The fire crackles, its embers floating up into the dark sky. It's the only source of light, its orange glow reflected on everyone's faces.

"It's our second night stranded on this island." Sitting across from you, S. Coups opens the discussion. "I'd like to hear from everyone. Starting from you, Woozi." He nudges the small boy sitting next to him.

"Oh. Well." Woozi clears his throat, unprepared for a heart-to-heart talk. You'd heard from the senior staff from the company that Seventeen always has discussions like this, to keep everyone in check; and being here, as a part of it somehow excites you but scares you at the same time, because you don't know what's going to happen, and besides, you're not an official member of the band, so you feel like you're intruding on some intimate moment restricted just for the boys.

"It's been a tough couple of days." Woozi says in his quiet tone. "Of all things, I didn't expect us to be stranded in the middle of nowhere..."

"We should've checked the weather before we left." Seungkwan interjects.

"Seungkwan, we can't change what already happened. Don't interrupt, you'll get your turn." S. Coups chastises the youngest. "Continue, Woozi."

"But I'm glad we're all together. I probably wouldn't have made it on my own." Woozi states, then nods, indicating that he's done. S. Coups motions to Joshua to continue, and the American boy simply expresses his gratitude for s for helping him survive, added with a gentle smile in your direction.

"Wonwoo."

"Ah. My turn?" Wonwoo points at himself.

"Go ahead." S. Coups nods.

"Well, Woozi and Joshua-hyung both said it – we survived through this together. I'm sorry if I bothered you guys, you know, with my weird random singing and stuff..."

"Yeah, it was uncharacteristic of you." Next to you, Seungkwan mutters under his breath.

"It's fine, Wonwoo! You were the moodmaker, it wasn't too stressful with you around, being weird." Hoshi grins. "I knew you could be funny!" He laughs, and a smile curls up Wonwoo's lips.

Jun raises an eyebrow. "He's still weird-funny, though."

"You guys can't appreciate his humour." You interject.

Wonwoo's smile doesn't falter. "Thanks, noona. Anyway, to be honest, I was kind of scared the whole time, that anything could happen to us." He admits, looking at the ground. His expressions and actions don't reflect his feelings; so it comes as a surprise to you when Wonwoo says that. Putting on a brave front, just to reassure everyone else with a light-hearted atmosphere all the time – that takes lots of strength. And Wonwoo has exactly that. Enough to keep himself and everyone else going, for each day you're stranded on that island.

Joshua pats Wonwoo's shoulder. "We're all here together. It's going to be fine."

"I know. Thanks, everyone." Wonwoo nods, with the hugest smile on his face. A happy Wonwoo makes everyone else happy, too, as you notice the flickering smiles on everyone's faces as your eyes sweep around the campfire.

Everyone now turns their attention to you, anticipating; and S. Coups nods at you for you to say something.

"Oh..." You feel uncomfortable under the boys' gaze. "I guess it's been an adventure for the past couple of days, eh?"

"Yeah!" Wonwoo pumps his fist excitedly, while Hoshi bounces energetically in his seat, only to be restrained by Jun, just in case he falls face-first into the fire he created.

"Thanks for looking out for me, you guys." You say, looking at the flames, unable to look at any of them.

The memories of being stranded with the boys for the past few days flood your mind – how seamless the boys' teamwork was, as they took the roles that played to their own strengths. S. Coups, ever the formidable leader, trying out new things for his dongsaengs to follow, even gaining a new hobby – fishing – in the process. Hoshi, with his fiery passion about practically everything, and his uncanny ability to turn everything into something remotely funny. Woozi, his quiet presence unforgotten, piping up with new ideas for problems; Joshua, being one of the oldest, always taking care of his dongsaengs, prioritising their comfort before his own. The8, always fearless, and a clean person to boot, keeping the shelter spick and span as it should; optimistic Jun, his refreshing and positive outlook that helped keep everyone level instead of panicking, with his calming, soothing words. Wonwoo, the unexpected moodmaker throughout the days, maintained the light atmosphere, free of tension. And Seungkwan, the diva, whose tantrums are surprisingly easy to handle with just a squishy cuddle.

"We can't let anything happen to you." Across from you, S. Coups smiles, the shadows from the fire dancing on his handsome face.

"Thanks for being here, noona." Woozi adds. Coming from him, you know that he means it, since he doesn't wear his heart on his sleeve.

"Yeah, you take care of us." Seungkwan gives you a hug.

You smile as you pat Seungkwan's head. "Well, it's my job."

Hoshi boos you playfully, saying that you're doing it only for money, eliciting a laugh from the other boys. Playing along with the joke, you nod, pretending to agree.

"Noona! You're not like that, right?" Seungkwan slaps you playfully as you laugh it all off. "Anyway, to be honest, I don't really like it here. I want to get back home, I miss Vernonnie, I miss my bed, and I miss having wifi..."

"Yeah, we have to get back soon." The8 affirms.

"I've got a plan." Hoshi says, the burning look in his eyes accentuated by the twirling flames. It sends a shiver down your spine, since he looks like an evil villain plotting to take over the world.

"Shoot."

"We build a raft." Hoshi unveils his grand plans. There's a momentary silence; everyone waiting for him to elaborate, but he doesn't.

"That's it?"

"And we escape from here. Obviously." Hoshi nods, puffing out his chest, proud of his idea. Woozi rolls his eyes, while S. Coups just looks at the performance unit leader. The three of them must've been talking about this earlier, trying to figure out how exactly to do it.

"Would you know where we're going?" Wonwoo puts up his hand.

"There's a compass in Dino's backpack." Hoshi counters without missing a beat.

Worry tugs at your heart. "Wouldn't it be more safe to stay on this island? If we do build a raft, who knows how long we'll be at sea before we get anywhere." It's a bit too claustrophobic for you, just the mere thought of being stuck with eight boys at sea, with limited supplies. "We don't exactly know where we are, or how near civilisation is." Everyone breaks into a chatter at your opinions.

"Well, I don't want to sit and wait here forever." Seungkwan interjects.

"Plus, none of us know how to build a raft." You add.

Jun points over to the shelter. "If we can do that, certainly we can build one. Think positive."

"Personally, I think it's a good idea." S. Coups helms the conversation again. "And I believe that we're capable of escaping this island, if we just work together..."

"On a raft." You say the words slowly, as if waiting for the leader to challenge you. It's quite an outrageous idea, you think, and impulsive of all sorts, all due to the reasons that you'd laid out earlier as your argument. And maybe, just maybe, you sort of like the idea of having a simple life with them there on that uncharted island, with nothing to worry about, except for food supplies. But like Seungkwan said, you can't just sit and wait around forever...

"We definitely can do it." Hoshi says.

"You don't know, if you don't try." Jun raises an eyebrow, still with his infinite positivity.

It's pointless to argue with them further, so you shrug and let them have their way. Hoshi and S. Coups are already planning the mechanics of the boat or raft or whatever they want to build tomorrow morning, heart-to-heart talk all but forgotten. Seungkwan, who's more interested in escaping the island rather than how to do it, drifts away into the shelter, hugging Dino's backpack; while Wonwoo helps The8 clear the remnants of dinner. The rest of the boys are already loudly discussing about building their first boat, even drawing on the sand. Since you have nothing better to do, you stretch out and begin to walk towards the shore.

"Where are you going?" S. Coups looks up, noticing your absence.

"Just for a walk." You reply with a straight face. Maybe the sea breeze will calm you; your head's a muddle of too many thoughts.

Jun leaps up from the group huddled around the campfire. "I'll come with you."

"Don't go too far." S. Coups calls out like a worried mother. You don't respond, stretching out your arms; as Jun walks right beside you, shooting a reassuring smile back at the leader.

"I don't really know what they're talking about back there." Jun says, once the two of you are a distance away from the group.

"Building a boat." You scoff. The idea itself seems far-fetched, and you think that this is one thing the boys can't pull off.

"Yeah...I'm not good at that kind of thing, so I'd be pretty much useless, so I hope you don't mind me coming with you?"

"It's fine." The salty sea breeze has a calming effect on you, and you breathe it in deeply.

"Shua-hyung's good at that kind of stuff. I can only help." Jun looks up to the sky.

"Oh yeah, you guys built the shelter." You stop in your tracks, looking back at it. The shelter's been intact for a couple of days now, with no signs of collapsing. Impressive. "You definitely help the guys with your positivity. Thanks for that."

Jun simply laughs it off. "That's me. The Prince of Positivity!" He poses with a peace sign, and you grin.

No one says another word as the both of you trudge through the sand to the teeth of the water, lapping up against the sand. You're deep in thought, as usual, worrying about the boys' idea of building a boat. Your mind's already computing the possibilities that could happen once the boys pull through with their idea. In the background, Hoshi's loudly debating with Woozi about using coconut shells for buoyance.

Jun breaks your thoughts. "Are you planning to go further? 'Cause it's a bit dark out there, and Coups-hyung did remind us..."

You respond to his question by plopping your backside directly onto the sand, facing the dark ocean ahead. There's barely any light; since the moon is hiding between the clouds. He promptly takes his place next to you, while the echoes of animated discussion back at the campfire drifts out to sea.

It calms you slightly, and your brain empties from the muddle of thoughts. But you can still feel Jun's presence next to you, fidgeting on the sand; his nervous energy radiating.

"Do you want to say something?" You interject, slightly irritated by his little movements.

Jun laughs nervously. "Not really..." He runs his fingers through his messy hair. "I need to shower...?"

He's sputtering nonsense, rather than exuding confidence like he usually does. "Go ahead, the ocean's right in front of you."

He titters again, and looks away. You know that he's hiding something, but you don't bother to pursue the topic; so you just hug your legs and stare out to the dark ocean.

Jun's preparing to say something, clearing his throat, but another presence looms beside you. It's S. Coups, armed with Dino's torch and a tired smile.

"Hey." The leader sits down next to you without invitation, and you hear Jun muttering something in Chinese, which you can't comprehend. "You guys okay?"

You nod, barely looking at him, while Jun plays with the sand.

"Shua's taking the reins for the boat project; we'll be doing it first thing tomorrow. Everyone's hyped up about it, there's a chance for us to leave!" S. Coups says excitedly.

"Cool." You say nonchalantly.

"Like it's so cool how he has these brilliant ideas. Maybe he should be an architect or something." S. Coups grins.

You look at him, dead straight into his eyes. "Do you think this will work?"

"Of course, I trust all of you." S. Coups replies, without missing a beat, and the intense look in his eyes confirms it – it's hard for you to tear your gaze away from his deep brown irises.

"C'mon, let's head back." Jun stands up impatiently, stretching. "I'll take first watch, hyung, you can rest."

"Thanks, Jun." The leader offers a hand to you, and you let him help you up to your feet.

"I'm fine." You mutter, dusting sand off your pants before he can fuss over you. The three of you head back to the campfire, where Hoshi, Woozi and Joshua are still discussing plans.

When Hoshi releases a huge lion yawn, S. Coups makes everyone go to sleep under the stars, and it doesn't take long for you to fall asleep after another long day of being stranded.