunity, and turns the subject back to herself to avoid the incriminating line of questioning. "I was a bit of a wallflower back in school. I did not have many friends and was always rushing to go home after class. Back then, my priorities were my assignments and tteokbokki."

"Your Royal Highness."

Jeong-hyeok schools his feature back into his signature stoic exterior, hoping that no one noticed the wide smile that brightened his expression at her mentioning her favorite glutinous snack. Upon seeing his commanding officer standing by the door, he immediately stands in attention and raises his hand to his temple in a salute, hearing the scuffle of moving chairs behind him as his colleagues do the same.