Young Wings • h.hj & h.js

24

"This girl is my favorite" Jisung says, gently running his hand on the head of a white horse in the stable as he stared into her eyes with a small smile.

You were simply leaning against one of the posts at the stable, the corners of your lips pulling up as you stared at the interaction. It's the first time that you've seen Jisung look so passionate about something.

Despite his bubbly personality, Jisung was still somewhat reserved. You always assumed that it was just because of his position at the social ladder. But for the first time since you've met, there was a different kind of shimmer in his eyes. And you felt relieved that Jisung still had something that he genuinely loved.

Distracted by your own thoughts you didn't notice that Jisung had already brought the horse out of the stables, attached the horse tack (equipment/accessories) and was gesturing for you to get on.

"Uh no... You have to get on first your highness" You say with an amused smile, emphasizing on the last part to remind him of your job.

Jisung scrunches his nose at your words.

"You weren't even referring to me as a prince earlier and now I'm 'your highness'?" He mutters with a pout, cheeks puffed and arms crossed.

Honestly, you were still confused about to whole situation. Just a few minutes ago you were pouring your heart out to your best friend and now you're going on some trip with a prince. But at the moment all that you could think about was how cute Jisung was being.

You gesture once again for Jisung to get on the horse. The said guy simply rolls his eyes at your statement and before you could even process what was happening his arms were on your waist and he was lifting you on the horse.

"YAH HAN JISUNG!"

"What happened to your highness?" Jisung asked with a little smirk before getting on the horse himself.

You simply sat on the stead for a few seconds, eyes wide before your turning around and glaring at the prince. "YAH HAN JISUNG I-"

You stop mid-sentence when Jisung suddenly leans forward, his chest pressed against your back as he reached for the handles of the horse's bridle. You literally froze when his face was only a few centimeters away from yours, quickly whipping your head back to the front.

Your heartbeat wouldn't calm down though and the fact that you could feel his breath tickling the skin of your neck wasn't helping either.

"Relax a little y/n" You hear him say, followed by a breathless chuckle.

"Oh, and the moment we get out of the castle, I'm just the Han Jisung that you first met at the market, okay?"

*

"I'll be by the gate the whole time, ready to open it for you. So don't stay out too late mates!" Felix says with a bright grin before you and Jisung ride off to wherever the hell he was taking you.

"Hold on tight!" Jisung says, his voice trying to overpower that of the wind. The horse suddenly speeds up and you quickly grab onto the handles to try and steady yourself on it, not used to not being in control of the stead. 

Despite holding on, you had a bit of trouble because of how close together your hands were. Slowly, you felt Jisung's hands on top of yours, guiding you and helping you get a better grip.

You feel his head by your left shoulder and glance at the side to see his eyes glued to the front, a big smile across his face.

Earlier, you were confused. You questioned a lot of things and just couldn't understand the overall situation you were in. But the moment that you felt Jisung's hands over yours, it was as if all of your problems just faded away.

You felt reassured.
You felt as though everything was going to get better.
It was as if the weight was off your shoulders.

You leaned back a bit, head on Jisung's shoulder and eyes closed as you felt the cool midnight breeze.

Jisung's eyes went wide, the blood rushing up his cheeks as he tried to remain calm and focus on the dirt path ahead.

After around thirty minutes the two of you found yourselves standing in front of what seemed like ruins of what was once a castle.

"I uh... Before, you mentioned how you like to explore and um- t-trust me it looks prettier during the day and I wish I could take you then but you have your duties and-"

Jisung was getting off from the horse as he spoke, your chuckle caught him off guard, making him stop mid-sentence as he assisted you down as well.

"Why are you laughing at me?"

"Because you were really cute just now Han Jisung... and even though it's already nighttime, the castle's beautiful. I love it" You said with a genuine smile.

No honorifics.
No titles.
No invisible wall called status or hierarchy.

Right now, he was just standing before you as a normal boy and you were standing before him as a normal girl.

For a moment, Jisung really felt as though he wasn't a prince. And you weren't a knight.

And he wished that the feeling would never go away.

But he knew better.

"Just like you... beautiful" Jisung trailed off as his gaze remained fixed on you, suddenly sad when the situation sunk in and he realized that, despite being a prince, he really couldn't have everything.

"What?"

"I- UH- LET'S CHECK OUT THE INSIDE!" Jisung mentally punched himself in the gut for suddenly getting all emotional. Now wasn't the time for those thoughts.

He took a deep breath, clearing his mind of any negativity. 'Live in the moment Han Jisung. Even if it's just for one night, enjoy it'

Your eyes suddenly lit up with  excitement, making Jisung snap back to reality and his stomach do flips.

Now, it was your turn to catch him off guard because just as he finished tying the horse to a post nearby you grabbed him by the hand and dragged him to the entrance of the abandoned castle.

You both stopped  at the gate.
You tried your best to pull it open but to no avail. Jisung made you step back and tried to pull it as well but failed.

His brows furrowed.

"Damn I didn't know this was locke-"

"-Hurry up you slowpoke!"

Jisung looks up to see you standing on top of the wall where the gate was attached, waving at him with a big smile across your face.

"Let's test your tree climbing skills!" You screamed at him from above, pointing at the tree with branches that were crossing over the wall already.

"I thought you said that it's dangerous for a prince to climb a tree?!" He screamed back.

"But you're not a prince right now! Right now you're just Jisungie and I'm an idiot who's gonna get in trouble if ever the kingdom finds out about this so don't make me regret my decision!"

Jisung shook his head at your semi-joke/statement, a chuckle escaping his lips.

At that moment he realized that you had as much troubled thoughts as him. And at that point, it was as if you both silently agreed not to talk about it, pass it off as jokes to get through the night.

"Oh! And- uh, be careful on the way up" You suddenly add, just as Jisung's about to climb the tree.

"Don't worry y/n, I got this"