I keep my head down as I move along with the crowd, my hands tremble as a crowd of people envelope us. I let my hand clutch onto the fabric of Ravi’s overalls, my gaze locking with the stone that crunch’s beneath my boots. I take a moment to glance sideways at a few passerbys. Wait, I must not look at anything. I turn my head back to the ground and those around me seem to not take any notice of my awkward stance and we walk like this for about fifteen minutes but then suddenly I hear a soft chuckle as we walk.

I glance up and notice Bree’s eyes on me. I glance around at the faces that surround me; Leo was looking up, Ravi was staring at the ceiling and Daehyun was watching the faces around him… Was I taking this ‘don’t look at anything’ too seriously? I keep the fabric of Ravi’s overalls balled in my fist but let my eyes travel forward, keeping an eye on the destination ahead. The tunnel is becoming more dimly lit as we come to a spot where there are less people. I gape in awe at the sight in front of me. The wall has completely disappeared and it’s replaced by steel ladders that are about a metre wide. I think about where they lead too, specifically which one we’ll be taking since there would be nowhere else to go from here without using one of the structures.

We stop and Bree and Yongguk glance around, telling a few workers to move away from the area. I see Bree turn around and call Ravi’s name, and with my hands not letting go of his overalls he basically drags me forward with him.

"What's up?" He asks.

"I'm assuming Taylor couldn't jump a good three metres across, yeah? Do you think you'd be able to jump across with her on your back? You're going to have to twist in mid-air to catch yourself on the opposite ladder," She asks as I eye the steel ladders in question.

Ravi looks out to the area, his face not readable from my view. I’m guessing he has that confused expression on his face where his mouth is parted and he can’t seem to figure out what’s going on… I really should tell him to change that.

“Yeah, I think I can do it.”

My eyes widen and I look up at him as Bree nods at his answer.

“You think…?”

Ravi notices my worried expression and smiles while giving my head a pat, “Trust me, I won’t let anything happen.”

"Perfect. I'll climb down first because I'm not having you jump without backup. Hyuk, Leo," Bree orders, "I want you two to follow me down. Keep an eye on me to know when you need to jump, and when you get to the landing, stay on either side of the ladder. I want the two of you to grab Ravi and Taylor as soon as his hands touch the steel. Got it?"

Hyuk and Leo nod in agreement and stand near the edge as Bree waits for me to get onto Ravi’s back but curiousity gets the best of me before I do so. I take a few steps to stand beside Bree and lean out to have a look where we would be going. Bree’s hand shoots out in front of me to refrain me from falling. I can’t drink everything in at once, so my eyes relentlessly roam the wide open space in front of us. It doesn’t seem to have an end… I suddenly hear footsteps and I turn around to see Ravi smirking at me.

He kneels down and I wrap my arms tightly around his neck, locking my hand around my wrist. I wrap my legs around his waist and lock my ankles together and I notice Ravi eye both sections, bouncing a bit to make sure I would let go.

"Pick an exit, people! Newbies learning the ropes coming down from the top!" Bree hollers down the shaft and afterwards eyes us all, "We've got to go about thirty meters straight down before the jump. Hang on tight, because if you fall you'll take out everyone else below you, I can’t help you... Don't up."

"Floor three opposite, clear the landing!" Bree yells at the top of her lungs once more and then looks to us again, encouraging us to listen, "Do you see that opening there? That's where we're jumping to. I know it doesn't look like much, but don't relax; the tunnel is just over three meters wide and we're more than a hundred meters from the bottom. Listen carefully and jump exactly as I tell you because if you screw this up, you will die. Kick off the rung with both feet, twisting your upper body around as you let go. Jump up and out. Do not jump straight across. As soon as your feet clear the ladder, twist your hips and bend your legs. You want to land hands first and bending your knees to absorb the shock of hitting the ladder. Got it? Now watch and learn."

We all nod at her order as she swings herself around onto the ladder and begins to quickly move down, her strength showing in the ease of her movements… I wish I could do that. I look like such a wimp clinging onto Ravi’s back like a small baby sloth.

Hyuk moves quickly, following Bree’s movements as he scales the top of the ladder. I watch him and begin to feel nervous. He disappears out of sight when Leo moves to follow their actions but before leaving he makes eye contact with both Ravi and I. I smile weakly at him and he smirks back, trying to reassure me.

My hand tightens around my wrist when Ravi moves towards the ladder and when he swings around the ladder I quickly bury my face against the back of his neck and shoulder. When we move a few feet down the ladder, I decide to glance downwards. I think Ravi notices the sudden pressure leave his back so he turns his head to eye me.

I stare in horror as I can’t make out a single thing except for the few dim lights scattered throughout the shaft. I in my breath and quickly shut my eyes and turn my face to press against the same spot as before on Ravi’s neck and shoulder.

“Ravi…” I quietly say against his neck as he begins to move again.

“Yes?” He asks.

“I’m scared,” I breathe quietly, hoping he is the only one the hear me.

I can feel his head nod and a small laugh escapes his lips, “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

I keep my head pressed against him as we keep moving. It seems like forever before I start to hear the other’s jumping from our ladder to the one opposite of us. I close my eyes tightly as Ravi only moves a bit more and suddenly we are turning.

I hear Bree holler something but I can’t quite make out her words as I squish myself closer against Ravi. I ball the front of his shirt into my free hand as we move and suddenly we are crashing against another ladder. I let out a small ‘eep’ as I feel the force of the crash rattle my body. The inertia of it all loosens my grip and I can feel my ankles unlock and my grip on my wrist loosens. Within seconds my legs suddenly swing loose from Ravi’s body and I hang from his neck with a weak grip. I feel him lean backwards and I open my eyes to gaze at the endless pit below us. I try to pull myself up but my hand slips from my wrist. I don’t scream as I grip his shirt and feel my weight pull me down a bit.

I feel a hand on my back suddenly and it’s ripping away from the position I was once in. I am on my tip toes when I crash against someone’s chest. I look up and I see Leo searching my face, a glint of worry in his eyes. I have my hands pressed up against his chest as we stand on the ledge staring at each other and finally let out my breath after a few moments pass. His hands are on my back and after I nod, letting him know I was alright, he lets me go and I plant my feet fully on the ground.

Bree eyes me and I nod at her as I move to where she has guided Ravi too. Leo and Hyuk stay by the ladder and Bree is near the structure as well. I cross my arms over my chest as Ravi runs a hand through his orange hair.

“, Taylor! I told you to hang on,” Ravi seethes.

“I did…” I whine quietly.

We keep quiet as a few more people make their way down the ladder and I look at him from the corner of my eye. I can see he regrets the way he talked to me… It’s not like I didn’t hang on, the force of it all shook my body so much that I just slipped… I tried.

 “Hey… I didn’t mean to sound so angry before…” He whispers to me and I can hear a chuckle from behind us. I glance behind us and see Daehyun watching us.

When I look at Ravi I nod at him, hoping he understood I wasn’t mad at him, it’s just that the adrenaline from the moment of hanging over a ledge had worn off and I was becoming uncomfortable. I feel a few tears prickle at the corners of my eyes… I need to build my strength. I could’ve died if I had fallen off and Leo had not been there… I didn’t need someone looking after me all the time.

“Hey…” He grabs my forearm and stops me from taking a step foward to move along with the pack as they pass us.

I stare up at him, my bangs half hiding my eyesand he looks down at me. He smirks at me, moving my hair away from my vision and notices the tears in my eyes.

“Yah, what are these here for? You know I didn’t mean it… I was just worried.”

I nod at his comforting words and finally speak, “I just don’t like how weak I am… I could’ve died if I had fallen… I can’t even hold onto you,” I let a few tears fall out of my eyes and he wipes them away from my face with his sleeve.

“You’ll get there,” He reassures.

I nod again and look over to the others, hoping none of them had noticed my tears. I turn to move and Ravi follows suit and we catch up with the rest of the group. I keep to the edge while Ravi mingles in the middle with various members of both VIXX and B.A.P.

As I move, I keep my hands to myself, afraid of what might happen if I even so much as graze the wall with my fingertips. Everyone else seems a bit more light hearted compared to my anxious self, Ravi lazily crossing his arms across his chest as he chats with Jongup and Ken. I can’t hear their conversation so I look to the ground as we move along and keep my thoughts to myself… I wonder how long we have to walk for. This tunnel seems endless and only dim lights are our guides in the crowded area… I turn my gaze upwards, admiring the intricately carved stone… It’s really quite high as well, how did someone carve a ceiling out that was this tall? I don’t notice that the group has come to a shuffle, a group of men with a cart pushing us to stand in a somewhat single file line. My gaze is still on the ceiling as this takes place and I don’t notice the loose stones in front of me as my small feet catch on them.

I stumble forward, my hands trying to grasp the fabric of the overalls of the person in front of me. I slowly graze my hand along whoever is in front but then my hands quickly meet with the cool stone of the floor, my knee’s scraping along the ground.

“…” I breathe and I glance over my hands as I kneel on the ground. There are no cuts so I eye who I basically fondled on my way down, hoping they would ignore my actions. I notice Daehyun looking down at me and I immediately blush.

His eyes are glowing as a smile spreads across his face and faint chuckles escape his lips. My lips part making it unable to form a sentence as his handsome face beams down at me. I stay in my kneeling position, my awkwardness inhibiting me from moving.

He claps his hands together once and he giggles but then moves toward me, outstretching his hand, “You walk like a two year old.”

I crinkle my eyebrows as I take his hand and the callouses from his tight grasp are surprisingly comforting. He pulls me up and I’m guessing he underestimates how small I am because when I come to a standing position, I’m still moving forward and immediately crash up against his chest and I can feel his hand on my back to support me. Luckily the others are ahead of us as this take places, unnoticing of our somewhat intimate position.

My hands are pressed up against his stomach and my hair is messily splayed across my face and neck. I eye up at him through my bangs and notice a surprised look on his features. We make eye contact and he takes a moment to smile down at me. His eyes are soft again and I can feel the heat flood my cheeks once more.

"Sorry..." I breathe.                

He nods, the smile staying on his face, “It’s okay…”  

For some reason, I can’t bring myself to pull away from him, the heat from his body quite comfortable as we stand in silence. His hand falls away from my back and I let my arms fall to my sides.

 “We’re going to get left behind if we don’t keep walking,” Daehyun tells me, his hand rubbing the back of his neck nervously as he smiles at me.

I nod in compliance but notice him look down to my feet before we take any steps.

“You’re shoelace is untied.”

I glance down and before I make any movements to kneel down Daehyun’s already at my feet, his hands quick while he ties my shoe.

“There we go…” He mumbles and when he stands he moves to the side to extend out his hand, inviting me to walk beside him.

We walk in silence for a few moments and I take the time to admire his figure… He’s different looking than Leo and the boys of VIXX, his upper body a bit more muscular than what I’m used to. His hair is a light sand colour, something that was slowly becoming unordinary to me. He glances over and catches my gaze and greets me with a smile once more.

I smile back and try to make a conversation, “So, what’s it like in Mato?”

He smiles and glances forward, “Well, it’s controlling… but I move so much that I don’t really get to see it all too much anymore.”

I look at him with slightly widened eyes and he chuckles at my expression.

“I’m a runner and go back and forth so much I rarely am here other than to sleep, or when the others need help.”

“Do you like it?” I ask curiously.

He laughs again, “Sleeping alone kind of … But it’s nice to not have to live such a controlled life.”

“You must have it all memorized… Do you come to VIXX all that often?”

His eyes wander the ceiling for a minute and then he looks at me, “I use a map every now and then, but I don’t come to VIXX a lot anymore.”

I nod at his answer, and look down to the ground.

“But maybe it would be a good idea if I start coming around more often.”

I look at him again and he his avoiding my eyes. I smile to myself as we finally catch up to the crowd, Daehyun’s anxiousness leaves him as we immerse ourselves with the rest of the group. We come to a halt after about twenty minutes and Bree begins to give us instructions.

“All right people, here we go. Everyone hop down. Yongguk, you first."

He’s fast as he jumps down, the VIXX boys following suit. I wait until there are only a few boys in front of me when I notice Bree staring at a hole in the wall. It’s large enough for a few people to fit through and I watch her as she takes a step towards it. I tip toe to her side and break her out of her trance.

“Bree, what is that?”

“The moving tunnel…”

She doesn’t explain any further but instead turns to face the hole where everyone else was going into, she doesn’t go down it but instead guides the others ahead of her. I glance at the so called ‘moving tunnel’ one more time and then find myself cautiously hopping into the rabbit hole.

Daehyun has his back against a wall when I stand in a regular position, rubbing my hands to free themselves from the dirt of the ground. I smile at him and hear people hopping down behind me.

“You know… Your sister scares me.”

Daehyun giggles at my words and lets a smile spread across his face, “She just takes some time to get used to.”

I keep a smile on my face as we lock our gazes.

“She’s really –“ my words are cut off by my feet lifting off the ground and my body goes stiff.

There are hands on either side of my shoulders, gripping me and lifting me off the floor. I am quickly placed back down and a few inches away from Daehyun at this point. His face is filled with joy and he begins to laugh loudly as my widened eyes meet his.

He claps his hands together and bends forward a bit in laughter and my face heats up in embarrassment when I look over my shoulder to see Bree walking past me to group with N and Yongguk.

I stare back at Daehyun who is still laughing and back hand his chest lightly, my embarrassment getting the best of me. He gazes back at me with a shocked, but still happy expression. I smile finally and the redness leaves my cheeks.

"Oh, I can't believe you hit me!" He chuckles out and I smile cheekily at him.

Why was it so easy to talk to him? I mean he's handsome and all, but I just met him... Well, he's also really sweet.

He pokes at my  side and I bend over to try and escape from it, a giggle escaping my lips, "No! I'm ticklish!"

He looks down at my side once more and I shake my head at him as his hands grab at both my sides quickly, laughter being my only response. I can feel my ears turning red so I try to push his hands away, but his grip is strong as he makes me laugh more. Our playful moment is broken when Ravi booms at us.

“Yah, let’s get a move on.”

I turn from Daehyun and see the VIXX boys watching us, most of them have an interseting smile, but both Ravi and Leo are holding looks of discomfort as Daehyun comes to my side.

“You better be able to run fast, those charges are pretty strong.”

I quirk my head to the side and he continues to explain, “Well, the new recruits are coming with you but we’re making sure those chargers destroy that tunnel…”

I tremble involuntarily and Daehyun senses my discomfort.

“Hey,” he slinks an arm around my shoulder and lets the hand from the same arm rest in my hair, “you’re small enough to be a fast runner… Well, if you don’t fall first.”

He ruffles my hair quickly and I blush for a moment. He send me on my way to follow the VIXX boys and we enter the tunnel, two females standing by my side as we do so. They seem slightly uncomfortable so I walk with them as the tunnel becomes dimly lit. Leo is on my left quickly as we walk for about twenty five metres.

“Alright, this should be it,” N announces taking a moment to eye everyone quickly.

He toys with the detonator in silence and then finally makes the decision.

“Make sure you run fast, alright? And don’t fall…” He looks to me when he finishes speaking and I roll my eyes slightly, nodding at him.

He pushes the button and then sprints forward, everyone following suit as we begin to hear the explosions behind us. They’re loud and my ears are unfamiliar to the sound as I sprint to keep up with the boys, the two recruits fast as they move.

I wince in pain as the eruptions ring louder and in that moment I feel a hand on my back, gripping the fabric of my overalls and urging me forward. I glance from the corner of my eye and take note of Leo and then turn my gaze forward, keeping pace with him as we move forward.

It’s at least ten minutes before we come to a speed walk, the explosions finally finishing and I notice a faint ringing dancing in my ears.

We all walk with heavy breathing and I notice the girls up near the front of the pack, moving in step with Hyuk and Ken.

Leo’s hand drops away from my back as we all walk a bit slowly and I turn and smile at him. He smirks back, his hands dropping into his pockets as he shrugs a bit and my face heats up slightly… He’s so sweet. Such a simple actin and I turn the colour of a tomato.

I shake my head a bit and we keep in step together, the journey ahead of us starting to become the only thing on our minds.