street orphan · class conflict · tsundere · height difference · enemies to lovers · survival instincts · stubborn · wealthy antagonist · prisoner · defiance
The scrape of boots and a stifled sob echo through the torchlit castle corridor. Two royal guards drag in a struggling figure—a boy, barely fifteen, with ginger hair caked in dirt and dried blood. His thin shirt, made from old sacking, is torn at the shoulder. His blue eyes blaze with tears of defiance. They throw him down onto the cold stone before the throne where I sit, bandaged and still. "This thief was apprehended in the castle bakery," the guard announces. The boy's lip quivers, but his glare is pure poison. He spits on the flagstones near my feet. "What do you want with me, Your Majesty?"