Day One

Kriiissshhhhh

A slow-building tick carefully took residence in Minseok's left eye. Of course, out of all the luggage he decided to choose as his carry-on, he had to get the faulty one. Minseok realized it was just probably the synthetic mesh at the bottom of the suitcase catching on the wheel, but no matter how insignificant the problem was, it still annoyed him.

Lately, everything had been pissing him off. For starters, this damn trip. He had tried to convince Tao, his partner in their firm and long-time friend, that a trip like this was not going to relieve the stress that the equally-wealthy businessman claimed he was wrought with. How could a month-long trip traipsing through Southeast Asia, most of the time on foot, with thirteen complete strangers not cause some sort of stress in and of itself?

Besides, he was wealthy enough to be able to afford his own vacation to someplace a bit nicer than the suspicious "adventure of a lifetime" where they probably would have them sAhnping in hammocks and eating giant centipedes and other sorts of weird insects.

Minseok wasn't used to roughing it, having been brought up in a home with a standing income and after his parents died, his inheritance along with the money he got from running his own law firm kept him up there with the big fish. That was probably the reason his luggage counted up to a grand total of seven; there wasn't a chance in hell he was going into this unprepared.

A quick glance at his Galaxy S4 told him that he had less than ten minutes to get through the gate and find a seat before his plane left. After giving his ticket to the attendant at the gate, he made his way down the gangplank and up to first class. There were a few open seats in the middle and Minseok settled down in the one next to the window after storing his luggage in the compartment above him.

He could hear the rustling and chattering from the back of the plane and wished he had bought earplugs with him. Was it not possible for people to board the plane without sounding like a bunch of apes in captivity?

"Really? I get to ride first class? Suh-weet!" Minseok heard in English from behind the curtain that blocked first from second. Suddenly, a tall boy came bouncing through, immediately glancing around for a place to sit.

, the seat next to me is the only one that's open. And I actually thought I was going to be able to spend this flight without anyone pestering me.

As if the stranger could read his mind, he scooted down the aisle and plopped himself in the aisle seat, shooting a quick grin at Minseok. Quickly, like he was a piece of meat in a market, Minseok sized the boy up. He was probably a year younger than him, if not the same age. ,He had tousled brown hair, pale skin and very large feet which Minseok later found out fit well with his height.

Yet Minseok was thrown for a loop when the boy suddenly spoke in perfect Korean.

"You speak English?" Minseok nodded, hoping that he could get the quick few introductions out of the way and get back to ignoring everyone else on the plane.

"Phew, that's good," the boy sighed, switching back to English. "I've lived in Korea for three years now but the language is still sometimes hard for me to get. They ran outta seats in coach so that's why I'm up here. , where are my manners? I'm Park Chanyeol," Chanyeol blurted, holding out his hand.

"Kim Minseok."

The boy's handshake was actually firm and confident, something he hadn't expected but then aChienn, after being hit with this kid's personality, he should have known it would be.

"So, where are you heading?" Chanyeol continued, picking up a magazine from the seat between them and quickly flipping through.

"Nha Trang, Vietnam," Minseok mumbled, wishing that he hadn't introduced himself in the first place. The last thing he wanted to do was pretend to shoot the wind and indulge this boy with a conversation. He just wanted to kick back, play around on his laptop, and listen to music.

"Really? I'm heading there, too. It's some adventure trip thing I was invited along to. We're supposed to be hiking through all of the southern part of Asia-"

"Wait, you're going, too?" Minseok interrupted, his stomach filling with dread. Looks like he was going to see much more of this boy than he would have liked to. Chanyeol shot him a knowing look and grinned broadly.

"A whole month. You really think you can hold out? You don't seem like the type to get your feet muddy."

Minseok knew Chanyeol hadn't meant what he said rudely, but he was still piqued that a stranger was guessing what he was and wasn't like. "Your accent is annoying; where are you from exactly?" he asked in a very clipped tone.

Despite the obvious insult, Chanyeol smiled and rolled his eyes playfully. "Alabama. I guess even three years learnin' your language doesn't erase the hick in me, does it?"

Minseok allowed the ghost of a smirk cross his features until he remembered who he was. Quickly whipping out his palm pilot, he scrolled down the list, making it seem like he was suddenly absorbed in his work. Luckily, Chanyeol caught the subtle hint.

"Okay, I see that you're a busy man. I'll leave you alone, Princess," Chanyeol snorted before removing the headphones from the back of the seat and putting them on, tuning in to the in-flight movie that was playing.

Minseok cast his eyes sideways, softening slightly when he saw that Chanyeol's own eyes were beginning to droop in exhaustion. He felt a prick of regret for acting short with the man. After all, like Minseok himself, he was only trying to get ahead in the world.

And sometimes you just have to be nice.

The first thing Minseok was hit with when he stepped off the plane was how mild the climate was. He had expected Nha Trang to be sweltering and humid, yet it was cool and there was even a light breeze blowing. He noticed that Chanyeolwas trailing sAhnpily behind him and he figured it was just as well, he could probably use some help locating the tour guide that was supposed to be picking them up.

Chanyeolwhistled lowly in the back of his throat, eyeing the mass of luggage standing around Minseok's feet like a little army of black, ready to defeat the evils unknown.

"Are you seriously bringing all that?" Chanyeol sputtered out, holding up his own three bags of luggage to prove his point.