It was the weirdest sensation. It felt like I was dead, but tingling with life. It felt like my eyes were glued shut, yet somehow wide open. It felt like there was a lump in my throat and I couldn't swallow to get it out. It felt like I was grasping at straw or thin air, trying to dig my way out of the mess I dove right into.

And when I opened my eyes with intense effort, it was the strangest thing I'd ever seen. I was lying in the dirt, people bustling around me as if I wasn't there. My hair had fallen out of the ponytail I put it in during the morning and instead of the usual cold bite of the chilly autumn air, I could feel the warm sun rays settling on the back of my neck. I lifted myself up and stood while ignoring the sore protest of my legs.

The whole ground was dirt, no pavement or road. Everyone was dressed in hanboks and men had their hair tied on the top of their heads, and most women had their hair in braids, either long down their backs or rolled to the base of their neck and held there with a wooden binyeo. Some of the kids were chasing each other around a staw-roofed house with dirt streaked down their cheeks. A woman came out and yelled at them, telling them to come inside.

Two little boys came running down the narrow pathway, but stopped abruptly when they saw me. Their smiles quickly disappeared and they gave me a weird look, like I was an alien or someone to be shunned. The boys looked at each other and walked around me, staying an incredible distance away before running again.

Too scared to say anything, I focused on moving my shaky legs one at a time. One-two, one-two, one-two. After about five minutes and twenty footsteps later (it took a lot of effort to try to walk), I stumbled into an eating place where men drank and talked loudly.

I sat down at an empty table and took a few deep breaths to try and calm myself. A lady approached me with a warm smile, though caution was plainly in her eyes. She stood farther away from me than she did with any other customer, even the drunk men.

"Hello," she greeted.

I tried to smile (though it probably just looked like I was constipated) and bowed to her. "Hello."

"Would you like something to drink, perhaps?"

"Water, please?"

"Yes, Miss." She began to turn, but I called to her and she turned back around. "Yes?"

"May I ask you a question?"

Her eyes flickered to the side for a second with hesitation, but nodded her head.

"Wh-what year is it?"

"It is 1565, I believe. Is there something wrong?"

I didn't answer. How could I have answered? Oh that's cool because I was just at a museum and a coin transported me 450 years. It's 2015 back home!

I shook my head with pure disbelief and my eyes were wide with shock. I was baffled. How in the world is this possible. How am I going to get back home? Am I dreaming? I must be dreaming. Maybe I'm dead? I must be dead.

With shaky fingers I pinched my arm and squeezed my eyes shut, but I could still hear the men shouting and the children laughing and the women giggling. I shut my eyes tighter as if it would bring me back home, but the noises wouldn't stop.

"Miss . . . are you all right?"

My eyes shot open and my breathing escalated.

I'm stuck. I'm stuck in 1565. I'm stuck in the Joseon era. I'm stuck in this stupid bar thingy with no knowledge of how to live in this place because I hated history and never listened to the lessons and paid too much attention to looking at Junho and didn't focus and--

"Miss?" The lady was leaning toward me now with concern. "Would you like a drink of your water now? It seems like you could use some," she offered, holding the cup up near my lips.

I stared at her and then the cup, which was a glossy green color. I grabbed the drink and tried not to spill the contents all over me as I sipped the liquid. I could feel it run down my throat and through my chest: it was wonderful. I drank the small amount of water and set the cup down on the table.

"Miss?" I had forgotten she was there until she spoke quietly. "Your clothing. . . ."

I looked down at my clothes. My black top was covered in dirt, along with my gray cardigan and my black jeans had a rip in the right knee. My Converse were turning brown from the dirt as well despite the wash I gave them a few days ago. I groaned and tried to wipe the dirt off me. "Yeah, it's all dirty."

"Where . . . did you get it?"

My eyes slowly moved from my shirt to hers. But she wasn't wearing a shirt. She was wearing a long purple skirt and a light purple jacket that covered up her chest. I believe it was called the jeogori and the chima.

Well whatever it's called, it was way different from what I had on.

I looked into her confused and somewhat scared eyes. I shook my head slightly, trying to tell her something, yet I didn't even know what it was I inteded to tell her, and bolted out of there. I kept running, past kids and adults and shops and houses and food and fabric. I just kept running, praying that if I kept running I might just run all the way to 2015.

After what seemed like a lifetime of cardio, I ran out of breath and stood on wiggly legs and heaved to try and catch some air. My lungs seemed like they were shriveled up inside my chest, like they became the size of prunes. It felt like I couldn't take in enough oxygen. I hunched over and rest my hands on my lower thighs, right above my knees and coughed.

I should not have done that. No more running. For the rest of my life.

I my lips and felt my saliva thick and somehow dry in my mouth. I took a deep breath in and stood up slowly. I was at the edge of a forest with nothing around me but dirt and trees and decomposing leaves. Wonderful.

Something buzzed in my back pocket and I reached behind me for my cellphone. I pulled the menu down to see my notification. It was warning me that I had no cell service. I sighed and rolled my eyes with irritation and exhaustion. I shut the phone off and stuffed it back in my pocket, surprised that it made it through the whole leaping hundreds of years back in time thing.

I plopped down on the edge of the forest where the grass was green and growing and stared out at the open pile of dirt which they call the ground, completely burnt out of every bit of energy I had. I regretted running with every fiber of my being at that given moment.

That's when I heard the stamping of feet and crunching of rocks in the dirt under a person's weight. I squinted into the distance and saw a group of soldiers heading my way. I widened my eyes and wondered if they saw me.

They stopped for a second about forty feet away, conversed, then looked back at me. The tall one in the front opened his mouth to take a deep breath and then yelled, "GET HER!"

Helloooo

Another update! So excited to be writing this story and I hope you all enjoy it! Thank you for reading! <3