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If there's one thing you've learned in these few moments, it's that teleporting is not as easy as it might sound. It definitely isn’t a skill that can be taught. Even if you could try your hardest to learn everything about it, nothing could have possibly prepared you for this new experience.

You rub your eyes and look up; the first person you see is Sungji, her gaze fixed on something in the distance behind you from where you’ve landed. She’s on all fours on the ground and is wide open as she stares.

You shift up from your position on the ground and rub your bottom. That landing wasn’t as graceful as you would have liked it to be. Kai stands next to you, unharmed and smiling triumphantly as he watches Sungji’s reaction. You finally decide to turn around to find out what has Sungji’s attention, and you pivot your body to face the opposite direction.

Your breathing hitches and you struggle for oxygen.

Lifting your hand and pointing, you turn your head to Kai and stutter, “That—that’s not… no way…”

You push yourself up from the ground, still pointing a shaking finger in the same direction.

"We're in Paris?!"

The centuries old landmark towers several stories over the three of you, lit up with dancing lights that compliment the elegant atmosphere that Paris offers at night.

Paris, France.

You’ve only dreamed of visiting this place and never actually thought you’d travel through space and time in order to get where you are currently. It’s everything you’ve ever imagined it would be, and more.

The cart vendors are making their way slowly around the tower, advertising their goods in fluent French and dazzling the tourists with their souvenirs. You smile to an elderly man pushing a flower cart that is passing in front of you and he tilts his hat as he gives you a humble nod in response.

Your mind suddenly runs to the one thing you haven’t thought about in a while: your brother.

You look around the area that you’re standing in and think to yourself, Could he be here?

Your skin tingles with eagerness and you begin to think of all the things you could possibly do in Paris.

Sungji is still on the ground, her dazed expression permanently on her face, so you walk over to help her recover. 

Kai crosses his arms in front of him as he breathes in the fresh night air. “I told you that it’s nice around this time.” His body relaxes as the aroma of freshly baked bread and the sound of singing in the distance embraces him.

You help Sungji stand up and she wobbles in place, unable to comprehend what is happening. “I think you broke her,” you say almost laughing, as Sungji hangs onto your arm to try and regain her balance.

Sungji stares right at Kai as she struggles to find the right words to say. “You.” She lifts a weak finger at him. “You’re crazy.”

Kai walks over and places her other arm around his shoulder. “At least you’re not dead.” Sungji glares at him, secretly thankful for the extra pair of shoulders for support. 

Kai looks around from where he’s standing and takes in his surroundings, nodding to himself. “This should be proof enough. As much as I would love to stay a little longer, we should leave. I’ll bring you both back another day.”

You can feel all the plans you’ve made in your head disappear and your heart sinks at his statement. You’re finally here, in the city that started the entire fine arts movement; the city that inspires creativity. And now you have to leave, and you haven’t even gotten to properly see it.

Your mouth involuntarily turns into a frown and you look down at the pavement to hide it.

But Kai is quick and catches your look. He can see the disappointment before you can express it, and quickly moves his hand in front of your face. You can see that he’s balled his hand into a fist, but is sticking his pinky out, patiently waiting for you to comply.

You move your eyes up from his hand to his face and he gently sighs. “I promise, okay? We’ll come back… together.”

His last word shoots right through your heart and you quickly move your right hand forward to meet his to make sure he’s not focusing on your burning cheeks. Your pinky intertwines with his and you both glance at each other as your thumbs meet in the middle to complete the promise.

You tear your hand away and slide it back under Sungji’s arm, bracing yourself for the journey back home, as well as the awkward comments that Sungji will probably bring up later.

Unfortunately for you, Kai has already noticed how red your cheeks are, and he can feel his own beginning to warm up as he holds tight to Sungji’s opposite arm and gets into position. This time without a warning beforehand, Kai teleports, and your stomach once again loses its positioning in your body.

You’ve decided that this is definitely a feeling that you will never get used to, but you’re somehow enjoying it more than the first time.

Pure terror of the unknown has now turned into a thriving curiosity; curiosity about things you’ve never dared to think about before, about worlds and dimensions, and about one certain person specifically.

You hold that feeling within yourself as you grip Sungji’s arm close to your side, Kai guiding the three of you home.

Coming home seemed a lot faster, and by the time you had settled in to the house, Sungji settled in with the idea of Kai. In this life or the next, she had never imagined experiencing something like teleportation, and needless to say, Kai’s story was becoming more and more believable by the second.

After a few glasses of water and a short therapy session on the floor, she was beginning to respond normally, and practically begged Kai to finish his story. Seated in your original places, Kai holds a cup of coffee in his hands and begins his story where he left off.

“Let’s see… Okay. So, the twelve of us weren’t born like regular people are. We were created from something called the Life Force.

In the beginning of time, the Life Force was a tree, known as the Tree of Life. The Legends, or Gods as people on Earth call them, created the tree to develop the dimensions and help it prosper. But a dark evil came that wanted to take the power that the tree provided, and use it to destroy both of our dimensions. In order to stall the attack, the Legends split the tree in half" - he puts his cup down and brings his hands together as one, then separates them to illustrate - “And dispersed the power six ways for each half of the tree, hence the Twelve Forces. Essentially, we are our world’s greatest weapon against the evil. There are two groups of us, with six each; six of us somewhere on earth, and six of us somewh