I was dragged out the bedroom before I could process what the prince had just said. I was about to ask him to repeat what he said, when I saw that a coat, thick clothes, boots, and other winter wear were set up on the bed of my room that Yunho stayed in.

That was when I noticed that Yunho was already dressed in layers of winter gear. “What-,”

“Hurry up and change!” he left the room, slamming the door behind him.

I frowned, not liking the idea of leaving in the middle of the night. The temperature was the lowest at this time, and the conditions outside made it difficult to travel. Not to mention, it’s the middle of the night! And Yunho was still not healthy enough to go back.

My shoulders dropped as I let out a sigh. But he was excited about this. I had never seen him this happy before, if happy at all. Nor do I think he’s ever been this happy before. I groaned, “This is a horrible idea.” I murmured as I reluctantly changed into the clothes on the bed.

It was an awful idea. But how do you turn down someone who’s never experienced genuine happiness like this before?

Ever.

I prayed that health and luck would be on our side, or at least mine. If Yunho got even more sick, I could help him. But if we both got sick, we’d have to wait until my parents returned, and I don’t know when they’ll be back.

I also prayed that this garden was real. I still held some doubt, but for Yunho’s sake, I hope we find it.

“Ready?” Yunho beamed when I entered the living room.

I nodded.

“Great! Let’s go.” He headed out the door first.

I flipped on my hood and followed him out, shutting the door behind us. The horse was already prepared. “Do Yoochun and Junsu know we’re leaving?”

“No. But we’ll be back before they get up.” He quickly climbed onto the horse.

I hesitated before climbing on behind him. “Yunho,” I called his name firmly. “Look at me.”

He turned to face me.

“Are you sure you’re okay to ride in this weather?” I stared him firmly in his eyes.

“Yes, I’m fine.” He brushed off.

“Yunho.”

“Really. I can make this trip.” He insisted and turned back around.

I sighed, not completely believing him. I contemplated about bringing medicine with us, but it was too late. The fire prince hit the reigns and the thoroughbred horse took off at a great speed. I instantly grabbed onto his shoulders, preventing myself from falling.

Thankfully there wasn’t any wind, but it was still very cold, and I was still concerned for Yunho, nonetheless. I had no idea where we were going. The further we traveled, the emptier and more uniform the land began to look because of the snow. It would’ve been easy to get lost if it wasn’t for the distinct landmarks. I explained the landmarks to Yunho, telling him the story behind them and where we were.

We only stopped a few times for Yunho to look at the map. However, he only glanced at the maps and studied something else in his hands. It seemed like it was a small item. It was hard to look over his shoulders, so I couldn’t see what it was. However, after a couple hours passed when he grew irritated.

It wasn’t until a little over another hour later when we stopped for the last time. I scrunched my brow, recognizing where we were.

We weren’t far from the palace. We were at the park he and I sat at, the night of the winter ball. It was my favorite park to go to, to clear my mind or even to study.

“What the heck?” Yunho growled in frustration. He hopped off the horse, staring hard at the small item in his hand.

I climbed down from the horse and walked over to him. “What’s wrong?” I asked, already figuring out what the problem was.

“The maps led me here, but this thing won’t show me where to go next.” He grumbled.

I leaned forward, finally able to see what the small figure in his hands was. My eyes slightly widened. “Whoa! What’s that?”

The prince quickly hid the small item behind his back. “Y-You aren’t supposed to see it yet.” He stumbled over his words.

I raised an eyebrow. “Well, maybe I can help.” I suggested.

He contemplated for a little bit before reluctantly giving in.

He slowly removed his hands from his back and opened his palm to reveal his secret item. “It’s a 4-layered ring.” He murmured as I picked it up out of his hand. “Is this real snow?” I asked in amazement, studying the intricate ring.

He nodded, “It’s all real. The snow never melts. The flower petals never wilt, and the leaves never die. Each layer is supposed to represent the 4 four seasons.”

I looked at him in astonishment. “Seriously?”

He nodded again.

“That’s amazing.” I returned to the ring.

“It was Queen Konomi’s ring.” He added.

My eyes shot wide. I looked back at him. “What?! How did you get this?! Did you seal it?!”

This time his eyes widened at my accusation. “No!” He spat offended. “The lady at the jewelry shop gave it to me. Apparently, Queen Konomi had given it to her personal servant before she died, and it was probably just passed down from there.”

I scrunched my brow, both shocked and confused. “Why did she give it to you?” I thought aloud.

He scoffed at my remark.

“But what does this have to do with finding the garden?” I asked.

“There’s a map inside, but it’ll only show depending on how you organize the rings.” He explained.

I studied the 4-layered ring. The flower petals were first, followed by the water, then the maroon leaves, and then the snow. It wasn’t hard to figure out what season each layer represented. “it looks like it’s layered in the order in which the seasons come, staring with spring.” I stated.

“But…” I removed the ring filled with snow. “Most people generally believe that spring is the first season. And it might be. But if we go by the calendar year then…” I placed the ring on top of the petal-filled layer, “…Winter is actually both the first and last season of the year.” I concluded.

He just stared at me.

I chuckled a little, “It’s that simple.” I clarified, already knowing what he was thinking.

“Whatever.” He grumbled, snatching the ring from my hand. I shook my head but watched him peek his eye through the piece of jewelry.

His eyes grew large.

However, before he could say anything, he suddenly started coughing hard.

“Are you okay?” My previous uneasiness immediately returned. He only coughed harder, unable to respond.

I frowned. I knew this was a horrible idea. This was my fault. I shouldn’t have given in. “We have to go back.” I stated sternly.

“No!” He said between coughs, forcing himself to stop coughing.

“You can’t go on like this. Your health will get worse. You won’t even make it back if we leave now. We’ll have to get help first.” I insisted.

“We’re almost there. We’re so close. We have to keep going.” He argued.

“No Yunho. We’re going back. I’m not going to argue with you.” I stood my ground.

He grew frustrated, seeing that I wasn’t going to change my mind. “Why won’t you listen?” He suddenly snapped. “I know where to go!”

My frown deepened. “Listen to you, and then what? What if it’s another hour away or more? What if we get so far that you can’t make it, and it’s too far to go anywhere else? Then what Yunho?! What am I supposed to do if something happens to you!” I snapped getting even more afflicted the more I thought about it. Why can’t he get it?

He stood there stunned, staring at me with wide eyes. He didn’t know what to say or how to react.

I took a deep breath and stood straight up. “Let’s go.” I turned around walking toward the horse first.

Just as I made it close to the horse, I felt something grab my wrist.

“You can’t!”

I turned around furious. However, I was struck speechless at the sight of him. He was on his knees. “Please.” He whispered. “I can’t go home until I find it.” He looked at me with desperate eyes.

I could only stare back at him.

He stayed on his knees waiting for my response.

I squeezed my eyes shut, unable to look at him. This is stupid. This garden might not even be real. This is so stupid. “Fine…Fine.” I sighed, reopening my eyes only to be met with a large genuine smile from him. I looked away from him. “But you owe me, for putting me through this stress.” I told him.

“Whatever you want!” He promised.

But I could only frown. His words didn’t make me feel any better.

“Come on.” He stood up and took my hand, leading the way.

We walked alongside the riverbank into the woods at the other end of the park. I stayed close behind Yunho. It was still dark. Nor had I gone into the woods before. Yunho lit a flame in the palm of his hand to provide light. It was only a small flame, since he still didn’t have enough strength.

We continued deeper into the forest. It seemed to grow darker and darker the further we went. “Yunho.” I whispered squeezing his hand in order not to lose him. “I can hardly see anything. We should go back.” The flame in his hand was no longer helping.

“Haven’t you noticed it yet?” He questioned.

“What?”

“There’s no more snow.”

I stopped for a moment to asses our surroundings.

He was right.

No more snow was falling, and the ground was completely dry. I could feel the dry leaves, dirt, and grass below my feet. Th