The Red Fruit

The peach blossoms gently wavered in the air, as springtime dawned. The shimmering sun lightened the entire area as flowers of different colors bloomed brightly all around. On the long winding road, a carriage was rushing towards an unknown destination. 

The carriage carried two boys, hardly fifteen years old. They were dressed in rags but there was something regal about them. One of them was a skinny boy with an innocent like face while the other one had sharp jawlines and dark eyes. The latter had an aloofness to him which made him more elegant. 

"Crown Prince, you should not be out here like this!" the skinny boy pleaded. His voice was trembling with fear as he looked around nervously. 

"Stop being so scared, Pyojin!" Seyoung scolded him. "We will be discovered if you behave like this." 

"But my prince-" 

"Shh!" 

The carriage stopped abruptly. The coachman turned to the two boys sitting inside. 

"That would be two bronze coins," he said. Seyoung rummaged his bag and handed him two coins. They got off the carriage and it sped off. 

"Where are we?" Pyojin asked.

They were standing in front of a large monastery. Pyojin nearly fainted at its sight. There was a thousand foot tall statue of Buddha in the middle. It was so tall that it seemed as if the head was hidden in the clouds. 

"We are at the Temple of Cherry Blossoms," Seyoung said in astonishment. The temple grounds were full of scattered cherry blossom petals. Upon entering it, Seyoung felt a sense of calm and peace, something which he had not felt in the years following his mother's death. 

"Why are we here, my Prince?" Pyojin asked. 

"To find the red fruit," Seyoung replied. They had snuck out of the castle early in the morning. His father, Emperor Sukjin, was on a countrywide tour and would not be back until the next day. He had just a few hours before the palace guards realized that he was missing. 

"The red fruit?" Pyojin asked in confusion. "I am afraid I do not follow, Crown Prince." 

But Seyoung gave him a cryptic smile. Ever since the cook had told him a story about the infamous red fruit of this temple, he became curious to see it. According to legends, somewhere in the midst of this temple, stood a tree which bore tiny red fruits. The fruit is said to be so sweet that the person eating it would have their life sweetened by it. 

The Prince was curious about this fruit. He was not a sweet loving person but he wanted to see this mystical fruit for himself. 

"Pyojin, you look there," he pointed at South. "I'll look at the opposite end." 

"But my Prince, we shouldn't be separated!" Pyojin protested. 

"Just follow my instructions!" 

Pyojin wanted to protest more but he faltered against the angry look from Seyoung. He quickly scurried off while Seyoung went the other way. 

He was wandering through the halls of the large temple in awe. Growing up among the courtiers, he was always surrounded by people. His world was chaotic and crowded. He was always thrust with responsibilities and duties he should carry out as a Crown Prince. 

But this place was quiet. There was a calming silence echoing the halls around him. The people were praying or meditating, paying no heed to him. They were lost in their own world, abandoning all earthly desires. Seyoung was mesmerized by the golden pagodas which stood on the entrances, intimidating him. 

Amidst the silence, a strange tune was humming in his ears. It was faint but he could hear it. As if by magic, he was pulled towards it. 

The tune was of a flute. A beautiful yet dark melody was floating around him as he was captivated by it. The song was nothing like he had heard before and yet it felt as if he was waiting to hear it for his whole life. 

Seyoung followed the music to a backyard. Standing in the middle of the garden was a tall tree with red fruits. But he was not looking at it. His eyes were on the figure sitting underneath it. 

Her gentle fingers were holding the flute delicately while her red lips blew into it an enthralling melody. Her white skin glittered under the sunshine as she played the song, lost in her own world. She was oblivious to the boy who was fixated on her. Her long, dark hair gently swayed with the breeze. The breathtaking view of the beautiful girl under the enchanted tree fascinated him. 

Upon her sight, Seyoung completely forgot why he was there. But he knew he must capture this beauty in his memory. Somehow. 

He quickly took out a parchment and brush. While the girl was lost in her tune, he began to draw the strokes. 

"Shina!" 

Shina turned around to see her best friend Jeonbin running towards her. 

"Mistress Kang found out you're missing!" Jeonbin exclaimed. "She is very angry and is heading this way!" 

Shina scoffed. Her stepmother was always concocting new ways to make her life miserable. Her threats no longer scared her. 

She put her hands on the ground to hoist herself up when she found a piece of parchment lying there. Shina picked it up and frowned. 

It was a picture of hers, sitting under the cherry tree, playing her flute. 

Shina looked around but found no one. Normally, she would have thrown the parchment away but there was an earnestness to the portrait which intrigued her. It looked so real and beautiful that even she did not have the heart to throw it away. Instead, she rolled it up and kept it in her robe's pocket. 

…. 

Jinhyun slowly opened his eyes. His sleep was broken by the alarm ringing. He groaned in frustration and threw it off the table before pulling the blanket over him. 

He was having a strange yet beautiful dream about a temple and a tree with red fruits. There were also two people in it but he could not recall their faces. It was such a good dream that he wanted to see it again. 

But he was wide awake now. The dream was shattered into teeny tiny pieces.