Fifteen years ago...

’I managed to escape again!’

Kaelis De Luxaelian Sunthyr, second prince of the Luxaelis kingdom, had successfully slipped past his guards and tutors once more.

For the third time this week.

His feet barely slowed as he ran through the quieter paths, his breath steady despite the pace, his focus sharp.

He didn’t dare look back, didn’t dare hesitate, not when getting caught meant being dragged back into endless lectures and stricter watch.

Even so, he had prepared.

A hood pulled low over his head, shadowing his hair and eyes, enough to keep him from being easily recognized by anyone who might pass by.

Now—

What could make a prince go through all this trouble?

Again.

And again.

The answer was tucked safely inside his cloak.

Four freshly baked loaves of bread.

Still warm.

Neatly wrapped in a clean cloth he had taken from the kitchen himself, careful not to dirty it, careful not to make it obvious that anything was missing.

So why bread?

Was he planning a quiet picnic somewhere no one would find him?

A secret snack away from Captain Aamon’s watchful eye, where no one could scold him for eating too much?

No.

He wasn’t going to eat any of it.

Not even a bite.

It wasn’t for him at all.

"There!" Kaelis exclaims under his breath, unable to hide the excitement in his voice as he spots the familiar alley.

The same one he had returned to for the past three days, memorizing every corner, every shadow.

He slows just enough to scan the area, his eyes sharp despite his age.

’He’s not here yet,’ Kaelis thought, glancing around once more before stepping further in.

The place wasn’t clean.

It never was.

But he had found a spot.

A bin filled with discarded fabrics, some torn, some unused, but among them, a small section that remained relatively untouched.

Clean enough. Safe enough.

’This is the best place,’ Kaelis thought, crouching quickly as he unwrapped the cloth just enough to place the bread inside.

’I should be quick. I can’t let him see me.’

His movements were careful, precise, placing the loaves in a way that wouldn’t make them roll or fall.

"I’m sure he’ll be here soon," Kaelis murmurs to himself, a small, proud smile forming as he adjusts the cloth slightly. "I added a little more than the usual."

He steps back, then quickly retreats to his usual hiding spot, pressing himself against the wall where the shadows are thick enough to conceal him.

"I hope he gets happy," he whispers, almost like it was a wish.

Then he waits.

His heart was beating louder now.

Not from running.

From anticipation.

"Where is he?" Kaelis mumbles, shifting slightly, his eyes fixed on the entrance of the alley, his smile already forming like he knew what was coming.

’Should I talk to him today?’

He had asked himself that yesterday.

And the day before.

Each time—

He didn’t.

He just watched.

Left the bread.

And left before he could be seen.

Now—

He was asking himself the same question again.

’I should. I should talk to him today—’

His thoughts cut off.

Because there—

"There he is!"

Kaelis’s heart jumps, his body leaning forward just slightly, his eyes lighting up as soon as he sees him.

The boy.

The one he had been coming back for.

The one with the most beautiful pink eyes he had ever seen.

He remembered the first time clearly.

Three days ago.

He had gone to his mother’s observatory, the place he always liked visiting when he needed space, when the palace felt too loud, too suffocating.

And afterward, he had wandered.

Not with a plan.

Just...curious.

Curious about the people outside the palace walls.

Of course, even then, he had hidden himself.

Always hidden.

And that day—

That moment—

He saw him.

A boy.

Alone.

He didn’t know his name.

Didn’t know where he came from.

Only that he lived here.

On the streets.

And for some reason—

Kaelis couldn’t look away.

There was something about him.

Something that stayed in his mind long after he left.

Something that made him come back the next day.

And the next.

So, he did something he had never thought to do before.

He snuck out.

Had his chef bake bread.

Came back.

All for the chance—

To talk to him.

It sounded simple.

Easy.

WRONG.

This was his third attempt.

And not his last.

"No, wait—!" Kaelis tried to call out to him, his voice slipping out before he could stop it, but today it seemed the boy was in a hurry.

Too fast.

By the time Kaelis stepped out just a little from his hiding spot, the boy had already grabbed the bread.

Already turned.

Already gone.

"Darn it!" Kaelis exclaims, the frustration hitting him all at once as he stomped his foot against the ground, the sound echoing lightly through the empty alley. "I lost him again!"

His shoulders slumped, the excitement draining out of him just as quickly as it came.

His chest felt heavy.

Too heavy for something that should’ve been simple.

But then—

"Kaelis, if you think something or someone is worth it, keep trying. For me, because I know that I never stopped trying to live for you."

His mother’s voice.

It was soft.

It echoed clearly in his mind, as if she were standing right beside him.

Kaelis clenched his hands into fists, his jaw tightening as he lifted his head again.

"I won’t give up!" Kaelis says, louder this time, like he was convincing himself more than anything. "I’m a prince! I shouldn’t give up."

That’s what he said.

That’s what he believed.

But the little idiot—

Tried again the next day.

And then the day after that.

And then another.

And another.

Each time the same.

Each time close.

But never enough.

Six full days had passed.

Almost a week.

Not a single "Hi."

Not even a word.

Nothing.

Now—

This was the seventh day.

If he failed today—

If he still couldn’t talk to him—

Then that was it.

A full week.

Kaelis would have to accept it.

That he—

A prince—

Couldn’t even manage to talk to one boy.

’That’s ridiculous,’ Kaelis thought, his brows furrowing as he crossed his arms for a moment, pacing slightly as he tried to steady himself.

He had talked to nobles.

To older women.

To people who expected far more from him.

He knew how to speak.

He knew how to charm.

So why—

Why couldn’t he do it now?

’It’s just one person,’ Kaelis thought, exhaling sharply as he shook his head. ’Just one.’

No.

He was going to do it today.

He was—

"What are you doing here?"

Kaelis froze.

His entire body went still in his hiding spot, the confidence he had been building shattering instantly as his heart skipped.

The bread.

He had just placed it.

Fresh and warm.

Just like always.

It was supposed to be the same.

Everything was supposed to go the same.

But—

That voice—

Kaelis slowly turns around, fear creeping up his spine, his fingers curling instinctively at his sides.

"B-Brother Helios..."