Mi-young hopped out of the team van, bobbing excitedly as she shielded her eyes with her hand against the bright yellow sun gleaming in the clear blue sky above. The weather was absolutely perfect, and reminded her of her home in the sea- not too cold, not too warm, with a soft breeze strangely like the cool water currents that ran through her undersea realm. It was much louder here, though. The chirps of various birds sang through the air, cascading from the leafy green trees that filled the wide park that they had arrived in. There was a large amount of people, as well, talking on their phones or to each other as they strolled across the concrete sidewalks. It was exciting, and Mi-young was elated to spend the afternoon exploring this new environment.

“What pretty flowers!” she exclaimed as she rushed over to a bush to smell the cute little yellow blooms spotting its leafy green surface. They smelled like sweet nectar, and she drank in the scent while the boys chuckled in amusement behind her.

“Mi-young, you’re so easily fascinated. It’s so cute,” Xiumin chuckled from behind her. She glanced up with innocent blue eyes, smiling in satisfaction. The other boys were smiling fondly at her, and she bounced back to the group as Baekhyun beckoned for her. He threw an arm casually around her shoulder, his other hand tucked into his jeans pocket, making her feel slightly warm.

“We’re gonna have lots of fun today,” he smiled down at her, and she nodded in agreement.

“Thank you for bringing me!” she thanked them all happily, and got a bunch of embarrassed mumbles and nervous chuckles in return. Practically glowing with happiness, she allowed Baekhyun to steer her along the concrete path while she drank in the multitude of sights around her.

To her right, a family sat on a plush blanket with a wicker basket, different kinds of foods piled around them. A mother and father watching happily as their children ran in circles around them, playing tag. The mother had a smartphone in her hands, taking many pictures. Mi-young was still unsure quite how the complex device worked, and had had little success when she had swiped Baekhyun’s phone to take what Kai referred to as “selfies.”

To her left, a woman had a strange, fluffy creature attached to a weird-looking rope. The animal had a fluffy tail that constantly moved back and forth, and its tongue lolled out of its mouth as it sniffed around. As the group of idols and the mermaid in disguise neared, the strange creature suddenly released a noise and bounded over to her, springing onto its hind legs to plant its front feet on her chest and happily her face. Both alarmed and charmed, she just giggling and attempted to evade the creature’s curious display of affection. She gave it a pat on the head, making its entire body wiggle and beg her for more. “Oh, you are so cute!’ she gushed as she excitedly petted the animal, while its breathless owner jogged over.

“I’m sorry. She gets excited around strangers,” the owner puffed as she retrieved the strange rope and tugged lightly at the animal. Whining, it retreated and followed its owner, returning to its happy state seconds later.

“What was that adorable thing?” she whispered to Baekhyun.

“A dog,” he murmured back with an amused smile on his face.

“Are they all that friendly?” she inquired as they continued down the path.

“Pretty much, yeah,” he chuckled as he motioned to a free spot on the lush, green grass. “Hey guys, that looks like a good spot, don’tcha think?” he called to his comrades, and they all nodded in agreement and exited the path to plod over to the empty area. Mi-young blinked in wonder as Tao produced a strangely round yet oblong object from his bag, yelling at Luhan to “go long” before throwing the object to him. Luhan cried out and ran desperately for the thing, but ended up tripping over himself and landing flat on his face. The object landed a few feet away, bouncing a bit before settling in the grass.

“What is this?” she asked as she trotted up to the brown object, picking it up and turning it over in her hands with curiosity.

“It’s a football, Mi-young,” Kris clarified for her, plucking the ball out of her hands and tossing it into the air. He caught it deftly, grinning at her. “It’s a popular game, all over the world. We come here to play when we have down time.”

“Ooh! Teach me how to play!” she pleaded with wide eyes at the boys. Mermaids had games as well, but this sounded like something she had never experienced in the world under the waves, and was almost rabid with curiosity. “Please?” Baekhyun nodded to Kris, who promptly tossed the ball to him. The black-haired boy gestured for her, and she obediently trotted over, staring intently at the ball.

“Okay, Mi-young. It’s very simple,” he explained. “The objective is to get this ball to their goal. They are going to try and stop us by knocking us over. Don’t worry about the rest; you’ll pick that up later. Just listen to what your team says, okay?” he told her. It sounded easy enough to the mermaid, and she nodded in affirmation. With a smirk, Baekhyun ordered for the boys to line up, and he and Chanyeol picked teams. Mi-young watched as the boys were divvied up between the two, until only she was left. “Okay, Mi-young. You’re on Chanyeol’s team,” Baekhyun decided as he sized up the teams, finding that his side was a little stacked. Slightly disappointed she would not be playing with Baekhyun, she pranced over to Chanyeol’s side nonetheless, giving him a high-five and a grin.

“Let’s kick some !” Tao crowed excitedly as the two teams separated to their respective sides. Mi-young followed Chanyeol’s instructions to remain towards the back and try to stop anyone who came down the field, and she stood resolute in her designated area. Baekhyun’s team received the ball first, and Kris squatted down with his behind in the air with the ball held on the ground, Xiumin standing directly behind him. He shouted something before tossing the ball through his legs to Xiumin, and the other boys darted off towards their side of the field. Xiumin took a few steps back, glancing around to gauge who to pass the ball to; then, he threw the ball powerfully to a running Baekhyun, who caught it deftly and came charging down the field towards her. Grimacing in concentration, she stepped out in front of him in an attempt to stop him.

“Wah! Mi-young, don’t!” he cried and attempted to slow himself down, but only ended up tripping on his feet. With a startled cry, he barreled into the determined mermaid, and she wrapped her arms around him as he slammed into her; her feet dug into the ground, but his momentum and superior size ended up knocking her off-balance and bowling her over. With startled cries, they both tumbled to the ground, and the ball sprung from Baekhyun’s hands. Mi-young wriggled out from underneath Baekhyun, stretching out on her belly to retrieve it.

“I got it!” she crowed triumphantly, breathless with leaves and grass entwined in her hair. The boys came rushing over, but then began laughing as she beamed up at them, seemingly unharmed.

“Who knew Mi-young was so tough?” D.O. cackled as he prodded Baekhyun with a toe. “Oi, get off the lady. She ain’t a pillow.”

“Wah! Mi-young, did I hurt you?” Baekhyun squeaked as he jumped off of her, gently pulling her to her feet. Mi-young brushed herself off, shaking her head.

“Nope! I’m perfectly fine. Does this mean we win?” she asked with a grin.

“No, that just means first down. They have three more downs before we get to take the ball,” Chanyeol mused as he took the ball from D.O. and passed it back to Kris. “Are you sure you aren’t hurt?” he fretted as the boys clustered worriedly around her. She repeatedly denied any injuries, and the boys reluctantly returned to their positions. Mi-young trotted to her spot, filled with adrenaline, and prepared for the next rush.

They played a hard game, and Baekhyun’s team ended up winning narrowly by sneaking past Mi-young’s defense at the last minute. Sweaty and exhilarated, they all settled under the shade of a large tree while praising the mermaid for her surprising hardiness.

“Seriously, Mi-young, you’re scrappy for such a tiny thing,” Sehun remarked as he downed a bottled water. She beamed under all the praise, self-satisfied.

“Well, I have five brothers,” she explained shyly.

“Oh, you remembered a little about your family?” Suho asked in curiosity. Baekhyun raised a concerned eyebrow at her, and she made a mental note to proceed more tactfully.

“A little bit. I recall playing something like this with them. I guess that’s why I picked up the rules so easily!” she laughed lightly as she picked leaves and blades of grass out of her dark black hair. “They toughened me up a lot, so I could hold my own. They’re all older than me, and because they wouldn’t always be around to keep me safe, they wanted to make sure I wasn’t completely helpless.” Little do they know, their preferred method was shark-wrestling, she mused silently. She was amazed she even survived the ordeal, now that she thought back on it.

“Man, I’m beat. Hey, Lay, where are those sandwiches?” Kai asked exhaustedly as he leaned back against the tree. Prompted, the dark-haired boy dug into his back and fished out several food items wrapped in clear plastic, distributing them among the group members. “Here, Mi-young, this one is peanut butter and jelly,” he told her quietly as he held out a sandwich to her. She took it, unsure what quite to expect as she unwrapped it and took a giant bite.

“It’s sweet- and salty!” she observed aloud as she chewed. She then frowned as it became hard to chew, with the thick, light brown paste sticking to her teeth. As she struggled to dislodge pieces of bread from the roof of , the boys all laughed at the funny faces she was making. “Ish not funny!” she whined with full, prompting more giggles. Finally, she finished the sandwich with much struggle, and by then the boys were all holding their sides and snickering. She pouted as they calmed down.

“You’re just too cute, Mi-young. We can’t help it,” Chanyeol sighed as he wiped tears from his eyes. The boys gave a raucous round of agreement, and she could not help but beam in happiness. She then nestled up to Baekhyun in the shade, rolling on her back to curl up beside him and close her eyes. He stirred a little, making a grunting noise, but then eased back into relaxation. Listening to the sounds dancing on the air, she just enjoyed the slightly cool air beneath the leafy branches. It reminds me of napping under the sea… Laying on a sponge bed, with the current drifting in and the sounds of fish gliding through the water… she thought wistfully. Though she was homesick, something about dozing in the sun was that much more enjoyable. Under the water, there was no sun to warm your skin unless you dared to venture onto a beach and risk exposure; no, below, it was always that mild coolness, and the same blue expanse above. Up here… Everything is always bustling, and there is always something new. Maybe… Home isn’t where I want to be after all, she thought with a frown. Her eyes drifted open, and she stole a glance at the cluster of boys around her, all softly dozing in the warm summer day. Do I really want to leave this?

“What’re you thinking about?” Baekhyun asked softly, starling her. She jerked to glance up at him, and he was gazing down at her with one eye cracked open, a slightly smirk on his lips. There seemed to be something sad hiding in the edges of his expression. “Home?”

“No,” she lied, not wishing to upset him. “I was just thinking about how much fun I’ve had today.” He nodded and glanced up at the sky, watching the fluffy white clouds roll by. Before she can say anything, she gasped as a small creature suddenly fluttered into her face. It was a tiny thing, with paper-thin wings bursting with color. It paraded in front of her before fluttering off, and she rose from the ground to follow after it, getting the sudden urge to capture the strange little thing and take a closer look.

“Hey, Mi-young! Wait!” Baekhyun cried as she suddenly took off after the little animal. She ignored him as she ran through the grass, following its uneven path throughout the park. Behind her, she heard the boys all shouting and clamoring to catch up to her, but the mermaid was solely focused on the small bird-like thing. Finally, when she was nearing the end of her endurance, it landed lightly on a flower and waved its antennae around; it was then that Mi-young snuck up on it and closed her hands around it. She felt it flutter frantically within her palms, and she waiting for its panic to quiet before slowly opening her hands. She hissed at the boys to approach slowly as they came storming around the corner, and with confused expressions, they obeyed her peculiar command. The little winged creature sat on her palm, its antennae bobbing against her skin. Mi-young’s blue eyes widened as she took in the gorgeous thing.

“It’s a butterfly,” Baekhyun murmured over her shoulder, so close that it almost made her jump and scare her catch away. She managed to remain rigid, but felt heat rising to her cheeks as she felt him hovering over her shoulder. He was so close that she felt their cheeks brush against each other, and she tried not to tremble as she held the butterfly.

“It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” she managed despite her nervousness, and looked back down at it. Its wings were dark as night, with light blue bands near the edges. It was quite large, nearly the size of her palm, yet it felt so fragile, like any sudden movement would shatter the delicate creature. All the boys stared wide-eyed and captivated alongside her until it finally flapped its dark wings and flew away, off to find more flowers. They lingered in the magic of the moment before Baekhyun sighed heavily and prodded Mi-young firmly in the forehead. “Ow!” she whined, though she was deserving of the punishment.

“How many times have I told you not to run off?” he scolded lightly.

“I wanted to catch it, though!” she whined back as she rubbed her forehead. She feared another explosive scolding, but instead he just smiled weakly and ruffled her hair roughly.

“What am I going to do with you? You’ll give me gray hairs,” he chuckled softly. There was a warmth in his eyes that made her heart quiver, but there was also a certain pain there that she could not comprehend. It was there almost every time he looked at her. What could it be? Why is he sad? She thought, unable to come up with an answer. Not lingering on the issue, she smiled dryly.

“I think you’d look quite dignified with gray hair, Baekhyun,” she remarked tactfully, causing him to chuckle and poke her in the forehead again. The boys and she began to all banter back and forth, teasing and shoving one another as they made their way back to the car. Mi-young forgot all about her longing for home, and the sad look in Baekhyun’s eyes- at least for that moment.