Yoochun's POV

Flash back        

“1,2,3….”

, I heard Min had began the counting. We were playing hide and seek. We were just kids, growing up in an urban area, what else game that’s left to it than a typical game of hide and seeks. As I heard the counting almost done I began to panic, I still haven’t find any hiding place yet. We were playing at our school compound. Oh, and did I mention that behind the school was the village sacred forest? The local called them sacred as they told us that the forest was being guarded by a white demon, which I had no idea of how it looked like. Back then in the old days, the old folks would offered the demon food and money, as a gift, but now they had stopped doing it, guess they had been stop believing in it already.

“10.”

Great! Just great; and I still haven’t found any good hiding spot yet, and then as I was still running, searching, I saw a small opening into the forest. That’s right; the forest would be a great place to hide, so I thought to myself. Without thinking the consequences, I dashed into the small opening, entering the forest. Only when I saw a great hiding place, which was under the roots of a very big tree, I decided to hide in there until they would found me. I sat there, hugging onto my knee while patiently waiting.

I didn’t realize how long had it been but when I finally coming to my senses, everything was already dark. The sun had already gone from the sky, only to be replaced by the scary dark and the dimmed light from the moon and the stars. I looked around and realized I was alone in the forest, they didn’t found me. I got out from my hiding place, trying not to panic as I try to recall back my way out of the forest, I began to take a few steps only to end up getting deeper and deeper into the forest.

After an hour of walking, I finally gave up, I completely lost. I’m hungry, tired and all I could think was hoping that harabeoji would come looking for me.

‘Harabeoji, help! You’re only grandson is lost in the forest’ I mentally screamed inside my mind, my surrounding wasn’t really help comforting me right now, there was this creepy creeps coming from all around me, the feeling of like being stared hunting me, causing me to shut my eyes closed while cantering that ‘it’s all just my imagination’. By the time I opened my eyes, I found fireflies were surrounding me. Thanks to their present, the spooky feeling that I had been feeling earlier was gone. I looked around me and it looked as if it was coming from somewhere.

I followed the trail of the fireflies which lead me to a small pond. I scanned around the pond, nothing interesting to see except when my eyes caught a figure of someone. He was way older than me, probably in his early teen, maybe, but he was beautiful, that’s the easiest way to describe him. He had a golden white hair, with fair white skin, his eyes were so mesmerizing, he was wearing an all white suits just to reveal more of his beauty, I could sworn what I thought when I first saw him was that I had found an angel in the middle of the forest. He caught me staring at him; then we were staring at each other for a moment before I noticed his expression changed when he eyed me from head to toe. His mouth muttered something like ‘human’ but I couldn’t hear his voice, only managed to read his lips. I tried to walk closer to him, only to have him running away from me, not running to be exact, because his movement was almost like he was floating in the air, his feet barely touched the ground.  He was trying to escape from me.

‘Oh no, you don’t, I’m desperately needed your help right now.’ I thought to myself.

“Please, don’t leave me. I’m lost.” I tried to beg him, asking for his help, but he just keep on going, my body was small, I could barely keep up with him, but I never lost him from my sight. After almost half an hour of chasing him, finally he stopped. I looked around and saw where I was, it was harabeoji’s farm, just next to the farm was harabeoji’s house. That mysterious man just gave his beautiful smile at me before he turned his back on me, ready to leave.

“Wait. Thank you.” I said to him, then I saw him nodded, accepting my gratitude.

 “My name is Yoochun, what’s your?” No answer coming up from him.

“Can we meet again? I’ll be waiting for you at the same place where I entered the forest.” I told him that but I heard nothing in respond. So he refused to, I was about to walk away, feeling a little hurt, going back home when I heard a faint sound, coming from him.

“Junsu”

I turned around only to find that he was already gone. Junsu, so that was his name. Junsu-hyung.

Ever since that faithful day, I spend most of my time with him rather than my other friends. Here’s how my routine every day, I went to school, got back home, ate my lunch with harabeoji then off I go to meet him. He never said much but he responded to most of my questions truthfully. I was the one who did most of the talking, we went into the forest as he gave me a tour around there, showing me unusual animals, plant and even some beautiful views of the forest. When it was almost dark, he would send me back like the first time we met. On one of those meeting, I remembered asking him a few of odd questions, but like I said, he always answered them truthfully.

“Hyung, what are you? I’m pretty sure that you are not a human hyung, so what are you exactly?”

“You’re right, I’m not. I used to but now I’m not.”

“What happen to you?”

“Just like you, I lost in the wood when I was little, but nobody found me. Eventually I died but the forest decided to keep my soul here. Knowing that, aren’t you afraid of me?”

“Nope, why would I be? I like you hyung, you’re nice.”

“Thanks Yoochun, you’re my first human friend. The human used to offer a lot of gifts to me, but now they seemed to have forgotten me. They no longer do that, not even a single prayer. I used to listen to all their prayers, but now I heard nothing. It’s pretty alone, being here all by myself.”

His face looked lonely when he told me that, which is then I made a promise to him, a promise that I should never have make.

“Don’t worry hyung, I’ll stay with you for the rest of my life. I promise.”

I was a kid and was really naïve back then, we even made a pinky swear but he never respond to that promise, he just keep silent, probably because he knew about this better than anyone else; human can never be trustworthy, and he was right. 

The routine went on and on. That was until I was 15 years old, that was went my dad decided to take me in. Reality strikes on him which caused him to realize his responsible to me, harabeoji passed away. So in a way, he got no choice but to take care of me. The night before I had to leave, I went to our usual place, to meet him again. As always, when I called his name for the third time, he appeared in front of me.

“Hyung, I’m so sorry but I’m leaving this place. I won’t be able to meet you again. I…” I was shuttered; I couldn’t get the word out from me. He looked at me and gave me his usual warm smile, the smile that I’m sure that I was going to miss the most. His face looked like he was alright but his eyes told me everything, it was a pure sadness.

“It’s alright Yoochun, I knew this was going to happen sooner or later, farewell then.”

Then he disappeared. And that was the last time that I ever saw him.

End Flash Back

I snapped out from my daydream, when I heard my phone ringing. It was from my father. Now what is this old man want from me? I mentally cursed him inside my head but as much as I reluctant to take up his call, I picked it up anyway, knowing that he probably needed something again.

“ Yobseyo.”

“Yoochun-ah, I have arranged a blind date for you.  Go and meet her tonight, she’s a nice girl, a well-educated and come from a nice family as well. With her families’ and ours business united, we would make the top of the whole Korean, so just go on with the plan, alright? Oh and I wouldn’t take a no for an answer.”

An arrange marriage huh? Yup, this old make must had nothing better to do, he seemed like he had been so busy arranging all this, don’t he had a better way to spend his time with? Playing golf or something? But then again getting married is not a bad idea, I am already 28 but I still haven’t found my other half yet so maybe I should just play along with this, seeing how it turned up to be. It took me awhile to respond before I heard Abeoji was calling my name at the other end of the phone.

“Fine, I’ll marry this girl. Just tell me where to meet her.”

Yeah, maybe I should just go along with this.

The date turned out to be not so bad after all. Her name is Choi Seohyun, a sophisticated, typical first class woman, wear branded cloth, enchanted perfumes, but she’s not that bad, at least I could carry out a normal conversation with her. She didn’t seem to be the clingy type but more to the intelligence type and she didn’t seem to oppose the wedding so I guess this is it. I’m ending my bachelor’s life with marrying this woman. The wedding was to be taken place in another two months, which mean I had all the time I needed to tying up any lose end before ending my bachelor’s life. I was in the middle of roaming through my store when I found back my old photo album, a smile formed across my face as my eyes sat upon those old photographs of me and harabeoji. Then an urge coming up to me, I want to visit that place one last time before I’m getting married and moved on to another phase of my life. I took a two week off from work, just to have a long vacation at the country side in my old hometown.

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