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ikemenlibrary · 4 months

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The Smell of Seawater - Ikémen Prince

Pairing: Silvio Ricci x Emma Summary: An AU, in which their love is a game to the king, where Silvio must date a group of women to decide who the future queen will be. Silvio never expected to fall in love, and yet here he is, pledging his life vow to the woman everyone thought would be the first eliminated

Word count: 2.1k

Warnings: Mentions of throw up, corsets, and self doubt

A note from the author: Something small for my favorite, @xbalayage. You've done so much lately, you deserve something for yourself.

Standing beside the other two girls, Emma felt out of place. All three of them were holding hands, gripping each other nervously with warm and sweaty hands. It felt suffocating to her, and Emma dropped Annalise’s hand and met her confused look with a small smile.

“Sorry, sweaty hands,” She explained apologetically. This gave her a moment to break free from the stress, and kick off her shoes, the warm sand tickling her bare feet as she walked away from the ever forming crowd. Annalise wouldn’t be caught dead walking off near the ocean, soiling her perfect pink dress; Emma didn’t want her dress ruined, but a little bit of sand and water never hurt anyone.

She was thankful for the fact that she didn’t have much breakfast this morning, despite the cherry tarts being absolutely scrumptious. If she were to have eaten much more, the ground would be decorated with some half-digested pastry with the way her stomach was bubbling under the corset Emma was stuffed into before breakfast.

Silvio would be coming to greet the three of them soon, and in the same conversation, send two of them back to the life they had before they met him. Despite telling herself she would be okay if he chose either of the other two, Emma knew if she wasn’t the one whose name fell off of his lips when he announced who had stolen his heart - or who he at least liked enough to have rule Benitoite by his side - during all of this time together that she wouldn’t be able to force a smile on her face and support the woman he chose.

Yet, she was also terrified of what it would mean if he did say her name. She’d be ripped from her commoner life, and put into fancy dresses every day that was worth more than her parents house and retirement combined. She would have to learn elegance, and class. Two things that Silvio can’t help but remind her she lacks with a teasing tone and a barely-there smile.

The sand underneath her feet was calming, and she bent over to cup a handful of it, only to let it fall from her hand a moment later. Hand selected, then forced back to a life of mundane. It was almost like how things will be for two of the girls being sent home soon. It was almost calming in a way; knowing this was something Emma could control, yet also so many factors could stop the sand from reaching the ground once again. Nothing she couldn’t handle though, and that was comforting when everything else around her was out of her control.

“Miss Emma?” One of the guards approached her. She had seen him around once or twice, but had never had a chance to ask his name. “His Majesty is –”

“You can call me Emma,” She interjected, a jumble of nerves twisting at the mention of Silvio.

“Yes, Miss Emma, I apologize,” He bowed before her, and over his shoulder, Emma saw a flash of Silvio’s light hair, glinting more blue in the sunlight than the usual gray. “I was sent over to tell you to prepare yourself…”

Whatever else the guard was saying fell on deaf ears as she saw, not heard, her name leaving Silvio’s lips from a distance away, their eyes meeting across the palace grounds, then she watched as his eyes skimmed down her body, stopping at her bare feet, and a small - almost imperceptible - smile adorned his lips. Her heartbeat sped up, a loud ba-dum, ba-dum in her throat as Silvio started walking towards her, his pace picking up as she pushed herself through the sinking sand, the tulle of her dress sticking up awkwardly in some places from being crushed, yet she didn’t care. Not when Silvio was coming towards her, looking at her like she was the only woman in the world. Not when she felt like destiny was rushing toward her.

He was closer now, the sun was making the jewels on his lapels shine even brighter and she could make out the pink flush of his cheeks, and the sparkle in his eyes he always tried so hard to hide. It was warm out, and he was starting to sweat, as given away by his hair being less than perfect and flopping down over his forehead in separated strands. She loved when he looked disheveled, it made him seem more his age, and less like a sculpture, less like a shell of a tyrant - a human. He was here, and he was real and his arms were wrapping around Emma’s waist and pulling her against him, sand and salty sea water be damned.

She felt him before she tasted him, his solid body flushed with hers and before she could even try to search his eyes for an answer, his hands were cupping her cheeks and gently but urgently pulling her lips towards his own. Whether it was a statement to the rest of the world that she was the one he truly loved, or a claim of possession - or maybe even both, Emma didn’t know. All she cared about as she wrapped her arms around his waist was that they didn’t have to stay quiet about their adoration for each other anymore. Silvio doing this made it clear that she was the one who stole his heart, and he was going to hold onto hers.

Pulling apart, Silvio was slightly breathless, pressing his forehead against her own. His sweaty bangs would mess with the makeup perfectly applied by her maids earlier this morning, and she was sure the King would have something to say about that after the pictures were printed in the paper - “shiny foreheads are not befitting of a future queen.”, but at this moment, all there was to focus on was Silvio.

His sparked eyes sparked alight, yet also had a soft tenderness she had noticed in the past only once or twice before. The soft, content smile on his face was so dazzling that she closed her eyes for a moment as he brushed back some of my hair that had blown onto my cheek, his hand falling to grip at her hip as she listened to his voice, soothing for a moment.

“I’ve got ya, Em. Just focus on me, ignore the cameras, ignore the people around us. Right now, it’s just you, and a man who has fallen for ya, somehow.”

She let out a puff of air, a smile forming on her lips as he tenderly stroked her cheek with his thumb. The calm before the storm, in a sense, because the minute we turned our faces from each other, we’d be barraged with flashes of lights from cameras, news reporters shoving microphones in our direction, and I’d have to see Annalise and Eliza’s faces as they pushed back tears for the press. But for right now, they basked in the warmth of the sun glowing on their skin, and the love that had formed between them.

Silvio pulled away first, meeting the presses questioning gazes with a charming smile. “May I introduce to you the future queen of Benitoite? Emma!”

She forced a smile onto her face as Silvio linked her hand with his own, his thumb rubbing comforting circles into her skin as she waved for the press with her free hand. It was intimidating; being so vulnerable and open with so many strangers, and having their love publicly declared. It wasn’t anything she was used to, and yet with Silvio at her side, it made everything a little easier.

Silvio continued, more regal than Emma had really ever seen him before, but it was just another part of him to fall in love with. “I’ve enjoyed countless moments with each of these lovely women.” Liar, Emma thought. After one particularly boring date with Eliza, Emma found Silvio at her bedroom door in the scandalous early morning, and he practically fell into her room moaning about he could never marry such a boring woman. But she was his father’s pick of the litter, and so he had to play nice, for now at least. “But I cannot deny that during my time with Emma, I fell in love with her. Not only is her heart pure and kind, but she’s smart, and witty, and can match me toe to toe. She’s going to be a lovely queen one day.”

To seal the deal, Silvio leaned over, pressing a tender kiss to the side of Emma’s cheek. Emma guiltily looked towards the two girls who had been standing with her not too long ago, and her stomach dropped as she watched Annalise wipe her eyes with a handkerchief she must have gotten from a guard. Her nose was red, her eyes were puffy, and she was still gorgeous. Her blonde hair was perfectly coiled, and her peachy pink lipstick looked like it had just been freshly applied.

Emma knew that Annalise had fallen in love with Silvio, and although she knew where Silvio’s heart lay, she also knew that Annalise, a princess from a small country across the sea, was the perfect candidate. She already knew all the proper etiquette, and she was graceful and poised and…. Perfect. She was who should’ve ended up with Silvio, if all things were supposed to have gone to plan. There’s no way she’d ever mess up Benitoite, or be awkward in front of news reporters.

Silvio brought her out of her daze, placing his hand on the small of her back and ushering her away from the crowds, slipping off his own shoes and letting the shallow waves wash over his bare feet. She could feel his gaze on her as she looked out into the horizon, the sun shining brightly over the waves, making the water shimmer. “Hey,” Silvio said, squeezing her waist affectionately as he pulled Emma closer. “Talk to me.” She hummed her response, letting her head fall to his shoulder as she relaxed in his arms. “I saw your mind spinning when you saw Anna crying.”

“She loves you,” Emma said, sighing. “I just feel bad.”

“I love you,” Silvio replied, kissing Emma’s head. “I can’t help it that you’re the person I wanna be with.”

“She would’ve been the perfect queen.” Emma argued.

“You’re perfect to me.” Emma had no retort to his remark. It was so sweet and sincere, almost jarring, since Silvio was usually brash and loud. “See, ya can’t argue with me forever.” Silvio let go of his hold on her, kicking some water at her feet and smiling as Emma shrieked. “I’m still the future king after all.”

Emma bent over, cupping water in her hands to throw at Silvio’s chest and before he could grab her and drag her into the water with him, she ran, giggles bubbling past her lips as Silvio pushed to chase after her, the sand causing him to stumble as he caught up to her, and pulled her down to the ground with him.

They were face to face, Silvio’s hardened body pressed against her own as he lay on top of her, his sea blue eyes searching her own, any trace of giggles gone. He smelled like seawater, and Emma found herself finding solace in that smell - it was the scent that could remind her of her beloved no matter where she found herself, whether she was in his arms or they were apart.

The sea always managed to bring her home in Silvio’s arms.

Without saying anything else, Silvio closed the small distance between the two, a sweet kiss shared between two - unofficially - engaged lovers. She could never get enough of his taste; sweet rose wine and toothpaste. Two things that on their own seemed awful together, but when they’re on the tongue of your loved one, seemed like the best combination in the whole world.

“You’re so pretty,” Silvio commented, pushing a piece of Emma’s hair out of her eyes. She felt her cheeks flush and she knew she probably looked like a disheveled mess.

“Please,” Emma said, reaching out to trace Silvio’s cheekbone with her thumb. “Shut up.”

She guided his lips back to her own as she heard him murmur into their kiss. “Gladly,”

The sea roared on around them, but neither of them cared. The smell of seawater from now on would always bring back memories of this day, and would be something that they would one day share with their children while they explain to them how sacred love should be, much like the sea, and hope that one day, they too, can be reminded of true love by even the faintest scent of seawater.

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