“Woohyun!” Yoona shouted. Woohyun turned around and narrowed his eyes as he saw his senior run towards him with panic in her eyes. She reached him, only to collapse on her knees, her eyes closing as she tried to catch her breath. Seconds later L was by her side, rubbing her arms and handing her a bottle of water.

“Slowly,” L said in an advising tone, shock crossing his face as he watched his childhood friend’s face swarm with tears. Woohyun’s eyes widened and behind him Nicole hurried to the scene.

“Let me—”

Nicole was interrupted by the look L gave, a sharp glance that spelt ‘no’. He wrapped his arms around her as she shook crying and Nicole nodded, moving away from the two.

“Call me when she’s fine,” Woohyun murmured. L nodded with Yoona already in his arms, as he carried her to her tent. Shouts of concern reverberated from the small room, only to have it’s sources kicked out moments later.

“Geez, what’s up with him?” Sungyeol pouted. Junhyung rubbed the back of his head and stretched.

“Food,” he chirped and ran towards the kitchen.

“What happened?” Kairi approached, only to have Sungjong pull her away.

“We were standing here by the barbecue point only to see Yoona run towards us, shouting out Woohyun’s name,” he explained. The young boy sighed and bit his lower lip. “She’s the strong one. Wonder what news she got for us.”

Kairi’s eyes widened and her heart sank. Only another month and the team was going to attack Paragon. Bad news around this time? No, not with her already being a burden.

The entire team began walking up and down, trying to sneak a peek inside the tent only to have L shout at them, frightening them away. Nicole insisted that even she wasn’t allowed inside.

“You’re the doctor in the house!” SungGyu tried to argue.

“It’s Yoona,” Nicole sighed. “And when it’s her, L might as well have the whole world blocked away.”

Hearing those words, no one bothered to repeat the mistake of interrupting the two friends. But curiosity peaked and ten hours later, L got out of the tent.

It was like watching a movie. Kairi’s breath hitched in as she saw his gaunt expression, his red eyes, his pale complexion.

It wasn’t anything bad. It was something downright destructive.

“Woohyun,” L faintly called out to nowhere. Seconds later Woohyun appeared and Kairi noticed that he too was shocked by the immediate change in his teammate.

“What on ear—”

“They’re doing it again,” L whispered. “Yoona got news from the town’s radio. They’re doing it again. More ruthlessly, more quickly….”

“They?”

Kairi didn’t want to speak out but the question spilled from and she knew there was no going back. Woohyun turned to look at her, the strength in his gaze suddenly vanishing. L scoffed at the two and walked away.

“They…” Kairi muttered. “They… who?”

Woohyun blinked. To her surprise, he gently caught hold of her wrist.

“Follow me,” he said.

                                                               ************************************************************

Listen to One More Day by Chocolat : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA6nhVN8blA

Kairi stared at the back of his head, watching Woohyun carefully lead her away. They had been walking like this for quite some time now and she knew that they were at a higher level thanks to all the steep paths they had taken together. The warmth from Woohyun’s touch didn’t electrify her the way Joon’s had, but it comforted her, made her feel safe. Upon being aware of her thoughts, Kairi cast a glance down to her feet, only to bump into Woohyun’s back.

“You should practice here too,” he simply said, making Kairi look up and gasp in awe.

They surely had climbed a lot for now they were standing on a plateau overlooking Paradise, the ocean’s waves pulling over the sand like a blanket. The sight made certain memories tug at her heart and unknowingly sadness pulled down her already sunken face.

“Don’t do that.”

Kairi turned her head, quietly admiring Woohyun under the dim moonlight. She noticed his good looks and the softness that he had failed to hide from her now. Pain clenched her heart as she realized that she belonged to a world that had made him hard, made him rigid, made him cold. She wondered whether the waning of the moon was giving her such negative thoughts, but a strand of reflection told her that she hadn’t smiled in a long time, forget being positive.

“Don’t do what?” Kairi asked. Woohyun pressed his lips together in a firm line and poked her right cheek with his index finger.

“We should feed you more,” he said in a regretful voice. “It’s not like I hate you anymore.”

Something lifted off Kairi’s chest when he said that and she tucked her hair inside her jacket. “It’s okay, I need to be strong. Especially after what happened to Yoona.”

Woohyun stared at Kairi and nodded. A pause later, he said, “Do you know what L was talking about?”

“No,” Kairi shook her head and a dry laugh emanated from . “To be honest, I don’t know half of the things that are going on in my life right now.”

Silence passed between the two. The scenery helped the silence to transform into something comfortable, like a mug of hot chocolate one would religiously sip on before a winter night’s sleep. Something to help deal with the cold. Something to get one’s mind off the chill. The sound of the waves dancing on the sand and rocks requested to become the moment’s soundtrack and it was then that realization struck.

Kairi’s back straightened and she lifted her head a little.

“Tell me how bad he is.”

Woohyun knew who she was talking about. His chest rose when he glanced at her, her emaciated eyes finally raging.

“I don’t want to be in the dark anymore,” Kairi said and her voice broke out. “My father… I’ve been left like this with strangers for three months and all he cares about is playing games rather than saving his only daughter. All he cares about is Avalon.”

“Promise me Woohyun,” she said, tugging on his jacket. Woohyun’s stance froze and he turned to face her.

“Promise me that when we get there,” she said, gritting her teeth. “Whenever we do, wherever we are… I will be the one to destroy Avalon with my own hands.”

“But we need Avalon Kairi,” Woohyun said. “We need it, it’s the people’s only source of power..”

Kairi fervently shook her head. “I figured out something and bits and pieces of the past collaborated to help me understand… The only way you can take revenge is if you destroy Avalon. Trust me.”

“Are you sure you can do it?” Woohyun said. “You still need to prove a lot.”

Kairi thought for a while.

“If,” she whispered and gave a small smile. “If I’m not able to, you will. Only you.”

The waves now had competition. For another beautiful sound, the sound of two people’s breathing falling in sync, threatened to realign the stars.

                                                                                  *****************************************************

“She’s still alive.”

“Yes, I’m well aware…”

“Then why?”

The General linked his hands together and leaned forward on the table. The fierce young man infront of him stared back with immense curiosity.

“You’re asking me why I haven’t done anything to retrieve my daughter?”

The young man nodded. “If you want, I can start a search right now—”

“And just when I thought you knew how to play.”

The young man furrowed his eyebrows at the old man’s words. The latter sighed and shook his head, a smile on his lips.

“Those rebels… who think they can win over me… let them dream, that’s the least they can do.”

“And your daughter?”

The General’s eyes narrowed. “Do you really not know why I haven’t done anything?”

The young man shook his head. The General closed his eyes.

“I trust you Jaebeom,” he said. “You and that new recruit Jiyeon.”

“I personally find her to be lacking—”

“Oh she’s cunning,” the General wagged his finger. “If I wanted, I would have had her as a daughter. That day I asked Jiyeon, ‘what if you too had been abducted like my Kairi?’ Do you know what she said?”

“She said, ‘Sir, I would sacrifice myself for your pride and honour. I would rather return home as a martyr than a withered soul.’”

“The fact that Kairi is still alive shows how weak-hearted she is.” The General clicked his tongue, shaking his head as he glanced at the picture of the girl with dark hair and emerald green eyes.

“What if she never returns?” Jaebeom enquired.

The General smirked. “Believe me Jaebeom, she will return. And she won’t return alone. We’ll be witnessing a grand welcome ceremony very soon.”