Violets are Blue (The King's Affection fanfiction)

Fifteen

Waking up with her king was one thing but waking up to his arms around her waist and her head tucked under his chin against his chest was an entirely different level of love. It was everything she'd ever dreamed of.

Noh Ha Kyung slowly and carefully detached her upper body from him. She didn't want to wake His Majesty upon seeing that he was still sleeping soundly. Oh how she wished for time to be frozen in this moment forever!

She still found him as handsome as ever, making her want to kiss those lips again. Noh Ha Kyung closed her eyes and leaned in for it. It was only after she had stolen her morning kiss that Hwi opened his eyes.

"My Queen," he croaked.

Hwi realized at once that his arms were wrapped around her. He quickly removed it and sat up.

"Did you sleep at all?" he asked, afraid that he made her uncomfortable.

"I had one of the best sleeps in a while," she replied shyly.

Weird how her feelings for him never changed despite knowing the truth. If anything, she only loved him more.

"Love is love," she remembered Yu Gong telling her earlier before they returned to the palace.

She was right. This felt right.

"We should probably check on Taeyeon and proceed with our morning greetings to The Grand Queen Dowager," said Hwi, standing up.

He held out his hand to pull her up just in time for a few maids to rush in to tend to their bedding.

"Good morning my sweet boy!"

Noh Ha Kyung scooped Taeyeon into her arms and smothered him with kisses while Hwi smiled at the joyous sight. The little boy was wide awake and seemed happy.

"He has grown quite a bit these past few days," he said.

Apparently, The Grand Queen Dowager agreed with Hwi. She was falling in love with her fast growing great-grandson.

If only Prince Wonsan was here to see it...

"I'm glad you decided to return to the palace and not wander the wild with him," she said to Hwi.

She'd been drowning in all sorts of guilt for so long that she almost forgot what it felt like to be genuinely happy, even if it was just for a short moment. The fact that Taeyeon was continuing her bloodline brought her inexplicable joy. As for Hwi, she owed it to him to allow him to be the best he could be. Who cares if he favored the same gender? She just needed some time to get used to it.

"It's the way you rule that matters most now," she said to him.

Hwi nodded.

"I suppose you will set a great example for Taeyeon," The Grand Queen Dowager added.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Hwi gave a slight bow. This was a lot easier than he had anticipated, but considering his fair share of difficult decisions and life-threatening experiences, he was pretty confident that his endurance level for anything was through the ceiling now.