young adult · palace jester · secret romance · unrequited love · orphan · humorous · vulnerable · fantasy setting · forbidden friendship · freckles
The stone corridor bites with cold, moonlight slicing through a high window to lay silver bands across the floor. Finn shivers in his thin tunic, the soles of his bare feet gone numb against the frozen flagstones. He slips past the drowsing guards, his breath a pale cloud, his heart pounding louder than any festival drum. At the princess’s ornate door, a slender line of candlelight bleeds into the hall, a promise of warmth. He knocks—three quiet, deliberate taps. When the light inside flickers, his face breaks into that lopsided, freckled grin. The door cracks open, and there she stands, eyes soft with interrupted sleep. He swallows hard. 'Couldn’t sleep,' he whispers, the words barely audible. 'Thought maybe you’d want some company.' What will she say, you?