During the marriage negotiation, only Johan Antonov was granted access to the Palace, the other knights who came along with him were given instructions to leave, forcing them out of the Capital without seeing their Captain. It was a lengthy one month process and it has only been a few days since their group has reunited. Now, they must all be thinking what changed his mind to treat her like a lover, aware that the marriage was forced by threat.
"If Gael is smart, he would avoid saying anything…"
It's okay. Without evidence of the drug, they cannot accuse the King for manipulation, she told herself trying to soothe her growing anxiety. War will not take place if the knighthood finds out, right?
She gulped down the words that got stuck in her throat as Johan's returned to view with a few things in hand.
"Is there something wrong?"
The man walked quicker to get to Elena, carrying a wooden pot and some bread in hands. Elena, who was caught off guard, gave an awkward smile hoping Johan would not grill her with questions. The man inwardly sighed, looking at Elena as she leaned against the carriage wheel, her lovely skirt was already ruined by mud and dirt.
"You're still outside the carriage… you know it's cold outside, Princess."
Johan placed the bread in his mouth, with the oats on one hand, he took the handkerchief out of his pocket in an attempt to help her sit on the steps of the carriage for a more comfortable position. Elena only looked at him in silence, embarrassed for being served as if she was truly noble.
"Why do you insist on calling me Princess, Johan?"
Her eyes followed the movements of his hands, though slightly startled from her conscious inquiry, he continued to brush away the dirt off the stair, placed the cleaned handkerchief on it and gestured to her to take a seat.
Elena did not say much, lifted her skirt and sat on the stair like an obedient child-- Now that it was like that, her looking at him was making Johan more self-conscious and he brushed off the dirt in his hands and rinsed his hands with lukewarm water stored in his waist. To break the forming awkwardness that was brought by the wind, he forced a cough. Without thinking, he gave her the bread. Forgetting that the bread had just come from his own filthy mouth-- Johan blushed, embarrassed for his lack of manners.
"Did you hear what I said?"
Elena seemed unphased by the whole thing while Johan, on the other hand, was suffering from feeling like a fool. She took the bread and smiled at him as if to say she had forgiven him for acting rudely.
"...Yes, Princess."
He straightened himself up to try his best to calm down and look more dignified.
"Ha.."
With an obvious troubled sigh, her voice sounded disappointed. Elena lowered her face, her eyes locked at the bread that Johan just handed over to her and slowly spoke, "It must be a habit to keep calling me a Princess... At this rate, I might even forget my own name."
Johan's pale blue eyes slightly widened— aware he just made a mistake. Truthfully, it has been a forming habit to call Elena as Princess since he never had once called her by name before they were married. It was only yesterday when he finally addressed her by name.
"Elena."
Johan called her softly, the maiden's name rolled out of his tongue so naturally as if he was not nervous. Elena blushed, the hint of pink on her cheeks were quite pretty, complimenting her pale smooth skin. Unknowingly, Johan found himself realizing how attractive the Princess was. He had never thought he would actually experience such love at first sight. It was truly troubling since he was never the type of a man who would act recklessly without thinking. Yet when it comes to the Princess, he was a completely different person.
Elena looked up to meet Johan's eyes and her gentle smile spread across her moist sweet lips, calling his name instinctively, "J-johan."
Elena's stumbling effort to call her husband by his name quivered Johan's heart-- though, it looked like she wanted to be called by her name, it was obvious to him that she too, needed to get used to it.
Like he was under a spell, Johan lowered himself to hear Elena's voice. He had completely lost control of his mind and only for a few seconds, he learned he just gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. The woman blushed, her ears turned embarrassingly red and looked down, too flushed to look at him.
"What are you doing…?"
Elena asked, embarrassed to meet the man's stare. But, her mumbles sounded like blur words passing his ears. Johan bit his lips-- he liked the warmth that lingered in his lips as he kissed her forehead and as if unsatisfied with just that, he grabbed her chin, to get her to look at him in a silent plea.
"Can you call me my name again?"
"... Johan?"