A high-pitched ‘eek’, followed by some rustling against the scattered remains of dry leaves and twigs on the ground, could be heard in the density of the lush jungle. Judging by the grossed out expressions on the women’s faces after witnessing a congregation of creepy-crawlies, one could easily tell that both of them weren’t quite adapted to their new environment. Threading cautiously on their mud-covered flats which had seen better days, Jung Sooyeon and Hwang Miyoung pondered over how something like this could ever actually happen to them.

“I don’t know which one’s worse: nearly gotten buried in a watery grave or stuck on this God-forsaken island full of bugs and other things I don’t want to know about, with no food and water for us to find!” The blonde angrily whined, forcefully slapping away any bloodsuckers that dared to land upon her pearl-white skin. “I might as well be dead right now…” That last sentence resulted in a hard whack on the back of her head.

“Oww! What was that for!?” She said in annoyance, rubbing the part where her poor skull was hit.

“Jessi, how could you say that!?” Her dark-haired companion was now downright upset at what Jessica had just muttered out in the open. As much as Tiffany really wished that they weren’t in this kind of predicament right now, she still had the undying will to survive left intact in her. Dying here was the last thing that she wanted to do. “We can’t just give up like this! We might still find a way outta here if we don’t lose hope. And besides, we haven’t even found the others yet…”

Jessica abruptly stopped what she had been doing to look back at her fellow American buddy who was currently not her usual eye-smiling self. The look on Tiffany’s face was enough to make her heart sink. She knew how sensitive Tiffany was when it comes to anything that could possibly make her to never see her loved ones ever again. “...How can you be so sure about that?”

“About what?” Tiffany frowned.

“…You know what I’m talking about, Fany.”

A few seconds of tense silence before the dark-haired girl spoke again.

“Are you indirectly telling me that all those years we’ve spent together with them were for nothing, Jessica?” Tiffany questioned, her voice reaching a tone louder after every single word spoken, “That you can’t even believe that they’re still alive?”

“We were in a freakin’ plane crash, for crying out loud!” The blonde exploded in a flurry of emotions, fresh tears were beginning to spill out from her swollen eyes; a habit that she could not seem to overcome every time her anger got the better of her. “We barely made it out of there without having to face death right in the eye. How could ANYONE survive something like that, huh!?”

That was the wrong thing to say.

Miyoung could not take it any longer.

Jessica knew what was going to happen next as the dark-haired girl strode angrily towards her, fists clenched tight and a glare that could pierce through anyone’s soul. Jessica immediately closed her eyes and braced for the tight slap or maybe even a punch going her way.

However, a shrill scream from out of nowhere made both of the girls to flinch and whip their heads at the direction of the unexpected sound. It sounded familiar.

“Wasn’t that…Juhyun?” Tiffany lowered down her right hand, temporarily forgotten about the anger she had towards the blonde.

Another scream, followed by a cry for help, answered the question for her. It did not take long before both of the Americans broke into a dash towards the unmistakable distress calls of the group’s maknae despite their fatigue. Pushing their way through the bushes and branches obstructing their path, the cries for help became more and more audible as they approached closer to it.

And as expected, there she was. On the ground…with some unwanted company edging dangerously towards her.

Tiffany was the first to take action; running towards the fearful Seohyun and crouching down while wrapping her arms around her, acting as a human barrier against the two wild boars grunting at the appearance of the newcomer. Anyone or anything that dared to inflict any kind of harm to Seohyun had to go through Tiffany first, whether they liked it or not.

Nobody messes around with her baby maknae.

“It’s alright, Juhyun,” Tiffany whispered softly into her ear, trying to comfort the trembling girl, “We’re here for you.” She inspected her member’s body; feeling relieved to see that there weren’t any serious injuries on Seohyun other than some cuts here and there. But now, there were more important things to take care of.

A sudden squeal was heard, making the two girls to look back. The Ice Princess was doing the most heroic thing she had ever done in her entire life.

“YAH, GET OUTTA HERE YOU OVERSIZED PIECES OF PORK CHOP!” Jessica yelled out at the large boars, hurling multiple numbers of stones she picked up mercilessly at them. “C’MON, GET LOST!” Witnessing this grand feat by Jessica the scaredy-cat of all people was something so rare that even Seohyun and Tiffany couldn’t believe their eyes. But even though their defender was harbouring the most pissed off face that ever existed and an endless amount of rocks in hand, it was still not enough to make the two ferocious beasts to flee in terror. In fact, it made them even more hostile and aggressive. Taking a step back, Jessica whimpered when the boars weren’t fazed by her ‘intimidating’ actions.

‘This isn’t going too well…’

Letting out a raging grunt, one of the boars decided to take matters into its own paws.

“JESSI, WATCH OUT!”
“UNNIE!”

The blonde, overwhelmed by the animal’s unexpected action, dropped down onto the ground and shielded herself from the oncoming attack. She braced for the pain that she was going to get.

It never happened.

*Whack*

The boar squealed in great pain when an object made impact on the tip of its horned nostrils as it was about to charge towards the helpless girl, sending it flying back to where its accomplice was. Two tall figures emerged from the bushes, one wielding a stick and the other one holding something huge and bright yellow.

“Pick on someone your own species next time, pig!” One of them taunted, making the boar which charged at Jessica to run off. “Well? What are you waiting for? Shoo!” The other boar in turn followed too, afraid that it’ll get the same beating. Jessica, Tiffany, and Seohyun looked up at their rescuers once the danger had subsided to see two very familiar faces. “You’re right, Yoong. This stick really is useful!”

“I told you so, unnie!” Turning around, the doe-eyed girl faced the damsels in distress, “Is everyone alright?”

Making their way towards them, the two shikshins went over to help them off the ground; Sooyoung offering a hand to Jessica while Yoona checked up on Tiffany and Seohyun. The blonde was at a loss for words as she stared up at the offered hand and back up at Sooyoung’s face.

“What’s wrong, Sica?” Sooyoung confusingly asked, “You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.”

‘I can’t believe that I just doubted that they weren’t here anymore…’

Rubbing away her teary eyes, Jessica let herself be pulled up by the short-haired brunette, and not forgetting to hug her in the process.

“I thought that you were…y-you know…” She didn’t dare say out the other word, afraid that it would too offend her beloved friend. Instead, Jessica opted to sob on the girl’s shoulder.

“It’s alright, Jessica…” Sooyoung lovingly her smooth golden tresses, “I’m still here and I’m not going anywhere.”

Meanwhile, the other shikshin temporarily placed the bunch of bananas both of them found aside so that she could help the other two.

“Seohyun, can you stand up?” Tiffany asked, pulling up the said girl with the help of Yoona.

“Y-yes, I’m alright unnie,” Seohyun reassured her seniors, but a slight twinge on her expression says otherwise, “Ugh…”

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Yoona steadied the maknae from having a hard tumble on the ground after noticing that change, “Are you hurt anywhere?”

Using her two members as pillars of support, Seohyun tried to walk but a sharp pain surged through her right ankle, causing her to release a scream of agony which alarmed the others in the vicinity. Sooyoung and Jessica let go of each other the moment they saw the youngest in distress, warning bells clanging in their minds

“I think I twisted my ankle while I was trying to escape from those boars…Unnie, what are you doing!?”

Seohyun’s eyes almost bulged out when she felt herself being lifted off the ground, and onto the doe-eyed girl’s back.

“Piggybacking you, of course.” The abnormally-strong girl nonchalantly said, shifting Seohyun comfortably on her back and supporting her with her toned arms, ignoring the maknae’s disagreements and demands to be put back down.

“But-“

“Now, now, Juhyun,” Tiffany quickly cut off her never-ending complaints while gently patting Seohyun on the crown of her head, “Don’t be stubborn at a time like this. You’re clearly not in a perfect condition to walk, so let us help you.”

“Yeah, you should just enjoy the ride while you’re at it!” Sooyoung jokingly said while crouching down to remove the latter’s pair of sneakers and socks.

Maknae wanted to open again, but opted to just shut up and nod her head timidly after witnessing the Ice Princess’s trademark glare aimed right at her. It sent chills down her spine. Having a sprained ankle was much, MUCH better than having to face the all-mighty wrath of the notorious Ice Princess. But that was just Jessica’s special way of showing how much she cared for her adorable, little maknae that she loved dearly.

Once the giant had successfully done her job, she carried Seohyun’s shoes with her and the whole bunch of bananas on her shoulder. “So, what do we do now?”

“I think it’s best if we can find someplace where we can spend the night….” The one and only Manager Hwang announced to everyone, continuing the trek through the wilderness while the others followed in turn. For someone who had a tremendous phobia of bugs and spent most of her childhood in an urban metropolis, Tiffany seemed more courageous than before in this hostile environment. Maybe the fact that a few of her most precious friends were still alive energised her way more than she could ever imagined. And now, if only they could find the rest…She would be over the moon.

“What if there isn’t?” Jessica’s distinct voice called out from the back.

“Then we might as well build one like the ones on those survival shows, right?” Tiffany answered bluntly without turning around to look at her. Even though she was greatly touched at the blonde’s heroic deed moments ago, Jessica’s pessimistic way of thinking was really grating on her last nerves. And it somewhat dampened her mood for a bit. This was the very first time that Tiffany had ever felt like slapping the living daylights off of her best friend.

“Unnie, do you hear something?”

Seohyun’s voice broke her from her reverie. Everyone stopped dead in their tracks to listen to their surroundings.

Water.

Running water, to be exact.

“That sounds like a waterfall...” The ever attentive maknae pointed out.

“Let’s check it out then!” Yoona, as the reckless deer that she was, sprinted ahead towards the supposed water source with Seohyun screaming and clinging onto her back for dear life.

“Hey, wait for me!” The giant as well did not give much thought about following her juniors, leaving the two Americans behind.

“GIRLS, STOP!” A worried Tiffany ordered with the loudest voice she could actually possess in her, but even that fell short on deaf ears as she tried to chase after them, “WE NEED TO STICK TOGETHER!”

“You know, we really need to do something about that voice of yours.”

Turning her head to the right to see Jessica keeping up with her, she couldn’t help but to smile at the blonde who was trying to get rid of the ringing in her ears after hearing that high decibel order.

“Sorry ‘bout that,” Her eyes turned into crescents as she gave a half-hearted apology, topping it all off with a raspberry to boot, “I would’ve thought that you had gotten used to it by now.”

“I haven’t.”

“Too bad, ‘cause I’m gonna be using it a WHOLE lot more from now on!” And with that, Tiffany ran a good distance ahead of her, leaving the exhausted blonde in the dust.

“Oh c’mon, don’t leave me here like this!” Jessica’s plea was blatantly ignored. Totally exhausted and all sense of dignity left in her gone, she dramatically dropped onto her knees. “Okay, I’m sorry! I’m sorry for being such a complete wuss that time!! And I’m really, REALLY sorry for making you upset!! Now can you PLEASE forgive me and come back here!?” Her breathless and sudden heart-spoken apology made Tiffany to return back to where the blonde was desperately pleading. That one of a kind eye-smile steadily creeping up over her beautiful complexion.

“You’re forgiven, Jessi. I can’t be mad at you forever, even if I tried.” Grabbing her hand firmly and helping her off the ground, Tiffany did not waste any more time pulling Jessica along with her to run after their members. The blonde however didn’t have enough time to regain some much-needed oxygen; looking more like she was literally being dragged off like a rag doll by the bubbly girl.

“Yah, you were SO waiting for me to say that didn’t you?!” And can’t you slow down a little for me to catch my breath!?”

“Seriously Jessi, you complain way too much…”

By the time both of them managed to catch up with their energetic juniors (excluding Seohyun), they all found themselves staring in awe as they came upon a lake with a massive waterfall roaring down on it. Endless streams of water flowed down the majestic wonder of nature; its crystal-clear water perfectly reflecting the rays of light seeping through from the exposed opening of the canopies up above, and creating sparkles all around the surface of the lake. Colourful butterflies and other winged-insects flutter about around the flora and fauna which surrounded the whole body of water. This part of the island that they were stranded on felt more like a holiday getaway or some tropical paradise hidden deep in the uncharted corners of the Earth. For a second, they did not seem to mind being stuck here for a long period of time.

“Amazing…” Seohyun was easily entranced by the beauty of it all, absorbing the sights and sounds from above Yoona’s head. ‘Alligator Yoong’ truly lived up to its name as the girl openly gawked at the spectacle.

“Yeah, I know...” Sooyoung, who almost always had something noteworthy to say, only mumbled those few words out.

Tiffany, on the other hand, caught a glance of her blonde companion taking a few steps towards the majestic lake. She blinked as Jessica crouched down near the edge and scooping up some of the water with her bare hands.

“What are you doing? I know you’re thirsty, but are you sure it’s clean enough for us to drink?” The ever so cautious self-titled manager of the group questioned Jessica, not wanting her member to have an upset stomach, or maybe even worse, if she drank it all up.

“It looks clean,” Jessica decided to go along with her gut instincts and have a little sip, “and it sure does taste clean, as a matter of fact.”

“Really!? Let me have a taste of that too!”

Dropping the entire ‘luggage’ that she was carrying carelessly onto the ground, Sooyoung hastily rushed to Jessica’s side and mimicked what the blonde did just now. After gulping down a mouthful of the liquid, Sooyoung looked up into the skies above and had one proclamation to announce.

“I have discovered the nectar of the Gods.”

Tiffany fought the urge to face-palm at the giant’s choice of words; while Jessica blatantly ignored it by continuing to drink out of the lake, unfazed. Reassured that there weren’t any signs of danger by drinking it, Tiffany joined in to quench her undying thirst. It had been a long while since she had anything to drink. Yoona broke out from her daze and decided to join them too, but the eagle-eyed maknae spotted something in her range of sight.

“Yoona unnie, what’s that over there?” She pointed towards the waterfall.

Yoona followed to where Seohyun was pointing but had no clue of what she was looking at, other than the obvious thing right in front of her.

“Huh?” The deer quirked her eyebrows,” What are you talking about, Hyun? It’s just the waterfall.”

“Yes, but there’s something behind it…Take a closer look.” Shaking her childhood friend excitedly on the shoulders in anticipation, Seohyun’s curiosity and cute way of persuading eventually made the hesitant Yoona to go along with her plan and carry her nearer to the crashing waters. Surprisingly, there really was something hidden discreetly behind the streams of water.

A cave.

And it was quite a large one too, judging by the gaping hole that seemed to be trying to lure in the two girls with its mysterious vibe. It was so perfectly camouflaged that one needed to literally be standing inches in front, or enter the wall of water in order to see it. How in the world Seohyun managed to notice that from a good distance away, was something that Yoona could never figure out nor understand. She sometimes has this occasional nudging in the back of her mind that Seohyun had supernatural powers reigning inside of her.

“Kids, what are the two of you doing over there?” Both of them flinched when their ever concerned Tiffany unnie called, feeling as if they had just been caught doing something that they shouldn’t have. Turning around, Yoona and Seohyun came face-to-face with their older sisters whom had caught up with them.

“Oh, well I think we’ve discovered something unnie,” Yoona nodded over at their discovery, “I think we just found ourselves a place where we can take shelter in.”

Hearing that, the three older girls suspiciously went over to the waterfall while the two maknaes watched in anticipation behind them. Having one last look at each other, they mentally agreed to go through the wall of water. After being slightly drenched and trying to shake off the excess water from their hair, they were welcomed by the empty and gloomy cave before them. It was relatively big enough for a group of people to confide in and that it doesn’t seem to hold any other unwanted occupants, much to the girls’ relieve. Trying to fend off a couple of wild pigs was bad enough, and they weren’t willing to go head on with something much bigger and stronger than that with just a mere stick as a weapon. Another observation regarding the cave was that, even though it was not completely dark; thanks to the small amount of light seeping through the entrance, it would be a matter of time before the Sun sets and the cave would be engulfed in black.

“So,” The giant abruptly broke the silence, “Does anybody know how to build a campfire?”

The two Americans darted their eyes back and forth at each other.

“I have no idea…” Both of them spoke, now suddenly realising how clueless they were when it came to the wilderness.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.