Seonghwa took a deep breath before knocking on his sister's door. She had kept to herself for the past two days, which gave him and Wooyoung plenty of time to plan, but it also worried him. She had never been the type to get depressed.

He got no answer, so he pushed the door open slowly. She was laying on her bed, back to the door. Her beautiful, long hair was disheveled and tangled. He could see how thin she was too.

"Kita?" Seonghwa said softly as he walked to sit on the side of her bed. Her eyes were closed. He placed a hand on her shoulder and shook her gently. She let out a little moan and rubbed her eyes.

"Hwa?"

"Hey sleepy. How are you feeling?"

"Sleepy." Kita curled into a ball and closed her eyes again.

"Well I need you to get up and dressed. We have some important guests coming tonight and Father has requested your presence." He said, letting the lie fall from his lips.

"Do I have to? I really don't feel like seeing anyone." She mumbled into her arm.

Seonghwa bit his lip. "Kita, we haven't really seen you for over a week. Please?"

He heard her sigh, but then she pushed herself up into a sitting position. Now that he could get a full look at her face, his heart broke a little. Her eyes were puffy and red, there were also bags under them, and her cheeks were a little sunken.

"Kita..." He broke a thumb up to caress her cheek.

She avoided his gaze and make her way to her bathroom. Eventually he heard water running and realized she must be cleaning up, so he stood and walked to her closet to pick out a dress.

.

.

.

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Kita stood under the running water trying to enjoy the feeling. But as with everything else, she just felt numb.

Things were so different now. She had lost her baby. Why would Wooyoung want to be with her now? Sure, he had hardly left her side and still held her at night, but he never tried to talk to her about it. He never asked her if she was ok. Maybe he was just fulfilling his 'royal duties' now that her father had given permission for them to get married.

They hadn't even discussed a wedding or their future together. Not one word. Kita felt her heart break a little. Maybe he didn't want to stay with her anymore and he was just trying to find a way out.

She stood there for a moment as a new wave of tears came. Not only had she lost her baby, she was losing the love of her life...

Once she calmed herself down, she wrapped her hair in a towel and threw on a robe. She was surprised to see Seonghwa was still there, and Jongho had joined him. They were speaking silently but turned as soon as they heard her bathroom door open.

Her brother had a sad smile on his face but motioned for her to come sit in front of her mirror. She did, closing her eyes as he started working the towel slowly to dry her hair. He let his fingers massage her scalp. It was soothing.

Neither man spoke as they helped her get ready. Jongho took over her hair at one point, using a hand fan to help air dry it before he slowly worked it into her favorite braid. His touch was so gentle, it was as if he was afraid she would break if he used too mush pressure. Maybe she would

Seonghwa helped apply a light layer of makeup. She couldn't help but smile a little, remembering when he had first taught her how to use the fancy powders while their parents had been visiting another part of the kingdom. The few times she peeked at him, his face was either scrunched in concentration, or he had his tongue poking out from between his lips.

When everything was done, they turned their backs so she could slip into the maroon dress her brother had picked. She chewed on the inside of her cheek when Seonghwa helped to fasten the back of it, having to tighten it more than normal. It didn't quite fit right, but then again, she wasn't right these days...

The final touch was adding the opal pendant and the ring he had given her for her birthday. It seemed so long ago...

"You look beautiful." He said, placing his hands on her shoulders and looking at her in the mirror.

"Thank you, Hwa."

"Let's go." He held out his arm so he could lead her from the room. Jongho had a wide smile on his face when she turned to face him, and he nodded a little before following them out of the room.

Kita was surprised when they turned away from the dining hall, but she didn't question it. Maybe the visitors wanted to eat outside. She didn't care either way, she just wanted to get this over with so she could go back to bed.

But she couldn't help but gasp a little when they reached the gardens. Candles had been placed everywhere. Some of them appeared to be spelled by Yeosang as they were floating in the air. When soft music started playing, Seonghwa stopped and patted her hand.

"Go on. Just through there."

"Hwa, what's going on?" Kita looked up at him, then turned back to where Jongho was waiting by the door.

"Just trust me." Her brother said, kissing her forehead and leaving her there standing by herself.

Curiosity won over her desire for sleep, so she walked forward and peered around the first hedge. More candles floated above her head and standing in front of the rose bushes was Wooyoung.

Kita hesitated, not expecting him to be standing there alone. He was dressed in another military style jacket, black pants, and leather boots that came up to his calves. The smile that crossed his face when he saw her melted her heart for a moment, but then it leapt into her throat.

"Wooyoung?" She said, walking slowly over to him.

He held out a hand and she took it, looking up at him. She didn't understand. His eyes were filled with... Love. But how could he still love her after what had happened? There's no way this could be real.

"Hello, Kita." He said. His thumb stroked the back of her hand. "You look... Stunning. Breathtaking." His voice was gentle.

Kita looked at the ground, but he immediately placed a hand under her chin and lifted her head up.

"Kita, my love, please tell me what is going on?" His forehead creased a little with worry. "Are you not happy?"

Her stomach flipped.

"Is this about... the baby?" He kept a hand on her chin and tilted his head a little. She could feel the tears coming again. "Kita, I don't blame you for anything. It was an accident." He studied her for a moment, then continued as if he could read her thoughts. "I don't love you any less. I'm sorry if I haven't been good at showing that lately, I just haven't known what to say." He kissed her forehead.

"But I know what I want to say now." Wooyoung pulled her to a nearby bench and took both her hands in his as they sat down. "We have been through so much together, always under the impression that we would never get to live the life we wanted. I had accepted that I would never get to be with you, truly be with you, so just being in your presence when I visited here was enough. But that didn't stop me from falling in love with you. That love grew more and more each day. As I told you, you've bewitched me, and I never, ever, want to be apart from you again."

Kita felt her chest tightening at his words. Her lip trembled as tingles ran through her entire body. "I love you too, Wooyoung. I'm..."

He placed a finger on her lips. "Don't say it. It doesn't need to be said. But there is one thing that does." Wooyoung shifted from the bench so he was on one knee in front of her. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box.

Kita's eyes widened and she placed a hand over her mouth.

"Kita, my love, my life, my soulmate." He opened the box, revealing the most beautiful ring she had ever seen. "Will you spend the rest of your life with me? Marry me, Kita. Please, marry me."

Words failed her. Her chest felt like it was going to burst from happiness. He did still love her. He didn't hate her for losing their baby. He wanted to be with her. She had been so foolish, letting dark thoughts invade her mind.

She had managed to heal the worst person she had ever met, and yet she never had the power to heal herself. It was almost ironic. But she guessed that's what love was meant to do. Destroy all the personal demons that couldn't be healed on their own.

Unable to speak, she threw herself at him. He stood to catch her and held her close, kissing the top of her head.

"I still need an answer, Princess." He said with a teasing tone.

"Yes. Yes, Wooyoung. I will marry you."