Unbreakable [2/4]
Title: Unbreakable
Pairing: Baekhyun/Chanyeol, hint!Kai/Baekhyun
Genre: Angst, Fluff
Word Count: 27k+
Summary: When Baekhyun breaks, everything else does. Or so he thinks.
“This is the part where you will have to lay down your pride because you will soon be one of us,” Jongin announced to Baekhyun. “You are finally going to be a man,”
They have arrived at the lake, and as much as Baekhyun wanted to love nature, the mud, the stones and the silence were just wasn’t his idea of a solitude.
“You’re going to be even tanner than tan,” Jongup joined in, resting his arm on Jongin’s shoulder with a proud smile.
“Yeah, well, if that’s what you want.” Baekhyun said wryly, still trying to get used to the environment.
“Wait, you aren’t bothered or anything?” Jongup asked, retracting his hand back and walking closer to Baekhyun.
“I got tan before but my color went back after a week or so,”
“What a very admirable explanation,” Jongin commented.
“Sucks having a flower boy on the team,” Jongup murmured and turned around to get his luggage.
“Uh, I’m sorry?”
Jongin just laughed at him and pulled him to where Jaekyung was yelling from. There was this mini stage set up just in front of side of the lake, and she was standing behind the podium. When Baekhyun noticed the mic but doesn’t see the wire, it came to him that there was no fucking electricity in this place.
Baekhyun was on the verge of panicking when he asked Jongin.
“Weren’t you there when Jaekyung was giving details or something?” Jongin asked, and suddenly there was the light bulb. “Oh, right, you were probably texting.”
“What…”
“Yeah, there’s no electricity here. We make our own fire, catch our own meals and whatever. We set up a tent and that’s where we sleep.”
“We didn’t come here to camp,” Baekhyun argued.
“It’s part of the training, though I really have no idea how it helps since I rarely listen.” Jongin shrugged.
“This is insane. How am I supposed to contact Chanyeol?”
“I’ll help you out later. Right now we have to follow them before Mr. Sue catches as slacking off.” Jongin pulled Baekhyun with him to the crowd, ignoring his disappointed sighs.
They arrived at this large space Baekhyun doesn’t know what it’s called but it’s large, the ground were filled with stones and there was the entrance to the lake in front. The lake wasn’t big, there was a huge hill surrounding them, rocks and trees blocking the water into further. The water was at peace, and Baekhyun was so caught up with observing the calmness of the water and the beautiful reflections of the sky on it when a sudden yell and a splash of water broke his concentration. He turned to the members who dived down for a dip and sighed to himself.
“Have to get used to that,” He turned around to see Jaekyung standing behind him, hands on hips, clothes consisted mostly of a tank top and jogging pants. She pulled a paper from her pocket and read. “Let’s see…Baekhyun, oh, you get to share a tent with Jongup.”
“Why?”
“Because I said so. Now go and set up your tent.” Jaekyung smirked at him as he goes.
Even though Jaekyung asked him to set up a tent and even though he looked like he was going to set up a tent, he didn’t know how to neither do what it was supposed to look like. So, at the moment he arrived, he sat on a log and watched as Jongup struggles to get the metal rods out of the box.
“Just because you have a fair skin, doesn’t mean you don’t get to set up the tent.”
“I don’t know how to set up a tent,”
“Oh good,” Jongup breathed. “Neither do I,”
--
(“This is why I told you to rest once in a while. Why are you so stubborn?” Chanyeol scolded, pressing his hands onto Baekhyun’s ankle as hard as he can. “What if I didn’t come in time? You would’ve died.”
Baekhyun bit his lip to suppress the pain. Earlier, he was practicing his freestyle when he suddenly felt his feet getting cramped. He lost his balance and was flailing his arms everywhere. He wanted to swim up but his feet were numb and he couldn’t even move them properly. He was panicking when he started to feel the water coming to his nose. If it wasn’t for Chanyeol who came just in time, who saw him drowning, who threw his camera bag on the side, who jumped on the water without taking his shirt off first, he really would’ve died. But Chanyeol came and that’s what matters.
“I’m sorry, Mine,” Baekhyun mumbled, brushing Chanyeol’s fringe to the side so he can see his face better. He looked so worried and Baekhyun suddenly felt stupid for not taking precautionary measures.
What would have happened if I really did die?)
Baekhyun snapped his eyes open and immediately pushed himself out of the water. He inhaled deeply while wiping the water off his face and saw Jongin staring down at him from the wooden bridge. “20 minutes.” Jongin said. “You did it again. Why do you always do that?”
Baekhyun grinned and started swimming slowly to the logs, head still above the water. “No particular reason. I just like the feeling of being under the water. You don’t feel anything but the water and you don’t hear anything other than the waves either. It makes me think a lot better.”
Jongin stood up, grabbed Baekhyun’s hand and pulled him up from the water. They were struggling at first until Baekhyun was able to grab hold to the wooden floor and positioned himself. “So, your record depends on how much you think or something?”
“No, silly,” Baekhyun laughed. He glanced back at the tents and saw their set up quite nicely. “I feel bad for not helping Jongup set up the tent.”
“Yeah, well, he feels bad for not helping Mr. Sue set up the tent.” Jongin replied, shrugging his shoulders. There was a splash coming from the other side, wetting them both, so he turned to the other members who were on duty to catch some fish for dinner with a glare. “Hey! Watch it!”
“Sorry, man!”
“Assholes.” Jongin mumbled.
--
This is the part where night time comes, and a big fire was set up at the middle, and they all sit in circles and their dinner are on the sticks, plunged on the ground, as they wait for the fire to cook it. This is the part that sucks because it’s bonfire time and bonfire time sucks.
“So, I am perfectly aware that there are more gays here than straight,” Jaekyung started, receiving dismantled groans from the members because well, who would want to be pointed out by a girl? It’s man pride, gays still have ‘em. And thou shall not underestimate the manliness of the gays. “And I don’t want to hear moans tonight. I have been strictly warning you for years now and if I still hear your fucking moans, I will suck all your dicks and you wouldn’t want that.”
And so it occurred to Baekhyun that they, as much as he didn’t want to admit it, are cruel. At the back of his mind, he’s yelling HELP ME CHANYEOL and then Chanyeol will magically appear out of nowhere, with his freaking Adonis body and say YOU CALLED, BABE, but then again, he is perfectly aware that telepathy doesn’t quite well work with him. Actually, it doesn’t work with people so what’s the point.
“Here you go, princess Baekhyun,” Jongup said, nudging him for attention. Baekhyn looked up and saw him offering one stick of fish. He smiled and gratefully took them. “Jongin told me to give you one,”
“Thanks,” And that implies to both of them. “Drop the princess though,” Because no, it’s not cool. The Fairy was alright, but princess? No. He had never imagined himself wearing a tiara.
“Sorry, habit,” Jongup mumbled while chewing. “There was this one guy in the team before, who was fair too and was blonde, who also doesn’t do any work. So I called him princess and he bolted.”
“I should’ve bolted,”
“Yeah, you should’ve,”
Baekhyun nodded. “Where’s Jongin, by the way?”
“At the forest. He doesn’t eat fish so he goes to hunt for prey.”
Baekhyun gave him a questioning look.
“Fruits, I mean,”
--
By the time midnight came was the time Jongin came back, and he doesn’t expect Jaekyung to be worried sick because he’s sure the coach wanted him dead more than she wanted bigger tits. He wasn’t lost though, he knew the woods quite well, but he found an amazing spot he called The Amazing Spot and just stayed there, staring at the moon, while munching grapes and bananas and etc. He lost track of time.
The fire was already out when he passed by, so as some of the lights inside the tent. He was biting his apple when he heard groans from behind the large leaves he doesn’t know what’s called. He walked closer, pushed the leaves away and saw Baekhyun imitating a scene from the lion king, except the lion was a phone. “Baekhyun?”
Baekhyun jolted in surprise. “Oh! Jongin! You scared me!”
“Sorry,” Jongin smiled sheepishly and approached him. “What are you doing here? At the middle of the night?”
“Trying to get some reception. I swear to God I won’t be able to sleep if I don’t contact Chanyeol.” Baekhyun replied, busily staring at his phone while lifting it up as high as he could, which isn’t that high, given his height.
Jongin sighed. Watching Baekhyun go through such extents, even breaking Jaekyung’s rule of no moaning because he is moaning at some point when he doesn’t groan, or sometimes he does both simultaneously. “There’s an internet café up the hill the bus passed by earlier.”
Baekhyun paused and blinked. “There’s a what?”
“An internet café,” Jongin repeated. “Only I and Jaekyung know about it. Actually, she doesn’t know I know. It’s just a 30 minute walk from here.”
Sometimes, Jongin hates how nice he is with people he likes-that goes without saying, that he’s being a martyr by being nice to people he likes that are in a relationship with someone who’s not him. So, he made up a rule some time ago to 1. Stop caring and 2. Shut up. He broke both rules at the same fucking moment and that’s bad.
Baekhyun squeals and yells and shrieks like a high school girl who lost her virginity to some guy who looks like someone who came out of a music video from a boy band with the same name as One Direction. Jongin imagined Baekhyun doing cartwheels at some point but there’s always a limit to things. Still, the cartwheel would’ve been fun.
“Can you take me there? Please! Please!”
Jongin plays a bit. “No! Be gone puppy eyes!”
“Jongin!”
“I’m kidding. Come on,” He tilted his head. “Adventure time!”
Baekhyun snarled. “So gay.”
“I tried.”
--
It’s not a 30 minute walk, Baekhyun noted, but a 35 minute walk. But who cares. They’re standing in front of a cabin, and the only one at the lane, so it’s quite amusing how this cabin has internet connection and reception but since the isolated lake has no electricity, Baekhyun’s phone only lasted at the 20th minute. It’s completely, utterly, sadly dead.
“Get ready to be amazed,” Jongin tells him and then he almost flips out when he opened the door, and revealed a new universe.
It’s like he actually went inside a black hole and ended up here at the-god is that a hot tub. Baekhyun freezes at the sound of the speakers, at the people dancing to Miley Cyrus’ Morning Sun, at the pole dancers, at the freaking hot tub at the corner, at the bar, at everything to be completely honest.
“Earth to Baekhyun?”
Well, at least that confirms he’s still on Earth.
“Where am I.”
Jongin laughed. “You’re so funny. I like your reaction.” Then he pulled him somewhere away from all the noise and the hot tub and the dancers and they go to some tunnel and the there’s a red door and then he opens and Baekhyun knows this is freaking Mars.
“This is the internet café,” Jongin intro-ed. “Also called, Red,”
“What a lovely segway to my next question-IS THIS MARS.”
“Yeah, the owner kinda has some inter-galactic fetish.”
“I can tell,” Baekhyun nodded. He turned to the sound of the door opening and revealed a guy who is possibly a Skrillex fan because the hair.
“Baekhyun, this is Jiyong, otherwise known as G-Dragon because he thinks it’s cool, the owner of this awesome place and Jiyong this is Baekhyun,”
Baekhyun didn’t even bother questioning why he didn’t have an awesome intro but oh well.
Jiyong, otherwise known as G-Dragon, smiled. “Yo wassup.”
“Uh,” Baekhyun croaked. “Nothing much.”
“Nothing much,” GD deadpanned and turned to Jongin.
“He’s still getting the hold of it.” Jongin reasoned. “Anyway, we can’t be long. He just needs some internet to contact his boyfreeeend.”
Baekhyun leaned in and whispered. “Not cool,” And then he added. “With the boyfriend and the accent,”
“Sorry,” Jongin chuckled and then turned to GD. “You get my point.”
“What point?” GD asked, raising an eyebrow.
“That your eyes are extremely beautiful,” Baekhyun interrupted. “Can you please enlighten us of the awesomeness of this place and grant me permission to operate the machine?”
Those are obviously word vomits.
“Hey, I like you,” GD laughed. “Yeah sure, use the internet to contact your boyfriend or what, it’s on me,”
Way to go, Professor Byun. Baekhyun thought to himself.
Jongin helped him, turned the computer for him, until Baekhyun argued that he is born in the 90’s and that he knows how to operate a computer. “It’s just that my laptop hasn’t arrived yet,” He elaborated. “So you always see me with my phone,”
“Yeah okay,” Jongin stood up. “I’ll be outside.”
“Why?”
“I’m going to smoke,”
“You smoke?”
“Yeah and I drink too. I’ll just be outside so if you need any help, just find me.”
--
“Look, Jeevee’s awake!” Chanyeol literally yelled, with an idiotic smile, while holding up Jeevee. Jeevee is their pet rabbit who does nothing but munch and stare at the floor all day. Baekhyun smiled, not because the whole screen was occupied with Chanyeol’s teeth and Jeevee’s furs but because they looked really stupid.
“Awww, I miss you guys,” Baekhyun crooned with a pout. “But I think Jeevee’s still asleep though,”
“What? He’s awake. Look,” Chanyeol then shoved Jeevee nearer to the camera. “His eyes are open,”
“I think it’s still closed,” Baekhyun argued. “Maybe it’s because it’s blurry,”
Chanyeol leaned closer to Jeevee. “Yeah, you’re right. I think he’s still asleep.” Baekhyun shook his head and giggled. “Anyway, Mine, how’s your training?”
“Nothing much. We just set up a tent today,”
“You set up a tent?!”
“Mine, you do know I don’t know how to,”
“So, like, are you sleeping outside? Mine, NOOOO-“
“My roommate set up the tent,” Baekhyun replied. “Or tentmate in this case,”
“SOMEONE GETS TO SHARE A TENT WITH YOU? WHO IS YOUR TENTMATE? Is it Kai? If it’s Kai, it’s okay since I’ll know what he’ll look like after I beat him up if he does something inappropriate to you but it’s not Kai, is it?”
“It’s not Kai.”
“I KNEW IT!”
Baekhyun sometimes wonders if Chanyeol is actually on drugs because how can someone still have this much energy at midnight.
“So, who is it?”
“His name’s Jongup. He’s Jongin’s friend.” Baekhyun replied. The next thing Chanyeol did almost made him burst out laughing if it wasn’t for that little bit of public decency inside his head. “Mine, you look really stupid squinting like that.”
“What? What’s wrong with me squintiiiiing?”
Baekhyun couldn’t hold it much longer and ended up laughing so loud, immediately apologizing for disturbing a few. “Seriously, Mine. You can’t even squint right. Just accept the fact that your eyes are huge.”
“Hey!” Chanyeol replied playfully. “I am offended.”
“What are you even doing…”
Chanyeol tried to squint again. “Are you sure this Jongup guy can be trusted?”
“Mine,” Baekhyun whined. He just couldn’t go through this again.
“Okay, I’m sorry! Just,” Chanyeol smiled at him. “Have fun, ok?”
“Okay.” Baekhyun smiled back, staring at Chanyeol’s auburn colored hair, the wet strands sticking on his temple, at Chanyeol’s ears, at his eyes and then his lips, trying to remember every bit of his Chanyeol today.
“Mine?”
“Hmm?” Baekhyun hummed.
“I love you,”
Baekhyun smiled. “I love you,”
--
Jongin leaned down on the railings of the forgotten balcony. He’s been to this cabin a lot of times now to remember some parts of it. Behind it was a balcony, kind of like a porch, an entrance. That was when he realized that this isn’t the back but the front. And then he wondered why the owner closed this entrance. After he lit up a cigarette, all he did was inhale, blow out, inhale, blow out, inhale and then blow out. He repeated this ritual for nearly 20 minutes, as if supplying an unending craving, trying to feel. The stars are out and the wind is cold against his skin. He had a lot of thoughts, mainly about himself. Even now, he isn’t sure, where to go from here. He can’t be Kai forever. He has to leave it and be someone else. He has to or he’s never going to die happy.
He threw the cigarette on the ground and then stepped on it. He was taking out another one from his pocket when the door cracked open. He looked up to see Baekhyun walking in with a satisfied face.
“Done already?”
“Still smoking?” Baekhyun need no reply from the latter as he snatches the cigarette and throws it out.
Jongin pouted. “Rude.”
“It’s bad for your health.”
“It’s not like I’m addicted to it.”
“Still bad for your health.”
Jongin thought there was absolutely no use arguing. He’s been to these conversations a lot of times to know how they usually end so he just side tracked. “How was it?”
“Great!” Baekhyun replied with a wide smile. “Have I told you about our pet rabbit?”
“You have a pet rabbit?”
“Yeah, his name’s Jeevee.” Baekhyun giggled. Too cute, if Jongin must say. “He’s still a baby though.”
“Cool. You won’t have any problem when Easter comes.”
Baekhyun hit him playfully. “Oh shut up.”
Jongin ruffled his hair while laughing. “Come on, let’s go back.”
“Okay.”
--
“Hey, do you want to play a game?” Baekhyun suggested out of nowhere, after he was done humming to an unfamiliar song and after Jongin was almost done counting the stars.
“Right now?”
“Uh-huh,” Baekhyun nodded. “It’s just a simple game. Yeol and I play this game a lot,”
“Okay. Shoot.”
Baekhyun chuckled before explaining. “We have to say something honest about each other for a minute.”
Jongin thinks the game screams suicide. “Only a minute?”
“Only a minute.” Baekhyun confirmed. Then he checked on his watch. “Okay, I’ll start. Hmm. Your hair looks really good today.”
“Thanks.” Baekhyun hit Jongin on the arm. “Oh-okay! Um…your eyes are really pretty. Like, the stars, they shine a lot.”
“Even though a lot of people say your skin is dark, I think it’s beautiful.”
“You might not find this surprising but during your first week, a lot of guys from the team said they have a crush on you.”
“I’m surprised.”
“You’re the only one with a skin like that. It’s like we look like burnt cookies while you’re the wheat bread that everybody loves.” Jongin explained, earning a laugh from Baekhyun.
“I appreciate the comparison,”
“Yeah well, that’s what they said,”
“How about you?”
“How about me what?”
Obviously Jongin said the magic words that, in turn, activated the suicide part of the game because the next thing he knew heard Baekhyun asking him, “Did you have a crush on me too?” Jongin ought not to answer but Baekhyu saw right through him. “We have 20 seconds left, Jongin.” The brunette mumbled, brushing his hands together due to the cold and then blew on them to feel warm.
“Is it cold?”
“Don’t change the subject. 10 seconds,” Baekhyun argued, sticking a tongue out.
So, Jongin held his hand. Baekhyun looked up at him, not confused, not surprised, it’s like he expected this. “Well,” Jongin started. “If you call this crush.”
Baekhyun chuckled. Jongin kind of expected Baekhyun to retract his hands so it came to him as a surprise when the brunette didn’t, instead, the brunette held his hand tighter. The warmth was not his own, but Baekhyun’s. He was like a ball of Sun, so white but so warm. “Thanks,” was all he can manage to say.
--
“Go wake him up!”
“What?”
“Hurry! Jaekyung’s going to throw a fit!”
Baekhyun shifted through the sheets, pulling the blanket to his head and groaned when a pair of hands pulled it back down. “Baekhyun!”
Baekhyun ignored the call and rolled over to the side. He heard the person groan and then the next thing he knew was that he was being shaken violently. “Baekhyun, seriously! Get up!”
But he doesn’t want to get up. No, not ever.
“You’re going to get us both in trouble! Get up!”
Baekhyun finally stopped ignoring and slowly sat up. “What…you’re too loud.” He murmured while scratching his arm and blinking his eyes. Jongup’s face was finally cleared.
“I’m too loud?” Jongup said sarcastically. “You’re going to be in big trouble. Go get dressed. Assembly down the lake. Hurry!”
“Okay, okay!”
--
“I want you all, all of you,” Jaekyung pressed while eyeing Jongin. “To catch fishes for this morning’s activity. And no, we are not going to use fishing rods, you’re going to use your own hands. You’re going to swim down there and catch as many fishes as you can. The member who gets to catch the most fish will the one to eat that barbecue Mr. Sue is cooking,”
They all turned to Mr. Sue whose face was covered by the smoke. Then their attention shifted to a certain brunette hair, almost tripping to the ground while running to the spot. They laughed in unison as Baekhyun makes his way towards them, hair disheveled, and eyes squinting because of the sunlight.
“As for you Baekhyun, you’re going to swim 5 laps with breast stroke as a punishment for being late.” Jaekyung shook her head. “Newbies. So troublesome.”
Baekhyun didn’t even hear half of it as he sits down at the back, yawning in the process. Jongin threw a look of concern over the brunette and made a mental note to explain to Jaekyung himself.
“Well then, get up and start fish hunting! Chop chop!”
Baekhyun groaned and buried his head between his arms. He just sat down and then they stand up. “Great.”
“Hey, you alright?”
Baekhyun looked up to the owner of the voice and found Jongin bending down to him, blocking the sunlight (thank god), with a worried face. Baekhyun nodded and smiled. “I guess.”
“What’s wrong? You didn’t drink last night, right?”
Baekhyun hit Jongin’s arm playfully. “You were there.”
“I was joking. Why do you look so sick though?”
“I just didn’t get enough sleep. I’m not used to staying up late like that.”
“Not even when talking to Chanyeol on the phone?”
“We talk enough during the day. We don’t need to stay up late just to talk on the phone.” Baekhyun elaborated, suddenly remembering the times he used to stay at the studio Chanyeol inherited from his grandfather, studying while Chanyeol works, and then sometimes they would just stay there and get lost in each other’s presence. It’s a beautiful memory.
“Okay, uh, just wait here.”
Before Baekhyun can even question, Jongin already ran away. He followed the younger with his eyes and saw him talking to Jaekyung, who, in return, scowled at him. Jongin didn’t even flinch a bit. He just kept on talking, like he was explaining something. Then after a few seconds, Jaekyung called Jongup who passed by them, holding a bottle of water, and told him something.
The next thing Baekhyun saw was Jongup walking to him, with one more bottle on hand. And that’s when he knew. “Jongin told Jaekyung,” Jongup said as soon as he stopped beside him.
“Yeah, I figured.”
Jongup sighed and then tilted his head. “Come on. Jaekyung said you can sleep in for the morning.”
“What about Jongin?” Baekhyun asked while standing up, brushing the dirt off his jogging pants in the process.
“He’s going to swim your laps instead.” Jongup replied nonchalantly and started walking. Baekhyun followed close behind him, still getting a hold of his lack of sleep. Everything, everything is so new to him, everything where Chanyeol is not involved. He had never lacked sleep like this before. So it scares him. The thought of changing scared him. He doesn’t want to change. He wants to be the same Baekhyun when he goes back home, when he goes back to Chanyeol. So he’ll try.
Although, at this point, resistance is futile.
He slid down to his sleeping bag, curling his body in response to the comfort it has given him.
“Hey, you can only sleep until noon, okay?” Jongup reminded him, although the concern doesn’t sound suffice.
Baekhyun nodded, eyes already closed, already on the verge of shutting everything down.
“I’ll come back and wake you up,” He doesn’t reply anymore when he heard Jongup’s footsteps walking away from the tent.
He thought of a lot of things while trying to shut his mind off the world. Of all the things, he thought about the world, of how it spins while he’s connected to the ground now, of how the world gets to carry a billion of people, of how the world managed to make two people meet, two out of a billion, and then eventually end up loving each other. It was insane. But the thought was beautiful.
--
(Baekhyun turned his head to the side, where the sudden flash of light came from, and saw Chanyeol holding his camera up front, focusing on him. “Chanyeol.” He called in a warning tone.
Yet Chanyeol only peeked from behind his camera and grinned. “What?”
“You’re distracting me.”
“So?”
“What do you mean so? I have to study.”
“You’ve been studying and ignoring me for three hours.” Chanyeol said, slowly lowering his camera.
Baekhyun only sighed. He doesn’t really know how to keep track of time so it didn’t bother him. “So you had to take a photo?”
“Because you love lights,” Chanyeol simply answered. “I don’t like it when you’re too engrossed at something that you forget about the world around you.”
And Baekhyun can never be thankful enough that Chanyeol is there to pull him back to the world he belongs in.)
He woke up at the sound of feet brushing violently on the ground beside the tent, twitching his ears and eventually sparking his curiosity. He opened his eyes, looked around and saw shadows outside the tent, shadows of two people violently grabbing on to each other. At first he wasn’t concerned since he couldn’t fathom what was happening until he heard a loud thud and saw one person getting punched on the jaw. It was clear even from inside the tent.
So he struggled immediately out of the tent, not even bothering to wear his flip flops, to try and stop the world from spinning. “Hey!” He shouted behind the person who got punched but he wasn’t heard as the person quickly got up and pounced on to the other, giving him a blow. “Hey! Stop!” He took a step in attempt to run in between them to stop the fight but a hand pushed him back and he saw Jongin and Jongup running towards the two hot-heads, restraining each of their arms and pulling them away from each other. Baekhyun just stared.
“Let go of me Jongin! I’m going to teach this bastard a lesson!” One of the two yelled.
“I would but I wouldn’t right now,” Jongin replied, struggling to keep the man in his hold.
Baekhyun was going to speak until he felt someone walking from behind him. He turned to see Jaekyung walking towards the four, her arms crossed and her face the least amused. After sensing Jaekyung’s presence, the two hot-heads fell into silence.
“Jaekyung-“ One of them started but was cut off when Jaekyung raised a hand.
“I don’t need any of your explanations,” Jaekyung said sternly. “Refusing to join the training and now fighting behind my back like this? Have you no sense of decency and sportsmanship? What is this?”
“He tried to poison me,” The other shot, glaring at the latter.
“So you thought fighting will solve everything? I have expected more from the both of you,” Jaekyung walked in between them, glancing at the two before saying her final decision. “Pack up your bags,”
“What?!” The two yelled in unison.
“You’re out of the team now,”
“What! You can’t do that!”
“Jaekyung!”
Jaekyung was already walking away when they were calling. Jongin and Jongup eventually let go of the two, feeling their frustrations hanging through the air. Baekhyun continued staring, trying to comprehend the events he had witnessed just now. He was so deep in thought until a hand on his shoulder snapped him back to reality. He turned to see Jongin. “Come on,”
“But-“ He didn’t know what to say after that so he stopped. “Okay,” And then he followed Jongin and Jongup somewhere.
--
The Amazing Spot Jongin kept blabbing about on the way wasn’t so amazing after all, according to Jongup. “It’s just a normal huge rock in the middle of the forest.”
“I told you. This place looks amazing-er at night.”
Jongup snorted, tried to say something to dodge but his gaze fell upon Baekhyun who was quietly bending down on the ground, playing with the stones. He turned to Jongin who was also staring at Baekhyun. He nudged the latter, gesturing for him to go talk to Baekhyun in which Jongin nudged back to push Jongup into doing it instead. In the end, they both ended up approaching the brunette.
“Hey,” Jongup called. “Are you okay?”
Baekhyun looked up, blinking. “Yeah,”
Jongup glared at Jongin this time. Jongin rolled his eyes before he started talking. “Uh, Baekhyun, what you saw back there…was completely normal for this team.”
“The fist fights?”
“Yeah,” The two nodded. “Someone will always sabotage the other. You’ll see more of it the longer you stay in the team. It’s always like this. Sometimes it’s even worse. That was just the start,”
“Eventually, you’ll see much worse than punching or poisoning. This team doesn’t really have any sportsmanship, teamwork, concern even. It’s obvious even to Jaekyung but she tries hard to build the group’s dynamic by doing this. Camping and outdoor activities and stuff,” Jongup continued.
“But it’s no use. Especially during the selection period. There is zero teamwork inside the team until the selection ends and the members of the official team are selected.” Jongin shrugged. “Jongup was hospitalized for a week before. He suffered from a broken neck,”
“I was riding my motorbike home when some bastard put a string at the middle of the road, of course who would see that, so I hit it and I flew over and poof.” Jongup sighed. “I couldn’t join in any competition because of that,”
Baekhyun gaped. “That’s horrible. Does Jaekyung know?”
“Jaekyung does not need to know,”
“What? Why? You can’t just let these things go on. She has to know or it won’t stop.”
“It will never stop. The point is, if you rat them out, you two gets the punishment. One, because of what the person did and two, because you let that person do that to you.”
“That’s crazy.”
“We know.” Jongin and Jongup said in unison.
Baekhyun fiddled with his hands for seconds before he thought of something appropriate to say. “I would never hurt you guys,”
The two men chuckled and ruffled his hair. “We know,”
[Part 3]
Pairing: Baekhyun/Chanyeol, hint!Kai/Baekhyun
Genre: Angst, Fluff
Word Count: 27k+
Summary: When Baekhyun breaks, everything else does. Or so he thinks.
“This is the part where you will have to lay down your pride because you will soon be one of us,” Jongin announced to Baekhyun. “You are finally going to be a man,”
They have arrived at the lake, and as much as Baekhyun wanted to love nature, the mud, the stones and the silence were just wasn’t his idea of a solitude.
“You’re going to be even tanner than tan,” Jongup joined in, resting his arm on Jongin’s shoulder with a proud smile.
“Yeah, well, if that’s what you want.” Baekhyun said wryly, still trying to get used to the environment.
“Wait, you aren’t bothered or anything?” Jongup asked, retracting his hand back and walking closer to Baekhyun.
“I got tan before but my color went back after a week or so,”
“What a very admirable explanation,” Jongin commented.
“Sucks having a flower boy on the team,” Jongup murmured and turned around to get his luggage.
“Uh, I’m sorry?”
Jongin just laughed at him and pulled him to where Jaekyung was yelling from. There was this mini stage set up just in front of side of the lake, and she was standing behind the podium. When Baekhyun noticed the mic but doesn’t see the wire, it came to him that there was no fucking electricity in this place.
Baekhyun was on the verge of panicking when he asked Jongin.
“Weren’t you there when Jaekyung was giving details or something?” Jongin asked, and suddenly there was the light bulb. “Oh, right, you were probably texting.”
“What…”
“Yeah, there’s no electricity here. We make our own fire, catch our own meals and whatever. We set up a tent and that’s where we sleep.”
“We didn’t come here to camp,” Baekhyun argued.
“It’s part of the training, though I really have no idea how it helps since I rarely listen.” Jongin shrugged.
“This is insane. How am I supposed to contact Chanyeol?”
“I’ll help you out later. Right now we have to follow them before Mr. Sue catches as slacking off.” Jongin pulled Baekhyun with him to the crowd, ignoring his disappointed sighs.
They arrived at this large space Baekhyun doesn’t know what it’s called but it’s large, the ground were filled with stones and there was the entrance to the lake in front. The lake wasn’t big, there was a huge hill surrounding them, rocks and trees blocking the water into further. The water was at peace, and Baekhyun was so caught up with observing the calmness of the water and the beautiful reflections of the sky on it when a sudden yell and a splash of water broke his concentration. He turned to the members who dived down for a dip and sighed to himself.
“Have to get used to that,” He turned around to see Jaekyung standing behind him, hands on hips, clothes consisted mostly of a tank top and jogging pants. She pulled a paper from her pocket and read. “Let’s see…Baekhyun, oh, you get to share a tent with Jongup.”
“Why?”
“Because I said so. Now go and set up your tent.” Jaekyung smirked at him as he goes.
Even though Jaekyung asked him to set up a tent and even though he looked like he was going to set up a tent, he didn’t know how to neither do what it was supposed to look like. So, at the moment he arrived, he sat on a log and watched as Jongup struggles to get the metal rods out of the box.
“Just because you have a fair skin, doesn’t mean you don’t get to set up the tent.”
“I don’t know how to set up a tent,”
“Oh good,” Jongup breathed. “Neither do I,”
--
(“This is why I told you to rest once in a while. Why are you so stubborn?” Chanyeol scolded, pressing his hands onto Baekhyun’s ankle as hard as he can. “What if I didn’t come in time? You would’ve died.”
Baekhyun bit his lip to suppress the pain. Earlier, he was practicing his freestyle when he suddenly felt his feet getting cramped. He lost his balance and was flailing his arms everywhere. He wanted to swim up but his feet were numb and he couldn’t even move them properly. He was panicking when he started to feel the water coming to his nose. If it wasn’t for Chanyeol who came just in time, who saw him drowning, who threw his camera bag on the side, who jumped on the water without taking his shirt off first, he really would’ve died. But Chanyeol came and that’s what matters.
“I’m sorry, Mine,” Baekhyun mumbled, brushing Chanyeol’s fringe to the side so he can see his face better. He looked so worried and Baekhyun suddenly felt stupid for not taking precautionary measures.
What would have happened if I really did die?)
Baekhyun snapped his eyes open and immediately pushed himself out of the water. He inhaled deeply while wiping the water off his face and saw Jongin staring down at him from the wooden bridge. “20 minutes.” Jongin said. “You did it again. Why do you always do that?”
Baekhyun grinned and started swimming slowly to the logs, head still above the water. “No particular reason. I just like the feeling of being under the water. You don’t feel anything but the water and you don’t hear anything other than the waves either. It makes me think a lot better.”
Jongin stood up, grabbed Baekhyun’s hand and pulled him up from the water. They were struggling at first until Baekhyun was able to grab hold to the wooden floor and positioned himself. “So, your record depends on how much you think or something?”
“No, silly,” Baekhyun laughed. He glanced back at the tents and saw their set up quite nicely. “I feel bad for not helping Jongup set up the tent.”
“Yeah, well, he feels bad for not helping Mr. Sue set up the tent.” Jongin replied, shrugging his shoulders. There was a splash coming from the other side, wetting them both, so he turned to the other members who were on duty to catch some fish for dinner with a glare. “Hey! Watch it!”
“Sorry, man!”
“Assholes.” Jongin mumbled.
--
This is the part where night time comes, and a big fire was set up at the middle, and they all sit in circles and their dinner are on the sticks, plunged on the ground, as they wait for the fire to cook it. This is the part that sucks because it’s bonfire time and bonfire time sucks.
“So, I am perfectly aware that there are more gays here than straight,” Jaekyung started, receiving dismantled groans from the members because well, who would want to be pointed out by a girl? It’s man pride, gays still have ‘em. And thou shall not underestimate the manliness of the gays. “And I don’t want to hear moans tonight. I have been strictly warning you for years now and if I still hear your fucking moans, I will suck all your dicks and you wouldn’t want that.”
And so it occurred to Baekhyun that they, as much as he didn’t want to admit it, are cruel. At the back of his mind, he’s yelling HELP ME CHANYEOL and then Chanyeol will magically appear out of nowhere, with his freaking Adonis body and say YOU CALLED, BABE, but then again, he is perfectly aware that telepathy doesn’t quite well work with him. Actually, it doesn’t work with people so what’s the point.
“Here you go, princess Baekhyun,” Jongup said, nudging him for attention. Baekhyn looked up and saw him offering one stick of fish. He smiled and gratefully took them. “Jongin told me to give you one,”
“Thanks,” And that implies to both of them. “Drop the princess though,” Because no, it’s not cool. The Fairy was alright, but princess? No. He had never imagined himself wearing a tiara.
“Sorry, habit,” Jongup mumbled while chewing. “There was this one guy in the team before, who was fair too and was blonde, who also doesn’t do any work. So I called him princess and he bolted.”
“I should’ve bolted,”
“Yeah, you should’ve,”
Baekhyun nodded. “Where’s Jongin, by the way?”
“At the forest. He doesn’t eat fish so he goes to hunt for prey.”
Baekhyun gave him a questioning look.
“Fruits, I mean,”
--
By the time midnight came was the time Jongin came back, and he doesn’t expect Jaekyung to be worried sick because he’s sure the coach wanted him dead more than she wanted bigger tits. He wasn’t lost though, he knew the woods quite well, but he found an amazing spot he called The Amazing Spot and just stayed there, staring at the moon, while munching grapes and bananas and etc. He lost track of time.
The fire was already out when he passed by, so as some of the lights inside the tent. He was biting his apple when he heard groans from behind the large leaves he doesn’t know what’s called. He walked closer, pushed the leaves away and saw Baekhyun imitating a scene from the lion king, except the lion was a phone. “Baekhyun?”
Baekhyun jolted in surprise. “Oh! Jongin! You scared me!”
“Sorry,” Jongin smiled sheepishly and approached him. “What are you doing here? At the middle of the night?”
“Trying to get some reception. I swear to God I won’t be able to sleep if I don’t contact Chanyeol.” Baekhyun replied, busily staring at his phone while lifting it up as high as he could, which isn’t that high, given his height.
Jongin sighed. Watching Baekhyun go through such extents, even breaking Jaekyung’s rule of no moaning because he is moaning at some point when he doesn’t groan, or sometimes he does both simultaneously. “There’s an internet café up the hill the bus passed by earlier.”
Baekhyun paused and blinked. “There’s a what?”
“An internet café,” Jongin repeated. “Only I and Jaekyung know about it. Actually, she doesn’t know I know. It’s just a 30 minute walk from here.”
Sometimes, Jongin hates how nice he is with people he likes-that goes without saying, that he’s being a martyr by being nice to people he likes that are in a relationship with someone who’s not him. So, he made up a rule some time ago to 1. Stop caring and 2. Shut up. He broke both rules at the same fucking moment and that’s bad.
Baekhyun squeals and yells and shrieks like a high school girl who lost her virginity to some guy who looks like someone who came out of a music video from a boy band with the same name as One Direction. Jongin imagined Baekhyun doing cartwheels at some point but there’s always a limit to things. Still, the cartwheel would’ve been fun.
“Can you take me there? Please! Please!”
Jongin plays a bit. “No! Be gone puppy eyes!”
“Jongin!”
“I’m kidding. Come on,” He tilted his head. “Adventure time!”
Baekhyun snarled. “So gay.”
“I tried.”
--
It’s not a 30 minute walk, Baekhyun noted, but a 35 minute walk. But who cares. They’re standing in front of a cabin, and the only one at the lane, so it’s quite amusing how this cabin has internet connection and reception but since the isolated lake has no electricity, Baekhyun’s phone only lasted at the 20th minute. It’s completely, utterly, sadly dead.
“Get ready to be amazed,” Jongin tells him and then he almost flips out when he opened the door, and revealed a new universe.
It’s like he actually went inside a black hole and ended up here at the-god is that a hot tub. Baekhyun freezes at the sound of the speakers, at the people dancing to Miley Cyrus’ Morning Sun, at the pole dancers, at the freaking hot tub at the corner, at the bar, at everything to be completely honest.
“Earth to Baekhyun?”
Well, at least that confirms he’s still on Earth.
“Where am I.”
Jongin laughed. “You’re so funny. I like your reaction.” Then he pulled him somewhere away from all the noise and the hot tub and the dancers and they go to some tunnel and the there’s a red door and then he opens and Baekhyun knows this is freaking Mars.
“This is the internet café,” Jongin intro-ed. “Also called, Red,”
“What a lovely segway to my next question-IS THIS MARS.”
“Yeah, the owner kinda has some inter-galactic fetish.”
“I can tell,” Baekhyun nodded. He turned to the sound of the door opening and revealed a guy who is possibly a Skrillex fan because the hair.
“Baekhyun, this is Jiyong, otherwise known as G-Dragon because he thinks it’s cool, the owner of this awesome place and Jiyong this is Baekhyun,”
Baekhyun didn’t even bother questioning why he didn’t have an awesome intro but oh well.
Jiyong, otherwise known as G-Dragon, smiled. “Yo wassup.”
“Uh,” Baekhyun croaked. “Nothing much.”
“Nothing much,” GD deadpanned and turned to Jongin.
“He’s still getting the hold of it.” Jongin reasoned. “Anyway, we can’t be long. He just needs some internet to contact his boyfreeeend.”
Baekhyun leaned in and whispered. “Not cool,” And then he added. “With the boyfriend and the accent,”
“Sorry,” Jongin chuckled and then turned to GD. “You get my point.”
“What point?” GD asked, raising an eyebrow.
“That your eyes are extremely beautiful,” Baekhyun interrupted. “Can you please enlighten us of the awesomeness of this place and grant me permission to operate the machine?”
Those are obviously word vomits.
“Hey, I like you,” GD laughed. “Yeah sure, use the internet to contact your boyfriend or what, it’s on me,”
Way to go, Professor Byun. Baekhyun thought to himself.
Jongin helped him, turned the computer for him, until Baekhyun argued that he is born in the 90’s and that he knows how to operate a computer. “It’s just that my laptop hasn’t arrived yet,” He elaborated. “So you always see me with my phone,”
“Yeah okay,” Jongin stood up. “I’ll be outside.”
“Why?”
“I’m going to smoke,”
“You smoke?”
“Yeah and I drink too. I’ll just be outside so if you need any help, just find me.”
--
“Look, Jeevee’s awake!” Chanyeol literally yelled, with an idiotic smile, while holding up Jeevee. Jeevee is their pet rabbit who does nothing but munch and stare at the floor all day. Baekhyun smiled, not because the whole screen was occupied with Chanyeol’s teeth and Jeevee’s furs but because they looked really stupid.
“Awww, I miss you guys,” Baekhyun crooned with a pout. “But I think Jeevee’s still asleep though,”
“What? He’s awake. Look,” Chanyeol then shoved Jeevee nearer to the camera. “His eyes are open,”
“I think it’s still closed,” Baekhyun argued. “Maybe it’s because it’s blurry,”
Chanyeol leaned closer to Jeevee. “Yeah, you’re right. I think he’s still asleep.” Baekhyun shook his head and giggled. “Anyway, Mine, how’s your training?”
“Nothing much. We just set up a tent today,”
“You set up a tent?!”
“Mine, you do know I don’t know how to,”
“So, like, are you sleeping outside? Mine, NOOOO-“
“My roommate set up the tent,” Baekhyun replied. “Or tentmate in this case,”
“SOMEONE GETS TO SHARE A TENT WITH YOU? WHO IS YOUR TENTMATE? Is it Kai? If it’s Kai, it’s okay since I’ll know what he’ll look like after I beat him up if he does something inappropriate to you but it’s not Kai, is it?”
“It’s not Kai.”
“I KNEW IT!”
Baekhyun sometimes wonders if Chanyeol is actually on drugs because how can someone still have this much energy at midnight.
“So, who is it?”
“His name’s Jongup. He’s Jongin’s friend.” Baekhyun replied. The next thing Chanyeol did almost made him burst out laughing if it wasn’t for that little bit of public decency inside his head. “Mine, you look really stupid squinting like that.”
“What? What’s wrong with me squintiiiiing?”
Baekhyun couldn’t hold it much longer and ended up laughing so loud, immediately apologizing for disturbing a few. “Seriously, Mine. You can’t even squint right. Just accept the fact that your eyes are huge.”
“Hey!” Chanyeol replied playfully. “I am offended.”
“What are you even doing…”
Chanyeol tried to squint again. “Are you sure this Jongup guy can be trusted?”
“Mine,” Baekhyun whined. He just couldn’t go through this again.
“Okay, I’m sorry! Just,” Chanyeol smiled at him. “Have fun, ok?”
“Okay.” Baekhyun smiled back, staring at Chanyeol’s auburn colored hair, the wet strands sticking on his temple, at Chanyeol’s ears, at his eyes and then his lips, trying to remember every bit of his Chanyeol today.
“Mine?”
“Hmm?” Baekhyun hummed.
“I love you,”
Baekhyun smiled. “I love you,”
--
Jongin leaned down on the railings of the forgotten balcony. He’s been to this cabin a lot of times now to remember some parts of it. Behind it was a balcony, kind of like a porch, an entrance. That was when he realized that this isn’t the back but the front. And then he wondered why the owner closed this entrance. After he lit up a cigarette, all he did was inhale, blow out, inhale, blow out, inhale and then blow out. He repeated this ritual for nearly 20 minutes, as if supplying an unending craving, trying to feel. The stars are out and the wind is cold against his skin. He had a lot of thoughts, mainly about himself. Even now, he isn’t sure, where to go from here. He can’t be Kai forever. He has to leave it and be someone else. He has to or he’s never going to die happy.
He threw the cigarette on the ground and then stepped on it. He was taking out another one from his pocket when the door cracked open. He looked up to see Baekhyun walking in with a satisfied face.
“Done already?”
“Still smoking?” Baekhyun need no reply from the latter as he snatches the cigarette and throws it out.
Jongin pouted. “Rude.”
“It’s bad for your health.”
“It’s not like I’m addicted to it.”
“Still bad for your health.”
Jongin thought there was absolutely no use arguing. He’s been to these conversations a lot of times to know how they usually end so he just side tracked. “How was it?”
“Great!” Baekhyun replied with a wide smile. “Have I told you about our pet rabbit?”
“You have a pet rabbit?”
“Yeah, his name’s Jeevee.” Baekhyun giggled. Too cute, if Jongin must say. “He’s still a baby though.”
“Cool. You won’t have any problem when Easter comes.”
Baekhyun hit him playfully. “Oh shut up.”
Jongin ruffled his hair while laughing. “Come on, let’s go back.”
“Okay.”
--
“Hey, do you want to play a game?” Baekhyun suggested out of nowhere, after he was done humming to an unfamiliar song and after Jongin was almost done counting the stars.
“Right now?”
“Uh-huh,” Baekhyun nodded. “It’s just a simple game. Yeol and I play this game a lot,”
“Okay. Shoot.”
Baekhyun chuckled before explaining. “We have to say something honest about each other for a minute.”
Jongin thinks the game screams suicide. “Only a minute?”
“Only a minute.” Baekhyun confirmed. Then he checked on his watch. “Okay, I’ll start. Hmm. Your hair looks really good today.”
“Thanks.” Baekhyun hit Jongin on the arm. “Oh-okay! Um…your eyes are really pretty. Like, the stars, they shine a lot.”
“Even though a lot of people say your skin is dark, I think it’s beautiful.”
“You might not find this surprising but during your first week, a lot of guys from the team said they have a crush on you.”
“I’m surprised.”
“You’re the only one with a skin like that. It’s like we look like burnt cookies while you’re the wheat bread that everybody loves.” Jongin explained, earning a laugh from Baekhyun.
“I appreciate the comparison,”
“Yeah well, that’s what they said,”
“How about you?”
“How about me what?”
Obviously Jongin said the magic words that, in turn, activated the suicide part of the game because the next thing he knew heard Baekhyun asking him, “Did you have a crush on me too?” Jongin ought not to answer but Baekhyu saw right through him. “We have 20 seconds left, Jongin.” The brunette mumbled, brushing his hands together due to the cold and then blew on them to feel warm.
“Is it cold?”
“Don’t change the subject. 10 seconds,” Baekhyun argued, sticking a tongue out.
So, Jongin held his hand. Baekhyun looked up at him, not confused, not surprised, it’s like he expected this. “Well,” Jongin started. “If you call this crush.”
Baekhyun chuckled. Jongin kind of expected Baekhyun to retract his hands so it came to him as a surprise when the brunette didn’t, instead, the brunette held his hand tighter. The warmth was not his own, but Baekhyun’s. He was like a ball of Sun, so white but so warm. “Thanks,” was all he can manage to say.
--
“Go wake him up!”
“What?”
“Hurry! Jaekyung’s going to throw a fit!”
Baekhyun shifted through the sheets, pulling the blanket to his head and groaned when a pair of hands pulled it back down. “Baekhyun!”
Baekhyun ignored the call and rolled over to the side. He heard the person groan and then the next thing he knew was that he was being shaken violently. “Baekhyun, seriously! Get up!”
But he doesn’t want to get up. No, not ever.
“You’re going to get us both in trouble! Get up!”
Baekhyun finally stopped ignoring and slowly sat up. “What…you’re too loud.” He murmured while scratching his arm and blinking his eyes. Jongup’s face was finally cleared.
“I’m too loud?” Jongup said sarcastically. “You’re going to be in big trouble. Go get dressed. Assembly down the lake. Hurry!”
“Okay, okay!”
--
“I want you all, all of you,” Jaekyung pressed while eyeing Jongin. “To catch fishes for this morning’s activity. And no, we are not going to use fishing rods, you’re going to use your own hands. You’re going to swim down there and catch as many fishes as you can. The member who gets to catch the most fish will the one to eat that barbecue Mr. Sue is cooking,”
They all turned to Mr. Sue whose face was covered by the smoke. Then their attention shifted to a certain brunette hair, almost tripping to the ground while running to the spot. They laughed in unison as Baekhyun makes his way towards them, hair disheveled, and eyes squinting because of the sunlight.
“As for you Baekhyun, you’re going to swim 5 laps with breast stroke as a punishment for being late.” Jaekyung shook her head. “Newbies. So troublesome.”
Baekhyun didn’t even hear half of it as he sits down at the back, yawning in the process. Jongin threw a look of concern over the brunette and made a mental note to explain to Jaekyung himself.
“Well then, get up and start fish hunting! Chop chop!”
Baekhyun groaned and buried his head between his arms. He just sat down and then they stand up. “Great.”
“Hey, you alright?”
Baekhyun looked up to the owner of the voice and found Jongin bending down to him, blocking the sunlight (thank god), with a worried face. Baekhyun nodded and smiled. “I guess.”
“What’s wrong? You didn’t drink last night, right?”
Baekhyun hit Jongin’s arm playfully. “You were there.”
“I was joking. Why do you look so sick though?”
“I just didn’t get enough sleep. I’m not used to staying up late like that.”
“Not even when talking to Chanyeol on the phone?”
“We talk enough during the day. We don’t need to stay up late just to talk on the phone.” Baekhyun elaborated, suddenly remembering the times he used to stay at the studio Chanyeol inherited from his grandfather, studying while Chanyeol works, and then sometimes they would just stay there and get lost in each other’s presence. It’s a beautiful memory.
“Okay, uh, just wait here.”
Before Baekhyun can even question, Jongin already ran away. He followed the younger with his eyes and saw him talking to Jaekyung, who, in return, scowled at him. Jongin didn’t even flinch a bit. He just kept on talking, like he was explaining something. Then after a few seconds, Jaekyung called Jongup who passed by them, holding a bottle of water, and told him something.
The next thing Baekhyun saw was Jongup walking to him, with one more bottle on hand. And that’s when he knew. “Jongin told Jaekyung,” Jongup said as soon as he stopped beside him.
“Yeah, I figured.”
Jongup sighed and then tilted his head. “Come on. Jaekyung said you can sleep in for the morning.”
“What about Jongin?” Baekhyun asked while standing up, brushing the dirt off his jogging pants in the process.
“He’s going to swim your laps instead.” Jongup replied nonchalantly and started walking. Baekhyun followed close behind him, still getting a hold of his lack of sleep. Everything, everything is so new to him, everything where Chanyeol is not involved. He had never lacked sleep like this before. So it scares him. The thought of changing scared him. He doesn’t want to change. He wants to be the same Baekhyun when he goes back home, when he goes back to Chanyeol. So he’ll try.
Although, at this point, resistance is futile.
He slid down to his sleeping bag, curling his body in response to the comfort it has given him.
“Hey, you can only sleep until noon, okay?” Jongup reminded him, although the concern doesn’t sound suffice.
Baekhyun nodded, eyes already closed, already on the verge of shutting everything down.
“I’ll come back and wake you up,” He doesn’t reply anymore when he heard Jongup’s footsteps walking away from the tent.
He thought of a lot of things while trying to shut his mind off the world. Of all the things, he thought about the world, of how it spins while he’s connected to the ground now, of how the world gets to carry a billion of people, of how the world managed to make two people meet, two out of a billion, and then eventually end up loving each other. It was insane. But the thought was beautiful.
--
(Baekhyun turned his head to the side, where the sudden flash of light came from, and saw Chanyeol holding his camera up front, focusing on him. “Chanyeol.” He called in a warning tone.
Yet Chanyeol only peeked from behind his camera and grinned. “What?”
“You’re distracting me.”
“So?”
“What do you mean so? I have to study.”
“You’ve been studying and ignoring me for three hours.” Chanyeol said, slowly lowering his camera.
Baekhyun only sighed. He doesn’t really know how to keep track of time so it didn’t bother him. “So you had to take a photo?”
“Because you love lights,” Chanyeol simply answered. “I don’t like it when you’re too engrossed at something that you forget about the world around you.”
And Baekhyun can never be thankful enough that Chanyeol is there to pull him back to the world he belongs in.)
He woke up at the sound of feet brushing violently on the ground beside the tent, twitching his ears and eventually sparking his curiosity. He opened his eyes, looked around and saw shadows outside the tent, shadows of two people violently grabbing on to each other. At first he wasn’t concerned since he couldn’t fathom what was happening until he heard a loud thud and saw one person getting punched on the jaw. It was clear even from inside the tent.
So he struggled immediately out of the tent, not even bothering to wear his flip flops, to try and stop the world from spinning. “Hey!” He shouted behind the person who got punched but he wasn’t heard as the person quickly got up and pounced on to the other, giving him a blow. “Hey! Stop!” He took a step in attempt to run in between them to stop the fight but a hand pushed him back and he saw Jongin and Jongup running towards the two hot-heads, restraining each of their arms and pulling them away from each other. Baekhyun just stared.
“Let go of me Jongin! I’m going to teach this bastard a lesson!” One of the two yelled.
“I would but I wouldn’t right now,” Jongin replied, struggling to keep the man in his hold.
Baekhyun was going to speak until he felt someone walking from behind him. He turned to see Jaekyung walking towards the four, her arms crossed and her face the least amused. After sensing Jaekyung’s presence, the two hot-heads fell into silence.
“Jaekyung-“ One of them started but was cut off when Jaekyung raised a hand.
“I don’t need any of your explanations,” Jaekyung said sternly. “Refusing to join the training and now fighting behind my back like this? Have you no sense of decency and sportsmanship? What is this?”
“He tried to poison me,” The other shot, glaring at the latter.
“So you thought fighting will solve everything? I have expected more from the both of you,” Jaekyung walked in between them, glancing at the two before saying her final decision. “Pack up your bags,”
“What?!” The two yelled in unison.
“You’re out of the team now,”
“What! You can’t do that!”
“Jaekyung!”
Jaekyung was already walking away when they were calling. Jongin and Jongup eventually let go of the two, feeling their frustrations hanging through the air. Baekhyun continued staring, trying to comprehend the events he had witnessed just now. He was so deep in thought until a hand on his shoulder snapped him back to reality. He turned to see Jongin. “Come on,”
“But-“ He didn’t know what to say after that so he stopped. “Okay,” And then he followed Jongin and Jongup somewhere.
--
The Amazing Spot Jongin kept blabbing about on the way wasn’t so amazing after all, according to Jongup. “It’s just a normal huge rock in the middle of the forest.”
“I told you. This place looks amazing-er at night.”
Jongup snorted, tried to say something to dodge but his gaze fell upon Baekhyun who was quietly bending down on the ground, playing with the stones. He turned to Jongin who was also staring at Baekhyun. He nudged the latter, gesturing for him to go talk to Baekhyun in which Jongin nudged back to push Jongup into doing it instead. In the end, they both ended up approaching the brunette.
“Hey,” Jongup called. “Are you okay?”
Baekhyun looked up, blinking. “Yeah,”
Jongup glared at Jongin this time. Jongin rolled his eyes before he started talking. “Uh, Baekhyun, what you saw back there…was completely normal for this team.”
“The fist fights?”
“Yeah,” The two nodded. “Someone will always sabotage the other. You’ll see more of it the longer you stay in the team. It’s always like this. Sometimes it’s even worse. That was just the start,”
“Eventually, you’ll see much worse than punching or poisoning. This team doesn’t really have any sportsmanship, teamwork, concern even. It’s obvious even to Jaekyung but she tries hard to build the group’s dynamic by doing this. Camping and outdoor activities and stuff,” Jongup continued.
“But it’s no use. Especially during the selection period. There is zero teamwork inside the team until the selection ends and the members of the official team are selected.” Jongin shrugged. “Jongup was hospitalized for a week before. He suffered from a broken neck,”
“I was riding my motorbike home when some bastard put a string at the middle of the road, of course who would see that, so I hit it and I flew over and poof.” Jongup sighed. “I couldn’t join in any competition because of that,”
Baekhyun gaped. “That’s horrible. Does Jaekyung know?”
“Jaekyung does not need to know,”
“What? Why? You can’t just let these things go on. She has to know or it won’t stop.”
“It will never stop. The point is, if you rat them out, you two gets the punishment. One, because of what the person did and two, because you let that person do that to you.”
“That’s crazy.”
“We know.” Jongin and Jongup said in unison.
Baekhyun fiddled with his hands for seconds before he thought of something appropriate to say. “I would never hurt you guys,”
The two men chuckled and ruffled his hair. “We know,”
[Part 3]