* * *
Hesia clung to me every day, as if the busy days before had been a lie.
Of course, it’s not like he completely neglected his duties.
He still attended meetings and was summoned to the main palace, just less frequently now.
It seemed the Grand Duchess had arranged some convenience for him.
He didn’t seem to mind working here with me, even as paperwork piled high around him.
Not once did he complain.
It wasn’t like Hesia was always the silent, diligent type either—the secretaries had even commented recently, “The young heir has been working so quietly these days.” So clearly, this wasn’t his usual behavior.
Suppressing a smile that crept up at the sudden memory, I turned a page of my book.
I had finished my last document earlier and was now waiting for Hesia to finish his, reading in the meantime.
I was about halfway through when the sound of a pen scratching paper filled the room, followed by Hesia’s voice.
“Is this the last document for today?”
“Yes.”
“Alright, then we’re done. Everyone, good work. Be thorough with the final checks. If there’s anything that absolutely needs my input, contact me anytime. I’m leaving.”
Though he said to contact him, anyone could tell from his expression that disturbing him wouldn’t end well.
The secretaries exchanged awkward smiles.
Watching them, I stood up from my seat.
“Sia, you’re done?”
“Yep! Everything I needed to do today is finished. Now I can hang out with Vivi. What should we do today? I saw on the way to the main palace that the flowers in the garden there bloomed beautifully. Should we have tea there? …Oh, but now that I think about it, there’s a high chance Grandmother will show up if we go that way. I really don’t like that…”
Hesia rambled on, making it painfully obvious he didn’t want anyone interrupting our time together.
I lightly tapped his lips—a gesture he now understood meant wait a moment after experiencing it a few times. He promptly fell quiet.
Moments ago, he was babbling endlessly, and now he’s acting all innocent like he never said a word.
It was ridiculous but also… cute.
His youthful face and the way he blinked his eyes made me stroke his chin softly, lost in thought.
“If we go to the main palace, His Highness the Grand Duchess will probably call us over at least once. In that case… hmm, should we just leave the palace altogether?”
I casually tossed the suggestion out, and Hesia’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Outside?”
“Yeah. Let’s quietly sneak out with a few knights. That should be fine, right? From what I heard, Sia, you used to explore outside the palace pretty often.”
When I tilted my head as if to say ‘Wasn’t that the case?’, Hesia eagerly exclaimed it was true.
He practically jumped with excitement, saying he knew all the best spots from his adventures outside.
Apparently, his princely dignity had been left behind somewhere.
The others in the room looked away awkwardly, pretending not to notice, as if trying to preserve their superior’s reputation by sheer will.
Watching them, I realized we should probably get out of here quickly.
“There’s this little alleyway with cute trinket shops and rare items you can’t find anywhere else. Oh, and there’s a shop that sells music boxes imported from all over! I even bought one there once that plays a song just like the lullaby you used to sing to me, Vivi. I’ll show you tonight. I know lots of places you’d love, Vivi! Flower shops with beautiful blooms, delicious food stalls… Should we go now? Or do you want to rest a bit first?”
Words tumbled out before we even left the room.
Nodding along, I listened to his now-familiar excited chatter.
To sum up, he knew lots of fun places and wanted to leave right now, if possible.
“Alright, let’s change clothes and head out.”
“Okay!”
His face lit up like the sun itself, so bright I wondered if two suns had risen today.
Watching him, I quietly headed to the wardrobe room.
As I changed, I suddenly asked impulsively:
“Sia, you usually act so proper in front of others.”
“Well, yeah. I’m a prince, after all.”
“Exactly. So why, when I’m around, do you act like that, whether people are watching or not?”
It was something I’d wondered about for a while.
It didn’t seem to be simply because he couldn’t contain his feelings for me.
Of course, that was probably part of it, but Hesia was far more calculating than he let on.
“Ah, well… yeah, it’s because I love Vivi so much, but…”
“I know that already.”
I shrugged, and though I didn’t say anything special, Hesia’s cheeks flushed with shyness as he whispered:
“Honestly… It’s because how I act affects how people treat you. The more I look completely smitten with you, the more others will think, ‘Ah, the prince is totally head over heels for this person.’”
As expected, it wasn’t purely about love.
He was being strategic.
Using his affections to shield me from disrespect.
It was a very Hesia-like way of thinking.
“Was that the case last time too?”
It was a casually tossed question.
Hesia, halfway through opening the door, paused.
He stood silently for a moment before giving a faint smile and shaking his head.
“Probably not. That’s why I’m going to do better this time. I’m going to be more honest. Show everything. I don’t want to have regrets again.”
His shoulder lifted in a light shrug, as if it wasn’t a big deal, but his fingers trembled ever so slightly.
It wasn’t nothing at all. In that moment, I realized I’d touched his deepest wound.
And at the same time, it struck me—I could be someone’s greatest wound, too.
There have been plenty of times when I was the object of resentment or hatred.
But someone cherishing me so much that even the memory of me hurts… that was rare.
And those rare memories always ended in the worst possible way.
“…I don’t know what you’re thinking, Sia. I used to see right through you.”
I murmured, looking at Hesia like he was a stranger. He chuckled softly.
“Well, to you, it probably feels like just a few days ago…”
He trailed off, eyes softening.
“Vivi, am I making you uncomfortable? I must seem like I suddenly grew up overnight…”
“Funny time to ask.”
I laughed lightly, and Hesia made an embarrassed face.
But I understood why he felt rushed, why his world had narrowed.
“It’s fine. I’ve seen it before, you know… I guess you could call it a prophecy or a message… Back then, I thought it was predicting my death, telling me I was nothing and to just die quietly. But it turns out, the gods were just showing me a glimpse of the future.”
I met his eyes calmly.
“So maybe that’s why… seeing you all grown up like this doesn’t feel so unfamiliar.”
There was no reason to say it, so I hadn’t bothered until now.
But as I finally voiced the unspoken truth, I lifted my hand.
The moment my hand came close to his face, Hesia leaned into my palm like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Besides, you’re acting the same as back then, so how could it make me uncomfortable? Kids grow up fast anyway. You look away for a second, and suddenly they’ve shot up.”
I said it teasingly, and Hesia pouted with his cheek still pressed against my palm.
His lips, already a little sulky, looked even more petulant as the soft, baby-like skin of his face squished under my hand.
“Sia, you can’t change moments that have already passed. The times we couldn’t be together… and the times we won’t be together — neither of those are things we can do anything about now.”
“…I know.”
“We just need to focus on the present.”
I whispered as gently as I could, and with that, I sent the knights who had been standing a short distance away, keeping watch, all the way outside the castle in an instant.
The moment we dropped into an empty alley, the knights looked flustered, but Hesia, having experienced this a few times already, stayed calm.
“See? We can be together like this. Why waste time thinking about the past or the future?”
It was the kind of mindset you needed to get through life.
But at the same time, it was a mindset I could afford because I planned to let everything go a year from now.
I didn’t bother mentioning that part as I smiled and guided Hesia out of the alley.
“There’s no reason for us to be unhappy right now. Sia, my lovely prince… enjoy the present. The time you’re spending with me.”
Half-pulled along, Hesia was swept into the light, yet even surrounded by a sea of people, his gaze never wavered — it stayed locked onto me.
The crowd pushed past me like a wave.
Someone’s shoulder bumped into mine, voices overlapping from all directions, leaving my ears ringing.
* * *
