Welcome To My Fairy Garden

3: everything here is magic

Y/N

I flew back home, but I never felt so wrong before, like I didn't belong in my home. Like it wasn't my home anymore. I couldn't stop my mind from running back to the Fairy Garden every time I tried to live the life I knew before going there. Everything from the feeling of the Garden to its King made me let out a sigh after a sigh, as I dreamt of going back.

He gave me a lot, but there were still wounds I had to heal. And tasting their magic once made me crave it even more than before.

I wanted to write my own comment about the Fairy Garden, and even had the page opened on the night I came home, first words typed in, but it was too personal. My visit there was too personal – having the Fairy King show me around the Garden, heal my pains, and tell me about his life among other Fairies. I wanted it to be my sweet secret, my safe space.

I sat at my desk in the office, a document half-finished as I, once again, reminded myself of the Fairy Garden. The Green Bridge was on my mind, and how much I wanted to dive into the pool of the Waterfall. And the way Jungkook held my hand, and left a velvet kiss on my forehead. I was sure he held the entire magic of the Garden under his skin. I needed to feel this magic again.

"Y/N." My boss slammed his palm on the desk, making my chin slide from my palm and almost hit the table. "When are you going to finish this?"

"I'm sorry, sir. I'll finish it now," I said, typing away until he left, shaking his head. I was already the laziest, least promising worker they'd ever had. Now I was also daydreaming about a magical garden he wouldn't even believe I'd been to.

I kept the act for two weeks, trying to hold myself back from spending the rest of my savings on the next plane ticket. I told myself I didn't need to go there again, and it worked. For those two weeks only, until I could feel the magic of the Garden in my sleep. Fourteen days later, I was already pretending to be sick, asking for a leave over the phone, as I gave the airlines the rest of my money.

The Fairy Garden welcomed me with more warmth and buzz than the first time. When the gate opened, and I stepped inside, beaming like I just came back home, the wind hummed louder, making all the flowers and trees move around like it was a market square.

The sound of bells I heard when I was here for the first time was vivid, getting louder as I walked down the path. It rang next to my head before something flew from behind me, floating right in front of my face to stop me from moving further. A girl that could fit in a tea mug smiled at me, flattering her short, almost blonde eyelashes. Her blonde hair was thick, put in a braid that reached her feet.

"You really came back," she said, giggling as she circled my head twice and threw glittering sparkles in the air. "Our King said you will come back. I'm so happy! My name is Pebbles. You're Y/N, right?"

"Yes, it's me. Nice to meet you," I said, reaching a finger towards her. She grabbed it in both her palms and shook it, flapping her wings faster. "You're really pretty."

"Oh!" Her mouth rounded. "Oh no, you are the prettiest! Oh my, let's go in! Would you like to meet another Fairies?"

I agreed, letting her guide me off the path, through the grass, until we reached a small area with weeping willows growing close to one another. As we passed through the thick, emerald bushes, Pebbles didn't stopped talking about how glad she was that I returned to the Garden. She never mentioned why my presence made her so excited, but it made me want to stay there forever. Everything in the Fairy Garden made me feel important and wanted, whether my wounds were still opened or healed.

Under the heavy, swinging branches of the weeping willows all the Fairies had their little homes. They hanged on the thickest branches, carved in wood. Some of them stood on the ground. Behind the willows stretched a thin river, flowing long the green hedge, but I couldn't tell where was the beginning or the end of it.

Around fifty Fairies flew out to welcome me when Pebbles rang a bell hanging among their homes. They sat me under one of the trees, gave me a small bouquet of daisies, and rested on the grass in front of me.

As they asked about me, about human life, about the world outside of the Garden, I felt like a big sister to all of them. Boys and girls, they all listened like it was the most exciting bed time story. And even though I only told them about daily life of a human, it made me feel free and comfortable. I doubted it was the act of storytelling itself. Their magic, magic of the Garden – I was sure this was the reason why everything felt so good behind the golden gate.

The branches that created a wall for the homes of Fairies shuffled, making all of us fall silent. As they parted, and Jungkook stepped from between them, he put his palms over his hips, giving his Fairies a questioning look. He was human-sized again, looking as charming as when I saw him for the first time. This time, though, he felt more comforting. Like a home you hide in when you feel unsafe in the big world. It must have been the special kind of magic he held as a king.

"Was someone going to tell me we have a visitor?" he asked, playing a strict king, but a smile stayed on his face. He emanated father's love around them, bringing the family-like atmosphere into the Garden.

Pebbles was the one to fly towards him. It made me wonder whether she was someone higher ranked in the Garden, or if they were all equal and she was just extroverted and talkative. "Sorry, King. We just got excited to talk to Y/N."

"Good thing the Garden told me or else you'd never let her go," he said, a smile lightening up his face. As I stood up, he shifted his soft gaze towards me. "Nice to see you again, Y/N."

He reached his palm out, showing me to join him, and a few Fairies were already behind me, pushing me to their King. I giggled, letting his palm hold my fingers, as we walked back to the path in the Garden.

"I'm very happy you're visiting. What brings you here this time, Y/N?" he asked, keeping his steps slow and short for me.

"I just... I couldn't stop thinking about your Garden. I had to come back," I said, with a soft sigh, glancing around. I couldn't get enough of this place.

"Is there something else I could do for you? If you need any more healing, I will help you."

"There must be something if I was pulled here again, right? I read people saying that no one comes to the Garden without a reason."

"That's true. Something always pulls you in." He nodded.

I asked him if there was any lake in the Garden, but he declined. I wasn't satisfied, but instead of a lake, Jungkook took me to the river on the second level of the Garden. We climbed rock staircase on the hill the Waterfall fell from, and the second level must have been even calmer. There was no path and he led the way to the river through the most colorful areas full of flowers, dragonflies, butterflies, and the Sun was a little bit warmer there.

"The river is alive," he said when we sat by the edge. "Like everything in the Garden."

"Everything?"

"Every single plant here lives its own life with us."

"What keeps them going?"

"Magic." He smiled, closing his eyes as he let his skin bath in the Sun. The river breathed softer when we were around it. "Everything here is magic, Y/N."

"So magic heals people, too?"

"Magic and a little secret ingredient. But I can't tell you about it now," he said, giving me one of his playful smiles that made me feel like I was a child again. Carefree and happy, without a reason. His eyes lingered on me for a moment as he took slow, gentle breaths. "Would you like to stay in my Garden for a while, Y/N? I could give you all the healing you need."

Above pinching worries and doubts, I wanted to stay. I wanted to experience all the magic of the Garden, and exchange more smiles with its Fairies. I knew I would have to halt my daily life, but nothing seemed as tempting as staying in the Fairy Garden.

"I'd love to stay here."