The Wizarding World of K-Pop

The Backyard Boys

Nayeon lived in a small town. I was a very plain town. All the cookie-cutter houses sat in neat, even rows along the straight and perfect streets. The grass was trimmed every week, and appropriate flowers were placed in the gardens. Nothing was out of place, and everything was incredibly boring. The neighbors introduced themselves the same way every day.

"Good Morning, how are you?"

"Good morning. I am doing well today, how are you?"

"I am doing well today too."

Okay so maybe they didn't greet each other exactly like that, but that example was so close to reality that it was scary. Nayeon didn't like it one bit. Nothing interesting ever happened; everything was just too predictable. She wanted adventure, she wanted something magical to happen to her, like it did to the kids in the books she read. They got to fly across the sky, or swim deep into the ocean, or even travel to new worlds. Why couldn't she go on those adventures too?

One night, her parents tucked her into bed and went off to their own room. Lying in the dark, Nayeon looked up at the ceiling, imagining herself flying across the sky. She'd grab stars in her hands and collect them in a pile of shining brightness. Then she'd ride the comets from planet to planet, making friends with the people that lived there.

She sighed, rolling onto her side under the blanket and looking outside at her backyard. The pale moon slowly crept into the sky, just above the line of trees in the distance. Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light and a small bang. Mayan sat upright in her bed, looking out into the backyard. There was no noise coming from her parents room, but she could hear the faint murmuring of voices outside. She slipped out of bed and peered out the window. Below, there were four figures in dark cloaks huddled near the back corner. She couldn't make out what they were saying, but their outfits caught her attention. 

They wore cloaks with various colors. On their heads, sat pointed black hats. They must be characters from her books; the resemblance was too close for it not to be true.

Grabbing a coat, she rushed down the stairs and tiptoed to the back door. Slowly, she opened it. The boys in the yard didn't notice, they were too busy arguing with each other. Unsure what to do, Nayeon crept up behind one of them and tapped his shoulder. He spun around with a gasp. Immediately, all the boys stopped talking, staring down at her with an odd fascination.

"How did she get here?" The boy who was tapped asked.

"I think she came from the house." Another responds. "Merlin's beard...first the charm doesn't work, landing us in the backyard of some random house, and now a muggle girl hears and sees us."

"Calm down, Suga." The oldest one steps forward. "This is only my second time attempting it. Besides, we can just obliviate her and fly out of here."

Nayeon didn't understand what this whole "obliviate" business was, but as soon as she heard the boy say "fly," she knew they were from her books.

"Are you the boys from my books?" She asked softly. "The ones who can fly?"

They stared down at her in confusion. The first boy chuckled a little, and another started muttering to himself about the "time of night" and "weird muggles."

Suga stepped forward, holding a stick in his hand. "Let's just get this over with and leave." The tip of the stick started to glow like a flashlight before the tallest boy put his arm in front of him to stop him.

"Wait." He said, and then pointed at Nayeon's feet. "Look at the grass."

Nayeon looked down at the grass too in wonder, curious as to what he could be referring to. Their lawn was just a boring, simple patch of grass, surely there was nothing interesting about it. But when she looked down, she let out a small gasp of surprise. Instead of the typical neatly shaven stalks, flowers of various shapes and sizes had begun to bloom. Her parents were going to kill her, was all she could think. And then, whoah, when did those get there.

The boys were also looking down at the flowers in wonder. They started whispering to themselves. The only words she could make out were: "witch," "magic," and for some reason "hog warts." But Nayeon didn't care about the flowers. She knew deep down that the boys were on an adventure, and she had been longing to go on a magical adventure.

"Can you take me with you? You're on an adventure, aren't you?" She asked with wide, knowing eyes. The boys looked between themselves, uncertain how to respond.

"Well, she's probably a witch, so why not?" The tallest one said. He walked up to her and held out his hand for her to shake. "My name's Jin. The grumpy one is Suga. The one you poked is Namjoon. The other guy is Hoseok, or J-Hope for short."

"Oh so I'm just the 'other guy' now?" J-Hope muttered.

"At least he didn't refer to you as 'the grumpy one.'" Suga replied.

"Yeah but he has a point." To which Suga shrugged, accepting his defeat.

Namjoon gave them a look and then turned to Jin. "Are you sure about this? I mean, what about her parents? What are they gonna think when she disappears? And where is she gonna stay? Dude, you gotta think this through before deciding to put this girl's life in your hands."

Jin looks down, ashamed. He can't be much older than her, maybe two or three years. Not old enough to act as a guardian, but that didn't matter.

"Are you sure you want to come with us?" He asked slowly. "You would leave your parents behind, and your whole life in this town behind if you came with us. But you would also find out more about us and about yourself, and you would get to run away on an adventure unlike any you have ever experienced."

Nayeon considered his offer, her eyes glued to the grass. He was right when he said she would have to say goodbye to her parents, her home, and her life. She had never stepped outside her small town before, and the very thought was a little daunting. 

On the other hand, she had never left her town, and she had never been on an adventure before. This was her chance to accomplish both. The boy had also hinted about learning more about herself, as if she was something that she wasn't aware of yet, and he was. She couldn't just pass up that opportunity.

Her life, simply put, was boring. And she craved change. She craved a chance to see the world, and all the fascinating parts about it.

"Yes, I'm sure."