9:00 AM- 11:00AM: Morning

When the wake up call came that morning, Jackson immediately checked the top bunk for Jaebum. He hadn't gotten to talk to him last night since Jaebum had stayed out pretty late with Jinyoung, and he wanted to make sure that they were still on good terms, because their Buddy Time the other day had ended on a rather ominous note, and Jackson hadn't been able to stop thinking of it ever since. He couldn't shake the feeling that he had somehow made a huge misstep, even though Jaebum had returned from his date last night with his arm locked firmly around Jinyoung's waist, and that had been exactly what Jackson had wanted. It just hadn't felt like something he'd wanted when he actually saw it in person. In fact, it made him feel slightly nauseated.

 

But when he climbed up to the top bunk, Jaebum wasn't there. There was just one of his hoodies, the hood resting on the pillow where Jaebum's head should have been.

 

“Oh my god, guys, I think Jaebum's been spirited away!” he yelled.

 

“It's too early for this,” Yugyeom groaned. “He's probably taking a dump.”

 

“If he goes to the bathroom, he's supposed to take me with him. We have a buddy system for a reason.”

 

“It's nine in the morning,” Jae said pragmatically. “It's not like he's going to get lost or scared or that there are wolves or bears or wolf-bears around here. He's a big boy.”

 

“But his hoodie,” Jackson insisted, pointing dramatically to the piece of clothing as if it was proof of something.

 

“It's too hot for him to wear a hoodie outside,” Mark said, yawning. “He probably took it off when he woke up.”

 

Jackson glanced down at Jinyoung's bunk for a reaction, but Jinyoung was still curled up in a ball, looking half asleep. Or shell-shocked. Jackson was sure something had happened between Jinyoung and Jaebum last night, and he was desperate to know what while at the same time slightly terrified.

 

Just as he was about to take the ladder down from Jaebum's bunk, Jaebum himself strolled through the cabin, already dressed and shaved and for some reason holding a bunch of the wildflowers that were growing in the field next to the camp in his hands.

 

“See, Jackson, there he is,” Yugyeom said. “No need to worry.”

 

Jaebum lifted an eyebrow. “What are you doing up there, Jackson?”

 

“Er...nothing.”

 

“He thought you'd been spirited away,” Youngjae announced. Thanks, Youngjae.

 

“Nothing that exciting. I just got an early start.” He walked over to the other side of the cabin and extended the flowers to Jinyoung. “For you.”

 

Jackson almost started choking. Im Jaebum just handed him FLOWERS, like he's in some kind of romance drama?!? IM JAEBUM?!?!

 

This was the kind of thing he normally loved. Usually he'd be jumping and squealing and praising Jaebum for finally acting like the prince he looked like. But instead, he just felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. It wasn't like he was imagining it would be. He'd thought it would be beautiful and heartwarming. He thought it would make his heart flutter.

 

He hadn't imagined it would be painful and lonely. He hadn't known it would feel like something he wanted for himself and now couldn't have.

 

The other members of the cabin were reacting in his place, though. Youngjae and Jae were yelling “Ayyyyyyyy!” and whistling, and Yugyeom and BamBam were chanting “EW!” in unison. Mark was looking down at the scene from his top bunk with a slightly pinched expression. Jinyoung was simply staring at Jaebum, open mouthed. Like he'd never seen him before.

 

“No thank you?” Jaebum asked Jinyoung lightly. “I thought you liked flowers.”

 

“I do,” Jinyoung said, sounding a little wobbly. “T-thank you.”

 

“Are you giving lessons?” Jae asked. “Can I sign up for 'How to Move in for the Kill Like a Boss 101?'”

 

“Nope,” Jaebum said. “Hey, aren't you guys supposed to be getting ready for breakfast or something?”

 

“And miss the show?” BamBam asked. “Not a chance.”

 

“If you don't scram, I'm going to get the counselor in here and make you scram.”

 

Yugyeom, BamBam, Jae, and Youngjae shrugged and gathered together their bathroom kits to head for the bathrooms. Jinyoung also began to stand up, but Jaebum put a hand on his shoulder, indicating that he wanted him to stay. Jackson lingered a little in the bunk, for some reason not wanting to leave them alone. Mark seemed to be having the same thought in his own bunk.

 

“If you don't mind, could you two head over, too?” Jaebum asked. “I'd like a minute alone.”

 

Jackson did mind, but he couldn't say as much aloud. He simply hopped down from the bunk, grabbed his bathroom stuff, and left.

 

Mark trailed after him, looking pissed. “I hope you're happy,” he said coldly. “This is what you've been aiming for this whole time, right?”

 

“Don't act like I took something from you,” Jackson said back, though his heart wasn't in it. “You knew they were a couple.”

 

“And you knew Jinyoung was having second thoughts.”

 

“And the fact that he doesn't seem to have them anymore is my fault how?”

 

Mark didn't have an answer to that. Not that Jackson needed one. He knew that it was almost entirely his fault, and that was why he had no right to feel upset.

 

Jaebum was happy. He'd gotten exactly what he wanted. He just hadn't realized it would be at the cost of his own happiness.

 

“What are you going to do?” he asked Mark. As much as the selfless part of his brain hated to admit it, the fact that Mark was still around to potentially dismantle his handiwork was a comforting one.

 

“Nothing, if that's what Jinyoung wants,” Mark said, sighing. “What about you?”

 

“Nothing. Why would I do anything?”

 

“Because you look like right now.”

 

“Nothing a good shower won't fix,” Jackson said.

 

“Well, congratulations on having it so easy, then,” Mark said. He stalked ahead of Jackson and immediately threw himself into one of the shower stalls.

 

Like hell this is easy, he thought to himself. But you owe it all to yourself, Jackson Wang. You made your made bed with this one. Time to tuck yourself in.

 

---

 

11:00 AM-13:00 PM: Folk Games

Jinyoung wasn't feeling very well. It felt like something was wrong with his stomach, and he didn't think it was just that his heart had gone through the wringer yesterday. It was probably a combination of a lot of things, but whatever it was, it didn't feel good. He wished he could just sit the day out in the cabin, a bag of ice on his head, someone his hair gently. No expectations of him or responsibilities or pressure. Just something that was simple and uncomplicated.

 

But naturally, it was only Day Four of camp and Day Seven felt like a long way away. And with his luck, today was physical activity day, so he'd have to put his bad feelings to the side. He'd been doing that a lot this morning—he'd woken up with a nauseous feeling, but had tried not to show it when Jaebum had shown up and given him flowers, and afterwards when Jaebum had held him back in the cabin to talk to him. He didn't want Jaebum to feel responsible for it. His feelings for Jaebum were the same as they ever were, a strong and steady love that wasn't about to change any time soon. There was not a single bit of resentment there to be found.

 

And that was exactly the problem. His feelings hadn't changed. Even after Jaebum's earnestness the night before, the tender way he'd held him, the flowers in the morning, and the sweet things he said, his feelings were still what they had been at the start. Love, but not love enough.

 

But for now, he had to put it out of his mind. He had some acting to do. First and foremost, he had to act like he didn't feel two seconds away from keeling over. Second, he had to act happy because Jaebum had done a very sweet thing for him that morning. Third, he had to somehow act like a human being around Mark, even though he didn't have the slightest clue as to how to even begin to approach that situation.

 

And, on top of it, he had to play traditional Korean folk games even though he was too exhausted to move. Fun.

 

Luckily, none of the people in his cabin were too thrilled about it either. Mark and Jackson were both scowling and looking like they'd rather be anywhere else, and even the chipper members were groaning about how they were going to be soundly crushed by Cabin #1.

 

They started off with tuho. “This is a traditional game from as far back as the Gorguryeo Kingdom,” Wooyoung was explaining to the international campers. “It was very fashionable with the upper classes, and experienced a resurgence in popularity during the Joseon period.”

 

“How do we play it?” BamBam asked.

 

“It's very simple. Just take your arrow and land it in a narrow-necked jar or vase. Well, I say simple, but it's actually a lot harder than it looks to land the arrow inside. Personally, I'm crap at it, but you guys look like athletic types.”

 

“We may look like it, but the reality is a little different,” Jaebum said.

 

“Oh well. Best of luck.”

 

Jinyoung was relieved they were starting out with a game with a relaxing pace. He volunteered to go first, up against Minghao, just so he could get it over with. Minghao got one in, Jinyoung got none. When he was done, he trotted over to the side of the field to sit out the rest of the game. His head felt like it was swimming.

 

Jaebum was up next, versus Seungcheol. He also got zero, as expected, while Seungcheol got three.

 

While they were in the middle of competing, Mark dropped by in front of him with a damp towel. Without saying anything, he deposited it in Jinyoung's hands and trotted back to wait for his turn. Jinyoung didn't even know where he'd gotten it from—he was pretty sure the counselors hadn't prepared anything other than a water bottle station for them.

 

Don't be nice to me, Jinyoung thought to himself. Don't make this disappointment any harder.

 

Their team carried on to score only three points—one from Mark, one from Yugyeom, and one from Jae. Meanwhile, every person from Cabin #1 had gotten at least one arrow in and racked up an impressive point total.

 

They moved on to game two after that, ddakji. This game went just about as badly as the first for Cabin #2, but seemed wildly popular with Jackson and Mark, at least. They seemed to enjoy releasing whatever pent up aggression they had on the poor tiles, though they still couldn't manage to flip any of them over. Jinyoung managed to get two by luck since he wasn't really focusing on strategy or much of anything, but sat this game out as quickly as he sat out the first.

 

This time, Jaebum was the one who dropped by. “Everything OK?” he asked.

 

Jinyoung waved his hand. “I just really don't like this heat.”

 

“Want me to get you a water bottle?”

 

“Yes. Thank you.”

 

The water did help a little bit, and though the towel Mark had gotten him had pretty much dried out, it was still good for dabbing his sweat. It's like I have two boyfriends watching out for me, but I don't really 'have' either of them, Jinyoung thought to himself bleakly. What an amazing camp romance this is.

 

Next was yut, and luckily the board wasn't big enough for them all to fit around it. The Korean members were actually requested to sit out so that all the international campers could learn to play instead. The rest of them just sat around and watched, accepting the paper fans Nichkhun and Wooyoung passed out as they waited. This game was slightly more evenly matched. Both teams had some very good throws, and since it was actually a competition this time, the members of Cabin #2 were finally getting amped up. Even Jackson seemed to be reawakening to his usual cheery self to encourage their international members.

 

Yut ended with the first Cabin #2 victory of the day, thanks to some very good closing throws by Jae. One more game was announced to give Cabin #2 the chance to tie Cabin #1 and leave with a little bit of their pride in tact.

 

“This time we'll play a more modern game,” Nichkhun announced. “Jokgu. Get ready for a workout, guys!”

 

Jinyoung groaned. The other games had been pretty low energy, but there was no way to get out of running around when it came to jokgu.

 

“Since the international members just wrapped up the last game, we'll start with the Korean campers for the first round,” Wooyoung said. “Ready, guys?”

 

Jinyoung had never felt less ready in his life, but joined Jaebum, Youngjae, and Yugyeom behind the low net to face off against Seungcheol, Jeonghan, Wonwoo, and Seungkwan. It was pretty obvious that with him and Jaebum on the team, they were going to lose by default, so he didn't really get the point in making an effort to begin with.

 

Sure enough, the other team was faster and more coordinated than they were, and quickly scored five points for themselves before Cabin #2 even scored one. If that wasn't enough, they also quickly identified Jaebum and Jinyoung as the team weak links and aggressively targeted their sides of the field. Jinyoung, who had hoped to avoid running altogether, was quickly being run ragged.

 

Eventually, the score reached 4-14, and Cabin #1 only needed one more point before the game switched over to the international campers. It couldn't come fast enough for Jinyoung, who genuinely felt like he was going to be sick now. As soon as the game was over, he was planning on going straight to Nichkhun and requesting a pass to head over to sick bay at the camp HQ.

 

Cabin #1 had control of the ball, and it landed in Yugyeom's area. He returned it with a powerful kick, but Seungkwan was also able to get good position on it, and nailed it right to Jinyoung. Jinyoung considered just letting it go, but he felt like he had just enough energy left for one more kick. He wound his leg up in preparation, watching the ball as it came.

 

He never got to land it. As soon as he lifted his leg up, a wave of dizziness overcame him and he stumbled. But not just stumbled—he was falling, falling backwards, his ankle twisting underneath him and it hurt and his head was swimming and he couldn't hold onto a thought other than that he didn't want to think of anything anymore anyways.

 

He didn't remember what happened next, immediately. One minute he was on the ground, and the next he was being hoisted onto someone's back, his head lolling onto that person's shoulder. Wooyoung and Nichkhun were walking at the sides of that person, telling all the other campers to stay put while they took Jinyoung to sick bay. Nichkhun was gently dabbing him with the towel Mark had given him earlier, which was now blessedly cool again.

 

“You with us, Jinyoung?” Nichkhun asked gently.

 

“I feel terrible,” Jinyoung croaked.

 

“Fever?”

 

He shook his head. He didn't think so. “Upset stomach. Headache.”

 

“And now probably heat exhaustion and a sprained ankle,” Wooyoung said. “Don't worry, our doctor is well stocked with ice. One of the female campers had a dizzy spell this morning. We should have been more careful.”

 

Jinyoung shook his head. “I should have just said I wasn't feeling well.”

 

“I won't disagree with you there.” Wooyoung glanced at the person carrying him. “Holding up OK, Mark?”

 

“Yeah, I'm fine,” Mark's voice replied. So it was Mark carrying him. Jinyoung should have recognized him by his hair, but he was a bit too dazed at the moment. He leaned his head back onto Mark's shoulder and shut his eyes.

 

When they made it to sick bay, Mark gently lowered Jinyoung down on the bed, and Nichkhun radioed the doctor, who was in the mess hall having lunch. “If you want to go back to the cabin, Mark, that's fine,” Nichkhun said. “Actually, it might be a good idea to go get Jaebum to stay with Jinyoung. Considering...”

 

“I'm his 'Buddy', so isn't it fine if it's me?” Mark asked.

 

“It's fine,” Jinyoung said faintly. “He can stay.” Mark gave him a grateful smile in return.

 

In five minutes, the doctor returned to examine Jinyoung. It was determined that he didn't have a fever, but was suffering from a bit of heat exhaustion and a slight gastro-intestinal infection. The doctor got him a cold compress, water, and some medicine before looking at his ankle.

 

Luckily, it was just a minor sprain. There was some slight swelling, which the doctor said would go down with the use of an ice pack. “I wouldn't recommend walking on it much today,” he advised. “So let's just keep you in sick bay for the rest of the day, if that's OK.”

 

That was perfectly fine with Jinyoung. He needed the rest and badly. He felt like he could sleep through the rest of camp and wake up when it was all over, if that wasn't such a cowardly thing to do.

 

He turned to Mark, who was looking a little tired and worried himself. Jinyoung wanted to reach over and smooth the worry lines on his forehead. “Hey,” he said quietly. “Would you mind if I took a bit of a nap?”

 

“No. I think that's exactly what you need.”

 

“You could go back, you know.”

 

“No. No, I can't.” He pulled up a chair and sat down beside Jinyoung. “This would have been our Buddy Time, anyways. I'll stay with you.”

 

“OK. I don't mind.” Jinyoung yawned, his eyes fluttering shut. “See you when I wake up, then.”

 

“Sweet dreams,” Mark whispered. Jinyoung hoped they would be. He wouldn't mind a little sweetness to go with the gentle voice lulling him to sleep.

 

---

 

15:00PM-18:00PM: Buddy Time- Jinyoung & Mark

 

Jinyoung woke up to the sensation of someone gently his hair. He cracked open an eye. Mark was still sitting beside his bed, humming slightly under his breath, in rhythm with his movements against Jinyoung's head. He didn't stop when he noticed Jinyoung was awake. He simply waited patiently for Jinyoung to reorient himself.

 

“How long did I sleep?” Jinyoung asked.

 

“Just forty minutes. You could go back to sleep if you wanted.”

 

Jinyoung shook his head. “My throat's a little dry.”

 

Mark reached down. There was a cooler at his feet, and he pulled out another water bottle. “Here you go.”

 

“Thank you.” Jinyoung twisted open the bottle and took a nice, long drink.

 

“How's the ankle?” Mark asked.

 

“Kind of hurts,” Jinyoung admitted.

 

“Any reason why you didn't tell any of us that you were sick today?”

 

“I'm trying to hold it together. I'm trying to hold a lot together, if you can't tell.” He studied Mark's face. “Um, Mark-”

 

“Jinyoung. You really don't need to explain anything to me. In fact, I'd almost rather you didn't. I take back what I said yesterday. We can put it behind us.”

 

“Can you?” Jinyoung asked. “Can you really, or are you just saying that?”

 

Mark smiled thinly. “Of course I'm just saying that. You've obviously noticed that I care a lot about you. Right now, I'm making a gallant attempt to put what you want first. You know, since I can't go around giving you flowers.”

 

Jinyoung winced a little.

 

“Sorry...that wasn't very nice.”

 

“I would be a little hard on me too, if I were you.” Jinyoung balled his sheets in his hands. “I know you don't want to hear this, but I have to say it. When I didn't take your way out yesterday, I was only thinking of me. And I should have been thinking of Jaebum, too. I thought I understood our situation, but I didn't, and I made a promise and gave my word that I would be more serious than I have been, so-”

 

Mark lifted a hand, silencing Jinyoung. “I understand. I said I'd be a good boy, didn't I? That I didn't want to make things difficult for you. We can still be friends, that's completely fine. I did a good job of that the first few days.”

 

“Too good of a job,” Jinyoung murmured.

 

“You, too. Making me like this in such a short time? You've certainly set a new record.” He resumed Jinyoung's hair. “What did you promise him?”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“Jaebum. What did you promise him? Because part of me wants to get down on my hands and knees and beg you to find a loophole.”

 

“That if he fell in love with me, I would love him back.”

 

“Oh.” Mark bit his lips. “Well, I guess..he does seem to be a bit in love with you at the moment, doesn't he?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“If you trusted him enough to promise that, I'm sure you will, one day. Love him back, that is. Otherwise, I'd have to give you a big shake right now and start screaming what were you thinking?, which I'd rather not do since you're sick.” His eyes were screaming it for him, though. Park Jinyoung, what the hell were you thinking promising something that big so easily? Why would you gamble your heart away so you couldn't have it ready for someone you actually want to give it to?

 

Jinyoung nodded wordlessly. He felt like such a fool, and he wished Mark didn't have to see it inside of him, too. Maybe Mark would be grateful he still had his way out now, now that he knew how lightly Jinyoung had treated the idea of love.

 

“But I'm going to selfishly hope you don't fall in love in the next few days," Mark continued. "With Jaebum, that is. I'm not sure I want to watch. I'd like a happy goodbye.”

 

“I'm not sure that I never want to see you again after this.”

 

“Tough. It's only going to cause us even more pain, don't you realize that? Maybe I'll see you again after five years when you and Jaebum are happy in love and I've found someone too and-”

 

Jinyoung leaned into Mark's waist and buried his face in his shirt. His eyes were starting to leak, and he didn't want Mark to see. Mark fell silent, then slowly wrapped his arm around Jinyoung's shoulder, rubbing his back and letting him cry.

 

“I'm sorry,” Jinyoung said after pulling away. He could feel the puffiness of his face, but it felt like no matter what side of himself he showed, Mark would be OK with it today. “I won't do that again. I'll be fine now.”

 

“I would say that you could do it as many times as you liked, but I really don't want you to cry anymore.” He gently eased Jinyoung back into a resting position on the bed. “I've decided that the five year plan was a stupid idea. Most of all, because it's doing the exact same thing you said you hated, playing along with the idea that you and Jaebum are soulmates and you're actually guaranteed to fall in love with him. Because speaking both honestly and selfishly, if you hadn't made that damn promise, we would have kept flirting yesterday and we'd still be doing it now, wouldn't we?”

 

Jinyoung nodded.

 

“So I have a better plan. The month only just started, right? Clearly Jaebum and this promise you made with him are both important to you, so I'm not going to be a jerk and command you not to make your own decision on that if you really feel this is something you have to do. You can date him until the end of the month. I'll wait for you. If you fall in love with him by then, then I'll step aside graciously, because that will have been your choice, and I'd respect it even if I didn't like it.”

 

“And if I don't fall in love?”

 

“Then, I think you should really tell him that. I know it will hurt and that you love Jaebum very much, but I also think you love him too much to give him a false happiness for the rest of his life. Better to disappoint him now rather than extending the agony.”

 

Jinyoung nodded. “And if I do that?”

 

“If you can bear to see me again and your feelings about this haven't changed, I'll become the person you'll never be able to leave behind. And I'll never let you slip away from me again, because I'm pretty sure I could fall in love with someone like you to the point where I'd never even consider for a moment letting you go.”

 

Jinyoung's heart fluttered wildly in his chest. He'd never felt like this before. He'd never wanted anything so badly as he wanted the future Mark was painting with his words.

 

And even if he did wait and see what would happen between him and Jaebum, somehow he didn't think it was possible to feel like this twice in such quick succession. This was the kind of feeling you grabbed on to firmly because you were never sure if it would ever be able to happen again in a lifetime.

 

He grabbed on firmly to Mark's hand. “I'm not going to promise you anything,” Jinyoung said. “I think I've been promising too recklessly recently and I'm tired of feeling like I have to do this or that because of what other people want.”

 

“I agree.”

 

“But I hope you wait for me til the end of the month. Because I have a feeling I'll also be waiting there for you.”

 

---

 

15:00PM-18:00PM: Buddy Time- Jackson & Jaebum

 

“I'm sure he's fine,” Jackson said as Jaebum paced back and forth. “Nichkhun said it was just a little sprain. Um, are you ever going to help me untangle this string?”

 

“No,” Jaebum said in a shaken voice. He'd been torn between concern and frustration the entire afternoon, always one second away from either crying or snapping. “I don't understand why the hell they're not letting me go over to sick bay. I want to see him.”

 

“Because Mark's with him. You know, it's Buddy Time. Mark= Buddy. You=boyfriend. You'll be able to go over in the evening and take good care of him.”

 

“I don't know why I can't do that now. He's...he's one of the most imporant people in the world to me and he's hurt, so why does it need to be Mark there? Who is Mark to him?”

 

Jackson's heart clenched so much it physically hurt. He too felt like he was battling a deep concern for both Jinyoung and Jaebum, and also a raw ache of anger and pain, mostly thanks to himself. “If you feel so strongly about it, you should have been the one to sweep Jinyoung up like the heroic prince you were trying to be this morning," he said, letting the anger win out and instantly regretting it as a look of guilt trembled in Jaebum's eyes.

 

“But how?" he asked desperately. "Mark was literally there in two seconds. He must have been standing nearby.”

 

“Actually, he wasn't. He was sitting next to me outside of the field. He just happened to be watching Jinyoung like a hawk because he thought he looked woozy, then morphed into adrenaline-fueled-protective mode when Jinyoung fell. You know, like those mothers who can lift cars off of children.”

 

Jaebum finally stopped pacing. “Mark's really into Jinyoung, isn't he?”

 

Jackson tossed aside the kite they were supposed to be flying together as first on their list of traditional activities. There was no way the string would be obeying him anytime soon, and Jaebum clearly had 0% interest in participating today. “Honestly? Yeah.”

 

Jaebum exhaled a long and frustrated sigh, sinking to his knees a little."I don't get it," he said faintly.

 

"Why? You of all people should understand how lovable Jinyoung is."

 

"Yes, I know that but..." He ran his hands through his hair. "People don't fall in love with me and Jinyoung. They never have. You always said it was because we were meant to be together and everyone knew that but us. But we're together now. And someone is falling for him now of all times? Someone is falling for him even though I'm supposed to be this huge gigantic soulmate roadblock just like Jinyoung has always been to other people for me?" He clenched his hands. "Do you know what? He'll probably be the exact same as everyone else in the end. Acting like he can make Jinyoung happy and then turning around and hurting him. And if anyone thinks I'm going to let Jinyoung go through that, they-"

 

"But maybe he won't," Jackson said in a small voice.

 

"What?"

 

"I'm just saying, maybe he won't. He could be serious. He seems like a smart person. Maybe he actually has a functioning brain and can correctly interpret his feelings and isn't trying to force them on someone else, unlike other people, and maybe that means he'll actually be different and won't hurt Jinyoung because he really truly loves him and he doesn't see that as having anything to do with you."

 

Jaebum looked blankly at Jackson. “So...now you suddenly want me to give up on Jinyoung?”

 

“You could...”

 

“I don't want to hear this from you of all people.”

 

“Because, honestly, just last week you said you were going to try and figure out if you were in love with Jinyoung. You weren't there yet. So therefore it might be a safe assumption that you haven't quite fallen in love with-”

 

“Stop,” Jaebum said. It was terrifying how sad and angry his voice could be at the same time.

 

Jackson stopped.

 

“So first I absolutely have to be in love with Jinyoung or you're going to explode into a temper tantrum, and now you've changed your mind just like that? Is that how little you think of love and destiny and all the you spouted off about before?”

 

“No...”

 

“Then explain your train of thought to me. I'm not getting it.”

 

“I...I think I'm a little at a loss as to how to explain it, too,” Jackson confessed.

 

“Then...then just please don't try to tell me what to do or how to feel about this right now and then say something different tomorrow. I've been through enough of that, OK? I can't do it anymore.”

 

Jackson plopped down on the ground, feeling exhausted and duly scolded. He was worried about Jinyoung, too, but at the same time, he couldn't help still feeling the urge to keep letting things deteriorate between them. It was still a little amazing to him, because just yesterday, he would have done anything to bring them together. It had taken actually seeing them together to realize, after all this time, that it wasn't actually what he wanted.

 

He wished he could go back in time and transfer that knowledge to yesterday's version of Jackson. And then, at the very moment Jaebum asked Is that all you really want? he would have said, No, that's not all I want. I thought all I wanted was for you to be happy, but it turns out that I think that happiness would have been ten times better if you had fallen in love with me instead.

 

It felt liberating to finally admit that in his head. He'd spent so much time idealizing a romance between Jinyoung and Jaebum, but almost all of his fantasies had focused on Jaebum himself instead of Jinyoung. Jaebum being all cool and prince-like, Jaebum melting that way he sometimes did, Jaebum smiling sweetly, Jaebum acting gallant, Jaebum coming up with romantic dates he'd act like he'd just randomly thrown together, Jaebum leaning in and fixing him with one of those intense looks in his eyes, Jaebum, Jaebum, Jaebum.

 

The reason he'd fixated on in it so much was because he was obsessed with Jaebum, and he had simply been too blind to the motivation behind it. It was easy to stick Jinyoung into the placeholder of receiving all that affection because Jinyoung and Jaebum were always together and it had been like that from the moment he'd first come into their lives, and it just seemed far too difficult to surpass that relationship and step into that place instead. So he'd given up before even trying just like Youngjae and all the other people who had driven Jaebum into seeing Jinyoung as the only option in the first place.

 

I am such a freaking, freaking idiot, he thought to himself. And I threw away my one chance before I even realized what an idiot I am, and now he's completely gone and fallen in love with Jinyoung and there's no way back now.

 

His only saving throw was the possibility of Jinyoung not being in love with Jaebum, which had seemed heinous the day before, but now was the last straw he was grasping at. There was clearly something between Jinyoung and Mark, but there was also a good chance that Jinyoung would prioritize Jaebum's feelings over the feelings of someone he'd just met. Besides, Jaebum was doing one hell of a job of trying to win Jinyoung over with the flowers and all, and if Jackson were Jinyoung, there would be no way of withstanding it in the long term. Jinyoung definitely seemed like the type to be won over by grand romantic gestures.

 

But even that saving throw came with the terrible possibility of Jaebum being so heartbroken after being rejected by the person everyone had convinced him was his soulmate that he'd finally give up on love for good. Which would also be Jackson's fault. It was almost amazing how single-handedly he'd screwed himself over. He felt like he deserved an award for his own special brand of idiocy.

 

Jaebum sat down next to him on the ground, interrupting his thoughts. “What is it?” he asked, a bit gruffly. “Something's up with you today.”

 

“Sounds about right.”

 

“Care to explain?”

 

“You'd punch me in the face if I did.”

 

“Did you say something stupid to Jinyoung again?”

 

“Haven't said a word to him all day, thank you very much.” Jackson paused. “You know when I said Jinyoung and you were soulmates...”

 

“If you're going to take it back right this moment, I will punch you in the face. I just told you, you shouldn't go around saying things you're only going to change your mind about later.”

 

“I won't. But I just realized... guys like Youngjae are your type, kind of? You liked him before.”

 

Jaebum shrugged.

 

“So...basically, you like people who can be loud, kind of annoying, and over the top, and act a little bit idiotically from time to time?”

 

Jaebum shrugged again.

 

“Because that does not sound like Park Jinyoung.” But does sound completely like me, yeah?

 

“I've had a change of heart. There's no way I'm going to fall in love with someone like Youngjae again considering how that turned out.”

 

“I see.” Jackson sighed. “Anyways, I've decided I placed too many expectations on Jinyoung for the past few days. I'd like to shift them over to you.”

 

“Excuse me?”

 

“You better be sure this is what you actually want, because if you're not being sincere and Jinyoung throws away a chance with a nice, totally hot guy who's completely in love with him for your sake, maybe it will be I who will punch you in the face. HA!”

 

Jaebum looked at him incredulously, but Jackson felt a little bit better. I put all my passion in to building this relationship, and somehow it wound up working, he realized. If I put the same amount of passion into reversing it, maybe I can get lucky twice. I'm not going to be like that idiot father for his son. If there's even the slightest chance opportunity will come knocking at my door again, I'm going to ing let him in.

 

---

 

19:00PM-21:00PM: Lovers- Question!

 

“How are you feeling?” Jaebum asked. He'd arrived shortly after Jinyoung had woken up from his second nap, carrying a tray of food from the mess hall. Jinyoung had missed Mark leaving, but assumed the two boys had traded off during dinner. It would be a little too suspicious for Jaebum if Mark had insisted on staying.

 

“Not so good,” Jinyoung admitted. “I think I need a little more sleep, to be honest.”

 

“You should eat first.”

 

“Don't worry, I will.” He grabbed the tray from Jaebum and opened up a pair of chopsticks, digging into the food and shoveling it into his mouth.

 

“This reminds me of when you fell off your bike in elementary school,” Jaebum said, wiping some of the sweat from his face. “You just got a little scrape, but you stayed in bed for days, ordering me around like I was your servant.”

 

“Trust me, I'm not faking this time.”

 

“I didn't think you were.” His mouth turned down at the corners. “You really gave me a scare back there.”

 

“Sorry.”

 

“Don't be. Besides, we've taken turns freaking each other out like this. It happens. Just...I'd appreciate it if you would be careful. And tell me next time you're feeling sick. I'd prefer to bring you medicine instead of flowers, in that case.”

 

“Jaebum?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“That time in elementary school...even though I was over-dramatic about the injury back then, you were still worried about me.”

 

“Of course I was.”

 

“Does it feel the same right now? As it did back then?”

 

Jaebum looked at him confusedly. “What do you mean?”

 

“The concern you feel. Is it still the same?”

 

“I don't know. It's been so long since the bike accident that I can't remember. Besides, we're different people now.”

 

Jinyoung leaned back in bed, sighing. “Yeah. I suppose.”

 

“So. Did Mark do a good job of looking after you?”

 

Jinyoung warily glanced at Jaebum out of the corner of his eye. Jaebum was good at masking his feelings when he spoke, so Jinyoung couldn't pick up if it was a loaded question or not. Still, he felt like he needed to answer carefully. “I was asleep most of the time he was here,” he said. Which was mostly true.

 

“Huh. So, you know how Jackson was freaking out yesterday because he thought you were cheating on me with Mark?”

 

Jinyoung shifted uncomfortably. “Yeah?”

 

“Today it sounded like he actually wanted you to cheat on me with Mark.”

 

“W-what?!? Jackson said that?”

 

“Not in so many words, but the implication was there.” He looked at Jinyoung intently. “Has he said anything to you?”

 

“I'm sorry, but I haven't spoken to him all day. We still haven't made up from yesterday's fight, technically.”

 

“Well, could you tell me if he says anything? I want to know what he's thinking.”

 

“You could just ask him.”

 

“When you receive nothing but things you don't want to hear to the questions you ask, you learn to stop asking them.” A dark look crossed his face, which he quickly shook off. He reached up to grab for his necklace like he always did, but it wasn't there—he must have forgotten to put it on. His hand froze where it was for a moment, then he slowly lowered it. “Anyways, is there anything I can do for you? Change the ice on your ankle? Back massage?”

 

“I'm fine.”

 

“Hmph. Did you spend all afternoon ordering Mark around and now you don't need anything anymore?”

 

“Not exactly.”

 

“Close your eyes, then.”

 

“What?”

 

“Close your eyes.”

 

Jinyoung did so, a little hesitantly.

 

He felt Jaebum pulling off the cold compress and pressing a kiss onto the center of his forehead. It was probably a bit cold and clammy for him, so he didn't linger long. Instead, he moved on and pressed two kisses onto the apples of Jinyoung's cheeks.

 

It was something he'd used to do back when they were little, and it still felt as sweet as back then. Jinyoung willed himself to try and find something deeper in it, but something deeper still wasn't there.

 

Jinyoung opened his eyes, and he was surprised to see tears in Jaebum's. His heart thudded in dread. "Jaebum? What's wrong?"

 

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "For not being the one who was there for you today. You've always been there for me, and even now, I'm relying on you selfishly because you always make everything better and easier, and loving you has stopped so many things from hurting as badly as they could have. But...I'm not returning the favor, am I? You're hurting. You've been in pain, and I've done nothing but add to it."

 

"No," Jinyoung said quickly. "It's not you. I know how much you care about me, you never have to worry about that. I've just been.. everything has been such a mess lately."

 

"It's my fault. Jinyoung, I promise I'll do better. I'll focus more. I'll give you back everything you've given me times a thousand if you're willing to have faith in me. And..and...Day 6."

 

“Yes?”

 

“I thought I would give you some time to decide. On Day 6, camp will almost be over. I thought it might be a good time for you to tell me yes or no. If I can't make you happy, tell me then and I'll do my best to let you go. I don't want to trap you if this isn't what you want...or if there's someone else you'd rather be with. And I...” He fell silent. "And I... I don't know. What I'll do, I don't know." His voice got incredibly quiet, and Jinyoung could barely hear him. "This was the only answer I had left."

 

Jinyoung's heart ached for what felt like the millionth time. Was there any limit on how hard this would get before it was finally over? Mark had told him it was better to disappoint Jaebum sooner rather than later, but Jinyoung knew that wouldn't be so easy. He had Mark waiting for him, but who did Jaebum have? Was he supposed to just send him back to face heartache after heartache alone while he rode happily off into the sunset?

 

"All right," he said softly nonetheless. "We'll talk about this then."

 

Jaebum wrapped his arms around Jinyoung, pulling him closer. “Thank you,” he said softly. “You're the only one who takes me seriously. Thank you.”

 

 

 

 

Alternate ending:

"And..and...Day 6."

 

“Yes?”

 

"Day 6...is an amazing band. I've realized you're not the one I'm in love with. It's been Day 6 this whole time. In fact, everyone should buy their music and support them and help them rise to the top where they belong."

 

Tears filled Jinyoung's eyes. "You're right. We've been fools this whole time. Why are we confusing ourselves over this web of love when there's only one love that matters? The love of Day 6's brilliant discography."

 

The two boys then left camp halfway through to go stream Day 6, leaving Jackson and Mark to deal with everything on their own. THE END.