When I finally regained strength, I inclined my head to see the others sprawled across the runway, worshipping the ground with every last inch of their bodies. The tiny aircraft we had just scampered out of at full speed was parked on a slant, only mere inches away from a towering brick wall signifying the end of the entire airstrip. I exhaled boisterously and planted my face against the ground, struggling to believe I was still breathing. I quickly decided that I wanted to stay in that position for the rest of my life. Kris had to lug me to my feet and toss me over his shoulder.

I felt a little more at ease once we arrived at Stanley’s Camp, a private site offering wonderful views of Okavango Delta’s spectacular marshes. It consisted of multiple rooms, named tents due to their flimsy overhead covers, which were each different to the last. My own was traditionally decorated with sophisticated concepts drawn from African adventurers and artists, with contemporary furniture and refreshing wooden floorboards. Out the front was an extended porch with a dangling hammock, surrounded by luscious greens and providing limitless opportunity to interact with the wildlife. Upon arrival, after dumping my bag in the room and taking a swift moment to participate in a soothing breathing exercise, I was greeted by the presence of a buffalo herd trampling around by the side of my tent. Though noisy and somewhat frightening, they were truly majestic.

‘I want to stay here’, I hummed, craning my neck to stare at the buffaloes as they retreated, ‘not only because I refuse to get on that plane again, but because this place is beautiful. Can you imagine how many adventures we could have here alone?’

Kris rested his chin atop my head, following my gaze to see the receding herd. ‘After this whole ordeal is over, I’ll bring you back here…with a trustworthy airline.’

My cheeks reddened as I felt something press against my backside. Kris was simply smiling at the sight out the window, hands propped comfortably on my hips to keep me in place. I attempted to shuffle away, but he held me there firmly. With a subtle gulp, I arched my hips forward to widen the distance between me and his crotch. He huffed and immediately tugged me closer once more. I, in return, sighed with defeat.

As the minutes passed and all wildlife vanished from sight, I found my uneasiness hurriedly increasing. ‘Kris? We should go check on the others.’

‘I’m not in the mood to deal with them tonight. I’m too tired.’

‘You can stay here then’, I muttered, shrugging him off with a grunt, ‘I’m going to make sure everyone has settled into their rooms. We’ll probably all grab dinner together soon too, so don’t wait up for me.’

Kris crossed his arms, blocking my exit. ‘Why can’t you just be satisfied with spending the night with me?’

‘I’m damn hungry, that’s why’, I lied, dropping my head to hide wavering eyes as I shoved past the taller man, leaving him standing there with a thwarted frown.

It had been five hours before I decided to return to the tent. After venturing to visit each of the others, I gathered them together for a marvellously gigantic meal in the dining area. Sparkling lanterns dangled above the table and faint roars could be heard in the distance. The food was fresh, the meat cooked to a tender perfection. Mouths were watering in every direction.

The others headed right to bed afterwards, fulfilled and drowsy. I shook sleep away for another couple of hours, delaying my inevitable return to the room. Confusion racked my brain and pacing about didn’t help rid of it in the slightest. Kris was my best friend, so why was I avoiding him? Why did his touch bother me? Groaning, I stomped my feet and began the nerve-wracking stroll back to my bed, silently praying that Kris would be in a deep slumber.

I tiptoed into the room, hands searching about frantically because I was too cautious to turn on a lamp. My toe smashed against a cool, hard object and I cussed softly. The tiptoeing transformed into sluggish hopping as I held my foot up, aggressively trying to rub the pain into inexistence. All efforts were completely futile though. Just as I thought I was safe, my eyes began to burn from a sudden light.

‘Why are you sneaking around?’ Kris questioned, leaning nonchalantly against the door frame with a condescending expression on his face.

I dropped my foot – wincing slightly – and hobbled over to where he stood. ‘I just didn’t want to wake you up. Now move. I’m exhausted.’

‘What’s with the attitude?’

‘Kris, please. I just want to sleep.’

He moved aside and watched as I slunk under the sheets, covering my burning face from view. ‘Fine, but we’re talking in the morning.’

The bed creaked under his weight as he joined me, tugging the sheets up to his chin. It was silent for a while, just the sounds of our evenly matched breathing and the dim chirping of insects outside. Shadows flickered across the room as wildlife ventured past our window and occasional dots glimmered over the wall as people walked by with torches. I noticed, because my eyes never grew heavy. I was observing all of these little details just to distract myself from the feeling of Kris’ body wiggling nearer and nearer. Only when he pulled me into a tight embrace did I finally manage to doze off, a delicate grin on my face.

It was a clamorous whooping that startled me awake the following morning, causing me to unintentionally elbow Kris in the nose. His groans of agony were muffled by my rapid stream of apologies as I scrambled out of the bed, yanking on a shirt. I tripped, one foot in my jeans and the other completely tangled, but managed to get dressed unscathed and to bolt outside. The others were already lining the porch, obviously jolted from their own slumbers if their horrifying appearances were any indication.

I scurried over to Luhan, simply because I was lazy and he was the closest. ‘What’s going on?’

He pointed out towards a stretch of water, barely visible through the lengthy clusters of overgrown grass. ‘I think we may have found our newest additions.’

Squinting, I leant over the porch railing and examined the scene before me. There were two men playing together, laughing manically and prancing around. The first was probably my height, with broad shoulders and beautifully toned arms jutting out from a clingy t-shirt. His hair was a dark mahogany, the longer strands on top pulled into a messy pony-tail which spiked out and framed his refined facial features quite nicely. He had a crooked smile, but it was handsome and admittedly alluring. The giggling erupting from him proposed that he was the younger of the two, but the way he addressed the other man suggested otherwise. The taller man had insanely wide shoulders and evidently tight thigh muscles. He had a thin, delicate face; a long nose which rounded marginally at the tip, cutely small lips which pouted naturally and kindly crinkled eyes which were accompanied by godly eyebrows. His black hair was neatly pushed back, but it sporadically fell into his eyes as he frolicked around, chortling crazily.  

At first, I wasn’t so sure why Luhan suspected either of them to be one of us, but the realisation quickly dawned upon me. They were standing atop the water because the shorter man had frozen it. They gracefully sashayed across it because the taller man blew them along. Together, they had figured out how to combine their powers in order to have good time. As they spotted us staring at them and waved energetically, I vowed to find ways to make my own power more entertaining. 

*Stanley's Camp is a real place...which looks absolutely beautiful. 11/10 would go there*

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Just a recap... so far, they have visited;
(O)saka - Japan
(D)uba - Saudia Arabia
(L)uxor - Egypt
(E)sbjerg - Denmark
(R)edding - California
(A)mazon - Brazil
(O)kavango - Delta

What's the next destination...?

@SMENT - footballer photo concept? Really? Why? 
Did ya'll laugh or cry about that photo, because I did a little bit of both tbh (O.O)