KOQIU MENTION OH MY DAYS I DID NOT EXPECT THAT ๐ง๐ง๐ง๐ง also i decided to rename kojo to osei after seeing you rename mykae, which was his second name, so now his full name is osei min-jun baoteng (i also changed his last name, yes.) but idk what to name osei an qiu now ๐๐๐๐ maybe minqiu, maybe qiusei, but idk. also i vote for pants because it feels like step 2(?) mykae
Also for your question! osei preferred the forest in step 1, as the town was a bit too overwhelming, still. eventually, he grew fond of the town, especially the library and record store. in step 2 he doesn't really have a preference, considering he hates golden grove. i would like to say he prefers his room in step 2.
yu-ming loves the forest (duh) because of the bugs, and because tamarack likes it. this doesn't change in step 2, but she does grow fond of the bakery in town.

