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I wish I could turn back time. To the time when this would've never happened. To the time way before now.
"Hyunjae, how could you do this to me?" I cried out, revealing myself from behind a tree. This was the forest we Hyunjae and I always tended to hang out during free times. Nowadays, he always texted to me that he was busy with work, and I believed in him that he wasn't lying and cheating on me with some other girl he thought was better.
Hyunjae and a girl taller than me whipped around at the sudden interference. Tears welled up in my eyes as I approached them cautiously, my footsteps light on the earth. "Y/N, I can explain," Hyunjae extended one arm out to defend the unknown girl and they both backed up as I advanced forward, tears dripping down my cheeks and off my chin. "Explain? Why do I need an explanation when I have evidence right in front of my eyes?" I whispered hoarsely. I wasn't in the mood to scream and throw a fit.
The girl cowardly standing behind my boyfriend threw a filthy smirk at me. I was taken aback by it, and was speechless after she coiled her arms around Hyunjae's arm that was shielding her. I examined that arm, and I choked back more bucketloads of tears. He never was that protective to me, I realized. He never truly loved me, and only made excuses to toy around with my feelings. I clenched my fists out of anger, tears blurring my vision. "Curse you all!" I shouted at the top of my lungs before swiveling around and sprinting deeper into the forest.
I entered some unexplored parts of the thickets, and I slowed down my pace upon the fog settling in. It was dark, gloomy, and terrifying. Even one rustle of a bush or a snap of a twig caught my attention and caused me to tremble violently all over. I clung to the tree trunks as I slowly moved forward. Soon I overheard the piercing sound of metal clashing and clanging together. I heard male voices ahead, and hope ignited inside me, the small spark enough to light up my entire insides. "Excuse me!" I called out, a wide smile plastered on my face as I cheerfully raced towards the sounds of men.
But when I arrived, my smile faded. The hope diminished, and my eyes were clouded in horror. There was crimson blood splattered on the ground, and I doubted it was fake because of the numerous bodies of men with unshaven beards wearing old-fashioned soldier's clothes were scattered around. Most of them were dead, with their eyes rolled to the back of their head. Others were on the brink of the evil clutches of death, and some were only bearing a few scars. "Catch him!" one of them ordered in a loud bellow.
I flinched at the sight as someone clothed in all black material leaped into the trees, the trunks swishing and quivering upon the weight bestowed onto them. "You! Are you his partner?" one of the soldier-like men clad in ancient armor and thin cloth pointed to me. My instinct was to run, and I did so. I began running as if my life was on the line, panic written all over my face as I hopped over uprooted roots of old-aged trees and dodged the undergrowth. Soon I tripped over my dress.
Wait.
A dress?
I remember wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Why was I wearing a dress? I heard the men behind me shouting to one another. The footsteps were gradually increasing in volume, and I hastily heaved myself up onto my feet, lifting up the hem of my dress. "Jeez, how many layers do I have?!" I exclaimed under my breath as I counted the abundant layers of the thick dress. It was very fashionable, yet traditional, with floral patterns lined with gold string imprinted onto the cloth. My shoes weren't sneakers, and instead were peculiar leather ones that looked exactly like those from the Goryeo dynasty. The description from the book I read about it matched this exact pair of shoes.
"What the flip?" My mouth was agape. I touched my hair, and felt the prominent details of a braid. My hair was pinned up by something I couldn't identify, but I chose to ignore it. I had to run. I clutched my dress and dashed through the forest, weaving around the thin, swaying trees. I halted beside a sturdy tree, patting its trunk. The bark was firm and wasn't peeling off like some of the others, and upon studying it closer, the branches appeared strong and tough as well. I had to give this a shot.
I reached up with both hands, letting go of my dress. My hands found a deep indent in the trunk where I could dig my hands in for support. I hauled up my legs and began carefully and ever so slowly shifting to the left, where the nearest branch was at. I had climbed a lot when I was younger, but I didn't know if it was because of the unreasonably heavy dress or because I had lost my talent in climbing like a squirrel, but it was difficult for me to get to that one branch. I grunted as I craned my neck forward and reached with my arm, the muscles beginning to ache as my fingers grazed the edges of the branch but unable to hold onto it securely.
Then my feet broke off a chunk of the bark and I slipped down, nearly falling. I screamed, flapping my arms wildly as I flailed around helplessly to hold onto something before I collapsed onto the ground. A warm hand latched onto mine and prevented me from falling to my doom. I looked up to whoever saved me, and I wanted to let go at that split second of seeing his face.
