The bus ride was jerky as its wheels rolled over the bumpy roads continuously. The students whined and began making a fuss out of the journey. Some who have dozed off knocked their heads against the glass window and found themselves awake again. Others were cursing and swearing about the plans made by the school. Jaerin sighed as she played around with her phone. She officially regretted joining the class. Now, she couldn’t help but question her decision.

“Why did I even agree to come along in the first place?” she cursed in her mind.

Kris’ face was drained of colours as he gulped down his saliva repeatedly. Then, he suddenly grabbed Jarin’s wrist. She looked to him in confusion. Seeing his difficult expression, she finally realized what was coming their way.

“Who has a plastic bag?!” She yelled with her hands up.

Kris looked to her in defeat as one of their guy classmate surrender his. She was supposed to do it discreetly, he thought. A gush of sour tasting liquid rushed up his esophagus at that moment. Not bothering to thank him, she shoved the bag into Kris’ hands. Just in time, he threw up almost all the contents in his stomach. Jaerin’s face scrunched up at the sight of the disgusting scene.

“Kris.” She called out as another round of vomit got expelled.

“You are so lousy.” She remarked and looked away in disgust.

“This is so embarrassing.” Kris thought, gripping onto the sides of the bag.

“Oppa, gwenchana?” one of his fan girls asked in concern.

Kris nodded and took the tissue from her. Jaerin rolled her eyes as the fan girl took his bag of vomit away for him. She was still smiling idiotically as she walked back to her seat.

“These girls are really impossible.” She spat in disbelief.

“At least they didn’t just ignore me while I vomit.” Kris complained.

“Yah. Be grateful that I even get a bag for you.” Jaerin crossed her arms.

“Arraso. Thanks.” Kris said with a slight smile.

“That sounds better.” She responded in victory.

Finally, the ride was over and the class reached their destination. Stepping down from the bus, they were greeted with a spectacular variety of greenery. Sounds of crickets and bird chirping merrily could be heard vaguely coming from the forest. It was a pleasant sight even with the sweltering sun seemingly burning their skin from above.

“Esh.” Jaerin made a sound as she slapped a mosquito on her arm.

“That’s payback for my blood.” She muttered under her breath.

“Violent girl.” Kris commented.

“Shut up.” She said as she flashed him a dangerous smile.

The other excursion bus arrived and the onboard students got down in a single file. Lay spotted Jaerin standing beside another guy. With a smile on his face, he walked up to them. Kris thought he felt an evil aura coming his way as he spotted Lay. His living being disgust him to no end.

The reason was obvious.

“Hey.” Lay greeted.

“Act cool eh?” Kris thought to himself.

“Yo.” Jaerin returned the greeting.

“This is…” Lay paused as he looked at Kris.

“Kris Wu.” He introduced himself and extended his left hand.

“You can just call me Lay.” Lay said as he shook his hand.

The handshake turned out to be a firm grip that seemed a little… unfriendly. Jaerin looked at the two whose hands were still in one another’s.

“Are you two gay?” she asked with a smirk.

The two withdrew their hands rapidly before chorusing a loud “No” together. She nodded her head with an unimpressed expression on.

“Guys, listen up!” The teacher in-charge yelled.

The vertically challenged teacher had to step on a large rock to give out instructions. Some of the students were suppressing their laughter at the ridiculous scene before them. They deduced the teacher has poor balancing skills too.

“This excursion… whoa… we need all of you to split into pairs. The partner would be your… whoa…buddy for the entire excursion. You guys must stick together and ensure one another’s safety. One guy, one girl that is. Guys should protect the girls, understood? And don’t try anything… whoa… funny or you will get it from me!”

The teacher managed to complete his sentence before slipping off the rock.

“Now get into your pairs!” He yelled as loudly as possible.

However, it was unnecessary because they students had already sprung into action. Kris looked over to Jaerin and smiled.

“Yah, Jaerin. Wan-”

“Lay, want to be my partner?” she suggested.

Both of their eyes widened at her words.

“Su-Sure.” He replied.

“I thought I would definitely be your partner.” Kris thought in his heart.

He hated the feeling overwhelming him. He felt substituted. As if she no longer needed him.

“Oppa, let’s partner together!” One of his fan girls skipped over to his side.

Kris nodded expressionlessly as he looked at the pair before him.

─
 

“Now, let the survival challenge officially begin.”

With that, the couples ran into the forest as quickly as they could. The survival challenge was basically a half-day activity for the students. They were being split into two groups, ‘Prey’ and ‘Predator’. ‘Prey’ group was allowed to escape 20 minutes before allowing the other big group to seek for them in the vast forest. Students were instructed not to venture further into the forest once they saw the prominent waterfall. Teachers were said to have spread themselves all over the place to ensure their safety. Lay and Jaerin were the ‘preys’ while Kris and his partner ended up being the ‘predators’. Kris strained his neck in hope of spotting Jaerin.

“Stop tugging onto my shirt.” Kris warned as he glared at his partner fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

She pouted and looked down on the muddy ground. Looking up, Kris realized he had lost track of the direction they escaped to. Cursing under his breath, he gritted his teeth. 20 minutes passed by and with the cue from the station master, everyone else ventured into the forest. They were the scouters or scavengers in this game. However, Kris was only interested in finding a certain pair. The two groups were distinctly identified by a black or white band tied around their arms.

“Jaerin? We can’t go any further.” Lay notified her.

She looked back at him and waved the back of her hand casually.

“I want to see the downstream.” She said as she carried on.

“That’s against the rules!” He yelled but she continued walking.

“Aish.” He looked around to ensure there were no teachers looking before following her.  

Along the way, Kris grabbed the boys roughly to find that it was not Lay. Releasing them, they were innocently being caught and had to return to the starting point. Ruffling his hair, he sighed. It seemed like most of the pairs were already eliminated but it was still not theirs. The girl smiled as she offered him the bottle of water she just drank from. Not paying much attention, Kris finished off the mineral water and tossed it aside.  

“The game is not over yet.” He declared.

Jaerin sat on the grassy fields as she watched the turblent flow of water. She smiled at the peaceful sight. It was not a wrong choice to walk further into the forests, after all. Lay settled beside her and shook his head.

“Are you always such a rule-breaker?” he asked.

“What if I say yes?” she challenged as she looked at him intensely.

The couple's eyes met for the longest time. Lay felt the distance between the two decreasing for no apparent reason. Perhaps it was his illusion. Clearing his throat, he looked away.

“It’s pretty here.” He commented.

“Indeed.” She replied awkwardly.

“I’ll be taking a nap,” Jaerin said as she lay down on the grassy field.

Lay looked over to the girl beside him. The strands of grass ought to be prickly and the known hideout for various insects. It amused him how Jaerin conveniently converted it into a sleeping ground. She was different. Too different from other girls, in his opinion.

“If you continue to stare at me, your eyes are going to fall. I assure you that.” She mumbled sleepily.

Lay snapped out of his thoughts before turning to the other side. He wondered how she could see with her eye lids shut. A slight smile crept up her face as she opened her eyes for a brief moment and spotted him facing elsewhere.

“He is cute.” She thought to herself.

─

Kris scanned the group of students that had gathered back at the starting point. Jaerin was nowhere in sight. He ditched his partner and ran up to the teacher who was taking attendance.

“Is Park Jaerin back, sir?” he questioned.

“Nope. Seems like the last pair hid well.” He answered simply.

“Sir. It’s 15 minutes past the ending time.” Kris reminded.

“Maybe they took a while longer to walk back. Let’s wait a bit more.” The teacher said lazily.

“Are you responsible if anything happens to them?” Kris shot back.

The teacher exchanged glance with the worried student before him for a second longer. He then sighed before gathering some of his trusted students to look for the last pair together. The remaining students were instructed to stay put and not loiter around. Kris followed the group into the forests once more. He dreaded the feeling of her not by his side.

It felt foreign and sickening.

“Yah, Park Jaerin! Where are you?!” He shouted as loudly as he could.

His voice bounced off the trees and echoed around the area.

“Park Jaerin! Are you alright?!” He shouted again.

The same thing happened- no response.

“Park Jaerin! Answer me if you can hear me!” He yelled in exasperation.

This time, he heard something. He heard her familiar laughter vibrating the air particles. Looking in the direction with sweat dripping from his fringe, he saw her. She was laughing merrily with him by her side. It felt as if an arrow shot right through his heart. Biting his lips in anger, Kris punched the tree beside him. The trunk shook a little and leaves began to fall helplessly.

“The two of you are finally here. Where have you been?” The teacher scolded.

“Sorry.” The two said together as they bowed slightly.

Jaerin saw Kris from the corner of her eyes when they returned to the starting point. She slowly walked up to him with a casual smile.

“Yo.”

Kris looked away emotionlessly. He then walked away without a second word, leaving Jaerin in confusion.

He lost his voice.

Author's Note:
I typed up this chapter as my last update before school officially start tomorrow. *sniffs*
Hope you guys enjoyed reading and will comment. <3
Thanks for reading 'The Girl who Cried Wolf'. ^^