Someone coming out of the forest was not something Michael expect. That someone being a young boy was something Michael expected even less. That put Michael on alert.
The young boy looked 19-20ish, with short black hair and black eyes. He was wearing a pair of beige cargo pants and a t-shirt which had the picture of a forest with a mountain on it, with the words on the t-shirt saying 'I LOVE NATURE'. In one of his cargo pants' pockets hanged a silver chain and a circular bulge. that seemed wholly out of place. Michael assumed that it was a pocket watch.
"Hello? Are you okay? You seem a bit lost." The young boy continued to voice his concern as he approached Michael. Michael could hear a slight Korean accent when the boy spoke.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Michael slowly started to walk away from the young boy.
Seeing him move away, the young boy realized his mistake and apologized.
"Ah, I'm sorry, I haven't even introduced myself. My name is Kim Yeong." The boy shook his head as if he was disappointed in himself and continued to speak.
"To be honest, me and a couple of friends came camping out here since we heard that there was a huge lake here. I went ahead of them to check it out but didn't expect you to be here. We are going to be here a couple of days, but you can stay with us and we can take you back to the city when we leave." Kim Yeong took another step towards Michael but that made him even more on edge.
"Shouldn't a kid like you be warier of someone like me?" Michael was ready to run away if Kim Yeong got any closer but Kim Yeong stopped.
"What do you mean a kid like me? Aren't you the same age as me?" Kim Yeong tilted his head in confusion.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Michael turned around and looked into the lake. There he saw a reflection of his 19-year-old self.
"I guess I really did go back in time...I" Michael murmured as Kim Yeong sneaked right behind Michael.
"Are you really feeling ok? You must have eaten something that gave you hallucinations." The voice of Kim Yeong once again spooked Michael out of his trance as he turned around with the kid right behind him.
"Why are you being this nice? Do you want something from me? Wait, do you want to sell my organs!?" Michael took another step back, this time stepping into the water.
"Haha, don't worry, don't worry. If I wanted your organs, I would have drugged you while you were looking at your reflection. Now follow me, I'll take you to our camp."
'...' Michael was still very on edge, but he decided to follow Kim Yeong with the utmost care.
---
"Welcome back, si...r?"
Nightfall had arrived when the two boys reached Kim Yeong's camp. Michael saw that there were 3 people accompanying Kim Yeong; two identical girls whose age Michael guessed to be around 14, and one boy wearing a butler suit. All three of them stopped what they were doing and stood up, wary of Michael.
"Sir! Are you okay!?" The butler's voice contained a lot of fear, not for himself, but for Kim Yeong.
"Calm down, I'm fine. When I found the lake, I also found this guy lost there, so I decided to bring him back to the city with us when we are done with our camping trip."
"Sir, but-
"No buts, he will be staying with us until we head back to the city." Kim Yeong sat down at the campfire. He then used some kindle and a lighter to start a little fire which would be the basis of the large campfire they would later enjoy. After the fire grew to an adequate size, Kim Yeong took out some chocolate, marshmallows, and crackers and started making some s'mores for everyone to enjoy.
Micheal watched all of this from one of the trees. deep in thought.
The way Kim Yeong spoke and the way the young butler treated him told Michael that Kim Yeong wasn't an ordinary kid going hiking with his friends.
While Michael was thinking about Kim Yeong's true identity, the two girls went to hide behind Kim Yeong
"Um, master...We don't think this is a good idea. You just met him and we don't know if he will do anything bad to all of us..." The girls looked at each other before the more social-looking one spoke both of the twins' opinion.
However, Kim Yeong just smiled and patted both of their heads.
"Don't worry, he isn't going to do anything, and even if he did, I'll protect all of you."
"Still..." The two girls were sneaking small glances at Michael trying to see if he had any weapons on him
"Girls, just trust me. When have I ever betrayed that trust?" Kim Yeong continued to smile as the two girls finally let in.
"...Alright..." Giving up on the matter, Kim Yeong gave the two girls a s'more each and watched as they cutely nibbled on the cracker part of the s'mores.
As the butler finished his duties and joined Kim Yeong and the two girls at the campfire, Michael was still at the tree. He was still quite cautious of them as they outnumbered him 4 to 1. Even without professional training, they could still beat up an adult Michael just fine, much less a 19-year-old version of himself. And Michael was very content being by himself, at least for now. He had no plans on joining the group of 4.
So when he was just about to sit down and mind his own business, he was surprised Kim Yeong was calling him over to join them at the campfire.
"What are you doing? Get over here and join us." Kim Yeong beckoned Michael over to sit at the campfire with the rest of them. Not knowing if it was a threat or an invitation, Michael was hesitant. But when he saw Kim Yeong's eye grow a bit darker, he was scared that he would get ganged up on if he didn't comply, so Michael walked over to the campfire and sat down with them.
"Oh, now that I think of it, you haven't told us your name." Kim Yeong was making some more s'mores for everyone to eat.
"It's Michael, Michael Cress."
"Hmm, nice name, pretty easy to remember. Alright, as I said before, my name is Kim Yeong. The more social girl's name is Elizabeth, while her younger twin sister's name is Lily. Finally, that guy over there is called Shiratori Masaru. I hope we can get along." Kim Yeong laughed and handed him a s'more.
"I know that you are scared of us. I mean, who wouldn't. Just look at those 3. But I promise you that I won't harm you if you don't harm us. There is no reason to harm someone who is clearly lost here."
"...thank you."
"Haha, no problem, now take the s'more already, I need to make some actual food."
Michael took the s'more and looked at the 3 other people laughing and telling stories while Kim Yeong grabbed a cooking pot and poured in some water. Kim Yeong then poured in some chicken, vegetables, and other seasonings. Michael assumed that Kim Yeong was making some sort of soup and from the faces of Elizabeth and Lily, Michael could tell that Kim Yeong's cooking was very good.
Michael then looked at his s'more and took a bite. Just as he expected, it tasted like a mixture of milk chocolate and marshmallows, with a hint of bitterness in it. He assume the bitterness was dark chocolate.
And just like that, Michael's two days with a group of strangers started.