How did reality turn into this sickening and twisted universe? How was one able to say they weren’t living in their greatest nightmare instead? It wasn’t supposed to be like this. No one ever predicted this was what it would come down to. The fact everyone naturally drifted off and abandoned their friendship in return for a riddance of their guilt was unacceptable. During that Summer, five years ago, no one saw death approaching.   “Come on, let’s get in the car,” Seok Jin said. He was already in the driver’s seat of one of the two large seven seater Volkswagen they had rented. He loudly honked to gain everyone’s attention, and they scolded him with laughter.   “Hold on, Ho Seok’s not here yet,” Mi Joo said. While everyone else was loading their baggage into the two car trunks, she was peering into the distance with her hand against her eyebrows.   “If he’s not here by the next minute, maybe we should leave both of you behind,” Ji Ae said, roughly biting the chips she was snacking on. Her words sounded playful, perfectly masking the truth conveyed.   “That’s not nice,” Ji Min remarked with a smile plastered on his face. A DSLR camera dangled from his neck as he approached his girlfriend and planted a quick peck on her puffed up cheek. He loved taking photographs of every single worthy moment. “This trip wouldn’t be as enjoyable without everyone here.”   Ji Ae didn’t give much of a response aside from her usual sheepish smile. When Ji Min turned away to get a few more things ready, she returned to her default frown. Of course her boyfriend would defend Mi Joo.   “Hey, cheer up. This is to celebrate your birthday as well. Can’t have the birthday girl frowning.” Soo Jung came into her vision. The motherly smile on her face was contagious, and Ji Ae reluctantly found herself smiling along. Soo Jung was working her magic, as always.   “Should I drive?” Ji Min’s voice questioned in the far distance.   “You’d be too weak. I can handle it,” Yoon Gi said, already having hurried his way into the driver’s seat of the other van. They needed two vans to fit their group of thirteen people.   “Dude, I am a dancer. I have amazing stamina!” Ji Min playfully pushed his friend by his arm.   “Ballet dancing isn’t exactly manly,” Yoon Gi continued, still grinning at every insult he threw out.   Before Ji Min could put up a protest, Yoon Gi’s head was loudly smacked by a sudden force. The culprit entered the van and sat right behind him.   “You don’t need manliness to have good stamina. Just make sure you don’t fall asleep while driving,” Ji Soo said sternly.   “I trust I couldn’t, judging on the way you’d hit me if I doze off,” Yoon Gi sneered at the girl.   She returned his look with a forced smile, opening her magazine to keep herself busy if they weren’t going to play games during the trip.   “Okay, we have Ji Ae, Ji Soo, Jung Kook…” Ji Min trailed off as he stared at his little brother with a sneaky glare. There was only one more seat left at the back. Jung Kook’s eyes pleaded with him, but Ji Min was only trying to help. “Ye In, get in this car!”   “Oh?” Ye In who was about to set foot in the other van quickly retracted her movements. She obediently followed Ji Min’s command, taking a seat to the empty space conveniently located next to Jung Kook.   “You’re welcome.” Ji Min patted his brother’s knee.   “There he is! Ho Seok is here!” Mi Joo yelled cheerfully when she saw her best friend running to them, his large backpack dangling from his shoulders.   “What about your parents? I thought they didn’t allow you to come,” Nam Joon asked. Everyone knew Ho Seok was having a fight with his parents because they forced him to get into marketing while he wanted to study dance with Mi Joo.   “I’m running away from home as a protest!” Ho Seok declared proudly, which was met by eruptive cheers from several others.   “From today onwards, you’re my role model,” Tae Hyung announced.   “My mom would never allow me to run away from home,” Myung Eun said, the dreamy tone always imminent in her voice. Her sentence was so naive it contained so many logical mistakes.   “Of course they wouldn’t, no parents would,” Tae Hyung told her wisely.   “Besides, you don’t need anyone’s permission to run away. That’s the point of rebelling,” Ho Seok said, proudly teaching her a life lesson.   “This is wrong. I should call your mom before she worries you’ve gone missing.” Soo Jung was always the one concerned about trivial stuff like these, not wanting to disappoint the adults. She fetched her phone from her pocket, which was quickly prevented by Nam Joon.   “We’re only going away for two days. Let’s not cause a scene for Ho Seok’s sake. Everyone is looking forward to the trip together,” he told her before she could dial a number.   Everyone backed up Nam Joon’s statement by displaying their best attempt at a puppy face, pouting and batting their eyelashes to gain her mercy.   The eldest girl thought about it and finally exhaled a sigh. “At least tell her you’re safe with us,” she then told Ho Seok.   “Of course. It’s not like something bad is gonna happen.” Ho Seok chuckled.   The others joined him in laughter and eventually got on their assigned van. They headed off towards the wood for their long awaited camping trip. This weekend they would celebrate Ji Ae’s birthday along with their freedom from exam week. This would be a memorable trip.     Going for an outdoor camping trip was something they had all dreamed of doing, and today it was finally possible. The area provided was surrounded by tall skinny trees that extended up to the sky. They were monogamous in nature, though few thick trees stood out.   The tents were already set up as part of the facility. There were about four army green colored tents that could fit approximately four full grown men in them. Outside the tent, a flimsy looking brazier barbecue set was placed among the tall grass, along with its charcoal and other grilling equipments. Instead of stools and tables, there were two large pieces of log they could use as a bench. Between it was an outdoor fireplace they could use to start a bonfire.   “Wow! This is better than I had imagined!” Tae Hyung shouted when he jumped off the van first. He immediately ran to the center of their camping area, laughing like a maniac as he twirled around in circles.   Ho Seok was the second to follow, giving his friend a friendly push as Tae Hyung nearly stumbled on the grass. Then he ran away, and the two played a spontaneous game of tag.   “Guys, please be careful. We don’t want to accidentally break one of the equipments,” Soo Jung said worriedly.   “We’re like ninjas! That won’t happen,” Tae Hyung shouted back jovially.   “At least remove those sharp grilling equipments. You could get stabbed with it,” Yoon Gi muttered as he locked the front door of the van. The trip only took two hours, and his excitement outweighed his exhaustion behind the wheels.   “So where do we keep the meat?” Ji Ae asked, eyes always shimmering at the mention of food.   “At the trunk of the van,” Ye In replied, but soon gasped. She shared a quick awkward glance with Ji Min who looked equally panicked.   “It is the men’s duty to carry the heavy stuff. You girls should sit back and relax,” Nam Joon smoothly interrupted. He gently guided Ji Ae away from the van, much to everyone else’s relief.   “Yeah, just pick out a tent for us,” Ji Min said with a sheepish smile.   “Uhm, excuse me.” Mi Joo interrupted as she flung her arms around Ji Ae’s shoulder. She did not notice the other girl’s face stiffen a little at the friendly contact. “Who said you two were allowed to tent up together?”   “We’re a couple,” Ji Min said in a matter of fact way.   “Have you no mercy for the other poor souls who’d have to deal with your PDA?” Mi Joo continued dramatically and scoffed. “Ji Ae’s sleeping with the girls.”   “Yes!” The other girls chimed in.   Ji Min chuckled and stared at his girl. Her smile was crooked, but he couldn’t tell why. “Fine by me.”   Ji Ae had to give some props to Mi Joo for her sneaky methods to keep her away from her boyfriend. No one would’ve noticed.   With that, they decided on everyone’s sleeping arrangement and got ready for the outbound activities. They would enjoy mother nature and its expansive freedom. Everyone was soon busy with their own activities.   Jung Kook, however, was more occupied in isolation as he sat on the log with a piece of paper and a pen in his hand. He kept staring into a fixed direction, and one could guess whom he was staring at. Ye In looked most beautiful when she was smiling—being surrounded and playing around with their friends while maintaining that beautiful smile on her equally adorable face.   “Only admiring her from afar?” His brother’s voice interrupted his train of thoughts.   Jung Kook flinched, quickly tidying up his piece of paper to hide it from Ji Min’s eyesight. “I… I wasn’t.”   “Oh come on, who are you trying to kid?” Ji Min slapped his brother softly against his back. “You should tell her how you feel before she gets snatched away by some other dude who won’t be as romantic as you are.”   Jung Kook scoffed at that. “I’m not like that.”   “You’re writing her a love letter aren’t you? Not many guys would do that nowadays.”   Jung Kook gulped again. So he saw. Or maybe his brother had incredible instincts; he always knew the things Jung Kook was trying to hide.   “I won’t actually give it to her,” Jung Kook whispered lowly, and slightly crumpled the paper in his hands. “She already rejected me before. I can’t bear facing another one.”   “Hey, you were both young. If you keep persevering, she’ll see your genuine heart eventually,” Ji Min told his little brother and cringed a little at his sudden wise words. “But really, don’t take the things you have now for granted. Once it’s gone, it will be too late to realize its true value.”   Jung Kook frowned at Ji Min’s wise words. His brother’s gaze suddenly softened as he stared at the tall grass beneath them.   “I want to do something special later,” Ji Min confessed.   “What are you talking about?” Jung Kook knew his brother would always be so vague when it came to throwing secret events and surprises. Sometimes he couldn’t tell whether the surprise in store was a good or bad one.   “I’m going to make an announcement I should’ve done since a long time ago. I need to let the truth out,” Ji Min said rather dramatically, and he heaved a sigh.   “I think you’ve been watching too many dramas,” Jung Kook then nudged him. What could he possibly be talking about? Ji Min looked extremely nervous.   “Does anyone know?”   “Only Ho Seok and Mi Joo does.” Ji Min placed a finger against his lips to seal the secret between them. With a soft smile grazing his lips, he went off to find the pair.   Time seemed to elongate during Summer. By the time it started to get dark, it was already nearing seven at night. Everyone ended up dividing tasks. Seok Jin was the head chef in charge of all the meat grilling since he had always been a food enthusiast who dreamed of becoming a well known culinary artist himself.   “Myung Eun, help me cook the rice,” he had assigned the younger girl to help him out.   “Do I just put rice grain in the microwave?”