. That word doesn’t even begin to describe the trouble she had gotten herself into.

Dinner became the most awkward meal she ever shared with everyone. She couldn’t even taste the food she was eating. Ash ate quickly and got away as fast as she could.

She hid in one of the tents and waited for the night’s activities to start. Now that not one but two guys vying for her attention, she didn’t know what to do.

Ash sat at the far end and groaned, covering her eyes with her arms, hoping her messed up plan was a horrible dream. That way, she could do it all over again and not make the same mistake twice.

Too bad for her, she was wide awake and there was no way she could get out of the tent without meeting the two.

“Guys! It’s time to pair up for our scavenger hunt!”

Everyone gathered up at the middle of the camp. Jhil and Andrea distributed the lists everyone needed to look for while Sehun and Kyungsoo distributed the flashlights.

Andrea went back to her tent to procure a box. “Girls pick one and the name in that paper will be your partner.”

“And we’ll be changing our sleeping arrangements since we got 5 additional people joining us. It’s going to be 5 tents with 3 people and 4 in the last tent.”Jhil’s smile got bigger. “It’s also going to be draw lots.”

 “Are we including Eya?”

“Nope. I’m not playing the game. I’ll be staying here and enjoy my alone time.” Luhan’s long-haired cousin casually replied. She was sitting comfortably by the fire with an extra jacket borrowed from Minho.

It had gotten colder now that the sky was almost dark. Not much light illuminated the place except for the camp fire they have set up and the natural light coming from the skies. Ash looked at the dark edge of the forest. From where she was standing, she couldn’t see much of what lies inside.

Unconsciously, she shivered and wrapped the jacket closer to her body. “Why did you guys decided of all things to play this game?”

“It’s fun.” Dani, one of the oldest in her group of friends delightedly answered.  “And the alone time with the guys might improve our relationship.” She slyly added.

The girls lined up and picked a piece of paper in the box Andrea brought. With every draw, partners are revealed. Princess drew before Ash and coincidentally, Kyungsoo’s friend drew Ash’s name.

Ash didn’t know whether to be relieved or sad. She secretly wished to be paired up with Baekhyun but she immediately changed her mind when she remembered not only Baekhyun was influenced by the potion but Kyungsoo as well.

When everyone got paired up with the exception of Eya, who volunteered to stay in the camp, each pair got two flashlights and a list. Camille and Andrea luckily got paired up with their boyfriend, Onew and Sehun. Jhil got to go with Minho, the athlete. Dani frowned when it wasn’t Suho but Kai she got and then Allen got to pick Kyungsoo. The last pair automatically fell on Baekhyun and Suho who was satisfied with each other.

Kat got the worst pairing since she had a change of heart with Chanyeol although Mhil and Ash believed that it was all an act. They think Kat secretly harbours feelings for the tall student. They’ve seen her look at Chanyeol more than a few times during the trip.

“In an hour, we’ll go back here and check who gets the most from the list.”

Everyone nod in agreement and confirmed the time before heading out.  To make things fair, they picked random directions so as to avoid stealing from other pairs.

Ash awkwardly smiled at her partner, princess who looked obviously dissatisfied with their pairing.

“Let’s get this over with.” Princess haughtily said, walking ahead of her without looking back.

Ash worriedly looked at the dark forest and held her flashlight tightly as she followed her partner. Although not willing to admit it, she was afraid of the dark. Even with a flashlight, the dark make her uncomfortable.  It felt like at any moment, something will come out of the dark.

She pointed the flashlight on the paper with the list of things hidden in the forest. There were ten items listed. Some of the things in the list were hard to find while the others seem pretty easy like the flower and a piece of trash. She wondered how they will identify an herb in such darkness. She didn’t even have a clue how to find an herb in this forest. It was all green and brown to her. They almost look identical. She hoped that Princess, Kyungsoo’s friend had a clue.

She tried to stay positive and concentrated on the things that she can find. The flower and trash were the easiest to find in her opinion and decided to find those items.