Chapter song: Hello My Old Heart by The Oh Hellos
-Him-
He swore his heart stopped. It seemed illogical now as it fluttered wildly in his chest, but the moment he saw her lose her footing on the cobblestone path of the garden he felt his blood freeze in his veins. He saw her head hit one of the flagstones before he could reach her and the sound of it made him feel sick. He'd seen so much violence in his lifetime, but this little accident of hers affected him in a different way than anything else had. The shock of the revelation and of seeing her prone form stunted his movement for a split second before he came to his senses. He quickly gathered her in his arms and effortlessly lifted her off the ground, carrying her swiftly to her bedroom. Right before he laid her down his training finally kicked in and he realized that he probably shouldn't have moved her at all. The palace had a full security team, a doctor, and of course there was Melike, but he hadn't called anyone.
Stupid!
"Princess Reyyan? Princess can you hear me?" neither his frantic whispers nor the shaking of her shoulders roused her.
Shit!
He knew he had to call in reinforcements. As he dialed the doctor, dread pooled in his stomach. Part of him loathed the thought of someone coming to interrupt their seclusion, but that inappropriate thought was quickly pushed away. The more immediate threat was the potential of being fired over his carelessness. It was a strange thing to be thinking while he quickly told the doctor what happened and where they were now, but he had a legitimate reason to fear losing his job. He'd worked his whole life to get to this point and he berated himself for possibly messing it up by moving her after she sustained a head injury.
These were not the thoughts of a cold unfeeling man, but rather the calculated speculation of a highly trained soldier who had already checked her vitals and concluded that she was most likely fine. Her breathing was normal and her eyes moved under her lids. By his estimation it would be a bad bruise at best and a concussion at worst. Still, his heart beat in a strange rhythm.
Just then the doctor came in with his bag in hand and interrupted his train of thought. He watched the man work. He saw Melike enter the room. He knew the staff was going through the proper protocol for a situation like this, but he just stood there staring at her while they all moved around him at high speed.
Thoughts about the kind of person she was flashed in his mind like pictures on a slide show. He supposed it was a natural reaction when the fate of the unconscious person was unknown, but he wasn't used to thinking about her so freely.
He knew she wanted to be a doctor when she was little, and that she still wanted to use her position to help people in need. She was stubborn and sassy and bold, but she was also kind and polite and naive. He knew that she was the kind of person that would marry for love, not caring about her mate's social or economic status. She had the purest heart of any person he'd ever encountered. But that pure kind heart made her weak to the influences of others. He knew that her father was planning her betrothal and that she would be married to a man of the King's choosing. She wouldn't go against her father. Unless....
"She's going to be just fine." the doctor's soothing voice brought him out of his daze.
The man packed up his bag and patted him on the back as he left.
"Don't worry Miran bey. You're not out of a job yet." the doctor chuckled as he casually walked down the hall back to his quarters.
He looked to Melike then, for...reassurance? He wasn't sure how to feel in this situation, it felt like his usual poker face was slipping. She smiled at him.
"She has a pretty nice bump, but nothing serious. She just needs to ice it and take it easy the next few days."
"Thanks." his curt reply was more in response to the disappointment in himself than anything Melike did.
She raised her eyebrows at him and at first he didn't understand, but then it quickly dawned on him that she was questioning why he was still there. He cleared his throat and averted his gaze then turned to leave.
"Miran bey?" he would recognize that angelic voice anywhere, her soft pleading tone beckoning him to obey.
