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how much sorrow can i take?….

+ people also forget that he trusts very easily when he’s not forced into it, and he has no problems being vulnerable with someone he doesn’t know. sure, it was a life or death situation, but these traits are still there. i genuinely don’t think he would be that hostile towards ryland especially after realising that he’s not dangerous at all.

ryland grace was the last born of the royal family. the odd one. the black sheep. he was intelligent but clumsy. a great thinker but a bad talker. his two older brothers were far more worthy of being leaders than he was and therefore, ryland knew since he was old enough to understand that he wasn’t and will never be the favourite. his mother once told him that colt, his older twin brother, was everything she could’ve wished in a son. ryland was nothing but a failed copy. and of course there was court, the oldest, the prodigy, to whom the throne had been promised even before he was born. ryland knew he could never compete. he never really made peace with it.

when he turned 20, his dad decided he had enough of seeing him with his head buried in a book all day and stated that from now on, he was going to follow military training just like his brothers did years ago. ryland never did because his mom insisted it was useless and a waste of resource, there was no way they could make a soldier out of him. but the king did not agree.

this is how ryland found himself hardly holding a sword in his hand in the training room, facing the 19 year old general, simon.

"you’re supposed to attack me now," simon said, voice still as deep and gravely as the first time ryland heard it.

"uh… sure."

ryland couldn’t have sounded less sure of himself if he tried. he took a few hesitant steps towards simon and lifted the sword.

"if we were in a battlefield i would’ve have the time to kill you at least five times in this time span," simon stated bluntly. he sighed at the sheepish look ryland gave him. "put that sword away, i’m not doing this."

ryland let out a soft "oh" before putting the sword back in its sheath. when he looked over at simon again, he was sitting on a bench against the wall.

"i’m… sorry."

"don’t be, it’s not your fault. i just don’t see what’s the point in doing this."

ryland huffs a bitter laugh as he gets closer to where simon is sitting. he ends sitting next to him.

"tell that to my dad."

"and being irradiated from the army? no thank you."

"i would defend you."

they looked at each other and smiled. oh god, simon was so beautiful.

Jeffrey Thankyou💉🩸