Lost in a Masquerade

09

"You take the bedroom, I will sleep in the living room." Jimin offered, looking at Jessica still sitting at the chair when he returned after washing the utensils.

"Will you tell my father about it?" Jessica asked, her voice devoid of emotions and her body catatonic.

It terrified Jimin and he crouched down on the floor. He'd made a promise to the king and it was his duty to fulfill it. He couldn't make a reinvigorated promise to the princess that he wouldn't. "Don't worry about this and get some rest." The counselor formed the words carefully.

Jessica nodded, unable to make eye contact with the outsider she somehow trusted. As she shifted in the room, she felt safe in the filmy night of a stranger's house. Now that she was left alone with her thoughts, the pain in her chest returned. Turning to her side softly, she closed her eyes, curling into herself.

She couldn't sleep for hours, knowing she was so close to finding out for herself, so close to seeing if Jimin was speaking the truth. Slowly, she walked out of the room and spotted Jimin lying on the diwan. She held her heels in her hands and, on light feet, crossed the diwan to get out of the house before picking up the car keys.

Jimin was so tired after driving for half a day that he snoozed the moment he hit his head on the pillows, unwary that Jessica had driven off. Although it was only ten at night, it was dark and the electricity was off due to the damage done by the rain.

Jessica drove frantically, not having a care in the world, as if a princess' life meant nothing. Asking a few locals, hse found the institute easily and barged in.

This time, the old receptionist was drowsy and the princess avoided him successfully. She still had no clue which room was she looking for. Darting around fervently, it clicked. If she wanted private time, she would stay afar from the crowd, and with that thought, her eyes spotted a dark corridor. Towards the end of it, there was a door handle that shimmered faintly under the lantern light.

Jessica ran for it, suddenly feeling that it was a mistake. If she saw something on the other side of the door, she would crash and burn.

But she also couldn't return without discovering the truth one more time like a coward.

Her fingers held the door handle, gripping it. She retreated her hands and wrung them. Every sense in her body intermingled. She hadn't a clue what she was doing when she kicked the door open and spotted two naked people lying in the comfort of the blanket.

At the bottom was the strange face and on top was her Lee Geon that she could recognize even on the opaquest night. The man who taught her how to make love, a man who promised her a love tale. The same lover was now making love to another woman.

On the intrusion, Lee Geon's eyes went wide as he spotted the princess, Jeon Jessica. He pulled himself out of the comforter and jumped on the ground, having the sanity to wrap his lower body inside the blanket. "Jessica -"

The princess had the confirmation she needed and when she turned and ran with all the strength in herlegs, she didn't cry. All she knew was she needed to go back to the safe house.

Her mind suddenly turned numb and she could hear his ears ringing as she drove carelessly. Within a matter of a few minutes, she found a familiar wooden house. The door was still open as she had left earlier. She looked at Jimin sleeping peacefully as she entered and made a bee-line to her room.

Just as her shivering form fell on the bed, the soft sobs ripped free from her lips as her face scrunched. She tried to push her face into a pillow so it would stop, but nothing helped. Hands trembled, teeth clattered, ribs hurt, and muscles bit him as tremors broke unrestrained. She couldn't control her voice anymore. Wanting to let the pain out, she pulled her face back from the pillow and screamed.

Jimin's legs dropped onto the cold wood just as he heard the ear-curdling shriek and they ran across the hall. "Princess?" Jimin turned on the bedside lamp to only brighten the room enough to bring a sense of security to the younger, but he found the bed empty.

"Prin-"

Jimin's back was pushed harshly into the bed and he felt a hand choking his neck firmly. On top of him was Jessica with the same sinister look in her eyes that he'd seen in the hotel and when the princess' hand started to unbutton his pants, Jimin's heart stopped. He looped his foot in between the princess' legs and curled them, causing the younger to lose balance. He simultaneously used force to bring the younger onto the bed and it was now his hand that choked Jessica as the tables turned and he hovered on top.

"I am older than you, stronger than you, and more experienced. How -"

"Jimin-n," the younger hiccuped. "My chest, I don't think I can stop it this time. I think I will die."

Once again, Jimin was rendered speechless, knowing with Jessica's very condition, she needed to be comforted, so he pulled her up in his lap and hugged her close to his chest. "Shhh... You can do it, my princess. Focus. Breathe..."

As Jimin rocked the younger female into his lap, he breathed through it, asking the woman to copy him. "Just like me, breathe."

He didn't look at the princess' face to save her the humiliation later, but when Jessica put her head over his shoulder, Jimin's eyes fell on her. The wobbling lips, the red face, the bulging veins, and the ever-flowing streams of tears broke his heart. "I know it hurts," Jimin continued to rock the female. "I know you want to go look for him and ask for the reason. But no explanation will make it better. I know you loved him and he didn't love you back as you wanted. But you are strong. You are the daughter of Jeon Sun-Young. You are kind, beautiful... You deserve the world and you will feel peace again. I promise you. You will mend and you will become stronger."

"Why did he d-do this to me? W-why did he play with me? Am I r-really that ugly?"

"No, little one," Jimin cooed. "You are the most appealing woman, the most innocent, one of a kind. I have never laid my eyes on anyone quite like you."

"Will you hold me close, please?" Jessica bunched Jimin's chest through his muslin shirt tightly.

"I will," Jimin hugged the poor little woman close, tightening his grip around her waist, making her feel secure. "I can hold you forever if you need me to." He mumbled softly.

contd.....