Chapter 11
Of course, I couldn’t sleep properly.
I was lying on the stone floor like a beggar, and it was so cold that I shivered all night. I was so tired that I didn't even think that my mouth would go crooked if I fell asleep like that.
It was raining, and the cave was cold, and the daily temperature range was so severe that it was so cold...
I shivered even in my dreams.
‘It’s really cold.’
Perhaps because of the accumulated fatigue, my mind seemed to be fading. Such a vivid dream.
While I was shivering in a hazy state of mind, someone approached me. Enoch's jacket flickered in my blurry vision.
I desperately reached out and grabbed Enoch's jacket. The warm touch in my hand made my heart ache for some reason.
“What’s wrong?”
Someone in the dream asked me. I frowned, looking at the jacket with a painful expression.
“It’s cruel.”
“……Cruel?”
I pulled Enoch's jacket again and answered.
“This guy. Jackie. He was the one who covered my shoulders when I was cold.”
Yeah. That's how it was originally... I was suddenly overwhelmed with sadness and tears welled up.
“You stupid thing. Why is it draped over another useless body... I'm so cold right now.”
“…….”
“I guess your love for me has faded. You Jackie XX. How can love change?”
I sniffled and let go of the jacket I was holding onto with a lingering feeling. The jacket was crumpled in an unflattering way, probably because I was holding it too tightly.
Even that shabby appearance touched my heart. I turned away from the crumpled jacket, my heart aching again, and fell asleep.
I thought I even heard someone I was talking to let out a hollow laugh...
When I came to my senses, it was already morning.
I lay there blankly with my eyes open. I felt like I had fallen asleep shivering from the cold, but my body felt more refreshed than I thought.
‘It doesn’t feel real and the memory is blurry... Was it a dream after all?’
As I was thinking that, I felt a cozy feeling and lowered my head.
As expected, a jacket made of luxurious fabric was wrapped around my shoulders. It was Enoch's.
Looking around, I looked at the entrance of the cave and saw the morning sunlight coming in through the stone wall piled up to my waist. It seemed that the rain had completely stopped.
Enoch was at the entrance of the cave. He rolled up his shirt sleeves and was diligently moving large stones.
Perhaps because of his years in the battlefield, Enoch preferred practicality over the dignity of a crown prince.
I didn't refuse the jacket he had put over me, and put it on while approaching Enoch.
He glanced at me. I thought he would say something, but he turned his head without a word and started clearing the stones again.
I definitely saw Enoch's jacket in my dream and said, ‘Why is it draped over another useless body?’
Surely it wasn't reality, was it? If that's the case...
‘Am I crazy? I didn't even drink, so why did I do that? Uttering such nonsense without any context.’
My mind went blank. I'm worried about the crime of insulting the imperial family, but I'm so embarrassed!
But fortunately, Enoch seemed no different from usual.
‘……Since he’s not saying anything, it must have been a dream, right?’
Only then did I feel a little relieved and mustered up the strength to help him clear the stones.
But,
“It seems love has been achieved.”
“……Pardon?”
The sudden question struck my eardrums.
Enoch cleared all the stones and dusted off his hands before turning to look at me. He put one hand on his hip and pointed to the jacket I was wearing and smiled.
“Wouldn’t it be better to fulfill the jacket’s love than for me, a useless body, to wear it?”
‘Damn it, it wasn't a dream!’
I was flustered and rolled my eyes to avoid his gaze. And at that moment,
“You Jackie XX, how can love change?”
Even the last line I had uttered came to mind.
This is why people should speak nicely even in everyday life.
“That’s…… What do you mean?”
“You’re going to pretend you don’t know?”
An uncharacteristically playful question from Enoch pierced my ear. I was flustered and just opened my mouth, but eventually answered in a small voice.
“That’s…… Just nonsense in my sleep……”
“Jackie XX will be disappointed if you deny it like that after giving him such a cute name as Jackie.”
Damn it, you even heard me cursing.
I rolled my eyes to somehow change the subject and carefully opened my mouth.
“It’s very awkward for you to curse.”
“It’s because it’s the first time I’ve ever uttered such explicit curses. But the Lady was very natural. Like it’s everyday life.”
XX. It was everyday life, so I had nothing to say again.
“Ah, no? That’s not me. Maybe Your Highness dreamed it. I can’t curse. I’m a noble.”
Enoch smiled, stroking his chin languidly.
“……I’ll pretend I don’t know if you’re embarrassed.”
He said as if doing me a favor.
Enoch, who approached me with leisurely steps, tapped the gold embroidery on the shoulder of the jacket I was wearing with his finger.
His gaze slowly moved up from my shoulder to my neck. Eventually, my eyes met his.
A crooked smile hung on his lips. He said as if he found this situation very interesting.
“Well, wasn’t the Lady always eccentric? So it wasn’t strange.”
‘Just say it’s strange. You cruel XX.’
It seems like I still have a long way to go to improve my image. I felt sad for some reason and wiped away tears that weren't even flowing.
“I support the Lady’s love.”
“That’s not it!”
When I finally shouted annoyedly, he burst into laughter with a joyful face.
It was the first time I had seen him laugh so purely like a boy. I forgot that I was annoyed and stared at him blankly.
Of course, that laughter didn't last long. He returned to his calm face and looked at me with an expressionless face.
He was so serious that I thought he was going to say something serious now, but,
“Keep the jacket on, I’m afraid I’ll be cursed at again for being a useless body.”
He teases me until the end, damn it.
No, was Enoch originally that kind of person? In the original work, and in Crown Prince Enoch in Margaret's memory, he was definitely not that kind of person!
