"The beach is beautiful."

 

"The beach is...beautiful"

 

"The sun is warm on my toes,"

 

"The sun is warm on my toes,"

 

"And the water is cool on my back."

 

"And...the water is cool...on my back."

 

"The birds fly off,"

 

"The birds fly off,"

 

"Into to the distance, towards the glowing horizon. The water calms and the sky clears, the stars show their faces. The moon greets hello and the sun says farewell and the worries of the years past leave my bones with the swiftness of the wind. The sand sticks to me in wet clumps and the foam surrounds me. I wish this moment never ends." I stretch and yawn, a goofy smile on my face.

 

"Good afternoon!" Shawna greets me with a hug.

 

"I don't think I can remember that." Yongguk admits somewhat glumly.

 

"But you did, and I'm glad." Shawna gives me another one of her warming hugs.

 

"Of course! When Adrie sent it to me and told me you wrote it, I memorized it. You will become an amazing writer when you are older." I kiss her on the forehead. She smiles and disappears in search of her sister.

 

"You look tired." Yongguk laughs as he makes space for me to sit beside him. I grunt and yawn in response. "Well, you slept quite a while after dinner. Are you okay now?"

 

This past week I've been sleeping a lot more. Still getting used to the change in environment, I guess. Good thing my room is cold and outside is warm. If I wake up in the night and need a break, I walk out onto the porch and listen to the sounds of the frogs and bugs.

 

"I'm fine! I'm not some baby you need to take care of." I look at him bitterly before laughing.

 

"Of course!"

 

"YAH! I heard sarcasm!" I yell, punching my boyfriend in the arm.

 

He throws his head back in amusement as I punch him repeatedly. He wraps his arms around me in hopes of stopping me, succeeding all too well. 

 

"She's an amazing writer," I mumble into his broad chest. He chuckles in agreement and I take in his smell. "She can put the most beautiful and horrible things on paper and make them melodious. Sometimes her pieces make me cry, or laugh, or smile. And sometimes, they send a chill down my spine and puts the darkest thoughts into my mind."

 

Yongguk lossens a bit. "What do you mean?"

 

I sigh and search my brain for the file. I subconsciously review it before putting the thought to words. "I piece she sent me a year ago.

 

'I remember the days when the sight of a beautiful thing sent me into a world of despair. I always wondered if the world I lived in was ugly enough to leave. It was quite high on the scale with humans succumbing to the Christian's seven sins of man every second of every day. Greed, wrath, envy, lust, pride, sloth, gluttony; all traits everyone displays at least once in their life. I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't say I was no exception, but I hate it when there is yet another story of someone being and left for dead, or someone being killed because they had money and the other didn't, only needing it to satisfy his greed. Humans are truly pitiful creatures.

 

'But we are so weak on our own, it's perfectly fine.'" I fast foreword on the 'saved document' and find the paragraph I'm looking for. "'The stars were angels and gods in the sky that looked down upon Mother Earth-upon me, yet another insignificant human. 

 

'Either way, life is a delicate scale that can never be balanced, and I sought no comfort in trying.

 

'I sneered at the people who tried and failed, only to have the heavens frown upon me. I'd let my conscience drag me to the depths of guilt, through the cave of apology and then up to the island of friendship, but it remained a habit, a part of my nature. Every life, everything that brims with existence is but an actor in Fate's play. We all think it is clever improvisation on our part, but we are nothing to Fate but toys, objects it can manipulate, puppets in it's show.'" The last part briefly reminds me of a previous thought I had a month ago, but I brush it off, looking at what her words mean, and not what they say.

 

"They definitely make me stop and think," Yongguk mutters silently, exhaling deeply while tossing the words around in his brain.

 

"'I'm disturbed and conflicted' was what the next email said. She is physically, mentally and emotionally weak, but her spirit is stronger than most that walk this earth. Though her time is short, I want her to hold her head high, as if she conquered a new land." I run my hand through my hair and sigh, desperate to get rid of this depressing aura. I know Yongguk got my hint from the look on his face and my reflection of grief in his eyes, but now is not the time to be sad, and he knows it all too well.

 

"I love that necklace," he whispers into my ear. "The person who gave it to you must be freaking awesome." Yongguk puts his arm around my shoulders and rests his head on mine.

 

I can answer yes, but that wouldn't be fun. "Hmm...maybe."

 

"Maybe... What do you mean, maybe?"

 

"Well, he is awesome," out of the corner of my eye, I see Yongguk grin like a child at Christmas. "But he's a pain. He used to be a brute, but not as much anymore. He's dense and kind of dimwitted. Either way, his girlfriend is the luckiest person in the world because she has him by her side."

 

"Oh, I know his girlfriend!" Yongguk let's me go and smiles as he looks off into the distant mountains. "Yeah, she's definitely pretty, but she's slow, thick-headed, stubborn, short-"

 

"I'm not short!"

 

"-sometimes a hassle, but an amazing cook. That boyfriend of hers must have done something right to deserve her." He kisses my cheek, stands up and leaves. I touch the place he kissed.

 

"YAH! YOU JUST CALLED ME SLOW AND THICK-HEADED!" I yell.

 

"AND STUBBORN AND SOMETIMES A HASSLE!" He yells back.

 

I stand up in second and run after him, intent on giving him a piece of my mind!"

 

•  •  •

 

"You know, we don't spend a lot of time together."

 

I raise a doubtful eyebrow at Daehyun, open my mouth to reply only to close it upon silently agreeing with him. I nod my head and continue cutting the vegetables.

 

"You're with the leader so much-"

 

"He's my boyfriend."

 

"-and Jongup liked you for a while-"

 

"That's not my fault!"

 

"-Zelo is naturally adorable, so of course you'd talk to him-"

 

"When he's a matoki, I just wanna hug and squish him and love him!"

 

"Youngjae's your best friend's boyfriend-"

 

"They're so cute together!!!"

 

"-and Himchan hyung is... Himchan hyung." Daehyun stops his sorting to stare out the kitchen window into the TV room below. He turns to me. "What about me?"

 

"Dude, you are an adorable bunny and a really awesome friend. I don't get why you'd think I like you less than the rest." I put down my knife and untie my apron. "Himchan, take over in the kitchen. I need to take a walk." I yell.

 

"But we haven't finished talking!" Daehyun says in disbelief.

 

"You're coming with me!" I grab his arm and drag him out the door.

 

We walk off Adrienne's property and down the road, allowing both our pairs of eyes to take in the sight of the foreign land; it's tranquility and brilliance ringing out in a proud sense. The trees rustle in the warm wind and the sound of a bike bell lingers in our ears. We walk step in step, in peaceful silence, content of each other's presence.

 

"I'm sorry for making you feel less than the others," I say, looking up.

 

"It's not your fault. I just need to be more interesting." He chuckles lightly.

 

We walk out of the division of houses, a sign at the entrance an exit telling us this place is known as Victoria gardens. We walk further down the busy street of Diego Martin, Port-of-Spain, chatting about the events that have unfolded around us in the past. As we approach the yellow and green savanna, a man and a cart catches my attention.

 

"Wanna snow cone?"

 

Daehyun looks at me with confusion but it drag him along anyway. We buy nine snow cones and put them in a tray, hurry to get back on the trek home before they melt.

 

"So, they're cold and delicious?" Daehyun asks as he sniffs the treat.

 

"Cold, delicious and unforgettable!" I exclaim, sinking my teeth into the snow-consistent grape yummy-ness (I ran out of good description words, okay?).

 

"It is very good!" I smile at him. We talk some more and Adrie's house comes into view.

 

"Last one there is a dimwitted matoki!" Daehyun yells as his longer legs and farther strides increase the distance between us.

 

"You're on!!"

 

•  •  •

 

"You tripped and it spilled over both of you?" Yongguk asks in a demanding and authoritative tone. The two of us hold down our snickers and falsely nod our heads solemnly. Yongguk sighs and looks at the two of us like a disappointed adult. "I expect it from you, He-Jin, but Daehyun? You trained in the matoki army for years! How on earth did get caught by her mishap?!"

 

"Hey!!" I yell loudly.

 

"You of all people should know anything can get caught in her mishaps." Daehyun tells him. Yongguk prepares to say something, nods and walks back into the house. A juice and ice covered backstabbing matoki following behind him.

 

Seven snow cones, wasted. All because I managed to pull ahead of Daehyun (I may or may not have yelled 'oh look! It's a -insert delicious treat here-' multiple times...) that he resorted to pouring three of the seven snow cones down my back, to which I replied quite generously.

 

I sit down at the table after a delightful shower. In front of me is a plate of wonder (I HAVE NO WORDS TO DESCRIBE MY FEELS) and I keep myself from devouring it in one gulp.

 

"So, what did everyone do today?" Adrienne asks.

 

"We watched TV." Youngjae, Zelo and Jongup say in unison.

 

"I helped with cooking," Himchan announced, sending me a look before proudly taking his applause.

 

"Yongguk and I were practicing English! We were reading some of my writing pieces, and he liked them!" Shawna hugs his arm and snuggles into the base of his neck, smiling like a girl in love.

 

Quick friends.

 

"They were very well written." Yongguk smiles and pats her head.

 

"In the morning, Yongguk and I played our friendly game of insults and later in the afternoon, Daehyun and I had a snowball fight on the front lawn." 

 

And there they go. Every single matoki freaks out and enacts an epic battle, like a bunch of boys re-enacting a scene from a video game. Honestly, are they men, or boys?

 

I look around the table at the cheery faces, but something hits me like a ghost in a new house.

Shawna sends me a terrifying glare unbefitting to her. Her eyes contain hatred. Her lips are flat with disapproval and her body is stiff. The only one in the room she's focusing on is me.

 

And me to her.

 

We hold our gaze for a moment when her lips starts to move. She mouths words before giving me one last glare and changing back into the Shawna I know and love.

 

I'm bad at lip reading. As have been, always will be. I pray this time I'm wrong again.

 

What she said sends shivers of uncertainty down my spine.

 

________________________

 

Dun, dun DUUUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNN!!

 

*epic music in the background*

 

PRANCING UNICORNS!!

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

I-I have a guy in my physics class who reminds me of a prancing unicorn........

 

ANYWAY! 

I rushed this chapter, so please excuse any mistakes. I have a feeling my mind isn't as focused on this story of before. Another one is racing through my head and I already have it all planned out.

 

That piece that Shawna wrote (the one where she's conflicted and blah) is actually part of my own personal piece that I accidentally sent to my dad who became worried about me.....

 

Oops!

 

Skipping the commentaries!!

 

Thanks for the increasing number of subbies and up votes! We can't thank you enough for clicking on the story to begin with!

 

INTERESTING FACTOID!

This chapter is exactly 2013 words long.

 

TROLOLOLOLOL- no. Just no.

 

ARIGATOGOZAIMASU!

 

BBVIPBaby: it is. I haven't seen my family for five years so I question how well I can still understand them (0-0)

 

Zeal95: We'll try to make even more!

 

avylol08: HECK YES!

 

ALMOST FORGOT!!

 

You MUST thank our newest subscriber, FoBo7, for those hilarious and amazing comments you've left us. I must admit, you're one of the main reasons I strove to think of material for this chapter.

 

Hope you like!

 

I can't reply to all your comments (because my hands are killing me and if I put it off, I'll forget, and then the magical panda will forget and then the squirrels will start drinking coffee!) but can I just you you are awesome? :P

 

i'm in a good mood, as you can see...