Kang Mirae wasn't a big fan of her father's. He wasn't a bad person, exactly, but every time they met, they got caught up in one argument or another, usually because her dad was bad at expressing his feelings and he phrased everything in a negative light. He was a perfectionist, but when something irritated him, he took his anger out on others. He would get moody for hours at a time, until things started going his way. His attitude pissed her off to no end, but she bared with it. It's not like she saw him very often anyway.

Today was his birthday. Mirae made a mental promise with herself to just let him do whatever he wanted and play along. If he said something insensitive to her, she would ignore it. If he was upset over something stupid, she'd try to distract him instead of calling him whiny. In other words, she promised she'd actually give a crap about the day going well.

She failed.

She agreed to go pick up some food with him for the party tonight, but everything felt like it was going downhill from the moment she said "sure". By the time they left the garage, he had already commented on her losing too much weight since the last time he saw her, the "disturbing" fact that she didn't have a boyfriend yet, and suggested that maybe she should go back to school because her current job wasn't paying very well.

She ignored every single comment, knowing he wouldn't react well if she told him the truth, simply because they have talked about all this before, and he could never handle the fact that she didn't care. The last two times they saw each other, he was telling her she gained too much weight, as if it had any effect on his life at all. No matter how much she explained it to him, he couldn't seem to understand that her weight just changed very easily - she was capable of losing and gaining a whole two or three kilograms in just one day, and there was nothing she could do about it. She never had a boyfriend at 22, because she never met anybody she was interested in, and rejected all attempts to seduce her, but her dad was convinced it was because she was cold-hearted and nobody ever asked her out. He was unaware that he was the only person she acted this cold around, but she wouldn't dare point that out. Her job as an English teacher came with a perfectly acceptable salary, and she wasn't quite sure why he expected her to be earning nine digits in Korean Won only half a year after graduating college.

Needless to say, they were both pretty grumpy the entire car ride to the store.

On the way back home, they stopped at a gas station. Her dad went into the store to pick up a lottery ticket ("It's my birthday, let's see what luck brings my way!"), and Mirae took the opportunity to stay in the car by herself and calm down. She put in her earphones and blasted music, repeatedly telling herself, "It's his birthday. Be nice. Be nice." She closed her eyes and got engulfed in the song.

She felt the car doors open and sighed. Relaxing time was over. But when she pulled out her earphones and opened her eyes again, it wasn't her father sitting in the driver's seat. It was a boy with dirty blond hair wrapped with a colorful bandana, looking completely wacky. Mirae screamed, but the moment she turned to get out of the car, the door on her side flew open and another guy jumped in, pushing her to the inner edge of her seat. He was dressed all in black, and unlike the guy in the driver's seat, he had a serious, enigmatic feel to him. He stared intently ahead, completely ignoring the fact that he was nearly on top of her. Finally, when she screeched once more and turned to climb into the backseat, the back door also opened, and the last passenger boarded - a guy who looked like someone spilled an entire cup of strawberry smoothie on his head. But the pink hair sticking out from under his pink hat was nothing in comparison to what appeared to a be a utility belt wrapped around his waist, with a whole collection of knives and daggers attached. That was when Mirae decided, she was definitely going to die today.

"Go, Taehyung, go!" the guy in the back shouted and the driver murmured to himself, "Right is go, left is no," before slamming on the accelerator. Mirae screamed as loud as she could, but it was all drowned out by the screeching of the tires as her dad's SUV pulled out of the gas station. This Taehyung guy clearly had no idea what he was doing, and she began thinking that she would sooner die in a car crash than getting tortured by these kidnappers. The guy in the back kept yelling directions at the driver, who was screaming even louder than Mirae herself, making her question the entire point of this abduction. When they sped down the street, the only thought on her mind was "I can't die, I can't die, I can't die." She had to do something, but as soon as she reached for the door handle, completely willing to jump out of the car moving at 100 km an hour, the guy sitting in her seat pinned her to the backrest with his left arm, without even stealing a glance her way. She sunk into her seat, and began praying to nobody in particular.

The ride continued that way for a while. Over time, Taehyung's screams of fear and disbelief turned into whistles of fascination, and he seemed to enjoy every second of nearly crashing into the surrounding cars. He ran every single red light and stop sign, evaded all pedestrians, and miraculously didn't get a single scratch on the gigantic car he was driving clearly for the first time. Soon, they made it onto the highway, and things calmed down. The speed didn't seem so severe anymore, and there were many less cars to crash into. Mirae worked up the courage to speak up.

"Please let me go. You can have the car. And the food in the backseat. Just drop me off," she begged.

"There's food in the backseat?!" Taehyung's voice cracked in excitement.

"Eyes on the road!" the guy behind him called. Then, he turned to Mirae. "We can't let you go."

"I won't call the cops. You can have my phone. It's an old model, but it's still pretty good. There's nobody around here to pick me up, you'll be long gone by the time I get to call anyone anyway," she negotiated.

"I don't know what a phone is, but we don't need one. We need you, Kang Mirae," the boy stated in a soft voice, and Mirae almost wanted to ask what he needed help with, before snapping out of the trance. They were kidnappers. She wasn't entitled to helping them with anything.

"How... how do you know my name?" she asked instead, but the guy sharing her seat interrupted.

"We don't have time for this right now, Jimin. Later. Focus on the road. We'll have to switch seats soon, so Taehyung can take care of the portal."

"You're right. Taehyung, pull over. I'll take the lead."

Taehyung stopped suddenly by the side of the road, and switched places with Jimin, whose small body looked kind of silly behind the wheel of an SUV. Mirae could only dream of taking the opportunity to dash out, as the single arm pushing her against the back of the seat was much stronger than she expected. The car ride continued with only Jimin and Taehyung talking the entire time. They soon left the city behind them, and the sides of the road were lined with nothing but trees, forests probably miles long in each direction. Even if she managed to escape now, she'd probably get lost in the woods. They passed a car every so often, but Mirae couldn't even raise her arm to signal the drivers, and nobody seemed to pay enough attention to notice that there were three people sitting in the front of the car. She could only hope they would run into a police officer.

The road signs eventually began showing names of towns Mirae had never even heard of before, and panic kicked in. She had no idea where she was. Jimin just kept going straight, without a moment's hesitation, while Taehyung helped himself to the party food in the back. The mystery guy next to her didn't loosen his arm for even a second the entire time, making her highly uncomfortable. Claustrophobia slowly began creeping in, making breathing harder. This gave her an idea.

"I think I'm gonna be sick..." Mirae muttered, and the boy next to her glanced at her for the first time.

"Jungkook, why don't you let her go to the back?" Jimin suggested.

"No," Jungkook replied shortly. Mirae made a gagging sound and he flinched.

"Just let her lie down in the back. Taehyung's driving must have taken a toll on her stomach. It's no wonder."

"I can't... breathe..." Mirae began wheezing for real. The more she thought about it, the more her anxiety took over. She wasn't sure how much time had passed, but she had been in this tight space for way too long. She tried to calm down, but hyperventilation kicked in and there was no stopping it. Jungkook frowned at her for a moment, but realizing she wasn't faking it anymore, he told Jimin to stop the car.

Jimin pulled over, worry on his face. Taehyung observed from the back with a mouth full of mashed potatoes. Jungkook opened the door and pulled Mirae outside. The fresh air hit her face, but she still felt heavy.

"I need... space..." she wheezed, tears pouring out of her eyes. Jungkook hesitated, but let go of her arm and took a step backwards. Mirae took a few deep breaths, but didn't waste a second more than she had to. As soon as she felt herself calming down, she took off.

But there was no out-running Jungkook. He tackled her to the ground three seconds later. She wrestled with him for as long as she could, but ultimately he just swung her body over his shoulder, and took her back to the car. He put her next to Taehyung, letting her have two seats of space this time.

"We're almost there," he told her, closing the door and taking his seat in front. Mirae shut up and sat in shock, as the car began moving forward again.

She couldn't wrap her head around the situation. Was this not a kidnapping? Was it not for a ransom of some sort, or for the car and her belongings, or if not then for some twisted reason, like torture just for the sake of it? What other reason for kidnapping could there ever be? Why were these guys so gentle with her? Why did they have a dozen weapons on their person, yet not use a single one to even threaten her? And the more she began thinking about this logically, the more confused she grew. Didn't Jimin say earlier he didn't know what a phone was? And how did they know her name in the first place? And what did Jungkook mean by "portal"? These men had to be either mentally ill, or some new sort of genius. Or both.

Nobody talked anymore. The atmosphere grew kind of dark, and Mirae had a feeling the boys didn't like what was happening any more than she did. She grew hungry and wanted to use the bathroom, but didn't dare say anything. It was already dark by the time Jimin spoke up.

"We're here."

If by "here" he meant "nowhere," then he sure got that right, Mirae thought. Jimin took an exit off the highway and drove for a couple more kilometers down a completely dead street. Not a single building or living soul in sight. Then, suddenly, he took a sharp turn into the woods, and continued down a path made out of tire marks in the ground. No more asphalt, no more civilization.

"Where are we going?" Mirae asked, visited by courage once more.

"Somewhere very far from here," Taehyung sang in a deep voice, sending chills down her spine.

"I thought we were almost there?" she frowned.

"We are," Jimin nodded.

"That makes no sense."

"It will soon enough," he told her, before adding, "Can you swim?"

"Y-yes...? What's this about?"

"Everybody hold on," Jimin said. "We're going in. Jungkook, Mirae's your responsibility. Taehyung, the portal, please."

Jungkook jumped to the back seat next to Mirae's and grabbed her hand. She began feeling anxious again, unable to process the situation. Taehyung closed his eyes and began muttering under his breath. Jimin sped up once again, and the car started jumping from all the bumps on the forest road. Then, Mirae noticed it in the headlights - a small lake, about 100 meters ahead of them, right at the end of the road along which they were speeding.

"No. No no no, stop the car! Stop!" Mirae called, but Jimin sped up again. She began screaming and felt Jungkook's grip tighten on her hand. The glistening surface of the lake came closer with each second, and a moment later, the car flew off the edge of the small hill and crashed into what Mirae expected to be freezing water. But she could hear nothing. Her vision got very blurry for a moment, as if she was moving at an unbelievably high speed. She could only feel the seat beneath her, and Jungkook's strong hand around hers. And as if reacting late, the car finally began filling with water.

"Hold your breath," Jungkook whispered, and Mirae did as he said. The guys then opened the doors and swam out. Jungkook dragged Mirae behind him, helping her to the surface. The moment her head broke through the water, she gasped, but more in shock than due to lack of air. It was daytime. The lake was now nothing but a tiny pond, and grassy fields stretched out in every direction. A man a few years older than Mirae ran up to the edge of the water, waving at them to swim toward him. When they finally stepped on land, Jungkook let go of Mirae's hand.

"No injuries," Taehyung announced proudly. "Mission accomplished."

"Thank goodness," the new guy let out a sigh of relief. "Welcome back."

"This is our healer, Jin," Jimin introduced him. Mirae ignored him, spat out some water and wrung out her soaked T-shirt. "Jin, this is Kang Mirae. She's our new Catalyst."