𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 !? ♡ [BL]

⟢ 06 .

• ───────────────── •

The mess was cleaned up promptly.

"This isn't even the first time I've ch- ugh, nevermind..." Nikolai's smile was strained, and his fingers twitched subtly as if he wished to pinch the bridge of his nose in an exasperated manner. It struck you as strange, how you were able to recognize such an emotion on his features, yet you supposed it didn't really matter; his underlying wariness granted you some odd form of joy. "Ah, well..." He coughed into his fist. "As I was saying, new conditions!"

Oh, how exciting. Rather grossed out by yourself, you wiped the corner of your mouth with your shirt. Of course, it wasn't yours, but if you'd already thrown up on his luxuriant carpet, surely one linen shirt wouldn't be all that much in comparison?

Several maids bustled about, carrying mops and wipes, yet their heads were hurriedly cast downwards, and you failed to meet any of their gazes — work of Nikolai, no doubt. Poor things... You were in no position to pity them ( not that you'd ever in the first place ). One couldn't save someone from drowning if they themselves were also being swallowed by the watery depths.

Ah, that was a good line. You should write it down to use sometime later, if you ever got out of this damned place, that is.

The person behind your clear indignation spoke, catching your attention. "It'd be far too cruel of me to keep you cooped in this suffocating space all day-" he clicked his tongue, surveying the well-lit and generously sized space before him. Then again, he was a prince, second born or not — this luxury was something you'd never even considered affording. "Therefore, I've decided that you'll be with me instead, all day!"

His eyes blinked at you expectantly, bright and cheery, an expression that made dread pool into the pits of your stomach. "...Pardon, Your Highness?" You prayed that you'd heard wrong, but you knew that no god in the heavens smiled upon you.

"You." He pointed at you, and then gestured a thumb backward to himself, a grin beginning to flaunt itself on its lips. "Me."

"Ah..ahaha... and what exactly does that entail?" You forced out a response before your horror grew too evident to be constrained. Nikolai paused, moving as he would to say something, but instead closed his lips. When he opened them once more, he was already headed out the door, with his hand wrapped tightly around your wrist. Subconscious or not, his grip was firm, and a not-too-gracious discovery encompassing how easily Nikolai could snap your neck in two dawned upon you.

Fuck, had all your training been for nothing? The taste of dirt and blood still remained bitter in the back of your throat, and with every breath, you relived those haunting memories. I'm not going back. I've changed, I've-

But had you really? What made you so different from that weak child that many years ago, barely able to stand on his own wobbling legs and point his chipped blade at his opponent? To be hailed as one of the greatest... you'd let it get to your head. You bit your tongue without much thought, wanting to more so hurt yourself more than anything. It was pain that you deserved, hurt that, if your past self could see what you'd become, would want to inflict-

"Hey, what are you spacing out for? I can see it in your eyes, y'know," A voice, his voice, startled you, as if cold water had been splashed onto your face. A weight against your chest had been lifted, yet it still tingled. Nikolai's dark eyebrows were playfully furrowed, and he talked in a chiding manner. Raising a hand, he gave your forehead a swift flick. It was a dull pain, although more so nothing at all. When he tugged you forward, this time you complied, letting him urge you down the hallways and allowing your legs to trail after his.