Yoona never did understand why Yuri was so adamant about the healthy living crap she spouted nearly every day. She didn’t start off like that. No. Yoona remembered clearly of a time when her precious Yuri unnie would happily devour plate upon plate of pizza, chips, fries and ramyun with the rest of the group. Not giving a flying crap if the meal was full of MSG or not. She remembered even having that unspoken rule: No one was allowed to leave until every single morsel was cleared off the table. Not that that ever became a problem. They would even fight for the last piece with the gusto of starving Vikings.

And then, she wondered, why was it that recently, people were quick to point out things that were “unhealthy”, or as Seohyun would put it eloquently “junk food”. Then things like gluten-free, wheat-free and vegan that began cropping up, and Yoona had absolutely no idea what those things were. What happened to sitting down, ordering food and simply enjoying the meal?

Using her fork, she toyed with the colourful mash of random vegetables on her plate, humorously noting the lack of a certain long, green vegetable that would make her Jessica unnie scream bloody murder in a pitch that could land her a starring role in a disaster movie.

She flipped the large cut of tomato, plunging the tips of her fork onto the gooey substance that held its seeds in between. Who cuts tomatoes that large? For a salad! She took a surreptitious glance at her Tiffany unnie. Yoona recalled seeing her with Sunny while the latter was making the preparations for the salad. Forever the helpful friend, Tiffany most likely had offered to help. And now she had completely ignored the end result and instead hovered over Hyoyeon, who was currently tinkering with the BBQ grill.

“Yoona unnie, please don’t play with your food.” Seohyun quipped, turning to another page of the thick novel she was reading. Yoona turned to pout at the girl, stabbing the pile of vegetable with her fork. She made sure to make as much noise as possible to try and get a response from the strict maknae. Seohyun, completely ignoring her, took a calming sip of her tall, cool glass of lemonade. Her eyes never left the words on the yellowing pages.

How fun.

Bored out of her wits, Yoona shoved a forkful of salad in . Who cares how she looked, cheeks puffed, bits of green sticking out of and salad sauce dribbling down her chin. Definitely not her.

Was salad even an appetizer? Or was it a side? Some people turned them into the main dish. It wasn’t even that fulfilling. Tasty? With the right sauce, sure. But fulfilling? A bucket of chicken wings were fulfilling, and it costs just about the same amount as the salad. Which reminds her, did Sooyoung manage to sneak an order for them? She said she had it covered.

Then again, a minute afterwards, Taeyeon went and confiscated all their phones, saying something about needing to take time away from zombie-inducing gadgets, whatever that meant. Sunny was not pleased at having her ds confiscated. She had nearly throttled poor Taeyeon if Hyoyeon and Sooyoung hadn’t held her back by her arms and literally dragged her off to the kitchen. Jessica, the one Yoona thought was most likely to object to the demand, had merely dumped her phone into the plastic bag and curled up on a pool chair for a nap. She hadn’t moved from it since.

A forceful push under her chin had Yoona snapping out of her thoughts. Instinctively, her hands flew to her face, fingers wrapping around the rough fabric sticking to her chin. She pulled her hand back, staring blankly at the stained tissue paper, then to the person settling down the chair beside her.

“Don’t you know how to eat properly?” Sooyoung stabbed a tomato from Yoona’s plate with her own fork. She brought it up to her eyes to examine, raising a questioning brow.

“Fany unnie.” Yoona offered, through a full mouth, tilting her head towards the general direction of the happy mushroom.

“Ah.” Sooyoung popped the extra large slice of tomato in . Unlike Yoona she was careful to not look like a slob while eating.

“Did you get the chicken?” Yoona asked as soon as she swallowed her meal. She didn’t want to hear another reprimand from either Sooyoung or Seohyun.

“Am I not the great Choi Sooyoung?” Sooyoung grinned. Yoona resisted rolling her eyes.

“So when are they coming? I’m starving and I don’t think Hyo and Fany unnie actually knows what they’re doing.”

“Do I look like the delivery boy?” Sooyoung sniffed. “Relax, it’ll come. Besides, Yuri, Taengoo and Sunny are making spaghetti in the kitchen. We’ll be stuffed in no time.” She looked over her shoulder to the two girls tinkering with the grill. “Haven’t they got the grill lit yet?”

“I don’t think they know how.”

“Don’t you just throw in the coal and light a match?”

“Don’t ask me. I’ve never started a fire out of the stove top.” They both exchanged looks.

“How hard can it be?”

“Unnie, you said the same thing about pottery.”

“How was I supposed to know the clay could fly off the wheel?! Those should come with instructions, or warnings.”

“This picnic is a bust.” Yoona groaned, placing her chin on the wooden surface of the table. Her eyes lazily trailed over to the silent Seohyun. “I don’t suppose you know how to start a fire, Maknae?”

Seohyun lifted her head from the book. She looked at Yoona then to Hyoyeon, Tiffany and the now awake and curious Jessica, standing and, by the looks of it, arguing around the unlit grill. Her brows scrunched in thought, bottom lip puckered out in thought. Yoona straightened up on her seat, feeling her hopes lift up a bit at the thoughtful gaze on the youngest face. Maybe all hope wasn’t lost.

“Lighter fluid should make it easier for the coals to catch fire.” Seohyun finally said. “I think I remember seeing one when Sunny unnie’s father prepared the grill this morning.”

“Maknae, you’re a genius.” Sooyoung praised as she pushed out of the chair.

Yoona began pushing her chair back, wanting to follow Sooyoung’s advancements when Seohyun’s voice stopped her movement. “Unnie, aren’t you going to finish your salad?”

Yoona spared her half eaten salad a quick glance before shrugging her shoulders. “It can wait. Or if you want, you can have it. I don’t want to miss this. Someone might singe their eyebrow off!” she said giddily. The sight of Sooyoung waving a red can of what she can only assume was the lighter fluid had her hopping over the her chair, absently waving her hand at Seohyun.

Seohyun watched after Yoona’s retreating back, wondering if sharing that knowledge was the right choice. They were all grown-ups. They should know the danger of flammable liquids, right?

Shrill shrieks of terror, followed by the loud splashing of water and Yoona's infamous laughter filled the air. Seohyun sighed. She slipped her bookmark on the page she was on and placed the book on the table, mentally readying herself for damage control.

Why couldn’t they have been satisfied with salad?