"Wasn't the Princess supposed to meet you today?" Chanmi finally asked, tracing circles in Eric's palm.  

"She was," he replied, putting his head on her shoulder as he stared out the window, watching the moon. "But I think she got sick. I'll be meeting her tomorrow morning instead. Juyeon met her already though, didn't he? Did he say anything? I'm planning on being completely honest with her... not about us, of course. But about having no interest in marrying her. Does she seem like the kind of girl who'd make things more difficult? Did Juyeon say anything?" 

She shook her head, interlacing their fingers. "He didn't say anything. I heard that as soon as his shift ended he ran to the gardens, though I have no idea why." 

"The gardens?" Eric mumbled, his voice thoughtful. "I wonder why he went there? We should go there," he sighed, sitting up and looking at her. "I'll pick you a bouquet of flowers," he told her, his eyes playful. "What kind of flowers do you like?"

"I think this is a very bad plan," she said, laughing. She chose to ignore his question, fearing that she'd be hopeful about receiving flowers, and then end up disappointed. "Going for a walk in the gardens together, and then receiving a bouquet of the exact flowers you pick? Yeah, not suspicious at all," she teased, making him laugh too. 

Though they were both laughing, she could see the worry in his eyes, and she knew his thoughts kept going back to the Princess he was expected to marry. 

She was also worried. Worried that he wouldn't be able to stop the marriage. Worried that they might get caught. But most of all... she was worried about the Princess. What if Eric ended up falling in love with her? 

She hated these types of thoughts. They preyed on all her insecurities. They told her she wasn't smart enough, pretty enough, good enough, for a Prince. But she also hated those thoughts because it showed herself what a lack of trust she had in Eric. 

Shouldn't she trust his love? Shouldn't she trust his promises? 

She wanted to, she really did. But she was also terrified. Terrified that if she gave him her whole heart, he'd end up breaking it. Whether it be on purpose or because of things he couldn't control, she was afraid he'd break her heart. 

"Should I tell you what I found out the other day?" Eric asked, his voice light. She could tell his smile was kind of forced but pretended not to notice. 

"What did you find out?" she asked, this time leaning her head on his shoulder. He took his hand out of hers and instead threw his arms across her shoulders, pulling her closer to his side. 

"I think Hyunjae is planning on proposing to Yerin soon," he said, sounding more excited as he said that. His voice also held a tint of sadness though, knowing it was something the two of them couldn't have. 

"Really?" she said, looking up at him. "How'd you find this out?" 

"I was talking to Hyunjae," he said, a beautiful smile gracing his lips.

"What, are you friends now or something?" she teased, grinning up at him. "Why'd he tell you something so personal?" 

"I think we are kind of friends, actually," he said, leaning down to kiss her forehead. The action set off butterflies in her stomach and never failed to bring a blush to her cheeks. "Why? Are you jealous I'm making more friends other than you?" he asked, winking at her playfully. 

"Not jealous, but happy," she told him sincerely. "I hope you can make a lot of friends here. Actually, you know what I noticed since you got here?" she asked.

"What?" 

"The Palace is a lot less cold and scary now that you're here," she said, cuddling against his side. "You bring a lot of warmth to the Palace, Eric."