"chan? cheol shut up i think i heard chan."
jeonghan cupped his hand over his boyfriend's mouth so he could focus on the sound he thought he'd heard just now. it had only been a quick 'hi' before the person stopped abruptly and hid behind a tree right next to the one he and seungcheol had been hiding at.
"chan is here too?" junhui whisper hissed, carefully peeking if the coast was clear so their teachers wouldn't be able to overhear their conversation.
"i think i heard him." jeonghan whispered back, still checking the pitch black surroundings to see if there was any form of familiarity of the youngest among everyone.
while everyone in their camping group was already seventeen or eighteen, chan was only sixteen, making him the youngest of their group. even with his cocky and arrogant personality, jeonghan tend to worry about him too much for his own good. especially now they were playing games in the middle of the night, he found it too dangerous for a sixteen year old to be on his own.
"just admit that we lost him. can i please breathe again?" seungcheol gently removed the hand that clamped over his mouth, and returned it to the original owner who quickly muttered a small apology. jeonghan wasn't exactly aware that he nearly suffocated his own boyfriend.
"i'm sorry sweetie.. please don't be mad at me.." jeonghan whispered, focussing on his boyfriend again who moved up to place a small kiss on his cheek.
"why are you always so scared i'll be mad at you? of course i'm not mad baby. and don't be sorry." in the utter silence of the forest, the soft sound of seungcheol pecking jeonghan's lips was heard a little too loud.
"don't forget we're here as well?" minghao complained, the sillhoutte of his face appearing next to the tree he and junhui were hiding behind, in sight for jeonghan and seungcheol to see.
"as if you and junhui were doing things the bible allows? you literally told me yesterday about all the places you two have had sex at. in detail." jeonghan sassily defended him and his boyfriend.
"what's wrong with different places? that's what makes it fun?" junhui decided to butt in, openly discussing their sex life with the couple who seemed utterly disgusted.
"how long have you even been together? half a year? you've done it more than me and jeonghan. and we've been together for nearly three years." seungcheol complained, making it his turn to defend their side.
"and your point is? why taking it nice and slow when junhui is literally the best at-" "okay enough! enough!" a fifth voice mixed into their conversation, "if i hear any of you say one more word related to whatever the fuck the four of you were talking about i'm going to scream so you all get caught. i should have thought twice before making this my hiding spot.."
"chan? guys i think we found him!" jeonghan happily whispered, instantly forgetting about their discussion as he finally found the youngest.
"keep your tone down! they will find us with ease if you keep talking like that the whole time." chan behaving like his usual self left jeonghan chuckling, relieved the boy didn't have to walk alone anymore.
chan on the other hand, who looked like he was overly annoyed by the presence of the four elder boys, was actually feeling a sense of relieve as well. even when he wanted to keep the tough image his entire reputation was built off, he couldn't help but to feel so small when he entered the intimidating forest.
goosebumps crept down his spine when the shadow that hung over the woods swallowed him. with every turn he took he felt eyes pricking in his back, as if hundreds of monsters were lurking at him through the dark, ready to attack their prey. the feeling of anxiety even came at a point where chan doubted if he would ever be able to make it out alive again.
until he heard the obnoxiously loud voices of four of his group mates. and of course, since he hung out with them a lot it wasn't that hard to recognize who those voices belonged to. the youngest would never admit it since it didn't fit his image at all, but he was glad he found them and wouldn't have to wander around in the woods any longer.
however, if he had to be entirely honest, he would love to be found by one of their teachers so they could leave the woods again..
"chan? you shouldn't be wandering alone in the woods at this time? next time we're playing a game like this we're taking you with us." jeonghan crossed his arms as his (how seungcheol used to call it) motherly instinct played up.
"you're not my mother! leave me alone." chan hissed back, annoyed as to why jeonghan tried taking care of him out of sudden. the fact that he was the youngest among them didn't mean he was a baby and should be treated like one.
"excuse me young man? if i were one to decide we would have been asleep by now." jeonghan snapped back, getting annoyed by the younger's attitude as well.
"you're just boring! who sleeps at this time?"
"maybe that's why their sex life is so bori-"
"-can we stop talking about our sex life? at least we're not some sorts of addicted maniacs when it comes to that." jeonghan defended him and his boyfriend, who just stood there next to him helplessly snickering about the useless discussions that were being held.
until all five of them were interrupted by two bright flashlights shining directly into their eyes, exposing them from their hiding spots.
"let's see who we have here. i see lee chan! yoon jeonghan and choi seungcheol. and of course, our chinese couple. you're out!" their female science teacher spoke, motioning for them to go back to the cabins so they could continue their hunt for the remaining students.
"if you kept your tone down we wouldn't have been caught." chan nagged as he slumped his way back, ahead of the group.
however, he was relieved the first night was done and he could crawl back under the safe sheets in about a minute.
night one ended up being a big succes. it took until about two am until everyone was found and back in the cabins, leaving the forest completely empty again. vernon and seungkwan who'd away high up in a tree were the last couple to be found as the teachers seemed to have a hard time finding the remaining two.
and after fifteen minutes of the group of adults calling out their names they decided to come down again, surrendering themselves to call it a night.
night one remained safe and peaceful.
