Royal Love

Chapter 6

"Do you think like as me? I was hiding the sound of my heart, for fear of you listening."
A Lot Like Love - Baek A Yeon

6 o'clock at the entrance of Albania trail, a white BMW is already parked at the parking lot. The sun has not even come out yet, the sky is dimly grey. It's not cloudy today. A few stars can still be seen in the sky. The weather is chilly. Alethea is already in the middle of fall. The man in the BMW is in his exercise clothes, a simple white t-shirt, black gym short with tight inside, and black hiking shoes. Kao is listening to music, waiting for the Crown Prince. Born and trained in a military family, he always come 20-30 minutes to any meeting he has. Late is not in his dictionary.

Talking about the date today, his father is even more excited than him. Who wouldn't when his son is having a date with the Crown Prince of the country, out of all 9 other suitors. This is a chance for his father to brag with others. Who know? They might become in-law with the Royal Family in the future. Kao rolls his eyes at the thought, only his greedy father sells his son's love life for personal gain. Kao doesn't give a shit about title; he just want to live a simple, happy life with loved one. If only he had a choice when he was born, he would choose to be born in a normal family. What is the point of having all this power and money, when his family doesn't contain the word 'happiness'.

While Kao is deep in thought, he sees a black Audi with heavy tinted glass enter the parking lot. The car parks right next to him. Then, a guy in all black hiking clothes steps out of the driver seat. Kao recognizes that it is Earth's personal security guard. Kao turns off his car, grabs his hiking backpack, and steps out. The clock reads 6:10. Earth has also stepping out of the car as well. He is wearing a white t-shirt inside a yellow windbreaker, black jogging pants, and hiking shoes. Kao thinks Earth looks cute in the outfit.

"Good morning, Your Highness!" Without forgetting etiquette, Kao holds Earth's hand and give it a kiss.

"Good morning, Kao! I'm sorry if I am late." Earth shyly says.

"No worries! I was just early. Then, should we start?" Earth nods his head to answer. They head for the entrance. Kao notices there are 3 more security guards, who arrived right after Earth's car. There are 4 guards total, 2 in front and 2 in the back of them. They keep their distance to give the couple privacy, but not too far away in case something happen.

Albania Trail is part of Albania Forest, one of the national park of Alethea. It contains a complex ecosystems, with thousands of different animals, trees, rivers, and a few lagoons. The trail is the only part that the public can access to enjoy the forest. The rest of the forest is reserved, in order to protect its beauty from harm.

The first 15 minutes, they have light talk about how their week have been, with light jokes here and there. "Have you hike this trail before?" Earth curiously ask Kao. He noticed that Kao seem to know where to step on some of the muddy path.

"I was in the Special Forces. We used this trail for morning exercise. I have ran up and down here countless times. How about you?" At this point, Kao is ahead of Earth. He steps over the slippery path, turns around, and offers his hand to Earth. Earth was surprised for a second, then he holds Kao's hand, allowing him to help Earth. They release each other's hands right away after.

"Well, this is my second time here. It's really close to the Royal Palace; but, I'm too busy to hike here. It takes 2 hours and a half to go back and forth. I usually have only an hour in the morning to exercise. So, I tend to just jog around the palace or the Palace Park."

"You jog around Palace Park? Wouldn't you get surrounded by the citizens?" Kao furrows his brows a little.

"No! I go jogging early in the morning; so, there are not a lot of people outside yet. There are some early joggers as well; but, they always keep their distance."