Jinyoung stands by the side of the road, a duffel bag slung across his right shoulder as he waited for the hovercar that will be taking him back to Helios Grove. He looks down at the bag to his right, wondering if he brought enough of his personal belongings for his indefinite stay on the Tuan household. 

After the conversation he had with his parents the previous night, Jinyoung contacted Raymond to inform the elite of his decision. The older man was more than a little excited at the news, his enthusiasm conveying through the BIC.

"And what about your accommodations? Staying with us or with your parents?" Raymond had asked. 

"I think it will be a good opportunity for me to stay in the city center. I really hope I'm not imposing Raymond because if I am, I can always find another place." Jinyoung had replied. He liked the idea of living in Helios Grove but couldn't help but feel that he was imposing, even if Raymond was the one who invited him. 

"Nonsense. We have the room and it's not a bother at all."

"Thanks Raymond. Is there anything I need to bring besides a change of clothes?" 

"You don't even need those actually. If you're going to be an elite, you're going to dress like one. You can still bring some clothes if you prefer to slip into something more comfortable now and then but other than that, you'll have a brand new wardrobe." Raymond had informed Jinyoung.

Following Raymond's advice, Jinyoung packed a few sets of his clothes, leaving the rest in his old room. That morning, his mom had bid him a teary goodbye and Jinyoung had to remind her that he would be visiting often. She smiled but still continued to shed her tears. Jinyoung just laughed and shook his head, thinking that maybe this was just what mothers did. 

So here he was, waiting by the side of the road. As he waited, he observes the street that he has lived on for the past twenty-one years. Overall it was a residential area, the place featuring row after row of houses. The roads that run along the streets are mostly empty of vehicles, unlike the city center where you can see a hovercar every few feet. So when a shiny black hovercar comes floating down the street towards Jinyoung, he knows immediately that it was his ride. 

As the vehicle coasted to a smooth stop in front of Jinyoung, the door opens. Expecting everything to be the same as the previous day, Jinyoung didn't have a second thought before stepping into the car. This time however, the vehicle isn't as empty as he had expected. 

"What are you doing here?" Jinyoung asks, pausing halfway into the vehicle. 

"Just get in. I'll explain later." Mark replies, not giving any further information. Jinyoung just raises an eyebrow at Mark, trying to figure out the guy's motives. Still, confused as he might have been, Jinyoung steps in, taking a seat beside Mark. The door closes behind him and the vehicle was off. "Nice to see you." Mark smiles at Jinyoung, showing the former's sparkling canine teeth. 

"That makes one of us. I think I'm more confused than anything else." Jinyoung deadpans. Mark simply laughs, taking a tablet out from the door compartment. Jinyoung didn't expect Mark's laugh to be so different from his usual speaking voice. Where as Mark's normal speaking voice is low and deep, his laugh is high-pitched and somewhat adorable for the elite who looks serious almost all the time. Mark turns the tablet on and taps away onto the screen. 

"We're just gonna have a slight detour before we head back to Helios." Mark mumbles, more to himself than anyone, as he taps the screen. With a final keystroke, the driver bot speaks up. 

"Route updated." It drones before quickly taking a left turn. Even though Jinyoung had only traveled to Helios Grove once before, he knows that the route they were supposed to take carried on straight ahead instead of taking a left turn. 

"You hacked the robot?" Jinyoung asks incredulously. 

"Hack is such a strong word. I like to think of it as re-programming." Mark's mischievous tone did nothing to ease Jinyoung's confusion. 

"Something tells me that this isn't something your father would approve of." Jinyoung was still peculiar about the elite's intentions with what they're about to do.

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him." Mark shrugs. Jinyoung rolls his eyes at that, knowing that he has no choice but to just go with it. Wherever or whatever Mark has in mind, Jinyoung had no way to change it even if he wanted to. 

"Where are we going anyway? I hope you're not bringing me somewhere so you can kill me." Jinyoung says, raising an eyebrow at the man next to him. 

"Now... why would I kill you? Look at that cute face of yours." Mark coos like he was speaking to a little kid. 

"Wow... Didn't know you can be this infuriating. You do know that you're acting kinda childish right now?" Jinyoung sassily points out.

"So I've heard." Mark shrugs at that, indifferent of Jinyoung's statement.

"Really?" Jinyoung asks. From what Jinyoung could tell from Mark's interactions with everyone else, he has seen that the elite was very professional. So different from the Mark that interacted with him. Hearing that someone else has said he was childish seemed unlikely, what with the way he carries himself around others. 

"Nope. Just you." Mark smirks making Jinyoung roll his eyes once again. 

"I rest my case. So, are you going to tell me where we're going?" Jinyoung asks again, turning to face Mark. 

"You'll know when we get there. I'm certain you'll like it too so don't worry." Mark shares. At those words, Jinyoung knows exactly where they were headed.

"The forest? Why are we going there?" Jinyoung adds, making Mark whip his head to Jinyoung in surprise. "Don't look so surprised. Could you have been any more obvious?" Jinyoung crosses his arms at that, huffing an air of annoyance.

"You're one of those 'nothing gets by you' kind of person aren't you? Damn... takes the joy out of any kind of surprise." Mark marvels at Jinyoung's wit.

"I have more than enough surprises in my life right now. Besides, you are under no obligation to surprise me with anything. Or need I remind you that we aren't exactly friends yet? I've known you for three days and I'm not exaggerating for one bit" Jinyoung states. Seriously though, he could count the number of times he has met Mark on one hand. ONE.

"Ouch Park." Mark plays, holding a hand over his heart in mock hurt. "I thought we shared something a little more special than that. You seemed to think so when you were on my face just the other day."

"Shut up. Don't mention that, ever. It wasn't supposed to happen and you and I both know that." 

"Fine... sorry. Just teasing." Mark says, turning to look out the window. Jinyoung shakes his head, turning to face out the window as well, letting the silence between them take over. He doesn't need it, being constantly reminded of his attraction to Mark. What Jinyoung wants is to forget all about it, knowing that no good would come out of it.

The sight of the green trees looming in the foreground is a sight for sore eyes for Jinyoung. With everything that was suddenly being upon him, he would have liked nothing more than an hour at the forest to relax and clear his head. The car turns down a road that Jinyoung never took whenever he visited by foot. The route leading towards the back of the dome, away from the main entrance that he frequented. As the car pulls into the complex from an entrance that Jinyoung never even knew existed, he finds himself in a parking lot of sorts, coming to a conclusion that it was probably for visiting elites. 

As the vehicle comes to a stop, the doors pop open. Without uttering a single word, Mark steps out of the vehicle. Jinyoung follows behind, exiting the car only to notice that Mark was already walking away towards what looked liked the elevator. Frowning slightly, Jinyoung runs to catch up with the other man, slowing to match his pace once he was at the elite's side. 

"Did I say something wrong?" Jinyoung asks, knowing that Mark's silence and somewhat cold attitude have something to do with what he has said in the car. 

"Nothing that I don't already know." Mark replies, not even giving Jinyoung a sideways glance. 

"Then what's with you?" Jinyoung says as he steps into the elevator with Mark. 

"Nothing." Mark sighs, punching the button, causing the door to close. Jinyoung shakes his head as the elevator ascended. If Mark wants to act this way, he wasn't going to bother so he decided to just keep quiet. The door opens and the smell of nature wafts into the elevator. Jinyoung closes his eyes, taking a deep breath, filling his lungs with fresh air. It has been nothing more than a few days since he last visited the forest but already, he misses the place. 

Cracking his eyes open, he notices that Mark was off down the trail, heading towards the hill that the two have met previously. With hands in his pocket, Mark strides calmly through the slight undergrowth, listening to the crunching of leaves under his feet. Behind him, he hears Jinyoung trudging through the trail behind him, a few yards back. 

                                      ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Somehow the detour isn't turning out as Mark has expected. It was supposed to be a simple picnic of sorts, something like the time they first met, except with a little food and drinks. Of course, after the conversation in the car, Mark figures that the plan was no longer a wise thing, hence leaving everything he brought along in the car. He knows he is being stupid but he doesn't know why he was giving in to it so quickly and easily.

As Mark reaches the spot on the hill where he has first met Jinyoung, he looks out at the forest. After a moment, he sits down, circling his hands around his bent knees, locking them together. Jinyoung comes and sits down beside him but didn't say anything all throughout. 

The two remains in silence for a good fifteen minutes, simply enjoying the peace of the forest. Of course, the silence has to be broken some time and Jinyoung couldn't take it any longer. "So, care to explain why we are here?" Jinyoung asks. 

"I thought this was what you liked to do. Just come here to clear the mind." Mark replies, still not looking at Jinyoung. 

"Yes I do but I'm sure that wasn't the reason you brought us here."

"Forget it. It was a stupid idea anyway. Just pretend that I came here to clear my mind too." 

"You know me... I don't get satisfied with vague answers like that." Jinyoung says, hoping that Mark would open up enough about his original intentions. 

"Trust me... you won't like the real answer." Mark says. 

"Try me." Jinyoung replied seriously. Mark looks over at Jinyoung, staring into those mesmerizing brown eyes. Sighing, he knows that he has no restraint when it comes to Jinyoung. 

"I brought you here for a picnic to try and get to know you better. In my brain, I didn't see it as a date or anything or at least that was what I kept telling myself. After the whole thing in the car just now, I realized I should have known better." Mark confesses.
                                     ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Mark was right about Jinyoung not liking the answer. Sure he may have suspected it but still, he wished that Mark didn't make it so difficult for him. "Your frown tells me what I already know. I told you... you wouldn't like the truth." Mark continues to say without looking at Jinyoung.

"Why are you doing this Mark? You and I both know..." Jinyoung