He was walking slow, so slow that she knew he was doing it on purpose. He didn’t say anything during the time he walked back down the trail they had come. Her anxiety loosened and she felt herself leaning against him like a pillow. She had to admit that he smelled awfully nice and his hair was so soft every time it brushed against her face with every movement he made.

“Are you tired?” he asked in a modest voice. The way he talked was so soft and soothing that Taeyeon felt like a baby being put to sleep by her mother.

“No.” she replied turning her head and felt her face brush against his neck. Even his skin felt superbly smooth.

“Aiyoo…Taeyeon. What has gotten into you?” she asked herself silently.

“I like this moment,” he said, “this ‘us’ right here.”

Her heart raced so fast against her chest she hoped that he didn’t notice. Taeyeon gulped. She felt delightful and hoped that he wasn’t just playing her with his words.

“Changmin,” she nervously said.

“Yes?”

“I…just wanted to say your name.” Taeyeon shyly told.

Changmin laughed. “What’s your favorite color?”

“Grey.”

“Why?”

“It’s not dark or bright.”

“So you’re a neutral person.”

“What’s yours?”

“I like black.”

“Do you like sports?”

“Is this really a girl talking about sports to me?” Changmin joked. “Yes, I like sports. You?”

“Not a big fan, but I do play.” Taeyeon went into thought then said, “You choose the next question.”

“Mmm…” Changmin began, “do you like ice cream?”

“Ice cream?” Taeyeon repeated. “Of course.”

“Vanilla or chocolate?”

“Strawberry.”

Changmin couldn’t help but chuckle. When Taeyeon averted her attention back to the road she found that they were already near the mansion. Had time really passed by that fast? How she wished they were just starting their walk. Changmin slightly turned to speak but stopped when he felt their cheeks come into contact. Feeling even more embarrassed Taeyeon moved her face away from his putting her hands onto the back of his shoulders to maintain her balance.

“Should we go one more round?” he asked.

Taeyeon felt glad that he had felt the same way but instead said, “You can put me down. You might get tired.”

“I still have some energy to waste,” he assured.

“No, it’s alright,” Taeyeon urged.

When she got back onto her feet she wasn’t sure if she could meet his gaze without her face turning red. In the end she shyly stole a look at him and when she noticed that he’d done the same they laughed both filled with happiness and embarrassment.

“Thank you,” Taeyeon thanked.

“Do you feel better?” Changmin asked.

She nodded.

Changmin glanced toward the mansion then turned his attention back to her, “You were with Leeteuk earlier.”

“Huh?” Taeyeon slightly turned toward the house but didn’t directly look at it. “Ah…I was running out of the mansion so he chased after me. It wasn’t anything.”

“You two seem to get along well,” Changmin pointed out.

Was he disappointed or did he envy her? Taeyeon felt unsure but wondered how Changmin managed to sway her feelings so deeply.

“You should go in.” Changmin told.

“Oh…alright.” Taeyeon nodded. “Thanks again.”

“I’ll see you again sometime?” he questioned.

Taeyeon nodded and turned around with hesitation then finally walked into the mansion. Once she was in she noticed majority of them sprawled out in the living room watching something. Walking further into the mansion she heard Yoona and Gyuri talking in the kitchen while preparing dinner. Siwon was also there with them. Heading away from the kitchen she paced down the hallways but didn’t see Leeteuk anywhere. It was when she stopped by the stairs and stared up to the second floor did Taeyeon begin to wonder other thoughts.

Horror movies had never really been her thing but she’d enjoyed the thrill of them. The supernatural…she didn’t really concern herself with who or what was on the other side. It just had never bothered her before. Maybe there was something with this village…this mansion. She should be scared about the things that happened…and she was scared. It was clear to her that she couldn’t hold that fear for long though. If she didn’t have the courage to pull through then who would stand tall for her? She…could never have depended on someone…and she’d never depended on anyone at all. Even if she was at the mansion along with her friends…it still felt like she was partially alone. The feelings and the ways she’d learned from her past were things she couldn’t abandon even if she tried. They were there consciously floating around in her mind like a wind that never stops.

Turning away from the stairs Taeyeon made her way toward the front door. Maybe she had something she wanted to ask Changmin after all. Half jogging down the drive she turned around the corner to see his back as a tiny speckle. She wondered how long it would take for her to reach him. Picking up her pace Taeyeon began to rush toward him at a faster speed.  

“Changmin!” she shouted to catch his attention before he would enter his house and disappear from view.

He came to a slow stop and turned around to see her then began making his way toward her. Taeyeon stopped to catch her breath half bent over with her hands on her knees for support while he stopped before her.

“Are you ok?” he asked. “Why’d you come running back all of a sudden?”

Taeyeon took another huge breath and said, “I had a question that came to mind.”

Changmin kept his eyes on her until she fully stood up. When she looked into his soft eyes she almost wanted to just turn back and say she’d never really wanted to ask him anything. No. She had to ask. The question kept bothering her from the back of her head. She had to know an answer about him and Leeteuk. What had gone down between them to cause Leeteuk to be so angry at him. And why had Changmin never said anything.

“I just want to know,” Taeyeon added. “Don’t put too much of it into thought.”

“What is it?”

Taeyeon took another breath to give herself some courage, “You…and…Leeteuk. You two didn’t forget each other, right?”

Something from within the stories in Changmin’s eyes flickered. What was he thinking now? Had she touched one of those fragile places that weren’t meant to be touched in him? His eyes were mixed with hurt and words of anger about the topic. 

;;;;;

Leeteuk had pulled one of the chairs away from the table and now sat on it facing the pool before him. The body of water was so still and calm that instead of looking like a pool it looked like a land full of overgrown weeds. The pool was still a mess and he hadn’t bothered to clean it. Well, it wasn’t like anybody planned on swimming unless there was a bikini party.

The air was deathly damp and humid for a usual summer day. To his right he could hear the geysers gushing loudly. He could well recall the morning when he’d pulled Taeyeon out of the pool. Why had she gone in there in the first place? And why hadn’t he bothered asking her? She had held onto him so tightly as if she were frightened of something…but Changmin had taken her before Leeteuk had thought of anything else to do. Changmin…he was there, he always seemed to be appearing. Why?

The door slid open and Gyuri poked her head out, “I saw Taeyeon walking around the house a few minutes ago.”

Leeteuk turned to look at her. “Is she still there?”

“I don’t know,” Gyuri shook her head, “why? Is something up?”

“No.” Leeteuk was quick to deny before getting up and without a word he brushed pass Gyuri.

“Where are you going?” Yoona asked once he walked pass her.

Gyuri walked back into the kitchen closing the door after her.

“What’s wrong?” Yoona asked.

Something was definitely up. Gyuri was sure of that. But what?

Leeteuk took a short walk around before he came across the others who told him that they hadn’t seen her. Where would she have gone? Deciding to check if she was in her room Leeteuk headed up the stairs and knocked on Taeyeon’s closed door to find that it was unlocked. Pushing the door open he glanced in cautiously in case she was in there. The room was empty, however, but the window was wide open and the white curtain floated in midair because of the wind passing through. Why was it open? There was a slight chill in the warm room and Leeteuk glanced at Taeyeon’s suitcase on the ground. He’d never been in there before but it looked like Taeyeon hadn’t touched anything else other than her luggage.

Deciding to head out because he wasn’t there he turned around and made it halfway out the door before a loud slam made him jump. Quickly turning around he found that the window was now shut and silence infiltrated the walls around him. The emptiness of the second floor vibrated off the walls reminding him that he was alone upstairs. Letting his eyes glance around he wondered what Taeyeon had been doing while she was alone. It was one more thing to put on the list of things to ask her.

“Ah…Leeteuk, do you want to play some cards with us?” Siwon asked as he passed the living room.

“I’m going out,” Leeteuk replied heading for the front door.

;;;;;

“Why aren’t you answering?” Taeyeon pushed on.

Changmin settled his eyes on her and didn’t withdraw them. It was like he going through his memories and restructuring things that were amiss. It made her curious about what he was feeling inside. Other than just seeing him on the outside she wondered what things were going through his mind. He seemed to be just as secretive and mysterious as Leeteuk.

“It’s hard to say,” he finally told.

“What do you mean?” Taeyeon felt confused. What was hard to say about whether they knew each other or not?

Changmin seemed to hesitate even more this time with his answer, “About whether we remember each other.”

“You two shared your childhood, didn’t you?” Taeyeon questioned. “I saw the picture and you told me yourself. There isn’t a reason why you two should pretend not to know each other. Leeteuk tells me that he has a bad memory and even if he doesn’t remember anything from childhood the way he looks at you…he still remembers you. Or is there a reason why you two should remain distanced?”

“Why do you want to know?” Changmin seemed to be stepping back mentally if not physically.

***The mood to the story changes quickly doesn't it?

***And then I also want to explain about what I'm planning for this story since some of you guys might be confused about where this story is actually leading: On the romance part - the melodrama will start between the female lead (Taeyeon) and the third party (Changmin) and it will eventually lead to the romance between the two main leads (TaeTeuk). I will be placing Taeyeon in one of the positions where she loves someone but then it's also hard for her to let go of the good guy because she doesn't want to lose either of them. (Yea, I know, those kind of characters annoy me too but I've never tried it before). On the horror side of the story - Kang Shin Ae will continue to appear mysteriously to Leeteuk and he cannot figure out who she is, and as a favor to him and curious herself after hearing Leeteuk talk to no one Taeyeon really ventures out to find who Kang Shin Ae is. While she ventures out things will happen to her along the way and these happenings are to prevent Taeyeon from digging out Leeteuk and Changmin's past. As she continues her adventures she finds out something that even Changmin doesn't know and in the end she will try to protect both Changmin and Leeteuk but only ends up hurting them all. As for the other college characters I added you will find out their role in all of this. If I happen to change anything along the way I will make sure to leave an Author's Note for you

***p.s. I am nearly halfway with this story