"I told you once and I'll tell you again..."

The wind howled; almost drowning out his voice. She stayed focused on his face. Focused on the tears glistening in his almond shaped brown eyes. Focused on the desperation in his face; the way his silky brown hair swirled about it to kiss the tears away. Everything about him was magical. Perfect.

"Say it again so I can remember it..."

The smile that cracked across his face then was brighter than the thunder rumbling in the sky.

"Meeting you was the best moment of my life, and I will always..."

"Kora, can't you get your face out of the book for five seconds? We are at the beach, and you're missing the hunks."

Kora lifted her gaze from the book she was reading towards her two best friends - Eve and Adelaide - as they stood in front of her. They were wearing matching beach hats and leopard sunglasses. Eve had removed her sunglasses and had put them up on the brim of her hat. She had a pair of binoculars in her hand, taking them off her neck and handing them to Kora.

"Kora, look at the man flexing by the water!" said Eve. "It has to be better than what you are reading."

Kora chuckled at Eve as she thrusted the binoculars towards her, trying to rip the book out of her hand with her other hand.

"You are reading too much about fantasy men that you're missing the whole point of the trip!"

"Eve, you're going to rip it..."

"Yes, but Eve has a point, Kora," said Adelaide.

Kora momentarily turned her gaze towards Adelaide which gave Eve the edge she needed to take the book out of Kora's hands.

"The point of this trip is to get to know each other and to go people watching. Men watching in particular..." continued Adelaide.

Kora knew that Adelaide had a point. The three of them had never met before, and decided to all save up to take a holiday vacation at a beach resort together. They were planning on spending time together and helping each other finally find Mr. Right since all their separate attempts all their lives had led to nothing. So far they had been there for three days and had enjoyed spending time together in person for the first time. Today - the fourth day - they decided to head to the beach to start their babe watch since it was such a beautiful day. According to Eve, one of them had to end up with someone by the end of this two week trip. The probability was in their favor.

Kora tried to point out that math was not a subject that any of them enjoyed so none of them could figure out probability, but she was shot down immediately by Eve and Adelaide.

"What is this book anyway?" asked Eve as she narrowed her eyes at the title of the book she now held in her hand.

"It is called 'Wings of Desire'. It's a romance book," said Kora as she watched Eve scan her eyes over the dark haired dreamboat pictured on the cover, "But it's also an adventure..."

"You're not allowed to fall for this fictional character," said Eve as she thrusted the book at Adelaide's chest, causing her to let out a small 'oof' before grabbing it, looking at the back of the book to read what it was about.

"Again, you need to look at real men," continued Eve. "Like Mr. Flex and Bend over there by the shallows. I'm telling you it's worth the look."

"I'm going to look without binoculars," said Kora as she stood from her chair.

"Then he's gonna be a muscular little speck," said Eve. "Not as fun."

"In Kora's defense, this book sounds interesting," said Adelaide from behind Kora. "Kora, can I borrow this after?"

"Yeah," said Kora as she turned to Adelaide with a smile. "Until then, come stare at muscle speck man with me."

Adelaide chuckled as she moved to stand by Kora's side, placing the book on her beach chair. Eve rolled her eyes at the both of them before bringing the binoculars up to her face again.

"Who wants to go see if he's single?" asked Eve.

"I nominate you, Eve," said Kora. "Finders keepers."

Eve smirked as she brought the binoculars away from her eyes.

"Fine. I'll be the brave one of us three."

Adelaide and Kora both mock saluted Eve as she bowed before moving to walk off down the beach towards the man she had spotted; thankfully leaving the binoculars behind on her beach chair.

"So what do we do now?" asked Kora.

"I'm probably gonna lay out in the sun for a bit longer," said Adelaide. " I will bask in the beautiful day some more while I wait for Eve to report back on her mission. What about you?"

"I might go for a walk since I'm up," said Kora.

"Sounds like fun! Maybe you will find your own muscle speck man along the way," teased Adelaide.

Kora smiled, nodding her head as she moved to walk back towards the glistening white hotel in the distance. The Pleasant Shores Hotel. The three of them had picked it because of its beautiful location and the affordability. Kora walked along the gray stoned pathway that lined the edge of the beach, allowing bikers and joggers to enjoy their holiday too. As she walked, she found herself stopping outside the gift shop. She didn't know what exactly propelled her to stop that very moment. Kora had been wanting to explore it for a few days now but had never gotten a chance to. She supposed now was as good a time as any.

She moved to enter the gift shop; a small bell dangling above the door as she entered. For being the gift shop of a hotel, it was crowded with odd merchandise that looked as if it were bought from several tacky companies. Kora could hear the ticking of a clock behind the front counter as she wove through the tightly packed aisles. Her eyes wandered over everything, taking in everything from personalized pencils with palm trees on them to Christmas ornaments. She paused when she reached the window where the dream catchers dangled. They twisted in the invisible breeze, casting spider web like shadows onto the ground at Kora's feet. She watched the shadows for a moment before lifting her head again and looking at what was displayed on a rack on the sill.

It was a box of pan flutes. Kora didn't know what made her eyes stay fixated on them for as long as they did. They all looked like some generic thing that probably only played a handful of flat notes. Kora began to let her fingers drift through the flutes there before finding one tucked tightly in the back. As her fingertips drifted over it, she noticed that it had more details than the rest. The carvings on the pan flute were subtle, but they made it look absolutely beautiful. She drew it out, studying it. Kora had never been interested in musical instruments, but this one drew her in.

"Those pan flutes have been sitting there for at least two years," came a sudden voice behind Kora, making her turn. She looked at the elderly man standing behind her with a smile on his face. "No one has ever touched them."

"Oh...I'm sorry..."

"Don't be sorry," said the elderly man chuckling. "I think you should get it."

Kora's eyes landed on the white sale tag plastered to the box. Five dollars. She supposed it wasn't that much. She dug into her khaki brown shorts, holding the bill out towards him. The man took it with a smile.

"Have a great day."

'Thanks," she said as she left the gift shop.

Once outside the gift shop, she looked at the sudden and sort of rash purchase she now held in her hands. Great. Now when she reported back to Eve and Adelaide she could say she didn't find a guy, but instead something tacky from the gift shop. Wandering about the perimeter of the hotel property, she kept studying the pan flute in her hand before coming to a pause by some trees. The wind whistled through the air, tickling against her cheeks as she wondered what the pipe would make for a noise. Curiosity getting the better of her, she brought it to her lips and blew.

The wind seemed to stir up a bit more as the surprisingly melodic notes drifted through the breeze. It seemed to stir up the trees she was standing under even more. Kora looked up at the sky for a moment as the wind whipped against her face; as if the wind were directing her gaze. When she looked back down, she noticed that there was a man standing before her that hadn't been there just five seconds prior.

"Who are you?" asked Kora as she stared at the man dressed more for a museum than a beach resort.

"My name is Kim Taehyung," he replied as he looked at her; his almond shaped eyes reminding her of the character in the book she'd just been reading. "And I take it you're the one I'm to protect."

- - -

AN: I do not own the picture in this chapter.