He Walks Alone in the Moonlight [COMPLETED]

LIKE A FISH OUT OF WATER

Doyoon escorted Jihyun back to the main courtyard of Horangi Palace, and Jihyun couldn't help but compare it to his earlier trek with Songmin. The crown prince walked in front of him, carefully moving branches out of the way and ushering Jihyun through any rough patches by holding onto his elbow firmly. They talked little, other than the prince's occasional 'be careful' or 'watch your step'. It was a stark contrast to the treatment he had received from the royal advisor. After stepping out of the brush, the pair stood awkwardly at the cobblestone path leading towards the residences.

"Thank you," Jihyun murmured quietly, nodding his head in a quick bow. His resolve to isolate himself from the prince had been continuously waxing and waning, and even now Jihyun felt his earlier desire to avoid the prince slip through his fingers. The prince evoked a morbid fascination within Jihyun, like the desire to run your hands through the mane of a hungry lion. He was a creature to be wary of, and he had hurt Jihyun before. Yet why did he feel such a pull towards the prince? It did not help when the prince said the things he said to him, did the things he did for him, or looked at Jihyun like he was an oasis in an endless desert. His inner turmoil only worsened with the prince's earlier confession. Could one even consider that a confession? It is easy for the one being loved to not realize it, Jihyun. Jihyun felt so sure that the prince was talking about him, not Songmin. But why on earth would the prince care for him? How could someone's heart change in less than a day? Jihyun's constant confusion lay not only in his feelings towards the prince, but in his feelings towards himself. Everything in Jihyun's life changed the day the prince ordered his punishment. Despite the efforts of those he now found around him, Jihyun did not feel entirely human. His days were haunted by life in the palace, and his nights were plagued with strange dreams.

"Jihyun?" The prince spoke softly, and Jihyun realized his head still remained tipped towards the ground. Blinking the mist from his eyes, Jihyun looked up at the prince.

"Yes, Your Highness?" Doyoon sighed through his nose, his face twisted in agony as he closed his eyes. The prince's fists curled and uncurled several times and he steadied himself.

"How is your back?"

"What?" Jihyun blinked once, surprised by the question.

"The lashings, on your back. How are they? Do they still pain you?" Unconsciously, Jihyun's hand drifted over his shoulder to run along his upper back. He could feel the slightly raised skin of his scars through the fabric of his robe.

"There is no more physical pain, Your Highness. They have scarred over." The emotional torture, he feared, would stay with him forever.

"Is it too late, then?" The prince whispered.

"Too late for what?"

"For me to apologize for a wound already healed over?" The prince's eyes were expectant, his body leaning forward. Jihyun watched the prince's expression with apprehension. Apologies were hardly ever used to make the wronged party feel better. Oftentimes it was to ease the guilt of the wrongdoer. But Jihyun did not want to ease Doyoon's guilt. He wanted the prince to wallow in it.

"Will I be expected to forgive you?" It was the natural progression of things. To apologize and be forgiven. Jihyun did not like that progression. The prince bit the inside of his cheek, pondering the question. He wanted Jihyun's forgiveness, but at the same time, he could not forgive himself. If the prince could not even forgive himself for his own actions, how could he hold Jihyun to a higher standard?

"Never in your life will I expect you to forgive me." Doyoon felt a burn in his chest as he said the words. But he meant it. He would ask for Jihyun's forgiveness, but he would not expect it. He recalled the memory the Witch of Joy had shown him. Of Jihyun in his bed, wrapped in his embrace, looking at him so fondly.