HIKE

13 | huffing and puffing

Renjun watched the porridge bubble and steam in the pan. He'd sacrificed Donghyuck and sent him on the steal-sausages-from-Mark mission, but that had been ages ago and Renjun had quickly caved to the feeling of hunger in the pit of his stomach.

Renjun stirred it a little, wondering if the lumpy mixture would actually taste any good. He was crouched down next to the hot camping stove, a small bundle in an oversized hoodie, and his legs were starting to cramp up.

Not only that, but the weather didn't look promising. The sky was dark and overcast, as if the clouds could burst and drench them with rain at any second. It was clear the day was already off to a bad start.

There was a sleepy groan from the tent next to him and the door was slowly unzipped until Jeno's head poked out. "Oh, morning, Renny," he yawned, his eyes crinkling into crescent moons.

"Morning," Renjun replied, glancing over and shooting Jeno a smile from beneath the hood that covered his head entirely.

Jeno grabbed one of Jaemin's hoodies from inside the tent - the white one he'd brought with him - and pulled it over his head, his T-shirt lifting up as he raised his arms above his head. It was just enough for a glimpse of the 'rock-hard abs' he boasted about, before Renjun averted his gaze, cheeks ablaze, and turned back to breakfast.

"Did you sleep well?" Jeno asked, shuffling over and stuffing his feet inside his walking boots.

"Mhm," Renjun murmured, stirring the porridge with his fingers clenched around the spoon. "It was okay... I mean, I got like seven hours or something so..."

"That's good," Jeno grinned. He sank into the grass next to Renjun and peered into the porridge pan. "How long has it been cooking for?"

Renjun sighed then. "Like... an hour," he groaned. "The water took an actual fucking year to heat up- argh!" He grimaced as the cramp in his leg worsened and he toppled over from the crouched position he was in.

"You okay?" Jeno asked, reaching out a hand to steady the Chinese boy.

"Yeah," Renjun said through a big yawn, "my legs hurt from crouching and shit..."

Jeno shuffled over and sat with his legs crossed, patting his thigh expectantly. "Sit here," he instructed.

Renjun hesitated, staring at him for a moment whilst he felt his ears blush under the hood of Jeno's hoodie.

"Aet your ass over here, I'm cold," Jeno grumbled, laughing, and snaked his arms around Renjun's waist to pull him onto his lap.

Renjun felt his whole face heat up as he landed in Jeno's lap, feeling the other boy's arms tighten around him. He stared into the porridge, his face safely away from Jeno's gaze, so he wouldn't catch sight of those rosy pink cheeks.

Jeno rested his chin on Renjun's shoulder, faces close together, close enough to touch if Renjun didn't have his hood so firmly up. The birds were chirping in the trees, and huddled together they were warm, and the morning air was fresh and sweet, despite the dark grey clouds massing overhead. Renjun's barrier of worries and nerves slowly melted away in Jeno's embrace.

"I'm so fucking pissed right now!"

The moment was broken by Donghyuck stomping over, trampling the grass underfoot. His expression was as bleak as the sky, and as angry as the clouds above, a deep scowl etched into his face.

"Shat happened now?" Jeno yawned.

"What happened? I'll tell you what happened, Lee Jeno," Donghyuck snapped. He started storming around their campsite, digging tent pegs out of the ground with his foot.