The feeling of dropping envelops me— the same feeling as being on a rollercoaster. I scream. What was I thinking? Everything is black- or is that because my eyes are closed? Where will I land? Tears refuse to spill out because I’m falling so quickly. I know I’m going to die and this scares the living daylights out of me. I’ve never felt so hopeless and alone. At first I scream harder but I try to rationalize myself. The only other person is the man. I relax into the touch, letting myself be braced. Somehow this skinship is calming. But my whole body feels weak. Unable to fight the darkness. My eyes are closed and I let myself trust him.

Then suddenly my touches the ground and we gently stop. I grab the ground around, feeling the warm grass under my fingers.

Warm grass? 

I force open my eyes and my breath is stolen away.

This is not possible.

A vast landscape stretches across my view, one that I didn’t even know existed in Korea. In the world. It’s no longer snowy, but a green forest that looks stuck in summer. Wind ruffles my hair and my whole body tingles in the sun. All traces of fear dissipate within seconds. I’m on a grassy hill looking down over a forest. There is a bright blue waterfall shimmering in the distance that seems to pull me into it. The whole landscape is like a picture that has been digitally enhanced. It's so warm that my shivering dies down within 30 seconds. He releases his grip on my torso and stands up beside me. I glance up at him and his silhouette against the clear blue sky is perfect. He looks down and my dark eyes meet his orbs that I couldn't explain the colour of if I tried.

“Have you heard of the Fae?”

The question strikes a bullet in my heart. My grandmother would tell me stories about a mischievous people called Faeries. They live deep in forest and resemble humans for the most part. The Fae are said to be the most beautiful people.

I stare at him who smirks back. I find myself reluctantly able to believe anything. I have to try not to laugh from the sheer craziness of this. Magic doesn’t exist. I didn’t make it though so many years of excruciating school work and depression for magic to be real.

“Follow me.”

He takes my hand and pulls me up, leading me down a stone laden path. It swirls down the side of the emerald hill and I stumble even though the man isn’t going fast. It leads down into the summer forest below and the cool wind brushes off my worries. I look and see he isn’t wearing shoes, and that his bare feet are exposed to the elements, yet isn't having any problems walking.

The sun lays soft warm kisses on his exposed skin. His arms and face radiate. He seems so different than in the winter forest, like he himself has changed seasons— it might because the glow around him has changed. He walks slowly to let me find my footing and I scramble down the steep rock path. We descend into the forest and the smell of the trees fills my nose. The dirt padded around the tree’s roots is the same color as it is in the jungle I’ve only seen through photos. It has such a different energy than the woods I live in… Lived in?

The sound of rustling foliage surrounds me and the air is perfectly clean and sweet. He leads me onto a flat dirt path that makes crunching noises when I step. I don’t hear his footsteps though— He appears to be moving silently.

We approach a clearing very similar to the one before, except that there’s a young boy here. He's crouched down, back facing us, and he's playing with something on the ground. He has white blonde hair that is ringed by a crown of foliage, except not pink like the man’s but pale baby blue. I’m tentative to distract him from what he’s doing but the man next to me isn’t, and he approaches the boy. 

“Taemin-ah, I brought someone.”

The little boy turns his milky white face to the voice.

“Jonghyun hyung!” he says cheerfully.

The little boy who’s name is Taemin smiles in a way that lights up his face beautifully. He glows with a sort of innocence that is rare. His pointed ears stick out from his fluffy white hair, and eyes are indescribably coloured, just like the man who I know now is Jonghyun but with colder colors.

Jonghyun is a pretty common name— although I think it fits the extraordinarily uncommon man, or Fae, that stands next to me.

Taemin’s small and skinny stature is confirmed in full when he stands up and runs to Jonghyun. 

“Hyung! I was picking flowers for my mother but then you interrupted me and I saw you have a new friend! Will you introduce him, please?” 

He isn’t older than nine but has a mature spark in his voice that I pick up on. He bows to me and I’m caught off guard.

I bow back, lower than I normally would. 

“Hello,” I say, sounding more shy than I mean to.

“Ahh, your friend is pretty,” Taemin says to Jonghyun, making my heart leap. “Are you in love? Should I tell daddy that Jjong hyung finally found a lover?”

Jonghyun chuckles, a sound that outdoes the faint birds chirping in the back, and I internally freak out. I first saw this man all of an hour ago, he is hardly my lover. This child is so straight forward.

“Uncle Key. That sounds right. Daddy can give him a big house and lots of food. Doesn’t that sound fun?”

Taemin smiles at me, snow-colored hair bobbing in the gentle forest breeze. I have a family back home, or a family member, not that she’d miss me. My grandmother doesn’t seem to care about anything in this point in her life, she probably wouldn’t care that I’m gone… but this is so sudden. Besides, I’m too young.

“Since I brought you here you need to come see our ruler,” Jonghyun tells me. I seize up. I remember hearing about a ruler from my grandma when I was young and she would read me stories. The ruler, a celestial being whom nobody should cross. I have to see him?

“Daddy will like you. He doesn’t like humans much but you’re special, I can tell.”

I make the connection, Taemin’s father is the ruler. Taemin abandons the bouquet of wild flowers he was picking for his mom and walks up to Jonghyun and I.

“Uncle Key, even if you don’t marry Jong hyung can I still call you that? I really like you.”

I feel strangely humbled that this ethereal little boy has taken to me so much, but weirded out by his pleas for me to marry his hyung.

“Of course. I hardly know you though, and I’m confused to what’s happening,” I say, making my voice as calm and warm as possible.

“Taemin, I haven’t told him yet. He heard my voice and followed me farther than anyone else has. He’s only known me since this morning.”

“Told me what?” I ask quietly. I look over at Jonghyun and I wonder how his cheekbones can be so defined. 

“It’s a custom for us to marry young. However, I don’t like anyone here and it’s policy to marry somebody you love.”

Taemin nods and I don’t reply. Jonghyun starts walking again, our hands not connected but I’m still following. Taemin trots up to my side and he outstretches one of his hands. I take it and he’s warmer than I imagined, considering he seems like he would have no body heat.

“So you thought you’d find love by singing in the woods?” I ask. It doesn’t seem like calling out to people not of his own race, like me, would find him love. He shrugs. We go to a thicker patch of forest, and then it thins out again. What I see there is incredible. There’s a large pool of water in the middle of the ground, the color of an aquamarine gemstone, shining so brightly I can’t imagine it’s real. It glints, reflecting the sun high in the sky. There’s a man sitting by it, and he looks regal. He has robes on that are brilliant green, mirroring the colors of the leaves around him. His pretty eyes glimmer, letting off warm shades of nature. He glows stronger than Jonghyun, an aura of yellow, and has the same kind of pointed ears poking out from under his beige-y pink hair.

Jonghyun bows and Taemin hurries up to him, giving him a large hug. 

“Daddy, Jonghyun-hyung found someone!” Taemin exclaims.

“I did," Jonghyun confirms. "King Onew, this is Kibum,” he continues, introducing me right on the spot. I realize this man is the ruler and I bow so low my back makes a cracking noise. King Onew chuckles.

“Nice to meet you.” He turns to Jonghyun. “Are you sure this man is suitable?”

"Yes, if he would have me."

If I would have him? Of course... I just don't know if I can leave my old life from something I've known for a couple of hours. I'm extremely tempted to though. It's not like there was anything for me back there. Maybe I should just stay here and be happy? I realize that the next words I speak will alter my future. If I agree or not. 

Yeah, why not?

"I will."

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I hope you enjoyed reading this short story as much as I enjoyed writing it^^