Key’s POV:

There she went.

There went Seungmi –my Seungmi– into the woods with that awful Minho.

My blood boiled just from the sight of it.

I stared hard at the trail they had just started down, even after they disappeared from my view.

I was debating on whether or not to follow them; whether or not to spy on them.

I didn’t trust Minho one bit with her.  He was almost certain to try something now that they’re alone in the woods.

My teeth snapped together in anger.

Aishhh…

What should I do?!

If I go after them, the others back at the campsite are expecting me, and then they’ll know something is up if I’m not there.  Hmm, it would be so obvious.

But, if I don’t go after Minho and MiMi, then what if something happens to her out there?!

She definitely couldn’t defend herself against such a strong boy if he tried anything.

I ran both my hands through my brown hair and heaved another conflicted sigh.

I soon made my decision.

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Seungmi’s POV:

Thirty minutes passed.

Thirty minutes of silent walking.

The only sounds came from our sneakers crunching against the cold forest floor.

At first, I stared hard at Minho’s broad, trying to drum up the courage to speak to him.  But, then I would remind myself of his words at the welcome center and any little shred of confidence fluttered away.

So, I turned my attention to watching my feet carefully as I stepped along the cluttered ground.  My left ankle was throbbing ever so slightly, and I needed to treat it with extra special care.

I didn’t even notice as we approached the river in the distance.

I just kept watching my feet; one step at a time.

Left foot, right foot, left foot, right--

 “Why are you so quiet?” Minho suddenly asked me.

My head shot up and I blinked at the back of his head.

“B-because,” I murmured.

“Because why?”

“Because I just am.”

“Not good enough, Seungmi.”

I exhaled with frustration, blowing several strands of hair around my face.

“Because we aren’t even friends anymore, Minho!” I finally snapped.  “What do you want me to say?!  Do you want me to talk to you, huh?!”

He smirked.  “No, not particularly."

“You’re such a jerk,” I muttered with a scowl.

“Am I?” he asked as we rounded a bend in the trail.  “Well then…you should be used to jerky boys.”

My eyes narrowed into slits.  “What are you trying to say?”

“You know exactly what I’m trying to say,” he replied.

“Key?” I demanded, and I heard him laugh.

“Wow, I guess you aren’t as dumb as you look, Seungmi,” he said.

Those words stung my heart; more than they should have.  Tears sprang to my eyes and I looked away to the side, trying to blink them back.

“Y-yah, Key is a wonderful boyfriend,” I snapped, and my voice cracked near the end.  “It’s not your place to criticize our relationship.  That just makes you look pathetic!”

Minho bristled.  He slowed to a stop and I could see the muscles tighten in his neck.

“Pathetic?” he repeated quietly.

He spun around to glare at me, and his eyes were like daggers.  I trembled slightly.

“You don’t know the first thing about being pathetic, Seungmi,” he said.  “Do I physically harm women?!  Do I control my girlfriend’s every move?!  Do I practically murder any other guy who just casually talks to her?!  Hmm?!”

He began to slowly approach me, and I began stepping backwards.  “Are you implying that Key does those things?!” I demanded.  “You don’t know anything!  He treats me like I’m his entire world!”

Minho scoffed.

“I take back what I said,” he muttered.  “You are as dumb as you look.  Even dumber.”

A single tear escaped my lashes.

“And, you’re a bully,” I cried, still stepping away from him.  “You just want to ruin what Key and I have; you just want to destroy our relationship!”

“Do I?” Minho murmured, and his voice dropped to a husky level.  “That’s what you think?”

I opened my mouth to respond, but a gasp came out instead as my back met a wide tree trunk.  Minho trapped me against the trunk, placing a hand on either side of my head.  My frantic eyes glanced at those two hands before darting back to his gaze.

Those dark brown eyes bore into my own, and I could feel my insides melt like ice cream. 

Was it wrong to find this situation hot?!

My heart raced.

“Tell me, Seungmi,” he whispered as he stepped even closer to me.  His scent filled my nostrils; he smelled so seductive, so manly...

My mouth started to water.

“Tell me,” he repeated.  “Are you afraid of me?”

One of his hands left the tree trunk and laid itself against my cheek.  I shuddered from the electric touch.

“N-no,” I murmured as I managed to boldly meet his eyes.  “I’m not afraid of you.”

Minho arched one eyebrow.  “Are you sure?” he purred again before trailing his fingers down to my neck and lightly wrapping them around my throat.

I swallowed nervously and breathed through my lips, in gulps of cold, autumn air.  The cold was a welcome relief to my hot body.

“Why are you not afraid of me, Seungmi?”

He applied slight pressure to the sides of my neck, and my eyelids fluttered open to stare into his own deep orbs. 

And, it was true; I wasn’t afraid.

“You won’t hurt me,” I panted out.  “I know…you won’t hurt me, Minho.”

“Oh, I won’t?” 

The pressure became stronger on my throat, but I still did not cave in.  I did not flinch.

“You won’t hurt me,” I whispered again.  And, in the next second, he released his hold on my neck but kept his fingers lightly against my skin.

Touching me just enough to send tingles down my spine.

My eyes fluttered shut.

“So, tell me, Seungmi…” he murmured again.  “If I were Key right now, would you be afraid?”

Those words were like a bolt of lightning.  My body stiffened, my breath hitched in my throat, and my eyelids blinked rapidly, trying to focus clearly on Minho’s beautiful face.

I suddenly pictured him as Key; as my very own boyfriend.  And, before I could stop myself, I whispered the single word…

“Yes.”

Minho smirked to himself.  “Then, I’ve proved my point.”

“What point?” I whispered, barely able to speak.  My mouth was as dry as a cottonball.

“What point?” he repeated with a slight smirk.

His hand trailed up my neck, across my cheek, and into my brown hair, gently twisting a few locks into his fingers.

“I can show you what I mean…” he breathed as he stepped closer to me.

His dark chocolate eyes locked into my own, and I gazed back boldly, searching for the unspoken words revealed in those eyes.

He seemed to be asking for something; almost like asking for permission to do something.

But...what?

My heart raced behind my ribcage and my breathing became shallow.  Minho’s own breaths were a bit ragged themselves, and I watched his torso heave slightly.

“Seungmi,” he whispered.

The name rolled off of his tongue, and my insides quivered violently.  I pressed my body hard against the tree trunk, trying to create as much space between us as possible.

I knew if I even touched him, I would lose all self-control.

My eyes fluttered shut; his did, too, and I knew what was coming next.  I braced myself for the moment, but…

It never happened.

Instead, a sound suddenly reached our ears, slicing through the thick, tense passion between us.

It was a sound like a deep, throaty rumble…

Not humanlike at all.

I opened my eyes and gazed up at Minho, who was peering hard into the forest on our left.  He remained as still as a statue, listening closely for the sound.

It came again.

“Please tell me that’s your stomach,” he muttered under his breath.

I shook my head.  “It’s not.”

“I know,” he said.  “This is bad, Seungmi.  Very bad.”

He pushed away from the tree, freeing me from his captivity, and I whimpered silently as the heat and the butterflies left my body.

No fair.

“What’s going on?” I asked, leaning away from the tree, as well.

“Bear.”

That one word struck cold fear within me.

“B-bear?” I repeated frantically.  “Do you even have bears in Korea?!”

“Duh.  Asian black bear, probably,” Minho replied.  “Now, shut up so I can hear which way it’s coming from.”

I zipped my lips and listened right along with him.

The bear roared again and a crashing sound came from the thick woods to our left.  My heart jumped into my throat.

“It’s that way, and it’s close,” Minho said gravely.  “Let’s move!”

He took off down the trail to the right, towards the river.

“Minho…Minho, wait!” I called before sprinting off after him.

Ow, ow, ow!

My ankle throbbed with every step I took, but I forced myself to continue running, and at least managed to keep Minho in my eyesight.

Man, he was quick, though.

After rounding a bend in the trail, Minho slid to a halt and ducked behind another tree trunk.  He grabbed my arm when I reached him, and pulled me close to his side.

I glanced up at him as he peeked around the tree trunk.

His chest was rising and falling rapidly, his muscles bulged slightly, and sweat glistened on his beautiful skin.

It’s not y, it’s not y!  It’s. Not. y.

Yes…yes, it is y.

I sighed.

A crash sounded very close to us, and I jumped a mile in the air.  All inappropriate thoughts about Minho flew out the window.

I heard him curse.  “It’s close again,” he hissed.  “It can probably smell us.”

“Will it kill us?” I squeaked, and he nodded.

“Rip us to shreds.”  He cautiously glanced around the tree trunk again, only to gasp and lean back in.

“I see the bear,” he whispered.  “It’s in those tall bushes directly across the trail.”

Curiously, I leaned around Minho and peered into said bushes.  I saw a black shadow moving behind them, and two beady eyes gazing directly into my own.

I froze to the core.

“It sees us, too!” I cried to Minho.

“Shh, I know,” he hissed.  “Just don’t freak out, Seungmi.  Trust me; I’ll protect you.”  He began to take slow, quiet steps away from the tree trunk.  “Follow me.  If we’re silent, it won’t see us.”

I nodded and trotted away from the tree to follow Minho.

Snap.

Twigs cracked and leaves rustled and we both whipped our heads around to look behind us.  Minho’s pretty face instantly paled.

The bear had spotted us and was quickly closing the gap between us.

“Seungmi, run.  Now,” Minho barked before breaking into a sprint.

I winced, but followed him, trying my best to ignore the pain in my ankle and keep up with Minho.

It wasn’t easy.

“Minho!  Minho, wait!  Please!” I called out as he got further and further away from me.  “Minho, I can’t…please wait!”

My chest heaved.  My lungs burned for oxygen.  My ankle was going numb, and sweat rolled down my face.

Why did this have to happen with SHINee’s athlete?!

Just keep running, Morgan.  Keep running.  If you stop, that bear will surely have you for dinner.  So, just keep—

“Ahh!”

I let out a shriek as my ankle suddenly twisted below me, wrapped itself inside of a spindly tree root, and down I went to the ground.

My body hit hard, skinning my elbows and knees, and sand filled my mouth.  I quickly choked, coughed, and spit it out before sitting upright and darting glances all around me.

Minho was long gone down the trail, and the bear wasn’t in my direct sight, either.  But, that didn’t mean it wasn’t here.

Either it had gone after Minho…or it was watching me from afar.  My heart pounded with fright as I worked to untangle my foot.

The bushes suddenly rustled far to my right.

“M-Minho?” I asked cautiously as I freed my foot and slowly stood up.  “Please say that’s you.”

It wasn’t.  I could see the black shadow through the trees, and adrenaline flowed through my veins.

Run, Morgan.

And, off I went, down the trail towards the river ahead.  I had no idea where Minho was, but,maybe he was by the river, waiting for me.  That seemed like a plausible idea, so I poured on my speed and sprinted for the river.

One glance under my arm told me the bear was hot on my trail, and that was all it took for me to keep running.

Before long, I broke through the woods and arrived at the banks of the large, black river.  The cold, powerful water rushed by many feet below.

“Minho!”  I cupped my mouth and yelled for him.  “Minho!  Are you around here anywhere?!”

“Seungmi!  Over here!”

His voice came from across the river.

I strained my eyes in the late afternoon sunlight and soon spotted him, indeed on the other side of the large body of water.

How in the world had he crossed?!  I didn’t see a…

Bridge.

I did see it.

A small, rickety rope bridge sat a little ways to my right.

And, as the bear soon crashed out of the woods behind me, I knew I didn’t have a choice.  Dangerous, unsafe bridge it was.

I heard Minho’s voice yelling to me as I began to sprint towards the bridge.  But, the river was so loud below that I could barely make out his words.

“Seungmi…careful…too fast…snap and break…slow…balance.”

I could only pick out a few of his frantic shouts.

Not that I really cared.  That bear was hot on my heels, and my life depended on crossing this bridge.

I soon reached the structure and started across it; my sneakers slapped against the wooden planks.

“Seungmi!  Slow down!”

Minho’s frantic voice could now clearly reach my ears.  My head jerked up and I saw him standing at the other end of the bridge, waving his arms like a mad man.

Slow down?!  Why in the world did he--

Crack.

It sounded like…a tree limp snapping.  Or a bone cracking.

Or a board breaking in half.

My heart flew into my throat.

The planks beneath my feet suddenly split in two, and I screamed as my feet dropped straight through the holes.  I managed to catch myself on the rope siding, and my body dangled above the black, rushing waters below.

The thick, coarse ropes cut into my palms.

“Seungmi!  Seungmi, are you alright?!”  Minho’s shout reached my ears.

“Minho!” I screamed.  “Get me out of here!  Minho!”  Several planks crumbled around me and plummeted to the murky depths below; they bobbed up and down before finally the current swallowed them.

I trembled violently.

That could be me.

“Hang on, Seungmi!” Minho called.  “I’ll save you, I promise!”

I didn’t answer him; instead, another sound responded to him.  The sound of the bear.

I twisted my head around behind me, and could see the bear up on the bridge, starting across towards me.  The bridge rocked and sagged heavily underneath its weight.

“That’s not good, Minho!” I screamed as my body rocked along with the bridge.  “Not good at all!”

“I know!  Shut up!” he shouted back at me.  “I need to think!  Think, think, think…!”

More boards tumbled to the water below, and the ropes above began to fray and split from the bear’s weight.  My body dipped lower towards the river.

“Minho, please!” I cried at the top of my lungs.  Tears streaked my face.  “Please, save me!”

“I can’t get on the bridge!” he called back.  “If I do, the whole thing will collapse and fall!  Can you pull yourself up at all?!”

“The bear!” I screamed back.  “It’s too close to me!  I can’t…I can’t!”  I ended my sentence with a blood-curdling, screaming sob.

The river was only a mere few feet below my shoes.

Snap.

The bear reached the middle of the long bridge, and it finally collapsed from the pressure.  Ropes on both sides detatched from the cliff, and the entire structure spiraled toward the river below.

Including my body and the bear’s body.

“Seungmi!”

Minho’s voice was the last thing I heard before the black waters swallowed me whole.

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Yay! Short update while I'm working on the others. ^.^

I hope the bear thing wasn't too cliche, but...now Seungmi's gonna drown! D:

Save her, Minho! hehe

Thank you for reading! I love you all. <3333 Stay tuned for more to come shortly! <3