#eun writes

“I don’t think it would be wise to torture a princess,” Juyeon scoffs. “No matter how good your intentions are.”

Your fingers trace the grain of the wooden table in front of you. “There are other ways of obtaining information,” you muse. “The princess fancies you, though I have no idea why. You, of all people, should be able to charm her easily.”

Juyeon raises his eyebrows, glaring in your direction.

“Oh come on! You have your wiles, use them!” you shout, exasperated. “She wants you! It shouldn’t be so hard.”

“Are you serious?” he blurts out, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

“Give her what she wants,” you say, each word emphasized with a step forward, “and get the information we need to avoid a war.”

He pushes himself off the wall, striding towards you until he’s so close that you can feel his breath ghosting across your skin. “Is that an order?”

“Of course not,” you mutter, eyes averted.

“Look at me, he commands, his fingers grazing your chin. While his actions may be gentle, his voice is not, and when you meet his gaze, there’s a dark fire that simmers in his eyes. “Since you think I’d be good at this sort of ruse, tell me what I should do.” He tilts his face closer to yours, eyes briefly flickering down to your lips. “Do you think she would like it if I looked into her eyes, like this?”

Your breath catches in your throat. The fair folk cannot lie like mortals do, but that doesn’t make them incapable of deception. The way Juyeon looks at you—like he could love you—seems worse than any lie that has fallen from your lips. “I guess,” you sputter out. 

“You’re my advisor, and this is clearly a political matter. You could at least advise me,” he murmurs, his fingers tracing your throat. “How about now?” he whispers, cradling your jaw with one hand before pressing his mouth to the spot underneath your ear, his lips trailing down your neck. “Like this?”

Each of his words sear into your skin. Your nails dig half-moons into your palms, the dull ache bringing you back to reality. You fear that if you look at him, you’ll only find evidence of your own desire reflected in his eyes.

Finally, Juyeon lifts himself up to look you in the eyes, moving so close until your lips are a hair's breadth apart. “Do you think it’ll work?”

Juyeon may be the flint to your steel, but you no longer care about what will inevitably happen when the two of you collide once more.