“You need to be more uplifting Taeyeon! You’re a role model to young children and your songs...well...are too depressing. I don’t know if it’s good for kids to hear, you know? That’s why I’m sending you here. It’ll be beneficial for you, I swear”

Her manager made it sound so easy. She uncomfortably shifted in her seat, shuffling closer to the edge of her seat. She adjusted her earbuds and glanced out the window.

The trees around her looked as if they were closing in on her, which made her feel claustrophobic. She pulled her knees to her chest and pondered at what would happen next.

She wasn’t given any information. She was suddenly tossed into a car to be shipped off to some camp at the middle of the forest. Was this even legal?

“We’ve arrived,” her chaperone eyed the campsite in front of her.

Great. It’s as campy as you could get. Houses made from wood. Campfires. Cheap looking canoes. This was Taeyeon’s worst nightmare.

“Yeah...thanks…” she muttered, taking a step out. She got some help getting out her things, but it was like she needed more help than that right now.

“Good morning,” Taeyeon peered up from her belongings to see a girl with the brightest smile she had ever seen. She had perfectly aligned teeth in the purest white colour. Her eyes crinkled in glee as she held out a hand. “My name is Tiffany Hwang, aka, your camp instructor for this month.”

Taeyeon tucked away her music into her pockets and shook it awkwardly.

“Taeyeon...nice to meet you…” Tiffany replied with a chuckle. She took a bag in each hand and guided her towards one of the cabins.

“So tell me Taeyeon, why did you decide to come here?” she asked, her voice chirping with joy.

“Uhh...it wasn’t really my decision. I’m a singer, you see?” she received a hum.

“So I have heard…” she pursed her lips. “I’ve heard your songs before. They’re very good. You’re a very talented person but…” she trailed off slightly, and it took a moment before she pieced together her phrases. “They’re a little gloomy…”

“Exactly. So I got sent here. To do something about it,” she replied in a monotone. Tiffany lowered the bags in a nearby bed.

“Do you like to sing those dark songs?” she questioned. Taeyeon pondered.

“In a way...yeah...I did write them myself,” she dumped her bags next to where Tiffany had.

“And how did you write them?” she took a seat and tapped the spot next to her. Taeyeon sat.

“By singing from the heart…? I don’t know. I just sang what I thought of,” she answered plainly. Tiffany hummed.

“I get it...I’m sort of into music writing myself,” she placed her hand on top of hers, which made Taeyeon flinch slightly and grow stiff. “I learnt to see the happy things in life. You don’t want to waste it, do you?” Taeyeon shook her head. “Exactly! That’s what we’re here for! That’s what we’re gonna do! Okay?”

Taeyeon gulped and nodded again.

This was gonna be one hell of a ride for a singer like her.