75 The Cursed Hill! (Hot Spring-4)

"You okay?" Ye Rin asked.

"Huh?....Yeah yeah….I'm alright…It was just….so sudden….and….awkward…" Mia said.

"Okay then. Should we go inside? I've got an idea!"

"Idea? What idea?"

"First, let's go inside."

When both the girls went inside, a complete silence was spread in the room. It was like, no one was in there.

"Hey guys!" Ye Rin said cheerfully. "I know how to break this awkward silence and cheer you guys up!"

Everyone looked at her but said nothing, except for Siwoo.

"What is it?" He asked excitedly. He was behaving like nothing had happened just 5 minutes ago.

"Well, for that, we all should step outside."

~

"So?....What do we do now?" Jun asked as they all were standing in front of their hotel.

"Okay…So we are going to climb the cursed hill!" Ye Rin said clapping her hands.

"What?"

"Huh?"

"Yes! That's right! Isn't that exciting?" Ye Rin said.

"Exciting for you." So Hee said. "You like such creepy things."

"Why are you all hesitating so much? Who knows? If that hill is really cursed or not…"

"But…what if it is!" Mia said.

"Oh don't worry you guys. I've checked everything."

"What do you mean?"

"I talked with some local people around here and the hotel staff too. According to them, the curse of the hill is not that bad."

"Not that bad? But that still means, it is cursed!" April said.

"But no one knows what it exactly is." Ye Rin clarified.

"So?"

"So...I want to go and find out the truth behind it."

"B-But…"

"Oh, please. Do you guys want to stay here and play the games like earlier?" Now Ye Rin pulled the right string.

"Oh…No No No…" Mia said.

"…Yeah…I don't wanna go through that again…" April shook her head.

"Yeah…Yeah…It's better to go get cursed than that game!" So Hee said.

"It's decided then!" Ye Rin clapped her hands ones. "Let's go then!"

"H-Hey…" Jun said. "You guys are gonna ask us or not?"

"Here I ask you…You wanna come?" Ye Rin asked.

"No! I don't –" As Jun was going to deny that,

"I'll come!" Siwoo said right away.

Both Ray and Jun looked at him.

"Me …too…"Ray also got agreed but in his mind he was thinking, 'It's not good to send this weirdo with the girls and especially Mia! I should better go.'

Then posturing to wait there, he ran inside the hotel and after 5 minutes when he returned back, he was wearing a cap.

"What's that for?" So Hee asked.

"It's his lucky hat." April answered. "…Oh….That means he is keeping it with him for better luck…Is that right Ray?"

Ray nodded.

"Okay then. Let's go now."

"Wait!" Jun shouted.

"Now what?" So Hee said.

"A-Are you really gonna go there?....I mean it's cursed guys….It can be haunted too!"

"What?"

"What if the g-ghosts of those t-two lovers are still wandering there?"

"Huh? Don't tell me you are afraid of such things!" So Hee said.

"I don't know anything…But I don't feel like it's a good idea to go there…"

"What? Oh don't worry. Nothing will happen."

"No!....I'm not coming with you guys. It's better that I'll stay here." Jun said firmly.

"Okay then. We'll go."

"O-Of course!" He said.

"You….Sure…?" Ray asked.

"Hm."

While all this was happening, Mia was looking at Jun worriedly, '…Oh god…I forgot that he is afraid of such things!'

But she didn't say anything.

Then leaving Jun behind at the hotel's entrance, the other six started walking towards the hills, which were behind the hotel.

"So, according to people around here.." Ye Rin was talking, "…The Cursed hill is surrounded by other hills and no one knows a proper road to get there."

"Huh? WHAT?" So Hee screamed. "Are you crazy??"

"Does that mean, we don't know the road? What if we get lost??" April asked, panicking a bit.

"Don't worry guys, if you get lost, just look out for that tower over that hill." She pointed at a big tower nearby. "By following that, you could get to the main road and by that, you'll reach our hotel. If we all are together, then it will be better but if we get parted we'll just call each other."

Ye Rin seemed calm and collected but others were a bit worried now.

"…Hey…Wait a minute!" Mia said. "What do you mean by if we get parted?"

"…Um…Well actually, as there is no proper, defined road to get there, we have to get parted in…" She stopped at looked in the front when they reached at the bottom of their first hill. "….3 groups!" She said as she saw three pathways going into three different directions.

"I knew there was trick." So Hee said. "But I'll do it. Cause now I'm curious too."

"I'll stay with So Hee then." April said.

"I'll go with—" Before Siwoo could say anything, Ray grabbed him and putting his arm around his neck, he started walking towards one of the pathways.

"That means we are together Mia!" Ye Rin said when she saw Ray and Siwoo walk away. 'Well done Ray…It's better to keep that guy away from her…' She thought.

Like that, Ray and Siwoo, So Hee and April and Mia and Ye Rin began their climb.

~

After about 30 minutes of walk, Mia and Ye Rin climbed down their first hill.

It was evening by that time. The long rays of the Sun were coming, penetrating through the trees and hitting their faces.

"Oh! The road is again divided in two!" Ye Rin noticed the 2 pathways before them.

"That means…We have to split again!" Mia said.

"You okay with that?"

"Umm…Yeah I guess. Just follow the tower if I get lost."

"Yeah. That's right. And call me or anyone else if you feel like."

"Hm."

And just like that, Ye Rin and Mia split their ways.

Walking through the jungle, Mia looked behind again and again to see the long tip of the tower which were they supposed to keep track of.

'Huh…It's there…It's there…I'm not lost…I just have to keep walking on this road….I'll be fine…' She was talking to herself.

The time was passing, the sun started coming down the sky towards the horizon.

And the jungle got more and more dark the every minute.

Turning on the torch of her phone, Mia kept walking on the pathway.

"I didn't think, it will get dark so soon…But it's okay…I just need to keep walking….Keep walking Mia…Keep walking."

The crunching sound of the leaves under her feet, the voices of bugs and howling of owl sometimes, Mia was surrounded by all this.

It was pretty dark now. But she wasn't that afraid.

"It is just a little creepy…That's all…." She said to herself. "But if Jun was here, he would have probably freaked out by this time…Or maybe he would have cried too….Hahaha…."

Thought of Jun, made her smile but then the next second she felt sad.

"I shouldn't have fought with him….I wonder, what's he doing at the hotel right now…Probably freaking out for us….Ohh dear….Maybe I should have stayed with him…."

She started feeling really bad for Jun. After all he was her best friend. Though they had fought for millions of times, she would never able to see him upset.

As the time was passing, the jungle surrounding her became pitch dark.

"Is it okay to keep going in this darkness? What if others had returned back….No no…That wouldn't happen….They'll contact me if the case is….And besides, Ye Rin would never return back without getting to its end….So I would just—"

Suddenly, the torch of Mia's phone turned off.

"Huh?"

Mia quickly clicked the buttons of her phone but nothing happened. The screen of the phone didn't turn on.

"Oh god! The battery is dead!!"

She looked up. It was all dark now.

Not a single ray of light.

"….This is….getting….scary now…."

She looked everywhere but she couldn't see anything.

"Grrr." Suddenly a voice came from the bushes.

"Huh? What was it?" She turned back but still nothing.

"EEEEKKKK!!!!" A scream of a girl came onto Mia's ears.

As soon as she heard it, a shiver went down her spine.

And without thinking anything, she just started running.

Running in the opposite direction of the voice.

She ran and ran. Didn't see the road nor saw the bushes. She just kept running till she came on a plane grassy area.

"Huhh…Huhh…Huhhh…." She was panting heavily.

As she got her breath back, she looked up.

'Where am I?' She thought. 'Am I lost?'

She looked back. But she couldn't see the tower.

"Huh? Where did it go?....Oh my god!! I am lost!!"

Now Mia started freaking out.

Everywhere she was looking, it was dark. There was only moonlight, which was still not that bright.

Her phone was dead.

She couldn't see the tower and so she didn't know the way back.

"Oh god….Oh god….I am gonna die…..I am gonna die here….In this jungle….And no one will ever find me….Cause I don't even know where I am….Jun was right!! We should have never come for this hunt! ….Oh no….Now what should I do?"

In panic, her hands and legs started shaking.

The only thing she could see was a dark figure of a big tree in the distant.

But then, suddenly she saw some movement. A figure came out from behind the tree.

Mia's eyes got widened. 'A….A g-ghost????'

But then…that figure looked at her and waved at her.

"Huh??"

This time, Mia tried to look properly and she saw….that the figure was wearing a hat!

'Ray?.....Ray!!!!'

As soon as Mia realized that the figure standing before her is Ray, she started running towards him.

When she reached at him, she jumped and hugged him.

"Oh Thank god!! Thank god Ray! You were here….Huhhh...

I was really scared….I thought….I got lost….And I just freaked out…Cause I couldn't see the tower…and then…"

While Mia was saying all that, she realized that she was still hugging him.

Quickly she let him go from the hug.

"I…I'm sorry…." She said.

But no answer came.

Mia remembered about Ray's tongue.

"…Ohh….Your tongue….I forgot…."

Then both of them went near the tree.

"Do you have your phone? So that we could contact others…"

He shook his head sideways.

"Oh…Okay….I think…We'll just wait for others till they find us….I was really scared alone but now, as you are here with me…I'm feeling much better now…."

Then it went silent for some seconds.

"…Jun was right, wasn't he?" Mia said. "I was thinking about him on the way…I also thought about what you told me earlier…

You were right, Ray. I shouldn't have fought with him over such dumb things.

If I hadn't fought, the trip would have been much more fun!

And….And I would have stayed at the hotel with him…

I don't mean like I'm regretting here staying with you…But it's just that…He is like a scared cat….And I just…I just can't stop…caring about him….After all…I am the only one he has got….

But you know what….I really wanted to thank you….You became friends with him…And he really loves spending time with you…When I see him happy…I also feel happy….So…Thank you so much Ray!....Thanks for everything!"

She looked at him and smiled brightly. Her eyes twinkled in the blue moonlight.

And then, he, who was listening to all this carefully for this whole time suddenly bent down.

Bringing his face near to hers, he moved further.

And before Mia could understand anything, he kissed her on her lips!

A kiss!

A real quick kiss!

Before she could even react, he broke the kiss.

Her face was totally surprised. Her eyes were widened and her heart was beating really fast.

No one said a word for a second but then suddenly he turned back and started running away from her.

"Huh?....R-Ray?"

But running through the grasses, he kept getting more and more away.

"R…RAY!!!" She called his name but he didn't stop.

"MIA!!!!" A loud voice of Ye Rin came from behind.

Mia turned back and saw 3 figures in the distant.

They were Ye Rin, So Hee and April.

All three girls ran towards her.

"What are you doing here?" April asked.

"I…I was…." Mia looked back, but there was no sign of him.

"Let's go now. I found the road!" Ye Rin said.

"You did?"

"Yeah…"

"But what about boys…?"

"I'll call them." So Hee said.

After the call, girls understood that the guys were together again and now were on their way to the hotel.

'…So…He met with Siwoo….'Mia thought.

"Let's go girls!" Ye Rin said.

"Hm."

And with that, everyone started climbing down the hill.

All of them kept talking about how they got there, except Mia….

She just couldn't stop thinking what happened earlier….

'…My....My first kiss!....It was my….First kiss!!...'

~

On the way everyone united and reached at the hotel safely.

The whole night they kept talking about their experience. While Jun just stayed silent as he was looking really pale hearing all that.

~

The next day, all of them returned to their homes…with great experiences, memories…and much more than that!

~