Jeon Won Woo sat under the shade of a blooming cherry blossom tree, skimming through the pages of a worn out book. Yellowed pages and ripped covers didn't bother the young boy. Faded ink marked every page from top to bottom, telling a story about a world of lands and creatures that no longer existed today.

       Won Woo hummed softly as he read, his deep, velvety voice letting out a sweet tune as he immersed himself in words and letters. Another large pile of books were piled up messily next to him, stacked up on one another unevenly. 

       "Hey." Won Woo looked up to see Lee Jihoon, his best friend from rank 8 that often came by to check up on him and hang out with him. 

       "Hey yourself. How've you been?"

       "Pretty good. The bakery's holding up. What about you?"

       "I've been doing okay... I'm just starting to run out of books to read..." Won Woo stared in amusement as Jihoon sat down next to him and opened a book. Not even three second had passed before Jihoon closed the book and lightly thumped the back of his head against the soft bark of the solid tree behind him in boredom.

       "How do you even read these things? They're so old. And boring." His silvery pink locks were astray as he got back up, brushing grass and dirt off of his clothes. Won Woo did the same, and packed his books into his old bag that he'd gotten from his father a few years ago. The smell of worn leather covered the books, engulfing them in a nostalgic scent that Won Woo took comfort in. Jihoon tugged on his arm.

       "Come on! Let's go to the bakery." Won Woo nodded and walked alongside Jihoon, conversing with the shorter enthusiastically. They looked like a funny pair, Jihoon's tiny stature dwarfed by Won Woo's gangly form. As they ranted about random things, they started to reach the doors of a small, crowded shop. Jihoon reached forward, and grasped onto one of the shiny brass handles of the glass doors, tugging it open with a tiny grunt.

       As the glass door gave way, Won Woo was embraced by the smell of fresh coffee and warm, baked pastries. The inside of the bakery was very homey. There were small glass tables surrounded by big, squishy chairs that Won Woo loved to sit in. The counters were made of shiny marble, and the windows were large and shiny, letting tons of sunlight into the room. Loud chatter from young boys and girls around Won Woo's age filled the area, spreading to every corner of the room.

       Won Woo felt comfortable with the warm, happy atmosphere as he jumped over the counter to where Jihoon was. The shorter boy was by the register, ringing up customers faster than Won Woo could count. Jihoon's slim fingers danced across the buttons of the machine, punching in numbers and prices of different items. The buzzing of the small machine next to the register sounded, and barely stopped as mountains of reciepts were shot through the opening one by one. 

       "Hey Jihoon?" The younger tilted his head towards Won Woo, indicating that he was listening to the taller.

       "I'm gonna go lie down in the staff room. Wake me if you need any help, alright? Don't overwork yourself too much." Jihoon's eyes softened as he took in Won Woo's kind words. He scanned over the taller's clothes. Won Woo was wearing a plain, white sweater with numerous holes in the sleeves. The black jeans that covered his long, skinny legs had to be at least a year old. The ends of his pants didn't even make it all the way down to his ankles. However, his shoes were brand-new high tops that he had recieved about two weeks ago from Jihoon himself. The younger was tired of seeing Won Woo traipse around in old, holey shoes that barely covered his feet.

       As a rank 10, Won Woo was at the bottom of the social pyramid, and was one of the poorest people Jihoon had ever come across. His parents had died when Won Woo was young, leading the boy to overwork and study hard to be able to keep a tiny apartment a few miles away from his school. 

       "Okay. Go rest now, you need it." Won Woo chuckled.

       "Alright." The older walked down the long, winding hallway to go to the staff room, where he knew a fresh cup of coffee (courtesy of Jihoon) would be waiting for him. He plopped himself down in a big chair, letting the soft pillows deflate beneath him, making it look like he was sinking into the couch. He pulled out the same book that he was reading earlier. He sighed contentedly, and started to relax.

       A skinny arm hooked itself around Won Woo's neck, pulling him into a random headlock. He looked up to see Soon Young, a rank 8 that had endless energy. He grinned as the blonde started to do a strange jellyfish motion with his hands, making sure that he would accidentally knock his hand into Won Woo's head a couple of times.

       "Hi Soon Young... did you drink coffee again?" The mentioned teenager looked up from where he was sipping at Won Woo's coffee. 

       "Uh... yes. I think. Wait. Nooo... yes? God damn it Won Woo, stop confusing me with all the mumbo jumbo you read in your books!" Won Woo raised an eyebrow.

       "I'm guessing you did, cause you're drinking my coffee. And it's not mumbo jumbo , okay? I'm actually educating myself, not learning how to cast spells on random people." Soon Young proceeded to make a strange, derpy face while raising a finger, tapping Won Woo on the tip of his nose, and saying,

       "You're a wizard, Won Woo..." The teenager rolled his eyes all the way into the back of his head at Soon Young's antics, and kept reading, deciding to ignore the other. Another figure appeared, and a sweet, gentle looking boy wandered in aimlessly. He smiled kindly at them, tilting his head good-naturedly.

       "Um... is Lee Jihoon-ssi here?" The said teenager walked in right at that moment.

       "I heard my name..." The man jolted a little at the shorter's appearance before smiling again.

       "Hello, Jihoon-ssi! I'm Hong Jisoo. I'm here for the job interview!" Jihoon perked up at this, and nodded, beckoning for Jisoo to go into his office. Won Woo tilted his head to the side.

       "We got a newbie." Soon Young nodded.

       "He looks like an angel..." Won Woo pursed his lips in thought. The older wasn't wrong. His shiny brown hair, fair skin, and bright, shiny eyes made him look dreamy. They contrasted sharply with Won Woo's harsh, dark eyes that were tilted at an angle that made him look a little scary. He was pale and had fair skin, but sadly, he looked like a ghost when his pitch black hair was seen against his skin. He sighed. 

       "I heard that he's a rank 5..." A new voice was heard, and Won Woo twisted in his seat to face Ming Hao, who was seated behind him eating a pastry. The younger had his face stuffed, making him look like a chipmunk. 

       "That means that he's above all of us, then." Ming Hao deflated slightly in disappointment. The boy had always been bullied for being a rank 6, and for being Chinese when everyone else was of Korean descent. He then set his gaze on Won Woo, and felt a pang in his chest. The older was always so content with whatever he had, and he was a rank 10. He should be the one worrying, yet he isn't. The Chinese boy stood up, and slowly walked over to Won Woo, who looked up in curiosity.

       "What is it, Ming Hao?" The younger said nothing, and gently wrapped his arms around Won Woo, not budging when Soon Young whined, saying that he wanted to cuddle with Won Woo as well.

       "It's nothing, hyung. Just... if you ever need to let off steam or rant about something you're upset about... you can come to me, 'kay?" Won Woo slowly nodded, and smiled gratefully towards Ming Hao who smiled shyly, and took a seat on the floor next to Won Woo, grasping tightly onto his arm. 

       "Heeeey! Why is everyone cuddling without me?! I am the cuddling master!" The three boys looked up to see Seung Kwan, a big-hearted rank 6 that was a diva, but constantly cared for those around him. He quickly jogged over, and sat down in front of Soon Young, who wrapped his arms around him playfully, tugging him to his chest. 

       "Yah! Seung Kwan! Get back to work!" Jihoon's irritated voice was heard, and the latter groaned.

       "But I don't wanna! I wanna cuddle!" Jihoon rolled his eyes.

       "You gotta go train the newbie. Jisoo, your mentor's gonna be Seung Kwan. Good luck." And with that, Jihoon walked off, leaving an awkward and shy Jisoo with the rest of the group. He looked over to them, and grinned.

       "Can I join you guys?" Ming hao shifted warily, still miffed at the fact that Jisoo was a rank 5. Soon Young and Seung Kwan were all for it, even pulling Jisoo down with them. Won Woo smiled softly at Jisoo, who stared up at him in awe. 

       "Whoa... you're so pretty. Your eyes are like diamonds!" The boy choked.

       "W-who, me?" Jisoo smiled, little eyebags appearing under his small eyes.

       "Yeah! You kinda scared me at first, but now that I took a really good look at you, you're sooooo pretty!" Ming Hao tightened his grip on Won Woo, and shrunk away from Jisoo. This didn't go unnoticed by the newbie.

       "Am I really that awkward? I'm sorry if you guys don't really like me, but I promise that I'm not mean!" Seung Kwan scanned Jisoo up and down. Although the older was a rank 5, he was extremely sweet and innocent, which made up for his awkwardness.

       "Loosen up. You're acting like one of us is gonna bite your head off, or something..." Jisoo let out a huge breath.

       "Really? Cause you guys are kinda scary..." Won Woo chuckled softly, causing a curious Jihoon to quietly poke his head back through the door.

       "Don't worry. We're all nice once you get to know us a little more..." Jisoo beamed cutely up at Won Woo. Ming Hao had loosened up, and was seated a little more closely to Jisoo now. Jihoon smiled softly at the group as they continued to talk. He could tell that this was the start of an amazing friendship. He headed outside to take a walk, taking in the scent of spring and the beautiful scene of the sun setting, causing the clouds in the sky to turn into different dark hue of red, pink, orange, and purple. The wind blew softly at his hair, and he sighed. The trees rustled, but Jihoon paid no mind to the sound. He headed down a hill, where a river flowed at the bottom. He quickly took off his shoes, and placed them next to himself, sitting down so that he could let his feet touch the water. The grass tickled his arms and legs, and the water felt pleasant, and cooled down Jihoon's stressed body. 

       Jihoon was so immersed in the scenery that he didn't notice the tall figure peering down at him from the hill. Nor did he notice the thumping footsteps slowly making their way down the hill, stomping through grass and fallen leaves. And he didn't realize the footsteps coming to an abrupt stop right behind him. Jihoon stared at the grass, playing with a few short blades before noticing the large shadow cast across his arm. He frowned. He moved to the side, but the shadow didn't move. It wasn't his.

       The boy gasped as two large hands quickly wrapped themselves around his slim waist, and pulled him up from the ground. He was tugged into a tight grip, and thrown over a broad shoulder. Everything was upside down. Jihoon was too shocked to do anything. The last thing he heard was a small, deep chuckle coming from his captor. He then felt a strong blow to his neck, and he fell unconscious. The last thing he saw was the sky, still blooming with hues of purple and red. 

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       Won Woo quickly lifted his head up, feeling that something was a little off. The others had fallen asleep, surrounding him on the ground like little minions. He melted inwardly at the sight, but got up, albiet quite reluctantly. He didn't hear the familiar sound of Jihoon yelling at the workers in the bakery. The pleasant hum of chatter was still there, but now, it sounded off to Won Woo. He headed out the back, seeing that the door was wide open. 

       "Jihoon? Where are you?" He heard nothing but the wind.

       "Lee Jihoon, I'm being serious! If this is some kind of sick joke, it isn't funny! Where are you?" A small rustle was heard by Won Woo. He sharply turned his head towards the direction in which the sound came from. 

       "Jihoon?" Won Woo felt a large rush of wind behind him, and gulped nervously. He knew for a fact that the thing behind him wasn't his best friend.

       "You're not Jihoon, are you?" His voice came out uneasily, and shakily. A deep laugh was heard before a velvety voice reached Won Woo's ears. He felt the short breaths of something on the nape of his neck, and he gulped again. 

       "No, I'm not." And with that, Won Woo turned around to see something that he never thought he would've ever seen in his life. 

 

A/N:

Yah, I know, what a crappy cliffhanger! Plz dun judge me and mah crappy writing skills! Thanks for reading and subscribing! And feel free to leave comments down below, if you want... I guess? Yah... bye!