“What are we doing today?” Jongin asked as he ate breakfast with his friends.

“I think it’s a free day today.” Jongdae responded as he peeled his orange. “That means that we can explore the area around the kingdoms.”

Jongin grinned from ear to ear.

“But we need to tell the professor where we’re going.” Chanyeol added as he smiled at Jongin.

“The area around the kingdom must be beautiful huh?” Kyungsoo said as he took a scoop of the porridge he was eating.

“I want to explore the wooded area. Rumors say that’s where the princes used to go for their secret meetings.” Baekhyun said.

Kyungsoo beamed as he looked over at him, “I want to go there too!”

“It’s probably really romantic, huh?” Baekhyun winked.

The friends all looked at one another and shared a small smile as they thought of how their princes—er friends, got along. They already seemed to like one another so much! It was only a matter of time before their feelings were completely restored.

“You want to go together?” Kyungsoo asked.

Baekhyun nodded, “Sure.”

They heard a groan from their left and they turned their head to find Jongin covering his ears. “Just kiss already.” He pouted.

Baekhyun and Kyungsoo both blushed and looked away.

Kyungsoo gulped, “What are you talking about?”

“We can go with you!” Minseok interjected as he leaned forward.

“We?” Baekhyun questioned.

Jongdae burst in with just as much energy. “Yeah! Me, Minseok, Chanyeol—“

“I want to go wherever Jongin goes.” Chanyeol cut in.

Jongin jumped and looked over at Chanyeol who had a determined look in his eyes. He gulped and looked over at Minseok.

His older brother had his brows furrowed but then, they began to soften and a small smile appeared on his lips instead. His eyes drifted to Jongin and asked, “Jongin, do you want to explore with Chanyeol?”

Jongin’s mouth dropped, “Er…s—sure. I mean, if he wants to go with me.”

Minseok scoffed and looked over at Chanyeol, “Take care of him Chanyeol.”

Jongin raised an eyebrow and looked away. What was up with Minseok? This was not like the brother he knew and grew up with.

“Where do you want to go Jongin?”

Jongin turned to face Chanyeol whose face was beaming. His eyes looked soft and his smile was genuine. It made Jongin’s heart skip a beat and he suddenly grew shy. Why was he looking at him with so much adoration in his eyes?

“I—don’t know. You can pick.”

Chanyeol nodded, “Alright, I know just where I want to go.”

“Taemin, do you want to go together?” Sehun asked.

Taemin pierced his lips together and responded, “Are you sure?”

Sehun nodded, “Yes, I really want to.”

Taemin sent him a small smile, “Ok, after breakfast we can all head on out.”

***

“Did we really have to go in here? There’s nothing but branches that keep poking me.” Baekhyun pouted as he moved another branch from his face.

“Trust me, I read there is this really cool watering hole.” Minseok responded.

Kyungsoo scoffed, “I hope so. There is way too much mosquitoes for my liking.”

Minseok jumped over a small stream and landed on his feet as he giggled, “Don’t trip here.”

Baekhyun jumped over the stream and felt himself stumble. A hand was quick to grab his before he could lose his balance.

Kyungsoo pulled him up to his feet and smiled, “Careful, it’s a little slippery.”

Baekhyun giggled, “It’s nice to see that you’re protective over me.”

Kyungsoo looked away as he blushed, a shy smile coming up on his face. “No…”

“Guys hurry up!” Jongdae called out. Even in this life they were still so cheesy.

The both of them caught up quickly. Minseok and Jongdae were standing in front of a big dried up pond. It was pretty big.

“Wow! A dried up watering hole.” Baekhyun said as he stood next to them.

Minseok looked it over and reminisced about the wonderful times he used to have here when he was a knight. It was also the very first place he had gotten a glimpse of how Jongin felt over Chanyeol. He had dove into the water to save him without even thinking about his own safety.

“I wonder if Monalets would come here.” Kyungsoo questioned as he looked it over.

Minseok let out a scoff as he looked over at Kyungsoo. The latter couldn’t even begin to imagine. They used to have wonderful adventures when they were able to get away. They would come here to destress and it was also the place where they first began to see Kyungsoo’s feelings towards Baekhyun, much like now.

“You think they would come here when they snuck out? The Solaris prince was notorious for that.” Baekhyun said as he bent down and touched where the water used to be.

Jongdae scoffed. Baekhyun was very tough to keep still. He would constantly want to be anywhere but sitting down. He was the best when it came to escaping without getting caught. He hadn’t changed at all. Even in this lifetime, he was still just as playful and bright.

“Maybe.” Jongdae answered.

Minseok and Jongdae wanted so badly to hold them tight in their arms. The day that they had found them in the grass was one of their worst memories. But they wouldn’t rush anything. Maybe they would remember, maybe they wouldn’t, only time would tell.

***

Jongin walked side by side with Chanyeol as they wandered into the forest together. The forest itself was big and serene. His eyes wandered around, with a smile on his face as he looked it over. It seemed like those enchanted forests that one would see in a movie.

Chanyeol seemed to be leading the way and Jongin followed slightly behind.

“Have you been here before?” Jongin asked.

Chanyeol shook his head, “No, I’m just walking forward.”

Jongin giggled as he caught up to him, “What if we get lost?”

Chanyeol looked over at him, “We won’t.”

Jongin wasn’t too sure if that was right. They had been walking through the forest for what seemed like a couple of minutes now. They had maneuvered through twists and turns, but Chanyeol didn’t seem at all worried. Chanyeol’s confidence made Jongin feel secure. In fact, being around the latter made him feel safe.

“It should be here…” Chanyeol whispered.

“What should be here?”

“Huh?”

“You said it should be here.” Jongin stood in front of him and smirked, “What exactly are you looking for?” He walked backwards as Chanyeol continued walking forward.

Chanyeol scoffed, “Something I read in a book once.”

“Oh really? What is—?” Jongin stopped midsentence as he suddenly felt himself falling backwards. His eyes widened and saw Chanyeol’s face drop.

Chanyeol leaped forward and pulled on Jongin’s hand to keep him from falling. Jongin felt as Chanyeol pressed him into his chest and his grip on him tightened. Chanyeol squeezed tight and let out a sigh, “Be more careful Jongin. You could have hit your head on something and—“

Jongin blinked as he felt his face heating up. He looked up and saw Chanyeol looking forward at something. His mouth was open and eyes wide. A smile began to form and Jongin parted from him to see what he was looking at.

“Oh my gosh…” Chanyeol whispered as he walked towards a tall shrub.

Jongin raised an eyebrow as Chanyeol brushed the shrub with his hand. It was about as tall as them, and as wide as a queen sized bed. “What?”

Chanyeol turned back to look at him, eyes a bit glossy. “Come with me.”

“Where?”

Chanyeol got onto his knees and slowly forced his head into the shrub.

Jongin’s eyes widened and he bent down to get to Chanyeol’s level. “What are you doing?!”

Chanyeol grabbed Jongin’s wrist and pulled him. At first Jongin resisted, but then he felt the wind pushing him. Something familiar suddenly compelled him to enter the shrub. He allowed Chanyeol to pull him inside and was soon engulfed by darkness. He shut his eyes and let Chanyeol pull him.

He didn’t open his eyes until he felt light hit his face. He was on all fours and Chanyeol was on his feet with his hands covering his mouth. Jongin’s eyes wandered the area and they landed on a big tree that was right in the center.

Chanyeol let out whimper and ran to it. Jongin stood up slowly and turned around. Behind him was the hole that he had just entered from. How had Chanyeol known that there was a clearing behind that shrub?

He looked back to find Chanyeol leaning against the tree, covering his eyes. Was he…crying?

“Chanyeol?”

Jongin took a step forward, but a calming sound caught his attention and he turned his head towards it. A small stream made a gentle and alluring sound. It was almost as if it beckoned him to get closer.

He doesn’t know what made him do it, but he suddenly found himself walking towards that small stream. Once he reached it, he saw ducklings that followed their mother and small fish swimming around.

He bit his bottom lip as his heart accelerated and palms got sweaty. Why was he so nervous? He bent down slowly and gently placed his hand into the pond. The cool water engulfed his hand and traveled up to his wrist. He smiled and let his hand drop deeper, and that was all it took for his memories to come back.

At first, they started like flashes. It began with how he saved that boy from this very place eons ago. And then it lead up to how he grew to fall in love with that boy and then lose him due to a mistake. An error on his part.

He remembered how he loved his brother and prince beyond words and slowly began to also love the people they were supposed to hate.

His last memory was of how Taem