[CONTENTID1]Trapped In Chocolate[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]A SELECTION OF CHOCOLATE-BOYS[/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

Suzy shared a large tent with Krystal, Jieun and Nana. They were cosy inside the cocoons of their sleeping bags, with nothing but a gentle wind whistling from outside, and the stirrups of crickets echoing in the nightly stillness.

Despite the quiescence in the atmosphere, Suzy was unable to sleep. She recalled the day’s events in her head and she wondered why her heart fluttered whenever she thought of Sungyeol. She was growing more aggravated with her blooming feelings. If only there was a way she could conquer over her own heart.

She was torn, it seemed. She couldn’t decide between her friend and Sungyeol and now, she was slowly drowning in quicksand. Luhan once told her that he wished for a Wish-Granting factory. How she longed for one now-- a place that granted wishes like chocolates wrapped in paper.

Her phone beeped and flashed once. At first, she decided to sleep but curiosity overtook her and she reached for the object. Her heart sank into her stomach when she read the text message.

~Hey, wanna meet me for a bit? :D I know a secret cave somewhere near by. We can check it out together. ^_^~

The text was from Sungyeol, of course, and it only whispered of their mutual feelings.

As if time stopped revolving, Suzy was frozen inside a capsule of dread, anticipation and excitement. Her heart picked up pace and it throbbed against her ribcage to the point where she was afraid that the girls would wake up upon hearing it’s erratic rhythm.

She pondered whether to reply to him or not. She was Suzy-- the girl who always put others’ needs before her own. For a long time, she would toss and turn in bed because of the worry that she displayed for her parents. She would replay scenarios in her head, and cry into her pillow at night for the way she was.

Suzy knew she was pathetic, a fool that always liked those that were out of reach. She was never the actress that could stroll next to the leading man; she was merely the spectator, but now, she didn’t want to be like that anymore. She wanted to shed herself of the frail shell that she trapped herself inside.

She wanted to be selfish for just one night-- and one night only. (Okay, she did admit that she was selfish after kissing Jaejoong but that was a tale best left buried beneath the ashes).

Inhaling a sharp breath in, Suzy’s fingers fumbled against the keyboard of her phone.

-

Sungyeol was almost imperceptible in the streaming darkness. Suzy was barely able to notice him but once the clouds parted to reveal the silver moon, the moon-rays spilled all over him and encased him inside an aureole that made him appear otherworldly.

In the hazy night, she even imagined a pair of wings sprouting from his back but once she blinked, she realised that they were merely the shadows of rustling branches which sparkled in the moonlight.

Sungyeol's lips curled back to reveal his large, pearly white teeth. He was giddy in his deals our and hopped from one foot to another to induce warmth. A mist of vapour condensed each time he breathed.

"Hello," Suzy said; she stared at him like a bashful girl, confused as to why he made her heart flutter like a sphere of unfurling feathers.

"Hi," he answered, in a voice that was laced with wonders, honey and all things sweet. "Are you ready? We'll be back in an hour, I promise."

Suzy opened to speak but she was breathless. It was as if his very presence had stolen her breath. Instead, she gave him an enthusiastic nod.

Sungyeol chortled and took her hand into his soft one. He tugged at her to follow.  At first they walked but they were so enraptured with each other's momentum, that they soon started running up a steep hill.

Their quiet laughter wavered in the air, with only the moon and the shifting darkness as their witness. Sungyeol led the way, and Suzy followed.

It seemed like a dream to her. Having him this close only appeared ethereal and temporary. Her conscience warned her of danger but Suzy chose to ignore it this time.

-

The air was still and heavy, thick black clouds blotted out the stars and the moon. There was no light to lift the impenetrable, inky blanket concealing the world.

Chanyeol eyed them suspiciously from behind the flaps of his tent. He was familiar with the feeling that howled through his soul.

The very sight of Suzy set his heart on fire. The organ was imbued with rage, imbued with a fervent wanting. He despised the way she feigned ignorance of his feelings for her. If she was to act like that, so be it. He would use her until she dried up and then throw her away like a ragged cloth. He wanted to punish her for not acknowledging him. He wanted to break her.

The curmudgeon coiled as tight as a spring and forgot to breathe. His fury flowed copiously. For a sliver of a moment, he was almost afraid of himself. There seemed to be something ambivalent pushing him on, which he could not understand. The sight of Sungyeol only spurned the beast that tainted his soul. It was envy that made his arteries pump blood in rapid pulses. It was bitter hatred that caused his heart to batter in his chest.

Chanyeol could barely walk to the tent of the PhD students as his legs trembled without restraint. He was doing the two a favour by telling about their little escapade. He could have chased them down all by himself and it would have ended with blood and gore.

What were they thinking, trailing off so late at night? The answers to his questions echoed within the depths of his subconscious. The voice mocked and jeered at him, igniting the smouldered storm within his body. Chanyeol had to shut his eyes tight to stop the voices from poisoning his emotions even further.

A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as a moment of hysteria seized him. Suzy and Sungyeol, the two perfect lovebirds. They must have assumed that no one would see them stalking away, that they were furtive in the bleak night that engulfed campside. They didn’t know that he was in fact, encapsulated by darkness and he could see through its shadows. A mirthless laugh bubbled in his stomach. He had to suppress the hysterical frenzy lest anyone else woke from their sleep.

Without further hesitation, Chanyeol slammed his fist against the tent that was occupied by Changmin and TOP. There was light flickering from within so he didn’t waste another second and burst inside.

He found Changmin and Jaehyun playing a game of chess. TOP, on the other hand, was lying in his sleeping bag with his back turned to them.

Changmin, who was perfectly serene a moment ago, had turned sour upon seeing him. His lips curved into a tight grimace. “What do you want?”

“Yeah, kid, isn’t it past your bedtime?” Jaehyun asked, moving a chess-piece stealthily when his opponent was not looking.

“Suzy and Sungyeol ran off into the mountains!” he blurted. “Just now! I saw them go!”

“Ohhh!” Jaehyun wolf whistled before chuckling like a chipmunk. “How very daring of them. I bet they went out there for other reasons.”

“What?” Chanyeol derailed, a heavy weight hung over him, like a smothered volcano liable to burst.

“You know,” cooed the older student. He wrapped his arms around an invisible person and pretended to kiss.

Chanyeol’s lungs burned and his breath rattled on the way out. “SHUT UP!” He jumped at Jaehyun, consumed by venomous wrath but he was pulled aside by Changmin just before he could deliver a deadly blow. The latter flung him to the ground in a big heap.

“Disrespecting your superiors is unacceptable behaviour. We won’t tolerate it in the slightest,” he warned, towering over his shrivelled pride. “Have I made myself clear?”

Chanyeol just shivered like a thing about to die, his face burned, his head pounded and he tried to keep himself under control, but couldn’t. His eyes felt as though they were opened to their widest extent as his muscles clenched.

Changmin stretched out an arm then, the hostility did not leave his face even for a second. “Lead the way.”

-

They ambled through the low hollow entrance of the cave, fingers still intertwined. Inside was an empty passage, that meandered into the unknown. The current settings were riddled with crystal stalagmites that hung from the ceiling like chandeliers. Suzy tasted the air; it was strong with the scents of rain and fresh clay.

She felt unusually calm, as if all her worries had dwindled into a small sphere and tossed over her shoulder.  She knew that they would pelt after her once again so she hoped to savour this moment with Sungyeol.

The latter was in habitually quiet.

"I like caves," he said quietly.

She stared into his face, noticing how his eyes twinkled like stars in the blue-black darkness. It captivated her and she imagined herself falling into them.

"I never been in one before," she confessed.

Sungyeol flashed her his infamous smile but it lacked alacrity. It was void of its usual energy that always channelled into the people that he stood next to. In fact, his smile was awfully sad and it caused Suzy's heart to twinge inside her chest.

He shrugged. "I used to go camping a lot with my mom."

"Oh? That's very nice."

Something ominous flickered over his features. His lips curled bitterly. "It was. Life was always better when she was around."

A heavy feeling settled over the atmosphere. Raw emotion lodged itself into Suzy's throat. Sungyeol displayed an air of poignancy and she had no idea why she wished to embrace him and hide him away from all of the world's sorrows.