[Year 19 of Exile]

[Baekhyun]

"Suho-hyung, what are you doing in here?"

He glanced up from his hands that were cradled in between his legs. A weak smile that didn't reach his eyes formed on his face.

"Nothing. Just thinking, that's all."

I pulled myself up onto the washing machine and the older clucked his tongue in mock annoyance at needing to share the limited space with me.

"Thinking about Jen?"

A pregnant pause.

"Yeah." He clapped his feet together and the sound echoed in the laundry room. "I wonder where she is."

I watched his feet swing back and forth. "It's been a day and a half. I just hope she's with the grocery team."

"Baekhyun," He stopped his leg movements. "Have you noticed that out of all of us, Jongdae didn't seem to be particularly anxious or urgent about finding Jen?"

I blinked and I felt his gaze on me.

Now that Suho-hyung mentioned it, Jongdae did seem to be rather calm and collected unlike the rest of us headless chickens or ants on a pan.

"Well whatever it is, I'll get him to spill late–"

BANG.

An earth-shattering boom and the cabin shook.

The both of us got thrown off the washing machine and we laid sprawled on the wooden floor.

In that instant, I felt an extremely strong burst of heat from behind me and when I turned my head, fire greeted my orbs.

"Baekhyun! Watch out!" Suho's voice warned me as a detached burning piece of ceiling crashed down from above.

I felt hands on my body as he pushed me and I rolled out of harm's way.

"SUHO-HYUNG!" I screamed, as I see him being wedged under the blackened piece of wood. "Hang on!"

He groaned when he tried to prop himself up, but the wood firmly pressed him down. I crawled over and despite the heat that emanated from the wood, I placed my hands on it.

It seared my palms and they ing burn. Perspiration trickled steadily down my face as the fire continued to rage around us but never at us, as though an invisible force field protected us.

It was only then did I realise that indeed, a 'force field' surrounded us — minuscule water droplets suspended in the air.

"G-Go!" He whimpered, as he lifted his head up. A weak smile appeared, and like me, perspiration was evident on his face. "I'm not going to be able to hold up the protection any longer. The water from the machine is evaporating."

"I'm not leaving without you!" I knew my hands were bleeding and badly burnt but I still tried to heave the heavy wood off him. "I. Will. Definitely. Save. You!" A heave punctuated each word of my sentence but the ing wood refused to budge no matter what. Something then dawned on me.

Light.

No wait. It won't work. Like hell the wood will be blasted away with bursts of light.

Byun Baekhyun, you have such a ed up power.

"Save yourself! Baekhyun, go!" His face, though reflected the amber of the raging fire, was drained of colour and from his fluttering eyes, I knew he wasn't going to last much longer.

"BAEKHYUN!!"

"He's calling for you." Suho chuckled weakly, as his hand reached towards mine. I clutched it tightly, as tears flowed down my cheeks. "Go to him."

I shook my head. "I'm not leaving you here, Suho-hyung!"

His hand tightened its grip on mine.

"Go to Kris-hyung now, Byun Baekhyun."

I gulped. He only calls me that when he's really angry.

"B-But Suho-hyung...! I'm n–"

"Do it for me."

"HYUNG!"

I sat up, and pants and wheezes filled the air.

A flapping sound followed and someone's face appeared in my narrow line of vision.

"Baekhyun!" I felt my whole being being shaken by the pair of hands on my shoulder. "Baekhyun! Can you hear me!"

Sanity shot into my head and I clutched it, feeling the intense pounding and headache it’s giving me.

“Thank goodness…” A relieved sigh came from that person. “I was beginning to think that you’ve gone insane… With the shout and all…”

“I am not going mad, Jongdae.” My same-aged friend’s face came into full view and a small smile formed on his face as he saw my frown. “I just– just had a nightmare, that’s all.”

I ruffled my hair and was about to topple back when his arm caught my back in time. “Oh no you don’t.” Clucking his tongue, he sat me back up and whipped the towel-blanket off me.

“You better get up before Jen goes ballistic.” His eyes narrowed as a sudden shriek travelled through the gap in the tent’s entrance flap. “Scratch that; she has gone ballistic.”

Having neatly folded the towel and placed it on the camp bed that I had been sleeping on, I gave the ‘room’ a sweeping glance before lifting the flap and stepping out into the clearing.