Ocean Eyes • Kim Namjoon

Chapter 5: P I N K

The rest of your friends started waking up around 9am. You and Namjoon were sitting on one of the couches in the living room, quietly whispering amongst yourselves and sharing the occasional kiss when you heard a door to one of the bedrooms open. Your heart rate increased at the idea of one of your friends walking in on you and Namjoon sitting in an intimate position such as this.

You were feeling so conflicted. On one hand, you were so, so happy that you were able to kiss Namjoon whenever you wanted and know you aren't going to get painfully rejected. But on the other hand, what you said was true - work had been stressful and this was a very overwhelming situation to begin with. Besides, you were completely certain that you wanted Namjoon in every way you could want a person - but he never said anything about his true feelings for you. Sure, he said he's been wanting to kiss you since he met you, and he's taken to calling you 'gorgeous' instead of your actual name (not that you're complaining). But that could all relate to a purely physical attraction and not him actually having feelings for you.

You didn't want to put your heart and emotions on the line if you weren't even sure that your feelings were completely and wholeheartedly reciprocated.

You pulled away from Namjoon and decided to start on breakfast. Everyone agreed the week before the trip that everyone would make at least one meal, and you figured while you were here, you might as well take on the first breakfast. Besides, it gave you a good excuse to put some distance between you and Namjoon - to avoid suspicion, but also to calm the red in your cheeks that seemed to be permanent when Namjoon was around.

You started getting out everything that you needed to make pancakes and you heard a low whistle coming from where Namjoon was sitting on the couch. You looked up at him and saw him blatantly checking you out.

"Can I help you?" You smirked. He looked a little shy (cute) at the fact that you had caught him, but he wiped the bashful expression off his face instantly and instead gave you a shit-eating grin.

"Nah, I'm just admiring the view." He winked at you as you started mixing together the pancake mix with the wet ingredients (personally, you thought from scratch pancakes were better, but you did not want to bring everything in order to make them).

"You're facing the wrong way, Joon. The mountains are the other way."

"Yeah, I know." He gave you an endearing smile and you couldn't help but smile at him.

One of your friends came waddling into the kitchen soon after and made a b-line for the coffee pot (you had put a second pot on not long ago so it was still relatively fresh). He poured himself a mug and yawned.

"Good morning Starshine." You smiled at him and his drowsy expression.

"Morning," his voice grumbled, still heavy with sleep and came to stand beside you. "Oh, pancakes?" You nodded as you continued to mix the lumps out of the batter. "You're such an angel. Oh, hey Namjoon." They nodded to each other, but Namjoon was kind of tight-lipped while acknowledging him.

By the time all the pancakes were done cooking, all your friends were now awake, and convened in the kitchen with coffee in their hands. Namjoon had taken it upon himself to set the table while you finished cooking. You had placed two plates stacked with pancakes on the dining room table with some syrup and everyone sat down and began eating.

The schedule for the day was confirmed during breakfast - there was a really nice hike about a 15-minute away drive from your AirB&B. It was one of the best rated hiking trails in this area and had gorgeous views of the surrounding lakes.

You were so excited. It had been years since you last went on a hike to the mountains and you were itching to get going. The only downside is you knew you were going to be slower than everyone else - which is totally fine and to be expected at this point. You really liked taking pictures of the landscapes (even though you knew you weren't really good), but all of your friends understood this about you.

Once breakfast was done, two of your friends insisted on cleaning up because you had cooked, so you went to your room to get ready. You threw your hair into a messy bun (it still smelled a lot like campfire from last night) but if you were going to be hiking, you were going to be sweaty and it gave you an excuse to shower afterwards. Besides, you did not want to deal with your hair getting into your eyes while you were busy trekking and snapping pictures.

You dressed pretty hefty considering it's August, but there's ticks and mosquitos in the mountains, so a long sleeve shirt with leggings and tacky hiking socks wasn't unheard of. You grabbed your backpack and threw your water bottle in.

You walked out of your room and saw everyone else wearing similar attire and once everyone was ready, you headed to the cars.

Namjoon insisted on you driving with him (way to be subtle) but he brushed it off as you were his musical soulmate and knew all the words to every song on his playlist, so it was fun driving with you.

You all packed up some snacks to take on the hike, loaded up the cars and headed out to the trail. Traffic was alright, and Joon was playing Jaden Smith's album ERYS (more specifically, P I N K) and before you knew it, you had pulled up in the dirt parking spots at the beginning of the path.

You all retrieved your belongings and got ready to set out. You had a cheap camera that you used to take your mediocre landscape photos and you were busy making sure everything was good with it when a shadow loomed over you.

"Whatcha doing gorgeous?" Namjoon's deep voice whispered in your ear.

"I like taking pictures when I go hiking. Like, they aren't any good but it makes me feel happy." You looked up at Namjoon and he was looking at you with twinkling eyes. You were so obsessed with this boy and his eyes, you wouldn't know what you'd do if he only wanted a friends-with-benefits thing.

One of your friends started jumping up and down, getting ready and hyped for the hike.

"Okay bitches, let's get this show on the road!"