Twisted Games(Ryeji ver)

YEJI[CHAPTER 13]

THE NEXT FEW WEEKS WERE MISERABLE, NOT ONLY BECAUSE I WAS
sick and healing from my injuries, but because the lull in my
public schedule gave me plenty of time to freak out about
Sakura's abdication.

I was going to be queen. Maybe not tomorrow or a month
from now, but one day, and one day was far too soon.
I lifted my wineglass to my lips and stared up at the night
sky. It was three weeks to the day since my conversation
with Sakura.

My concussion had healed, and I’d long since recovered
from my cold. I still had to be careful with my wrist, but
otherwise, I was up and running again, which meant I had to
attend meeting after meeting about how and when to
announce the abdication, how to handle the fallout, plans for
my permanent move back to Eldorra, and a million other
things that made my head spin.

That morning, my family, Beomgyu, and I agreed on an
official announcement a month from now. Or rather,
everyone else agreed, and I went along with it because I
didn’t have a choice.

One month. One more month of freedom, and that was it.
I was about to take another drink when the door to the
rooftop creaked open. I straightened, my mouth falling open
when I saw Ryujin step outside. Judging by the way her
eyebrows shot up, she was as surprised to see me as I was
her.

“What are you doing here?” we asked at the same time.
I huffed out a small laugh. “Ms. Shin, this is my house.
I should be the only one asking that question.”

“I didn’t think anyone came out here.” She took the seat
next to me, and I tried not to notice how good she smelled,
like soap and something indescribably Ryujin. Clean, simple,
masculine.

We were on the rooftop of one of the palace’s north
towers, which could only be accessed via the service hallway
near the kitchen. Compared to the palace’s actual, terraced
rooftop garden, it was nothing, barely big enough for the
chairs I’d bribed a staff member to help me bring up. But
that was why I liked it. It was my secret haven, the place I
escaped to when I needed to think and be away from prying
eyes.

I drained the rest of my wine and reached for the bottle at
my feet, only to realize it was empty. I rarely drank so much,
but I needed something to ease the anxiety following me
around like a black cloud these days.

“Just me. Most people don’t know about this place,” I
said. “How did you find it?”

“I find everything.” Ryujin smirked when I scrunched my
nose at her arrogance. “I have the palace blueprints,
princess. I know every nook and cranny of this place. It’s my—”

“Job,” I finished. “I know. You don’t have to keep saying
it.”
She’d said the same thing in Dr. Hausen’s office. I wasn’t
sure why it annoyed me so much. Maybe because, for a
second, I could’ve sworn her worry for me went beyond her
professional obligations. And maybe, for a second, I could’ve
sworn I wanted it to. I wanted her to care about me as me,
not as her client.

Ryujin's lips quirked before her gaze traveled to my
forehead. “How’s the bruise?”

“Fading, thank the Lord.” It was now a pale yellowish
green. Still unsightly, but better than the glaring purple it
used to be. “And it doesn’t hurt so much anymore.”

“Good.” She brushed her fingers gently over the bruise,
and my breath stuttered. Ryujin never touched me unless she
had to, but at that moment, she didn’t have to. Which meant
she wanted to. “You gotta be more careful, princess.”

“You’ve said that already.”

“I’ll keep saying it until you get it in your head.”

“Trust me. It’s in my head. How can it not be when you
keep nagging me?”
Despite my grumbles, I found a strange comfort in her
nagging. In a world where everything else was changing,
Ryujin remained wonderfully, unrelentingly her, and I never
wanted that to change.