"Can I come?" I asked Kyungok as he threw on a jacket.

"Sorry Kyeongie, I don't think it'll be safe if you come today. Mom will be so mad if you get hurt going with us," Kyungok said, flashing me an apologetic smile. 

"But, but...you said that last time too. Can I please come? I promise I won't get hurt," I said, clinging onto his sleeve.

"You can't promise such a think Kyeongie. I'm going," Kyungok removed my grasp and ran out the door. My patience was wearing thin today, and I wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Wait!" I called after him, once again willing the crutches to carry me farther, faster. I'd barely reached the door frame when Kyungok was already heading towards the forest with Jungkook, laughter trailing after them. 

Why did things like this always happen to me? I was always 'Kill-joy Kyeongeun', 'Lead-footed Kyeongeun'. Life would be so much better if we had just a little bit more money. Full meals, quality clothes, and paid hospital fees would be just a hair-breath away. Freedom would be within the reach of my fingertips.

But I wasn't born into that life, and I never will be. Jungkook had told me that I mattered when no one else would, so I chose to believe him. It was worth a shot. These thoughts ran through me as I limped my way into the forest, hoping, praying, that I wouldn't get lost.

*                            *                           *

They always said you had to write your own history, right? Well mine just happened to take a wrong turn. The realization hit me too late when I'd wandered in too far with no means of returning back. Jungkook and Kyungok often played in the forest, but this was my first time coming in such close contact with nature.

Minutes mixed into hours, and time vanished in the beat of the animal noises that passed from tree to tree. The only way I knew was passing at all was because the sky dyed into an ombre of pinks, oranges, reds, and purples. The path home only seemed to get farther and farther away as I limped incessantly around on those useless crutches. My emotions surged into a raging storm inside me; everything out here was wild.

Nature was strange. Noises were called out in a language only humans wouldn't understand, and I yearned to comprehend their conversations. Bugs intertwined themselves in my hair and clothes, refusing to relieve me even for a minute. But most strangely, the forest continued on constantly without disturbance. Everywhere I turned, it all looked the same. It mocked me in my foolishness; while everything continued on peacefully, I was the odd one out. My anxiety was fed and the notion that I was going to die only heightened.

In the midst of my defeated state, a beacon of hope found its way through. It came to me in the form of a thin, clear stream; a reminder that life was not lost, ironically. Although I was in a place bursting with life and wildness all around me, the hope came to me in the form of life. Mother nature has a strange sense of humor.

But it seemed that I wasn't the only one the stream called out to. Three fuzzy looking animals halted from their drink when they saw me approaching. The eyed me curiously as I knelt down to drink, thankful I wasn't going to go down by dehydration. Now I just had to worry about the 99 other ways I could die tonight if I never get back home. 

The little critters seemed innocent enough; still as statues, they completely lost all interest in the stream and continued to watch me. "You guys are adorable," I said, holding out a hand.

I remembered when Kyungok and I were 6 years old, and I ran home crying because my classmate had knocked over my paint pot in art class. However her name and face were now a blur, irrelevant. Kyungok had told me that day that he hated to see me cry, so I didn't do it anymore after that.

The three little critters dashed behind me, out of sight when they heard the noise. As a low, vicious growl ripped out from behind me, the urge to let the pent-up tears loose left my throat parched. Slowly, I turned around.

A six foot tall monster (who I assumed was the mother of the trio) stood towering above me, snout set in a twitching snarl. It breathed hard and heavily, threatening death in the maternal way that mothers did. In a moment of pure terror, my good leg wobbled and left me tumbling into the stream. Except it wasn't a stream; the deep, icy, violent body of water couldn't be called such a peaceful thing.

The water swallowed me whole. My arms treaded as much as they could, yet the dead weight of my bad leg sunk me further in. The river's angry current roared in my ears, not allowing me even a moment to catch my shaky breath. Down and down the water carried me. Down and down to my death. 

This was it. I was going to die in the middle of the forest where no one will find me. People will hear of me as the cripple that died mysteriously at the hands of nature. Someone who couldn't listen to her parents when they told to stay safely at home. A burden till the end. Then I'll vanish from their thoughts. The moment of mourning would be considered insignificant in the grand scheme of history. Forgotten, that's what I'll be. Why did I have to live such a pathetic life? I just-

"Kyeongeun!" thin hands pulled me out of the freezing current, tearing me away from my last thoughts. My eyes adjusted to a young boy leaning over me. Anger, confusion, concern, fear, and relief all mixed marvelously in his eyes; such beautiful things. I didn't know that so many emotions could take hold of a person's heart at once.

"Kyeongeun! Can you hear me?" Jungkook breathed, his voice shaky in its concern. His arms clutched me close, refusing to let go. Kyungok also hovered over me, his normally neat hair sticking out in every direction possible.

"How did you guys find me? I-"

"Kyeongie this is why I told you to stay home. You can't control whether or not some things happen, especially since your leg is crippled," Kyungok said. His face tried to look harsh and angry, but the relief smothered all the other emotions in its magnitude.

"I-I...just wanted to play with you guys. I didn't mean for any of this..." I mumbled, adverting my gaze to the river that I'd nearly drowned in only moments before.

"Kyeongeun," Jungkook softly held my face in his hands, forcing our eyes to meet. Only one emotion remained in them, but came across as unreadable. "We'll definitely bring you along next time. We'll keep you safe,"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author's note: This chapter would've been up earlier but it FREAKIN DELETED ON ME when I was almost downT.T Nonetheless, enjoy^.^