[SLOW UPDATES] The Stroke of Midnight

Six.

Prince Frank stood alone in the palace, watching guards rush out and mount their horses, hurrying to follow the fair "maiden" that the Prince had swept off the dance floor. He tucked some of his hair behind his ear and looked down, the feeling of rejection slowly edging it's way into the Prince's mind. For yet another time that day, tears began to sting in his eyes, and he growled, his hands going up to his head as he gripped his hair tightly and pulled. 

What was wrong with him? Every time that he was remotely close to finally being happy, something had to come along and ruin it. 

Maybe he was just supposed to find some woman to marry, have children to carry on the royal Iero family blood line. Maybe he really was sick, thinking that he could ever be in a happy, successful relationship with a man.

But that stranger that had shown up to the ball, dressed and made up to look like a woman. He must have felt the same attraction that Frank felt. The man hadn't even been repulsed when Frank had made a move on him - if anything, he completely accepted and embraced his homosexual nature.

Prince Frank needed to see him again.

Frank took off his white gloves as he walked away from the main ballroom area, deciding to just go upstairs, back to his old room. As he ascended the stairs, he dropped his gloves behind him purposely, just not wanting to deal with anything as he continued stripping on his way to his bedroom. 

He couldn't get that man out of his mind. His pale skin, raven colored hair, honey hazel eyes. Everything about that man was gorgeous, and he couldn't believe that he had let that beauty slip from his grasp. Frank refused to forgive himself for being so careless.

Frank went into his old room, cringing at the memories that flooded his mind as he looked around. The room was spotless, his bed neatly made; the maids still cleaning the uninhabited room. He sat on the bed, taking off his shirt and carelessly tossing it onto the wood flooring.

He scratched his chest, scars from the "treatment camp" itching, some wounds still yet to heal. Frank glared at the marks across his chest: whip lashes, dagger wounds, scars from scalding metal burns. He wondered why he even bothered to stay at the facility for so long, enduring the physical and mental torture, if he knew that it would never have made a difference.

What would the beautiful boy think if he ever saw Frank's wounds? Frank couldn't bear the though of that gorgeous soul ever viewing his ugly imperfections.

Frank scoffed, scratching the back of his head as he stood, unfastening his pants and shimmying them down his legs. It wasn't like he was ever going to see the boy again. He had ran out before Frank had the chance to even ask for his name. By the way he acted, Frank even suspected that the boy in girl's evening wear had no clue that he was even the Prince.

Frank sighed, pulling back the duvet on the bed and laying down, covering his body and closing his eyes. He needed to just sleep, hopefully forget about the nameless angel he had danced and shared a wonderful kiss with earlier that night. He smiled to himself, going through the night in his head before midnight struck, and the night went to hell.

He was just about to let the sandman take him into the realm of slumber, when his eyes shot open and he sprung upright, a hopeful gleam in his eye as he remembered the last thing the boy said to him.

The produce stall.

The place the two had first informally met, the place Frank first felt the sparks of attraction towards his beautiful boy.

This was his last hope at finding this mystery man, but how could he show his face after the ball tonight? Frank could very much live without the entire town making a big deal at Prince Frank showing up at a little marketplace.

He knew he was going to have to thoroughly plan this out, but he promised himself, right then, in his bed that night, that he was going to visit that produce stall every day, until he found his boy.

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It's short, but I hadn't updated this in a while so I supposed I'd give you all another chapter.

You also seem to like this book a lot, which makes me happy ((:

xoR