The Bracelet

Chapter Eighteen

The D-Day came and the palace was busy, with three major things hanging on everyone's neck. The Queen Dowager's Birthday, the Solnal aka New Year Celebration, the Ming Dynasty's Ambassador arrival, and probably, the Queen's delivery date that was getting closer.

The palace was filled with people, fixing and preparing the items for the festival that would kick off in a few minutes; music scholars, dancers, drama groups, gisengs, swords dancers and the list goes on. The space in front of the palace was chosen for this celebration for it was a spacious space like a battleground.

The maids were the busiest, each one had a singular or dual task at hand at the Queen Dowager's residence, where her hair and clothes were been fixed and decorated with jewelry, and gifts from different dignitaries were carried in at this same time.

The Queen who was lavishly beautified along with the princess made her way to the venue, while the King, on the other hand, was been dressed and prepared. Everybody who was invited into the palace was ready and coming out from their residence to the palace under the light of the moon that shone on their pathways.

When the King's preparation was thorough and every eunuch and maid had left, his face began to show the state of his heart, sad, worried, and lonely. The investigation had to halt for this celebration to take place grandly according to tradition.

He misses her smile, her face, her being, her presence, and was still going nuts just thinking she was snatched under his nose. His heart yearned for her every night, with the pond now being his consolation camp, where he could reminiscence, her lips, her breath, the heat that radiated from her body, he wanted her no, he needed her back.

These nights she would appear in his dreams, caressing his face telling him she still misses and needs him. Some nights, she would kiss him and bathe with him in the pond and he would wake up feeling like she just left his chambers.

He had to stop every visible investigation including that of the General to please his Grandmother but allowed Young Pil to secretly continue where the General stopped. So all he has to do is wait for Young Pil's findings,

"Patience, Seon Jo, Patience." He advised himself before he brightened his face, raised his head high, and left his quarter for the venue; for all this people have come to see a King, not a sad man.

Somewhere deep in the mountains...

"You're awake..." he murmured to the sleepy head in front of him,

He just talked to me? "Hmm?! " I could pretend for a living, I responded like I didn't hear him, so he would say it again, but he didn't.

"Nothing..." he whispered and shook his head making me wait in vain.

"Oh, Good morning Yeong Su. "I beamed with my brightest smile that earned silence from him.

"I'll be out today. There's food already, you know your way around so don't wander away, remember to be home before sundown. " he turned to leave but halted and looked at me,

"For yesterday... Thank you. " he scratched his head and looked away, shyly which was surprising, for the fact that he told me to wander but not too far and I should be home before sunset, is he supposed to do that to... a hostage?? I internally laughed like a maniac but externally just smiled.

"It's the least I can do for everything you've done and I mean everything," I said as I drew closer to him holding his hands with that smile I knew always made them bend over and when sure it was working, I hugged him.

"Don't be late, I'll be waiting for you "I assured.

Not knowing what extent her words have gone... This man she looked at, had no one 'alive' to wait for or waiting for him and she had unintentionally given him that.