[fic] Thorn 3/7
Title: Thorns
Pairing(s): Khunyoung
Length: 3/7
Rating: PG-13
Genre: AU, romance, drama
Summary: Prince Nichkhun loves everyone back equally. It didn’t matter if she was attractive or not, old or young, servant or princess, single or married. If she came to him looking for love, he was there to give it. But Wooyoung… Wooyoung was another story.
Previous chapters: 01// 02
A/n: Thanks s1nfulxs0ul for always reading my fanfics first! Your criticism helps a lot, especially when I’m writing a fanfic in a fandom I’m not quite familiar with! ^^
It was a mistake to look from the very beginning, thought Wooyoung the following day. He never should have disregarded the elder servants’ warnings and let his curiosity win him over, because now, he felt as if Nichkhun’s eyes were constantly on him.
Feeling a familiar tingling sensation at the back of his skull, Wooyoung turned his paranoid head, expecting to catch the prince’s familiar, piercing stare. Finding that he was intensely reading, Wooyoung pulled the roots of his hair and mentally pounded his head on the marble table in frustration. His imagination was just playing tricks on his stressful mind again.
In the distant, Nichkhun held in his laughter at the sight of his overly sensitive servant. Of course he was staring. Who could resist teasing their adorable friend? From his angle, it looked as if Wooyoung was conversing and bowing to the vase of blooming roses.
Cute indeed, grinned Nichkhun slyly as he continued to observe the smaller man’s graceless movements.
“Wooyoung-ah~” Nichkhun called out affectionately, successfully snapping Wooyoung out from his one-man conversation.
“Y-yes your highness?”
Smiling mischievously while Wooyoung rushed to his side, Nichkhun asked, “What’s bothering you so much? You look awfully tired today.” He reached out to stroke Wooyoung’s infamous cheeks, causing its owner’s body to stiffen in shock.
“I-I don’t know my lord,” he lied nervously under Nichkhun’s gaze and touch. His mouth dried as royal fingers brushed over his chapped lips. “I-I believe it’s just from lack of sleep.”
“Were we bothering you too much last night?” Immediately, Wooyoung’s ears reddened as the image of a naked Nichkhun flooded back into his memories. The prince pointed out bluntly, “Lady Xiye was rather loud.”
“That’s not the reason my Prince. My mind was merely occupied with the preparations for next week’s ceremony.” Nichkhun noted the twitching of Wooyoung’s right eye. “Moreover, your highness can do whatever you want. You need not waste your royal breath and thoughts on me.”
The prince caught the glint of sadness in the smaller man’s eyes, and slowly, he withdrew his hands from the surface of Wooyoung’s warm skin, instantly regretting how he had forced his beloved friend to repeat such painful words. How often had he heard Wooyoung repeat those monotonous lines?
An awkward silence overtook the room as each of its occupants lost themselves in their thoughts. Wooyoung thought about how he was foolishly in love with a rose that every woman longed to trap in their inverted vase. What kind of man loved roses anyways?
And Nichkhun... Nickhun was angry, angry at the fact that Wooyoung never demanded anything in return. “I’m sorry” was the unspoken sentence that lingered on his tongue all too long.
“Come here,” the prince choked out suddenly while he moved to make room on his cushioned seat. “Come and sit beside me.”
Stiffly, and slightly confused, Wooyoung complied with his master’s wishes, knowing very well that he was not supposed to be enjoying such luxurious. He held his breath as he lowered himself onto the comfortable cushion. Once seated, Nichkhun quickly laid his head down on Wooyoung’s lap like a little child, giggling in delight.
“Prince Nichkhun!” exclaimed Wooyoung, clearly embarrassed by their sudden intimate position. “I don’t think this is a good idea.”
“Shh… Wooyoung. Don’t ruin the moment. Just let me lie here on your lap. I’m asking for nothing more.”
He smiled sorrowfully in the fabric of his servant’s robes, and Wooyoung could not deny such a beautiful face. Has anyone ever turned down this man’s request?
“If you insist my Prince.”
He began to gently comb his stubby bandaged fingers through Nichkhun’s silky strands, and the prince let out a sigh of content. If only everyday was more sweet than bitter.
“Did it hurt?”
It took a moment for Wooyoung to realize that Nichkhun was referring to the bandages on his hand.
“It did at first,” he began. “But the pain gets numb after a while. Now, I don’t even remember when I got this injury.”
“It just hits you right? You don’t know how or when it happened. And when you finally feel the pain, there’s nothing you can actually do about it.”
Wooyoung was confused. Were they even talking about the same thing?
“Perhaps,” was his safest and most neutral reply. He continued to weave his fingers through the prince’s rich hair in silence, and its owner scrunched up his eyebrows as if deep in thought. After a while, Nichkun disrupted the chamber’s stillness.
“Did you know you’re like those roses over there?” He motioned lazily at the bouquet of flowers that had scarred his friend’s hand.
Wooyoung stilled, not understanding how Nichkhun came to have such a ridiculous conclusion. Nichkhun was the beautiful rose, not him.
“Do you know why my Wooyoung? Why I think you’re like those roses?” The smaller man shook his head. “It’s because it hurts whenever I touch you. Your defensive thorns poke against me when I reach out for you. Tell me Wooyoung, are you not like the rose?”
“Your highness I-”
“Ahem!”
The interrupted pair turned their heads to see Lady Xiye’s personal servant at the door. She wore the same high and mighty attitude like her master and looked quite disgusted by the image of Nichkhun lying on Wooyoung’s lap. Wooyoung struggled to get up from the embarrassing position, but the weight of Nichkhun’s head held him down. In addition, the prince said aloud, “You don’t have to get up for her,” causing the lady to narrow her eyes on Wooyoung.
“What do you want?” asked Nichkhun coldly while drawing invisible X’s on the fabric of his servant’s robes. He was quite annoyed by her unannounced entrance. “I’m kind of busy at the moment.”
Wooyoung was tempted to slap Nichkhun’s hand away, especially when they were drawing shapes over his ticklish chest.
“Lady Xiye has invited you for dinner tonight,” began the cocky maid. “She adds that the king will not be returning from the hunt until tomorrow evening.”
Nichkhun scoffed and continued to draw invisible patterns over Wooyoung’s chest. This time, he was drawing hearts. He wondered if Wooyoung could tell.
“Tell Lady Xiye I’m not interested tonight.”
“But Lady Xiye is giving orders as your mother your highness. She would like to discuss some official matters with her future son.”
“She’s not officially the queen yet,” Nichkhun reminded the pestering maid. “The wedding ceremony is scheduled for next week. And besides, I’m occupied with Wooyoung tonight.”
“My prince,” Wooyoung hissed. “Please don’t say such vulgar words. Lady Xiye may take it the wrong way.”
Nichkhun shifted his glare to Wooyoung, challenging him. It was the same pair of eyes that drowned him with attention only a night before.
“Is there something wrong with this?”
The prince looked at him straight in the eye, and Wooyoung’s throat went dry as he struggled to reply to such a simple question: was there something wrong?
“N-no,” Wooyoung gulped while shaking his head. “There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this.”
“Exactly,” the prince whispered while giving his friend a smile.
Slowly, he leaned up to plant a chaste kiss on Wooyoung’s soft lips. The man was caught off guard, but Wooyoung wasn’t about to pull back from a kiss he dreamt to have ever since the day he fell for Prince Nichkhun. It was too brief for anyone’s liking, but both felt the emotions behind it nonetheless.
Loving didn’t hurt as much anymore, thought Wooyoung dreamily as he let out a sigh on Nichkhun’s moist lips. It wasn’t the sharp thorns that he was holding but the soft petals of the blooming rose.
The bitter maid took the kiss as a sign to leave, and no doubt she will report everything to Lady Xiye.
Nichkhun quietly lied back down on Wooyoung’s lap, and Wooyoung continued to stroke his hair, breathing heavily and slightly confused. Was the kiss only on the prince’s whim? Would there be more? What will happen next? Question after question popped up in his frantic mind, and just when he thought Nichkhun was sleeping, the prince spoke again.
“I’m sorry Wooyoungah,” Nichkhun apologized with closed eyes. “I-I don’t know how to deal with a man’s heart yet. Please give me some time.”
And Wooyoung thought to himself, he wasn’t the only man who loved roses.
A/n: I’m sorry this chapter wasn’t a great as the last ones. It’s not as deep right? ^^”” But it can’t be helped since I wanted the story to progress a little bit more. Comments please! Criticism is also very appreciated as well. ^^
Chapter 04
Pairing(s): Khunyoung
Length: 3/7
Rating: PG-13
Genre: AU, romance, drama
Summary: Prince Nichkhun loves everyone back equally. It didn’t matter if she was attractive or not, old or young, servant or princess, single or married. If she came to him looking for love, he was there to give it. But Wooyoung… Wooyoung was another story.
Previous chapters: 01// 02
A/n: Thanks s1nfulxs0ul for always reading my fanfics first! Your criticism helps a lot, especially when I’m writing a fanfic in a fandom I’m not quite familiar with! ^^
It was a mistake to look from the very beginning, thought Wooyoung the following day. He never should have disregarded the elder servants’ warnings and let his curiosity win him over, because now, he felt as if Nichkhun’s eyes were constantly on him.
Feeling a familiar tingling sensation at the back of his skull, Wooyoung turned his paranoid head, expecting to catch the prince’s familiar, piercing stare. Finding that he was intensely reading, Wooyoung pulled the roots of his hair and mentally pounded his head on the marble table in frustration. His imagination was just playing tricks on his stressful mind again.
In the distant, Nichkhun held in his laughter at the sight of his overly sensitive servant. Of course he was staring. Who could resist teasing their adorable friend? From his angle, it looked as if Wooyoung was conversing and bowing to the vase of blooming roses.
Cute indeed, grinned Nichkhun slyly as he continued to observe the smaller man’s graceless movements.
“Wooyoung-ah~” Nichkhun called out affectionately, successfully snapping Wooyoung out from his one-man conversation.
“Y-yes your highness?”
Smiling mischievously while Wooyoung rushed to his side, Nichkhun asked, “What’s bothering you so much? You look awfully tired today.” He reached out to stroke Wooyoung’s infamous cheeks, causing its owner’s body to stiffen in shock.
“I-I don’t know my lord,” he lied nervously under Nichkhun’s gaze and touch. His mouth dried as royal fingers brushed over his chapped lips. “I-I believe it’s just from lack of sleep.”
“Were we bothering you too much last night?” Immediately, Wooyoung’s ears reddened as the image of a naked Nichkhun flooded back into his memories. The prince pointed out bluntly, “Lady Xiye was rather loud.”
“That’s not the reason my Prince. My mind was merely occupied with the preparations for next week’s ceremony.” Nichkhun noted the twitching of Wooyoung’s right eye. “Moreover, your highness can do whatever you want. You need not waste your royal breath and thoughts on me.”
The prince caught the glint of sadness in the smaller man’s eyes, and slowly, he withdrew his hands from the surface of Wooyoung’s warm skin, instantly regretting how he had forced his beloved friend to repeat such painful words. How often had he heard Wooyoung repeat those monotonous lines?
An awkward silence overtook the room as each of its occupants lost themselves in their thoughts. Wooyoung thought about how he was foolishly in love with a rose that every woman longed to trap in their inverted vase. What kind of man loved roses anyways?
And Nichkhun... Nickhun was angry, angry at the fact that Wooyoung never demanded anything in return. “I’m sorry” was the unspoken sentence that lingered on his tongue all too long.
“Come here,” the prince choked out suddenly while he moved to make room on his cushioned seat. “Come and sit beside me.”
Stiffly, and slightly confused, Wooyoung complied with his master’s wishes, knowing very well that he was not supposed to be enjoying such luxurious. He held his breath as he lowered himself onto the comfortable cushion. Once seated, Nichkhun quickly laid his head down on Wooyoung’s lap like a little child, giggling in delight.
“Prince Nichkhun!” exclaimed Wooyoung, clearly embarrassed by their sudden intimate position. “I don’t think this is a good idea.”
“Shh… Wooyoung. Don’t ruin the moment. Just let me lie here on your lap. I’m asking for nothing more.”
He smiled sorrowfully in the fabric of his servant’s robes, and Wooyoung could not deny such a beautiful face. Has anyone ever turned down this man’s request?
“If you insist my Prince.”
He began to gently comb his stubby bandaged fingers through Nichkhun’s silky strands, and the prince let out a sigh of content. If only everyday was more sweet than bitter.
“Did it hurt?”
It took a moment for Wooyoung to realize that Nichkhun was referring to the bandages on his hand.
“It did at first,” he began. “But the pain gets numb after a while. Now, I don’t even remember when I got this injury.”
“It just hits you right? You don’t know how or when it happened. And when you finally feel the pain, there’s nothing you can actually do about it.”
Wooyoung was confused. Were they even talking about the same thing?
“Perhaps,” was his safest and most neutral reply. He continued to weave his fingers through the prince’s rich hair in silence, and its owner scrunched up his eyebrows as if deep in thought. After a while, Nichkun disrupted the chamber’s stillness.
“Did you know you’re like those roses over there?” He motioned lazily at the bouquet of flowers that had scarred his friend’s hand.
Wooyoung stilled, not understanding how Nichkhun came to have such a ridiculous conclusion. Nichkhun was the beautiful rose, not him.
“Do you know why my Wooyoung? Why I think you’re like those roses?” The smaller man shook his head. “It’s because it hurts whenever I touch you. Your defensive thorns poke against me when I reach out for you. Tell me Wooyoung, are you not like the rose?”
“Your highness I-”
“Ahem!”
The interrupted pair turned their heads to see Lady Xiye’s personal servant at the door. She wore the same high and mighty attitude like her master and looked quite disgusted by the image of Nichkhun lying on Wooyoung’s lap. Wooyoung struggled to get up from the embarrassing position, but the weight of Nichkhun’s head held him down. In addition, the prince said aloud, “You don’t have to get up for her,” causing the lady to narrow her eyes on Wooyoung.
“What do you want?” asked Nichkhun coldly while drawing invisible X’s on the fabric of his servant’s robes. He was quite annoyed by her unannounced entrance. “I’m kind of busy at the moment.”
Wooyoung was tempted to slap Nichkhun’s hand away, especially when they were drawing shapes over his ticklish chest.
“Lady Xiye has invited you for dinner tonight,” began the cocky maid. “She adds that the king will not be returning from the hunt until tomorrow evening.”
Nichkhun scoffed and continued to draw invisible patterns over Wooyoung’s chest. This time, he was drawing hearts. He wondered if Wooyoung could tell.
“Tell Lady Xiye I’m not interested tonight.”
“But Lady Xiye is giving orders as your mother your highness. She would like to discuss some official matters with her future son.”
“She’s not officially the queen yet,” Nichkhun reminded the pestering maid. “The wedding ceremony is scheduled for next week. And besides, I’m occupied with Wooyoung tonight.”
“My prince,” Wooyoung hissed. “Please don’t say such vulgar words. Lady Xiye may take it the wrong way.”
Nichkhun shifted his glare to Wooyoung, challenging him. It was the same pair of eyes that drowned him with attention only a night before.
“Is there something wrong with this?”
The prince looked at him straight in the eye, and Wooyoung’s throat went dry as he struggled to reply to such a simple question: was there something wrong?
“N-no,” Wooyoung gulped while shaking his head. “There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this.”
“Exactly,” the prince whispered while giving his friend a smile.
Slowly, he leaned up to plant a chaste kiss on Wooyoung’s soft lips. The man was caught off guard, but Wooyoung wasn’t about to pull back from a kiss he dreamt to have ever since the day he fell for Prince Nichkhun. It was too brief for anyone’s liking, but both felt the emotions behind it nonetheless.
Loving didn’t hurt as much anymore, thought Wooyoung dreamily as he let out a sigh on Nichkhun’s moist lips. It wasn’t the sharp thorns that he was holding but the soft petals of the blooming rose.
The bitter maid took the kiss as a sign to leave, and no doubt she will report everything to Lady Xiye.
Nichkhun quietly lied back down on Wooyoung’s lap, and Wooyoung continued to stroke his hair, breathing heavily and slightly confused. Was the kiss only on the prince’s whim? Would there be more? What will happen next? Question after question popped up in his frantic mind, and just when he thought Nichkhun was sleeping, the prince spoke again.
“I’m sorry Wooyoungah,” Nichkhun apologized with closed eyes. “I-I don’t know how to deal with a man’s heart yet. Please give me some time.”
And Wooyoung thought to himself, he wasn’t the only man who loved roses.
A/n: I’m sorry this chapter wasn’t a great as the last ones. It’s not as deep right? ^^”” But it can’t be helped since I wanted the story to progress a little bit more. Comments please! Criticism is also very appreciated as well. ^^
Chapter 04