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     Mark's finger trembled on the trigger, fear enveloping his entire body.
     Johnny shouted from where he laid, blood trickling down more and more from his shoulder everytime he moves his body. "Pull it Mark, pull the goddamn trigger!!" 

      However Mark couldn't hear him, Mark couldn't hear anything or anyone except the thoughts racing through his head and ricocheting off every side of his skull. He stood in the middle of the damp cave, his entire body on the verge of breaking down. His eyes were glued to the skeletal monster standing only a few feet away, its paranoid eyes bouncing from one person to another. Mark couldn't believe it. No, he wouldn't believe it. How could his precious friend turn into that? That, that thing with no hair, white skin, how....

   "Mark!" Taeyong yelled and dragged his lame leg behind him on his way over to Mark, "Mark, let me do it. You shouldn't have to...Haechan, he...he wouldn't want you to."

   "What do you mean 'he wouldn't want you to' like he isn't here? He's right here, right in front of me!" Mark pointed the shotgun at the monster in front of him, the one that used to be human. "That's Haechan! Haechan is right here, he's here, he's alive!"

   Taeyong bit back his tears and placed a shaking hand on Mark's shoulder. "Mark...." his voice quivered and he couldn't fight back the tears that were building up anymore. The dam broke and the tears came flooding down. "it's no use anymore. He's gone...Haechan is gone. You have to shoot befor-" Taeyong could barely keep himself composed. He glanced over at the panting creature that was quietly scanning over Taeyong, Johnny, Mark, and Ten who was lying unconscious near the cave entrance. The monster seemed to be calculating its next move.

    Taeyong clenched his jaw tightly and took Mark by the shoulders, staring into his eyes. "You have to shoot him before he kills us."

     Mark gaped at Taeyong in horror. Almost inaudibly Mark said, "No." He turned his head and locked eyes with the monster Haechan had become. He tried his best to not let his eyes wander from the monster's own chocolate colored eyes. Even if he looked like this, even if he had hurt them, Mark knew that deep down Haechan was still in there, he could still be saved. Haechan's smile, Haechan's laugh, Haechan's kind words, they were all still in there somewhere, still Haechan. How could Mark possibly risk destroying that? 

    "Just pull the trigger, do it before it kills us! Mark, do you hear me?!" Johnny yelled hoarsly. Mark stood there blankly, his mind speeding a hundred miles an hour.
     What should I do--

                       BANG
   
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      Forty-Eight Hours Later

"This is stupid. Like seriously, why are we digging up the heart of the forest?" 
    Johnny sighs, sarcasm dripping from his voice as he leans against his shovel.

    The cool autumn breeze travels through the trees and plays with the brown hair of the twenty-something male standing next to Johnny in a nearly seven foot deep hole.

   "We're digging because-" he pauses to wipe his sweaty forehead with the back of his hand before looking at Johnny, "because I told you to." His lips curve into a cheeky grin and he returns to his work.

    Johnny rolls his eyes and stabs his shovel into the dirt before plopping onto the ground and folding his arms.

    "Awe, don't be such a sourpuss, Johnny~" the other man coos.

   Johnny pouts and flicks some nearby dirt away with his finger. He tries his best to avoid the other's all-knowing eyes before asking, "So, where are the others, anyways?" he glances at the other for a millisecond before quickly averting his eyes and focusing them instead on his shovel.

   "Hm? Oh, Taeyong, Mark, and Haechan? Yeah, they'll be here in a few. They texted me a while ago saying they had to stop for gas." the other replies.

   Johnny perks up at the thought of their other  friends joining them for their reunion. Johnny and Ten, the other man in the hole, haven't seen their friends in ages, ever since Johnny and Ten left for university in Seoul. Eventually, after the initial stress of university life lessened and their teachers weren't breathing down their necks they finally had enough time to hang out with the others. Why they have to meet up in The Forbidden Forest is something Johnny still can't figure out.

   It was a random request that Ten had asked the others about back in their group chat one night. They had all thought Ten was just drunk, that he was joking, but when morning came and Ten asked them once again if they could stay in a lodge out in The Forbidden Forest for a week they shrugged their shoulders and messaged in favour. When asked how he was going to get them into The Forbidden Forest, he simply said that his grandfather was one of the rangers of the forest and he had special permission to let certain people visit, news that he had so kindly kept to himself prior to that day.

   "Ten!" a voice hollers from somewhere near the hole they're digging, snapping Johnny out of his train of thought.

   Ten drops his shovel and climbs out of the hole to meet the newcomers.

   "Taeyong!" he exclaims and rushes to embrace the blonde haired man that had called him.
   Taeyong's brown eyes search Ten's and he returns the embrace, holding Ten close to his chest, "It's been so long, Ten..." he whispers against Ten's hair.

   Ten nods and flashes a smile, trying his best not to cringe away from Taeyong's jacket covered arms. He feels a tug on his shoulders as someone jumps onto his back and he thanks the Gods. Ten lets go of Taeyong to balance the small man trying to hitch a ride on his back.

    "H-hey, Haechan!" Ten chuckles awkwardly. Haechan giggles and plays with Ten's bangs.

    Back at the hole Johnny's foot slips on loose dirt on his way out of the hole and he nearly falls to the bottom but Mark manages to catch his hand just in time.

  "Tryna fall to your grave a little too early, are you?" Mark says and lets out a grunt as he pulls Johnny to the surface. Mark's ballcap falls off his head and his hands fumble to catch it, his short black hair bouncing up and down with the momentum. He pulls the cap over his head and gives it a quick pat.

    Johnny chuckles and they share a bro-hug. "It's been forever, man." Johnny says.

   "You're telling me. Haechan has been driving me crazy." Mark says and laughs.

   "Hey," Haechan calls out indignantly, "I heard that!"

    Mark shakes his head while laughing to himself and puts his arm around Johnny's shoulders. "Let's get it."

    They walk over to the others and Haechan pounces on Mark's head, pulling it into a headlock. After feigning a surrender, the others laugh as Mark jumps on Haechan's back and ruffles his hair.

   "So Ten, why are we in this forest?" Mark asks while balancing himself on Haechan, who is jerking from side to side like a bull trying to shake off its rider.

   Ten's tousled hair dances with the breeze when he points towards the hole a couple of feet away. "That's why."

   Taeyong face crinkles in confusion, "A hole in the ground?"

  "Nah man, a hidden entrance to Wonderland." Mark jokes and nudges Taeyong's arm playfully.

   The others chortle while Taeyong pouts, "You know, that could be possible but really, why did we meet in the forest for some hole?"

    "Well, it's not the hole that's important but what's inside it...although we haven't even touched the surface of what's waiting for us down there." Ten says and scratches the nape of his neck.

   "You make it sound like there's some kind of monster down there." Haechan jokes.

    "Who said there isn't?" Ten stares at Haechan in such a way that Haechan's smile falters and his laughter ceases.

   The trees swing with the increasing gusts of wind and several clouds darken with the promise of rain. Haechan, Ten, and the others face each other in uncomfortable silence, searching for the right words to pick the conversation back up. Taeyong lets a sigh escape from gritted teeth and claps his hands together. "Ok, everyone. I think it's time that we head to the lodge before we're chilled, soaked, and frozen into ice cubes. Everyone, hop in the van. Last one in is a rotten egg!"

   Johnny and Haechan share a grin before breaking into a dash to the van, snatching the best seats up front. Taeyong laughs and grabs Ten's hand, who reluctantly lets Taeyong pull him to the van. Mark stretches his arms and shakes out his legs, preparing to sprint to the van. Before he can take a single step he hears something resonating deep within the forest. Clear and deep, like the low rumble of a waterfall roaring from far away.

    Mark turns his head to the countless trees that tower over him and his eyes are met with a blur too quick for him to focus on. After all his eye contacts aren't the best as of late, always unfocused at the strangest of times. Mark rubs his eyes and looks again, seeing only a clear view of trees lined up in straight rows this time, extending to who-knows-where.

    Johnny honks the horn from inside the driver's seat and calls out to Mark, "Mark, come on! It's cold out there! Get your tiny butt inside before you regret it."

   Mark shakes his head and bends down to prepare for his sprint. With one large push off of the ground his legs fling him forward with so much force that he's practically flying towards the van, as if he's trying to escape from someone....or from something.

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   The surrounding trees seem to play a game of hide and seek
with the van as it drives along the dirt road. They sway back and forth, daring to touch the van but always pulling up at the last second. The inhabitants of the van chatter happily with each other, catching up on whatever they had missed.

     After what seems to be a century, the tires of the van finally screech to a stop near the lodge, parking only a few feet away.

    One by one the men make their way out of the van and head to the trunk. Taeyong opens it up and hands Mark his bag. Mark sends Taeyong a thumbs up and trudges up the tiny hill to the wooden lodge.

   "Here you go." Taeyong hands the next bag to Johnny as Johnny tips the imaginary cowboy hat sitting on his head to Taeyong. Taeyong tips his own snapback cap in response before heaving a rather heavy bag onto his back.

   "Woah," he laughs and turns to Haechan, "what do you have in here, short stuff?"

     Haechan's cheeks paint themselves a dark maroon, spreading from cheek to cheek. "Hey, who you think you're calling 'short'! A-and why should I tell you what's in there! That's my personal business, how would you like it if I also asked you if you had porn in your bag?" Haechan huffs and folds his arms, waiting for Taeyong to apologize in defeat. Taeyong has never been good at holding an argument. He usually shuffles his feet and fiddle with his earrings, trying to decide the best way to respond. He doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings but he also doesn't want the other to think he's a pushover. In the end he never says anything and just stares at his feet.

    Surprisingly Taeyong has managed to grow some balls over the past few days and he now smirks at Haechan instead of bowing his head in shame. "Haechan," he begins, "when did I ever ask you if you had porn in your bag?" Taeyong's eyes glisten with laughter and Haechan's face darkens until you could paint a beet on a canvas with just the color emanating from his cheeks.

     "Yeah shorty, why'd you talk about porn? This is a holy ground." Johnny joins in playfully, sticking his tongue out at Haechan.

     Ten comes up from behind and smacks the back of Johnny's head with a book he brought with him. "You idiot, let Taeyong win his own stupid arguments." Johnny rubs his sore head with his hand and winces at the pain.

     "If you're gonna hit my head with a book at least let it be something full of adventure, not 'Twilight' or whatever sappy novel you're reading!" Johnny complains. Ten rolls his eyes and pulls Johnny by the ear to the trunk. A series of "ow, ow, ow"s make their way out of Johnny's mouth.

    "Hey, what do you mean by 'stupid arguments'!" Taeyong's voice rises in defense.

    "I mean," Ten says, heaving his suitcase from the trunk and placing it on the ground, "that you always argue about the dumbest of things."

    Taeyong places his hands on his hips and tilts his head. "Oh yeah? Like what?"

     Ten smacks his lips together and says, "Well for starters, you started an argument with me over a banana peel I had left on the counter and--"

    "That was over two years ago!" Taeyong interjects but Ten places a finger in front of his lips. Taeyong has always been a bit of a neat-freak, cleaning even the tiny specks of dust off of his phone that are almost invisible to anyone else's eyes.

     "Hush now, child." Taeyong scowls but quiets down.

     "As I was saying, you argued for over an hour about how revolted you were that I had left a banana peel on the counter. It wasn't even that big of a darn deal yet you still insisted for well over sixty minutes that it was!" Ten shakes his head.

    Haechan snorts, "It sounds like that gave you PTSD or something since you're still talking about it." Ten's eyes send daggers at Haechan and Haechan hides behind Taeyong like a dog with his tail between his legs.

    "Guys, guys, let's settle down, get the rest of our stuff, and go inside before we're thrown around by the wind." Johnny tries to reason with the others. After a few moments of looking each other up and down all three of them concede and grab any remaining bags and suitcases.

   They find Mark fast asleep on the couch in front of the fireplace when they enter the lodge. As they inspect the innards of their lodge they find that it's a relatively spacious lodge with plenty of room for at least ten people. The kitchen is conjoined with the living room and a hallway in the middle leads to four bedrooms, two on each side, and one bathroom at the end of the hall. To give off the authentic "I'm stuck in a blizzard and the only shelter is this lodge" look there are knives enclosed in glass cases, pictures of men proudly holding several different animal's in their hands, a 'Welcome' mat placed at the foot of the door, and a fireplace, warm and bright, with the wood popping and crackling against each other as they fall deeper and deeper into the fire.

     "Ah, nothing like a good 'ole hunting lodge to raise the spirits." Johnny says, sarcasm oozing from his words. It's a known fact that Johnny hates anything having to do with hunting or just killing animals in general. He once said he would let fire ants eat him if he thought it would save their lives.

    Shaking his head in disgust, he places his bags on the chair near the fireplace as gently as he can so as not to wake Mark up. He walks over to the wall with the pictures of the hunters and takes them down, one by one. Haechan begins to say something but instead follows Ten into the kitchen, planning to raid the fridge.

     "I asked my gramps to stock the fridge, bathroom, and bedroom since I knew you lazy farts wouldn't think of it." Ten explains as he opens a jar of pickles and passes it to Haechan who picks the fattest, juiciest one and takes a big chomp of it, smiling blissfully.

    "Woah, been spending too much time around Mr. Grumpypants over here?" Taeyong gestures to Johnny and Johnny merely shrugs his shoulders.

    Ten shrugs his own as well, "I had to let something about him rub off on me and to be honest his French mime costumes weren't really my style."

    "Hey!" Johnny blurts rather loudly before being shushed by everyone else.

   "Oh, right, right, Mark is sleeping. I forgot for a moment there." he whispers. He peers down at the man, or rather boy, sleeping like a baby on the couch. His ballcap, coat, shoes, and socks lay haphazardly on the floor, a dangerous trap just waiting to be discovered. Taeyong picks up each piece of clothing and shoe one by one, shaking his head. 

     "This kid is going to give his wife a serious headache." he remarks.

      Closing the fridge door, Haechan makes his way to the chair nearest the couch. "Who said he'd marry a woman?"

     "Can you seriously imagine this flustered kid marrying a guy? He'd blush to his death before the priest can even say 'you may now kiss your groom'." Johnny says. Haechan gazes at Mark who's sleeping peacefully.

    "Hm..." he says, "I guess you're right. Mark can't even handle me and I go easy on him."

    Ten nods his head in agreement. Soon enough the air becomes stale with no one having anything to say.

    "So....what now?" Taeyong asks after a while.

    "Now, we have a slumber party and braid each other's hair. Maybe we can even fangirl over kpop idols." Johnny jests.

    Haechan giggles a little too loudly and Mark stirs. They all freeze and stare down at Mark. Mark's eyes flutter open and he looks around at his friends. "Um...guys," Mark yawns, "what's going on?"

   "Nothing, nothing." Taeyong replies quickly and winks at Johnny who winks back.

   "Did the two of you have you-know-what while I was sleeping?" Mark jokes in a groggy tone.

   "What?!" Johnny and Taeyong ejaculate in unison, their voices unusually high.

   "Bro, bro, bro. No, just no. I like girls, man. Girls." Johnny tries his best to convince Mark and the others.

   Ten smirks and pulls out his phone. "Oh really? That's not what it looked like last night." he shows pictures of a drunk Johnny making out with male mannequins.

   "I thought you said you deleted those!" Johnny says indignantly as his face turns hot red like a chili pepper. He reaches for Ten's phone but ends up almost falling over Haechan who Ten had pulled in front of him as his make-shift shield.

    "Hey bro." Haechan beams up at Johnny who can't help but smile back. Ten taps on Johnny's shoulder and when Johnny turns around Ten sticks the photo in his face. He winks and begins to run around the cabin with Johnny on his heels. Taeyong sinks into a chair and closes his eyes, hoping that sleep will come to him and drone out the two kids running around. Mark watches and cheers for Johnny with Haechan performing cheer choreographies.

    "Ten, give me the phone! Let me delete the pictures!" Johnny says as he pants. Chasing after a man who is a passionate basketball player isn't the best of ideas.

   Ten sticks his tongue out and reaches his arm out higher, "Why? Am I going too fast fo--"

        BANG, BANG, BANG

   They all feeeze where they are, all sound wiped from the atmosphere. The air seems to be frozen, with not a single breath escaping into it. Haechan's heart pounds against his rib cage and he latches onto Mark, whispering, "Was that a gunshot?"

   Mark nods once, too afraid to move another muscle. Taeyong waves at them to gain their attention and mouths that they should hide. They stare at him in confusion until he gestures to one of the rooms. They nod their heads and glance at the door before they all get up and tip-toe on the wooden floorboads, trying their best not to make a sound. Haechan's heart is practically galloping at this rate. Mark gives Haechan's hand a tight squeeze of reassurance.

   Taeyong ushers them into the room and heads in last, shutting the door as qently as possible. Ten pulls him back to one of the corners and places a finger against his lips, signaling to the others to stay silent.

     Thump, Thump, Thump

   The sound of rubber boots clumping up the stairs to the front door fills the eerie silence. They hear the door creek open and the sound of the boots echoes throughout the house.

     Clump....clump....clump

    Johnny scoots closer to Mark and Haechan, his fear beginning to break through his usual sarcastic and annoyed front. Their breath gets caught up in their throats when they hear the boots come closer to the room they're in. Their hearts beat louder than the boots thundering against the floorboards.

   They nearly jump when they hear a deep voice boom, "Chittaphon! Chittaphon, where are you and your friends?"

    Haechan begins to sob onto Mark's shirt, "We're gonna die. We're all gonna die because of some dude named Chitterphone."

   Ten laughs suddenly, startling the others. They stare at him in shock. "Are you okay, Ten?" Johnny asks, concern washing over his features.

   Shaking his head, Ten doesn't say anything and instead stands up with a wide grin on his face. He flings the door open and exclaims, "Gramps!"

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   The others glance at each other and then at the door before edging closer. 
     They watch a scruffy looking man who can't be more than five feet tall hug Ten. His boots are caked in mud as is his long white beard. Several muddy footprints cover most of the floor. He shares a hearty laugh with Ten before facing the others, "Ah, you young men must be Chittaphon's friends!"

   Haechan points at Ten, "Wait a second, are you saying that Ten is actually Chittaphon?"

   The old man scrunches his brows together and asks, "Ten? Who's Ten?"

   Haechan responds while pointing at Ten, "This guy is Ten! Right here, Kim Ten." Ten chuckles nervously and glances between the old man and the others.

   The old man scratches his beard and examines Ten. "I only have one grandson and his name is Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul."

   Haechan gasps as he makes the connection between Ten, Chittaphon, and the old man. "You-you're-" he bows quickly and introduces himself to the old man, "Hello, Ten's grandfather, my name is Haechan! N-nice to meet you!"

   Ten's grandfather laughs a deep, throaty laugh and pats Haechan's shoulder, "Pleasure to meet ya, son. You can just call me Mr. Leechaiyapornkul."

   Haechan smiles at Mr. Leechaiyapornkul before turning to Ten. "Chittaphon," he says, "how come you told us your name is Ten?"

   Ten scratches his neck and tilts his head. "Well, I never really liked my name growing up. I've lived in Korea since I was ten and I got picked on by the other students for being Thai. They said my name sounded really weird and unnatural so they started calling me 'Ten' because that was the year I stopped living as a normal human and became a freak. They thought I would hate the name but I honestly I think it suits me. I'm a ten out of ten, I'm perfect." Ten flashes a bright smile and poses, trying to wipe away any sadness that may have crept into his voice.

   "But," he continues, "when I met all of you I was afraid you would judge me the same way they did. So I lied and told you my name is Kim Ten. I'm sorry, guys."

   Johnny shakes his head and says, "Don't be sorry for being bullied. You did nothing wrong. I like your name, there's nothing wrong with it." Ten grins and thanks Johnny even though he didn't have to say all of that. Johnny replies by saying he wanted to.

   Haechan nods solemnly and pats Ten's back without saying anything. Ten's never really been one for words of sympathy. Actions usually speak louder than words.

    "Son, are you sure you're alright with it?" Mr. Leechaiyapornkul asks. Ten nods his head.

   Johnny eyes Ten's grandfather and straightens his back so that he towers over everyone in the room. Mr. Leechaiyapornkul observes Johnny and asks, "Something wrong, son?"

   "What was that sound out there? What were you shooting?" Johnny asks coldly, avoiding the previous question.

   "Oh, that?" Ten's grandfather glances back at the door, "I was just cleaning up a few birds that wouldn't go away."

   Johnny grits his teeth, deciding that he has to ask, "Who are all those men in those photographs?"

   "The photos? Let's see...if this is the cabin I think it is then they must be my hunting party and I. I'm the one that killed that big deer. Ten foot antlers." he whistles and cracks a proud grin, revealing his sharp, white teeth.

   Johnny is about to say something when Taeyong pushes Johnny behind him. "It's nice to meet you, sir," he says with an even tone, "thank you for letting us stay in this beautiful forest, even though many people believe that it's cursed."

   Mr. Leechaiyapornkul nods his head and finds himself a seat on the couch. "That's the least I could do for my little Cheetah." he lets out a grunt as he makes himself comfortable.

   Haechan places his elbow on Ten's shoulder and remarks, "Your nickname's Cheetah? That's so cute!" Ten's cheeks flush a light shade of pink and he nudges Haechan with his own elbow.

    Mark walks up to Ten's grandfather and holds out a hand. "Pleasure to meet you." he says with a smile. Ten's grandfather hesitates for a second before cautiously taking Mark's hand into his own and shaking it, eyeing Mark all the while. Mark raises an eyebrow but shakes off the confusion wrapping around his head. He catches a glimpse of Johnny stomping over to the kitchen, most likely planning to stick his fuming face into the ice cube tray to cool off. Mark bows his head to Ten's grandfather and heads after Johnny.

   "So gramps," Ten begins and jumps over the back of the couch and then pulls a pillow onto his lap, "whatcha come up here for?"

    "Well," the grandfather responds, "I wanted to welcome you to 'The Forbidden Forest', tell you what you can and can't do, which berries aren't poisonous, where the monster is. You know, the basics."

   Ten nods his head a few times in understanding. Haechan enscones himself into a chair next to the sofa and asks the old man, "What do you mean by 'monster'? What monster?"

   Johnny looks up from stuffing his face with rice. He holds a up finger as he swallows down the rice. After taking a second he says, "You don't remember?"
   "Huh?" Haechan tilts his head. "Remember what?"

    "Don't you remember that time when we were fifteen or so and we ventured into the forest for some stupid reason and ended up being chased out by some forest rangers? Yeah, good times." Johnny explains and kicks the fridge door shut with the whole container of rice in his hands.

    "Huh...really? I don't remember that happening..." Haechan mutters to himself.

   "Johnny, why are you taking all of the rice! That's supposed to feed all of us!" Taeyong exclaims and snatches the container from Johnny before he runs out of the lodge with Johnny sprinting after him.

   Mark sighs and points half-heartedly at the door. Haechan and Ten nod sympathetically and wish him good luck on keeping the children from hurting themselves. Mark pushes the door open and they can hear his muffled yells even after the door closes.

  Haechan turns his attention back to Ten and his grandfather, waiting for either one of them to explain the legend of The Forbidden Forest.

   Mr. Leechaiyapornkul leans down against his elbows and his expression grows somber. "Since you asked I see no reason not to tell you. Forty years ago, when I was a twenty-something idiot who was just handed the tremendous task of protecting this forest, I, as I said, an idiot, decided to invite a couple--well, a dozen or so--'friends' to the forest for a party. It was late at night, very late, maybe at least two a.m. and we were very drunk. I think one of the others tried to makeout with his own arm. Anyways, since we were drunk idiots we decided it was a good idera to go streaking through the forest. Long story short; it was not a good idea...." he trails off and stares into slace, as if he's seeing someone no one else can. Ten places his arm around his shoulders and tells him it's alright. Mr. Leechaiyapornkul smiles and pats Ten's arm.

    "Thank you, son, I'll be alright. I have to be alright," he clears his throat and looks directly at Haechan, "and besides, young Haechan over here might end up letting his curiosity get the better of him and he'll wander off to a place no man or woman should. Haechan, listen closely. There is something evil inside these woods, something too horrible to even bear talking about. Something that I, to this day, still can't understand. No matter what you hear or what you see you must not leave the perimeter of this cabin." his words hang in the air, their meaning sending shivers down Haechan's spine. The grandfather's face takes on the expression of a man who has been scorched by the flames of hell and has lived to tell the tale.

   Before another word can be spoken, the front door bursts open and a sweating Mark makes his way inside.

   "Must," he heaves, "drink water." he pants as he plods over to the fridge. After gulping down what seems to be a gallon of water he turns his head to face the gaping stares of Haechan and Ten who had watched his one-man drinking show.

   "Whatcha looking at?" Mark says and shuts the fridge door.

    "Oh nothing, just watching my main source of survival be inhaled by you. What made you so darn thirsty?" Ten asks.

    "Those idiots outside, who are supposed to be my hyungs, wouldn't quit with all the running so eventually I had to chase them to make them stop running but instead of stopping they just ganged up on me. I mean, sure, great, they've made up, but now I'm the target and that's never fun. So yeah, in conclusion, being chased by two tall and fast men is exhausting." Mark rambles.

    Haechan asks, "Did you at least manage to herd them back to the cabin?"

   Mark lets out a long sigh and runs a hand through his hair. "I tried. I really did. Luckily they're not too far, they're just at the car, playing hide and seek or whatever."

   Mr. Leechaiyapornkul rises slowly from his seat, trying to not topple over, and checks his watch, "It's nearly seven o'clock. I believe that means it's time for supper."

   Mark's stomach growls and he breaks into a guilty grin, covering up his whining stomach.

   "How does your stomach always growl on cue? Do you take some kind of magic pill?" Haechan jokes.

   "Yes, it's called annoyance. Any second now and it'll roar again." Ten responds, a dash of sarcasm lining his words.

    Mark tells them that he'll go round up the other two and leaves once again. When he comes back with two red-faced men that are giggling like school girls, Mr. Leechaiyapornkul says that he'll see what he can whip up for them as a 'Welcome to the Forest' dinner. A little less than an hour passes and several side dishes are sitting on the dining table with a big pot of ramen placed in the middle.

   "Voi-la." he says and opens the lid to the ramen. The steam that had been building up against the lid escapes into the air, twirling and intertwining with the new oxygen.

  "Let's dig in!" Ten exclaims and snatches up a nice amount of ramen with his chopsticks. The others follow suit and in nearly no time at all the entire pot is emptied and six bellies are stuffed.

   After all of the dishes are washed and the afternoon has become evening, they all sit around the fire.
 
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    "Mr. Leechaiyapornkul," Haechan says, hoping to catch the old man's attention.

   "Yes, Haechan?" he responds, one eyebrow raised.

    "Um...you never did get to explaining the legend thing about this forest." Haechan says shyly, training his eyes on his hands.

    Mr. Leechaiyapornkul stares with forlorn eyes into the fire. "That's true...I suppose I'll explain it now before I'm too tired to open my mouth again. I suggest that everyone listens up." he glances over each individual; Ten and Taeyong are sitting next to each other on the floor, Haechan is sitting on the chair from earlier, and Mark is sitting with his back against the couch.

    Mr. Leechaiyapornkul crosses his legs. "The legend of this forest is as simple as every other legend; there is a monster lurking in our midst. Not many have seen this monster but those who have either end up living to tell the tale and constantly watch their back throughout life or...." he trails off.

   Haechan, who is leaning on the edge of his seat, asks, "Or? Or they what?"

   Mr. Leechaiyapornkul prods the firewood with one of the fireplace pokers. "Or," he begins, "they die."

   The other five feel a shiver worm its way down their spines and silence fills the air until it's broken by Mark's voice. "What is it, then? What is it that does all of this? Have you ever seen it? Is it...real?"

  "You ask a lot of questions, son. No, I've never seen it, at least not directly. The thing moves too fast for you to really see it...but I have been involved with it. It's something that nightmares are made of. It can imitate any sound, whether it's human or any other animal, meaning it can speak. It's faster than light, it can change shape. Hell, it can even look like a human. It's nature's first and best hunter. As long as you are in it's territory, it can see everything, hear everything," he pauses to lean closer to the others,

              "do anything"

    "There is no limit to its capabilities. In our little world humans are the ones that have control over the other animals. They can hunt only a certain amount of animals and can usually win against them. Imagine a world where there's an animal that can not only hunter whatever it please but also always wins against their prey. And imagine if that prey..." he pauses once more,

                "....is us?"

   Johnny and Taeyong shudder at the thought of it. Mark gulps and looks behind him, for fear that there might be something creeping up behind him.

   "Gramps...you've never told me what it was that you were, um, involved in. What happened back then? Why do you never talk about it?" Ten moves to sit next to his grandfather and waits for him to speak.

   Mr. Leechaiyapornkul sighs and places a hand on Ten's shoulder. "Son....if you had experienced what I had....you too would keep your mouth shut. God only knows what can happen once you open your goddamn mouth..."

   Ten stares into his eyes and Mr. Leechaiyapornkul stares back but Ten can sense that he's not truly staring at him anymore. He's caught up in his own reality, a reality far from Ten's.

    Ten stands up and announces, "Well, I think it's time for bed. We have a long week packed and I want to wake up bright and early to catch the fish!"

  "There's fish here?" Haechan asks incredulously. Ten sends a glare at him and Haechan cowers into tbe soft confines of his chair.

   Mark brings himself to his feet and yawns as he stretches his stiff back and shoulders. "Yup," he says, "I'm ready to sleep for a few centuries."

  The others nod their heads and one by one they all shuffle to their bags and suitcases to bring them into their rooms. Mark and Haechan call dibs on the room to the left of the bathroom and almost push each other down as they race to get inside the room. Johnny points at the bedroom opposite Mark and Haechan's and neither Ten nor Taeyong object.

   "Gramps," Ten calls and turns to face Mr. Leechaiyapornkul who is still sitting in his own world.

   "Gramps!" he calls again, only a bit louder this time. As if he had stuck his finger in an electric outlet and was shocked, Mr. Leechaiyapornkul jumps in his seat and stares with wide eyes at Ten.

    The glazed over expression in his eyes slowly fades away and is replaced with what looks like traces of regret. He shakes his head as he pulls himself back to reality and asks, "What were you saying, Ch-cheetah?"

    Ten's lips pull into a frown and he answers, "Nothing much. Just wanted to know if you were planning on going home. You can stay here if you'd like." Taeyong nods in agreement and smiles at Mr. Leechaiyapornkul.

    Ten's grandfather stares through the window, as if searching for something only he can see. An expression of fear and terror washes over his face and he almost stumbles as he runs to the window and hastily tugs on the blinds and pulls them down. He grabs the curtains and nearly tears them apart as he pulls them together in the center. He turns his back to face Ten and Taeyong and says, almost breathlessly, "I'll be taking the room right there." He points to a room that's across from Haechan and Mark's room and walks briskly to the room, enters, and shuts the door, leaving behind two confounded gaping men.

    "...Your grandpa is seriously paranoid." Taeyong remarks slowly and heads off to the last remaining room. He stops in front of the door and waves Ten over. Ten hesitates and glances at his grandfather's door before grabbing his things. Ten knows that his grandfather experienced something terrible one night many years ago but his dad always told him that it was just a hunting accident. Now his grandfather is talking about parties and drunk friends? Ten shakes his head and follows Taeyong into their room. Once they get settled in, they place their sleeping bags on opposite sides of the room and shimmy themselves into the bags. They share a murmuring of "Goodnight"s and Taeyong turns off the flashlight that was illuminating the dark room drenched in moonlight.

   Everyone ends up falling asleep rather easily, everyone save for Mr. Leechaiyapornkul who lays on the hard wooden floorboards with no pillow or sleeping bag and stares up at the ceiling, recalling a past that only he knows the true story of.

   And somewhere deep within the forest, somewhere where no man nor woman would ever think to venture, a low growl eminates from something too horrible to even bear speaking of.

AN

                
  Thank you so much for reading this much~ I hope you liked it~