When Jungkook woke up at the crack of dawn as usual, it took him a moment to remember why he felt so euphoric and over the moon. Then the memory from the previous night rolled over him and Jungkook smiled like an idiot. He met the girl he was dying to find. Jungkook sat up and ripped back the curtains of his canopy like bed, feeling excited for the day.

An emotion he never felt before. Excitement to start his boring, repeating life.

Jungkook dressed and ran down the stairs to the dining hall. It was like a tradition for his family, setting aside their jobs no matter how busy they are and eat together for every meal. The occasion slowly started losing it's members, first it was him, his parents and grandparents, and then his grandfather passed away, following by his grandmother. After a few years, his mother left the kingdom to take care of her dying father, leaving him and his strict father.

Jungkook dreaded eating with his father. Who won't when there's someone who is always looking at you like a hawk, ready to spit venom out if you did something wrong. But today, Jungkook didn't feel so. He skipped down the stairs happily, reached the door to the dining room, walked through it and found himself face to face with the butler.

"Your highness..." the butler smiled, his tired face lighten up. "You look quite...happy today"

"Good morning, Mr Han" Jungkook chirped, hugging him tightly. "I had a good sleep" he continued, not wanting the butler to get suspicious of his sudden energy.

"I'm glad" Mr Han said, patting Jungkook's hair softly. "You should go to the dining hall now. Your father's waiting for you"

"Sure" Jungkook said.

He walked through the door, crossed the big hall, and was soon walking into the dining hall where his father and a few maids were at. It was a chilly morning, and Jungkook felt the cool air hitting his face and hair through the open windows. He grinned brightly at Mina who was placing meals on the table, making her puzzled.

"Good morning, dad" greeted Jungkook, still grinning. His father looked at him, a sour expression on his face as he munched his toast.

"Morning" his father greeted back, before helping himself with another toast. "The toast are really good today" he continued.

"Really?" asked Jungkook as he stretched his arm to take one on his own. He quietly munched on it, nodding to himself that it did indeed taste better than before. The both of them ate quietly, a comfortable silence lingering in the air.

Jungkook realized that today was extremely nice and peaceful. Was it only like that today or was he too gloomy to realize the nice weather before? Jungkook decided to not search for an answer and helped himself with bacons. He glanced up and looked at his father, who was reading a newspaper silently. Jungkook pouted, he didn't know why, but he wanted his father to talk to him. However, his father decided that the boring newspaper was far more interesting than looking at his son's face.

The both of them ate quietly when his father suddenly stood up. The sound of his chair shrieking against the marble floor was so loud that several birds who were chirping happily in a nearby tree took flight in alarm. Even Jungkook flinched, and he was sure some of the maids surrounding them nearly had a heart attack.

"Meet me in my room as usual" his father said quietly but still stern. He walked away but then abruptly stopped and approached the dining table again. "As usual" he added before taking another two toast with him before walking away from the hall. Jungkook's face scrunched in both amusement and disgust. There was no reason for his father to make such a dramatic exit, only to come back and steal two toasts before going away.

"You look bright today, Jeon" a voice said behind him. He turned around and saw Mina standing there.

"Am I being too obvious?" he asked, grinning ear to ear.

"Definitely not" Mina smiled. "You being gloomy is the one being too obvious" she said, carrying the empty dishes.

"I'm feeling quite happy today" Jungkook added as he jumped down from his chair. He observed Mina cleaning the table as if it was her second nature. Her hands moved fast and quick, showing that she had been doing the same thing many times.

" And why is that so?" she asked in return, playing together with Jungkook's teasing.

"Because..." Jungkook stopped, wiggling his fingers and eyebrows. "...I had a dream about someone"

"And who could that be?"

"You" Jungkook laughed as Mina looked at him, shocked. He wasn't exactly lying though. He did in fact had a dream about Mina.

"What does me being in your dream makes you happy?"

"Well" Jungkook hesitated, tracing his fingers on the decorations on the chair. "You remind me of my mother"

Mina smiled at that and wiped her hands on her apron, before bringing Jungkook into a hug. "I'm glad I remind you of such a wonderful woman" she said, patting his back.

"Do you think Mum would come back?" Jungkook asked her as he wrapped his arms around the woman's waist. He rested his face on her shoulder and relaxed for a while. She really did remind him of his mother, she even smells and feels like her.

"Of course she would, Jung...kook" Mina said, still not used to calling the prince with his first name. Jungkook pouted at that, but decided to not talk about it. It had only been a few days since he told her that he doesn't want her to call him with formal terms.

"You should go now. Your father must be waiting for you" Mina said, pushing him away softly from the hug. She gently got rid of the dirt on his attire and patted his hair affectionately, smiling brightly. "Good luck to whatever training he's going to give you" she said shortly, pinching his cheeks.

Jungkook grinned, pinching her hollow cheeks in return. 

~~~

If Jungkook had thought that today would be a good day judging by the day, the interaction he had with his father showed him how mistaken he was. The moment he entered his father's room, his father scolded him for being late. Although his father's tone was soft and not as loud as a banshee like he always was, Jungkook couldn't help but think how mistaken he was. No matter how happy or gloomy he was, his father would always be there to remind him of his miserable life.

Right now, the both of them were playing chess as usual, and Jungkook can't help but squirm uncomfortably as his father looked sharply at him, judging his movements. Jungkook slowly crouched towards the chess board, analyzing both his and his father's movements. He had played with many talented players around the kingdom, and he realized that the only way to win in Chess was to find the opponent's weak point and use it against them.

But the problem was, his father had no weakness. Jungkook had been playing with his father since he could remember and his father had no such thing called weak point. Some players get nervous if their queen was gone, some will have their king exposed, but his father simply had none. He was just  perfect when it comes to Chess.

Or is he?

No one can be perfect, right? There is nothing that is perfect in this world. You can be the best, but you can never be perfect. It's just human's nature. Well unless if his father is not a human, then Jungkook should just give up. But that's totally absurd. Jungkook moved his pieces carefully. His father had his king protected, while he approached Jungkook's king. It was something that Jungkook admired about his father, how he can manage to do something dangerous, but still protect the important ones, both in real life and a simple chess game.

Jungkook concentrated hard, thinking how he is going to escape his father's approach and at the same time try to capture his king. As Jungkook eyes scanned through the pieces, he let out a gasp. He found a way to capture his father's king, to do a checkmate, but only if he sacrificed his queen, a piece he would literally start hyperventilating if he lose it but if he managed to capture his father, his sacrifice would be worth it, but will he be able to do so?

Jungkook moved his queen, trying his best not to look like he purposely left his queen there. He felt his father looking at him in disbelieve, before taking it with his pawn. Jungkook took a deep breath and moved his other pieces after making sure his face is showing nothing but an astonished look. His father seemed like he didn't realize Jungkook's moves. Instead, he was more focused on Jungkook's king. Jungkook did realize his father's every move, but decided to ignore his moves to continue his. If he could catch the king, the game will be over and he will win. However, if he failed, he's dead without his queen and his king being surrounded by his dad's pieces.

Jungkook waited for his father's movement, he only needs to move his bishop to do a checkmate if, if only his father didn't realize what he was doing. Jungkook's father had the back of his hands rested on his mouth, his eyes on the board, and Jungkook hoped he isn't being too confident, but his father's eyes were only on his king, which means he didn't realize what Jungkook is doing.

His father then moved his horse and Jungkook almost started dancing, keyword almost. He brought his shaky hands forward, held his bishop tightly and moved it backwards, placing it in a place his father would definitely can never escape from.

"Checkmate..." Jungkook declared. He brought his gaze back to his father's, not realizing that his eyes were getting teary. He doesn't want to start celebrating now, maybe he did a mistake, maybe his father could still move, maybe he haven't win yet. Until his father declared his defeat, Jungkook couldn't believe what he did.

His father looked at the board closely, checking for a free space to move on, but he can't. He then looked at Jungkook, before nodding in defeat. Jungkook buried his face onto his palms, groaning.

"Oh god" he said, tugging his own hair. "Oh god, I finally won..." 

"For the first time" his father continued. Jungkook raised his head and looked at him. He expected his father to look angry or annoyed, but his father looked satisfied. "I'm proud of you" he continued and Jungkook swore his heart made a summer sault. That was the first time his father said that he was proud of him, well after the incident where he kicked his ball to the goal when he was three (The distance between the goal and the ball was a foot ).

"Jungkook" his father called. Jungkook who was still busy telling himself that he won looked at him immediately. "Now that you won, I have a question for you"

"What is it, dad?" Jungkook asked politely. His father remained quite for a while before taking a black soldier in his hands. "Let's just say we are the pieces in this game, what do you think you and I would be?"

Jungkook thought for a while. He wanted to give his father a satisfying answer, since he was pleased with his son's victory. After a while, he answered, "I...I think I'm the king father, while you're the queen"

His father's lips curled upwards, revealing a sickening smirk. "And why is that so?" he asked.

Jungkook cleared his throat and hesitantly replied. "I'm the king because I'm important, father. I'm the heir for this Kingdom, and if something happens to me, the Jeon Kingdom is as good as dead. But if you're gone, we will still be here, a terrible lose, father but the kingdom will still be here because I'm here to continue it" Jungkook stopped for a while, looking at his father who was focused on his answer. He continued "You're the queen because you are important too, but not as important as me. You do all the works, you do everything to protect me, just like how the queen protects the king in Chess, and as for me, I'm important but I'm not doing much. I'm just protected and hidden like the king in Chess."

His father chuckled listening to his answer. "So, who do you want to be in Chess?" he asked.

"I want to be myself and the chess pieces doesn't define myself" Jungkook whispered with hesitance in his voice. His eyes looked at his own feet, the impact of his father's sharp gaze crushing him down. Did he made a mistake? Did he disappoint his father? Jungkook was about to say sorry for his pathetic thoughts when the man in front of him let out a small chuckle.

"I'm quite impressed, Jungkook" he said. Jungkook snapped his head forward, a painful pop at the back of his neck. He let out a small gasp and rubbed his neck, eyes not leaving his father. The king had a straight face as always, but Jungkook couldn't help but notice his lips who were slightly curled upwards.

"Are...are you?" Jungkook asked shyly as he rubbed his nape. His father ignored his question and started to put the chess pieces away. Jungkook looked at him curiously. His father never let him go away until noon, forcing the boy to play with him until he's satisfied.

"I see that you are in a good mood today, Jungkook" he said as he threw the chess board to a nearby sofa. "Is there a reason why?"

"No" Jungkook found himself telling quickly, a bit too quickly. Surely he couldn't tell him that the reason for his sudden happy hormones is because of a certain girl. He observed his father, seeing if he found his strange response suspicious or not. Fortunately, his father didn't seem to realize his lie, making Jungkook let out the sigh he was holding.

The man in front of him stood up, his face straight as usual. He then took small steps towards Jungkook until he was already inside his personal bubble. Patting the boy's soft hair, he said "You can go back to your room now"

"What?" Jungkook almost shouted, looking at his towering father. "Why? Did I do something wrong? Shouldn't we be playing aga-"

"I may be strict, Jungkook. But I'm not heartless. The reason why I made you stay and play with me is because you had been nothing but a pathetic excuse. However you have showed me an extraordinary performance today so go take a break" he said, somehow accidentally grabbing Jungkook's dark locks. "Don't take this as an advantage though. Come to the field at two. I need to see if your combat skills have improved or not"

Jungkook gave his father a toothy smile, feeling on cloud nine. Maybe he wasn't wrong at all. Today was indeed a good day for him. "Thank you" he cooed and hugged his father's waist, burying his head into his father's stomach. Jungkook must admit, his father's body provided him warmth and comfort, although the man never actually gave them to him.

His father stood quite for a while, before letting out awkward coughs and pushing him away softly. Jungkook couldn't help but giggle at his father's flushed face. The man pushed his head back down, ruffling it hardly. " Go away, Jungkook. And use the time I gave you wisely"

"Wisely like what?" Jungkook asked, somehow finding the confidence to tease his father.

"I don't know. Maybe like painting, reading or talk with Mina?" his father replied, playing with his collar. "Now go Jungkook. Or are you eager for another round?"

"Nope!" Jungkook abruptly stood up and made his way to the door, his smile never leaving his face. As his hand touched the cold surface of the door's handle, he turned around and looked at his awkward father. "Iloveyoudad!" he shouted as fast as he can and ran away, leaving his now red faced father.

Jungkook basically bounced back to his room, thinking about what he could do for the next free five hours. Maybe he could paint the girl he saw yesterday, or read a book. The weather outside was pleasant and breathy, and it felt like a sin to stay inside. Jungkook decided to take a walk outside and read his favorite book under the trees. He giggled thinking about how nice it could be, his heart basically yelling him to do it right this instant. Jungkook reached his door and slammed it open, ready to take his book and walk outside again. He was sure there was nothing else that could change his mind. The tree that was standing proudly at the garden was too tempting to be sat underneath. But before he could even take his book, he found his legs glued on his tracks.

Maybe there is something that would change his mind, something like finding the same girl he saw yesterday sitting on his expensive carpet.

~~~

Do you guys play chess? Personally, I am a really good chess player.

Well, not really...

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