GOING BOARDING HOUSE | SEVENTEEN group chat. (Editing)

Are we there yet.

"Are we there yet?"

"Shut the fuck up kwannn."  Soonyoung threw a pillow at the pestering kid.

Seungkwna snickered and hugged the pillow.

Jihoon shot Seungkwan an exasperated look, shaking his head before returning to his window view. The bus had now left the city, and the scenery outside was slowly transforming into dense forests and winding roads. The atmosphere inside, however, was anything but calm.

Seungcheol smiled to himself, he was celebrating inside. They had went without fighting for an hour.  At first, he was going to have the group just text if they were going to argue. But this was rewarding on its own.

"So, Samuel, huh?" Joshua asked, leaning over the seat to look at Chan, whose face was still buried in his hood. "How long have you had a crush on him?"

"Since forever," Chan mumbled, peeking out just enough for his voice to be heard. "He's... he's different."

"Pff-" Soonyoung bit his lip.

The group exchanged knowing looks, some trying not to laugh. Seungkwan pulled his phone out , zoomed in on Chan's face then pressed record.

"Different, huh? Like, what? He's got superpowers or something?" Seokmin teased, leaning over the aisle. Soonyoung did the same.

Chan groaned dramatically. "No, hyung. He's just... you wouldn't get it."

"Mhmmm" Seungkwan hummed with a side eye.

Minghao caught that.

"Sure, sure." Soonyoung chuckled, sitting back down. "I'm just saying, if this trip turns into a rom-com, I want a front-row seat."

"Shut up," Chan muttered, but there was no heat behind it.

"Don't worry, Chan," Joshua said with a soft smile. "If Samuel's half as great as you say he is, things will work out."

Seungcheol, who had been quietly reading his magazine, chimed in with his usual calm demeanor. "We're not stopping for Samuel, but we're heading to a place where you can still enjoy the trip. Trust me."

Chan sighed but nodded. The younger boy shifted in his seat, trying to relax despite the teasing and the disappointment.

Meanwhile, in the back, Jihoon looked increasingly restless. He shot Seungkwan another glare as the latter continued to record. "Do you ever stop?"

"Nope. This is too good to miss," Seungkwan replied, grinning. He pointed the camera in the smaller male's direction. "Say hi!"

Jihoon crossed his arms, leaning his head back against the window. "Fuck off"

"So, any guesses on where we're actually going?" Vernon asked, trying to change the subject.

"I mean, Seungcheol said it's a surprise, right?" Jun spoke up, finally pulling out one of his AirPods. "Could be anything. Camping? Hiking?"

"Maybe a haunted cabin in the woods," Wonwoo suggested, his usual deadpan delivery making it hard to tell if he was joking.

"God, I hope not," Jihoon muttered under his breath.

Seokmin, who had recovered from his earlier mishap, leaned forward with an excited glint in his eyes. "What if it's an escape room? Like, a massive one in the middle of nowhere?"

"That would actually be pretty cool," Soonyoung said, his earlier teasing forgotten. "We'd crush it."

Seungkwan raised an eyebrow. "You? Crush an escape room? You couldn't even find your wallet last week."

"That was different!" Soonyoung protested, his voice rising. "I was distracted!"

"Sure," Seungkwan replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

The bus continued on its path, the road now winding through thicker woods, the sky darkening as the evening approached. The hum of conversation filled the space, with the occasional burst of laughter or teasing jab keeping the mood light.

Jihoon stared. They were getting along. It was strange. Well, not all of them were engaged. But the active ones sure did get loud. Seokmin's voice could not get any louder, Seungkwan constantly adding to jokes didn't help with that. And Soonyoung was.. well he was strange.

Jihoon, finally tired of the noise, put in his earbuds and leaned his head against the window. He closed his eyes, trying to tune everything out. His mind wandered, but he couldn't shake the feeling of unease. Something about this trip didn't sit right with him.

"Okay, but can you do this-"Seungkwan stood and stumbled. "Woah." The bus had taken a sharp turn.

Th bus took another sharp turn, Jihoon opened his eyes, looking around. Seungkwan sat his ass back down and of course Soonyoung found something funny about it.

"Are we almost there?" Vernon asked, glancing out the window at the fading light.

Kang shrugged, "sir?"

"Close," Seungcheol replied from the front, still calm and collected. "Just sit tight."

Jihoon sighed, closing his eyes again. Whatever was waiting for them at the end of this trip, he just hoped it wasn't as chaotic as the ride had been so far.