When Jaehyun sees her walking inside the library, he tries to catch up to her. He remembered yesterday he wasn't able to finish his tour for her around the university so he was meaning to do it today. He watches her as she takes a seat on an empty desk so he slowly walks up to her. "Patricia, how are you?"

She gets startled, looking up to face him. "Oh, Jaehyun, I'm good. How are you?"

"Should I finish the tour for you today?" He asks, smiling at her.

She hesitates for a moment, but she stands up. "Sure. Let's do that."

His smile doesn't leave his face as he starts to lead her the way out of the library. He begins the tour on that building, constantly stopping at the offices to let her know where to go in case she needs help with counselling or some other stuff. "And you already know the admissions office, right?"

She nods. "And the infirmary."

He squints at her. "Really? I don't think I've told you that yet."

"Oh, I just remember 'cause you took me there before," she shyly admits.

When they finally reach a different building, he shows her around the field and the gymnasium which were next to each other. "Do you like it here so far?" He asks her as they walk under the trellis.

"It's nice here, but I don't know anyone except you and my sister and-" she pauses, suddenly pointing at something, as if diverting his attention. "Is that a bridge?"

He looks towards the direction she's pointing and sees the bridge she's pertaining to. "Yes."

"That's so cool," she comments.

Just then, he receives a call from Antoine saying that the King was rushed to the hospital so he immediately turns to her with a sullen look. "Patricia, I'm so sorry again. But I need to leave you behind. Father was hospitalized."

"Oh no. Is he alright?" She asks in worry.

"I'm not sure yet. But will you be alright here?"

She nods at him. "Don't worry about me, Jaehyun. Your father needs you right now."

He flashes her a smile as a limo appears on the side. Before leaving, he waves goodbye at her and he can't help but feel sorry for having to leave her again.

****

When he and his brothers finally arrive at the palace, they find their mother already crying inside her room. Jaehyun follows Johnny as he reaches for their mother's hand and slowly bends his knee to meet her eyes. "Mother, we're here," Johnny speaks in a soft tone.

The queen lifts her face to look at him as well as her other two sons standing near them. "Thank you, my children." Her voice is soft and she's obviously trying not to break down infront of them.

"What happened to father?" Jaehyun asks this time. Seeing his mother in that condition pains his heart. No matter how strict their father is to them, he is still their father and he cares for him.

She holds her son's gaze then looks away. "He's in a critical condition. They said he needs a blood transfusion."

"We'll do it, mother," Jeno volunteers without any hesitation.

But she shakes her head. "You... might not be compatible with his blood."

Jaehyun squints in confusion. "I'm sure one of us is a match, mother."

The queen looks at them with a worried face. "There's something you need to know, my children."

Jaehyun holds his breath as if he's going to dive underwater. He has never seen his mother talk like this. It must be really something important.

"I..." their mother starts to speak. "I'm sorry for lying to you all these years."

"Whatever do you mean mother?" Johnny asks worriedly.

"I wasn't born a royalty. Your grandfather didn't like me. But Charles and I were in love." Her voice starts to break, gauging their reaction.

"Uncle Charles?" Jaehyun mumbles, not really knowing where this conversation is heading. They know Charles is their father's older brother but they didn't know that he was their mother's first love. What they also know is that he was supposed to be the King instead of their father but he died unexpectedly so the throne went to their father.

"When Charles and your grandfather died, Connor took me in and all three of you here in the palace. I still love your father very much, but I learned to love Connor as well so I hope you won't see him any less than a father. I know that his ways may seem too relentless sometimes, but that's only because he was looking out for you... just like how your real father would have."

None of them speaks after that. Jaehyun tries to soak in the information he just heard from his mother. If what he heard is true, then it explains a lot of things... why the King acted the way he acted towards them. But he always thought that maybe he was just being protective of them. Even so, their mother could've told this to them sooner so that they would have better understood everything.

****

Jaehyun wasn't able to sleep last night thinking about a lot of things. He knows his brothers probably didn't sleep as well. He tries to remember his childhood. He remembers their Uncle Charles visiting them and giving them presents, but they're all vague and he can only remember bits of it. Aside from the photos, he's just too convinced that Connor is their father. But it also explains why he sometimes sees his uncle in his dreams. "So he's our real father," he thinks to himself.

"Still thinking about our exam today, Your Highness?" Someone asks from behind, startling him.

He turns around to see his bestfriend with his art tools. Exam is the least of his worries even on normal days. "It's nothing," he answers, looking down at his book again.

"Something wrong?" Ten asks, catching on his friend's unusual aura.

"I just hadn't gotten enough sleep is all," he reasons out, looking at him and when he does, he sees Patricia stepping inside their room. His eyes involuntarily follows as she finds a seat. When he meets her eyes, he flashes her a small smile. She smiles back at him and she's about to walk over to him, but their teacher already enters the room so she sits down.

The whole lecture, Jaehyun tries to focus on the board. He rarely gets distracted but this time, his mind is just too preoccupied. He manages to get through their lessons for that period without getting caught spacing out. Before he knows it, it's lunch break so he lazily grabs his things and sees Ten already gesturing him to move faster.

Just then, he feels someone walking up to him. He doesn't want to assume but when he looks up, he sees Patricia already infront of him. "Jaehyun," she starts to speak. "How is your father?"

He didn't expect her to ask him that. He doesn't want to think that she's worried but her face indicates that she is. "He's... still critical."

"Your Highness, come on!" Ten calls him out from the door.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt you and your friend." She smiles at him, but before she can turn around, he stops her by the arm.

"Just go ahead, Ten. I'll be with Patricia," he tells to his friend and then he looks at her again, finally releasing his grip from her. "Sorry about that. I was hoping we can have lunch together?"

When she bobs her head, he feels so much better. They both went to the cafeteria only to find out that there's no more empty seats. "We can sit in the park," she suggests so they walk out of the cafeteria after grabbing some food.

He pretends not to watch her as she takes a bite of her sandwich. They're now sitting on the park which he won't normally do. Students usually offer their seats to him even if the cafeteria is full but he doesn't want Patricia to think that he's taking advantage of his status so he just lets her decide.

Thinking about it, being the park is much more peaceful than being in the cafeteria. His mind can freely wander off without being disturbed by other students.

"Jaehyun, are you alright?" She asks, catching him off guard. "It must be hard for you right now. I saw on the news you can't even see the King inside the hospital."

He nods. "I'm just hoping they're taking care of him well."

She flashes him a reassuring smile. "I'm sure they are." She continues to eat her sandwich again. "The food here is really good."

He lets out a chuckle, seeing how innocent she looks. "I'm glad you're enjoying your stay here."

"Thanks to you."

He presses his lips into a thin smile. Just then, he sees someone approaching them from a distance. He realizes that he is someone he knows. When he meets his eyes, the tension suddenly builds up. "Traze, can we talk?" Taeyong turns to the girl beside him.

She blinks at him, turning to Jaehyun. "I'm sorry. It won't take long."

"No it's alright. Take your time," he answers as he watches Taeyong hold her hand like it's the most natural thing to do.

He suddenly feels something churning inside him. He's not the type to give up. When he wants something, he strives hard to get it. But this time, he doesn't have the capacity to be thinking about going up against Taeyong. He's just contented that he can see Patricia happy, even if it's not because of him.