The shadow walked closer to the balcony door. You were about to scream –

-- Until the figure's full face came into view.

You grabbed your knees in relief and groaned.

Yoongi knocked on the glass of the door, smiling. Heart pounding from adrenaline, you shuffled over and opened it for him.

"Sorry," he said, shrugging. "Did I scare you?"

He let himself in. You punched him in the shoulder as he passed.

"You jerk! Did you just scale the castle wall to scare me like that?"

He flopped on the bed, chuckling. "I didn't do it for that reason, but it was a definite bonus."

"Why are you here?"

"I'm bored." he said. "Jimin's gone, so there's no drama to watch. Hoseok's gone, so there's no drama to create."

"So what do you want me to do about it?"

He sat up and looked at you, his eyes sparkling. "Play with me."

You froze.

"Let's sneak out and go to the festival." he continued. "Don't you want to get out of the castle?"

If he only knew half the things that were going on...

"I don't think that's a good idea." 

"I didn't ask if it was a good idea. I asked if you wanted to do it."

You stared at him. He was serious. It wasn't like you didn't want to get out. You did. You'd been stuck in the castle for weeks, dealing with drama all over the place. A night out? Just having fun? That sounded great.

"I shouldn't." you said.

He stood up and walked over to you."Which is exactly why it'll be fun. Come on. It'll be our secret."

Secret?

You stood still at the word. Secrets seemed to be everyone's favorite past time at the castle. Everyone had one. Except you. You were jerked around from every side, constantly trying to keep up with everyone around you. Something about it made you feel... powerless.

A secret to hold as your own? That sounded good. That sounded like something you could control.

"You interested?" Yoongi asked. "A night off. No princess lessons. No formal titles. Just [Y/N] for the night."

It would probably be the only chance you got.

You looked at him. "I'll get my jacket."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"When you asked how I felt about riding in the trunk, I thought you were joking."

Yoongi held up the trunk door, smirking. "Afraid not. They're not just going to let me walk out with you, you know. You're under tight surveillance."

"I am? It didn't feel like it."

He shrugged with one shoulder. "I know my way around those things."

Was that a good thing...?

"Come on," he said, clapping. "Inside."

You couldn't believe you were doing this. But you had to admit – it was kind of exciting. Better than all those stupid princess lessons.

You climbed inside. Yoongi closed the trunk, and everything went dark.

"You all right?" he asked.

You told him you were fine. In seconds, the car door slammed and the engine started. You drove slow for awhile, then stopped. Yoongi gave a casual greeting to the gatekeeper, and you heard the gate open.

The car sped up. Was he going to keep you in the trunk the entire time?

After a few minutes, the car pulled over and the trunk opened up. Yoongi's smiling face hovered over you.

"It worked." he said. "Come on out."

You jumped out and bounced into the passenger's seat.

He laughed. "You excited?"

"It's been a long time since I've done anything – you know – fun."

He started the car and took off again, leaning his free arm out the window. The wind blew through his hair as you drove.

"I take it you didn't have fun at Jimin's party?"

You frowned. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Oh oh oh. Sounds like something went wrong with Jungkook?"

"Both him and Jimin, actually."

"I told you to come to me when you got tired of him, remember?" he said. "Tsk. I'm insulted now."

Was he teasing you or being serious? You couldn't tell.

"Sorry, Yoongi. I'll come to you next time."

"No you won't," he said, taking your hand and interlacing his fingers in yours. "You'll come to me right now."

You started to pull away, but he squeezed your hand. He had such a firm yet warm grip – much like your father's when he held your hand to comfort you. 

You didn't pull away after that.

It wasn't long before you pulled into the parking lot for the festival. The air was heavy with the smell of popcorn and cotton candy; screams of delight heard not long after the rush of the roller coasters nearby. Game booths with blinking lights flooded your vision.

"What do you want to do first?" he asked.

You looked around. "Everything."

He laughed and grabbed your hand again. "Let's get started then."

You laced your fingers in his.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

You quickly learned two things: Yoongi was good at eating, and bad at games.

"Are you letting me win or are you actually this bad?" you asked, shooting your water gun at the puppets dashing across the cardboard mountain top.

"Less talking, more shooting." he said.

"If you're that anxious to lose!"

You jumped up and down as you were declared the winner – again.

"You know, I would think as a pianist you'd be good with your hands."

He grinned and leaned forward. "I am good with my hands." he said in a low voice. "Just at a different kind of game."

You could feel all your blood rush to your face.

He shoved his hands in his pocket and walked away. "Do you prefer pink or blue cotton candy?"

After buying you cotton candy, you started to lazily walk around the festival. It was so strange to think that in a few weeks all these people would know you as a princess. No one knew you now. It was kind of nice that way.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Yoongi asked.

You picked at your cotton candy. "My thoughts are worth their weight in gold."

"That explains why you walk around like they're so heavy."

You stopped. He turned to face you, shoving a piece of cotton candy in his mouth.

"Yoongi? Should I really do this princess thing?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's still weird to me." you said. "I think all little girls want to grow up to be princesses, but I kind of want to go back to just being [Y/N.]"

He shoved another piece of cotton candy in his mouth. "You'll always be [Y/N]." he said. "That doesn't change. Your responsibilities do. That being the case, I think you could do it."

"Really?"

"Of course. And I wouldn't mind seeing you kick Hoseok a couple more times while you're at it."

You laughed. "I'll keep that in mind."

He tossed his cotton candy stick in the trash, picking and licking the little tidbits off his fingers. "You can refuse the crown, you know."

You raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? And how do I do that?"

"The usual. Make a public announcement. Tell your dad to suck it. Marry a commoner. All the normal routes."

"Wait, what? Marry a commoner? What does that mean?"

"You didn't know?" he replied. "If a royal marries a non-royal, they have to renounce their station."

So if you married a non-royal, you couldn't be a princess anymore? Odd rule. Is that why your uncle ran a Taekwondo studio? Did he have to give up his title to marry your aunt?

You smiled. That was kind of cute.

Yoongi patted his back pockets. "Ah, crap. I think I left my wallet at the cotton candy stand. Hold up. I'll go get it."

He sprinted back towards the stand, leaving you to your questions.

Could you renounce your station? Did you want to? Did that mean not seeing any of the guys again? 

You could go back to how things were, back before you knew any of this existed.

Part of you wanted it. Part of you didn't.

What was the best choice?

A rough hand grabbed your arm from behind, interrupting your thoughts.

"Good to see you again, Princess." a low voice said from behind. "Only this time- you're not getting away."

You knew that voice.

It was the voice of the man who had threatened you at the castle.