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Long ago there lived two rulers of Daegu Kingdom. Park Jimin was loved by everyone, especially his lover, King Min Yoongi.
A person that ran an orphanage who caught the eye of the great king of Daegu was no ordinary person. Jimin had beauty and grace. He was light on his feet, and his gentleness warmed those he interacted with.
Jimin danced for his survival. It was all he had. His family barely got by with their run down school. The Park family ran a small school for orphans. The place housed and fed children from all ages. Jimin was an only child but he had many siblings that he raised.
“Oppa!” a young girl called out to her brother. “Taehyung-oppa is at the front looking for you!”
Jimin wiped his hands clean of the flour that he was working with for noodles. He looked out of the kitchen window and saw his best friend outside. He smiled widely and took off his apron, making his way to the front entrance.
“Tae!” he greeted. “Are you allowed to be here when the king needs you by his side?”
Taehyung shook his head. “No, the king is out of the castle today. Wanted to go sightseeing or something.”
Jimin had never met the king of his kingdom before, but he heard wild stories from his friend all the time whenever Taehyung came by to visit and catch up with him. One time the younger man told him about the time that the king singlehandedly took down a group of bandits that tried to steal from the treasury. The king made it out alive with a scar right down one of his eyes. The king was young, only eighteen then, but he showed everyone that no one would be spared if they ever came at him. The king had heads to hang on pikes to a show of that.
The king, Min Yoongi, was rarely seen by people outside the royal courts and his official people inside the palace. That being said, it was not uncommon to hear whispers and talks of the king in commoner’s clothes walking around the streets of the capital. Taehyung would always joke that the king could be outside walking around without anyone knowing it was him. The king knew how to blend in with the common people.
So when Jimin said his goodbyes to his friend who was worked in the royal court of Daegu, he found it strange that there was someone playing with some of the younger children of his school outside in the backyard. The man heard squeals at first, thinking of the worst, that someone must’ve happened to little Taeri. But when Jimin rushed out of the kitchen, abandoning his noodles, he was greeted with the sight of a man spinning Taeri around like the two knew each other.
“Taeri!” Jimin cried out. “Are you okay?”
The stranger put the little girl down and patted her head. Little Taei looked up to the man with a wide smile on her face, a look of familiarity and adoration. She hugged the person tightly and clung to his side.
“Jimin-oppa, this is my other oppa!” Taeri introduced Jimin to her other brother. “GiGi, this is my oppa who’s basically my appa. He takes care of me and makes the best noodles ever!”
The other man looked at Jimin, eyeing him up and down. Jimin flushed a little, knowing that he was being eyed at. The younger man did that same thing, looking at the mysterious man that happened to be in his yard playing with his little sister. At first glance, Jimin didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, but when his eyes landed on the eyes of the man in front of him (who was still checking him out), he gasped.
Jimin immediately dipped down into a deep bow, now his face flushed for a different reason.
“I am so sorry!” he said a little too loudly and shrilly. He bowed again, staying in that position until he was sure the king of Daegu let him get up.
A gentle and warm hand tapped his shoulder, possibly the signal that Jimin was okay to straighten back up. The man still looked down on the ground out of respect. Out of nowhere, Jimin heard a growl of a stomach sound, and he giggled. He immediately cupped his hands over his mouth.
Taeri laughed. “Oppa is hungry. Jimin-oppa is about to make supper right now. Maybe GiGi will join us?”
There was no way of refusing little Taeri when she made her puppy eyes, so the king smiled warmly and nodded. Jimin quickly dashed back into the kitchen to check if the water had boiled off before he could cook his noodles.
“Ah, the water,” Jimin cried.
The king held out his hand for Taeri to take as she led him to the dining table.
He was intrigued by Jimin’s whole being, whipped by the moment he landed his eyes on the young man. Jimin moved with the grace of the dancer, soft yet sure, fluid like calm waters on a spring day.
Min Yoongi knew his right hand man was always visiting someone in the city. Who and where exactly, he didn’t know. But he was bored of hearing about finances for the previous two hours, and he wanted to take a break. He told Taehyung that he wanted to take a break and walk around the outside with him.
So here he was, a little lost when he accidentally lost Taehyung and wandered off to someplace else. He saw a familiar face when he stumbled upon a rundown school.
It was-
“Oppa!” cried the little girl. She ran straight into his body, colliding into his legs.
“Taeri!” said the king. He returned the hug tightly.
He spun the girl around. It had been almost half a year since he saw her. Yoongi was saddened by the retirement of his cook. The man that used to make his meals retired recently, so Taeri and her father had to move out of the palace. Yoongi didn’t know where she and the former cook went after that, but he was really happy he found Taeri again.
Jimin placed a bowl of noodles with piping hot broth in front of the king first before serving Taeri. The man sat down with his hands clasped together as if he was anxiously waiting for approval as if the actual king of his kingdom was in front of him. Well, that was true. King Min Yoongi was literally in front of him, eating the food he had just made.
Yongi spooned some of the soup into his mouth, the delicate and simple taste of fresh chicken used as the base of the broth danced across his tongue. He hummed in approval, picking up his chopsticks to try the noodles. The noodles were thin, just like how his cook used to make them for him specifically. The king smiled as he chewed, the feeling of familiarity and warmth coursing through his body.
Jimin let out a sigh of relief. He passed the test he didn’t know he was taking. He continued to watch the two eat, occasionally glancing out the window of the kitchen. The gentle breeze was lovely as it was spring again.
When the two diners finished the last strand of noodles and the last drop of broth, Jimin cleared the tables and washed the dishes.
“Taeri, why don’t you play outside with your oppa while I clean up?” Jimin suggested to his sister by the basin.
The girl tugged the king’s hand as she made her way to the backyard again.
It eventually became a habit for Yoongi to come and visit Jimin and Taeri once every few weeks. Every single time, Jimin would serve the two something delicious. Every single time, Jimin would sit with his hands clasped together with a small smile on his face as he watched the king and little Taeri dig into his food happily.
After a few more visits, Yoongi realized that he was eating Jimin’s portion of the food. He frowned deeply when he figured that out. He needed to confront Jimin about this. He could no longer in his good conscience continue to eat the man’s food since it meant that Jimin would be without a meal. He asked Taeri if Jimin would skip meals. The little girl looked sad as she explained that the orphanage had some money but not enough to feed everybody. Jimin would reluctantly take offerings from Taehyung once in a blue moon when they really had no money to tide them over the end of the month when taxes were due.
The king began taking a closer look at the state of the building they Jimin and the rest of the children were living in. The walls were cracked, and the place was small, barely enough to house the other four children let alone just Jimin and Taeri.
Yoongi knew that for a handworking person like Jimin, he would not like the idea of taking money from the king. He realized that it would come off like he thought the other man was a charity case, and that would most likely ruin the slow but budding friendship between the king and Jimin.
So one day when Yoongi was dozing off in the backyard of the orphanage, he was woken up lightly by the soft sounds of shuffling by him. He opened his eyes to the sight of Jimin moving gracefully. The king realized that the younger man was dancing. There didn’t need to be music to accompany Jimin. The man was moving perfectly without it. He watched the back of Jimin from the tree shade, taking in the beauty of the man as his arm was brought forward and back swiftly.
The kind breeze of the early summer lulled the king back to sleep, but he knew that he had to do something.
Taehyung came in from the front entrance as usual, but this time, he had a scroll in his hand and an offering from the king.
“No way,” said Jimin.
The king had offered a position as a royal entertainer in his personal chamber. It would be more than enough to cover the cost of much needed maintenance for their old and crumbling residence, but that would mean leaving Taeri and the others behind. He had no one left but the orphanage. Jimin was also disappointed in the offer.
Had their friendship meant nothing to the king? An entertainer for the king personally? What was he, a courtesan that was used for nothing more than one-of pleasure?
Jimin had started to feel more than what he was feeling at the beginning of his relationship with the king. The man’s warm smiles after finishing one of Jimin’s meals and his soft relaxed expression free of worry and stress whenever the king would fall asleep in his backyard; that was everything to Jimin.
But it would seem like the king had mistaken their friendship for something that was more fleeting. It must’ve meant nothing to him.
Jimin told Taehyung to tell the king that he wanted nothing to do with the man ever again and sent his friend back to the palace.
That night, Jimin couldn’t sleep even with little Taeri beside him fast asleep snoring.
When the righthand man returned to the chambers of the king, he bore the news of rejection. Yoongi was confused. Didn’t Jimin not want to make more money, and did he not want to be a dancer? He saw the way Jimin moved, like a majestic being. The king was sure that Jimin would take up on the offer, hopeful that he’d understand that that was the only way he could help his situation.
Yoongi wanted to run to Jimin as quickly as possible to clear things up, but he was suddenly swamped with the peace offering from a neighboring kingdom. The ruler wanted to shake hands with Daegu and join their army so the incoming war that the kingdom had caused would end in less damage. Yoongi didn’t want to join forces with them, but he knew that it might help ease some tensions in the east with the allyship. He sighed and rubbed his temples with his thoughts deep entrenched in Jimin and Jimin only.
It was raining hard that day, but he didn’t care.
Yoongi heard the news that an orphanage had burned down overnight on the south side of the city. Immediately, the king’s mind went straight to Jimin’s place. He shrugged on his shawl and dashed out of his palace.
When he arrived, he saw Taeri hugging Jimin tightly while the man kept saying that he would find a way to rebuild the place.
“Jimin!” cried the king, running up to the pair. “Are you okay?”
The dancer wiped his tears and nodded. “We made it out in one piece. The school, not so much.”
Jimin laughed, putting on a brave face in front of the children and the king. ‘It’ll be alright.”
Min Yoongi was pissed. How could a situation that was clearly not okay be okay for Jimin. He could see that the man was shaken and stressed. God, what else was Jimin also shouldering? Yoongi was fed up with the bravery that the dancer wore. He had enough.
He took Jimin’s shaking hands into his own and shook Jimin. “It’s okay to not be okay, Jimin!”
Yoongi watched as Jimin’s expression shifted into anger.
“You have no right to talk to me like you know everything,” Jimin said coldly. “You think that throwing money around and using me whenever you like it is okay?”
The king didn’t know what Jimin was talking about. He would never use him like that. He also wasn’t listening to the words that currently came out of the man’s mouth. Yoongi knew Jimin was angry, and it was raining hard all of a sudden, but Yoongi’s eyes were trained on the other man’s mouth. His mind was trained on the thought that he wanted Jimin.
Jimin Jimin Jimin!
“Are you even fucking listening to me?” Jimin asked, even more angry than he previous was a moment ago.
The dancer was about to shove the king away and walk away with his siblings when Yoongi snapped back into reality. He knew he was going to lose Jimin that very moment, so he did the only thing he knew to do that moment to convey his feelings and emotions to the other man.
Jimin was suddenly pulled into a tight hug. The warmth coming from Yoongi helped ease the stiffness in his body and somehow clear his mind of worry for the time being.
“Let go of me, Yoongi,” Jimin ordered as he sobbed.
This only made the king tighten his hug.
“Just let me help you, Jimin-ah,” Yoongi said softly into the crook of the younger man’s neck. “Just let me.”
Jimin slowly wrapped his arms around Yoongi and nodded.
King Min Yoongi declared that he would financially assist any orphanages that were in need of help. Jimin was glad that there would be state-sponsored orphanages. He would have a part in helping others run their own place. It had been a month since his school had burned down, and the land was reused to build another place for children without family.
Jimin was visiting the palace, currently talking to Taehyung when he was interrupted by a chough. It was the king. Taehyung excused himself, saying that he had to look after the soldiers. That left Jimin along with Yoongi for the first time in weeks. The king cleared his throat again, awkwardly shuffling his feet back and forth.
“Did you need something, Yoongi?” Jimin asked, curious as to why the king was acting so strange.
Yoongi lifted his head up and stared into the other man’s eyes and declared strongly. “I want you to cook for me?”
Jimin blinked once, blinked twice, and three times.
“So you’re hungry?” he asked, still just as confused. “Do you want the noodles I always make?”
Yoongi made a strange noise, and peddled back. “I would like you to be my cook!”
The younger of the two didn't know what the king wanted. “Don’t you have a cook already?”
The king growled at his incompetence of not being able to fully convey his thoughts and feelings properly to the man he liked. He stepped into Jimin’s space, their bodies not even a foot apart.
“Park Jimin,” Yoongi said.
“Min Yoongi,” Jimin responded.
“I like you,” the king finally said out loud. “I want you to cook for me today, tomorrow, forever.”
The dancer took a second to process what had just come out of the man’s mouth.
“Are you proposing to me?” Jimin asked.
Now it was Yoongi’s turn to take in words. He flushed at his mistake. He put on a fake glare with a blush on his face that was apparent and said, “Is that how you act in front of your king?”
Jimin laughed.
“Come here, you tough guy,” he said as he pulled Yoongi in for a kiss on the cheek.
The king closed his eyes and relished the feeling of being loved.
***
Years later...
Through the hustle and bustle of the busy streets of Daegu, a beautiful man was seen admiring some flowers on sale at the city bazaar. It was a lovely day, spring had come early that year, and everyone was outside taking in the weather.
No one was looking for trouble, but a trio of government officials from a neighboring kingdom was wandering the streets with shifty eyes. One man fanned himself with a look of menace on his face. He elbowed his fellow men and pointed at the man that was chatting with the stall owner about purchasing a bunch of peonies. The other two men nodded and followed their leader as they trailed behind the unsuspecting young man into a less busier street. The trio snickered as they cornered the man into a shaded alley.
“Pretty boy, why don’t you play with us?” asked the leader. “We’ll show you a good time.”
The other two men laughed ugly. “Hyuk, yeah! We’ll get you all dirty!”
The man glared at the three men in front of him. “You wouldn’t like getting involved with me.”
The leader scoffed and made his advances onto the poor man. To the three idiots, they didn’t know that no one was allowed to touch the beauty of Daegu. The other king of the kingdom was beloved by everyone. The people thought their kingdom would never find a person by his side seeing as the coldness of their king could freeze hell over twice. However, the trio from the nearby kingdom didn’t know who the other king was. News hadn’t traveled fast enough to their place regarding the wedding of Min Yoongi and Park Jimin.
“C’mon, little whore,” said the second man of the group. “You don’t needa play hard to get when you look like you do this all the time.”
“Hyuk, yeah!” the third said. “With looks like yours, you must be a consort.”
The leader grabbed the young man’s shoulders and started to pull down the robe he was wearing. The victim of harassment yelped, struggling to pull his clothes back into place.
It was then the leader froze, face pale, body starting to shake.
“What’s wrong?” ask the two men.
The leader backed up slowly, his knees already weak from the terror that coursed through his body. His back bumped into someone behind him.
“He’s.... He’s-” the leader stuttered out.
The other two men looked at their leader in confusion, not understanding why he was so scared all of a sudden until someone coughed behind them.
“Ahem.”
The trio turned one-eighty and was met with a man dressed in a black robe lined with gold. Down the newcomer's eye was a scar.
Realization dawned on the other two government officials. It was-
“Yoongi!” cried Jimin.
Jimin gathered himself and ran to his lover. Immediately, Yoongi wrapped an arm around him.
“What’s going on here, love?” the king asked, cold eyes glaring at the three dummies. “It looks like trouble has found you today.”
Jimin leaned against his spouse and fake sniffled. “They thought I was a consort!”
Immediately, the trio took a step back and realized that trouble had found them. There was no way to get out of this situation in one piece.
“Your-your highness, we didn’t know he was yours,” stammered out the third man. “Thast man came to us!”
The king raised a brow, doubting the words from that guy. Yoongi knew that Jimin was devoted to him and him only. There was no reason for him to go elsewhere. They loved each other deeply.
Jimin cried loudly without tears. “They wanted to do this and that to me!”
He wailed loudly, causing the crowd of people to gather around the group of men.
“That guy wanted to spank me!” Jimin continued one, pointing a finger at the leader.
The man stiffened, body rigid from fear. “No! That’s not true!”
Then Jimin sobbed even louder. “That other guy said he was gonna make me bleed!”
“Yoongiii, they were so mean to me!” the other king cried. He wrapped his arm around his husband tightly while smirking at the trio.
Yoongi drew his sword from his holster, pointing it directly at the leader. He took a step forward and let the tip of his blade touch the tip of the man’s Adam's apple. The cowering man gulped in fear. He was done for.
Swift as a hawk, the king raised his weapon to the side and swung it across the leader’s face. Strands of grey hair fell. All that was left were the two other men running past the two kings with their ego bruised and tails tucked between their legs. They had abandoned their leader.
The cold king stepped onto the man’s hand as the man had fallen to the ground in total shock. Yoongi ground his foot down on his hand.
“Now where were we?” the king asked with amusement in his words. “You said you wanted to have a fun time?”
There lived two great kings in Daegu Kingdom.
Min Yoongi was, to outsiders, cold and calculated, but his people knew that was nothing like that. They say the soft looks he’d exchange with his lover. It was devotion and compassion between the two.
Currently, they were alone in their own chambers enjoying each other’s company.
“Mmhm, Yoongi...” Jimin sighed as his lover licked his neck. Everything felt right when he was with him.
Yoongi pivoted his attention to Jimin’s rosy lips, kissing him deeply. His right hand moved to caress the strong thighs of his husband. He squeezed them lightly.
Jimin wrapped his arm around Yoongi’s shoulders, bringing the man down with him onto the bed. He obliged willingly and started working on undoing the black and gold robes of the other king. Once the two of them were completely naked saved for their undergarments, the two exchanged heated looks. On all levels, physically and mentally, they wanted each other so much. On days like this, the two lovers would lock their doors to their chambers for the night, not wanting to be interrupted by anyone or anything.
“I love you, Park Jimin,” Yoongi said softly with so much love in his words.
Jimin smiled and mouthed back the words. He knew he was safe right there in their shared bed. Anywhere in Min Yoongi’s arms was safe.
So forever they were. Side by side for eternity.