"Did you see the leaked photos?" 

Judging from Dayeong's surprised face at those words, Eric guessed that she had not seen them. He hadn't even known they'd been taken until a few minutes ago when Hyunjae showed them to him. 

The pictures weren't bad or anything, it was just him and Dayeong in the garden. It showed them holding hands too, which naturally everyone was talking about. 

The pictures weren't anything bad, but he was still annoyed. 

Because someone had invaded their privacy. 

They were at the palace, a place where he should have control over what was sent out and what wasn't. All pictures of them taken on palace grounds had to get his and Dayeong's, and then his parent's, approval before being sent out. 

So who had done this? 

Eric held Hyunjae's phone out to Dayeong and she took it in her hands, looking through the pictures. For a while, she just stared at the pictures in shock, and he could see thousands of emotions swimming in her eyes. 

She looked at him, and he understood. He couldn't explain how, but he sensed that he knew exactly what her panicked eyes were trying to tell him. 

She felt violated. So did he. There they were, in their pajamas, barefoot on the grass. There they were, in a vulnerable moment, and now the public was seeing. It was hard for him. And for her, who tried so hard to keep her life as private as possible, it would be hard too. 

She handed the phone back to him and shook her head wordlessly, taking a step back as if to create distance between herself and the pictures. She stepped back until she crashed into Juyeon's chest, and he put a hand on her shoulder, steadying her. 

"Can we... Can we take them down?" she finally asked. 

Eric shook his head sadly. "Hyunjae already asked my parents," he said, sharing an annoyed glance with his guard. "They said these are good. It shows us holding hands... It shows us connecting. Everyone thinks we're madly in love, and my parents love it," he sighed. "Sorry Dayeong," he said, looking at her apologetically. 

"I look awful in those pictures," she mumbled. "My parents are going to hate it." 

As if on cue, her phone rang, and she took it out of her dress pocket, looking at the number miserably for a moment before pressing decline. Eric watched as she closed her eyes, taking a breath before opening them again and smiling at him. It was almost concerning to see how good she was at acting. 

"Okay, we're in our new room," she said, looking around. "Now what?" 

"I don't know...?" he admitted, trailing off as he looked around. "Are there any secret escape routes?" he asked, looking at Hyunjae and Juyeon. "So that we can each go back to our own rooms in the middle of the night?" 

Dayeong laughed, bumping her shoulder against his. "You read my mind." 

"I'm pretty sure you just have to approve it," Juyeon said. "Or request changes, if you want." 

"I have a request," Eric said quickly. 

"What is it?" Juyeon sighed, looking at Eric knowingly. 

"Not being forced to stay here." 

Juyeon just glared at him. 

"Okay..." Eric said after a moment. "What about separate beds?" he asked. 

"I doubt your parents would agree to that," Hyunjae admitted. "I think the point is for them to make you two get... closer." 

Eric and Dayeong shared a disgusted look. 

"Parents of the year award definitely goes to them," Eric said in annoyance, and Dayeong nodded in agreement. "Anyway, I guess I can just sleep on the sofa if we're really forced to stay here." 

"We can alternate," Dayeong said, shaking her head at him. "It's not fair for you to be uncomfortable all the time." 

"But you're the guest." 

"So then listen to what I want," she shot back, raising an eyebrow at him. Eric laughed, nodding and giving it. 

"It's a deal," he said, raising his hand for a high five. She complied. "I can still try to talk my parents out of it, though."

"I wouldn't bother," she sighed. "I doubt they'll budge on it. Let's just try to make the most out of the situation for now." 

He nodded. "Okay. It's a new week so... when should we go on our weekly date?" 

Dayeong smirked at him at the word 'date', since their dates weren't real dates at all. Not when their talks consisted of how furious they were with their parents, not when they only held hands when the cameras were around, not when they both knew they weren't in love with each other. 

"Maybe later in the week?" she suggested. "After forcing us into this room together, I don't think your parents should expect any more from us for today."