naeun didn't even notice a pair of hands around her waist, eyes fixed onto the ongoing thumb wrestle. she cheered on her friend, whose perfectly manicured thumb lifted up once more, before pressing down her opponents long digit.
screams of joy erupted from the group of girls as they jumped up and down, falling into each others arms, everyone but naeun, who took a leap forward but got pulled back. her back hit his chest, a squeal leaving her lips, before she realized who was holding her back.
she twirled around, flames in her eyes and a frown decorating her face.
"what the fuck do you think you're doing? let go of me! i'm tired of you being so damn clingy and obnoxious. i don't want you feeling me up, i don't like you!"
her loud voice ripped through the celebratory screams of her friends and everyone turned around, sixteen pairs of eyes now focused on changbin and her.
"jesus changbin, i didn't think you'd be this desperate. she doesn't want your dirty hands all over her body. give up man."
jisung sighed and stepped towards them, directing his drunk attention on changbin's hands, still interlocked and around naeun's waist.
he took one finger at a time, undoing them one by one, until both his arms dangled next to his frame, a pout on his lips. jisung stayed next to his friend as naeun made her way towards her girls.
"if you really wanna get to know her, why don't you just stop being so invasive and cocky? don't you think that'd be a bit more effective?"
changbin shook his head, got out his phone and showed jisung a picture of his shirtless, ripped chest muscles.
"i have all rights to be cocky. have you seen me? she's not that gorgeous anyways."
the way his teeth were gritted and his body was tense, jisung could tell that his best friend was more than pissed off by naeun resilience. he wasn't used to a girl talking back to him, let alone straight up rejecting him in front of everyone. usually all the girls lay at his feet and he doesn't have to do anything for it.
"whatever. i'll start to clean up, wanna help?"
changbin cocked his head and pointed at the huge pile of dishes, eyes darting back and forth from jisung to the plates.
"you? you're cleaning up? are you sure you're han jisung?"
the younger laughed and pushed changbin teasingly, only stopping when he saw yedam waving, leaving his friend alone, hurrying to the girls side and taking a stack of plates from her hands.
"you shouldn't lift these, they're too heavy."
he managed to balance them for a while, before stumbling and flinging the plates up into the air, a high pitched yelp escaping his throat.
"jisung you dumbass! you made a mess."
hyunjin yelled, still too embarrassed to look at danbi after she had won over him with ease.
jisung was curled up on the wet grass, coated with dew, and groaned at hyunjin scold.
"are you okay?"
this time around it was yedam who tried her hardest to keep her cool, a huge laugh already decorating her face, before she burst out howling, her whole body shaking with laughter.
"i think i hurt my knee."
jisung whined and sat up, looking like an upset child, leaving yedam dumbfounded.
"you really are just a six-year old, huh? get up and help me clean this up."
he threw his arms in the air and kicked his legs, frustrated and in faked pain.
"yedamie pleaseeeeee, at least act like you feel bad for me."
he got up and limped along the campsite, trying to gain yedam's attention.
"you're a loser, jisung."
she turned her attention back onto picking up the broken plates, when jisung's hand brushed over hers, lingering there just a bit too long.
"eeeeeewwwww, yedam and jisung are holding hands!"
seongmi, who was getting piggybacked by felix, screeched and pointed at the pair, who were turning tomato red and leaped apart, looking like two deer caught in the headlights.
felix gagged, causing seongmi to giggle. the two fell silent for a while, he felt the girl on his back yawn and before he knew what was happening to him, a snoring sound could be heard, coming from overtop his head.
"s-seongmi?"
his low voice caused the girl to shift, but nothing more came from his attempt to wake her. he felt as if he was held at gun point, his heart beginning to race, his brain raging to find any solution for this happening.
"i'll take her, don't worry. this is quintessential drunk seongmi."
miyun smiled at the younger boy and lifted seongmi off his back.
"thank you.. tell her i said sleep tight."
the older girl nodded and started leaving towards their tent.
"you can't reach them like that."
minho's voice rang in liv's ear as she twirled around to see his face, closer to hers than anticipated.
"what do you know?"
liv spat, the alcohol in her system causing her feelings towards the guy in front of her to be amped up by at least 120 percent.
"i hung them up, remember?"
he replied, voice calm and monotone, before he got a hold of the fairy-lights and removed them with ease.
"i think you're stupid."
liv stated, causing minho's head to jerk around.
"what?"
the girl shrugged and was about to walk off, when a hand settled on her shoulder.
"i asked you something."
"sorry, i'm a foreigner, i can't understand what you're saying."
liv intentionally put on a thick, obnoxious accent and minho grinned at the girl's sly reply. she really was something. minho didn't want to, but he found his heart disembarking on a journey with an unknown destination.
"well, just so you know, i think you're stupid too."
liv stuck out her tongue teasingly and disappeared into her tent, leaving minho standing in complete darkness, fairy-lights swaying in the fresh breeze the ocean had carried to shore.
miyun shot up, sweating, on a thin mattress in a room surrounded by mirrors. her naked, bruised body was all she could see. a little girl, scared to death, confused and helpless.
"hello?"
her tiny voice echoed from the walls, she was all alone in this cold, wet room. all alone with her history that ate her up from inside. she couldn't do this anymore. she didn't want to do this anymore.
"stop!"
her smudged mascara around her dull, dark eyes and her sunken in cheeks made her look like a mannequin, discarded like trash.
"i'm not worthless! let me out."
nothing moved, her heavy breathing filled the room, the silence was suffocating.
"stop!"
she screamed at the top of her lungs and squeezed her eyes shut.
the next thing she saw was the white polygonal spire of her tent and eight heads looking down at her, worried.
"did you have a nightmare again?"
she nodded and sat up, leaving the tent.
the wide firmament was calming her down a lot, the cold of the night tugged on her thin nightgown.
"what are you doing outside alone?"
his calm voice made her melt a bit and she turned around only to see his welcoming, warm half smile.
he sat down next to her, putting a blanket around the two of them.
"can't sleep?"
a nod from miyun, woojin put an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer.
"me neither. i had a nightmare."
miyuns head shot up and she looked at him in denial.
"me too. i don't think i can get any more sleep tonight. it's always the same.."
"what is?"
"i have the same nightmare and then i stay up the whole night."
"i bet you will fall asleep tonight."
woojin rubbed his hand on her arm and she laid her head on his shoulder, feeling at ease for the first time in a long time.
he started humming a lullaby and looked down at the girl in his arms, her mere presence more fascinating than every single star sparkling in the night sky. when he thought her to be asleep, he couldn't help but peck the top of her head ever so slightly, afraid to wake her from her peaceful slumber.
"i told you that i can't fall asleep."
she looked up at him with dark, tired eyes that seemed to pull him in. his heart wanted to leap out of his chest, he was pretty sure she could hear its every beat. they stayed like that, staring into each others eyes for a while, a smile tugging on miyun's lips.
