The next morning, Myungsoo woke up early, making his way over to Hyuk. The young man was still sleeping, jumping when Myungsoo touched him on the arm. Myungsoo smiled at him, holding a finger up to his own lips. "Good morning! I'm sorry to wake you up, but I was hoping I could talk to you for a moment. We can go gather some wood or something."

Hyuk glanced around, standing up with a yawn. "Okay. Let's go."

"Cool," Myungsoo smiled at him, glancing at Sungjong. The pretty young was sleeping soundly, curled up on Myungsoo's pillow that he had won weeks before. When he turned back to Hyuk, he wanted to smack himself when he noticed the younger man smirking at him. That had been a dead giveaway. "Let's go," he shook his head, rolling his eyes. That had been a mistake, but he hoped that embarrassment was the worst thing to come our of it.

Hyuk still looked amused, shaking his head. "Let's get out of here before anyone else wakes up," he whispered, pulling his shoes on. From the other man's reaction, Myungsoo knew he was safe. At least for the moment.

They headed toward the trees, paying close attention to the fruit they might find. They were in luck when they spotted a several mangos in the trees, walking over to begin gathering them. Both being tall, they were able to reach them easily, dropping them into their bag. Once they had a good amount, Myungsoo tied it off and turned to Hyuk.

"Let's take a break for a moment, okay?" Myungsoo kept one of the mangos out, pulling out his pocket knife and peeling it. Handing a piece of it to Hyuk, he took a slice of it himself and chewing it thoughtfully. "How do you feel about the Merge, so far?"

Hyuk shook his head, frowning. "It's tough being away from a lot of people I had built relationships with, but this is a good opportunity."

Myungsoo sighed, the action turning into yawn. He wasn't a morning person, at all. "I agree with that. I guess I'm fortunate that I know a lot of the people that made it to the Merge. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. How do you feel about Chansung?" He watched the younger man's face, gauging his reaction.

"I was surprised when he chose me to share in his reward," he rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "I ate much more of it than I should have, unfortunately. It was good, though!"

Myungsoo laughed, nodding. "Yeah. I think any of us would compromise to get a chance to eat," he watched the other man for a moment before continuing, weighing his words. "You know, yesterday Chansung and his buddies were making fun of you when you got sick," he winced. "I didn't want to tell you before, since it might upset you. I just couldn't take it anymore, knowing how they are. They'll turn on you, but I won't. That's why I wanted to talk to you now."

"I see. So you want me as an ally," Hyuk picked up the mango skins and began cutting them into small pieces. "I'd be up for that, especially since I can see what you mean. A lot of people seem to be intimidated by Chansung and Minjun. I don't know which one is more dangerous, but if you say they're not trustworthy, I'll believe you."

Myungsoo smiled at him. "Cool. Just don't tell them anything. I have a plan."

Hyuk nodded, standing up. "Well, I guess we should get back before too many people wake up. We'll stick together, okay?"

"Yeah. Let's do that," Myungsoo thought for a moment, shaking his head. "I'