Wow – Korea is amazing, just saying.  I live out in the provinces and there aren’t any big cities nearby, but it’s still a lot of fun.  There are mountains everywhere!  Where I am from it is completely flat so I totally adore getting to see mountains everyday.  And I don’t even mind having to walk up them, though my legs might. 

While I’ve been gone those little counters on my stories have been ticking up.  Lonely Birthday hit 1500, The Showdown is inching ever closer to 9000 views and this lovely little work sailed past 5000.  I love you guys!  So some of this excess energy that I have from being so pumped about being here is going to pour into some updates real soon, including this one.

Fun fact: this story was written in its entirety during my first day of “teaching” in Korea.  I basically sat at a desk the entire day while the higher ups decided how many classes I would be taking on.  The count currently is 6 (as in 6 class sections total a week) but it will probably go up, especially once I visit my others schools (I’m teaching at three).  I also couldn’t type this up on my computer at work, because the keyboard was MIA…so I hand wrote the whole thing and am typing it up now as I sit at home waiting on my laundry to be done. 

Welcome to Korea…

#50 – Camping

Kibum silently cursed the heavens where someone must be getting great enjoyment out of his suffering.

His hand flew up once again and smacked hard against his neck, catching the unfortunate mosquito unaware and smearing a few drops of blood against his skin but it was quickly cleared away by the sweat that seemed to pour down his over-heated flesh.  He grimaced, feeling the sticky, uncomfortable sensation and just wishing that he was home, in his air conditioned apartment. 

But no – he was here because he had seen that heart-broken look on Munhee’s face.  He was here because he couldn’t just let this little boy cry and let the plans that he and his friends had laid for weeks go to ruin.

He was here because he was a complete and utter wuss when it came to his kids.

Kibum sighed.  He wanted to be just about anywhere else right now.

He just wasn’t a camping kind of guy.

Temin had planned to go camping with Munhee and some of his friends, but them the man seemed to have come down with some sort of flu.  Taemin could barely shuffle around their apartment, let alone look after a bunch of rambunctious children in the woods.  He couldn’t take the children now and Munhee had looked up at his Appa with his great big chocolate brown eyes and Kibum heard himself agreeing to take the boys instead.

Taemin had stared on incredulously, the shock evident on his face until a tremendous sneeze wiped it away.

So here he was, stuck in the woods with five energetic little boys, with no way out until morning.

God help him.

*****

Kibum glanced around like a convict on the run, making doubly sure that none of the children were about to spot him breaking “the rules.”  Once he was sure that he could watch them, and that they were paying no attention to him, Kibum slipped his phone from his pocket and fell back into the tree line.

Pushing his first speed dial, he bit his lip while he waited for the other end for the call to pick up, ready to hand up if any of the children looked his way. 

“You better not let Munhee catch you on the phone…” Taemin’s tired voice came on the line.

“Oh sorry babe, did I wake you up?”  Kibum asked, ignoring the other man’s admonition. 

“It’s fine.  What are you having trouble with?”  Taemin yawned audibly.

“Why do you assume that I’m having trouble?”  Kibum demanded, peering from the trees towards the children and making sure that their games hadn’t taken them too far away.

“Because I know you Bummie… you can’t put up the tent can you?”

“…or even know the first thing about making a fire…” Kibum added wryly, not even trying to hide it anymore.

Taemin laughed, which turned into a couch making the older man wince as he heard it through the phone.  “Can you just tell me before the kids see me…” Kibum trailed off, searching the clearing again to see that all were accounted for.

Taemin quickly walked his husband through the steps for putting the tent together, knowing full well though that Kibum was still going to mess it up later, and smiling already at the mental images that formed at that notion.

“…and I know asking you to make the fire is almost a lost cause, but put the small sticks and paper down first and use the lighter to start it up.  As the fire gets bigger add bigger sticks until you make it to the logs.  And Munhee knows how to bank the fire too so don’t worry about that.”

Kibum pressed his lips together, knowing that he was going to forget something.  “I’ll pretend like I know what that last part means.  I’ve got to go so I don’t get caught.”

“Love you Bummie.  Remember to have some fun!”  Taemin whispered, already preparing to go back to sleep.

“Love you too baby, rest well,” and with a short kiss into the phone, Kibum hung up and shoved the device deep into his pocket once again.

“Appa!” Munhee called just then, causing Kibum to swiftly spin around with a guilty expression on his face which luckily his son could not interpret.  “Let’s set up the tent!”

All of the boys cheered while Kibum clenched his teeth, hoping that he would somehow remember everything that Taemin had explained rapid-fire to him over the phone. 

He didn’t.

They all managed to get the poles put together readily enough, but when they tried to slip the poles into the fabric they tended to miss some of the loops.  They also couldn’t seem to get the angles right.  The tent kept inverting, sending the top plummeting to the ground.  They finally  got it all put together and staked into the ground – and Kibum had the black eye (stray pole flinging up and striking him in the face) to prove how much effort had gone into the construction. 

It had taken almost an hour to put up the one tent, much to the amusement of the boys who couldn’t stop laughing while Kibum barely stopped himself from cursing.  And Kibum knew that the tent was supposed to fit six people, but he wanted to know what people because he didn’t think four people would make it in there.  They were going to be cozy tonight.

The fire, surprisingly enough, was made relatively painlessly.  The cooking over it however was not.  Hot dogs sputtered and slipped off of sticks and marshmallows turned into flaming balls of doom. 

Kibum himself couldn’t get over the fact that he was supposed to eat off of a stick that had been grabbed up from the woodland floor. 

Why did people like camping again?  Taemin said it was relaxing but Kibum was more stressed than he had been during their idol days. 

“Liar,” Kibum mumbled under his breath as he held his marshmallow smore before him.  Munhee had made it for his Appa and once again Kibum just couldn’t say no.  He took a deep breath and chomped down on the gooey concoction.  Graham cracker gave way before his teeth as the hot and melty chocolate and sticky marshmallow spilled forth onto his tongue.

But it was good!  Surprisingly delicious despite it’s method of creation and Kibum quickly polished off the rest of his treat to the large smile of his son, who walked back over to his friends who were sitting far closer to the fire than Kibum had been.

Kibum savored the last touches of sugar in his mouth as he sat back and watched his son having the time of his life with his friends.  It was like an outdoor sleepover Kibum suddenly thought.  As a boy he had liked sleepovers, like an excuse to have fun for an entire day and night – to play with your friends and not worry about anything else besides that.  It really was the same thing, just outdoors and a lot more work.  But his son was so happy.  Being with his friends and spending time with his Appa at the same time, how could he begrudge the boy that.

They survived the night through ghost stories, some of which had spooked Kibum more than they aught to as a grown man, and games.  One cramped night in the tent with roots digging into his back or not, the fervent, “Thanks Appa,” that Munhee had mumbled as he turned over to go to sleep was worth it all.

The next morning, a sleepy Kibum and overly energetic Munhee trumped through the door to their home having already dropped the other children off at their respective homes already.

A far more lively, but still red-nosed Taemin them, giving Kibum’s black eye an enquiring look while just barely managing to hold off Munhee’s attempt at a hug.

“Don’t want to get you sick too buddy,” Taemin sniffed and explained at Munhee’s pout. 

“Munhee, why don’t you go unpack your bags and get your dirty clothes into the hamper.  I’ll be doing laundry later today.”

“Alright Appa, thanks!  It was the best camping trip ever!”  Munhee’s smile seemed to crack his face in half and brought out a smile on Kibum’s face as well.

Once Munhee had disappeared down the hall, Kibum proceeded to ignore Taemin’s earlier warning and tucked himself in under Taemin’s chin, seeking a hug from his husband. 

“What happened to your eye?”  Taemin asked softly.

“Tent mishap.”  Was the simple reply that Taemin had to struggle to not laugh at.

“You smell like smoke.”

“Everything smells like smoke after being around that fire.”  Kibum squeezed Taemin tightly, “and you smell like home.”

Taemin smiled gently, wrapping his arms all the tighter around his husband.

“You have a good time?”

“It was alright.”

“Munhee seemed to have fun.”

Kibum leaned back and quirked an eyebrow, “What do you take me for?!  Of course he had fun.  Just because I would rather not be sleeping on the ground out in the open doesn’t mean I can’t make it fun for my son if he should so want to.”

“Good,”  Taemin smirked at his husband and tucked the man back under his chin. 

“I’m never doing this again though.  Once was more than enough for a lifetime for me.”

Taemin smiled, “Next one’s on me.”

“I’ll hold you to that.”

“I know it.”

Can I just say how much I loved characterizing marshmallows and “flaming balls of doom?”  Because I almost got in trouble laughing out loud as I wrote that line at work. 

It's not much but it's sure getting the juices flowing again.

As always I hope you enjoyed and please leave a comment!