“Haru-yah! Run! Don’t stand there!” Unnie yelled out, panic in her tone. “Go!”

But my feet were glued to the ground were I stood. They slowly sunk down into the white snow. My eyes weren’t staring at unnie; they were staring right into the angry wolf’s eyes. Its fur was as black as a raven’s wing. Another wolf growled in the distance.

“HARU-YAH!”

Red.

A light brown wolf jumped out in front of the black wolf, snarling. I couldn’t move. All I could see was the red of the blood stained on the black wolf.

Dazed, my legs collapsed onto the snow under me. I didn’t know what happened but the black wolf was gone. The brown wolf limped towards unnie’s limb body and nuzzled her still-pink cheek.

I stared blankly at the red blood around her lifeless body…the red blood that matched so perfectly with the red hood that she was wearing. I felt the brown wolf’s eyes boring into mine and I looked up at him.

I could swear, there was a tear trickling down from his eyes.

In the distance, I could hear the shouting and yelling voices of the people from my village. With another look at unnie’s body and at me, the wolf raced off into the woods where the black wolf disappeared in.

The boy’s eyes widened. “H-how did you…?”

“I painted you.” I stated, having little control on what I was saying. 

In his eyes flickered a tiny glimpse of hope that quickly disappeared as instantly as it came. He looked away from me and didn’t say anything. My eyes landed on his bare body. He had pants on, thankfully, but his upper body was . His pale body reminded me of pure, white snow, reflecting under the sun. The beads of sweat on his chest twinkled as it slid down his body, just like the ice reflecting and glittering under bright sunlight as it melted. His body was not muscular or defined but I still found it, oddly, beautiful. I wondered whether it was cold like ice, or warm like his brown hair. 

His hair was a strange shade of brown, unlike every other person I'd seen. It was not dark but rather light. I wondered, was it actually as soft and warm as the sand by the sea, as it looked? If I ran my hands through it, would it feel just like the soft grass in the meadow? 

His side profile looked as if it had been carved by a sculptor. Every angle and edge was perfect. Every girl I know would envy his pretty looks, especially his long eyelashes that cascaded down his porcelain cheeks like a waterfall.  

I slowly reached out, cautiously, though I knew he’d do me no harm, and touched his warm cheek. I didn’t know why I did it; maybe to reassure myself that he was real, that I wasn’t just dreaming. It was hard to believe I wasn't dreaming; I mean, he... my picture, was real. 

He turned to look at me and said, “Haru-yah… I’m sorry… I couldn’t save your sister. I’m sorry.” His sad eyes glistened with tears and they trickled down, lightly hitting my hand.