8/22/11

Hey~ New update :) Not much today, but I was finally able to stick in a F&A moment (if you figure out what that means, I will congratulate you for being attentive:P)! Comments and criticisms are always welcome :D

Enjoy~

            “Guys, I think we really should consider shopping for clothes,” Dara voiced out. “I’m tired of people staring at us in the streets.”

            It was the morning after dispelling the lake, and the six were walking back to town. After Dara’s comment, the group decided to look for a place to buy clothing and food. Not long after, they spotted a shop that was labeled: Best of the Ton. After they bought two outfits each, they realized that their money supply was running low. Continuing to walk back to the inn, they discussed the possibilities to solving their predicament.

            “We can’t keep asking Alana and Alfonso for money,” Bom said. “It’ll be troublesome to be supporting six teenagers who are traveling around the world.”

            “Then, maybe we should get jobs?” Seungri suggested.

            “But what kind of jobs can we do?” Chaerin asked. “I mean, we’re always traveling around, so we can’t get jobs that are stationed in one place.”

            “It’ll have to be some sort of nomadic job, like selling things,” Youngbae considered.

            “Oh! Like selling girl scout cookies!” Dara smiled.

            “Well, maybe something more mature,” Jiyong teased. Dara elbowed him softly.

            In the end, they decided that Youngbae will work as a sculptor while Seungri buys the materials for sculpting and sells Youngbae’s finished work. Chaerin and Bom, who somehow have a gift for betting in animal races, will gamble for their money. Dara will create fashion designs while Jiyong sells those designs to clothing companies and buys paper and pencils for Dara.

            “Alright,” Youngbae smiled. “Then it’s settled.”

            “I remember we passed by a sculpture store,” Seungri announced. “Youngbae, do you want to go with me to see if they have any leftover stones?”

            “Good idea. Then I can work on something either tonight or tomorrow night,” Youngbae agreed. They started walking in the direction of the store. “Ton is the sapphire nation, so they must have leftover sapphires.”

            “Dara and I can go look at the crafts store down the street to see if we can find any sketchbooks and pencils,” Jiyong told Bom and Chaerin. He looked back at Dara. “We might even be able to find some nice fabric.”

            Dara nodded, and they walked away together.

            “Well, it’s just you and me,” Bom smiled at Chaerin. “Want to try and find an animal race?”

            Chaerin laughed. “Sure! I can’t believe this skill of ours will actually be of use.”

            “Yeah!” Bom agreed as they both started walking in one direction. “I remember, when we were young, we would always watch those horse races on TV.”

            Chaerin sighed and linked her arm around Bom’s. “Good times.”

            After the six friends finished with their shopping, they all met back at the inn to eat dinner. They shared their experiences with each other and discussed their plan for tomorrow.

            “We should probably wake up early tomorrow to maximize our travel time,” Youngbae reasoned. “We should travel during the day and rest during the night.”

            “What is our next destination again?” Bom asked.

            “Our next destination is the River of Yix,” Youngbae reminded her. “Hopefully, we can pass the river and arrive in Wun before nighttime. I know that Wun’s cities are located in the center of the nation.”

            The rest of the group nodded their heads, understanding tomorrow’s plans. Although Youngbae’s plans were tightly scheduled, they all knew what would be at stake if they didn’t hurry and finish the task. And even if they did finish the task, they didn’t know if dispelling all the rivers would bring them back to Earth. If the six friends are still in Terra by next year, all their family and friends on Earth will not remember them anymore. The thought of this was too gruesome for the friends to even think about.

            So, the sooner they finished the task, the better.

                                                               ::::::::::

            Chaerin couldn’t sleep tonight. She kept on waking up because of a nightmare. A nightmare that seemed so real, she thought she would be trapped in it forever. In her nightmare, she was trapped in three feet of snow, miles away from any known landmark. Chaerin didn’t know what to do. She was just stuck there, unable to get herself out of the predicament. The more she struggled, the more trapped she became.

            Afraid to fall asleep again, Chaerin went out to the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea. When she arrived at the kitchen, Chaerin realized that Seungri was also there, leaning against the counter. She paused slightly, but continued walking, knowing that it would be no use turning back. She would just have to go back to bed and suffer the nightmare all over again. Taking out a tea-bag from the drawer and finding a cup, Chaerin did her best to avoid looking at Seungri. But her efforts were of no avail. He still initiated a conversation.

            “A nightmare?” he asked.

            Not looking up from her tea-making, Chaerin replied. “Yeah.”

            “I had one too,” he said, looking up at the clock. “I dreamed about the day when Youngbae was put under the curse.”

            Slightly turning her head toward him, Chaerin kept her eyes on the tea. “What happened?”

            “We were in the basement of Youngbae’s house,” Seungri started. “There was this box that we opened, and all of a sudden, a big gust of wind came from nowhere.

            “The wind lasted for what seemed like hours. After it stopped, Youngbae was gone.” Seungri’s voice shook. “And then there was a voice, a woman’s voice, announcing Youngbae’s curse. Nothing could be heard, except for that voice. It was cold and icy, like velvet mixed with spiders, and it echoed all around the room. I can still hear it in my head now.”

            Seungri had his head down, his un-spiked hair covering his face. He looked so alone. Out of instinct, Chaerin took one step toward him. Then, realizing what she just did, Chaerin retreated back to her tea. While she was sipping her tea, Seungri cleared his throat and looked up, “So what was your nightmare?”

            “Umm, it was nothing much,” Chaerin said after putting her cup down. “I was trapped in the snow, and I wasn’t able to get out. The more I tried to escape, the harder it was to move.”

            There was silence. Both lost in thought.

            “Chaerin,” Seungri said. Chaerin looked at him. His eyes looked watery. “I know this might be a bit off-topic, but can I hug you?”

            She couldn’t help it. Seungri, no matter how many arguments they have and how uncomfortable she is with him, is her friend. And she can’t see a friend in pain. “Sure.”

            It was only then that she realized how cold she was and how shaken she was by that dream. Seungri’s body heat enveloped her, as if she was in an oven. Feeling as if she was finally safe, Chaerin started shedding tears of relief. It seemed like she needed the hug just as much as he did, possibly even more.

            Chaerin didn’t know how long they were hugging, but when Seungri let go of her, she immediately missed the warmth. Seungri leaned over her and wiped the tears off her face. Suddenly realizing what he was doing, Chaerin snapped back to reality, “Oh! Sorry about that.”

            Quickly wiping the remainder of her tears, Chaerin choked out a laugh, “And I was supposed to be comforting you, not the other way around.”

            Seungri smiled. “That’s what friends are for.”

            “Okay,” Chaerin was still sniffling. “I guess I have to go back to bed. You should go sleep too.”

            “Yeah,” Seungri replied. He turned his head toward Chaerin’s cup of tea. “Here, let me wash the cup for you.”

            Chaerin was about to protest, but she then imagined how cold the water would be. After Seungri was done washing the cup, Chaerin thanked him, saying that the water must have been freezing.

            “It’s alright,” he smiled. “Think of it as a token of gratitude.”

celestetsm: Thanks for showing interest in this story despite the fact that you're not a bombae shipper!! And yes! Youngbae gasps because he sees a correlation between him and the beast. Oh! I just realized! XD There's another correlation! Beauty and the Beast are opposites, and fire (Youngbae) and ice (Bom) are opposites as well! Still, Beauty and Beast still learn to love each other hehe :P

ebomtaro: THANK YOU FOR SHOWING INTEREST IN MY STORY!!! HERE IS AN UPDATE FOR YOUUUU!

Starlightshine: Oh yes, that's true:) Yay for conflict! XD And yup, that's what I was thinking of for the fairytale reference (haha, I thought of the fairytale reference right before I posted the chapter:P It was because Chaerin mentioned something about 'her prince' in the beginning of the chapter, and Daragon already have the Cinderella theme from their side story. So I figured why not classify the other two couples as well! (Actually, in the original version, Beauty and the Beast WAS Bom's character's favorite fairytale. But I decided to change it because of Bom's single, Don't Cry) Though, in retrospect, I should have thought more about the fairytale that described Chaerin's and Seungri's relationship. Yay! Dara is supposed to be sort of nerdy in this story:) Glad it's translating wellXD

SuperJ13: Welcome!! And thanks for showing interest in my story!! Comments always make me happy:P