cinderella!au

*

this gif is so pretty

i cri

[why does jae's head look so smol,lolXD]

feat.fairy!brian... uwu

ps. i kept cringing and nearly laughing/crying at the same time while writing and revising, i felt like i was going to have a seizure at any moment, rip

***

park jaehyung — the unfortunate soul with no biological parents, the poor guy whose dad had died a week after being sucked into a marriage to a cruel woman with two equally cruel daughters, the bespectacled boy currently scrubbing at the floor of his step-mother's white-tile floors with a soap-laden toothbrush.

"my life is good," he muttered under his breath as he brought his aching arm into a ring of spirals, harshly dancing the spuddy toothbrush over the floor. "my life is great." he huffed out some long breaths as he shifted to the next section of tile and re-wet his toothbrush in the soapy bucket beside him. "i have a roof over my head. and clothes. and food and water," he tried to convince himself. "it could be worse than this..."

just then, a loud knock reverberated from the door, causing the antsy boy to jump up into the air. his elbow collided with the bucket, which made it tip over, the foamy water spilling all over the floor he had just cleaned. the poor boy muttered a quick curse and hurriedly ran to the supply closet that sat tucked into a hidden corner under the stairwell. he grabbed a pile of clean towels he always had stashed beside the door just in case and sprinted back to the huge puddle of water. luckily, his stepmother had not heard the knock and was not yet there to open the door and witness the spill. jae slipped on the splatters of water strewn across the room and heavily landed on his ass. a yelp of pain immediately issued from between his wide lips, but he simply righted his crooked glasses and scampered over to the mess on all fours, scrubbing at the wetness with his dry towels. just as the water began to soak up into the fluffy towels, a louder knock sounded from behind the door, startling jae into a jolt which unevenly passed through his aching arms and spine and shoulders and tailbone. the brisk footsteps echoing down the grand staircase brought a surge of panic into the boy's finicky mind, his movements becoming even more frantic. his stepmother soon stepped beside him, her elegant hands balanced on her corset-tightened waist. "park — why did you not open the door?! and did i not tell you to scrub with a toothbrush?!?!!" she angrily hissed, thin eyebrows quirked and eyes glinting sharply.

"greatest apologies, sae-eomma-nim. i spilled the bucket when i went to open the door and did not want the guest to slip on the floor." jae bit his tongue immediately, knowing he had said too much.

"in the closet. now!" his stepmother fumed, her sharp facial features clearly accenting her rage. jae dipped his head in a hasty bow and sloppily gathered up the towels and bucket before scampering up and tripping over to the supply closet. he felt a hand harshly hit the back of his head, the slap bringing vicious daggers to pierce his eye sockets, before darkness enveloped him, accented further by the slamming of the door.

he had been locked in.

jae slumped onto the floor, nearly hitting his back on the shelf neatly stacked with cleaning supplies in the process. he rubbed at the back of his head with a hiss, shifting to sit more comfortably on his aching butt. the boy's ears immediately perked up as he heard the front door swing open, a muffled yet steady voice following it. "jukiyo, excuse me. my name is park sung jin, and i am a member of the imperial guard." there was the sound of a rustling dress in what the brunette guessed was a bow from his stepmother. jae pressed his ear to the supply closet door and opened his mouth as if that would help him listen in better. 

"i am kang yuyi, head of the kang family. please, do come in, sungjin-ssi."

"i apologize in advance, but i cannot." jae heard some clanks as if the sungjin person was shuffling his feet with his medallions swinging and softly clanging against each other. "i came here to invite you and your family to the ball celebrating the coronation of the new princess. it will be taking place a month from now at the royal palace. please bring these with you for admittance." there was a sudden rustling of paper.

"by god," jae just barely heard his stepmother breathe out before: "ah, sungjin-ssi, you said there is a new princess?"

"yes. junhyuk-jeoha (crown prince) wedded a few months ago. the wedding took place in the princess's kingdom, but the news was spread throughout all the surrounding kingdoms. sorry, but were you away? beyond the country borders, i mean."

"actually... i was having a wedding of my own. we had it in america," yuyi laughed out, and, judging by the rustling of her dress, bowed once more.

"oh. well, congratulations," sungjin said with a twinge of discomfort. "back to the ball... the king would very much appreciate it if your family joined him in celebrating the official arrival of the princess to her new home. hopefully i will see you once more, this time along with the rest of your family members." jae thought he sounded pretty hopeful that would NOT happen...

"i and my daughters will gladly attend! it will be an honor to gaze at the new princess." then she added, "and the princes..."

"ah, well, do you not have a husband and a step-son? we supplied scrolls for them as well."

jae's heart clenched in his chest as his step-mom answered thus: "they're dead."

"oh, i'm so sorry."

"don't be. goodbye, sungjin-ssi!" and the sound of the door shutting covered the noise of hurt that left jae's throat. a tear rolled down his cheek and he shriveled into himself so as to keep his emotions all wrapped up in a heap on the floor of the supply closet. then angry footsteps approached the small room and jae held his shaky breath.

*

a month passed of jae dutifully fulfilling the tedious work his stepmother forced him to do. he washed, he scrubbed, he dusted. he cleaned, he cooked, he ran. he hurt, he sighed, he moved on. and his one consolation was the ball, the ball he hoped to swipe a scroll for.

so, in his free time (which he had VERY little of), jae found himself sewing a suit for himself so he would actually be presentable for once. he also saved up enough money from giving quick guitar lessons to the rich kids at the market to buy himself some fancy loafers. it was hard, but he did it. and his final look was pretty far from his usual shabby clothing, which was enough to keep jae's excitement from wilting. even when he stayed up too long one night and nearly fell into the fireplace while stoking it the next day.

*

it was the day of the ball. jae knew that yuyi-sae-eomma always took naps before events. that's when he planned to swipe his invitation. 

when he was sure his stepmother was asleep, jae snuck into her room. he softly tiptoed to her makeup desk and pulled out the drawer in which the scrolls lay. and then he looked in, using the faint light in the room coming from between the drawn curtains to guide his fingers to the rolled-up parchment.

just as his fingers slid over one of the invitations, the door to the bedroom burst open, the made-up and dressed-up kang daughters parading in. "eomma! eomma!! wake up! it's time to go!!!"

jae froze, then felt two sets of eyes burning into his back. he guiltily slid his hand out of the drawer. just as his mind counted out the number of scrolls (THREE, not FIVE), he felt hot tears rise up behind his eyelids. She must have burned them, jae bitterly thought to himself. She wants everyone to think I'm dead! Just like Dad is...

"eomma!!!! jae's stealing our invitations!!!!!!!" the younger daughter screeched, pointing an accusatory finger at the frightened boy.

jae's eyes finally filled with the tears that had been dying to fall to his cheeks, and he began to sob. "please... i wasn't going to steal yours! i just wanted to take my own, sae-eomma, i just wanted my own scroll! i would never take yours or noonas'! please believe me... jebal, i beg you!" 

his stepmother disregarded his statement, sitting up in her bed in a frenzy. jae flinched. "you good for nothing dog!" she yelled, frightening him even more with the vicious look on her face. "how dare you dig around in my drawer?!!"

"you'll pay for upsetting my eomma before the ball!!" the older daughter yelled. she leaped up to jae, her sister at her heels, and they began to tear at the clothing jae had spent so many sleepless nights stitching. his sobs grew fainter and fainter as his step-sisters tore his efforts to shreds, stomped on his delicate loafers, scratched at his face and his neck, and swiped his glasses to break them in half. his eyes kept spewing tears as he silently accepted his fate, no longer trying to cover himself with his hands or get away from the attacks.

the assaults abruptly ended when his stepmother called out that their carriage had arrived, and the stepsisters hurriedly ran to the front door to go to the exciting and magical ball jae only wished he could take part in. kang-sae-eomma confidently strode toward him, her chin up high and the clink of her heels sharp against the tile floor of her room. jae flinched away from her, his breaths coming in sporadic bursts. once the woman grasped the three scrolls and stashed them in her lavish purse, she stepped close to him and sneered, "if you dare defy me again, i will lock you in the closet forever. nae?"

jae could only bring himself to nod, snot and tears mixing together in the dent of his chin. his stepmother contentedly stepped back and briskly left the room, the swish of her dress sending a chill over jae's body at her exit. her heels clinked down the stairs, and then the abrupt slam of the door echoed up to the room.

and that's when jae broke down for real.

he fell to the floor, biting at his lip harshly before letting loose a scream of dejection and pain. he hadn't succeeded. all his efforts had been for nothing. HE WAS A FAILURE.

jae's eyes pricked from all the furious tears rushing down them and his cheeks burned from the painful holes the streamlets seemed to sear into his irritated red skin. he gulped for air as it became more and more difficult to breathe, his fingers looping dreadfully into the corners of his mouth and traveling over to swab at his eyes and going back and forth, back and forth. the rhythmic repetition of this action seemed to help the brunette ease the tears and the cries and the gulps for air after some time, but he still felt as if his heart was broken. he was a mess.

the fragile boy gathered up his broken glasses in an attempt to assure himself somehow, slipping the halves over his face and somehow managing to balance the disjointed bridge over the crook of his nose. his hiccups began to fade and he carefully stood up from his curled up position, shoulders slumping as a small wave of dizziness hit him.

a flash suddenly filled the room. jae, on instinct, shielded his eyes, but the flash disappeared just as it came. and then a faint blue and violet glow emitted from the place where the intense flare had just been and spread all over the room. the brunette cautiously brought his hand away from his eyes, his lenses -- still slightly blurred from all the tears -- soon detecting a humanoid form floating in the middle of the room.

"hello, hyung!" a purple-pink-blue-haired dude wearing a cloak floated in front of jae, veiled in the faint blue-purple light, which, now that jae thought about it, seemed to be coming from under his cloak around his back area. "i'm bri— young k, you fairy god-daddy!!"

jae gave the stranger one more look and immediately drew back, dragging his sleeve under his nose to self-consciously wipe away some snot. "no,no,no. get away from me, creepy stalker dude. and how the hell are you my dad if i'm older than you, man?!"

"i said god-daddy, not dad," the stranger retorted in an annoyed tone, massaging his glabella. "now, if you would bring me a cabbage, some sweet potatoes, and that plant you call bob, i can totally get you to that ball you wanted to go to..."

jae suspiciously eyed the floating guy and asked, "and how will you do that, exactly?" he used his other sleeve to dab at his eyes, allowing it to soak up the tears lining his face.

"i have my ways," the so-called young k murmured, a smirk settling on his lips. "i'm so glad i finally have someone to protect, honestly; this kang family i have to guard for all eternity is so annoyingly well-off that i've never had the chance to do something nice for it. which is pretty pathetic, since other fairies underestimate me because of my eternal young age and say i'm a good for nothing-- aaaanyway... now that you're here..." the fairy smiled to himself and floated a bit closer to jae. "i can help you make a new name for this family. even though it will be the 'park' bloodline, now... actually, that WILL be its new name. wow, good job, me!"

jae felt a soft smile grace his lips and he nodded. "good job, god-dad-bro."

"yeah-- no. just brian should do." the ageless fairy who was somehow younger than him chuckled and spread his arms. "now come here and let me give you a quick hug before i make you fetch stuff i need."

jae, badly craving physical contact after his soul-breaking encounter, felt his eyes well up once more and gladly wrapped his arms around the fairy. his broken glasses fell off at some point while he was doing this, but it didn't matter. his eyes were too blurry from tears for him to be able to see anything, anyway. brian let him cry into his shoulder and even patted his back in a soothing way. the brunette was too busy crying to notice the scratches vanishing from his face and his neck and his arms and everywhere else his stepsisters' nails had messed up as his god-father worked his magic. 

soon enough, brian pulled away, holding onto jae's shoulders and looking him over with delight. "good, good. hmm... actually, let's get you ready first. we can get the things you'll need for travel later."

"i can't see anything, brian... where are my glasses?" he felt brian bring his hands to his cheeks and then the sensation of thumbs brushing away his tears and soothing his irritated skin appeared.

"oh, shush, you." after the fairy was done cleaning jae's face, he flung off his cloak and wrapped it over the boy's shoulders. he flicked it with his dexterous fingers and it immediately transformed into a white-coloured noble's garb, complete with its own golden epaulets on the shoulders and a violet sash. jae could now see everything around him as clear as day. he grabbed at the bridge of his nose when he realized the usual weight on it was not there; indeed, his glasses were nowhere to be found. "how... how can i see without my glasses?! i can't possibly function without them!!" jae gasped out, all in a panic.

"ah, you'll survive. that's what contacts are for." brian waved his hand in a dismissive way and fluttered his wings, visible and shimmering now that there was no cloak to cover them. "besides... i had to give you some sort of disguise, and sometimes taking something obvious away does just the trick." he smiled at the awestruck boy and gave him a pat on the cheek. "and now for your shoes..." he looked down at jae's destroyed loafers and sighed. "aish... such high quality shoes... and such high quality damage..." he tsk-ed and waved his finger at them. the shoes immediately took on a velvety purple shade, their shape turning from a matted one into an elegant, stylish form. "there. easily destroyed, and easily fixed."

"thank you," jae breathed out, inspecting the new shoes on his feet from all sides. the intricate white designs on their flaps and their soles made his mouth curve up into a smile. 

brian proudly shrugged his shoulders while his wings fluttered as mesmerizingly as ever. "eh, it's no problem. now, please get me those sweet potatoes, cabbage, and bob, and i'll make you a ride to the palace."

"you're the best, brian-appa!" jae gave the fairy a quick hug and then excitedly ran off to get the stuff he needed. 

brian watched him with amusement, shaking his head and fondly smiling. "he really is just a sad kid looking for some happiness, isn't he?.."

*

"here you go!" jae carefully set down the things he was carrying and sat beside them on the floor.

"thank you, hyung." brian swept his hand over the vegetables and potted plant and they disappeared.

"hey!! where'd bob go! noooo, i loved hiiiim!!!"

"don't worry, he's outside. now i'll tell you some rules before i let you go. so listen carefully."

jae was still pouting because of bob's sudden vanishing, but he nevertheless nodded. "i'm listening."

brian brought out a pocket watch and handed it to jae. "remember how i transformed everything in front of you? well... when midnight comes, everything will go back to normal. so consider that your curfew unless you want to carry bob all the way home... barefoot... in rags."

jae nodded, feeling pretty intimidated. "okay. i got you. be home before midnight; that shouldn't be so hard..."

"i'd hope not." brian watched as jae looked at the time on the watch. it read six in the evening. "it takes an hour to get there by carriage, so aim for eleven at the latest, okay?"

jae nodded, still looking at the watch. 6:01. "okay."

"i set a buzzer on the watch so you know when it turns eleven."

"thank you, brian."

"you're welcome. now go have fun. if you need anything, don't try crying again or anything like that. you won't be able to reach me until after midnight."

jae's head flicked up and he sadly gazed at brian. "but... but we just met. you're leaving already?"

young k landed in front of him, revealing that he was slightly shorter in stature despite seeming taller when floating. he walked up to jae and hugged him, patting his back and slipping a scroll into the purple sash stretched over his chest. "my dear god-son... you know what, screw that. it feels weird saying that. anyway, jae... you wouldn't want me there to ruin your fun. and i know that for sure. now go to the ball and have a good time! but also keep track of your curfew." he stepped back and wagged a finger at the older boy, who gave him an excited smile. "make me proud."

"i will." jae waved a goodbye in return to brian's gentle wave and then the fairy disappeared with a brilliant glow and a rapid fluttering of his wings. the brunette stumbled to the door through the darkness and stepped outside, where his new carriage-man, obviously bob, was seated atop his cabbage-shaped carriage drawn by three sweet potato-coloured horses.

*

jae arrived at the palace an hour later. he carefully stepped out of his carriage, bob offering  assistance by giving him a hand covered in leaf tattoos. jae smiled at him in thanks and watched as the carriage man winked at him and drove away to make way for the next guests to arrive.

the brunette took a steadying breath and carefully strode up the countless marble steps leading to the palace doors. when he finally reached the entryway, a guard stood before him, wearing a smile. "hello!" jae immediately recognized the steady voice. Sungjin... "welcome to the princess's welcoming ball! may i please see your invitation scroll?"

"uhm... of course!" jae reached into his sash and pulled out the scroll. he handed it to sungjin with shaking fingers and a nervous dip of his head. 

the imperial guard quickly looked it over and handed it back to him with a grin. "thank you. have a wonderful time, park jae hyung." he stretched out an arm to beckon jae to enter, and the older boy sent him a bow of gratitude before clumsily stumbling into the palace. 

his eyes immediately grew wide in awe. "o-- wow..." he gasped out, his eyes flying anywhere and everywhere. there were so many people, so many glimmering decorations, so many beautiful places for his pupils to rest. and, suddenly, jae was tripping over a dent in the red velvet carpet and falling into somebody's arms. "a-ahhh!! sorry!!!" he wailed out, scrambling to get away from the person he just crashed onto with his eyes shut in fear of being hit or, worse -- kicked out.

a warm chuckle met his ears, surprising the boy enough to lift his eyelids open. "oh, it's no problem. i should have fixed that dent ages ago, but my brother kept pestering me to help him say hi to people. he's a REALLY shy boy, ahaha,"  the brunette in front of him spoke in a voice sweet like clementines. then the boy held out his hand with an extremely wide smile and continued, "my name is won pil. what's yours?"

jae shyly wrapped his fingers around wonpil's and gave a small shake and bow. "i'm jae hyung."

"ahh! that's such a wonderful name!" a bubbly laugh erupted from the shorter boy's throat, and jae's heart skipped a beat. more like ten hundred beats. "how old are you?"

"seventeen," jae timidly announced. he noticed that wonpil had not yet made a move to let go of his hand. not that he was complaining...

"oh! i'm fifteen... that means you're my hyung!!" wonpil cheerfully jumped closer to jae, which startled the older boy a bit. "take care of me tonight, would you? no one's paying attention to me because my brother's got a new wife and the party's for her. i'm really happy for eunji-noona, but it's kind of depressing just walking around with your dongsaeng, all bored and stuff, while he tries to hide behind a column every time he sees someone cute even if he really wants to say hi to them.which is literally almost EVERYONE." wonpil's pout made way for a chuckle, and he pulled jae closer to him by the hand he was still holding. "so. will you?"

"will i what?" jae whispered out, gulping. 

"take care of me tonight?"

"uhm..."

"want me to introduce you to my hyung?" wonpil asked, already ahead of jae's thoughts, which were still on the prior question.

"uh, sure." 

wonpil excitedly switched hands so he could more comfortably drag jae with him while he looked for his older brother. they weaved through a bunch of people until wonpil's eyes lit up with success and he turned to jae. "there he is!" jae looked where the younger boy was pointing and noticed a handsome man sitting at the table beside a beautiful woman. both were wearing crowns atop their heads. "junhyukie-hyung!! hyung!" and then it hit jae right in the face. he was being dragged around by the crown prince's younger brother. who was also a prince. who was way beyond his league... and yet, who had chosen him. HIM, out of all people...

fuck.

jae, still stumped beyond belief, allowed wonpil to drag him to the smiling prince. "hello there, wonpil-ah. who's this handsome boy beside you?"

jae gulped and bowed deeply to junhyuk, then eunji, then wonpil. wonpil looked at him with his head tilted at an awkward angle and asked, "ah... jaehyung-hyung? are you alright?"

jae bowed deeply once again to no one in particular and murmured out, "junhyuk-jeoha, eunji-mama... please accept my apologies for intruding. and thank you for introducing me, wonpil-daegam."

wonpil stayed still for a few seconds before bursting into obnoxiously loud laughter, his mouth widening considerably. jae stared at the ground as the prince grabbed onto his shoulder, tears pricking at his eyes from how hard he was laughing. junhyuk chuckled along, shaking his head. "please... do look up, jaehyung-ssi." jae's eyes slowly rose to meet the crown prince's, and junhyuk sent him a warm smile. "if you act so tense around wonpil-ah, he'll burst from either discomfort or laughter. treat him as a friend, not a prince, okay? he's a lonely boy, and i have a wife to take care of, so everything rests on you."

"we're all family around here, so drop the formalities and tell him things to his face if you need to," eunji jumped in, a playful grin on her face at finally being able to speak to someone casually instead of formally. "and if you become uncomfortable with something he does, don't keep it to yourself or he'll just keep doing it."

"i'll try," jae breathed out in disbelief, a giddy grin flitting onto his features. then he remembered that he was a polite kid. "congratulations on your marriage, by the way. i'm so happy for both of you!"

"thank you!" eunji said, while junhyuk lovingly intertwined their fingers. "now, please... take care of my little brother, will you?"

jae nodded and smiled, and then wonpil was dragging him away after a swift yell of "bye hyung, bye noona!"

*

they talked and munched all night. every time jae's plate was empty, wonpil snuck new snacks and foods onto it. every time he wanted to add something in or talk about something but was too shy to, wonpil urged him to speak.  and jae was reveling in all the care and positive attention he was receiving for once.

hours passed and jae felt so much closer to the prince. suddenly, the conductor of the orchestra stood up and announced, "and now, the moment you have all been waiting for: the dance of the crown prince and the crown princess consort!" and the instruments joined in a beautiful melody as the main people of the night strode onto the dance floor hand in hand.

jae, whose eyes were glued to the prince and princess, felt wonpil tug at his sash, and he leaned down a little bit so the younger boy could whisper in his ear. "jaehyungie-hyung... let's dance."

"no way! i want to watch the most important dance of the night!!"

"but i've seen them dance together millions of times! please dance with me..." wonpil turned jae to face him and pleaded with his facial expressions, pouting and making puppy dog eyes and lowering his eyebrows. "jebal, jebal, jeb--"

jae cut him off before he could melt into a puddle of gushiness. "fine! i'll dance with you."

"YYAYYY!! the moon is so pretty tonight! let's go outside onto the balcony."

"...okay." jae allowed wonpil to take his hand and drag him outside to the balcony, which was (not so) strangely devoid of people. the older boy figured it was because the dance was going on on the ballroom floor, and everyone was gathering to watch the crown prince and princess dance together.

wonpil led him to the middle of the balcony and placed a hand on his waist while the other kept gripping jae's hand. "hyung," he said, when jae just stared at him blankly, his hand hanging limply by his side. "do you not know how to dance?" embarrassed, jae shook his head and looked away. "ah, that's okay! at least you're honest unlike sungjin-hyung..." jae gradually turned his head back to face wonpil so he could look down at the boy. "so the first thing you do is straighten your back." jae did as he was told, earning a happy nod from the prince. "then you put your hand either on my waist or on my shoulder." the brunette slowly lifted his hand to wonpil's shoulder, lightly holding it there while the music softly drifted over to them from the ballroom. "perfect. and now... follow me." the prince smiled and began to take slow yet fluid steps, making sure that jae could follow after him without tripping. "there! now we're waltzing!!" the younger boy excitedly exclaimed once he and jae formed a rhythm, swaying along to the calming harmony of the music. "it's just magical, isn't it?"

and then jae's mind ticked. 

shit.

"magical... yes." he agreed, not wanting to leave, yet also not wanting to let brian down. or have to walk all the way home barefoot while carrying bob the potted plant in his weary arms. "what time is it, pillie?"

"i don't know." wonpil brought jae closer and rested his head on the older boy's shoulder, closing his eyes. "i like you. if you have to leave... please at least wait for the dance to end. jebal, hyung..."

jae nuzzled his face into the prince's soft hair, the golden circlet hiding in it brushing his lips as he whispered out, "i like you too, wonpil-ah..."

and right as the music faded away into the night, circling around the moon and getting sucked into the dark abyss of space, the pocket watch began to buzz and heat up, and jae dashed off. just as he ran into the ballroom, one of his loafers slipped off his foot, but he didn't even notice. he couldn't be later than a minute, or he would be in some pretty deep shit. 

and wonpil watched him go, sad eyes trailing after the tall boy springing down the steps of the palace toward a cabbage shaped carriage drawn by sweet potato-coloured horses and guided by a plant-man named bob. and as soon as the carriage blinked out of sight in the darkness, the prince brought his eyes to the velvety purple shoe with white lace designs that was resting in his palms, sighing with a weird feeling of nostalgia.

*

"we have to find him."

wonpil was pacing around his room, clearly unsettled. his younger brother, dowoon, was sitting on his bed, following his pacing form with worried eyes. a month had passed since the ball took place, and the brunette still had only one thing on his mind. more accurately -- one person.

"come one, hyung," dowoon finally spoke out. "we don't even know his family name! sungjin doesn't remember it, even though he read it out on a manuscript a few times..."

"no, but we have his shoe. and his name."

dowoon sighed in defeat. "why do you want to find this jaehyung hyung so much?"

"i like him," wonpil spoke out, as if it was perfectly obvious.

"you like everyone, though," the confused boy said.

"but he's special," wonpil murmured out, stopping in his tracks. "he likes me, too, dowoonie."

and then sungjin burst into the room, a loud groan exiting his lips. "wonpil-ah..." he dragged out, a stern gaze on his face from having been called up by wonpil's request bell that was connected to his post. "this is the tenth time you've called me into your room today. you have to stop acting like a spoiled brat... because you're NOT! if you're going to tell me that we have to find jaehyung one more time, i will tell junhyuk-hyung that you were the one who glued the keys of his piano together!"

"tell him, then! but we HAVE to find jaehyungie-hyung! we absolutely HAVE to!!" wonpil pleaded.

sungjin and dowoon looked at each other, completely at a loss for what to do. and then it occurred to the youngest prince. "you have his shoe, right?"

wonpil nodded, hugging the shoe to his chest.

"why don't we go to the homes of the families we invited to the ball who have sons and ask around until we find one of them with the shoes?"

wonpil's face lit up and he jumped over to his younger brother, hitting him with a killer hug. "you're a genius, dowoonie!!"

sungjin smiled, pulling the brunette away from the black-haired boy before he could suffocate. "that's all good and well, wonpil-ah... but you're the one who's going to help me look for any jae hyungs among the families. nae?"

"of course, hyung!" and the prince immediately sprang up and dragged the poor guard out of the room, ready to go to lengths to find the boy he liked so much.

*

jae was weeding the garden, sweat dripping from his brow onto the lenses of his taped together, cracked glasses and blood sliding down his busted knees into the wrinkles of his ripped pants. 

that particular day, his stepmother entered his room while he was inspecting the loafer he hadn't lost at the palace. in an act of fury, she had confiscated the shoe and had forced him to do one impossibly gruesome task after another, making him run around all day. but it's not like he wasn't used to it or anything... 

"i miss your smile, wonpil-ah," he murmured, closing his eyes for a second and smiling as an image of the prince's gorgeous grin lit up in his mind. but then his groping fingers clutched a particularly vicious thorn and he was pulled out of his daydream with a yelp. the brunette brought his bloody finger to his mouth, sucking on it in a frantic attempt to get it to stop leaking red. realizing that this would not work, he ripped off a piece of fabric from his loose rag of a shirt and tied it around his throbbing finger, then continued to pull out weeds. "i just wish i could see you again..."

*

sungjin and wonpil now stood before the last house on their list. the list had been surprisingly long, considering their lack of a surname. they had asked around at least six households with no luck. and this last house was a bit weird, according to sungjin. "the head of the household told me that both her husband and her stepson have passed, but there are no records detailing the boy's death... only the man's. also, the boy's name is park jae hyung. it might just be him."

"it HAS to be him."

sungjin knocked on the door. within a minute, it opened, and sungjin caught sight of the woman who caused unpleasant shivers to travel down his spine for some reason. "hello, yuyi-nim. may i please speak to your son?"

"sorry, i don't have a son," yuyi made to close the door. but suddenly, sungjin caught sight of a brown-haired boy slumping into the house from the back entrance, grime and dirt and blood evident on his body and clothing. he was tall and lean and shaped like the boy who he now recalled as park jaehyung.

sungjin held his hand on the door, gesturing for wonpil to come up beside him. the brunette's eyes widened at the sight of the boy, but sungjin signaled him to stay silent and hide behind him with his free hand. "excuse me, kang-nim... but i have direct orders from the prince to inspect all houses where there are or once were sons."

the woman gave him a look of disbelief, but nevertheless let him in. sungjin's iconic voice had caught the attention of jae, and the boy immediately scurried away, presumably to his room, not wanting to anger his stepmom. sungjin flicked his hand behind him to show wonpil that he should step beside him. yuyi ignored the other boy. "is there something in particular you are looking for, sungjin-ssi?"

"yes, actually." sungjin placed his hands behind his back and quizzically looked over at the woman standing before him with her hands authoritatively set on her hips. "we're looking for a loafer just like this." and the guard produced jae's shoe from out of his bag. the woman's eyes grew wide in recognition. "if you can give it to us, there will be a reward."

"and what exactly IS this reward?" yuyi asked, hungrily eyeing the shoe.

"you'll have to give us the shoe to find out."

the woman seemed to contemplate her options for a few moments before turning on her heel and clanking up the stairs. wonpil had kept his mouth set in a tight line this whole time, fearing that he would blurt out something that would prevent them from getting jae out of this horrible place he seemed to be stuck in. the prince desperately wanted to rescue jae... and if that meant having to listen to this terrible woman speak, he would do it a hundred times over.

but now, while the cruel lady was out of sight, sungjin ushered wonpil to go. "find him. now," the guard whispered.

wonpil seriously nodded, sprinting off in the direction jae went. he ran under the staircase, and there was a little door, cut off from the rest of the world. he cautiously opened it, seeing a tall figure huddling in the corner, shivering in both fright and coldness. wonpil softly gasped and ran over to the boy, covering his shaking body with a warm hug. "jaehyungie-hyung! it really is you!!!"

jae's eyes grew wide in disbelief and happiness, and he turned around in wonpil's arms to look at the boy holding him. "wonpil-ah..." he breathed out, then buried his nose in the crook of the brunette's neck, holding him close.

wonpil let out a long breath of relief, pulling the older boy closer to himself. "i couldn't stop thinking about you for a minute! life is so colourless without you, hyung!! you have no idea how annoyed i was!"

"you're wrong. i was the same way."

they heard footsteps coming down the stairs, and jae ushered wonpil to be quiet. the brunette fell silent, but refused to let his hyung go. they sat there, wonpil offering jae his warmth, while listening to sungjin speak to jae's stepmother.

"here is the shoe you were looking for."

"thank you, yuyi-nim."

"and my reward is?.."

"your reward... you will be free of your step-son."

"excuse me?!" the raised voice of his stepmother, even coming from so far away, caused jae to flinch, and wonpil soothingly rubbed his back.

"we will be taking your step-son."

"he's DEAD!! what do you not understand about this?!!"

"oh, but he's not dead, kang-nim. wonpil-daegam, come on out."

wonpil and jae stood up, jae leaning his frail form on the younger boy. his blood loss was starting to get to him, especially since he had been rushing around the whole day. the two boys walked out from under the stairwell, and yuyi's eyes lit up with a furious glare. "how DARE you betray me, jaehyung?! how can you do this to your own stepmother?!!"

"you're NOT my stepmother," jae spat despite his weak state. "and i have NEVER betrayed anybody."

and while sungjin took the shoes and gave a last bow to the fuming head of the kang family, wonpil helped jae out of the house and into the carriage so they could leave to the peace of the castle.

*

the boys were finally in the palace, now all cleaned up and refreshed. jae held the shoes in his hands, inspecting them, wonpil doing the same beside him. the younger boy's head lay on jae's shoulder, and jae happily snuggled into his warmth. "what do you think will happen if i put them on?" he suddenly questioned.

"dunno," wonpil lazily answered.

"lemme try." the brunette slid the shoes onto his feet and they instantly transformed back into their broken state before brian fixed them for him. and then a bright light appeared in the center of wonpil's room and jae's face lit up with a smile at the realization of what was going on. the prince, on the other hand, was utterly perplexed.

"brian!" jae called out with joy as soon at he caught sight of the boy, wrapping his fairy godfather in a hug. "where have you been?!"

"i was stuck in the fairy world because you couldn't get the shoes back together," brian told him with a chuckle, also holding the boy in a hug. "now let me go and introduce me to your prince charming."

"stop saying cliche shit like that," jae whispered, feigning anger. but he nevertheless pulled back. "this is wonpil-ah. he's a prince, just like you said. and this here is my fairy god-dad, young k. but you should call him brian-hyung."

"hi, brian-hyung," wonpil cheerily said, holding out his hand for the fairy to shake despite being confused as hell.

"nice to meet you, wonpil-ah. i've been looking forward to seeing you all along."

"you mean you knew that i would meet wonpil from the start?" jae questioned, earning a shrug and smirk from his god-father. "thanks for everything, brian..." he murmured, hugging wonpil's side closer to himself as he looked at the fairy truly earnestly.

young k ruffled his wings and gave them a satisfied smile. "what can i say... fairies always save the day!"

***

sorry the ending is crappy as always... and the middle... and the beginning... and everything in general...