Jiyong bit his lip from the slight ache of his hand as he paused for a moment. He stretched his fingers, wincing slightly from the stiffness and discomfort. He stared at the page with every inch covered in his messy writing, his mind beginning to go blank. After waking up in the morning, Jiyong knew something was missing. A majority of his trip here was gone from his memory, and all he could remember was roaming the forest once and a while but then ending up home where he would lounge around. But he still remembered one thing – and that was her name.

Ara.

Ara was the name of a woman he knew. Ara was the name of the woman in the legend his grandmother told him about, but Ara felt more familiar than that. He wrote her name over and over again, filling up every crevice of space left on the page. He didn’t know who she was or what she had to do with anything, but he knew that she ­had something to do with helping him get over Kiko. He knew that when he said her name, his heart would skip a beat. He knew that when he imagined a woman with the help of the description his grandmother told him, he couldn’t think of anyone else. Ara was the name that he couldn’t help but think of constantly. Ara was a name that made him feel a sense of security… But who was she?

Suddenly Jiyong heard the door to the home open, immediately standing on his feet and running to the door. His grandfather walked in while rolling in with the luggage, and immediately Jiyong came in to help. He smiled as he hugged the two, sighing in relief that someone could cure the lonely feeling of the home, “How was your vacation?” His grandfather laughed, “It was great, thank you for the tickets, Jiyongie. How was your time here? Was it lonely?” As they separated, his grandparents lead him towards the couch, but Jiyong dug through his thoughts. Though he could only remember spending time alone…how come it didn’t feel lonely? Jiyong shook his head, “No, it felt…really good here.”

His grandparents nodded as his grandmother excitedly spoke, “Did you meet Ara?”
Jiyong shook his head, hesitating to answer, “I…I don’t know.”
His grandfather furrowed his brows, “How much do you remember of your trip here, Jiyong?”
Jiyong shrugged, “I only remember some things, is that weird?”
His grandmother sighed as she held Jiyong’s hands, “So you’ve made your wish…and now she’s making your forget.”

That sounded familiar. It made his heart stop from disappointment, but at the same time, frustration made him grip his grandmother’s hands tightly. He shook his head and groaned, “Who is Ara? What is she doing to me?” He felt like he should know. He couldn’t put a face to the name, but he knew he should be able to. His grandfather put his hand on his grandmother’s shoulder as she opened to speak, but he spoke in her place, “She is just another legend your grandmother told you about before we left.”

Jiyong nodded, before shrugging as he stood, ignoring the slightly empty feeling in his heart. He grabbed his grandparent’s luggage and smiled, “I’ll bring these upstairs while you two relax.” His grandparents mumbled their thanks as they sat on the couch, their shoulders slouched in disappointment. Jiyong bit his lip, wondering why they seemed so upset he didn’t go out looking for a legend named Ara. What did she even have to do with his trip anyway?

His grandparents laughed as Jiyong finished cleaning the dishes from their dinner. He smiled seeing his grandparents go around the house without a care, smiles on their faces as they the television. Jiyong yawned as he approached his grandparents, bowing his head, “I think I’ll head up to bed.” His grandparents nodded as his grandmother shooed him away, “Of course! You have to leave tomorrow morning, go get some rest!” He bowed again and wished them goodnight before heading upstairs, rubbing his tired eyes. As Jiyong entered the guest room, he wanted to head straight to the table, but instead, he noticed the pile of papers on his desk.

With a questioning look, he approached the messy table, furrowing his brows to see a scribbles word all over multiple papers, while others had what seemed like stories written all over the pages. But he looked at the paper with a name scribbled in all spots, barely able to see the white of the paper. He mumbled to himself, wondering if he read the word out loud he would remember what it meant, “Ara… Ara…. Shin Ara….” It didn’t ring a single bell. With a shrug, Jiyong picked up the papers and placed them in the recycling bin, deciding to keep the one with the word written continuously in case it was an idea he had for a song that he just couldn’t remember.

Stuffing it in the back pocket of his jeans hanging on the chair, Jiyong crawled into bed, closing his eyes with a long sigh. He felt a cold breeze enter his room, blowing past him multiple times. With a groan, he pulled up the blanket to his chin, his eyes slowly growing heavy. But he just couldn’t fall asleep as he tossed and turned in bed. He didn’t feel comfortable – like there was something missing in his bed. Maybe he should have brought his body pillow from home to hug to sleep. Instead he hugged a pillow, staring straight into the darkness as he waited for sleep to come. But it didn’t, he still felt troubled and uncomfortable just sleeping like this.

Why did he feel like he was forgetting something?

Jiyong lugged the last of his luggage down the stairs, stretching his back as he groaned. He approached his grandparents sitting on the island in the kitchen, smiling as a cup of coffee awaited him. He sipped the somewhat bitter drink, checking his phone for a text from his manager who would be coming to pick him up. He insisted on coming as it had been too long since he had seen Jiyong’s face and he wanted to see the forest the other members talked about for himself. With a crack of his neck, Jiyong spoke to his grandparents as they waited for his ride, discussing future family get-togethers and the occasional comment from his grandparents for Jiyong to take care of his being and what he wanted before worrying about his job. Jiyong looked down at his almost empty mug sadly.

He didn’t want to go. He felt like there were so many more things he had to do here. There wasn’t anything anxiously waiting for him in Seoul other than his job, and he felt like here, there was something he needed to finish. Maybe he just wanted to fill in the gaps of his memory, but he wanted to do it. He didn’t want his month long vacation to just be a hole in his memory. With a sigh, Jiyong excused himself for a moment after finishing the last of his coffee. He was going to need it the moment he got back and endless lines of fans and reporters with flashing cameras crowded the airport.

As he made his way towards the guest room he stayed in, Jiyong made sure to look at all the pictures on the walls, pausing for a moment at each one. He wante