cassiopeia ꒱ markhyuck

thirty six

Everything else that came after Donghyuck's decision to stay happened so fast that he could barely keep track of it all.

Renjun and Jeno had crushed him in a tight group hug when he told them he had decided to stay, and it took several minutes before Donghyuck was able to peel them off of him. Donghyuck had laughed and reveled in the attention, until something Renjun said made him take pause.

"Has the king proposed to you already, then?"

Donghyuck had flushed, red high on his cheeks as he turned to look at his friend.

"Um... well, no, not really... unless you count all the times he's already talked about us mating with each other."

Renjun had furrowed his eyebrows and crossed his arms. "That's odd, I thought he would've done so right away. That is the next step now, isn't it? For you both to be mated and wed?"

"I mean... I don't know," Donghyuck had squeaked, looking shy, "it feels weird... it's all moving so fast, I never considered anything like marriage would happen for me any time soon..."

"Well, if you're going to stay, I recommend getting married as soon as possible," Renjun had repeated firmly, "that is what will keep you most safe from now on. The king's mating bite on your neck will do most of the legwork of protecting you from the Red Moon. Right now you're an easier target because you're unmated and unwed."

Donghyuck had shifted on his feet, gnawing at his lower lip. "I don't know... I don't want to pressure him into it or anything, or rush things, you know...? I mean, our relationship really only just started, technically."

Renjun had rolled his eyes fondly and patted Donghyuck on the shoulder. "Just think about it, okay? I don't know how things work in your world, but there's nothing strange about wanting to marry quickly here."

Donghyuck did think about it. He thought about it the next couple of nights as he laid next to Mark in bed, wrapped in the king's embrace with his ring finger bare and his neck unmarked. He thought about it as he bided his time during the palace days, in the many hours he was left to entertain himself while Mark fulfilled important duties and took care of the political aftermath of the attempted assassination.

He was still thinking about it when Renjun came into his bedroom one afternoon with a broad smile on his face and a luxurious, well pressed robe in his arms, eyes glinting with something Donghyuck couldn't quite pinpoint.

"The king is requesting your presence in the royal gardens, for a bit of a late afternoon picnic."

"Oh," Donghyuck mumbled, glancing down at the robe before he looked up at Renjun suspiciously, "that robe seems a little fancy for a picnic... is there something you're not telling me?"

If Renjun knew anything else, it didn't show on his face. His expression remained completely still and unchanged, his smile growing only a little. "There is nothing I am keeping from you, Your Highness. I do advise you get ready quickly, though, the king is already down there waiting for you."

Donghyuck's eyes widened at that, and the urgency allowed him to push aside all other thoughts and suspicions as he let the servants get him ready, draping his robes over his body and touching up his face and hair before leading him out and down to the palace gardens.

"The king is waiting for you in the innermost pavilion, Your Highness," a young maid said, showing Donghyuck the path and bowing her head before scurrying away. This reignited Donghyuck's confusion and suspicion, because it was unexpected that the staff would leave him unattended, especially since the attack.

He tried his best to shake off the feeling as he made his way through the winding path, finally emerging on the other side of the hedges and walking into the big, open stone pavilion. Immediately he noticed the string of lights hanging from the ceiling, bright and twinkling even as the day faded from afternoon to early evening. The next thing he saw was a path of rose petals, winding around the gazebo and leading straight up to Mark, who was standing in the middle of it all with a bouquet of roses in his arms and a wide smile on his face.