Aera's pov

" I don't care, mother! why don't you all just go to hell and let me take my own decisions!!! It is my life!"
I screamed at my mother and left the room. I ran to my room and slammed the door. burying my face in the pillow I cried while lying on my bed.

I am Kim Aera, the princess of Daegu. many think that being a princess is great and a very happy, easy life. That is the funniest thing I have ever heard. being a princess means being constantly followed by guards, having to follow a million rules and etiquette. they literally dictate your life. from what you should wear to whom you are allowed to talk to.

so, I was lying on my bed sobbing my heart out when I heard the door opening. 
" I do not wish to talk to anyone right now!" I said sternly without looking at her.

"Not even me?" I recognised the voice. I looked up and gave a small smile looking at the person. 

It was Jeon Hyungie. He is a person in the palace. I don't know what his relation is to this palace or why my halmeoni is so close to him. he stays with us and so should be considered in the royal family. but somehow, he never attends any functions as the royal family and is kind of an outcast. he doesn't recognise himself as a royal.. Anyway, he is my best friend and the only one who understands me in this palace. I tell all my feelings and experiences to him and he listens to everything without getting bored. 

he closed the door and came and sat on the bed next to me. running his hands through my locks, he asked, "What happened, cupcake?"

I looked at him while sniffing. he gave a sweet smile and wrapped his arms around me, taking me in his embrace. I cried my heart out in his embrace while he whispered sweet nothings in my ears. his embrace always felt so motherly. he was a parent figure for me. my own parents were always busy being the king and queen. they were too busy maintaining their reputations and looking after the kingdom to give me affection. I got that parental affection from Jeon Hyungie.

"Mother forbade me from seeing hoseok ever again. and they have arranged my marriage with someone else." I quietly whispered to Hyungie. 

Hoseok is the caretaker of my horse, Eclipse. hoseok is a happy soul who doesn't know how to get sad. he is the sunshine in my life. and also the love of my life. between taking care of Eclipse and teaching me to ride him, I and hoseok fell in love with each other.  

eclipse is a majestic black horse gifted to me by Hyungie. He is very special to both me and Hyungie. Anyway, my mother had found out that I was in love with hoseok who was a commoner and not a royal and so she decided to marry me off. 

"Don't worry, cupcake. we will do something. I'll help you get married to hoseok. you don't have to marry anyone you don't want to. I am with you. I'll tell hoseok to meet you and then you all can plan." hyungie explained.

I shook my head while crying, "No... it won't work. mother convinced everyone that hoseok was a gold digger and wanted to marry me for the money. it is not true. he loves me. we love each other truly. how do I convince others that he truly loves me?"

hyungie looked at me and replied, "Why must you convince the others? he knows you love him, you know he loves you. then why does it matter what others think?"

"Because in the history books, I don't want my hoseok to be named as the gold digger. I want him to be known as my true love" 

Hyungie smiled and said, "Do you think everything that makes it to the paper is real? a lot of history we read is false. it is changed and manipulated. that is just how things are. you have read the story of Lily. What if I told you that it is not true? that it has been manipulated and twisted to fit the politics?"

I was curious now. I stopped crying and looked at him. Lily was my favourite story in our history. it was written in the history of Daegu. It was the story of my grandma's older brother. his name was Kim Taehyung. I've heard he was wonderful and kind. he was a curious little soul.

but his innocence and curiosity got him in trouble. one day, he went into the forbidden woods outside our palace to explore them and was kidnapped by a dark creature. the dark creature hypnotized him and trapped him in his cage. he made Lily believe that he was safe. his parents and family searched for Taehyung madly. they were very worried. he was also the heir and was supposed to be the next king of Daegu. a few days later, Taehyung came back to reality and realised he was being held captive. 

he tried to run as much as possible. the dark creature, however, wouldn't let him go. then finally, after a lot of efforts and planning, the prince who had been promised to marry taehyung killed the monster and freed Taehyung. he brought Taehyung back to the castle safely. but later, Taehyung was so traumatised that he refused to marry the prince. he decided to live alone leaving all the royal matters for the rest of his life. this is the story of Lily. After coming back to the palace, he changed his name to Lily.

"The real story of Lily is very different from what you've read. It is very heartbreaking." hyungie said to me.

I asked curiously, "How do you know the real story?"

He smiled looking outside the window, " I just do. You'll know why at the end of the story."

I nodded and sat in front of him with my legs crossed, "Now tell me the story"

hyungie shook his head, " I'll tell it to you at night, before you sleep"