They told me to bow to him I looked up instead.
The the palace courtyard was silent enough to hear the wind shift.
A thousand eyes washed me but none so sharply as his.
The crown prince stood beneath the red banners, dressed in black silk threaded with gold, his presence alone felt like standing two close to a flame, quiet, controlled, and dangerous.
I should have lowered my gaze, everyone expected me to.
But I didn't.
I met his eyes.
They were cold at first- sharp like winter.
Then something flick card.
curiosity.
A mistake.
Because curiosity is how well begins.
My mother had told me only one thing before I left for the palace.
"Areum... do not draw attention. do not let anyone see you"
But the problem was people people choose to see me, even when I wish to disappear.
Maybe it was the way I looked.They often said I had a face that felt like a memory -soft but too knowing,or maybe it was because there were things I noticed that others couldn't.
Whispers that nobody else heard.
Shadows where there should be none.
Dreams that later came true.
So when I was selected to serve in the palace, the thought it was honor.
But I knew better.
The palace did not choose people.
the palace took them.
"Bow!" one of the cut ladies murmured under her breath, fingers digging into my arm,
I didn't move.
The crown prince gaze held mine like a challenge.
As if he was waiting to see what I would do next.
his voice was low when he spoke.
" Do you not know who stands before you?" he asked.
The air tightened ,even the wind stopped.
I swallowed.
"I know", I said quietly .
murmurs rippled through the courtyard.
No one looked directly at the crown prince.
No one answered him.
But I had.
the coner of his mouth then lift, but something like amusement flickered again.
Bold, reckless
Maybe foolish.
Yes,
That was me.
The minister of servants stepped forward, bowing deeply.
"Your Highness, this girl -"
The crown prince raised a hand,
silence snapped over the courtyard like a command.
" your name", he said, eyes still locked mine,
his voice was not gentle,
it was something like...Fate with sharp edgers.
I exhaled slowly
"Lee areum".
A heartbeat passed,
Then another.
His gaze didn't leave me.
Like he was trying to figure out why I didn't fear him.
Why I couldn't look away.
why I felt .... familiar.
As if we had met before.
But that was impossible.
wasn't it?
Finally,he spoke.
" Remember your place, Lee areum,"he Murmured ,
"or you will lose it,"
Not a threat,
A certainity.
My heart should have trembled,
instead I smiled only slightly.
barely
But he saw it.
his eyes darkened ,
The kind of darkness that promise trouble.
And Fate shifted,
quietly,
like the first stone falling before and avalanche.
What is the connection between areum and the crown prince?