Imprisoned to Love You [Edited]

♦⊱ Chapter 13 - Slight Freedom ⊰♦

This chapter is dedicated to ShyLittleMarshmallow! Happy reading!

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Ruka pov:

Just like it was every day, Kyo chan took care of getting me ready for the day. She helped me put on a beautiful kimono dress, a light blue and white one today, and tied my hair up in a simple hairstyle. A delicate ornament made of precious gems was placed on one side of my head.

A soldier walked in just as I was done getting ready to summon me for breakfast with Kichiro sama. I felt a queasy jitter in my stomach because of what had happened in the morning but calmed myself with reassuring words that there was no real reason for me to be so anxious.

I was escorted to the dining hall in silence. When we entered the hall though, I tensed. Kichiro sama sat at the head of the table waiting for me, dressed in one of the many royal robes he had, his eyes closed and his arms crossed over his broad chest. But seeing him wasn't what made me react so strongly. All the other chairs around the dining table had been removed making it obvious that I was to sit in Kichiro sama's lap as I had done yesterday during lunch.

I swallowed thickly and walked up to him, averting my eyes the minute he looked at me. "Sit," he said almost immediately and I complied without a fuss. Heat rushed to my cheeks from our position as well as memories of sleeping in his arms last night. I didn't shift or squirm as attendants placed food in front of us, a few eyeing me and making me feel even more awkward.

When Kichiro sama leaned forward to reach for his food, a shiver went down my spine at the contact of his chest with my back. He began eating and I too reached out for my food hoping that eating would distract me from his body heat on my back.

Kichiro sama was done with his meal rather quickly but waited patiently for me to finish. He neither told me to eat faster nor ordered me to get up so he could leave first and I could eat at my leisure. What's more, he was acting as if the incident this morning had never happened. He wasn't angry or annoyed and his behavior was as placid as always. I wasn't complaining though because I felt comfortable with this atmosphere. I wouldn't know how to face him if he was still angry.

When I was done with breakfast, Kichiro sama wrapped his arm around my waist as we stood. Flustered again, I blushed and kept my eyes down while I stepped away from him when he let go of me.

"You will no longer have soldiers watching over you and you are free to go anywhere you want to in my palace," he spoke and I met his eyes surprised. I nodded slowly and turned to walk away.

"Um, K-Kichiro sama," I called timidly and he turned to meet my eyes sternly. I fiddled with the hem of my clothes, shifting on my feet, "May I have my treasure back, please?"

We were enveloped by tense silence for a moment before he reached into his sleeve and held my phone out to me. I was once again surprised by his gesture – he had returned my phone without asking me questions or threatening me to not do something foolish with it. I bowed with a word of thanks while taking my phone and he walked away without another word. I kept my eyes on the doors he had walked out of for several minutes, still confused about everything that had happened in the past few minutes before looking at my phone in my hands.

I stepped out of the dining hall and down the hallway, looking around to confirm that Kichiro sama's words were true. No soldiers followed me – I felt like I finally had some privacy.

Just as I was walking down the hallway, I spotted one of the gates of the palace that led to the outside world, the world I had wanted to escape to instead of being locked in here. I felt a chill remembering the punishment I had suffered from my past attempt to escape and it prevented me from stepping within even ten feet of the gate. I shook my head and hurried past there and to a courtyard garden.