"If only you had granted me more time.."
Fourth book of the 'memories of a broken heart' series.
| Contains fluff and angst.
| English isn't my first language.
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Shortly after, Ivy excused herself to the powder room to recompose herself.
She couldn't quite understand what was happening, why in the world did Prince Jimin still looked so good even after his family sent him away three years ago.
But she knew he knew what he was doing, wearing the same exact attire he wore the night they met.
She was eighteen back then, freshly making her debut in society..
Flashback
"Mother, how much longer must we wait until we can go home ?"
The duchess inclined her head towards her daughter, keeping a smile on her face as she looked around the room, nodding her head to the classical music playing.
"The royals are said to attend tonight's ball with their unwed sons, please behave."
Ivy contained her sigh and continued scanning the room, ignoring how suffocated the corset she wore made her feel.
Surely the victorian era gowns were beautiful, but oh so uncomfortable.
Ivy Hapsburg, daughter of the Duke of Hapsburg, was undoubtedly one of the most sought after ladies of the season.
She was known to be educated, well-spoken and undoubtedly one of the prettiest ladies of the entire country, without speaking about the fact that she came from an extremely respectable family.
It was no surprise that her brothers were meticulously over-analyzing every gentleman that approached her, none only for their only sister's sake, but also to protect their family's name.
Ivy couldn't care less about being here, she knew her worth.
The morning after, men will scurry to the Hapsburg estate like rats, begging to court her.
She had a natural charm, a certain elegance radiated from her.
She wasn't what people would call conventionally beautiful and that made her even more attractive, not a single soul was able to look away from her, to not be ensorcelled by her beauty the second they laid eyes on her.
"May I please excuse myself to the gardens ? I feel a bit.. Suffocated." She asked her eldest brother.
"Surely ten minutes ought to be enough ?"
She gave him a small smile and a nod before heading outside of the gigantic ballroom, immediately finding peace the second she saw the bright moon outside.
Ivy could dance, she just didn't like it.
What is the use of dancing with a man you didn't like ?
So outside, all by herself in her pink ball gown, she started waltzing, holding up her dress so it doesn't drag in the grass and letting her feet dance to the sound that came from inside the ballroom.
The garden of white roses was beautiful under the night sky, the breeze softly blowing on her face, the one gentlemen inside were looking for so desperatly.
"Your waltz could use some work."
She didn't flinch but completely stopped, turning to the individual who interrupted her peace.
Her eyes immediately widened as she lowered herself into a curtsy, pulling herself back together immediately.
"Your Royal Highness."
Prince Jimin.
He was one of the unwed princes everyone was waiting for, yet there he stood outside in the garden, alone and unguarded.
She had heard that he liked causing a bit of mischief, making his parents' lives a bit more of a hassle, so naturally hide and seek must be one of his favorite games.
He quietly approached her as she was still lowered, placing his index under her chin without touching her skin, making her look up at him.
He stayed quiet for a second, his lips parting a bit before he recollected himself.
His crown well sat on his head, hair perfectly styled and of course, the jewels dancing in his eyes.
He was beautiful, truly looking like a prince.
"This face of yours shall make you the Royal Highness.."
"Ivy Hapsburg." She filled in the blank. "Daughter of the duke of Hapsburg."
He smiled softly at that and still without a finger touching her, guided her back up.
"A lady shouldn't be outside by outside by herself, even less dancing." He spoke, his voice calm and soft, pleasing to the ears like one's favorite song.
"I needed some time alone." She answered, doing her best to stay composed.
If anything about this interaction went wrong, both her and her family were goners.
"Why are you so tensed ?" He asked, seemingly a bit amused.
Ivy stood there, quite shocked at his question.
Did he not seem to realize that he was the prince royal ?
"I'm not quite sure there's any other appropriate way of behaving when adressing to His Royal Highness." She answered, completely omitting the fact that his looks didn't help.
Butterflies, all over stomach.
She had read about that, but she sure wasn't expecting that she'd feel them one day.
"There are many other ways one could feel when adressing to me, miss Hapsburg." He said, offering her his hand. "Shall we discuss it over a waltz ?"
Hesitantly, she looked at his hand, then back at his genuine expression.
Ignoring the butterflies in her stomach and the gut feeling that told her she should get back inside as fast as possible, she put her hand in his, watching him giving her a small cutsty, kissing the back of her hand before they started waltzing together in the garden of white roses in the moonlight.
It felt intimate, to say the least, their eyes locked in each other's as they stood alone in the gardens, dancing to the faint sound of music from the ballroom.
It felt dangerous too, but mainly for her, being alone with a man in such setting could stripe her from her honor.
Yet somehow, the cold autumn night wasn't so cold anymore, not when he gently had his arms around her frame, not once holding her, looking at her in the eyes as he told her some of his shenanigans that made people feel every sort of way but tensed.
She listened, thinking about how beautiful he looked the whole time.
And though he didn't show it, he was just as nervous as her.
End of flashback
Ivy stood in the bathroom, heavy breathing, desperatly trying to calm herself down as she recollected the night they met.
"Dear God, why must you do this to me ?" She whispered her breath, staring at herself in the glass.
She remembered everything, the warmth of his skin hovering hers, his eyes, his smile, his words, the way they didn't cross eyes at all when they came back into the room, way past the ten minutes time limit.
Every single came back, of the few, intense weeks they spent together.
