Chapter 5: Lost

“Achem… achem… ACHEM!”

Baekhyun and Kyungsoo both jumped as Chanyeol strolled over to them, his hands stuffed deep in his pockets.

“What?” Baekhyun snapped, clinging even tighter to Kyungsoo, not even sparing Chanyeol a glance.

Kyungsoo smiled a bit as he felt Baekhyun’s arms tighten around his shoulders. Baekhyun was currently leaning over his chair, reading his book with him over his shoulder.

Chanyeol let out a small cough. “N-nothing. Baekhyun-ah, come over here.”

Baekhyun gave Chanyeol an annoyed look. “Why?”

“Just come over here!” Chanyeol demanded as he stomped his foot childishly.

Baekhyun gave a disbelieving scoff before patting Kyungsoo on the shoulder and stalking towards Chanyeol.

“What do you want?”

“Uh…”

Baekhyun’s eyes narrowed as he noticed Chanyeol’s gaze darting around the place.

“…Did you call me over here for nothing?”

“Yeah… I mean, NO! Of course I didn’t!” Chanyeol gave Baekhyun a couple of quick nods.

Baekhyun crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. “Okay, so what did you want?”

“I-I lost my watch in the cabin. Help me find it!” Chanyeol blurted out.

Baekhyun raised an eyebrow. “You…lost your watch?”

“Mhmm!”

“…Aren’t you… wearing it?” Baekhyun asked, tilting his head towards the digital watch Chanyeol had strapped around his wrist.

“E-eh?” Chanyeol brought his arm up and stared at the blinking numbers for a few seconds. “O-oh, never mind… Aha… ha… ha…”

Chanyeol rubbed the back of his neck as he smiled at Baekhyun sheepishly.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes and sighed, before walking back towards Kyungsoo, only to be grabbed by Chanyeol again.

“What are you doing?!” He shrieked as he felt Chanyeol’s arms snake around his shoulders.

Chanyeol only hugged him even tighter. “Hugging my Baekhyunnie.”

“Your ‘Baekhyunnie’ does not want to be hugged!”

Chanyeol loosened his arms a little, allowing Baekhyun to squirm out of his grasp. When Baekhyun turned to face him again, Chanyeol had a blank expression, blinking at Baekhyun.

He panicked a little, wondering if his words a bit too harsh for his friend.

“Chanyeol, are you-“

“You finally admitted that you’re mine!” Chanyeol squealed, throwing his arms around Baekhyun again.

Baekhyun groaned. “Chanyeol! Get away from me right now!”

Chanyeol, to Baekhyun’s surprise, let go of him immediately and gave him a cheeky grin.

“Alrighty~ I’m going to go on a hike with Jongin, Kris, and Tao now. Don’t get too close to Kyungsoo, okay?” He frowned and wagged his finger at Baekhyun before waving and running off.

“Aish, such a kid,” Baekhyun muttered while flattening his hair. “And what was that about not getting to close to Kyungsoo?”

He smiled despite himself and shook his head, before heading back towards Kyungsoo.

“What did Chanyeol want?” Kyungsoo asked, after Baekhyun seated himself next to Kyungsoo, leaning over so he could also read.

“He just wanted me to find his watch,” Baekhyun said, trying to hold in his laughter.

“What’s so funny?”

Baekhyun thought about how Chanyeol had his watch on his wrist in the first place and shook his head, letting out a small chuckle. “Nothing.”

---

"Yah, Baekhyun, did Chanyeol come back yet?”

Baekhyun stopped his game and looked up from his phone to see a panting Kris.

“No, I don’t think so. If he did, he’d barge in the cabin first thing.”

“He’s not back yet?” Tao shrieked, flinging the cabin door open and stomping in.

Baekhyun jumped off his bed immediately and stood up, startled by the boy.

“Wait, what? Chanyeol’s the only one not back?” Baekhyun asked, alarmed and frustrated.

If Chanyeol got himself lost in the mountains, I’m going to freakin’ slaughter him when I get a hold of him.

Kris and Tao exchanged looks before hesitantly nodding.

Baekhyun felt his heart drop and all his anger evaporated, fear replacing it. What the hell were Kris and Tao doing, just standing there?

He so very wanted to scream at them, scold them for not taking care of the Crown Prince, for not looking for him, but his throat felt constricted from all the worry.

“WHAT?!” Sehun screamed as he bolted into the room, grabbing Luhan’s hand. “Are you telling me that my brother is lost in the WOODS?”

Luhan immediately murmured for Sehun to calm down, before repeating the question in a more polite tone. His face turned grave as Tao nodded again.

“AND JUST WHAT ARE YOU DOING JUST STANDING THERE?” Sehun asked, his face red from anger. “Go immediately to find him!”

“Calm down, Sehun,” Jongin said, also entering the room, followed by Kyungsoo.. “I’ve already contacted the nearest airfield and asked them to send a few helicopters to look for him. We should receive news about him in no time.”

“But-“

“But nothing,” Jongin said sternly, looking more serious than he had for the past year. “There’s nothing we can do about it.”

“Jongin’s right,” Kyungsoo spoke up, putting his hand on Sehun’s shoulder. “We can’t risk getting anyone else lost. For now, let’s just wait outside and eat something. Everyone keep their phones on.”

Tao nodded. “Okay, let’s go. Baekhyun-hyung, hurry up. Baekhyun? Baek…hyun…?”

He trailed off, looking around the room. The spot where Baekhyun had been standing was vacant.

“Uh… guys… Where did Baekhyun go?”

---

“Freakin’ Park Chanyeol. What is he? Slow in the brain? How in the world did he get himself lost?” Baekhyun muttered angrily as he trudged along the rugged mountain trails, flashlight in hand. He stopped and shifted his hastily-packed backpack a bit, before continuing on.

He knew he was acting a bit rash, looking for someone in the woods at night, but he couldn’t help it. After all, Chanyeol was his best friend. His… first friend actually. He couldn’t just sit there and wait for information about his lost friend, letting worry eat away his insides. He had to find him himself.

But… it was easier said than done. The trail was already dangerous in the day, let alone at night. It was nearly impossible to see without his flashlight, and Baekhyun was getting worried about the batteries. He mentally kicked himself when he realized that he should’ve brought spare batteries.

“Stupid Chanyeol,” he said again, kicking a rock out of his road.

He half-expected Chanyeol to reply with another cheeky comment out of nowhere, but to his disappointment, none came. Dread settled in his stomach and steadily built up as he climbed even deeper into the forest. What if they didn’t find Chanyeol? What if Chanyeol was hurt?

Oh my god, he could be bleeding to death somewhere in a pit!

Baekhyun nearly started hyperventilating when he thought of that, almost loosing his footing. Quickly grabbing onto a rock jutting out, he managed to steady himself.

Chanyeol has better be okay.

Suddenly, he heard a rustle to his right and jumped. Childhood fears about ghosts and other supernatural things came rushing back to him as he stopped his breathing, straining his ears to hear any other movement. Luckily, nothing else was heard and he exhaled cautiously.

Still feeling a bit uneasy, he began singing to soothe his nerves.

I’m a fool, I’m a fool who only look at you, I love you
No matter how people tease us, I’ll become a fool who only looks at you
A fool, I’m a fool who only looks at you
Take my hand, hug me
I’m a fool who only loves you.

Baekhyun nervously sang as he swept his flashlight across the road in front of him. He continued humming to himself until he heard another rustle. He paused and immediately held his breath again. A groan sounded, and he jumped, scared out of his wits. It wasn’t a tiger, was it? Or a lion?

Even though Baekhyun was good at fighting, he honestly didn’t think he’d win against a large wildcat.

“Ow, , that hurts…”

…Now, that definitely sounds human. He relaxed a bit before venturing towards the noises.

“, I’m bleeding.”

Baekhyun’s eyes narrowed as the voice grew louder. It sounded suspiciously like Chanyeol. He parted the grass in front of him slowly, and stepped forward. All of a sudden, a hand grabbed his ankle and he let out a blood curling scream, ready to kick whatever that was in front of him.

“Chill! I’m not a ghost!”

“…Chan…yeol…?” Baekhyun asked shakily.

The figure in front of him let go and struggled to sit up. “Oh, it you, Baekhyun. I thought I heard your voice.”

Baekhyun’s eyes widened as he saw a disheveled Chanyeol sitting in front of him, holding his arm.

“Yah, Park Chanyeol! Where the hell were you!?” Baekhyun shrieked, rushing forward.

Chanyeol let out a weary chuckle. “I was here the whole time.”

“How did you get lost??”

“I wandered off on my own and somehow slid down the side of the mountain,” Chanyeol replied with a shrug.

Feeling the constant worrying of the past hour catch up on him, Baekhyun started hitting Chanyeol’s arm.

“You stupid, stupid, stupid idiot! Why did you leave Jongin, Tao, and Kris? If you had been a good boy and followed them, I wouldn’t have worried about you so damned much!” Baekhyun’s voice cracked at the end, and he felt hot tears burn his eyes.

“Ow, that hurts!” Chanyeol cried out, shifting away from Baekhyun.

Baekhyun gasped, having forgotten the fact that Chanyeol was probably injured.

“You’re bleeding, aren’t you?” Baekhyun accused, grabbing the arm Chanyeol was clutching and angling the flashlight to shine on it.

A nasty cut was running down his upper arm and past his elbow. Baekhyun cringed at the way the blood was still running down his arm. He immediately took off his backpack and withdrew a small first-aid kit.

“It’s going to hurt,” Baekhyun warned as he ripped open a pack of alcohol wipes.

“No, no, no,” Chanyeol immediately whimpered, leaning away from Baekhyun.

“Live with it, or else I’ll pour the whole bottle of alcohol on your wound,” Baekhyun threatened, angling his chin towards the large, one pint bottle.

Chanyeol gulped and nodded, moving closer to Baekhyun slowly. Baekhyun gingerly dabbed at the bleeding cut, feeling slightly sorry as Chanyeol flinched at every touch. He glanced at Chanyeol, who was grimacing from the pain, and gently blew on the wound, hoping that the pain will subside a little. He continued to carefully clean it, blowing on it form time to time.

Chanyeol stared in awe as he watched his best friend treat him with such care. He couldn’t help but feel a warm feeling bubble in his chest. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had looked at him with such tender eyes. He was so engrossed in studying Baekhyun that he hadn’t noticed Baekhyun curiously looking back at him.

“Chanyeol? Chanyeol? Is there something on my face?” Baekhyun inquired.

Chanyeol snapped out of his reverie. “H-huh? N-no, it’s nothing.”

“Well, there’s nothing else that we can do now…” Baekhyun mumbled, looking around the place. “You can’t walk, can you?”

Chanyeol tried to stand up and immediately stumbled, falling into Baekhyun’s arms. Baekhyun, unable to hold him up because of his stature, toppled backwards, crashing painfully into the rocky ground, with Chanyeol following soon after.

“,” he muttered. “Are you okay, Chanyeol?”

Chanyeol buried his face in Baekhyun’s shoulder and didn’t reply.

“Chanyeol? Chanyeol?” Baekhyun prodded Chanyeol a few times.

“…It hurts…”

“What hurts?”

“My arm…”                                                                                                                                 

“…Do you think you can get up?”

With a sigh, Chanyeol struggled to push himself up, trying to place as little pressure as possible on his injured arm. However, his limbs gave out and he fell forward again, stopping only a few inches away from Baekhyun’s face.

His heart stopped as he realized how close he was to his best friend. He could almost count Baekhyun’s eyelashes that fluttered as he blinked at Chanyeol. Their shallow breaths mixed with every inhale and exhale.

“Chan….yeol?”

____________________________

A/N: LOL I finally updated :D. But... this chapter's long... right? Lol. I changed it like... so many times. Baekhyun was supposed to get lost... but somehow Chanyeol did >.> Oh well. It's all good xD. Sorry, still sorta fluffy... but more BaekYeol moments.. right? This is sort of a cliff hanger. Sry~ xDD
I personally can't wait until I get to the point where they are all at home again, and Chanyeol gets married (yes, he's going to get married). ...Then... there's going to be tons of fighting... And not just couple fighting either xD

I went to the amusement park with my friends the other day, and I'm soooo sore from it xD. It was fun though. Despite the fact I was screaming my head off, lol.

Guys... I need your opinion on this... I'm thinking about starting another fanfic... about the World War II. Well, more abuot the Second Sino-Japanese War, where Japan invaded China. However, I feel that people might become... offended with the language that this story probably will have... ;___; So.. should I start it at all?
Or... if I do... should I make up imaginary countries instead? And just base them loosely off historical events? Lol.

Lol. So. Yeah. Anyways. Anyone recognize the song? I'll give you a hint, it's a duet with guitars xD. Free muffins to those that recognized it.

Thanks to all my subscribers again. I love you all~