-Three hours before the occurrence at The Shack-

  “I might start hating you one day, you know. For always getting unnoticed.”

  “I know.” Andrea walked past the boy casually leaning on a tree trunk in the backyard of her cottage, her adrenaline from the previous hunting wearing out. “You’ve been saying that ever since we met, Luke.”

  Lucas eyed the sack over her shoulder. “Seriously, it’s so unfair. I can only just stand here and watch you slip in and out the Forbidden Woods every time. The first time I tried to sneak in – “

  “You immediately got caught and it almost cost you your precious life. Yeah, yeah, you’ve told me that story for at least a hundred times already. Maybe you’re just too easy to be spotted.”

  “Maybe the guards like letting beautiful girls roam around freely.”

  Just like a 17-year-old who had never gone to school and had no experience in interacting with boys, Andrea didn’t notice the hint of something else underneath Lucas’ words. Instead, she just started walking toward the direction of the village, hiding her bow and arrows in her sack. “Or maybe the guards are just too stupid.”

  Lucas chuckled. “That sounds just like something Rick would say – “he cut himself off with a sharp intake of breath. “Holy heavens I’m sorry, Andy, I didn’t mean to – “

  “It’s okay.” Andrea bit her bottom lip and didn’t stop walking. “I’m fine. You can talk about him with me anytime you want.”

  “I’m really sorry – “

  She spun around and glared at him. “Do I need to define to you what ‘I’m fine’ means?”

  Which, with that deadly glare of hers, meant ‘I will strangle you if you say “I’m sorry” one more time.’

  Lucas held his hands up as if surrendering and flashed a smile. “Nope! I’ll just walk you to the village now, then.”

  “I don’t need a shadow.”

  “But you need a friend,” Lucas said as he snatched the sack from Andrea’s shoulder and slung it over his. “I don’t want you passing out in the middle of the road again.”

  “That was – “

  “Inevitable.” He dodged several times from her trying to grab the sack back. “That’s what people around you talking about how sad it is for you to lose your father nonstop does to you. And you were still in a vulnerable state then. Good thing I had decided to follow you and catch you just before you hit the ground.”

  Andrea, puffed and frustrated from the failed attempts to get her things back from the blond-haired, tall, lean, cute-but-handsome-at-the-same-time, annoying 18-year-old boy, gave up and started walking again. “Fine,” she huffed. “Just don’t let my bow fall out. And for the record, that happened last month. I’m strong again now.”

  Lucas caught up with her and shot her a y grin with a hint of triumph. “Of course.”

***

  Andrea had met Lucas two years ago.

  Her life was, to everyone who knew her and even to herself, a mystery.

  She had lost 14 years of memory.

  Which, due to the fact that she had woken at the age of 14, meant the same as… she couldn’t remember anything of her past.

  It was the weirdest, strangest thing that could have happened to anyone. How could a person not remember anything about her life before she was 14? How could one just wake up one day, to find herself in a room she didn’t recognize and a man she had never met before sitting beside her bed?

  Rick was her father. At least, that’s what he had told her. But how could she not remember anything?

  ‘A severe illness’, Rick had explained to her, his voice full of concern and something… far, as if he weren’t telling the whole truth. Or maybe he was just too shocked to know that after being unconscious for a whole week due to a high fever, she could only remember her own name. Nothing more.

  Which, was also what he had told her.

  To hide the fact that she couldn’t remember anything, Andrea didn’t attend school in the village. He told her that she had been home-tutored by him ever since she could speak. So, for one year after waking from the severe memory loss, she stayed in Rick’s cottage – she was still too uncomfortable to call it ‘home’ – , which was a ten-minute walk away from the village, and only a few feet away from the outside ring of trees of The Forbidden Woods.

  Ah, the Woods.

  Rick was a hunter, which would have been cool, because who wouldn’t want their father to be a guy great with bows and knives? But then again, it used to scare Andrea, because from how Rick had once confessed to her, hunting was off the limits. It had been forbidden ever since 8 years ago, when a terrible accident occurred among the royals. All she knew, was that someone had been assassinated, the previous king who was suspected to have been the murderer then somehow died in a terrible fire, and then the throne fell into the current king, Baekhyun’s uncle, Byun Kang Dae’s hands. But what was the connection of this and that? Rick wouldn’t tell Andrea. And… why his uncle, not father?

  There were actually two forests in the realm, but one was forbidden to enter while the other was severely guarded because it was private property.

  As in, only members of the Do family could be a supply of deer and rabbit meat for the whole Southern Commonwealth.

  As in, Rick Archer was breaking the law every day, because hunting in The Forbidden Woods was a big no-no.

  But as time went on, she got over it. Adding to the boredom of walking around in the cabin all day, Andrea didn’t fear for Rick getting caught and thrown to the dungeon – even worse, sentenced to death – anymore. Not just that, she even started making her own weapons.

  She couldn’t help it. Studying Rick’s own weapons every day, she became an expert, knowing which material was better for aiming perfectly and which was preferable for quick flexibility.

  And then one day, Rick came home early, dragging a boy by his ear, only to find Andrea testing her freshly hand-made bow and shooting a few arrows herself.

  “Father.” Andrea tried to drop the bow, but it was like glued to her hand, refusing to drop to the ground. “P-please forgive m-me,” she trembled, thinking she was doomed, “I – “

  “Did you make that all by yourself?” Rick’s gaze was on the bow in her hands. As he loosened his grip on the blond-haired boy, he repeated himself. “Did you make this, Andrea?”

  “Y-yes.” Andrea tentatively held the weapon out to him, letting him gently take and examine it. He didn’t speak for a few minutes, eyes fixated on the bow in his hands. When he finally did, he gave Andrea the shock of her day by breaking into a genuine smile and saying, “Impressive. Very impressive.”

  “…Father?”

  “Do you want to learn?” His question startled her, because never had she imagined that he would propose such a thing. “Do you want to learn how to use this properly?”

  Andrea didn’t even blink once before nodding her head. She wanted it. She wanted to feel the thrill of holding the bow and the slight vibration from it when she released an arrow. She wanted to feel the rush of adrenaline when the wood made contact with her fingers and cheek.

  “Very well.” There was pride in Rick’s voice, and when he looked at her, his eyes were shining, as if he had been waiting for this day to come for a long time. “Oh, and by the way,” he grabbed the boy who had been staring at Andrea for the past few minutes by the shoulder, “Andrea, my darling, this is Lucas. Because he was naïve and stupid but courageous at the same time to trespass into the Woods, and after I saved him from a guard, he will be learning from me from now on, too.”

  It was funny at first, though. Besides Rick, Andrea had never met another human being ever since she woke up. In other words, she had never seen another person before.

  So of course, when Rick went to prepare supper and Lucas just stood there staring at Andrea with his clear, blue eyes, she just stared back shamelessly.

  “Wow,” Lucas finally said after a few minutes, breaking the silence. “I didn’t know that Rick had a daughter.”

  That somehow offended Andrea. “I… I didn’t know anyone who would be out of his right mind and run into the Woods.”

  Lucas, to Andrea’s surprise, let out an easy laugh, as if enjoying a joke. “I know, right? First time I tried, and I get caught in just seconds. Guess my luck isn’t as big as a bucket like Rick’s.”

  “You... know him?”

  “Who, Rick?” Lucas smiled, his blue eyes sparkling in the sunlight, astonishing Andrea. “Yeah, you could say that. He kinda likes to cling to me whenever he comes to the village.”

  “You mean you like to tag behind me like a lost puppy every time, Lucas?” Rick suddenly appeared. He smacked him in the back of his head and pointed back to the cottage as Lucas laughed. “Supper’s ready, Andrea. Come on, let’s get you and this little puppy to know each other more over a bowl of porridge, I say?”

  That’s why a year later, when Rick decided to let Andrea go to the village with him, Lucas had the advantage of already knowing her for a year. Rick trusted him enough to tell him the truth of Andrea, that she had lost her memory, and instead of treating her like a freak, Lucas helped her every time he could, actively introducing her to all his friends and explaining her unusual background, minus the losing-memory part.

  But of course, the polite handshakes and greeting the villagers all gave her were merely acts.

  If a stranger suddenly appeared, would you instantly warm up to her?

  No.

  If you suddenly met a strange girl with strange eyes and an unnerving stare, would you try to know her, or would you just keep a distance from her and observe her every move?

  Probably the latter, just like what they all did.

  Andrea couldn’t care less, though. She was used to the nature, the quiet, the… being alone. She hated all the noisy chattering people made and the judging stares they threw at her. Being alone was when she was at ease the most, even more when hunting.

  In her heart, she considered the Woods her home.

  Funny, how people were so terrified to even look at the direction of the Woods, when all she could find was peace and a feeling of pure happiness in there.

  As if she and the Woods were somehow… connected.

***

    -Now-

  Kai remembered this smell.

  A mixture of vanilla, sunshine and nature, it was a lovely and unforgettable scent, a scent he first encountered a few months ago.

  “Today must be tough for His Imperial Highness, I say.”

  Kai sighed. “It is. Baek is still… coping, I guess. Just because it had already been seven years since his father…” kicking a pebble, he stopped walking and turned to face the lake before him. “People are starting to become demanding of him, Gillian.”

  “18 is the best age for coronation, Kai.” The man in his 50s beside Kai his beard. “The relatives have the reason to start becoming impatient.”

  “Impatient for what?!” He groaned. “Of course Baek will take the throne from his uncle. Of course he wants to lead the country of ‘his father’s people.’ It’s just a matter of time. Let him calm his emotions down first; he’s still a child.”

  “Says one himself.”

  “Precisely. That’s why I know what’s going on in his mind right now.” Kai frowned. “Losing a father you loved dearly isn’t easy to take. Especially when he knows who murdered him. He still thinks of revenge from time to time.”

  “But it’s – “

  “Impossible, I know.” Kai started walking again, into the village the road led him to. “There’s no one left of the Park family for him to take revenge on. Still… I guess he feels like something valuable had been taken away from him.”

  “But he was merciful enough to beg his uncle to just banish all the surviving supporters of the Park family. He hates watching people shed blood.”

  “That’s not the point, Gillian. He doesn’t want the supporters to be punished. He wants justice from the murderer himself, or his family. I know King Park Chan Young used to view his people – the Stargazers – as his family, but Baek wants official – “

  The high-pitched shriek of a wooden door being slammed open a few feet away cut off Kai’s sentence, followed by a woman’s accusatory voice.

  “Get out!”

  A second later, a blond-haired boy was shoved out of the door, and he stumbled as he tried to gain his balance. “Madam – “

  “Don’t you even dare touch my daughter again!”

  “Madam, this is just a misunderstanding – “

  “A misunderstanding?!” A man appeared in the doorway and growled at the boy, as if considering eating him alive. “I come home only to find you and my daughter tangled in her bed and you call that a misunderstanding?!”

  “Sir, she was the one who first – “

  “You even dare put the blame on my daughter? Very well!” The man turned and whistled, and in a few seconds, about a dozen boys with deadly-looking wooden sticks surrounded the horror-stucken boy. “I will only be satisfied when I see you beaten up black and blue!”

  Kai couldn’t move. He couldn’t even breathe. He had once heard of this kind of bullying and hitting before, but today, when he was just casually checking on the village as the Head of the Royal Guards, it was the first time he had seen it happen with his own eyes. And even for such an irrational reason.

  The blond-haired boy, shrinking smaller and smaller into a ball, had locked gaze with Kai for only once, but it was already enough. He needed help. And Kai would definitely give it to him, if only Gillian’s firm grip on his wrist would loosen –

  “Stop!”

  A sudden whoosh of wind rushed by Kai’s left side, along with the fragrance of vanilla and sunshine. He hadn’t even finished reacting when he saw the boy be pulled out of the circle by someone with all her might –

  Her?

  The person who just kicked a few of the bullies in the stomach, making them double over; the person who rescued the boy in just a few seconds; the person who bent down on the ground to examine the boy’s wounds… was a girl?

  She wasn’t just a girl, Kai thought as soon as he laid eyes on her. She wasn’t in a dress, unlike the other girls in the village, her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and she was –

  She was glaring at Kai with accusatory in those violet eyes of hers, as if accusing him for just standing there and watching the whole thing as the boy got punched and kicked.

  Kai opened his mouth, wanting to tell her that it was a misunderstanding, but the boy stood up and started running, calling to her. “Andrea! Come on; let’s go!” He winced at his pain as he grabbed Andrea’s hand and ran before the beaten boys on the ground could move again…

  Leaving a stunned Kai behind, with her scent still lingering in the air.

  Such a scent was supposed to be on a lady. It was supposed to make a man trip over his feet for, although she may have not noticed she possessed such a pleasant scent.

  Nevertheless, it wasn’t supposed to be on an arrow.

  Examining the weapon in his hands carefully, Kai tried to single out the most important question running in his head. Why had there been an arrow underneath the counter of The Shabby Shack? Why had he never seen such a… unique arrow, seemingly made by someone’s own hands, maybe even the owner himself? If hunting was forbidden and the prime suspect of the current illegal hunting had already passed away, why would an arrow still be founded?

  Why was her scent on the arrow?

  Kai let out a frustrated sigh and plopped down onto his bed, observing how the end of the arrow glistened under the sunlight. He tried to convince himself that his instincts were wrong this time. He tried to convince himself that it belonged to someone else.

  He tried to convince himself that the arrow wasn’t Andrea’s.

Author's Note:

BECAUSE I AM HERE. YAY.

OMG I just couldn't contain my feels anymore and wanted to put Chapetr 3 on so much and TO CELEBRATE EXO FOR WINNING THEIR 3RD FIRST PLACE (MUSIC CORE, MUSIC BANK, AND NOW INKIGAYO)... DUM DUM DUM! CHAPTER THREE IS HERE! HEHE~

It explains... some things. Not all. LOOOOOL. AND OMG THE NEXT CHAPTER... HAVE I EVER MENTIONED HOW MUCH I LOVE WRITING ABOUT THE MAIN MALE AND FEMALE CHARACTER INTERACTING WITH EACH OTHER? BUAHAHA.

XDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

LOVE YOU ALL AND THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBING AND COMMENTING <3<3