Hugfia's 30 Day OTP Challenge

Day Thirty: Vacations

Princess Sofia takes a moment on her honeymoon to watch her husband play the piano.

Princess Sofia awoke to the sun shining in her eyes.

It was an oppressively hot day. The air was heavy, the light was hazy, and the windows were flung open to let in a gentle breeze. Judging from how the sun hung in the sky, it was just past noon. Princess Sofia had not intended to sleep the day away. She had actually risen quite early, ready to make the most of the precious time she had been granted to spend with her new husband. Her husband, who had gazed upon her so sweetly in the morning light, eyes full of wonder and hunger, face flushing slightly as he told her he had dreamt of her. Princess Sofia had asked him, lips quirking, what kind of dream it was and one thing led to another and well, here she was.

Sprawled out in bed, damp with sweat, hair wild, a single sheet tangled around her naked form.

Princess Sofia sat up, wiping sleep and sweat from her eyes, and realized that Prince Hugo was no longer in bed with her. She could hazard a guess at where he was—drinking tea, penning letters, getting some fresh air. Relaxing didn’t come easy to Hugo. The Prince was always up and about, flitting from one activity to the next. The rare moments he had taken for himself over the past few days were no different. But Sofia couldn’t fault him for that—it was one of the things she loved about him.

Princess Sofia would have been content to just stay in bed a bit longer, but she figured she should check on Hugo, make sure he wasn’t working too hard. She rose from the bed, collected her robe from the floor, and made her way to the vanity for a glass of water and to do something about that hair. Princess Sofia sat at the mirror and stared at her reflection for a moment. She looked absolutely horrific—a flushed, disheveled mess—but she was so happy that she couldn’t help but smile. Picking up her brush, she began to hum to herself as she worked the tangles out of her hair. And then, almost as if on cue, she heard it—

The warm, rich timbre of a piano.

Princess Sofia knew that Prince Hugo had been playing for most of his life—he loved to remind her that mastery of an instrument is a true hallmark of nobility—and he had accompanied her as she sang on many occasions. Sofia strained her ears to listen to the distant tune. It was quite lovely, whatever it was. Princess Sofia tried her best to return to the task at hand, but her thoughts kept wandering back to Prince Hugo. There was something about the idea of him playing for himself that she found very alluring. It seemed so intimate, so romantic. She had to see it for herself.

Princess Sofia quietly followed the sound down the hallway and into the study. The heady scent of flowers from the garden below hung thick in the air, and the room was drenched with sun. The light came through the windows in thick beams, illuminating the dust motes that floated through the air and casting a warm glow over everything it touched. At the center of the room sat Prince Hugo —bare from the waist up, his fiery hair all lit up and draped over looking very messy.

Princess Sofia froze in the doorway, hand covering her mouth, afraid that her presence would disturb him. But after a moment, it became clear that he was deaf to everything but the music. The piece he had selected was enchanting. It flowed like water, slow and sensual, full of nostalgia and longing. Sofia couldn’t see Prince Hugo's face, but she imagined that his eyes were closed, his brow furrowed in concentration. Just as Princess Sofia felt her own eyes begin to slip shut, the music began to build in intensity. Sofia opened her eyes to the sight of Prince Hugo leaning into the chords, the muscles in his back contracting and releasing, his breathing audible. Hugo's body moved with each swell of the music, his hands traveling deftly across the keys. The sight of Hugo surrendering himself completely and totally to the music was intoxicating. It was divine.

The intensity ebbed away into the same sweet longing from before, but with a newfound passion. As each note tumbled one over the other in dizzying arpeggios, Princess Sofia noticed how Hugo's wedding band caught the light, and her heart swelled with pride.

The music slowed and quieted. Prince Hugo played the last series of chords with a tenderness so great that Princess Sofia felt her eyes well up. As the last notes hung in the air, Prince Hugo let his head fall back with a sigh. A breeze rolled in. The curtains billowed. A single bead of sweat rolled down his back. The hand that had been resting on Sofia's lips slid down to rest on her chest as she let out a shaky exhale.

Prince Hugo started, aware of her presence for the first time. He turned around to face her, his gaze softening.

“Oh, hello, love. Did I wake you?”

He smiled, and it was too much. Princess Sofia crossed the threshold of the room and closed the distance between them. She reached down to cup his face and kissed him, slowly and deeply. Prince Hugo returned the kiss without hesitation, pulling her into his lap. When they parted, Princess Sofia took his hand in hers and brought it to her lips, pressing a soft kiss to each finger. Sofia met his gaze and there it was again—that wonder and hunger. Princess Sofia smiled and nuzzled into his neck—murmuring his name, murmuring praises, murmuring things that made his head spin. She could feel the heat creeping up Prince Hugo's chest, up his neck, burning from the inside out in the afternoon sun.

Her lips trailed downwards until the room was filled with nothing but the sounds of the wind rustling through the trees, of birdsong, and of Prince Hugo's breathless moans.

It was the sweetest music Princess Sofia had ever heard in her life.