Vaid6

"We can’t go back now, can we?" the Prince asked, his voice barely a whisper.

Dan-Bi stared at him, feeling the magnetic pull between them, the unspeakable truth that had been buried deep inside both of them for so long. The unspoken bond.

He didn’t reply immediately. There was nothing to say. He just stepped closer, and in that moment, all the walls they had built came crashing down.

Without thinking, the Prince reached out, his hand brushing against Dan-Bi’s. It was subtle—an accidental touch—but it was enough to spark something neither could ignore.

Dan-Bi’s breath caught, and for a brief moment, he wanted to pull away, to push the Prince out of his life before it went any further. But he couldn't.

Instead, he leaned in, his lips brushing against the Prince’s in a kiss that was soft at first. But then, the kiss deepened, and everything that had been left unsaid, everything that had been buried under the surface for so long, came to life in that one moment.

It wasn’t just a kiss; it was a declaration. Of something neither of them had been ready to admit, but something they both knew was inevitable.

UNHIDDEN BLOSSOM

Dan-Bi moved through the palace corridors, his thoughts occupied with the upcoming council meeting.

Jin-Seok had let him go too easily.

That should have been a relief—should have been.

And yet, something about it felt... wrong.

Still, there was no time to dwell.

A figure stood in the dimly lit hallway, waiting.

Dan-Bi immediately stepped back, but Jin-Seok was faster.

In one smooth motion, he seized Dan-Bi's wrist and pulled him into the nearest empty chamber, shutting the door behind them.

Dan-Bi yanked his arm free, his usual composure slipping slightly. "Your Highness—"

Jin-Seok stepped forward, and Dan-Bi instinctively stepped back—only to find himself against the wall.

Jin-Seok placed his hand beside Dan-Bi's head, caging him in.

"Tell me," Jin-Seok said quietly, his gaze sharp, intense. "If I were to strip away your carefully crafted mask, what would I find beneath it?"

Dan-Bi forced a smirk. "A scholar, nothing more."

Jin-Seok exhaled a short laugh. "A scholar?" His fingers brushed against Dan-Bi's collar, deliberately testing boundaries. "Then why do you flinch when I get too close?"

"Who are you, Dan-Bi?" he pressed, his voice barely above a whisper.

The distance between them was almost nonexistent now, the tension thick and suffocating.

Jin-Seok's eyes searched his, waiting, demanding—

And for the first time, Dan-Bi wondered…

Chapter Thirty-Six: No Escape