The sun was beating down mercilessly and Iola panted hard. Strands of hair had escaped the ponytail she tied it into and stuck to her face and neck with sweat. Her clothes had long been plastered to her back, sticky and uncomfortable because of the humid and heat. As they continued to walk on she wondered if they will ever get out of this forest.

It has been more than six days since Iola came to this world and everyday she was still surprised by the strangeness of it. She never got over the feeling of amazement and slight confusion every time she woke up in the morning to find herself here. 

The forest wasn’t as intimidating as she thought before, and she began to appreciate its colorful beauty.

She never got bored of admiring the multi-colored trees, with its red and black and grey trunks. Most of the times the leaves of the tree will contrast differently with the color of its trunk; white leaves over a red tree or yellow ones on top of the blacks. The colors contrasted and mismatched, yet somehow it works, coordinating perfectly with the golden grass.

Her favorite tree so far was the one that have gray trunk with pale rose leaves that changes color to a deep red wine when the wind blew through it. It amazes her so much that every time they passed through one she would stop for a second, just to wait for the leaves to change color.

When the sunlight beamed through the forest just right, it seemed to be glinting over the colorful leaves and barks and the golden grass, leaving it bathed in an almost luminescent, rainbow glow and more than once Iola had to stop and stared in awe at her surroundings.

If by daylight the forest was beautiful enough, at nighttime it was mesmerizing. Not just because of the two moons in the sky, but also because hundreds of stars will come out, more stars than she ever saw back home in her metropolitan city, all of them shining brightly and casting silver glow over the colorful trees. She had tried to find constellations in the stars the way her father had taught her when she was small, but quickly realized even the stars were different here and resigned herself to just admire the blinking lights.

Then there were the animals of which the forest was full, animals that were like no other she had ever known. The first animal she saw was something that looked like a deer, only its pelt was a bright white all over its body and with six legs. Jongdae and Minseok had rolled over in laughter when she made a pantomime, comparing it to Luhan, who in truth does have an eerie resemblance with the animal with his big doe eyes and innocent face. The said man had grumbled at first but joined in their laughter only seconds later.

Even birds chirp differently here, Iola thought as she glanced up at the trees besides her, its branches filled with said animals. Some birds, with tails of big, rainbow feathers that were twice the length of its body, made sounds like a boiling tea kettle. The first time Iola heard them, she frowned and looked up at the trees, almost expecting to see a kitchen’s stove on the branches, no matter how ridiculous it sounds.

Other birds were so small, Iola could put it in the palm of her hand. But the small ones made the biggest noise, like the foghorn of a ship coming to harbor, and nearly gave her a heart attack the first time she heard them. Minseok saw her fascination with the birds and spent a day teaching her its names, which are marthrand and palila. Iola still prefer to call them kettlebirds and shipbirds in her mind, though.

Tao and Jongdae had captured several animals on the second day she was here, showing it to Iola first before Yixing cooked it for their meal. It looked like a rabbit, all fuzzy ears and soft fur, only three times the size of a regular one and with a long, swishing mane of hair as tail and a third eye on its forehead.

She still wasn’t a fan of those worm monsters, though, which unfortunately there seemed to be quite a number of them here. Twice already they had another attack on their journey, to which her companions easily defeated.

Thinking of the worm monsters brought her mind back to the present and she stole a glance toward the men. On both occasion they had immediately protected her without a second thought, making sure she was far enough from the monsters as they tried to lure it farther away. Yixing was usually the one guarding besides her, Jongdae and Tao just steps ahead while Wufan, Minseok and Luhan will be at the forefront.

She frowned as she thought back to those attacks. Not that she didn’t appreciate their help, because God knows she wouldn’t be able to protect herself here, but there was something about their protection. Intense was the only word she could come up with regarding the way these men she barely knew try to protect her. As if she was very important to them and that if it comes down to it, they would risked their lives for her.

She couldn’t help grinning wryly and rolled her eyes at the silly notion. “Great, Iola,” she muttered to herself. “No more watching Korean dramas for you when you get home. Those things seemed to turn your head silly."    

As she wiped the sweat that was rolling of her forehead she caught Tao’s eyes, looking at her with some concern as Jongdae besides him grinned encouragingly. Iola smiled back and waved slightly.

During the last few days she had become closer to these two. Ever since that first morning Tao had stuck close to her, following her around like a lost puppy and she welcomed the gesture. An unexplainable instinct told her that he meant no harm; there was a small, almost sad gaze in his eyes that warmed up whenever she showed any affection for him and she gladly showered him with it because he truly did remind her of her brother.

Jongdae, on the other hand, had warmed up to her ever since she made that joke about their leader. She guessed it’s because the former had a teasing, mischievous streak in him and appreciate people with similar traits. At first glance Jongdae may seem shy and quiet, but over the last few days she had witnessed enough teasing and pranks from the small man at the expense of the others. Even though she may not understand what he was saying, Iola recognized the playful glint in his eyes, the one that was always present on her own little brother’s eyes whenever he teased their eldest sibling.

The thought of her two brothers crossed her mind and her heart clenched in longing. She had always been close to her siblings. Yunho had been the perfect older brother; a bit protective sometimes bordering on smothering, always trying to take care of her. Then there was Changmin with his snarky humor and quick, sarcastic wit, that bellies maturity beyond his years and warm heart.

She wondered how her parents were, whether they were worried sick about her disappearance. Her mother would probably be crying in her bedroom, closing the door tightly so the others won’t hear her sobs, just like when their grandfather died a few years back. Her father would be pacing back and forth in their living room, wearing down the carpet in that way he always does whenever he was worried about something, like that time when she broke her arm falling down from her bicycle when she was ten.

The feeling of missing her family hit her so suddenly that she gasped; her heart ached painfully in a tight clench. Her vision was blurry and she had to blink hard a few times to keep the tears at bay. There was no use in thinking of them, her mind supplied. The first thing she must do now was to get out of this forest, before she can think of a way to go back home.

“It wouldn’t do to think about these things now, Iola” she muttered under her breath. Shaking her head to clear her mind out of self-pity mood, she focused instead on the road they were walking on and groaning internally when she can feel how her feet hurt from the many blisters and cuts by now.

She supposed she shouldn’t be surprised, but it still touched her that first day when they had started their trek to see these young men adjusted their strides to her much slower speed. It was easy to see that they could walk much faster than she could, and it made her felt a bit guilty for slowing them down. The guilt disappeared quickly, though, when she realized that even though they had slowed down their pace, their stamina was so much more superior than hers that when hours into their trek she felt she was ready to collapse from exhaustion, the men were still as fresh as when they just started.

“So much for all those hours on the treadmill,” Iola grumbled quietly, mentally preparing herself for hours more before they would finally take some rest.

Just then Yixing turned to her, tilting his head in contemplation, before tapping Wufan’s shoulder. After some whispered conversation Wufan raised his closed fist signaling stop and Iola could cry in relief as she slumped down on a boulder beside the earthen trail they had been walking on, stifling a groan as she straightened her aching legs.

Normally they would still be going on for hours more, but she wasn’t about to question Wufan’s decision when it gave her some much needed break and a chance to massage her sore muscles. A wineskin appeared in front of her and she looked up to see Yixing’s dimpled smile, and involuntarily she smiled back.

Tao and Jongdae may be nice and all, but somehow Yixing was the one she was most comfortable with. Even through the language barrier he seemed to be able to read her clearly, helping her out whenever she had trouble expressing what she wants. And there was also the fact that the hum in her mind seemed to react the most with this particular man.

The steady hum at the back of her mind had taken permanent residence and most of the times Iola almost forgot its existence; only reminded of it when the sound would change volumes and intensity with some unexplainable trigger.

When the worm monsters attacked them the hum had buzzed loudly and she felt and seen the same dizzying jumble of colors she’d experienced previously, all swirling into one in the depths of her thought when she closed her eyes. Then there were times when she was just admiring the beauty of the nature around her and the hum would almost purred in satisfaction, a mix of soothing blue and yellow and orange blurs, almost like colored threads, invading her mind. She’d look at the trees and the stars-filled night sky or some harmless animals, and the hum would let her know its there, an almost muffled whisper at the background of her mind.

She felt baffled with the sound and had more than once contemplated whether she was going insane. But most of the time the hum was so quiet that she’d almost forget its existence, only remembering it when it showed some reaction, triggered by something.

Like now.

The hum seemed to like these men she travelled with. It would grew louder just a tiny notch; enough to let her know of its being there but still soft enough to not panic her. It reacted the most with Yixing, though; the hum would purr, like a kitten that had its belly rubbed, and there was only a neutral, calming color of white and blue swirling in her mind that left her at peace and unexplainably trust this man.

Her musing was broken when the wineskin was shaken in front of her face. Glancing up to Yixing’s concerned gaze, she grinned wryly.

“Wo…wo-ther?”

Yixing’s smile widened as she tried the new word. “Water,” he pronounced slowly.

“Water.” She took the wineskin with a grateful smile. Giving it back to him after a long gulp, she turned around when Tao and Jongdae came over. They looked on with barely concealed curiosity toward her backpack that made her chuckle as she rumm