Chapter 1 - Pocahontas

“This place is perfect!” The young entrepreneur exclaimed, handing the map to a staff member behind him. “We will use this piece of land for our resort then.” He took his sunglasses off and tucked them into his shirt pocket. “Call the construction crew; we need to start as soon as possible.” 

“But Miss Song has to review the location site first before we can start the construction.”

Nichkhun sighed at the mention of his business partner. “Fine, set up camp here. We can’t leave until Victoria gets here.” The staff put down their equipment and began to take the tents out to build.

He exhaled again, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looked around their surroundings. It was a beautiful island in the middle of the North Pacific, with a land area of approximately 1000km2. He wasn’t one to enjoy nature as he much preferred to stay in an air conditioned room and keep clean, but he had to admit this island was incredible. He grabbed his camera and walked away from the group, his attention drawn to the woods.

“Mr Horvejkul! Where are you going?”

“I’m going to get some pictures.” He replied, “I’ll come back later.”

“The sun will set soon though.” His assistant said as he looked out into the horizon.

“I’ll be back before dark then.” Nichkhun rephrased, turning his camera on as he ventured into the woods; too confident that he would know the way back.

The camera beeped, signalling the memory card was almost full.

“Damn it, did I forget the other card in the case?” He muttered, patting his pockets. He looked up at the sky and saw it was an orange and pink shade now since the sun was setting. He browsed through his pictures, satisfied at how most of them had turned out and he deleted the ones that didn’t look as good. Holding the camera up to eye level, he focused it on an exotic looking plant and was about to take the picture when he noticed something in the background through the viewfinder.

The camera lens focused out from the plant and onto the shape in the background, allowing Nichkhun to see clearly. His eyes widened and he lowered the camera, eyes completely focused on the girl in front of him. It wasn’t a girl from his team, it was a girl from…this island. She stood a fair distance away from him and looked just as surprised, so they just both stood still and stared at each other. She had long black hair, tanned skin, alluring eyes and in other words; just breathtakingly beautiful.

Nichkhun took a tentative step closer and she immediately darted away. 

“Wait! Don’t leave!” Nichkhun ran after her but she was swift and clearly knew her way through the forest. He kept stumbling over logs and rocks but continued to follow her until they reached a tall pine tree to which she climbed up until she was a good ten metres above ground and away from him. Nichkhun panted, leaning against the tree. “Don’t run away.” He said, catching his breath. “I’m not going to hurt you.” He looked up at her and she was sitting on a branch, still staring at him curiously. “Do you even understand me?” He asked.

A long moment passed before she nodded and he was glad she did. 

“My name is Nichkhun.” He called out, making sure she heard him clearly. “What about you?”

She slowly made her way down the trunk and then jumped down in front of him before standing up straight.

“What is that?” She asked, looking at his camera.

“Oh this? It’s a camera.” He said, holding it up. “It takes pictures.”

“How?” She looked intrigued.

“Do you want me to show you?” He suggested and she looked hesitant at first, like she was doubtful about trusting him but her curiosity got the best of her and she nodded. He showed her his pictures of the forest and she got excited when she saw the familiar scenery. He then demonstrated how to take a picture and let her try using the camera. She was still fascinated at the idea of an object being able to capture images and Nichkhun couldn’t stop smiling at how innocent and cute she was.

“So, what’s your name?” He asked again when they sat down underneath a willow tree together.

“Yuri.” She replied, brushing hair out of her face when the wind blew past.

“Yuri.” He repeated. “A beautiful name for a beautiful girl.” He grinned.

“Thank you.” She smiled at him. “And you are Nichkhun?” She asked carefully. He nodded, secretly happy that she remembered his name. “Where are you from?”

“I come from far, far away.” He told her, looking out at the sunset.

“The place you come from… What is it like?” She asked, following his gaze.

“It’s a very big place.” He said. “With lots of buildings, cars and roads.”

“How big?”

“Very big. Maybe like 100 times the area of here.”

“It’s small here.” She commented.

“So, you live here?”

“Of course.”

“With who?”

“With father. And all the other villagers.”

Nichkhun sat up, alerted when he heard her reply. “Other villagers? How many people is that? How long have you lived here? You own this island?” He asked urgently and Yuri looked taken aback by his sudden outburst.

“Why do you need to know?”

“Sorry, I was just curious about the island’s history.” He didn’t want to scare her away so he didn’t continue pestering her.

“Why are you here?” She asked. “What are you doing on our island?”

Nichkhun was beginning to sweat nervously and he quickly looked for an excuse. “I’m a photographer!” He grabbed his camera. “Remember? I take pictures.”

“Oh.” Yuri nodded. “Father said that people who come from across the sea want to take our land.”

“And what does he think about that?” Nichkhun was trying to hide his nervousness. He didn’t know there were inhabitants on the island, and now things were just going to get much more complicated.

“He says they will never take our land. It is our ancestors’ sacred land and we must protect it.”

His heart dropped. “What happens if…” He hesitated. “If someone does come and try to take your land?”

“For what?” She asked.

He bit his lip, feeling guilty. “To build things here. Like a resort or something.”

“Will they cut down the woods?”

“Yes…”

Her eyebrows creased and she shook her head, “That can never happen. I won’t allow it.”

“Why? If things get built here, you can live in nicer houses and have better technology. Your living standards will improve.”

“That’s not what I want.” She replied quickly. “I like nature, I like being in the woods and I like being with my people. I don’t want other people to come and invade our land.”

We already have. Nichkhun opened his mouth to say something else when he heard someone shout his name from a distance. From the sound of footsteps, it seemed like a big group were looking for him. He turned to her, disappointed that he had to part ways with her. “Yuri I need to go.” He said.

“Why? Who is it?” She asked, looking around them.

“My friends. They help take pictures.” He lied. “They’re looking for me so I need to go back to them.”

“I will leave then.” She was about to but Nichkhun grabbed her hand to stop her.

“Wait! Can…Can I see you again?”

There was a moment’s hesitation before she replied. “I will be at the waterfall before sunrise.”

“Waterfall?” He couldn’t ask any more because his group was already nearby and Yuri immediately disappeared into the foliage.

“Mr Horvejkul! We found you!” His assistant ran over.

“I was about to go back.” Nichkhun replied, looking over his shoulder at where she disappeared off to. He already missed her and wanted to see her again.

“Yuri!” Her father ran towards her. “Where were you?” He demanded.

“I was just in the woods.”

“Did you see anyone?” He asked worriedly, holding her by the shoulders. Something was clearly wrong since her father never got worried about her being in the woods.

“No.” She decided not to tell him about Nichkhun. “I didn’t.”

“Be careful when you’re out by yourself. Actually, don’t wander off for now. It’s dangerous.”

“Why is it dangerous? Father, what happened?” She asked, following him into their hut.

“Our men said they saw people arriving on our shores with boats. They might be here to steal our land.”

“W-What?” Yuri gasped.

Her father nodded and his expression was grave. “We need to wait longer to see what they want. We don’t want to fight with them; peace is what we are after.” He turned around to face his daughter. “I know I can’t stop you from wandering, but please be careful. If you see any of the intruders, run away immediately. Understood?”

Yuri looked down at her feet, nodding slowly. “I understand.”

He poked his head out of his tent, looking around the campsite. Everyone else was still in their tents and he quietly crept out, being careful not to wake anyone up. It was a little dark since the sun was still asleep but he had a torch to light the way.

“Waterfall…” He mumbled, wandering into the woods. “How do I find it?” He walked quietly, taking cautious steps but stopped immediately when he heard a rustle to his left. He turned around quickly, holding up the torch and fully alert. “Who’s there?”

There was more rustling and a small raccoon popped out from a bush. Nichkhun sighed in relief, knowing it was only an animal. “Hey there.” He knelt down, smiling at the cute animal. “Do you know where the waterfall is?” The raccoon busied himself with its mouth and Nichkhun noticed its snout was wet. It dawned on him that the raccoon must’ve gotten water from somewhere, like a stream or pond. “Oh! Thanks buddy!” He got back to his feet, excitedly running to the direction the raccoon came from. He was right with his assumption and found a small stream with gentle flowing water. He walked along the side of the stream heading uphill and as he got closer, he heard the sound of rushing water. Excitement coursed through his veins and he increased his pace, eager to see her again.

The small waterfall was in view now and the beauty of it took his breath away. It was like he was in a whole new world and he regretted not bringing his camera to capture the sight. He stood on the rocks beside the lake and looked down at the clear blue water that was pure and unpolluted and he began to understand why they wanted to protect the island.

He heard a twig snap from behind him and he quickly spun around to see Yuri approaching from behind a tree.

“You found it.” She said, walking over next to him.

“Did you want me to?” He joked, smiling but noticed that she looked bothered by something. 

“Are you alright?”

“Yes.” She kept her eyes on the ground and kicked a small rock into the lake.

“No you’re not.” He tilted her head up so their gazes could meet. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. It’s not a big deal.” She shook her head, feeling her heart beating in her chest in a way she never felt before.

“Is there anything I can do to make you happier?” He asked, not liking the sight of her being upset.

“Will you do anything?” A playful look appeared on her face and he nodded, willing to do whatever she asked of him. “Come with me.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him with her.

He ran behind her as she led him up to the top of the rocky cliff. “Woah.” He said, peering over the side where the waterfall was rushing down . It was a little nerve wracking standing up so high and he hoped she wasn’t planning to-

“Jump.” Yuri said with a grin.

“What?” He blinked.

“Come on!” She urged.

Since he had promised to do whatever she wanted, he went along with her plan. “Do you always do this?” He asked nervously as they stood at the edge.

“Every day.” She laughed. “Ready?”

“Okay…One, two...”

“Go!” Yuri leaped off the side excitedly, pulling him along since they were holding hands and Nichkhun yelled as they plummeted down. Yuri dove into the water gracefully while he splashed in messily.

Yuri laughed when he resurfaced, coughing water and gasping for bre