Wanderlust // z.m. [au]

Six

//Past//

Days had passed. The higher they went up the mountain, the colder it got. They would reach certain points of the mountain, set up camp, and repeat the process until finally, they were close to the highest point of the mountain. It was only a short while left until they reached that point. Until then, they had to suck it up and march through the snow.

Diya was freezing even with all the layers she was wearing. Her whole face felt numb. She had a scarf covering her mouth and nose so that she wouldn't get sick but at this point, she wasn't sure if it was working. She was not cut out for this at all. Her legs were sore and burning with each step. She wanted to fall face first into the snow and never get up. But did she give up? No. Because she wasn't a quitter. And she wasn't about to become one. That's why she was right behind Zayn who was practically leading everyone else.

It was like Zayn was born to do this. The smile on his face hadn't left these past few days. He was completely content and in his element. It seemed as if he enjoyed it more than anyone else on the trip. He was always ahead of everyone else. Even when he was clearly tired or out of breath, he didn't let it stop him. Instead, it seemed that it motivated him to keep going.

Over the past few days, Diya had gotten a lot closer to Kiara, Jai, and of course Zayn. Well that was when Zayn had time for her. Usually, he would be chatting up Neha. But when he wasn't, he was either with the three of them or he was alone. She learned more about him from observing him when he would isolate himself from everyone. She would watch him as he flipped through this one book. She'd seen it several times over the past days. It was a large, thick, black book and he was always so engrossed in it. It was as if the world around him didn't exist. She wasn't sure what it was. Maybe it was a photo album or a scrapbook. She never asked because she felt like she would be invading his privacy if she did. She also observed him as he took pictures and filmed things on his camera. She learned that he loved filming as well as photography.

She was seeing a whole new side of Zayn and she admired it a lot. In school it seemed that he was careless and emotionless. That he only cared about partying, sleeping, and getting girls. Yet here he was with this unexpected adventurous and artistic side to him. No wonder he hated being stuck in school learning math and science for so many hours. He didn't care for any of it. This, right here, is what he enjoyed most.

"Do you guys see that large stone over there?" The trip leader, Sam, said loudly in order to get everyone's attention.

Diya looked up at where he was pointing and she could see a stone just above one of the slope they were near.

"That's it, that's the highest point! Now I want you guys to gather all your energy and run up to it like your lives depend on it on the count of 3."

Diya turned to look at Zayn who was already looking at her with a smile that reached his eyes. "Race you to it."

Diya pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Bring it on, Malik."

"One..." Sam counted down. "Two... Three!"

Diya and Zayn broke into a run. The snow was high and thick. It took everything in them to run through it especially because they were running up hill. Diya mustered up all her strength and got ahead of Zayn successfully.

"Oh come on!" She heard him shout from behind her. He hadn't expected her to actually get ahead of him. She laughed excitedly, her eyes set on the stone in front of her. She finally got to it, her legs practically buried in the snow. She reached over and put her hand on the stone, letting out a shout of victory. She got the thrill she always got when she was first in something. She was buzzing. Adrenaline coursing through her.