Lucien kissed his cheek softly. "I love you." he whispered in Aki's ear.
It's not in the Cards (O/O)
Aki blushed a little and smiled, kissing the corner of his lips. "I love you too." He murmured softly. "Do you want to go outside? It feels a bit warm in here."
He hummed for a bit. "Alright." he took Aki's arm and started weaving through the crowd.
Aki walked beside him, humming happily to himself. He leaned against Lucien as they walked, his ears flicking back and forth slightly.
Lucien led him from the ballroom, out into one of the nearby courtyards. "Better?"
He nods and hums softly in content. "So much better. Thank you, love." He murmured softly. He glanced at Lucien and leaned up, gently kissing him on the lips.
He kissed him back softly, wrapping an arm around Aki. "You're welciome." he murmured.
He giggles quietly before pressing a kiss to his chest and cuddling into him. "It felt a little to crowded in there." He murmured softly. "Your cousin and his fiance are really sweet."
He smiled. "They are, yeah. I hadn't met Ari before, but Enrique is my favorite cousin." He chuckled softly.
He smiled a little, "Well, I like both of them." He murmured quietly and kissed his cheek. "I love you so much, my prince." he whispers.
He smiled back. "I love you too, darling." He replied.
He giggles a little at the nickname. "I love it when you call me that. It just sounds so endearing." He murmured softly. "I love you so much…"
He kissed Aki's cheek. "Shall I call you tht more, then?"
"If you'd like to love." He murmured softly. He curled in closer to Lucien, shutting his eyes in content.
He smiled happily. "Yeah, alright." He replied, holding Aki close.
Aki smiled at that, his arms wrapping around Lucien's waist. He sighed quietly in relief as he did so, glad that they were out of the ballroom.
Lucien swayed gently with him, closing his eyes.
He smiled at the sight and shut his eyes as well. He loved Lucien with all his heart. He just wished the kingdom didn't stop them from getting married.
Lucien wished he didn't have to find a bride. He still didn't understand his father's single-minded focus on that.
He paused before slowly pulling away. "Lucien…?" He asks quietly. "I know that your father does not approve of us at all…" He murmured quietly. "But… I wanted to do this anyway. I love you, my heart belongs to you, and you know that… Despite what other people think, and what your father thinks. I still… want you to be mine." He murmured, pulling out a small, carefully crafted ring. "You don't have to right now, I know you're busy… but…" He glanced up at Lucien, hesitantly. Almost… as if he were scared.
Lucien's eyes widened as he looked at Aki and the ring, and his lips parted in surprise. "I…are you proposing?" He asked slowly.
Aki fiddles with the ring before nodding slowly. "Yes… I am…" He whispers quietly. "Like I said, you don't have to say yes… I know that you're dedicated to your kingdom…" He murmured softly, keeping his eyes on the ground.
He bit his lip faintly. He wanted so badly to just say yes and bedamn the consequences, but… He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again to study Aki. "I…"
Aki hesitated slightly, shuffling a little bit as he waited. He knew this had been a bad idea. He knew it was- the rules, the protocols. Aki was born a commoner, nothing but a magician for the court… Lucien was the prince. "I'm sorry." He whispered, tucking the ring away.
Lucien caught his hands. "No, Aki, that's not– please don't apologize." he said quickly. "Please don't apologize. I just…I'd like nothing more than to marry you, I'm just…my father…" he didn't know what to do.
He looks up at Lucien and sighs deeply. "That's why I'm apologizing." He was trying his hardest to keep his voice even and not get emotional. "You're the prince, I'm a consort. In the kingdom's eyes we're nothing more than that." He murmured softly. He holds Lucien's hands gently, "That's why it was a bad idea for me to even propose… You have so many duties… it was selfish of me."
He closed his eyes for a moment, swallowing faintly. "I'm so sorry, my love." he whispered, wishing there was some way around this.
Aki shook his head and smiled weakly. "You shouldn't have to apologize." He murmured softly. "I'm… going to go get some water…" He whispers, pressing a gentle kiss to Lucien's cheek.
"Okay." he replied quietly, looking at Aki sorrowfully.
He smiled at Lucien before turning away. His heart cracked a little as reality hit him. It wasn't a beautiful dream, it wasn't a fairytale. He was a consort, nothing more. He couldn't marry Lucien, the love of his life and that hurt him more than losing his sight. He grabbed a bottle of wine rather than some water, sipping on it lazily as he wandered. He didn't go back into the palace. He wandered the grounds until he found himself standing in front of his masters grave. He sighed deeply and sat beside it.