Twisted Games(Ryeji ver)

YEJI[CHAPTER 11]

RYUJIN AND I DIDN'T TALK AGAIN ON THE PLANE, BUT SHE'D TAKEN MY
mind off my grandfather's situation enough I crashed after
she left. I hadn't slept a wink the night before, and I was out
like a light for most of the flight.

When we landed, though, all my nerves came rushing
back, and it was all I could do not to snap at the driver to go
faster as we sped through downtown toward the hospital.
Every second we spent at a red light felt like a second I was
losing with my grandfather.

What if I missed seeing him alive by a minute, or two, or
three?
A wave of lightheadedness hit me, and I had to close my
eyes and force myself to take deep breaths so I didn't drown
beneath my anxiety.

When we finally arrived at the hospital, we found Beomgyu,
my grandfather's Private Secretary and right-hand man,
waiting for us by the secret entrance they used for high-
profile patients. I'd spotted the crush of reporters outside
the main entrance from the car, and the sight made my
anxiety triple.
"His Majesty is fine," Beomgyu said when he saw me. He
looked more disheveled than usual, which in Beomgyu's world
meant one of his hairs was out of place and there was a
small, barely noticeable crease in his shirt. "He woke up just
before I came down."

"Oh, thank God." I breathed a sigh of relief. If my
grandfather was awake, things couldn't be too bad. Right?
We took the elevator to my grandfather's private suite,
where I found Sakura pacing the hall outside with a frown.

"He kicked me out," she said by way of explanation. "He
said I was hovering too much." I cracked a smile.

"Typical." If there was one thing Kim Sunoo III hated, it was being fussed over.

"Yeah." Sakura let out a half-resigned, half-relieved
laugh before she swept me into a hug. "It's good to see you,
Yej." We didn't see or talk to each other often. We lived
different lives-Sakura as crown princess in Eldorra, me as a
princess trying her best to pretend she wasn't one in the U.S.
-but nothing bonded two people like a shared tragedy.

Then again, if that were true, we should be thick as
thieves since our parents' deaths. But things hadn't quite
worked out that way.

"It's good to see you too." I squeezed her tight before
greeting her girlfriend. "Hi, Chaeyeon."

"Hi." She gave me a quick hug, her face warm with
sympathy.

Chaeyeon was an Korean flight attendant Sakura met
during a flight to the U.S. They'd been dating for two years,
and their relationship had generated a media firestorm when
it first came to light. A princess dating a commoner? Tabloid
heaven. Coverage had died down since then, partly because
Sakura and Chaeyeon kept their relationship under such tight
wraps, but their pairing was still very much gossiped about
in Athenberg society.

Perhaps that was why I felt such pressure to date
someone "appropriate." I didn't want to disappoint my
grandfather, too. He'd warmed up to Chaeyeon, but he'd had a
conniption when he first found out about her.

"He's waiting for you inside." Sakura flashed a lopsided
grin. "Just don't hover or he'll kick you out too." I managed a laugh.

"I'll keep that in mind."

"I'll wait here," Ryujin said. She usually insisted on
following me everywhere, but she seemed to know I needed
alone time with my grandfather. I gave her a grateful smile
before I stepped into the hospital room.

Sunoo was, as promised, awake and sitting up in bed, but
the sight of him in a hospital gown and hooked up to
machines brought back an onslaught of memories.