HIKE

03 | long journey

"Why do I have to sit in the middle?" Jeno complained. He was squished into the middle seat, broad shoulders sticking into Donghyuck, who was sat on his right.

Renjun slipped into the seat on his left, tucking in next to him. He was the last to be picked up and had forced Jeno to shuffle over into the middle, which was an uncomfortable experience for everyone involved. Jaemin was in the passenger seat and Donghyuck was on the other side of Jeno, smug and satisfied he wasn't in the middle.

"Quit whining," Donghyuck quipped, rolling his eyes to the roof of the car.

"And the Hypocrite of the Year award goes to..." Jaemin drawled quietly from the front.

"I heard that!" Donghyuck lunged over to flick Jaemin's ear, only to get strangled by his seatbelt and never reach it.

"Uh, to be honest, guys, Jeno's head is blocking the rear view mirror," Jaehyun pointed out from the driver's seat, chuckling at his younger brother and his friends.

"It's because I'm so tall," Jeno bragged.

"You're not even that tall, Christ," Donghyuck scoffed. "But can you get your massive shoulders out of the way...?"

"Hyuck, just admit that I'm better than you-"

"What the fu- I mean, what the hell, Jeno?!"

"I'll sit in the middle," Renjun grumbled, knowing full well that he was without a doubt both the smallest and shortest member of the group.

"Thanks, Renjun," said Jaehyun, throwing him a grateful smile in the mirror.

Really, Jaehyun was just grateful there was someone to break up Jeno and Donghyuck's endless squabbling. He was fond of his younger brother's friends, but they could be a handful sometimes (read: all the time) and there was only so long a twenty-something year old could withstand that kind of teenage squabbling.

Renjun started to try and move across Jeno to the middle seat, struggling to clamber over him. Jeno wrapped his arms around Renjun's waist and easily lifted him onto his lap and over, as he shifted back to the far left seat. Renjun reluctantly settled in the middle seat and buckled up, easily squeezing into the small space it provided.

"Okay," Jaehyun sighed. He started the engine again and it came to life with a growl. "Let's go!"

"Hike-chall-enge! Hike-chall-enge!" The boys began to chant as Jaehyun pulled out of Renjun's street and onto the road that lead to the wilderness.

The enthusiasm lasted approximately five minutes in total.

"Can we stop for KFC?" Donghyuck whined.

"No," said Jaemin.

He turned his head to stare out of the window at the landscapes that passed them by. Jaemin had actually been looking forward to the Hike Challenge, but now the enthusiasm was slowly dwindling away the longer they were all stuck in Jaehyun's car together.

A few more moments had passed when Donghyuck said, "McDonalds then?"

"Donghyuck, you are fat," Renjun snapped.

"And you're gay," Donghyuck retorted.

Renjun bristled and shot him a glare. He was trying to sketch something in his notebook when Donghyuck had made his hand slip.

"Why is that your only insult?" Jaemin sighed.

"I'm low on inspiration," Donghyuck sighed mournfully.

"You're the worst, Hyuckie," Jeno mumbled, busy focused on the game he was playing.

"Is that a Nintendo DS?" Donghyuck questioned, reaching over Renjun to try and snatch it.