the light returns | d.sc
featuring: guard!winwin x royalty!reader
word count: 1391 words
taglist: @slytherinshua ,, @welcometomyoasis
author's note: IM SORRY IT’S TAKING SO LONG 😭 i did not expect there to be so many things i had to wrap up!! tbh this ending is gonna be longer than the climax cuz the resolution is 🫠🫠 a lot… so first have some fluff before we get back into all the angst 💋
masterlist | < prev | next >
You swept your cloak behind you, taking long strides across the courtroom floor. You took a seat, and Sicheng bowed his head.
“Your Majesty.” You held up a hand before he could take a seat, pointing to a spot just in front of you.
“Stand there.” A flash of confusion passed over his face, and you added softly, “We are always being watched.”
He nodded imperceptibly. “Everything is in order. I’ve checked all the documents again, and nothing is missing. It should all go as planned.”
You raised an eyebrow. “I appreciate your vote of confidence. But if you really think my brother will give in without putting up one hell of a fight, then you do not know him at all.”
Sicheng stiffened. “Then why would we go to such lengths to—”
The amusement left you as soon as it had arrived, and your face relaxed into a neutral expression. “To fail to plan is to plan to fail.” Before Sicheng could say another word, you turned your gaze away from him, effectively dismissing him. “The trial is about to begin.”
Sicheng took his cue, kneeling once at your feet before moving to stand beside you.
You’d spent weeks preparing for this rushed trial, anxious to deal with your brother before he had a chance to escape again, keeping awake at night trying to sift through the archives in search of somebody, some witness or camera record or audio record that would be able to incriminate your brother so thoroughly he would never see the light of day again.
“My love, it’s late. Shall we go to bed?”
You shook your head feverishly, fingers trembling with exhaustion as you struggled to read just a few more lines of the document you were currently perusing. The candlelight cast shadows on the black text, blurring the words on the paper through your vision, impaired by the lighting.
“At least turn on the lights.” Sicheng moved, hand hovering over the light switch when he felt a tugging in his head preventing him from pressing the button.
“Too bright,” you said. “The candle will suffice.”
Sicheng sighed, dismissing your hold over his motion, shaking his hand to loosen it before walking over to you, one hand resting around your upper arm. It was always in quiet, stolen moments like these that he would dare to show his affection, the only time he could tell you he loved you in actions greater than a shared glance or the widening of his concerned eyes.
“We are in the era of technology. Why are you manually sifting through these papers? Surely this system of yours isn’t fully optimised.”
“Do you think my brother would have evaded the law for so long if it had been in the system? I hope, for your sake, that you do not think our judicial system is that flawed. He must have found a way to do it secretly, but my parents’ movements were well kept track of. There must be something that he’s missed, and the only way to find it is to sift through this manually.”
Sicheng placed a kiss on the crown of your head. “I won’t argue with you.”
Still, whilst he went to sit down opposite you, you felt something pushing against the backs of your knees, and found that a chair had rolled its way to your feet, and you sank into the cushioned piece of furniture without protest.
The papers in front of you rustled, as if a breeze was blowing through them, and as you turned to check the windows—there weren’t any in that room, as far as you remembered—you heard them rustle further.
You turned back, greeted with the sight of the document you had been studying earlier. Only now, it was hovering in the air, while a disinterested Sicheng glanced at his fingernails. Seemingly satisfied with them, he picked up a separate document and began to read.
Your tired expression relaxed, the stressed wrinkles between your eyebrows dissipating as you felt the tension leave your body. A small smile lifted the corners of your lips, and a breath escaped your lips. Leaning your head on your hand, elbow propped up against the table, you continued to read.
The first time, you reached out to flip the page.
The second time, you leaned forward, and the page flipped itself.
The third time, you simply said, “Next.” By the fourth and fifth times, all you had to do was nod your head, and Sicheng would help you flip the page.
Meanwhile, Sicheng was sorting through the rest of the documents. He might seem nonchalant about the whole thing, but he could see how serious you were about it. He might not understand the importance of your brother’s arrest in the grand scheme of things, but he could see its significance to you, and that was enough for him to be in, to help you to the end.
Given how adamant you were on doing this manually, he decided that you at least needed a categorisation system, so while you read the contents of each document, he skimmed through the contents page and the titles on each set of papers.
Nicking a set of sticky notes and a pen from atop the desk, he began labelling each of them, colour coding documents on similar events or that came from the 6-month period. In between flipping your pages, he stacked up the documents with sticky notes of the same colour, slowly getting through the pile on the wooden table.
Between these two tasks, his fingers and his mind were both kept busy, and he didn’t notice how many hours had passed until he noticed that your drooping eyes had finally succumbed to the temptation and fallen shut, and you were slumped on the table, supported by your hand in an awkward position, wrist bent at an angle he didn’t think wrists should be able to bend at.
Sicheng glanced at the watch on your wrist. It was technically well into the morning now, and the sun would be rising in just a couple of hours. There were almost no more loose pieces of paper lying around anymore, since he’d managed to organise all of them, using staples and paper clips to hold them together.
Looking at the neat piles of unread documents, then again at the small pile that you’d gotten through, comments scribbled across multiple post-it notes in your harried script, Sicheng ran a hand through his dishevelled hair and sighed. This was going to take more than just one all-nighter.
And, knowing you, you’d refuse to rest between them.
Sicheng gently took your hand, rearranging you into a more comfortable posture for sleeping. He took the cushion he’d been resting his elbows on the whole night long, propping it under your head to support your neck, removing your hands from their prison, and felt the ice-cold chill of your fingertips.
He summoned a blanket from a forgotten corner of the study room, dusting it off before draping it over you. He rested your hands in your lap to keep them covered and warm, before getting up to leave.
It wouldn’t be good to be caught here with you.
The rest of the castle was already waking up, so Sicheng got to his feet and brushed a hand through his hair to tame it. He grabbed his coat from the stand by the door, casting his reflection one last glance, peering closely to see how bad the circles under his eyes were—could be worse, he thought—before leaning to press an ear against the oaken door to listen for passing footsteps.
Convinced that the hallway was empty, he cautiously opened the door, careful not to wake you up as he left. He took great care to walk slowly, with purpose, so no one could hear how loudly and quickly his heart was beating at this risky move.
He made his way back to his quarters to wash up and prepare for the day. You could coop yourself up inside to do your digging if you wanted to, but his job would still go on.
When you awoke later, you would find a still-hot mug of ginger tea on your table—good for drinking on an empty stomach—and you would know that Sicheng had sent it for you.
masterlist | < prev | next >
69 notes
·
View notes