Mamba's Bite

Vincent raised his hands on the sides of his body as soon as Dawn was close enough to the picnic table to see him. However, instead of having a good reaction in return, Dawn merely pointed towards the taller friend's direction and frowned.

"Hey, you're late!" Vincent teased. "I told you that we'd be here. What held you back?"

"YOU held me back you dumbass," Jongwan snapped back with a smirk as he finally moved to take the vacant space beside Vivian. "You give directions so terrible that I could barely even call that direction."

"I told you to get a cab and get dropped off on the eco-park! It's not that big, so how would you even get lost here?"

"Oh right, apparently telling me that 'get a cab and ask the driver to run around the Yeouido perimeter and hope to see us along the way' ought to get me right where y'all are staying. Of course I'll be able to do that. That's not even helpful in any sense of the world, man!"

"I do commend you trusting Vincent for the directions though. It did not yield good results but at least you're here," Vivian added, teasingly.

"Hey…!" Vincent protested.

"Let's just stop this. Can we just appreciate the fact that Dawn managed to arrive here? At least we have a good number of people with us, right?" said Thomas.

"He's right, and to top it all, he brought more food for us to consume!" added Wendy, raising the hand that was intertwined with Jae-in before placing it back over her thighs. "Now we have a lot of things to take care of. We'll be here for quite a while!"

Jae-in and Jongwan eyes met which automatically generated a nod between the good friends. Dawn then stood up from his seat, reached across the table and raised a fist for Jae-in to bump. The hand that Jae-in normally used to fist bump back was occupied with Wendy for a moment, and so he had to resort to using his other hand and it resulted in a rather awkward contact. Dawn noticed this and pointed towards Wendy and Jae-in's intertwined hands and raised an eyebrow.

"Damn, what's going on there? It seems that you're too occupied. I go for missing for, what, one night and you all get to do the exciting stuff without me."

"It's a long story man…"

"We'd rather not talk about it for the time being," Wendy said with a smile. "At least now I'm just happy that I get to hold a hand belonging to a man like Jae-in here."

And just like that, Wendy once again leaned her entire body to Jae-in's sitting figure while unintentionally sliding his hand over her thigh's skin.

"Oh, if it's a long story then what better time to begin talking than now, right…?"

"Hey, before you arrived here, we were talking about Vincent and a girl he brought to Skylight, so why don't we just begin talking about that first, huh?"

Jongwan's eyes widened with shock.

"Vincent brought a girl?"

"Yeah, and this is what you're missing for not going out with us," Thomas teased before passing him a can of soda. "The person who's least likely to introduce a potential girlfriend in the friend group did exactly just that, and you weren't there to see it."

Vincent continued to relay the entire tale of his final escapades with Katy for the sake of the newly arrived Jongwan. Of course, a lot of questions were asked with the person who was absent from the first, official get-together. It was needless to say that the heartfelt exchanges, clever quips, teasing, and past-retellings easily brought the night onto the group. No one among them really noticed how the sky slowly faded into darkening twilight, dissolving into a huge mess of indigo and orange lining the incoming evening.

The stars began to shimmer in the impending evening, and through the darkness all of the six friends were dissolved into silhouettes in the lightless forest area. They merely based their navigation out of the eco-park's picnic area with their voices and the minimal handphone flashlights. It was proven to be a really uneasy task as the park's ground had a lot over overgrown roots, uneven footing, as well as shrubs that were barely recognizable with the incoming evening. The group waded through the dark, through the thickets and roots until they reached the road below.

Wendy was notably assisted by Jae-in as they descended, and having the brightest flashlights, they lead the group up front. Wendy, however, failed to step properly on an exposed root and had to displace her leg onto a nearby shrub.

HISSS

It was about as quick as they even realized it. Whatever bush Wendy managed to lodge her foot on apparently housed a small snake. She mistakenly stepped her foot on a part of its slithering body and in retaliation, the small snake raised its head and immediately bit her left leg after giving a painful hiss.

"OH FUCK!" Wendy exclaimed as she fell backwards out of pain. Jae-in immediately flashed his light at the bush, seeing just in time as the small grass snake slithered away towards a tree branch and vanished out of sight.

There was a huge eruption of chaos amidst the dark, and the group quickly gathered around Wendy's collapsed figure as she held the snake bite on her leg. Thomas flashed his light on it, and it showed a faint outline of two rows of teeth that punctured her leg.

"Oh thank god it's not venomous," he added. "How are you feeling, Wendy?"

"It's… it's just a bit of a sting but not that painful. I think I can manage," she replied, no signs of strain on her voice.

"You should get that checked. Even if the snake was not venomous, it's nothing to scoff at. Where's the nearest clinic here?" Jae-in asked.

"Nearest clinic is at the gateway, but even that would require is to ride a car. We can't certainly let Wendy walk around in that wound," Thomas suggested. "If we're to treat this, we need to act immediately."

"If that's the case," interrupted Vincent. "If the clinic is THAT far from here, why don't we just head to the local hospital and rush her to the ER instead? If that clinic is closed, we're heading there anyway… so why waste time when we can just head on off to the hospital and get a proper treatment instead of a mere first-aid?"

"Let's do that. How are you feeling Wendy?" Jae-in asked, panicking.

"I'm fine… it's nothing more like a huge mosquito bite. Luckily I can still move my leg as well."

"You should sit down and keep your feet low. I'll wash it with what I have in the bag and we'll wrap it with my handkerchief," added Vivian. She then helped usher Wendy to sit on the nearest root and lower her foot down as she suggested before rummaging through her bag for what she needed.

"You're sweating Jae-in," Wendy said upon noticing his face. "It looks as if you're more worried than I am for myself. Don't worry; I'll be okay, I promise you that."

"You can't blame me for being worried, Wendy. Even if it's a small snake, it's still a snake nonetheless. I won't be able to calm down completely unless I know that you're fine."

The figures of Wendy and the rest of Jae-in's friends were at the side street, tending to Wendy's wound when a bright light flashed coming from the left hand side, followed by the soft rumble of an engine. It was as if fate itself dictated it, for as soon as the group had good view of the approaching vehicle did only they deduce that it was actually a cab. The best part of their luck was it was also empty, thus perfect for boarding and fit for the predicament they were in.

"Oh god, we're in luck!" declared Jongwan as he stood up and hailed the cab, which promptly pulled up right next to them.

Unfortunately, as much as they were lucky enough to pull a cab in that time of the evening, the cab was actually a small and compact sedan instead of the larger taxis all of them were hoping for. Certainly, with Wendy's situation it would not be wise if all of them would cramp inside the small frame of the car.

"We can't all fit here," Thomas said after inspecting the interior of the car. "It can only fit four with one in the front and three on the back. We can't afford to overload this and risk getting caught, especially now that we're heading to the city proper afterwards."

"Shit, now that's a problem. Wendy's going first, for sure right?" asked Jae-in.

"Of course, otherwise this would be pointless."

"How about you, Jae-in; would you join in the cab with me?" Wendy asked, in turn.

Jae-in blinked at her statement for a couple of times before transferring his gaze to Jongwan, Vivian, Vincent, and then back to Wendy again.

"I think it's better for me if I stay and wait for the next cab."

"Wait, are you sure about that? You won't accompany Wendy to the hospital?" Vincent asked with utmost concern and surprise as well.

"You're not exactly the walking type, and neither is Dawn. I can do that as long as you promise me that you'd take Wendy to safety."

Vincent opened his mouth to protest but quickly realized Jae-in's point and immediately backed off. Wendy, on the other hand, was promptly assisted up by Jongwan and Thomas as they prepare to sit her on the back of the car.

"Jae-in, I would have wanted to see you with me at the hospital," Wendy said with a pout, limping on Dawn and Thomas' arms.

"I want that as well, but I think it's better if you head off with them. Don't worry; I promise that I'll follow you after I get a cab. Be well."

"You two decide who gets to ride and who gets to stay. I'm boarding," Vincent announced towards the pair of Vivian and Thomas before moving to sit beside Wendy inside the cab, quickly followed by the figure of Dawn getting on the passenger's seat up front.

"You can go and take my spot, Jae-in. You should go with Wendy," suggested Thomas, but Jae-in merely shook his head.

"I think Wendy needs you more than anyone else here, man. You two are closer than we were, so you go ahead instead of me."

"I'll stay behind and give Jae-in someone to talk to. We'll head off as soon as we get the next cab," volunteered Vivian, earning a look of confusion from Thomas. Seeing this, she shook her head in response and proceeded to speak once again. "Don't give me that look; I know you're not a fan of walking along roads especially in the dark. I can. You better get in the cab with them. Jae-in's right; Wendy needs a friend with her now. Please, just make sure that her leg gets treated well."

Thomas nodded and moved to take the vacant space beside Vincent on the inside of the car before closing the door. Then, with a mix of curiosity as well as concern, he eyed the pair of Vivian and Jae-in standing on the side street barely illuminated by the lamp post overhead.

"You sure you two are going to be okay?"

"We'll be fine," promised Jae-in. "If we pull our luck, we might get a cab as soon as you head off. Worked well for me the last time I did it. If we don't, then we might as well walk our way back to the city. You're okay with that?" He turned towards Vivian.

"Easy," she quipped, smiling.

Wendy squeezed herself from the other side of the car to peer through the limited space of the window.

"You two take care of each other okay? Don't do anything naughty in the dark because I'll wish for that snake to bite either of you two as well!" she teased.

Vivian merely smiled in return before she tapped the side of the car. With one swift exhaust sound, the small car eventually zoomed off; leaving a trail of smoke and dust in its wake as Jae-in and Vivian stood there merely illuminated by the street post in the middle of the forested evening.

---

Jae-in's POV

---

"She'll be okay," I heard Vivian say as soon as the cab turned a corner and vanished onto the woods. "It's not that much of a bite, and she's not bleeding too much as well. They might just disinfect it and it'll be good."

"I know she will. It honestly did not look that serious, now that I think about it. We were just panicking. I was just panicking."

"It is better to be safe than sorry, you know. I'm surprised you even elected to be left behind. Now, you're stuck in this forest with me. It could have been better."

Oh god, I didn't even realize how much we're into the rush of boarding a cab that I ended up being left with Vivian. She was honestly the last person I'd think would volunteer to be left behind because I was the other side of the equation. She didn't look the type who'd enjoy walking around in deep nights, too, but maybe that's just me being a dumbass and judging her just by how she looked.

She's an easy person to understand. I got that vibe with her when we were talking at the terrace. If I don't fuck this up by being to awkward for no reason, we're good.

Vivian took the first steps forward and I followed her suit.

"I think we should just walk towards the direction of the city instead of towards where the cars are coming from," she suggested, pointing towards the cab's direction. "That way, if we fail to board a cab then at least we can walk towards the hospital. You were the one who suggested this so I assume…?"

"That sounds like a plan. I'm down."

She's so surprisingly calm when she's not being teased by Vincent. Oh my god; I'm not used to this side of her.

"You know, I've never been out this late; not on outdoor parks at least. Usually it's just the bars and the neon lights that catch me," Vivian began, evidently breaking the brief shroud of silence. "It feels good to have a change in pace, and a new person to talk to as well."

"You go to bars a lot? Do you drink that often?"

She honestly does not look like it.

"Well, not really. I usually go when I'm invited, and even that does not happen that much. I don't just go drinking with anyone else because I'm usually a wreck when I'm drunk. I thought you had a good idea of that when we were in Skylight, I presume?"

"You were loud, I can say that."

She giggled.

"I won't deny that, but I'd say that you haven't seen the worst just yet. I won't spoil anything, so you better find out."

"Those things should be classified as spoilers?"

Vivian smiled.

"I think so, yeah. That way you can discover some new things whenever you go drinking with us again. That won't be the last one you'll have with us, right?"

"You said it yourself… it's hard to believe that it was a one-time thing especially when we're friends with Jared and Thomas. So, yeah; there's definitely more time to drink. I also want to rack up experience points so that I could at least be level with all of you."

"You really don't seem like a beginner… are you sure you just started drinking recently? You seem to handle your alcohol pretty good."

We passed by a bright pathway leading to a shop at the side of the road. I thought that maybe Vivian wanted to get something and I would have obliged, but she merely walked past it and we treaded the dark once again.

"I would not say that I handle it… I just really play safe and not bite off more than I can chew… drink off more than I can handle maybe? I don't know. It goes on the line of that. You get what I mean."

"You haven't been too drunk that you don't know what you're doing?"

"Oh no, I'm not doing that in the first day that I'm with all of you. Even if I look really care-free, I still value first impressions. Besides, you told me that I better not get drunk of the first day, remember?"

Well, even if I did, Wendy's confession that day ought to instantly sober up anyone. I would have immediately lost the alcohol then and there.

"Ah, it's nice that someone remembers," replied Vivian, looking at me with her face barely illuminated by the lamp post we just passed by. "You even took that advice really seriously. I'm impressed. Usually, guys show off how high their tolerance is on the very first day. I'm surprised you didn't even do the same thing."

"I'm… I'm new to these kinds of things and I don't want to ruin the experience… wait, is that why you asked me that favour before we even boarded the cab from the Uni?"

"I did… you kinda had that look of a hard drinker. I'm surprised you're soft inside. No offense meant, by the way."

"Is there something wrong with that?"

I turned towards just in time to see her shook her head.

"No, I appreciate it actually. At least you don't even try to lose yourself in attempt for a 'cool guy' impression."

"I'm not that stupid… plus, I admit that my tolerance is low. I don't have that much of an experience and that's fine by me."

"Oh wow… honest too, eh? That's amazing of you, Jae-in."

Silence ensued between both of us as a couple of cars passed by. At this point, I feel like I have loosened the awkward barrier between me and Vivian that I'm starting to get comfortable talking to her. It's impressive how she's just casually treading beside of me in this dark forested road. If it was not for the distanced lamp posts every now and then, we would have been navigating in the dark with only the passing cars as our sources of light.

"You know," she began once again. "I never thought that this place was as pretty as it looked, even in the evening. It feels really aesthetic… It's a shame that I didn't bring my camera. It would have been so great."

"What kind of camera are we talking about? You can use my phone. The lens is pretty decent."

"Yeah, no offense to your phone; but things in this lighting are best taken with a DSLR. I unfortunately left mine."

What is a DSLR Camera? Is it one of those things with big-ass lenses that looked like telescopes?

"Wait, you have a DSLR? Does that mean that you're into photography, Vivi?"

"Why is that immediately the question when I tell people that? Does having a DLSR automatically translate to photography?"

"I can't see why you'd invest. I mean, those things aren't cheap so I'd like to know the reason why."

"Okay, fine; INTO is the word, but I'm not really good at it. I just want to take pictures with the best camera there is, and a good enough resolution to go with it. I just want to savour every single moment I have here in Seoul; you don't get high-rise landscapes like this in China. Well, at least not from where I'm from."

"Oh yeah… Thomas did mention that you were a foreign student who transferred here for University. I can see why you'd like to take pictures for remembrance."

"I pushed my luck here. So far, it's working out really well. Good weather, nice food… kind people… so much for living for two years already. The place makes you fall in love with it."

"But if you're doing that anyway, and you're already invested, why not get your luck and try to make a hobby out of it? You already have a camera."

"I told you; I'm not particularly good at it, at least comparing my standards to the other works people put out. I'm not satisfied with what I'm getting, so if that's the case I really have a long way to go."

"Practice does it. You got me curious; I want to see the kind of pictures you're taking."

"What? No way… I don't want to get judged."

I can't help but chuckle at the subtle shyness.

"Judged by what…? You're not taking R-19 photos out of that camera, right?"

"HELL NO; WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" She said loudly into the dark evening, her voice echoing amidst the trees.

"Well if that's the case then why not let me see it? It's not like I'm an expert. What are your favourite subjects anyway?"

"Okay fine… maybe some of the shots I deem are good, I can show to you. I mostly photograph nature which doesn't really echo much if you're making it into a hobby."

"Oh, that's the reason why this felt like a huge missed opportunity for you. The landscape of this park at night is sure amazing, if you'll just ignore the glaring trees… Make sure you bring it with you the next time we head back here… whether when that would be, I can't be sure."

"I'll be back here, that's for sure; better get a photo of things before it gets cold. This place is way too pretty to pass on. It would most definitely look good on my scrapbook."

"You do those kinds of things?"

"Well… no," she laughed. "It's just a stupid stereotype for girls to immortalize things in that manner and I can't see the point. I just thought I'd make fun of it."

She's comfortable, so maybe I can squeeze in a joke here?

"You're right; you're not even a girl, are you Vivian?"

"Yep, I'm a guy. There's nothing more to it."

"Oh, can I ask then why you prefer nature than taking pictures of people?"

"It's simple," she said flatly as we passed on a section filled with local stores. With the looks of it, we must be close to the park's entrance.

And then Vivian said something that I certainly did not expect to come from her:

"People are best immortalised in the heart, not on paper."

Where the fuck did that come from?

"Are you fourteen? Why are you speaking so deeply?"

"I'm being serious," Vivian said as she laughed at my statement. "A person that makes an impact on your life will stay imprinted on your heart no matter what happens. Come hell or high water, your heart will remember. It's way better than simply snapping a photo of them and using it as a remembrance.

"Besides," she continued. "I want a list of the places I've gone to, and that's what the photos are for. The people I meet along the way will stay here."

She pointed towards her chest; her heart.

This is too deep even for me to comprehend.

"But of course there are exceptions… if my friends want me to take a photo of them, like you, for example, I can oblige. I'm just not, in general, fond of taking photos of people and keeping them."

"If it's not too much… I do like the way how I look when people use HD cameras to take a photo of me."

"Oh… so we're in that part of the conversation now. I never thought that you were the picture-interested type of guy, Yoon Jae-in."

"Hey don't get me wrong… I just want an updated one. My current pic felt years already and it's already definitely outdated."

"Alright, alright, I can see where you're coming from. Sure, I'll take a pic and I won't judge. I'll make sure to take every single good angle for you so that you can get the girls coming to you."

I stopped on my tracks and Vivian followed as well. She then looked back at me with a smirk on her face while I supplied her with a look of disbelief.

"Oh right, I'm not allowed to do that because you and Wendy… you have a thing."

Is the conversation heading to where I think it is heading?

I'm… I'm not fond of this idea.

"If you don't mind me asking," she said as we both moved to walk once again. "I'm curious as to what's going on between you both. This might sound really nosy from my part, but Wendy and I have been friends too and of course, with everything that's going on with her, it's natural for me to be curious. What's the deal with you two anyway?"

Oh boy, here we go.

I don't know how to approach that question, so I merely laughed and fell silent.

"Well, if you don't want to talk about it, forget I asked. It's fine anyway," she said quite sincerely. There wasn't a single ounce of sarcasm on her syllables.

"No, no, it's fine. It's just… I actually don't know; really… I have no idea what's going on between us."

Why was her question like that? I mean I know Vivian just wanted to know the real status but the thing is. It was an innocent question yet why is it to answer? I, too, was confused; we hugged, we kissed, we held hands, we act as if we were something else and yet I haven't even told her if I liked her back, was I just… going with the flow?

It has been two days too… should we be already a 'something' at this point?

Damn, I never noticed how recent it was. We were definitely going too fast.

"Hey you're spacing out," Vivian said as she waved her hand in front of me.

"I'm sorry," I managed to reply to her after thinking to myself for so long.

"You know what? Forget that I asked that; instead just tell me other things you're into. Anything, and hopefully we can branch out from that."

"Well, I…," well it's really hard to keep myself together after that question anyway. It was a relief that she wanted to change the topic. "Let's talk about the café I mentioned back in Skylight."

---

The pair of Jae-in and Vivian continued to tread the dark paths of the eco-park until they eventually reached the gateway; the presence of the passing-by cars illuminating the path that they were about to take. Unlike the park, however, the roads there connected closer to the city-proper, and so had a better lighting than the inside pavements. All thoughts and illusions of boarding a taxi were completely disregarded as they were deeply immersed with the company of each other. With a mutual agreement, Jae-in and Vivian decided to walk all the way back towards the hospital.

"You mentioned the café," Jae-in began as they resumed their long walk. "Have you decided to head there now?"

"Definitely… Pacific Book Cafe has a lot of books too, other than the drinks that people usually go there for. I have gone there once and I got hooked with the stories. Maybe I'll drop by sometime next week, and hopefully I can see you there."

"There's a huge chance you'll see us there. I mean most of us go there during breaks because we really have nowhere else to go."

"But you go there every day, right?"

"I… well, yeah… among all of us I think I got the most free schedule."

"Oh, so you have a good grasp of which books are good to read then, I presume?"

"I do. I guess it says so much with regards to how much I love reading there. Once I get my butt positioned on the shop I just can't leave, you know. There's something addicting on the shop. Somehow seeing a lot of people really interested going there makes me want to watch them as they go all frustrated because there's no space and they have to wait for who knows when until they find a vacant place. I feel leagues above them in away," Jae-in smirked.

"What a little devil," Vivian chuckled. "I like it. I like that little sadist bit. At least I know you're there whenever I'm free. You can reserve seats for the both of us and I won't even have to bother with my time right?"

Jae-in gazed towards her and saw her widely smiling through the flash of lights from the oncoming cars.

"Go on," she said, tapping his shoulder. "Suggest me some books!"

"Umm… there is a lot of stuff I could suggest now. I've read pretty interesting ones, you know. What genre are you looking for?"

"I'm not really in particular with regards to specific genres. At this rate, anything you suggest would pique my interest. You've read more than I did, so take it away!"

"What if I suggest things that you're not interested on? I don't want you to waste on an entire book and blame me for it, especially if the ending has a weird twist."

Jae-in didn't even notice that Vivian slowed down on her walking, and he eventually joined her. He gave her a look of confusion, this time her face was visible thanks to the bright light of the establishments on the side streets before the young Chinese woman supplied him with a sincere smile and moved to pat his shoulder.

"I trust your judgment. If you find it good, then it's good enough for me."

Vivian moved past his frozen figure and walked backwards before resuming talking.

"You better start talking! We're nearing the hospital!"

"Alright, alright… there are a couple of things I've read… More than Human, My Girl Bestfriend, The Uninvited, Maybe it's me… there's a lot, honestly. I can't name all of them out of my head. There's one I read recently, which was about a reincarnation type of deal. I think it was titled Love beyond Death or Undying Love or whatever, although as of the moment, the writer had not finished the third volume of it because he's working on other books."

"I see… I'll keep those in mind. They seem really interesting."

"They sure are."

"Do you mind telling me what they're about while not entirely spoiling what happens on key parts of the story, Yoon Jae-in?"

Despite the rather interesting choice of having Vivian call Jae-in by his full name, he continued with the summary telling regardless. Of course, it was coupled with occasional questions coming from Vivian especially on the vague details that Jae-in elected to leave like that way. Having to tell its synopsis without giving away the important plot points, things were bound to be really difficult to do.

However, thanks to Jae-in's enthusiastic story-telling, he and Vivian eventually reached the front of the aforementioned hospital without really having to pay attention to their exhaustion; Vivian paused as soon as they reached the façade of the tall building, moving to stand in front of Jae-in's waiting figure.

"That was a fun talk. I barely even noticed the time pass by," she said with a smile. "I'll make sure to read all of your suggestions, though it would be better if I get to hang out with you on the café every once a while. I look forward to it, actually."

"Of course Vivi…. I had fun too. Don't worry; there's a good chance that you'll see me there. Trust me… I go there more often than you think."

"Somehow, that's good for me. I look forward to that. Let's go in… Wendy is already waiting for you."

Vivian went off ahead and walked towards the welcoming doors of the hospital, smiling as she took the first steps up its entrance. Jae-in, on the other hand, stood there looking her walking figure as she ascended. There was some strange reason why, for that night, he did not want the evening to end. He really enjoyed her company.

It was a strange feeling, nonetheless… Jae-in wanted to have that same degree of conversation with her again, given the chance. Somehow the idea of coming back to his friends and facing the reality of the situation saddens him, and he could not even figure out why exactly he was feeling that way