Mσση Hυηтєя | Kяιѕ

There was a legend about the well in the forest and to say the least, Hyori knew all about it. She was nothing less than in-tune with nature, and she couldn’t help herself every opportunity there was to escape the pressures of city life. She took refuge in the forest, deep in the woods where she was sure there was nothing to distract her from the sounds of animals, water and the wind blowing through the trees. But from here, a small shop in Seoul’s main mall, there was little she could do except fantasize about the lush green grass and the wild life than inhabited it.

It wasn’t uncommon for Hyori to seriously contemplate giving up city life and primitively living in the forest. She had confidence in herself that she could do it, but she knew that wasn’t the best idea. She’d grown up in the city, it was territory she knew whether or not she hated it and she wasn’t sure she could physically live any other way but there was one day where she decided to look for a good place to be every single time she ventured into the woods, and that’s when she stumbled across it.

The well was a myth, at least that’s what all the articles said. Articles dating way back saying that the well had granted settlers, previous to all of the development, fresh water—that if they worshipped the well enough it would bring them good harvest and health to their livestock and families. She had seen pictures of it as she journeyed on more tedious research, but what she had found here was nothing like what she had seen online. Now, it was only a fountain and in the crystal clear waters laid many coins—what did people do when they threw coins in? Well, they wished, of course.

Despite the well not having at all the same appearance it supposedly had in the past, this was the general location, she was sure of it. She could almost feel the magic she had read about swirl playfully in the air around her. Hyori was so excited about her discovery that she shoved her hands in her pockets, looking for any coin change she could possibly be carrying around only to come up empty handed. With a desperate sigh, she fell to her knees next to the fountain. “You’re exactly what I’ve been looking for, I know it! Even though I’m a stranger to this part of the forest, I can feel the magic you contain within you,” she spoke to the fountain whose water glimmered in the bright glow of the moon.  

Hyori remembered that day like it was yesterday, as did Kris. Kris was also a frequenter of the forest and he had stumbled across the fountain long before Hyori. He, however, did not have the extensive amounts of research about this place under his belt as she did and to be completely honest, all of the coins in the fountain where his. When he had first stumbled across it, there was nothing—just water and what seemed to be a brand new pump system with a timer which set off the water spewing from the top at certain hours of the day. He didn’t even care that this was a man-made creation by now, all he cared was that he finally had a place to go to get peace and quiet.

But that was stomped all over the night he found Hyori at the base of the fountain. Kris kept his distance in the bushes not too far with a clear view at the girl. His breathing evened as he settled into the leaves at the base of a large tree, peering at her from out of sight. He could faintly hear the words she muttered to the fountain and was pleasantly surprised by what she had said. Clearly, she was very knowledgeable of this place; come to think of it, this must have been where Kris had recently been getting all of his good luck!

Torn between staying in the bushes in hiding and going out to talk to her, Kris fiddled with the loose change in his pocket—would he give one up to her to see if it was true, if the fountain really was lucky? After moments of serious thought, Kris emerged from the green vegetation and in her direction. He wasn’t far, but he wasn’t exactly close and he was surprised when her head lifted after hearing the rustling in the grass. All the time spent here made her hearing quite keen.

Hyori just stared at the man, having no idea how he found this place or what he was even doing here, but she didn’t ask questions—she didn’t even try to ask questions, she was so nervous her lips may as well have been glued shut. Should she run, or stay? Scream or stay quiet? It was too late now, the tall figure was standing in front of her, across the fountain, flipping a coin to drop into the water and then silence.

Crickets chirped nearby, but there wasn’t a sound other than the inaudible to human hears ripple of the water after the coin had hit the bottom. It caused the small waves to shimmer and shine in the moons ray.  He looked at her from under his lashes, his head in a downward tilt from watching the coin. “Hi, there,” he said, a husky lilt on his words. She couldn’t even reply, was so dry and she hadn’t prepared any words for him, hoping he would go about his business and then leave without engaging her.

No, that would be too easy. She had never once encountered anyone that said a word to her, but what were the chances of meeting somebody here, at the most sacred place of pilgrim times in South Korea and have them not say a word? Hyori figured extremely slim, he probably wanted to talk to her about the history of this place so she responded slowly with a soft, “Hello.”

But he didn’t follow up like she thought that he would, instead he asked, “Lovely weather tonight isn’t it?”

Hyori didn’t reply. He was trying to make small talk with her already—either he was going to play dumb about his knowledge or he really had no idea and stumbled upon this place on accident.  She felt a strange aura about this man, he was oddly appealing, attractive, almost as though he had a magnetic pull, but that didn’t come without the intimidation, the mysteriousness. Hyori admitted she was carefree, but she wasn’t crazy enough to let him get within five feet of her, so when he shifted around the fountain a bit, she moved as well.

‘I can’t tell if she’s timid, or wary,’ he thought to himself before offering up his name as consolation should it be timorousness. “I’m Kris, do I have the pleasure of knowing your name?” he asked, his tone changing from upfront and intimidating to soft and sweet, like he was either trying to coax the name out of her, or comfort her in the process of getting her to open up slightly.

“Kris?” she asked, unsure if she was able to tell it truth from lie.

“Wu Yi Fan,” he corrected with a clearing of his throat.

She was less suspicious of that name—Kris just seemed too… too much like and alias and rather discomforting for her tastes. “I’m Jeon Hyori,” she replied quietly, her eyes barely making contact with his as she peered from the corner of hers, her head facing away from him as to not make direct contact. That was the first night she met Kris.

Hyori continued to rendezvous there with him for many weeks and they’d stay up so late talking in the middle of the forest that she would often be late to work the next day. There was one day in particular that she can remember more than vividly, like she had just gotten home from it and replayed it in her mind as she laid in bed.  Kris had arrived to the fountain first and he stood and looked down at it after tossing his coin in the same way he always did, hands tucked back into the pockets of his dress pants. He seemed to only have one way of dress—a nice shirt and dress pants. Maybe that was just his fashion, she didn’t really complain because it only added to his appeal, it made him look sharp and distinguished.

She crept up beside him only to have him drop a coin into her hand for her to toss into the water.
“I wish, for one day, I didn’t feel so alone,” she spoke out loud, the drop of the coin into the water following her rickety voice. It had been a hard enough day at work, she wasn’t sure she was even going to make it to the fountain that evening; but with the extra pull that she was feeling, she diverted from the path to home and headed into the thick trees.  

Kris looked over, startled by her statement and noted the tears, which shimmered in the light like the water, carving down her perfect but pale cheeks. Kris felt like he was being stabbed in the heart, the blade being twisted soon after and instinct took over. “You’re not alone,” he whispered, pulling her hysterical form against his tall body. She could only partly take solace in him, but he was warm and inviting and she didn’t have the heart to push him away—not that she even wanted to. Her tears moistened his nice shirt, but he didn’t seem to care, not even when she wiped her tears away on it, streaking it with her makeup; he only stood there and held her, hushed her even as he pulled her away from the fountain.

A patch of plush grass is where he sat himself and her—he wanted to ask her questions, but where would he even start? He thought she was carefree, happy-go-lucky, but it turned out that she was much better at hiding the truth than he thought she was. Her cries had hushed only slightly when he brought himself back to reality. “I don’t ever want you to feel alone, because I want you to know that I’m always here,” he told her softly, his arms never losing their tightness around her.  

There were a couple more nights aside from that one where Hyori completely broke down in front of him. It was almost as if she acted like he wasn’t even there. Usually she’d keep it contained—she’d never want to cause a scene to draw attention to herself in public but here, this was her haven and she didn’t really care who was here with her, it just happened to be someone who wanted to help her, who wanted to be there for and with her, who wanted to comfort her.

The last night this happened, about two weeks ago, she remembered specifically for the sole reason that she knew—consciously and for a fact—that she had fallen asleep with him in the forest. Maybe he hadn’t fallen asleep, she wasn’t quite sure, but she could recall his light jacket covering her as she curled up to his side, the cool breeze taking consciousness away from her as she drifted to dreamland in the soft grass. Hyori hadn’t the slightest idea how long she was there, but she was absolutely and completely unaware of how she got home and wrapped up in the sheets of her bed.  That’s where she was when she awoke the morning after that night.

Their meetings continued, even though Kris had skipped out on a couple, leaving Hyori high and dry waiting for him. She didn’t mind too much; he had once mentioned his busy schedule and that he only had time by moonlight.  Only when the moon was up did he have the time to travel out into the forest to see her. That was alright with her; Hyori enjoyed any time she could get in the forest.

Tonight, she was supposed to meet Kris again—but how could she be for certain he would be there? She had realized that in the time they had been meeting, gotten to know each other, there was never an exchange of phone numbers. It was mysterious, he was mysterious but he never ceased to surprise her and she was pretty certain he wouldn’t cease tonight, either.

Closing came around—finally she could leave to disappear into the forest. The time was approaching ten at night and she knew it was prime time for Kris to be on the move. She packed up the shop as quickly as she could, locking up before she headed down the same road she always did—the road right past her house and no more than five stone’s throw away was the edge of the forest, the wall of trees billowing with leaves and creatures with an aura so inviting, she was captivated today the same way she had been since she started exploring its depths.  

Quickly she climbed through the underbrush, crunching leaves beneath her feet with every step until she finally came into the clearing she had longed to see all day. As it always did, the fountain’s water glimmered in the half covered moonlight, thin clouds shifting across the night sky to shield part of the moon’s face, but hardly shielded the brightness of its glow. Her gaze finally fell upon the fountain after observing the night sky only to see Kris standing there, the same way he always did—hands tucked into his pockets, head in a downwards tilt. He must have already made his wish for the night.

She ambled quietly over to him, her now bare feet silent in the grass as she approached him and appeared at his side once more. Her hand was out in collection of his offering, a small coin placed in her small palm. “I waited for you, I haven’t made my wish yet,” he said. She felt strange about him tonight, he was slightly different; but she tried to brush it away.

“Ready?” he asked.

She nodded in response.

The two of them looked up at the night sky, acknowledging the moon once more before two sounds, one after the other, of coins dropping through the surface of the water sounded and then there was silence. Something had told Hyori to keep her wish to herself this time and she couldn’t say that she was surprised that Kris did the same. Despite this, her breathe hitched in as if a new force was swirling around her, asphyxiating her in the sweetest way. She held her breath for a couple of seconds before she found it noticeably easier to breathe once more.  

Hyori shivered, the new sensation causing a tingle to go down her spine and not soon after that, Kris had draped his light jacket over her shoulders to protect her from the cold. She pulled the opening closed  after finding herself inching towards the tall and warm male—something was telling her that this was right, that meeting Kris here wasn’t coincidental, that all of her problems would be solved right here; she didn’t quite understand, but she didn’t question it because she knew Kris felt the same way. It was reassurance enough when he inched towards her, his arm pushing back slightly to allow her to scoot into his body, his slender hand wrapping around her hip on the far side.

The two of them gazed down at the water, unsure of what to say to another—they weren’t sure they even had to. It was almost if they could read each other’s thoughts, the need for verbal communication becoming virtually obsolete.  Kris looked at her for only a second, watching as she looked down at the water. He turned and swept her off her feet. She squealed before laughing, looking at the big smile that was breaking on Kris’ face. He spun her around in his arms bridal style, listening to her scream and shout playfully asking him to put her down when he finally did.

He laid her down in the soft patch of grass a couple of yards away and laid his body over her, shielding her from the cold weather. “What did you wish for?” he asked, her hair away from her face, his slender fingers catching thin locks to tuck behind her ears.

“What did you wish for?” she asked in return; after all, it wasn’t fair for her to give up her wish if she didn’t think he would tell her his, too. He smirked before biting his bottom lip gently. He leaned down, putting his lips next to her ear.

“I can’t tell you,” he whispered.

“Then I can’t tell you, either,” she whispered back to him. He could feel her smile against his ear. “Besides, you’ve never said any of your wishes out loud,” she added. She knew he would never reply to that—he was as secretive as he had always been. 

“That’s true,” he whispered back. “But what’s the fun in telling you everything I wish for? I like to keep it a mystery,” he added.  “But if you really must know, I wished for a kiss on the cheek,” he lied, having the idea come to mind right on the spot.

“You really are ridiculous!” she replied.

“It was worth a shot,” he said with a laugh, pulling away from her ear and went to sit up.

Hyori grabbed his shirt in a tight grip, causing his gaze to snap to her. He looked at her curiously, darting his tongue out to his lips. She pulled him down and planted a quick kiss on his cheek before pulling away, showing him her furious blush. She hid away in his jacket as he sat up with another light-hearted chuckle; though his eyes flickered with amusement. “This is the forest of profit. No doubt about it,” he joked.  

“Come on,” he said, “I have somewhere to take you.” He stood, lifting her to her feet by her hand. He squatted down in front of her and turned to look.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“I’m going to piggy-back you there, obviously,” he said playfully with a wink.

Hyori rolled her eyes and mounted Kris’ back gently. She yelped when he stood abruptly—he had much more strength than she had first anticipated. It made her nervous when they started walking to the clearing’s edge, the opposite direction from whence she came. They were going deeper into the forest, as if this weren’t deep enough.  

“Kris,” she muttered quietly, getting a little nervous. They had been trudging through the forest for what seemed like forever. At least ten minutes had passed by now.

“Lay your head on my shoulder,” he commanded softly. “I want to feel your cheek on mine.” She settled her chin on his shoulder, her cheek slightly pressing against his and he smiled at the warmth. Not too long after that they came to another clearing, but this one looked over the city. It was on a tall cliff and they could see all of the city lights from there.

“Wow…” Hyori commented, not taking her eyes off the sight as Kris set her down. She walked towards the edge of the cliff; almost too far as the ground crumbled underneath her and the next thing she knew she was tight against Kris’ chest once more.

“You should be a little more careful and look where you’re going before you get hurt,” he told her, that same playful smirk on his face. He could feel her heart beating so quickly—she was a little frightened by the collapsed earth. She gripped onto his shirt, holding on to the only security she knew she had right now.

There was a moment of silence between the two, long enough for Kris to turn Hyori around and hold her around the waist as she stood with her back pressed against him. “So what did you actually wish for?” she asked, looking down at his arms encircled around her. She felt safe, safer than she felt in the forest. She couldn’t care about anything in Kris’ presence; only him. Kris’ jaw tightened—he should have known she wasn’t that easy to fool.

“Why don’t you tell me what you wished for first and then I’ll tell you what I wished for. I promise,” he said, one of his hands retreating to pull her hair back over her shoulder, enough for her to feel his warm breath on her neck. She swallowed harshly. She really didn’t want to tell him what she had wished for—she wasn’t sure she was ever planning on telling him; she supposed now was as good of a time as ever.

“I wished for you,” she replied finally.

Kris wasn’t sure he was following. He waited for her to clarify, which she did happily.

“I wished to be happy with somebody, to find love, to find love with you because you’re the only man I’ve ever known to feel so safe around, to feel so secure around—to feel like I don’t have to worry about anything. I know it sounds a little ridiculous, but I’ve never felt this way about anyone bef—”

Kris spun Hyori around, catching her face softly in his hands to press his lips up against hers. His eyes laid closed softly, face completely relaxed, but that was more than could be said about Hyori who stood there, gripping his shirt the same she always did, her brow drawn together, a little confused by the situation. When she felt Kris’ lips part from hers, she couldn’t help but search for them once more, his soft hands warming her cheeks. His lips broke from hers after a moment and his soft brown eyes opened to look at her.  

“I guess you don’t have to wish anymore,” he whispered to her, leaning his forehead against hers as his warm breath fanned over her lips.  “The well of profit; the magic doesn’t lie.”

“Maybe it’s just coincidence,” she said, draping her arms around his neck. “You haven’t told me what you wished for yet,” she added, prompting a response.

“Would you believe me if I said the same thing as you?” he asked, his eyes gazed into hers to show that this time he really wasn’t lying.

She grinned and shut her eyes, “Convince me,” she said.

“I think I already have,” he responded, still cupping one of her cheeks and raised an eyebrow suggestively at her.

“Might take a little more convincing than that, Wu Yi Fan.”

FIN