Author’s POV

Friday morning; 1pm.

Baekhyun’s eyes slowly fluttered open, taking in his surroundings; his mind was blurry from the previous night.

While drowsily rubbing his eyes, he tried to sit up but a heavy weight held him down.

Confusedly he looked at his lap; the sight made his eyes widen and he couldn’t help but blush.

Chanyeol was fast asleep on his lap; his arms crossed under his head. He sat in a chair fairly close to the bed.

At that moment Chanyeol looked so peaceful; without even realizing, Baekhyun broke into a smile as he slowly reached out his left hand and started caressing Chanyeol’s hair.

It felt so soft under his touch.

Baekhyun didn’t know why but seeing Chanyeol’s sleeping face made him feel all warm inside.

He had never seen that side of him before; it was like a whole new Chanyeol. He seemed untroubled and had a small smile as he wandered through dreamland.

Chanyeol stirred a bit under Baekhyun’s touch which made the latter chuckle and retract his hand.

Baekhyun averted his gaze to the window; the sky was a harsh blue and no clouds could be seen.

He must have been zoning out for a good while since the next time he looked away from the window, he realized Luhan had come in the room.

Baekhyun’s face was plastered with a big smile.

“Lu!,” whisper-yelled Baekhyun.

“Hey”, said Luhan as he took a seat next to Baekhyun, his eyes not meeting the latter’s.

Baekhyun’s smile was replaced with a frown before asking, “What’s wrong?”

“I want to apologize Baek..,”said Luhan, not once looking up.

“About what?,” asked Baekhyun while tilting his head to the side.

Luhan looked up.

“For being a bad friend; I didn’t realize you were feeling ill and still had the decency to play around with you when I should’ve just told you everything and then you ended up passing out because of me and I tried to carry you but I-I,” said Luhan as tears threatened to spill.

He looked away as he tried to clear his throat.

“Lu, shhh, don’t cry. It’s not your fault. I’m not blaming you for anything! I appreciate the fact that you were there and tried to help me. That’s the meaning of friendship, so don’t feel bad okay?,” said Baekhyun with a reassuring smile as he lifted Luhan’s chin so he could wipe away the tears that ran down Luhan’s cheeks.

Luhan slowly nodded as more tears rolled down his face; he engulfed Baekhyun in a tight embrace, careful not to wake Chanyeol.

“I was so scared Baek.. I thought I killed you or something..”, admitted Luhan.

Baekhyun gave Luhan a squeeze which then made him yelp in pain; his (right) wrist unexpectedly started throbbing.

Luhan worriedly pulled away as he urgently asked what was wrong.

Baekhyun examined his wrist and noticed that it had been wrapped; Luhan averted his eyes to where Baekhyun had been looking.

“Oh, umm you got bit by a spider.. That’s what caused you to be so sick,” said Luhan.

Baekhyun silently nodded; he had opened his mouth to speak when he felt a weight on his legs lift; he looked to the side and saw Chanyeol rubbing his eyes; his hair was messy and his clothes were wrinkled from his sleeping position.

He looked like a mess; a hot mess.

Once all the dirt was gone from his eyes, Chanyeol took in his surroundings and found himself the center of attention of two petite boys in front of him; he cleared his throat and made an attempt to get up before he was stopped by a hand; he looked at Baekhyun and what came next made him freeze.

Baekhyun had leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek.

Baekhyun pulled away, leaving the warmth of his lips on Chanyeol’s skin, making the latter’s face turn a rosy pink.

Chanyeol cleared his throat once again and pulled his hand away from Baekhyun’s hold before leaving the room.

Baekhyun smiled to himself before turning to look at a stunned Luhan; he waved his hand in front of his best friend and it took a couple of seconds for the latter to react.

“Baek, d-did I-I see right? D-Did you and C-Chanyeol kiss??? A-And did he blush????”

“Yeah, why?”

“Baek, Chanyeol doesn’t blush”.
 

……..

Kyungsoo silently sipped his tea as he wiggled his toes under water; it felt nice outside, it wasn’t too cold or too hot.

“How can you sit so peacefully, knowing the things you’ve done are wrong?”, said a voice behind him, startling him.

Kyungsoo turned to find Krystal standing over him with her arms crossed; he frowned before saying, “What do you mean?”

Krystal scoffed before taking a seat in one of the beach chairs.

“You don’t know? Shall I explain then?”, she said sarcastically.

Kyungsoo simply stared; he set his mug down next to him and turned his body sideways so he could face her better.

“Look, I’m sure you know by now that I like Kai. And if you don’t, then now you do,” paused Krystal, “I know the things you guys have done. I saw you guys kiss yesterday. I just wonder what he sees in you, you know? I mean, I look at you and I don’t see anything outstanding”.

“I’m sorry? I don’t understand what you’re trying to say”, said Kyungsoo with confusion.

“I don’t want you near him. You are ruining all my efforts! It took me so long to make him notice me and make him trust me and after I finally achieved all that, you came in and spoiled everything! He knows how I feel about him yet he still chooses you, after everything I’ve done for him. I’ve given up so many things just to be with him but my efforts still go unnoticed by him. This is why I don’t want you to get in between us. Leave him alone”, finished Krystal, her voice quivering with anger.

Kyungsoo felt something break in him; he carefully thought of what to say before standing up.

“So you like him, that makes two of us. I’m not gonna deny the fact that hearing this makes my heart hurt but I still want to say that you have no right to tell me what I should and shouldn’t do. I understand that you feel insecure about all your efforts, but you shouldn’t play dirty. I’ve had feelings for him for so long and you telling me to stop talking to him won’t change how I feel about him. What you saw is something that I just cannot explain and no, I didn’t get between you guys, you’re just assuming that I did. You guys aren’t together, otherwise he would be faithful to you. There is nothing between me and him; we’ve kissed twice but in those times, not once has he said that he likes me or has feelings for me, therefore he hasn’t picked me over you. I’m not even sure he’s gay, so I doubt anything will ever happen between us before he clears that out,” said Kyungsoo with a heavy heart.

By the time Kyungsoo had finished talking, Krystal was seething with rage; she abruptly stood up and said, “You have no right to be feeling this way towards him! He isn’t gay and he never will be! He’s mine and that’s how it’s always going to be! You shouldn’t meddle in other people’s business. I’m telling you, back off before something happens. Don’t say I didn’t warn you”.

Krystal sized Kyungsoo before turning to leave; Kyungsoo’s voice stopped her from taking another step.

“He’s not yours. And with that attitude, he’ll never-”

SPLASH!

……..

Xiumin silently sat at the kitchen table, takings sips from a cup every few minutes. He kept looking out the window, his mind replaying his kiss with Chen like a broken record. He had avoided the latter all morning, knowing if he did face him, he would be confronted about his confession.

Xiumin reached out for his cup and took a big sip this time, leading to him finish off his drink; he pushed his chair back and stood up, walking into the kitchen to pour himself some more juice.

He opened the fridge to pull out the juice jug and after he closed the refrigerator door, he let out a very unmanly scream and dropped the jug, causing juice to splash all over the floor.

Xiumin was clutching his heart for dear life; there in front of him stood Chen.

The latter spoke; “Oh god, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to scare you!”

Xiumin breathed heavily and waved a hand before walking away and returning seconds later with a broom and a mop.

He squatted down to pick up whatever was left of the jug before he was grabbed by the arm and pulled back up.

“I’ll do it. It was my fault anyways”, said Chen before bending down and putting the big pieces of glass in the dustpan.

Xiumin, not sure of what to do, decided to help.

They were both now at eye level, each one picking up broken pieces of glass.

Xiumin’s hands were by now shaking nervously; he hoped they went unnoticed.

He picked up a piece of glass but his hands were uncontrollably sweaty which caused the glass to slip out of his hands, cutting him in the process.

“Oh my god! Min!, Are you okay?? Does it hurt?,” asked Chen worriedly as he took hold of Xiumin’s hand, examining the cut.

Xiumin’s face went mad red and he slowly retracted his hand from Chen’s hold; he gulped and stood up before saying he was fine.

Chen stood up too; “I’ll get the first aid kit, wait here”, he said before he left.

He came back a few minutes later only to find the kitchen empty.

“Ugh, I told him to stay here…”

……..

Tao stood outside, his phone pressed tightly against his ear, trying to make out what the other person was saying.

“Hello? I can’t hear you! Hello? Wiz?”

“I’m- visit- week- want- see- you”.

“Wiz? What did you say? What about next week?!”

“Just give up”, said a voice.  

Tao turned to find Kris standing behind him with an amused smile and his arms crossed.

“I can’t. I barely hear from him since he’s always so busy. If I could just get some service…”, said Tao with a pout.

“Good luck with that,” said Kris with a chuckle before taking a seat on the front steps.

“Hello? Wiz?? Can you repeat yourself??”, asked Tao as he put the caller on speaker and used the lion king style to try and get some service; still didn’t work.

“Who is he anyways?”

Tao turned to look back at Kris; “He’s a friend; I’ve known him for about 5 years”.

“Oh, I see”, said Kris thoughtfully.

Tao hummed in response as he took his friend off speaker and pressed the phone to his ear one more time.

“I’ll- next week”, was all Tao heard before the line went dead.

Tao pouted once again and put his phone away as he went to take a seat next to Kris.

“From what I could get, I think he might be coming”.

“Really?”, asked Kris while pulling out his own phone to play some games.

“Yeah, but I’m not sure. I’d have to check when we get back”.

“Yeah.. probably..”, said Kris as he tapped away on his phone.

“What game are you playing?”, asked Tao as he looked over Kris’ shoulder and down at the latter’s phone.

“Flappy bird”.

“I can’t stand that game! I always lose..”, admitted Tao as he looked away from the phone with a pout.

Kris chuckled and shoved his phone back in his pocket after accidentally hitting one of the pipes; he reached out and squeezed Tao’s right cheek.

“Aww, you’re so cute when you pout”, cooed Kris.

Tao’s cheeks turned red and he pushed Kris’ hand before standing up and walking away, leaving Kris to laugh his off.

Kai walked out of the house and found Kris sitting on the front steps laughing at something; what?, he didn’t know.

“Hey Kris? Have you seen Kyungsoo today?”, asked Kai as he approached Kris from behind.

Kris stopped laughing and caught his breath; “Umm, the only time I saw him was this morning at breakfast. I haven’t seen him since then”.

“Oh, well thank you”, said Kai before smiling and running down the steps and towards the back of the house.

Where could he have gone?

Kai stopped running to catch his breath; he doubled over as he observed his surroundings, looking for any signs of Kyungsoo.

The pounding in his ears made it hard for him to hear anything; he had been looking for Kyungsoo for a while now; no one knew where he was.

After his breathing became steady, Kai decided to keep looking; he walked up until the dock came into view.

He squinted his eyes and he could see water splashing every where; something inside him broke.

Kai ran towards the dock, his footsteps heavy.

The closer he got, the more clearly he could make out some arms flailing up in the air hopelessly.

He ran down the slanted dirt path and onto the dock; without thinking he dived into the water and swam towards the now lifeless body.

It was indeed Kyungsoo.

Kai felt pain weigh down his heart as he pulled Kyungsoo into his arms and out of the water.

Now laying on the dock, Kyungsoo’s body looked so frail.

Kai kneeled down next to him and without a thought started performing CPR on Kyungsoo.

He would press down on his chest before putting his lips on Kyungsoo’s and blowing air into him like a balloon.

Nothing.

Kai kept trying and his eyes were now letting tears roll down his face as he attempted to get the water out of Kyungsoo yet again.

Kai was so hopeless but he kept trying.

He didn't get a reaction until after he performed CPR for the 8th time.

Kyungsoo jerked up and started spilling water from his mouth like a waterfall. He kept coughing and his body shook.

Kai thanked the heavens as he engulfed Kyungsoo in a tight embrace; he held onto him for dear life.

Once all the water was out of his system, Kyungsoo couldn’t help but cry; he was scared.

He had never been so scared in his life; this wasn't the first time he had drowned but it had definitely been the longest he had been in water, drowning; the water filling up his insides.

“Shh.. it’s okay baby.. It’s okay, I’m right here… No need to cry..”, said Kai as relief washed over him.

Kyungsoo felt safe in Kai’s arms; it wasn’t the type of feeling you get when you have a nightmare and your mother comes to your rescue; it was type of feeling one feels when they are in love.

……..
 

After helping Baekhyun to the bathroom and then taking him to rest some more, Luhan made his way to the room he had slept in the night before.

He walked in and went to lay down; he was exhausted and just felt like sleeping for the rest of his life.

He closed his eyes and the first image that came into his mind was Sehun smiling brightly at him; he couldn’t help but smile back at the imaginary Sehun.

Or so he thought it was imaginary.

“I hope it’s me you’re thinking about”, said a voice, breaking Luhan from his entrance.

Luhan opened his eyes and smiled even more brightly before hiding his face in his hands; he knew was blushing so he tried to stop Sehun from seeing his tomato red face.

But it had already been too late.

Sehun chuckled and went to lay down next to Luhan; he whispered in the latter’s ear, “You don’t need to hide your beautiful face, I think that rosy pink fits you”.

Luhan pulled his hands away from his face and pouted before punching Sehun lightly on the chest.

Sehun flashed a smile and wrapped his arm around Luhan’s torso.

At Sehun’s touch, Luhan felt his tummy go haywire; he didn’t feel butterflies, he felt the zoo.

Luhan turned his body sideways so he could be face to face with Sehun; they both stared into each other’s eyes, their lips merely inches apart.

“I was worried about you yesterday. I was so glad when I heard your voice. I don’t know what-”

Luhan didn’t want to hear more, he just wanted Sehun to kiss him but the latter was taking too long so he took the initiative.

Sehun was taken aback but nonetheless he kissed Luhan back; it wasn’t sloppy or dirty.

It showed their affection for each other.

Sehun pulled away first and kissed Luhan’s forehead.

Luhan nuzzled his head on the crook of Sehun’s neck and took in Sehun’s scent; he soon after drifted off to sleep.

…….

The next time Baekhyun awoke, it was already 5pm.

The sun was starting to set outside and the temperature was dropping.

Baekhyun sat up and this time found himself completely alone in the room; there was no Chanyeol sleeping soundly next to him and that disappointed him a bit.

He soon brushed it off, though, and calmly got out of bed; when he stood up, he thought his knees would give out any second; he felt weak as he hadn’t eaten anything all day.

Slowly he walked to the door and turned the knob; he opened the door and found himself in front of Chanyeol, who looked stunned as both his hands held a tray with food and some medicine.

“Oh, I figured you were hungry so I brought you some food”, said Chanyeol, his deep voice echoing down the hall.

Baekhyun smiled gratefully and stepped aside to let Chanyeol in; Chanyeol walked over to the nightstand and set the tray down.

Baekhyun closed the door behind him and went to sit on the bed.

“Thank you”, said Baekhyun as he eyed Chanyeol who was fumbling with the pill bottles which he guessed were painkillers.

Chanyeol simply nodded before he turned to Baekhyun and handed him the pills and a cup of water.

“Take these, it will help. I’m sure your hand feels sore and your head like it’s about to fall off”, he said before taking a seat in the chair he had slept in the previous night.

Baekhyun obediently did as told.

“You should eat before it gets cold”, said Chanyeol as he pulled out his phone and crossed his leg.

“You won’t eat?”, asked Baekhyun cutely as he reached for the spoon and the bowl of rice porridge, eyeing Chanyeol as he blew a spoonful before placing it in his mouth.

“I ate earlier. Besides, I’m not the one that’s sick”, said Chanyeol matter of factly as he tapped away on his phone.

Baekhyun nodded understandingly and continued to eat in silence; he only ate half the bowl before he got full.

Chanyeol looked up when he heard the clattering of the spoon and dish.

“At least you ate something”, said Chanyeol before putting his phone on the nightstand and standing up; he picked up the tray and made his way to the door; before he left he said he would be returning shortly.

While Chanyeol was gone, Baekhyun got in a half-lying position and stared up at the ceiling; the thought of Chanyeol made him blush.

Do I like him? It doesn’t matter if I do; thinking about him makes me happy.

Baekhyun was too lost in thought to realize Chanyeol had come back; he finally registered the latter’s presence when he heard him clear his throat.

“What has you spacing out?”, asked Chanyeol, even though there was no sign of curiosity in his voice.

Baekhyun shyly smiled and replied, “Not much”.

“If you say so.”

“Mhmm.. Chanyeol?”

“Yeah?”, asked Chanyeol thoughtlessly.

“Thank you for coming to find me last night. I know you’re not very fond of me-”

“I only did it because I knew you were hurt”, said Chanyeol as he looked at Baekhyun in the eyes.

Baekhyun frowned.

“You knew? How?”

“There was a spider in the house last night before Sehun and I went looking for you guys; I simply connected the dots”.

“Ah, I see”, said Baekhyun as he nodded understandingly.

Chanyeol averted his attention back to his phone.

The room became quiet again; it didn’t really bother Baekhyun, he just wished Chanyeol was more talkative with him.

Baekhyun nervously bit his bottom lip, not knowing what else to say to continue the conversation.

Chanyeol noticed this.

“Is something wrong?”, he asked.

“No, not really.. I just..”

“You just what?”

“I don’t know. I kind of wish for us to keep making progress. I don’t want for it to end here”, admitted Baekhyun shyly.

“What exactly are you trying to say?”, asked Chanyeol with furrowed brows.

“I know you don’t really like me and the fact that you’ve been taking care of me… I feel like you don’t hate me as much and I kind of wish we became friends and-”

The whole world stopped.

Nothing seemed real.

Baekhyun’s eyes widened and he felt his heart stop; his tummy hurt as if a stampede of elephants was marching on his rib cage, in a good way.

Chanyeol was actually kissing him.

Chanyeol, on the other hand, felt something deep inside him burn; his face and ears became hot as he brushed his lips against Baekhyun’s.

He reached out his hand and cupped Baekhyun’s face as he kept kissing those addicting lips.

Baekhyun finally realized what was going on and instinctively closed his eyes as his hands went to Chanyeol’s hair.

Chanyeol literally felt blood course through his veins.

He had never felt like this before while kissing someone; what made him want to kiss Baekhyun when he had refused to kiss anyone he had slept with? Baekhyun, who was some random guy who had come to his school less than two months ago.

By this point, Chanyeol had started on Baekhyun’s bottom lip; now both his hands were cupping Baekhyun’s face; he was currently sitting in an awkward position at the edge of the bed.

Baekhyun kept rummaging his hands in Chanyeol’s dark locks; what was this passion he felt inside him?

It was getting hot in the room and Chanyeol just wanted to keep kissing Baekhyun until his lips bruised but he knew better; it took Chanyeol a lot of strength for him to pull away.

They were both panting, trying to catch their breaths.

Chanyeol steadied his breathing and said, “Is this progress enough?,” before standing up and leaving the room.

……..

That night.

All the students, including Baekhyun who now felt a lot better, sat in the living room.

Some were sitting on the floor, others in other people’s laps.

“So guys, I must say, this has been the craziest trip of my life. One student got bit by a spider, another drowned, one sprained his ankle, someone else cut their hand. Where the hell have I been?”, asked Mr. Yang with a scoff.

Some students chuckled.

“I must apologize. Mr. Yang and I have been a bit careless during this trip and we’ve only been here two days”, said Mr. Park.

“It’s okay, really. We’ve had fun so far. It’s not your fault. There’s too many of us and it must be hard for you”, said Joonmyeon as he looked around for approval of his words.

The students nodded in response.

“Yeah, now I can brag and say I had a near death experience,” said Baekhyun before laughing.

Everyone laughed; everyone but Chanyeol.

“I’m glad you guys are at least not upset and can make jokes about it”, said Mr. Yang.

They all kept talking but Chen tuned them out after a while; he averted his eyes to Xiumin and was glad to see the latter’s hand wrapped.

Xiumin felt a pair of eyes on him and when he looked up, he found Chen staring intently at him; he quickly looked away and tried to control his anxious breathing.

Don’t do this to me Jongdae, I don’t want to like you.