#but in my brain i think hes just the right amount of prissy to dress like hes being shipped off to rich kid boarding school every day | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lovehugsandcandy · 3 years

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auld acquaintance part iii (ColtxMC, RoD)

A/N: But maybe this year, we all need a fresh start. And maybe it doesn’t get all the way there, it rarely does, but hopefully we all can make some forward progress.

Pairing: Colt x MC, ROD

Length: ~3,500 words

Rating/Warnings: N*FW (Swearing. Sex.)

Summary: Junior year.

Colt drums his fingers on the high top table, eyes trained on the path towards the balcony; when he sees an intricate updo edge over, he moves, sliding through the crowd to cut off her path.

“Dance with me.”

“What?” Ellie scrunches her nose but, in her eyes, he can see her waver.

“Please. Dance with me.”

“You hate dancing.”

“I know.”

He can see her mentally debate her decision. In the last year, they have slowly come to a truce, and it looks like she is weighing both pros and cons of spending any amount of time with him.

At first, the winter had been freezing, chock full of icy glares and strained silence. But by spring, she had thawed, sparing him an occasional half smile, a few small snippets of conversation. Fall brought them together in Organic Chemistry; for all the exams and lab work, the biggest learning had been how effortlessly and flawlessly they worked together. And by the first snow, they were back to some kind of strained acquaintance, perhaps not as easy as it had once been, but a kindling of a start.

And now Colt was going to blow it all up.

“Fine. One dance.” He can feel the chill in her voice but nods, following her as she steps through the crowd to stand wooden, hands locked across her chest, delicate tendrils of hair swirling at her temples in a marked contrast to the glare on her face. “What do you want, Colt?”

“This isn’t any dance I’ve ever seen.”

She groans, low in her throat, but begrudgingly winds her hands around his neck as his gentle fingertips grace the curve of her hip. “What do you really want?” she repeats.

“I can’t just want to spend time with you?”

Her gaze darkens, and he knows she’s remembering last year, remembering storming from this very hotel after he slipped out of her bed. “Apparently not.”

“Ellie, I told you-”

“Whatever.” She edges back just slightly but the distance - mere inches really, nothing notable, less than a gaudy marble floor tile - the distance is still enough to gut him, ache hot and sharp in his stomach. He’s always had a smart remark, something snide and cutting hidden just underneath his tongue, but now he falters, wondering what the magic combination of words and phrases could be, something, anything to ease the tension in her jaw, the shuttering of her eyes.

He’s always been great at words to keep people away; now that he needs words to draw someone in, he’s speechless.

“It’s whatever, Colt.” She interrupts his pained thoughts with a dismissive shake of her head. “Just forget it.”

“I can’t.”

“Whatever.” She sighs, heavy enough to be heard over the dull classical music from the quartet in the corner. “I’m sick of this. Let’s just forget about sophomore year. Start over. Friends? Again?”

Hell, no. Colt does not want to be friends. As grateful as he is that she is deigning to speak to him, what he desires would definitely not be considered friendly. “What’s with the change of heart?”

“New Year? Fresh start? Positive energy?” She softens slightly in his arms, though her lip is still down-turned in a pout. He can’t stop staring, especially now that he knows what it’s like to have it between his teeth.

“That sounds like my New Year’s resolution.”

“You. A resolution? Seriously?” He shrugs. Her mouth opens and closes for a moment before she snarks, “Is this you admitting you’re not flawless?”

“Aw, Ellie,” he drawls. “You think I’m perfect? I’m touched.”

“Hardly.” She rolls her eyes, but he sees a hint of a smile, barely, slightly, almost invisible if he weren’t looking so closely at every movement of her face. “It doesn’t really seem like you to make a resolution.”

“Maybe I’m turning over a new leaf.” She’s looking at him with an eyebrow raised, disbelief painted clear across her features, and he tries with every cell in his body to deliver his next words with a gravity and sincerity from his chest unlearned from anyone else in his life. “Ellie, I’m so-.”

She doesn’t even let him finish the sentence. “It’s fine.”

“Ellie-”

“It’s fine.” She glances away, tone stressed on the last word in a way that lets him know it is decidedly not fine. “It’s not like I wanted to date you.” Some lingering scar inside his ribs twinges. She’s the smartest person he knows, top of their class and quick enough to keep even him on his toes, so of course she’s smart enough to want to stay away from him. His fingers tighten over the tiny beads of her dress, each one pushing a sharp divot in his fingertips. “What was your resolution, anyway?”

“To make it up to you.” This stops her in her tracks and he has to stop as well, lest he land on her towering heels.

“What?”

“To make up for last year. To have a better start to this year. With you.”

She looks shocked, speechless, and he feels like an idiot, standing stock still in the middle of the dance floor while couples spin around them. It’s like he’s standing in judgement, sweating in the grey suit he trots out to this party every fucking year, awkward and lost in the haze of champagne and money.

He doesn’t notice the buzz until it’s echoing against the gilded walls of this fucking room, excitement and rich people coming together into a heaving drone that knocks insistently on his consciousness until it’s impossible to ignore.

Ten. Nine. Eight.

Shit.

The fucking countdown.

He sucks in a breath.

She bites her lip and quirks a half-smile, tentative and weak. “You know, I’ve never made a resolution.”

“Because you’re so flawless?” He chuckles when she swats his arm. She moves to hit him again, but he moves faster, grabbing her hand and twining their fingers together, pulling her ever-so-slightly closer.

“Maybe because I didn’t think things would ever change for me,” she whispers.

“Maybe nothing will change unless you make it change.”

Seven. Six.

She blinks up at him.

“You said that freshman year, Ellie.”

“You remember that?”

“Yeah.” He clutches his fingers in hers, warm and impossibly small. “This New Year, maybe I’m the one who wants to change things.”

Five. Four. Three.

“It’s a somewhat ridiculous tradition,” she murmurs. “I don’t know what’s so special about today. You could resolve to change any day of the year.”

She’s not wrong. “Yeah, but you barely spoke to me any of the other days of the year.”

“I was hurt.”

Two.

He pulls her closer, hand tracing the line of her dress to the small of her back, and the way her eyes water fucking does him in. “I’m sorry.”

Her breath catches and she looks up-

One.

-and the second hangs forever. He can’t pull his eyes from hers and she looks stunned, staring up at him, and he can’t fucking breathe in the middle of the crowd pressing in on him when all he can see is her.

Vaguely, he registers the cheers, couples exchanging chaste kisses and noisemakers ringing shrill throughout the room. None of it alters his focus from Ellie, from her hand cradled in his, from the way her arm tightens around his shoulders, from the way she bites her lip and, God, he’s seen her tilt her head like that in his dreams and he can’t stop himself from surging forward.

She responds immediately, lips fervent against his, and he pulls her flush to his chest. He can’t think, can’t function, not at all; with every motion, she’s stealing sense from his brain and air from his lungs, and it’s all he can do to kiss her back. She drops his hand to wind her arms around his neck, pulling him down, using him for balance as she teeters on her heels.

But he himself has never felt less stable, needing air as he detangles their lips. “I really am sorry.” He barely pulls back, mere millimeters, so his lips catch on hers with every consonant.

“Seriously? You?”

“I am. I’m sorry I hurt you.”

“I’m sorry, too.” Her breath is warm on his lips, and it takes every bit of his resolve not to close the distance. “I was pissed and overreacted.”

“Let me make it up to you.” This makes her lean back, and her eyes trace his face. He searches around in his pocket until he clasps a plastic card. “Here. Come to my room this time.” He closes her fingers around the card and can’t resist stealing one last breathless kiss.

He doesn’t look back when he walks out of the room, even when he’s walking down the hall and through his door to slump against the bed. He wonders if she will show, if the memory of last year will be enough for his apology to ring true, and he’s half convinced himself that she’s going to go back to ignoring him when the door clicks open and he staggers to his feet.

She shuts the door behind her, then studies him with a keen eye. “You didn’t think I would come, did you?”

“Not at all.”

She shrugs. “Well, like you said: maybe if I want things to change, I need to make them change.”

He nods, steady steps forward until they’re face-to-face, “Your words.”

“Things changed since freshman year.”

The comment could refer to a million various changes- classes and dorms and friends and majors and apartments - but there is one thing he wants to change, right now, and he can’t wait another second before he tilts her chin up and kisses her, desperately, pulling her in for an embrace that would have sent Ingrid’s prissy elderly relatives to an early grave.

She’s breathless when he pulls back and he wonders, for a second, if he were too hasty, but she only tangles her fingers into his tie and pulls him back, shoving the jacket from his shoulders while his hands dive into her hair, winding his fingers through the updo that probably took far longer to create than it will to destroy.

She moans as he kisses down her neck, bites gentle on her clavicle, and he can’t get his fucking jacket off fast enough to touch her. He traces up the deep slit in her dress and her legs part as she sags against the door with a low moan. His fingers tease higher, under the delicate beading, to where her thighs meet warm and she gasps. When her breath catches, he slides over the silken fabric again, tracing spiraling shapes over what feels like very expensive underwear. His mouth waters and he resolves to look later, but right now he can’t possibly be expected to wait. Pushing her thong to the side, she’s so wet, head craning back as his fingers ease inside her, and the way her voice stutters around his name makes his cock twitch in his stupid fancy suit.

Fuck, he really can’t wait, free hand frantic against buttons and zips, until his cock springs free and his teeth find the slope of her neck. It’s messy and desperate and it takes mere seconds for him to rub slick fingers against her clit, to push her waist against the door until she is barely balanced on the toes of those strappy heels, to lift her thighs so her legs interlock around him, and finally to bury himself inside her welcoming heat.

“Fuck.” The word is punched out from his throat, into the hollow of hers, and he drags his lips across heated skin, nips and bites delivered while she lets out the most delicious moans.

His thumb is tracing haphazard designs on her clit when she somehow finds a voice to gasp out, “You… you couldn’t wait until we got into bed?”

“I’ve been waiting forever, Ellie.”

“Jeez, it was only five minutes.”

He stares at her, head on, and rasps, “I’ve been waiting a year, Ellie.”

She has no answer to that, only pulls his head down to crash his lips into hers and the passage of time (Five minutes? Ten? Infinite? Mere moments?) is a heady rush of pleasure and heat. Her legs tighten around him, the firm hold matching the vise of her body, and her dress pools below, flowing down the door and into a heap under his feet. His shoes crinkle the fabric with every thrust and he wonders if it will rip, if the expensive fabric will tear because of their frenzied movements, but realizes he doesn’t care much. Any jagged holes and consequent tailoring bill will be worth it for the way she pulls him in, the way she sobs his name, the column of her neck completely exposed for his teeth and tongue to find purchase. His hands press her hips into the door as she quakes around him, name breathy and high in his ear, and he lets go, muscles tightening and releasing as the room splinters and all he can see is Ellie’s perfect pout, wide open in pleasure.

When the world comes back into existence, she’s slumped against the door, hair terrifically falling out of place and it would take only one more tug before her curls cascade to her shoulders (so he tugs, of course he does, right before he eases her feet onto the ground so she can blink slow up at him, wide eyes surrounded by curtains of hair). He slides her out of her dress, one strap at a time, leaving it pooled by the door; he takes a moment to admire the thong (deep red, matching her flush) and then pulls it off, hands tracing greedily down her legs, to join the heap of fabric.

When he ushers her over to his bed, admiring every square inch of bare skin, she slides against the sheets and he covers her body with his own. He’s still dressed, barely, and she looks like a goddess, a goddamn siren, sent from above to tempt him away from the life he leads, offering salvation in the guise of a valedictorian with a winning smile. His clothes take far too long to come off, even with her hands easing the way, and the first touch of his bare skin on hers only inflames him. He ducks his head to taste his way down to the spot that makes her fingers tighten in his hair.

Once she shakes apart and falls boneless to the bed, he crawls up, her hands reaching for him, clasping arms, chest, every inch sliding past her fingers as he slots between her legs. He teases her, length situated right at her entrance and dipping through her folds, until she’s arching off the bed, nails scratching up his spine to his hair until he’s impatient, insane, can’t wait another fucking minute before his hips move, her legs trembling as she wails.

He wants nothing more than this, hours passing with her hands all over him. He tries to make each moment infinite, each kiss and every touch an attempt to prove that this is a New Year’s tradition that should last all year.

It doesn’t work.

In the morning, he rolls over and his arm meets only the cool sheets. His heart lurches, though he belatedly realizes that he should have expected it. Turnabout is fair play. He sighs, raking a hand over his face, and throws on some sweats, one last forlorn glance at the empty bed before heading to the lobby.

He can’t wait for the first hit of caffeine in his veins but freezes when he turns the corner. At a circular table next to carafes of milk and hot water, sit his friends, Ellie perched in the middle, oversized sweatshirt dwarfing her slight frame and hair tied up in a ponytail (he doesn’t know who she thinks she’s fooling; there are tangles framing her face and, if he had his way, he’d fuck her out of that hairdo as well until his fingertips were at her scalp, hair a disheveled mess that would take a shower, a shared shower, to fix).

He grabs his coffee and ambles over, purposely slow, and greets everyone, saving the best for last. “Good morning, Ellie.”

She only stares evenly at him but finally fidgets under his certain gaze. As his eyes sweep down, she pulls her sweatshirt closer and he can’t stop the left side of his lip from quirking.

He knows exactly what she’s trying to hide, knows with abject certainty that underneath the shifting fabric, his marks remain, shadows of his lips and tongue blooming under her skin. The smirk turns into a full grin when she finally glances away, turning her attention out to their friends.

She can pretend all she wants. She’s not as unaffected as she appears to be and, as Colt settles into a stool, he hides his satisfied smirk behind a coffee cup.

~~~~~

Ellie doesn’t mention it, so he doesn’t either, trying to unsuccessfully convince himself that he’s satisfied they are more than acquaintances again.

Until Riya lets it slip that Ellie has a date, a dreamy smile on her face, hands cupping her coffee and sharing detail after morbid detail, blind to Colt’s fouling mood. He knows he shouldn’t but a dark, self-hating part of his mind somehow grabs control of his body and wanders downtown that night, past bougie restaurants and small businesses hawking crap trinkets until he makes it to her favorite taco joint.

Her silhouette beams over guacamole and watered-down margaritas in his memories, mouth open in a laugh, a massive difference compared to the sight in front of him. Because now, she’s perched at the bar with her chin on her hand, vacant eyes watching some prissy asshat from her Bio group. She looks bored, miserable, and her eyes widen in thinly veiled panic as she spies him through the giant glass window. With a few words, she stands and stalks outside. He shoves his hands into his pockets and tries to make his smile a little less smug before she slams the door behind her.

Based on the fire in her eyes, he’s not sure he succeeded.

“What are you doing here?” she spits, hair flying around her face as she points right into his chest.

He smirks. “I can’t walk downtown?”

“Tonight? The very night I have a date? Seriously?”

He shrugs, and a smile plays across his lips as her fury slowly fades into mere annoyance. “Well?” he asks.

“Well, what?”

“How is your date going, then?”

She looks down. “...It sucks.”

“Yeah, looks awful.” She groans in agreement and Colt, who’s never met a risk he wasn’t willing to gamble on, well, he can’t help but try his luck. “Blow him off, then. Let’s get out of here.”

“What? I can’t just-”

“You can.” He shrugs. “Why are you gonna waste your time going back in? Let’s get out of here.”

She gapes back at him. “Just leave? And abandon Tony at the bar?”

“Yeah. Change your night up. Let’s go.”

She looks at him incredulously and then turns back to the bar. He can see her wavering and holds his breath until, finally, her face alights in a devious smirk. “Fine. Let’s go.”

She walks up the street without a second glance, and Colt is grateful as her steps hide his beaming grin. He follows briskly to catch up to where she’s already heading back to campus. And, as they walk, he realizes it’s something.

It’s not a date. Colt doesn’t go on dates. But it is something.

Because from outside the restaurant, it’s easy enough to stroll back to campus side-by-side, arms knocking together as they wander up the street and she complains about an idiot professor.

And then it’s easy enough to swing through the cafeteria minutes before closing for ice cream.

And from there, it’s easy enough for her to edge closer, right outside her room, and easier still for him to press her against the door to capture the vanilla on her tongue, and easiest of all to follow her inside, her fingers tangled in his.

The bed is tiny, spaciousness of the hotel exchanged for a mattress unsuitable for two, but they move as one soon enough. He coaxes fervent pleas from her lips, her hips quake under his tongue, and he knows the jagged lines from her fingernails will take days to heal, each one an aching reminder of her falling apart under his touch.

“This doesn’t mean anything,” she huffs into his skin as he tucks her against him, his chin cupping her forehead. He doesn’t reply, just stares at the ceiling until her breaths slow and, finally, he lets the steady sound lull him into a warm sleep.

The next morning, they get coffee together. While it’s still the shitty campus center coffee, at least she sits with him, their knees knocking together, perched on stools overlooking the quad.

And when Colt gets back to his dorm, it’s alone, but he has three lines blooming red on his back.

For now, that’s enough.

#n*fw #lemon #30 diamond scene

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hyucksong · 5 years

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princess.| lee donghyuck

summary: you get what you want, when you want. you follow your own rules, no one else’s. are you a prissy rich bitch? maybe. does lee donghyuck, the resident bad boy with a spirit for trouble, make you want to ruin your high class reputation for his lips? maybe.

warnings: cussing and a spoiled kid who yes is spoiled but has also done some stuff herself

word count: 3.8k

You rested on your back, your Chanel shades blocking your eyes from the harsh sun, and the copious amount of sunblock SPF 100 slathered on you protecting your fragile skin from early skin cancer. Your whole body felt warm in your Balmain limited edition swim suit keeping your decency. You got it at an event, where you received it as a special gift, since your mother was a world famous super model, and your father a critically acclaimed actor.

Some said the fame got to your head, but you were always too busy adjusting your Gucci sun hat to really care. Besides, you already knew that. You were indeed, filthy rich. Unimaginably so. But as a successful academic and model, you though you should deserve some credit. You couldn’t pay to have brains like yours, and you couldn’t pay for the natural talent you had for the camera. You had your own title, separate from your mom and dad, and you knew your worth.

Your daddy didn’t pay your way into Stanford -- your brain did. The traits that came with success were ones you welcomed with open arms; assertiveness, intelligence, charisma, etc. Were you prissy? Yes. Were you a bitch? Hell yes. And you loved it. The thorny wall of harsh words and judging stares served as protection from people who were friends for fame. This way, only good people made their way into your friend group. You enjoyed your little clique, they came from all walks of life.

“Mmm, the sun is getting a little hot, don’t you think so, Swary?” You asked, opening your eyes to look at your Pomeranian, who was nestled in the shade drinking some water under the umbrella. At the call of her name, she barked, before going back to her beauty sleep. You smiled to yourself, before setting your sunglasses back in place and going back into your resting position.

That was, until an annoying shadow blacked the warm rays, and dropped the temperature by a few degrees. You sighed, not even opening your eyes.

“Please leave, I’m on vacation, no autographs.” A deep chuckle resonated from the person, causing you to peep one eye open at them. Before your eyes was a cute boy, dressed in a white sleeveless shirt that was tucked into black distressed jeans, with what looked like checkerboard vans. You rolled your eyes, closing your eye again. “Cute. Now leave.” But the warmth didn’t return, instead you still felt the judging eyes of the boy.

“Swary? What type of name is that?” You sat up, annoyed, ripping off your Chanel sunglasses with a noise of irritation. “It’s short for something else.”

He rose a brow teasingly. “For what?”

“Swarovski.” You ignored the laugh that followed after the fact, knowing that he’d laugh before you even said it. “Wow, you’re such a prissy bitch, huh.” An annoyed huff left your lips before you sat back in your seat.

“Leave me alone, Donghyuck. Why are you here anyways? Don’t you bother my enough at school?” You looked over at him mockingly, watching as he scooted a beach chair from another umbrella. “Can’t stop following me? Are you a stalker or something?” He laughed, his laugh stirring your heart.

“I’ve got better things to do than to stalk you, Princess.” You turned away, your ears blushing red. “Don’t call me that.” He ignored your pleas and looked around the beach, his eyes content.

“Man, Malibu really is beautiful.” You hummed in agreement, starting to relax a bit in his presence. You knew Donghyuck from Stanford. He majored in Classics and minored in Comparative Literature, while you majored in History and minored in Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality studies. You two didn’t really see each other often outside from the library, until you discovered your close friend Renjun in the Archaeology major was best friends with him. From then on, you two saw each other almost every other day, and he never failed to tease you.

“It would be more beautiful if you left.” You added, keeping your nose and dignity high. He turned onto his side, looking straight at you. “But then you’d have nothing to stare at, Princess.” You turned your head away from him and scoffed. “I wasn’t staring at you, Lee Donghyuck.”

“You’re right, you were drooling over me.” He chimed, laughing at your irritated expression. “Was not. Now can you get you and your atrocious outfit away from me? To a different state, preferably?”

“What? Not enough Vergucci or something? Not expensive enough for your tastes, hm?”

“You mean Versace, right? Are you really that dumb that you don’t know one of the biggest names in the fashion industry?” He rolled his eyes, getting up from his seat to sit on yours, you laying down and him sitting next to you with his arms resting on his knees. “Why should I care? I’m not into fashion, anyway.”

You shuffled in your seat to give him more space, “Maybe if you upped your fashion game instead of dressing like a typical American fuckboy, you’d actually get girls.”

“You sure it’s not the skipping class and weed that keeps then from me?” He jokes, moving to lay down next to you. You laugh quietly. “That too.”

It’s silent for a few minutes, the feeling of his bare arms draped above your head and the heat he exuded filling your thoughts. Donghyuck was your typical bad boy with a golden heart. It annoyed you how he fit so perfectly into a stereotype, but then again, so did you.

You were always confused by him, too. You’d think he was interested in you one day, with his flirtatious comments and overly-touchy and lingering fingers, but the next day his arm would be draped over a different girl. He was a player, and you were smart enough to not get mixed in with him. Besides, you had a reputation to keep up. No rich bitch could date a run-of-the-mill bad boy. Even if you wanted to.

But you knew all that was waiting for you was a broken heart and unstable relationship, so why bother? You were no different from other girls to him. But that didn’t mean you didn’t have the tiniest sliver of hope that maybe he was just doing it to get your attention, but you weren’t about to be the typical girl who thought she ‘could fix him’.

You weren’t perfect, and neither did you have any of the patience it would take to keep Donghyuck behaved. However, a part of you didn’t care about keeping him behaved; a part of you just wanted his touch and his lips against yours, but the rest of you that didn’t want to get heartbroken knew better, and so you kept your wall up in front of him.

“Why are you here in Malibu, anyway?” You turn your head towards him, not expecting his face to already be looking at yours. You don’t flinch, though, your eyes still staring bravely against his. A smirk finds its way onto his heart shaped lips, something you thought was way too powerful for him to posses, and he keep his stare on you. “Parents picked this place for vacation as a gift for staying in school this year.” You shrugged, “That’s not really an accomplishment, you know.” He shrugged back at you, his gaze leaving yours to look out into the blue ocean before him.

“Guess we both are stupid rich.” You don’t comment.

The party your parents decided to throw at the beach house was smaller than usual. It consisted of an armful of ‘close’ famous friends, including the Lee family. When you walked in the front door in a silk summer dress with your dog by your side, the last thing you expected was to come face-to-face with a shirtless Donghyuck.

The smirk on his face told you that he expected you to be flustered, but you were around half-naked men all the time, so honestly, he didn’t faze you. He was good-looking, but his body just didn’t compare to the male supermodels of the world, but then again, you never were attracted to those bodies.

The slight squish of his tummy made you feel warm, for some odd reason. You brushed it off and concluded it was just his alarmingly ugly black crocs.

“Wow, so bad boy. Love the crocs.” You say, brushing past him to go to your room. “I know, they’ve got skulls on them.” He adds, turning to follow after you up the stairs. You laugh and turn to look at him, curious.

“Are you going to follow me all the way up?”

“Is that an invitation?” He quips. You scoff, “You wish.”

“Damn right. Wanna grant it tonight?” You find it best to ignore the comment and continue on your way to your room, letting him trail behind you like a lost puppy.

You close the door behind you softly, sighing as soon as the noise from all around the house goes quiet due to the sound-proof room. Hyuck sits on the bed, resting his weight on the back of his hands with a cute grin on his face. The childishness that he exudes almost makes you blush, but you fight back the feeling. Who knows how many girl have seen that smile.

“So what’re we gonna do?” He pulls his knees up to his chin, kicking off his crocs and you flinch as his dirty feet touch your satin covers. “Well first off, we’re going to get your stank ass feet off my good Eastern Accent bedding.” He doesn’t listen, instead looking up at you with unwavering eyes. You give him a look before going around your room to put things back in their place, the cleaning lady having rearranged things from their normal place. After a few minutes of the silence, you decided to spare him another glance.

His eyes were still watching you, but there was a haze over them, like he wasn’t really thinking. This time, it made you blush. You wondered what he could be thinking about to be so lost in thought, staring at you nonetheless.

“What’re you looking at me for?” You shift, your head going back to straightening your textbooks. This seems to knock him out of his daze, and his characteristic smirk comes back, much to your dismay. “I was just admiring the beautiful curves of your body, princess.”

“Again with that name, Donghyuck.”

“What? I can’t call my princess what she is?” You begin to grow fed up by his empty words, you never understood how he threw them around so easily. The fact that he probably said those exact words to some other girl made your stomach twist in sadness. Th fact that he probably called other girls princess hurt you more than it really should.

“Stop meaninglessly flirting with me, Lee Donghyuck.” You spat, glaring at him. His brows shot up, the playful look on his face disappearing from before. “W-What?” He stuttered out, sitting up straight, his feet no longer rubbing themselves on your expensive sheets.

“I said;” you walked towards him, “Stop saying empty words.” His silence pushed you to keep talking. “I don’t know if you know this, Donghyuck. But I have feelings. Just because I’m rich and can buy out a whole Gucci store doesn’t mean I can’t fucking hurt. Your empty words hurt me more than anything. ‘You’re so beautiful, Princess,’ ‘Is that an invitation’, ‘I was just admiring you’ --I’m sick of hearing them if you’re just saying them to get some sick reaction out of me. If that’s all you want -- you’ve got it. Can you leave, now?” Your lungs rise up and down quickly, your heartbeat sounding throughout your skull, the vibrations reaching the ends of your toes as your bullet-like words hit the boy sitting across from your hurt gaze. Why did you have to get mad now? Why couldn’t you have gotten mad at him somewhere that would enable you to walk away? You can’t walk away in your own home.

He looks at you like an art connoisseur examining a new ice sculpture -- acting like the faintest gush of breath could shatter the delicacies of the piece. “Princess, I --”

“I said stop calling me that.” The voice that left you sounded like a cry, like a hurt animal mewling out for help. Donghyuck felt his facade of confidence break a little as he reached out towards you, only to see you step back away from his touch. “Princess...” His wavering voice broke, the whole situation stressing it out. One moment you were playfully quipping back at him, the next you were standing in the corner, your eyes coated with a sheen layer of water. He wondered if that meant you were suffering for a long time, to be able to snap like that.

“Please, what’s wrong, Princess?” He stood up, his bare feet padding gently on the wooden floor.

“Stop! You don’t understand, do you?” You accused, tilting your head at him in disbelief. “You don’t understand what it’s like to have someone give you such heartwarming words and then show up the next hour with a girl on his arm, whispering into their ear as if they were the love of his life, do you?”

Donghyuck stared into your eyes. The realization hitting him that it was him who was making you act this way. It was him who was making you insecure and confused. His loving words and unloving actions. His flirty eyes and disloyal hands.

But before his first words could leave his mouth, a firm knock on that door caught your attention. You mustered your strongest voice before calling out, “Yes?”

“Do you want the Champagne, M’am?” The clear voice of the housekeeper caused you to cuss under your breath as you hit your shoulder against Donghyuck’s, making your way to the door swiftly. You swung it open and snatched the bottle from her hands, not before her eyes noticed your disheveled and teary-eyed figure.

“M’am, are you oka --”

“Oh, fuck off.” You sneered, hating the vulnerable state she caught you in. In a burst of self-protection, you slammed the door in her face. You wasted no time twisting off the safety seal on the cap and flicking the cap off, placing the bottle between your lips and chugging down the burning liquid.

“P-princess --” You held your finger out to stop him, not quite done with the bottle. “Y/n!” He yelled, snatching the bottle from your hands before you could go through the whole thing. The bottle parted from your lips with a loud ‘pop’, making you choke a little at the sudden action. You wiped your mouth and pointed an accusatory finger at him. “Don’t take this away from me, too.”

He set the bottle down and grabbed you by the shoulders, hoping to talk to you before the alcohol caught your consciousness. “What did I take away from you?” His voice was desperate, his eyes searching yours for the truth.

“My heart.” Was all you said before pushing him out of the way to the bottle again, this time not letting it go until you were done with the whole thing. His hands didn’t even try to stop you as your legs tripped over one another, his mind too preoccupied with your previous words to watch your drunk figure stumble towards your bed.

As you began to whine and whimper in your pillow, Donghyuck thought it was his cue to leave the room. He needed to think things through. The second you heard the door shut, the knob clicking, your whining stopped. Instead, the reality that you were in fact just another fun toy to play with sunk into you, causing salty tears to cascade down your face into the pricey fluff of your pillow.

Donghyuck’s lack of response to your emotion-driven words meant that he just didn’t feet the same way, to you at least. So that night, you called up the housekeeper again with a wish for another bottle of champagne. Maybe it would take your mind off of things. But no amount of drunk giggling with your friends over skype could heal the aching wound of your torn heart.

For a moment, you wished that hearts were something you could buy -- you’d make sure to buy the most expensive one. Maybe it would come with a lifetime warranty.

The chirping of the song birds in the morning made you groan, their annoying tunes making you want to rip your ears off rather than sing along. Maybe it was your slight hangover or maybe it was your intense heartbreak the previous night that made you so grumpy.

Sitting up, you looked in the mirror on the vanity across from your bed, and you almost laughed. The tangled rats nest that was supposed to be hair, the purple eye bags, the swollen face from crying -- it all seemed funny to you; that you were like this because of some playboy.

Instead of dwelling on it, you shrugged off the thought, hoping that not paying attention to it would save you some heartache.

But when you opened the door to your bathroom across the hall and there was the man himself standing in front of you, you knew it was inevitable. His light chestnut hair was sticking up in the back, you could see from the mirror, and his eyes were heavy. His face look moisturized and his breath smelled minty, so you could tell he had just woken up too.

Your eyes shifted downwards and you moved past him, ignoring his sound of surprise, pushing him out the door and closing it in his face before he could protest aloud. Of course he just had to be up and using your bathroom.

“Y/n.” The muffled voice traveled through the door, the next action a soft but repeating knock. This happened several times, but you simply continued to do your skincare routine and wash up. “Y/n, seriously -- let me talk to you.” He grumbled.

Swinging open the door, you curtly nodded at him and attempted to slide away from his attention, but his hand caught your bicep smoothly, dragging you into you room despite your complaints and the judging looks of the housekeeper down the hall.

The door closing behind you caused you to start to sweat, not liking Donghyuck’s confrontational personality. He made to move to talk, instead only crossing his arms in front of the door and giving you a pointed look that made you shift from foot to foot.

“So?”

“So what?”

He rubbed his face in frustration, before taking a deep breath and connecting gazes again. “So do you remember what you said last night?” Silence overcame the room as you contemplated lying.

“N-No?” You cringed, giving him a hopeful look. “Yeah, bullshit.” He laughed. “I know you remember confessing your love to me.”

“I did not confess my love for you.”

“Yes you did! You said I took your heart!” You shook your head, “Why did you leave if you thought I confessed to you? You left the room without saying anything --”

“I wanted you to say those words to me when you weren’t drinking a whole bottle of champagne.” He loomed over you, bending down a little to be closer to you. “Admit it, princess, you love me.”

You ran a hand through your hair, flinching backwards at his close face. “And? Yeah, I like you. But that doesn’t mean anything.”

“What?”

“It doesn’t mean I’m going to date you, Donghyuck.” His expression saddened, crossing his arms. “And why not?”

“Because I know you. You flirt with anything that has two legs -- you just see me as an easy target.” His eyes widened in shock, an exasperated look breaching his face. “Did those Chanel sunglasses leave you visually impaired? Do you not see me standing in front of you, asking you to be my princess?”

“Hyuck --”

He cut you off, continuing, “I’m talking with you, not with some other girl on the beach. I’m calling you princess -- no one else.”

“Hyuck, let me talk --”

“I wanted to hear your answer sober so that I knew you felt the same way, so that I knew it wasn’t the two thousand dollar champagne speaking.”

“Lee Donghyuck!” You yelled, laughing from irritation. “I can’t trust you, that’s why! One minute you’re giving me positive signals and the next your off with your eyes on another girl -- how can I trust your words? You are known for being a playboy.”

“Is that what you think of me?” His dark pupils were darting back and forth across your face, trying to read you like a book. You moved closer, the space between you two shrinking. “What am I supposed to think?”

The room was quiet, the only sound the song birds outside your window coupled with the cawing of sea birds, helping the atmosphere seem less tense. “What if I promised I’d never do it again?” He whispered, his focus trained on your lips. His breath fanned over your mouth, and you fought the urge to kiss him.

“How can I know you won’t betray me?” Your voice came out strained from fighting the urge to just let him take you in his arms.

His hands lifted up to your face and he cupped your cheek to keep your gaze on him, while his other hand slid around your waist in a way that made you feel safe. “You have to trust me.”

That word scared you, trust. To put your faith in someone blindly, especially ins someone like Lee Donhyuck who was known for trouble and for giving out kisses to any pretty stranger with enticing eyes -- but you also wanted to trust him. You wanted to believe that he wouldn’t hurt you, you wanted to believe that his words were filled with promise and truth.The only way to truly find out if he was lying or not was to take the leap.

Maybe it was his breath on your face, maybe it was how the corner of his heart-shaped lips quirked up at your red cheeks and hesitation, maybe there was a trace of the alcohol from last night still flowing in your system; but you gave in.

His lips met yours with a smile etched on them, it felt so sincere and genuine that you pushed back with just as much passion. His hands felt like they belonged on your waist with his fingers digging into your sides, and your arms felt like they were at home resting on his broad shoulders.

When you pulled away, you looked into his eyes and noticed a mischievous bu happy glint in them, and you knew it would be a long road ahead of you, but as long as you were with Donghyuck, you had trust that you’d be just fine.

You wouldn’t refund his messy love for anything.

420 notes · View notes

rainbowserenity · 6 years

Note

5.“Wait a minute. Are you jealous?”Hope/Light :)

royal!AU tag

total nano count: 20435/50000

Oneof the first things Lightning had been taught regarding her newlyroyal status was that when it came to parties and dinner engagements,she was never late. Everyone else was simply early.

Ofcourse, she'd tried to argue that that made no sense in the contextof her introduction ball since there were a bunch of other royalsthere, but Sazh had just sighed in that exasperated fashion of histhat suggested she was taking years off of his life and told her tohush.

Ifonly she had such an opportunity tonight.

Eversince she'd been found as the long-lost princess of the kingdom ofEden, Lightning had been largely kept away from the public. She knewthat the press offices occasionally released photos to ensure thepeople that she, well, existed,but that was the extent of it. She'd yet to make any sort of contactwith other kingdoms or establish what kind of ruler she would be.

Andyet somehow, Sazh had thought it was a completely brilliantidea to figuratively throw herout to the tigers and have her put mere months of royal training tothe test, when the people she'd be talking with had been royal theirwhole lives.

Well,she supposed that she'd been royal her whole life, too. She justhadn't known it until a little while ago.

Lightningtucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and then dropped her hand,trying not to fuss. She was standing behind a set of double doors,waiting for someone to announce her. Already she could hear voicesmurmuring, probably enjoying the party.

Ofcourse they all would.They weren't the'guest of honor.' Ugh.

“Ladiesand gentlemen, our esteemed guests from far and wide!”

Hadshe been able to run in these shoes, Lightning would've made a breakfor it. After months, it was somehow just now hittingher that she'd gone from a mere soldier just barely above the povertyline to an actual princess whowas soon to be in charge of a whole kingdom and who guarded what wasarguably the most important fal'cie in the world. Howthe hell was she going to pull this off?!

Somethings in life you just do.

“Presentingtonight's guest of honor, Eden's long-lost daughter – Her RoyalHighness, Crown Princess Lightning Farron!”

Heavenforbid they just say 'Princess Lightning' or something.

Insteadof running like she wanted to, Lightning squared her shoulders andstood up straight, her head held high as the double doors opened andshe stepped into the glitz of the ballroom.

Shewas a floor above everyone, so it was all too easy to see the eyesstaring up at her. Honestly, she hoped she wasn't blinding them withher ensemble, though she had to admit, it was quite a work of art.

Hergown was a light blue color (the color a certain personal bodyguardhad said matched her eyes...no, wrong timeto think of that) with a sweetheart neckline. There was delicate laceembroidery in the back the detailed the brand of Phoenix, Eden'sfal'cie. The skirt was full, made possible by way too many layers offabric, though the top layer was covered with a gauzy sort of fabricin a peplumstyle until the hem, which was embedded with a repeating design ofPhoenix's brand in hundreds of tiny diamonds onthe top layer.

Ofcourse, that hadn't been enough. Her hair had been done in a sort ofreverse crown braid – the braid wasat the nape of her neckrather than the top of her head – and the few stubborn pieces ofhair that escaped had been expertly curled. Nestled at the top of herhead and held in by what felt like a pound of hairpins was abrilliant diamond and sapphire tiara – one that was traditionallyworn at introduction balls like this. In fact, when her maids hadbeen putting the tiara on, Lightning had recalled with a shiver ofseeing previous princesses wearing the same one.

Shewas wearing a minimum amount of jewelry to better show off the tiaraand gown, but there were tiny diamond and sapphire earrings hangingfrom her ears and her elbow-length gloves shimmered. Honestly, theearrings alone were probably worth more than her entire career as asoldier in the slums.

Itwas still difficult to think that she deserved to wear any of this.

Lightninggave a little wave and curtsy, the way that'd been drilled into herhead a thousand times. Everyone started applauding politely as shebegan to descend down the grand staircase. It was really unnerving tohave all those eyes on her, especially since she was walking soslowly in an attempt not to trip.

Onceshe was finally at the bottom of the stairs she let out a breath andput on a practiced smile. The 'media smile', it was called. Afterall, a princess needed to look calm and composed at all times.

“Thankyou all for your support tonight,” she said. The voice didn'treally feel like hers. It was coming out of her mouth, sure, but itjust felt like another media trick. Probably because this was thepart of the ball that would show up in magazines and the internet. “Iwelcome you to join me in bringing Eden into a new era. Phoenix willcontinue to light the skies and all of us under its light willcontinue to thrive in return.”

Therewas polite applause and the rigidity in Lightning's shouldersloosened somewhat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sazh wipeimaginary sweat off his brow. She could absolutely relate.

Thehardest part was over. Now...she just had to get through the rest ofthe night.

Sigh.

Afterher little speech, everyone gradually fell into murmuredconversations and there was that pleasant buzz that seemed to alwaysaccompany successful gatherings...not that Lightning had been to verymany, but it was easy to sense.

Sazhscurried up to her before she could take a step. “You know whatyou've gotta do now, right?”

“Takeoff these stupid shoes and run back to my room?”

“Don'tgive me a heart attack. Go and mingle. Relations!Put all that damn paperwork I gave you to use!”

“Right.”This was the part she'd been dreading, even more than the hardestpart of being put on display and speaking to the crowd. She'd neverbeen all that great at small talk and even after extensively goingthrough paperwork describing the other royals and nobles that wouldbe at this ball, she was sure she'd screw up and unintentionallyoffend somebody.

Ormaybe intentionally. Whoknew, maybe some of these people could use a good social faux-pas.

Hereyes wandered as she walked through the crowds, consciously aware ofher tiny steps. Between the heels and how elaborate her dress was,every second was a test of not tripping. Ridiculous.

Shescanned the crowds, looking for a pair of green eyes and a mop ofsilver hair. Hope – her personal bodyguard – had been invitedspecifically by her, and despite some...tense moments between them,she did genuinely hope that he'd still taken her up on herinvitation.

Yeah,tense, she thoughtwith a sigh. The last time they'd been left alone in a room together,he'd almost kissed her. Tense wasone word for it.

“Soyou're Eden's princess, huh?”

Lightningturned around and saw a woman with wild black hair smirking at hercuriously. She was dressed in a deep blue outfit, where the top halfresembled a sari, but the bottom was a more traditional gown. Thedress was adorned with intricate embroidery that Lightning was awarewas the symbol of a fal'cie, though hell if she could remember whichone. Tons of bracelets and necklaces completed the look.

“Yes,”she finally replied with a bob of her head, aware that she'd beenstaring a second too long. “Princess Fang of Oerba, correct?”

“Noneed for the formality, sunshine.” Fang grinned and took a sip ofthe champagne flute she was holding. “If there's no cameras on us,no point in it.”

Lightningcouldn't help but smile. She liked Fang already. “All thingsconsidered, I should probably err on the side of caution.” As muchas she hated it.

“Suityourself. Want one?”

“Sure.”Lightning took the proffered champagne and took a tiny sip. It tastedway too expensive, but considering all the diamonds she was wearing,she shouldn't have been surprised. “Have you been to Eden often?”

“Lasttime was right before the last of the royal family croaked.” Fangshrugged one shoulder. “Though I guess technically they're yourfamily, too.”

Lightningpaused. She honestly hadn't really thought of it like that before.“Technically, I guess.They're very distant,though. Nobody knew about me until Sazh decided to poke around.”

Fangbarked out a laugh. “Of course it was him! He's good at that, eh?”

“Youknow Sazh?”

“Anyroyal that's got half a brain to speak of knows him.” Fang liftedher glass a bit as though in a toast. “Of course, he's long sincesettled in Eden, but he's coached all sorts of us over the years. Theguy's constantly grumblin' about us 'kids'.”

Lightning'ssmile widened a bit. “Sounds like him.”

“He'sjust pissed 'cause Vanille decided she'd rather spend time with merather than get schooled by him.” She finished her champagne.“Speakin' of which...”

“Vanille?”She didn't mean...

“Oi!Vanille!”

Agirl in a beautiful gown in colors of the sunrise suddenly appearedwith a wide smile on her face. She had a bounce to her step despitethe elaborate headdress she was wearing, which was dripping with goldpieces stamped with the symbol of Luxerion's fal'cie. Like Fang, shewore an alarming number of necklaces and bracelets.

Recognitionquickly dawned and Lightning couldn't hide her wide eyes. This wasDia Vanille – one of the royals her bodyguard had worked with...andclaimed to knew quite well.

Damnit.Where was he, then, tocoach her through this?

“Fang!”Vanille grinned and flung her arms around the other woman Lightningquirked an eyebrow when the hug turned into a kiss.

Wait.What?

“What,nobody ever mentioned that?” Fang said with a smirk when shenoticed Lightning's confused expression. “There's a reason the oldroyal family used to call me an 'old hag' for not being married. Theywere sorta prissy about it.”

“Oh.”Lightning blinked and shook her head a bit. “Well...I have noreason to be.” And that was the truth. She herself wasn't attractedto women, so what the hell did it matter to her if Fang and Vanillewere together? Had the old royal family honestly had a problem withit? The thought of being associated with such an archaic idea madeher uncomfortable.

“KnewI'd like ya.” Fang grinned and kissed Vanille again. “Sweetheart,don't be rude and say hello to the new princess.”

Eventhough Sazh probably would've had a heart attack if he'd heardsomething like that, Lightning just chuckled as Vanille turned with abright smile and held up her hands in a strange gesture – pinkyfingers crossed and her index fingers touching as she bowed.Lightning curtsied in return.

“It'sso nice to finally meet you!” Vanille grasped Lightning's hands,which took her by surprise, but all she could do was go with it.Plus, she could tell by instinct that Vanille was a good person. Heropinion had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Hopeapparently knew her quite well. “I've been wanting to meet Eden'snew princess ever since I heard about you! It's a terrible shame thatso much of the royal family perished, but...well, you're here now,aren't you?”

“Right.”Lightning's head was spinning. She was starting to get the vibe thatmost of the royals around here hadn't cared much for the old familythat had ruled over Eden and inwardly cursed herself for not payingmuch attention to the news when she was younger.

Thenagain, she'd been too busy trying to keep a roof over her head.

“Plus,I just love a good ball, don't you? It's so old-fashioned.” Vanillegrinned as the music from the live orchestra gradually changed. “Oh,Fang! Dance with me!”

Fangchuckled. “Can't disobey an order.” She winked as Vanille tuggedher out to the dance floor. “We'll talk later, eh?”

“Right,”Lightning echoed and watched as they scurried further into theballroom. Somehow, Vanille's bouncing became a lot more graceful asthey began to waltz, their gowns sweeping around them in perfectunison.

Eventually,she looked away and let out a breath. Okay. She'd met two of the mostimportant guests here and it actually hadn't been too bad. The restof the night would be a piece of cake. Practice made perfect, afterall, or so Sazh was constantly harping at her. Probably why he madeher repeat etiquette lessons constantly.

“Hel-loooo.Princess Lightning, right?”

Lightningturned and looked up – and up– at an unfamiliar tall man with shaggy blond hair, dressed in adark suit. It was precisely at this second that she remembered Sazhtelling her that these introduction balls were typically held to lookfor potential suitors.

“Yes,”she finally replied with a curtsy, though she was already a littleannoyed. Obviously that'swho she was – or had this guy missed the whole littleparade-and-speech earlier?

“SnowVilliers,” he introduced with a bow. “I'm the Patron of Yusnaan.”

Sheraised her eyebrows a little. Even she knew about Yusnaan – it wasthe only nation with a fal'cie that wasn't under any sort of formalrule. Snow had been elected by the people, but he wasn't bound to theduty. The only reason Yusnaan got away with this was because theirfal'cie, Pandaemonium, was in charge of a lot of the industry andfood production in that area of the world, which created tons of jobsfor the people. It was a notorious situation that was unlike anyother, but despite this, she hadn't heard much about the Patronhimself.

Honestly,she already wasn't all that impressed.

Still,she had to be polite. Relations and all that. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.”He grinned, and it was the sort of expression someone had when theywere trying way too hard to be charming. She resisted the urge toroll her eyes. “Would you care for a dance?”

Oh,crap.

Sheknew there were cameras in the room to take press photos, and she'dbeen warned more than once that several would probably be taken whileshe was on the dance floor – it just lookedmore interesting for the princess to be dancing or doing somethinginstead of standing around chatting. On top of that, it'd also beenheavily implied that whoever she was photographed dancing with wouldcreate 'human interest,' meaning people would jump to romanticconclusions.

Ofcourse, never mind that she'd never met any of these people in personbefore, nor did she have any intention of getting romanticallyinvolved with anyoneunless they happened to be her personal bodyguard -

Wait.

Sheinwardly shook herself. Obviously, the press would make whatever thehell comments it wanted, regardless of her actions. Better that theyget their photos out of the way now, right?

“Iwould be honored,” Lightning finally replied, using the wordsthat'd been drilled into her head. Snow offered his arm with atoo-charming grin that had zero effect on her, but she took the crookof his elbow anyway.

Themusic had flowed into something a bit more upbeat, so it was easy todistract herself with counting steps and remembering where the hellher hands were supposed to go. It was awkward, because she was soused to dancing with someone shorter, who she didn't have to race tokeep up with and could lead instead...

Gods.What the hell was wrong withher?

Eventhough Snow was a big lug who had zero grace and kept nearly steppingon her gown, she somehow managed to keep a pleasant smile on her facethe whole time they waltzed, if only for the cameras. She spottedFang and Vanille – who were still dancing – out of the corner ofher eye and they seemed amused for some reason.

“Eden'sreal lucky they found you,” Snow said at one point. “But man, Ican't imagine living all normally and then suddenly getting thrustinto this.”

Shehummed in agreement. It occurred to her that Snow was probably theonly person here who could somewhat relate to her, since he'd beenelected to his position. It was a frightening thought that she hadanything in common with the guy. “I suppose,” she finally said.“I'm just glad this means I get to give my sister a better life.”

“Youhave a sister?”

Howwas it that she'd been required to memorize a bunch of facts aboutthese visiting royals and important people, but they apparentlyhadn't had to do the same? Or maybe Snow just didn't care. “Yes.She's around here somewhere. They're just putting the spotlight on mefor obvious reasons.”

“CanI meet her?”

Thatsurprised her, but Lightning was so eager to stop dancing that sheimmediately agreed. “Sure.”

Oncethe dance was over, she led Snow into a crowd of guests. She thoughtshe'd spotted her sister here earlier...

“Serah?”

“Sis!”Serah, always a lot more personable, gracefully extracted herselffrom a five-person conversation and went up to Lightning, graspingher hands excitedly. “Light, you look so beautiful in that dress.Those seamstresses really outdid themselves!”

“Thankyou.” She smiled, maybe her first genuine one of the night. “Youlook beautiful too, Serah.” And she did. Serah's hair was free fromits usual side ponytail and had been swept up into an elaboratelybraided bun at the top of her head. A few tendrils around her facehad been curled to perfection. The updo perfectly showed off theglitzy pastel pink gown she was wearing. Like her sister's, it alsohad lace embroidery on the back with the symbol of Phoenix.

“You'rejust saying that,” Serah teased, but she looked happy all the same.Finally, she seemed to notice Snow and looked up. Way up.Snow was easily twice the size of her tiny sister. “And youare...?”

Snowgrinned, but unlike Lightning, Serah practically swooned at it. “Myname is Snow Villiers. I'm the Patron of Yusnaan.” He made a grand,sweeping bow. “It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Serahgiggled and immediately dropped into a curtsy. “The pleasure is allmine, Mr. Villiers. I'm Serah Farron, Princess of Eden.”

Eventhough it was completely uncouth, Lightning's mouth fell open as Snowand Serah giggled throughout their pleasantries, which eventuallyturned into a request for a dance – a much more enthusiastic one onSnow's part – and she stared, totally flabbergasted as Snow andSerah waltzed across the dance floor. It looked completely ridiculousbecause of their height difference, but...

“Excuseme, Your Highness?”

Onlya lifetime of training as soldier kept Lightning from jumping out ofher skin. Instead, she sucked in a quick breath and put on a smile asshe turned to the voice. Standing there was a girl who was dressed inwhat looked more like a uniform than a ballgown, though it was formalenough. She didn't look familiar, so Lightning simply nodded.

“Yes?”

“Myname is Alyssa,” the girl said after a quick bow. “I'm her arepresentative of Academia. The President sends his regrets that hecouldn't make an appearance.”

“Oh.”Lightning vaguely recalled Sazh saying that Academia's Presidenthadn't replied to the invitation to the ball, but she hadn't reallythought to question it. Academia was a relatively new nation. Theyboasted the world's only man-made fal'cie, which honestly just seemedcrazy, but she hadn'tgiven it much thought. The leader, their President, was a personshrouded in mystery. It was speculated that there wasn't aPresident at all, because nobody had ever seen the guy. Or girl.

Therefore,it hadn't been such a surprise that there hadn't been an answer tothe invitation, and beyond that, Lightning hadn't really had time tomuse about it. After all, she wasn't about to rule Academia, so whatbusiness was it of hers?

Asecond later, she reminded herself of appearances. “Please send myregards to him. It'd be great to meet someday.”

Alyssaseemed amused at this, but she simply nodded. “Of course,Your Highness. In fact, if I could be so bold, he didn't think muchof the old royals. He might finally be willing to show himself to thepublic if Academia and Eden decided to ally.”

Ugh.Politics. Still, Lightning's smile didn't falter. “We'll have tosee, but I'm definitely open to the idea.”

“Goodto hear!” Alyssa said. She opened her mouth like she was going tosay more, but she flicked her eyes to something in the distance andinstead bowed again. “Well then, thank you for your time, YourHighness. I should be off.”

“Niceto meet you.” Lightning sighed as Alyssa walked off. Gods, this wasexhausting.

“Areyou all right, Your Highness?”

Lightning'shead whipped over her should and she spun around at the familiarvoice, her smile immediately forming into something much moregenuine. Despite the awkwardness of the last time they'd been alonetogether, right now, she'd never been so glad to see a familiar face.

“Hope,”she greeted with a smirky smile, her dress rustling as she stepped upto him. “What have I told you a thousand times? Call me Light.”

“Ithought formality would be a little more appropriate here.” Hiseyes flicked over her appearance. “You look...”

Evenbefore he said the word, a blush formed on Lightning's face that hadnothing to do with any makeup. It wasn't the first time he'd saidanything like this to her. Hell, it wasn't the first time tonightthat anyone had said such a thing, but coming from him...

“...Absolutelystunning.”

...Itwas different.

“T-Thankyou,” she managed to reply, cursing her little stutter as she triednot to let the mood get...awkward. After all, they were in a ballroomwith dozens of people, not to mention cameras. “You look...verynice yourself.”

Thatwas putting it mildly. Though Hope always dressed in a neat andprofessional manner as her personal bodyguard, apparently he went theextra mile at a ball. His three-piece suit was perfectly tailored,like it'd been painted on his body, and his aqua tie brought out thebrilliant shades of green in his eyes.

Herheart was pounding. Not good.

Ifshe wasn't mistaken, Hope's cheeks flushed at her praise, but hemerely cleared his throat. “Thank you.”

Thesilence that followed was both awkward and comfortable in that wayshe usually was around Hope. It didn't matter that they were in aballroom full of people and that she was guest of honor all eyes wereon. The world always dwindled down to just the two of them when theywere together.

How?

“YourHighness!”

Lightningwas startled out of her stupor when someone called for her, andsomehow, she found herself away from Hope's side for the next fewhours. She talked to one of the noblemen of the Yaschas Massif andthen danced with the Primarch's son, who was even taller than Snow.At least the guy was quiet and courteous. Perhaps because thePrimarch worked so closely with the monarchy of Eden.

Fangand Vanille came to talk to her again to rescue her from a longconversation with a guest, and honestly, she was glad for it. Ifnothing else, she could say that she'd made friends of the two women.While that was good for relations and all, Lightning had never reallybeen all that close to other people, whether she was a princess ornot, so it was nice that there were people who sought her company.

Whenthe peak of the ball had inexplicably passed, made obvious by thefact that the cameras were finally gone, Lightning watched Fang andVanille go back to the dance floor. Serah was still offwith Snow somewhere, which almost made her want to go pry them apart,but Lightning was glad for a moment alone to breathe.

Thatmoment didn't last too long, but at least this time, the interruptionwas welcome.

“Thereyou are, Light.”

Shesmiled as Hope appeared beside her. “I'm sorry about before.”

Heshook his head. “Don't worry about it. I know what this event wasabout. It's important for you to mingle and make relations.”

“I'vehad about enough of that tonight,” she admitted. She wasridiculously glad that these balls weren't an everyday affair,because the thought of schmoozing and socializing like thisconstantly gave her a headache. Maybe she had a bit of confidence inthe political side of things, but the social aspects of being Eden'sprincess...ugh.

“Doesthat mean you're free from the rest of your obligations tonight?”

“UnlessSazh decides to spring something else on me.”

Hopechuckled, shifting where he was standing. He seemed weirdlynervous...at least until he turned to her and bowed at the waist.“Then will you please do me the honor of a dance?”

Lightningblinked in surprise. Hope wanted to dance with her? Why?

Okay,she did recall one of their dance lessons, and according to Sazh,they'd been totally coordinated. The orchestra was still playing andthere were still people on the dance floor. It wasn't totally out ofthe realm of possibility that Hope would want to dance with her.

Maybehe wanted to try and...

No,of course not. Their almost-kiss had been a total fluke. Despiteevidence to the contrary, she'd completely acknowledged it and movedon. This was just a princess dancing with her bodyguard.

Withthat thought, Lightning gave him a little smile and held out herhand. “I would be honored.”

Hopelooked just as surprised at her acceptance, but he quickly took herhand and led her out onto the dance floor with a little smile. Maybeit was just because she'd been waltzing all night, but the placementof their hands were perfectly in sync – automatic, like she'd donethis with him a thousand times before. The music began a simpleballad and they began to spin around the room, her dress glitteringin the light of the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling.

Aftera moment, Hope relaxed even further and chuckled sheepishly. “Ihave to admit, I wasn't sure if you'd agree to dance.”

Lightingsmirked, squeezing his hand a bit. “I promised you one awhile ago,did I?”

“...Youdid,” he answered slowly, recalling a memory. “But you've beenwith so many others tonight. I wasn't sure if you'd be up for it.”

Eventhough it was the sort of kind and courteous thing a bodyguard wouldsay, there was something in Hope's tone that made her search his eyesfor what he wasn't quite saying. Maybe it was from all these monthsof royal training, teaching her to look people in the eye and findwhat was beyond the surface, but it eventually came to her.

“Waita minute...were you jealous?”

Hopecleared his throat and ducked his head a bit like he needed to watchhis feet, which was stupid since they were waltzing together sobeautifully. Lightning couldn't help but smile with a slight smirk,since his lack of verbal reply was more than answer enough.

Aftera couple more spins around the ballroom, he finally spoke. “Iwouldn't say that,exactly. I...I simply remembered that you'd promised me a dance and Iwas hoping I'd get to take you up on your offer.” He looked at herfrom behind his bangs. “That's all.”

Thatwasn't all and theyboth knew it. Even though she kept trying to push it out of her mindfor both of their sakes, her mind again drifted to their almost-kiss.Her eyes flickered down to his lips without realizing it, and not forthe first time, she wondered what it would feel like to finally havethem meet hers.

Ofcourse, usually when she had this stupidly girly daydream, she wasalone in her room, which meant that she had to snap out of it. Now!

Sheforced herself to meet his eyes. “I wouldn't leave my personalbodyguard hanging.”

Herwords brought a brilliant smile to his face and they fell even morein sync as the music swelled and got a bit faster, bringing joy totheir steps in a way she hadn't felt all night. She felt as light asair as Hope spun her around, occasionally letting her take the leadsince that was her instinct. The fact that he let her withoutquestion spoke volumes of how well he knew her.

Ormaybe just how often he'd worked with her. He was herpersonal bodyguard, after all, but then why didn't this feel like abodyguard-and-charge dance? How was he – and not the palace, gowns,tiaras, or hoard of servants - making her feel like an actualprincess for the firsttime since she'd found out about her royal blood?

Maybebecause, despite the friendliness of most of the other royals here,he was the only one who seemed to truly believe that she could do thejob and be better atit.

Ifit weren't for her stupid shoes, she honestly felt as though shecould've danced with him all night. As it was, she still wasn'tentirely used to being on her feet in heels for so long. Seriously,nobody could see her feet, so why couldn't she have worn somethingmore comfortable?

Lightningsqueezed Hope's hand to get his attention. Even though he was staringright at her, he looked a bit dazed. She couldn't help but wonder ifher expression was the same. “Can we stop? My feet are killing me.”

“Ofcourse.” He carefully guided her away from the rest of the peoplewaltzing – she saw Serah and Snow out of the corner of her eye,hmph – with a grace that she didn't really expect from a bodyguard.

Thenagain, he'd been surprising her since they day they'd met.

“Wouldyou like to sit, Your Highness?”

Sherolled her eyes. “Seriously? A few dances and you're going allformal on me again?”

Hesmiled. “Light. May I escort you to a seat?”

“Nowyou're just being ridiculous.” Impulsively, she flicked hisforehead, immediately regretting the action since that was definitelynot protocol.

Thankfully,he only blinked a few times before smiling again and offering her hisarm. “Well?”

“Ithink I just need to rest a minute.” How many hours had gone by,anyway? Sazh had mentioned offhand that the most splendid balls couldhave people dancing until dawn. She shuddered at the thought. “Canwe go somewhere quiet?”

“Ofcourse.”

Maybeit was from all the champagne that'd been served all night, buteverybody seemed too buzzed to notice the guest of honor basicallyescaping the party. Hope led her to a hidden hallway off in a cornerof the room, which further led to a door that opened up to thebalcony.

Sheinhaled deeply as they walked outside, glad for the fresh air. Themusic and hubbub seemed very far away. “Thank you.”

“You'rewelcome.” Hope wandered behind her, his hands behind his back asthey always seemed to be when they were around each other.

Shegestured to his formal stance. “You can relax a little. It's justus.”

Hopesmiled a bit sheepishly – and handsomely, can't forget that – andlet his arms fall to his sides. “Sorry. Force of habit.”

“Likeforgetting to call me 'Light'?”

“Exactly.”

Theychuckled. She felt more relaxed than she had in ages. Her eyeswandered over the dark, star-studded sky and she grasped the railingof the balcony as though afraid of falling. The world seemed so bigat that moment. It was hard to believe that she mattered so much inthe grand scheme of things – that princesses went down in historybooks, while the families that did just as much or even more got norecognition at all.

Andhow many families like that were there? More than there was royalty,of course. If she squinted, she could just barely make out the areawhere she and Serah had grown up. Further off were the slums, wherethey'd been forced to live when money got tight.

Somany hundreds and thousands of people lived like that, and yet,because she just happened to be from the right bloodline, she wasplucked from it all. It didn't seem fair that there were peoplestruggling to survive while she was literally wearing a dress coveredin diamonds.

“Light?”

Onlya lot of self-control kept her from jumping in surprise. “Yes?”

“Youlook lost in thought.” Hope approached her a bit cautiously tofinally stand beside her. “Are you all right?”

“Iwas just...thinking about the last time we talked.” And almostkissed, but no need to acknowledge that. Again.

Itmay have been her imagination, but she could've sworn Hope held hisbreath before responding. “You have?”

“Abouthow I could use my experience to help.” He visibly relaxed at herwords. “It just...it seems like such a huge undertaking. I wouldn'teven know where to start.”

“Atthe beginning.”

Sherolled her eyes. “I doubt it's that easy.”

“Probablynot,” he agreed. “But everything has a beginning.”

“Iguess.” The words were pretty generic, but still, he had a point.“I just hope that I can do anything at all. A lot of people I'vespoken to tonight apparently didn't like the old royal family thatmuch.”

Ifthis surprised Hope, he hid it well. Maybe he hadn't liked them,either. “Really.”

“Yes.”Lightning glanced back up at the stars. The moon that followedPhoenix was just a sliver in the sky. “And when I was working as asolider, we didn't really talk about the royals. They were a worldaway. Even though they made our laws and everything, it felt likenothing they did ever actually affected us.”

“Butyou know they did,” Hope pointed out. “And like I said, you'veseen both sides. I think that'll eventually come to be your biggeststrength.”

She'dknown ever since he'd said as much during their last privateconversation that he was right. Her empathy towards those who weredown in life – it wasn't anything any of Eden's previous royalsseemed to have. Maybe that was a reason they seemed to be so dislikedby a lot of the other kingdoms.

“It'sa lot to take in,” she finally said. “Even though it's beenawhile since I was crowned and everything, I don't think it's allreally hit me yet.” She never would have admitted this to anyoneelse, but Hope was different. He'd been different from the start.

Thoughwith how much she'd been rambling about her feelings aroundhim, she still hadn't discerned if this was a good or bad thing.

“Ofcourse not. It's a big change, especially when they do something likethis.” Hope made a sweeping gesture in the general direction of theballroom. “I don't think gatherings for soldiers in the Corps werequite so...”

“Expensive?”

“Iwas going to say 'elegant,' but yes, that too.”

Lightningsmirked, finally looking away from the sky to face him, though to hersurprise, Hope was already staring at her. Had he been looking at herthis whole time? There was something strangely intense in his gaze –something she'd felt since the moment they'd met, but hadn't wantedto put a name to until now.

Desire.

She'dalready halfway closed the space between them by the time he wasleaning in, and she tugged on his tie for good measure, an anchor tohold onto when their lips finally met.

Heheld on tightly, his fingers clinging to the fabric of her gown. Eventhough the kiss was strangely soft, there was an untapped passionsimmering between them that she could feel as though it was tangible.She'd never felt anything like it before...not that she had muchexperience to compare this to.

Maybeit was instinct. That was the one rule in life she always followed –to trust her instincts. And if her instincts wanted her to part herlips so the kiss could deepen? No way in hell was she about todisobey.

Hope'shands felt like they were burning on her body. She could feel everytouch, every movement of his fingertips as he traced the lace on herback, every little twitch as he pulled her even closer. Her handsmussed his perfectly coiffed hair, just begging for somethingto hold onto. For a second, she contemplated on taking off the stupidelbow-length gloves she was wearing, but that probably requiredbreaking the kiss and she was incredibly reluctant to do such athing.

Gods,kissing him was like nothing she'd ever experienced before. It didn'teven compare to, say, suddenly becoming the princess of the kingdomyou'd lived in your whole life. This was far more intense. Lightninghad never been a particularly romantic person or someone who boughtinto the whole idea that someone could be your other half, but withHope, all of those weird ideas felt like an actual reality.

Andit was all of this from just a kiss.

Okay,so it was a lot of kisses. But even so...

Eventually,one of them pulled away – she honestly couldn't tell who, since shewas already so lightheaded – and she resisted the urge to reconnecttheir lips as they both quietly gasped for air. All of this wascompletely unlike her.Maybe it was just the stress from everything catching up with her.Yeah. Except not.

“Light...”Hope murmured, his eyes only half-open. Clearly, he was just as dazedas she was. “Light, I...”

“Yes?”Her voice was husky in a way that she hadn't even known she'd beencapable of.

Somethingabout it, however, seemed to snap Hope out of his daze. He suddenlygasped and they flew apart, his eyes wide with something akin topanic, which was strange in itself since she'd never seen him lookanything but calm and collected.

“I...I'msorry,” he said, not quite looking at her. She could've sworn hewas trying to avoid staring at her lips. “I can't.”

“What?”

Hopestammered out something unintelligible, but before Lightning couldeven think to get him to elaborate, he turned and went back inside.

Yearsof training instantly kicked in and she followed, calling out hisname and demands for him to wait, just waita minute, but either Hope was way faster than she'd given him creditfor or he was using some secret passage that nobody had told herabout yet. When she finally made her way back to the ballroom, Hopehad completely vanished.

Andhe hadn't even left a shoe behind.

Lightninghad no idea how long she stood there, just staring into the crowdlike it was going to give her an answer, but eventually, someonetouched her arm and brought her mind back from wandering.

“Sis?”

“Serah?”Thank goodness it was her and not anybody else. Except Hope. Hopewould've been preferable, and she hated herself for thinking that.

“Areyou okay?” Serah cocked her head a little. “You look tired. Comesit down with me, okay?”

“Allright.” Lightning let Serah lead her around, not even wondering howher sister managed to extract herself from the Patron's side or ifthere was something else going on. There was only one person on hermind, and now, one question.

Whyhad Hope pulled away?

Ormore importantly...

Wouldhe return?

#syna esthesia #hopelight #hoperai #hopurai #hopelight fic #royal!AU #FINALLY #SHE'S GOING TO THE BALL #HELL YEAH #i've had all of this floating around in my brain for ages lmao #and finally i wrote it #hopefully people are still interested in this AU whoops #i should probably stick them up on ao3 one of these days #BUT YEEEEEEAH #OTP TASTIC #THAT'S ALL I'M SAYIN' OHOHOHO #ahem

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