ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗬-𝗢𝗡𝗘
─◌✰್ 𝗀𝗈 𝖿𝗂𝗌𝗁

robin_is_a_penguin no bc girl your aura is 100/10 😍
> matchatess people think i have the most aura but it is in fact @sk8terjj
    > catdad_lee @matchatess i don't think anyone believes that
        > ramenoodlaska @catdad_lee excuse you i believe it
            > mymymy @catdad_lee yeah she's the definition of baddie wdym
                > matchatess @catdad_lee i think you're just projecting bc you're not very cool...

nomnominnie omg first class???
> sk8terjj we're material girls bbg

    > mymymy @sk8terjj did you just call my man bbg...?
        > changaroo97 @sk8terjj he is kind of adorable, isn't he?
            > ramenoodlaska @changaroo97 aww cutie little innie!!!
                > nomnominnie @ramenoodlaska you're younger than me...

the.official.hwang wowww style is right 🫣
> ryerye SIMP SIMP SIMP 👏
    > mymymy @ryerye let's be real she does look really good
        > ramenoodlaska @the.official.hwang omg does my brother actually have taste?? shocking
            > the.official.hwang @ramenoodlaska excuse you i've always had taste???
                > ryerye @the.official.hwang nah i've heard about some of those girls you've dated...
                    > sk8terjj @ryerye oh? what girls has he dated?

catdad_lee first class on a one hour flight what
> sk8terjj are you just here to shit on me, minho? 🤨
    > catdad_lee @sk8terjj i didn't mean it like that, sorry
        > ramenoodlaska @catdad_lee omg did we just get a minho apology???

            > cheesecakehannie @ramenoodlaska he is really nice sometimes
                > ramenoodlaska @cheesecakehannie i know he's nice! besides, you're my bestie, youre supposed to be on my side 😒
                    > the.official.hwang @ramenoodlaska since when has he been your bestie??? plus he's right @catdad_lee is occasionally nice.

You woke up the next morning somehow even more exhausted than you had been the day before. JJ had slept next to you, but she was already gone. It had been the fifth night in a row that you'd gotten shitty sleep, but somehow, last night had been the worst of them all.

Changbin had left you, permanently. The minute JJ had shared the news with you, you'd ran to the driveway where the cars were parked, frantically counting them. When you found they were all there, Alaska hastily explained that Changbin had taken an Uber back home.

You had been too late. The entire drive back, you'd repeatedly told yourself that it was a very real possibility that Changbin might not want you. That he'd been burned one too many times, and he couldn't be in a relationship with you anymore. You were a realist, of course you knew that could happen.

But never in your wildest dreams had you expected him to up and leave entirely. Changbin had always stuck around, through thick and thin. No matter how uptight or bitchy you were being, he was always there to give you a snack or a laugh. You hadn't realized just how much he had lit up your life, until he was gone.

Typical, you thought to yourself bitterly, rolling over in bed and checking the time on your phone. It was already 9:30, hours later than you usually slept in, for as long as you could remember. Who had let you stay in bed all morning?

Just as you pushed yourself up into a sitting position, the bedroom door opened, and JJ and Hyunjin walked in, wide smiles plastered on their faces.

"Hey girl!!" JJ chirped, uncharacteristically sunny. You frowned, shifting on the bed suspiciously. Why was she acting so weird?

"Hi Lanhua!" Hyunjin clapped his hands, blinding you with his cheesy grin.

"Hi guys..." You eyed them suspiciously. "Is this your Mya impersonation? Why are you acting like crazy people?"

The duo glanced at each other, trying to communicate with their eyes. JJ was once again the first to speak.

"We were... wondering if you wanted to play a card game with us!" JJ finally said, motioning towards the door. "We could play uno, go fish, or anything you want!"

"Anything inside!" Hyunjin added eagerly. JJ nudged him in the side.

You wrinkled your nose. "I don't really like playing card games, guys. You know that. I want to go outside, and take Junjie and Jiao for a walk."

"Don't worry about them!" JJ waved her hand. "Tessa and Mya are already taking them. Jiao was scratching to get out at seven, but I didn't want to wake you."

"So we're gonna play go fish! C'mon!" Hyunjin urged, grabbing your wrist and tugging. You glared at him, trying to break yourself from his grip.

JJ grabbed your other wrist and began pulling, too. You finally acquiesced, just to appease them. Maybe they had been doing... less than savory things in the other room, and didn't want you to catch them. Yes, that must be the reason they were acting like weirdos. It was probably better to just feign ignorance, and go along with it.

So that was how you ended up spending the next two hours straight, playing every card game that JJ and Hyunjin could think of. Some of them didn't even seem to be real games, just random rules that the two of them had thrown together.

Half-way through a game called "Peanut Butter Jelly", which you weren't sure if you were winning or losing, JJ's phone buzzed. She snatched it off the table so fast, you could almost see smoke emitting from the spot it had left.

She stared at the screen for a moment, an intense look on her face, before typing a response. Then, she looked at Hyunjin, another wordless message on her face.

Hyunjin nodded, clapping his hands again. "Oh look! I guess we can go back outside now! I think they're making lunch! It's lunchtime!!"

"C'mon, Hua!" JJ pulled your chair out with you still sitting in it, and then pushed you towards the door.

"Geez, what is going on with you guys??" you exclaimed, confusion filling you once more. These two were planning something... you just weren't sure what.

Hyunjin and JJ frog marched you to the door, arms linked in yours. Before you exited, JJ slid a hand over your eyes, obscuring your vision.

"Girl, I'm gonna go crazy if you don't tell me what going on," you warned.

"Don't worry, you already are," JJ chuckled, the hinges on the door squeaking as she opened it. Then, she took her hand away from your face.

Your most vivid imagination couldn't have conjured up what met you when you opened your eyes.

—————————————

Changbin had in fact not left the campsite. He'd only wanted you to think he had.

Okay, he had to admit his plan was at the very least sneaky, if not borderline mean and deceitful. Lying to you had left a bad taste in his mouth to put it nicely. But it had been a requirement for his plan to work.

He'd worked with the rest of the girls to formulate your surprise: a huge farewell party, with as many of your loved ones attending as possible. First, they texted you — and your friend, Rory — and made sure that you got back here before the end of the trip. Then, when you came back, the girls intercepted you, to make sure you thought that Changbin had left, while simultaneously keeping you at the campsite. You would just think that you were here to say goodbye to the animal shelter workers and the dogs, especially Miso. No parties, and no Changbin.

But in reality, Changbin would be using that extra time, the time that you thought he had left, to plan the biggest gesture he could think of, all for you. To get you your job back. And, if everything went right, he would win you back too.

So he'd spent all day yesterday and today, calling Se Ri and everyone at Park and Paws, demanding that they give you your job back.

"Listen to me when I tell you that you will never get a better worker than Lanhua," he'd said fiercely, unable to keep the emotion from his voice.

"I know, Mr. Seo," Se Ri responded slowly. "She was given multiple strikes, and I do not believe we can let her back. It has nothing to do with her work ethic, just the things that happened while she was employed with us."

"See?" Changbin exclaimed. "You said it exactly. It was things that happened while she was employed with you. They would have happened no matter who was working with you. Miso is a stubborn dog. It's a wonder he didn't escape sooner. And the dog back at the shelter had tried to escape many times too. It was only a matter of time. You just can't blame Lanhua for this. I'm sure many other dogs in your possession have gotten hurt. And I bet none of the workers were fired for it."

Se Ri's silence was a satisfactory response.

"I will bring your case to the CEO," Se Ri finally said. "Thank you for calling, Mr. Seo. It's nice to know there are people who care about Lanhua. She was a special employee."

"You're welcome." Changbin hung up, feeling cautiously optimistic. It wasn't a guarantee that Park and Paws would bring you back, but it was a start.

And now, here he was, November 14th, one day before you were scheduled to go home. Namjoon and the rest of the animal shelter had shown up, ready to host a farewell party for you and the rest of the group. And there was still a ton to do. Hyunjin and JJ had been tasked with distracting you, making sure you stayed inside, and away from the windows. He didn't want to risk you seeing what he had planned.

"Hey Bin, is this sign straight?" Mya, who stood on a huge tree stump across the clearing, called to him. She and Tessa were holding opposite ends of a huge sign, the words 'We love you Lanhua' across the front.

Changbin squinted at it, checking both ends meticulously. "Maybe just a bit higher on your side, Mya!" he yelled back, before hurrying over to check on Felix and Alaska, who were in charge of the food and drinks.

"Doesn't this look good??" Alaska exclaimed eagerly, pointing at a huge pile of cookies that sat cooling on a plate next to Felix. "You want a sample?? Felix makes the best coo-"

"We know Felix makes the best cookies!" Riley called. She and Chan were setting up a kiddy pool for the dogs, filled with cute toys and floaties.

"Sure, I'll take a bite." Changbin shrugged, and before he could grab one, Alaska shoved an entire cookie in his mouth.

Choking on the comically large sweet, he hurried away to help Robin, Renee, and Seungmin, who were setting up a photo booth, which was plugged into an outlet in the side of one of the cabins. Robin had tripped on the cord, and Seungmin was searching for Band-Aids.

"Here, I got some." Changbin threw a box at Seungmin, before rushing away and throwing an extra broom at Jeongin, who was searching for one. Some of boys had been tasked with cleaning the campsite.

Namjoon and the others were getting the dogs situated, putting adorable little outfits on them. They all matched, with colorful ruffled shirts and party hats on their heads.

"They look great." Changbin smiled at the man. A few weeks ago, he'd wanted to rip the guy's head off. But somehow, they'd come to some sort of understanding. They both cared about Lanhua, in their own ways. Maybe that was all the common ground they needed.

Han was working on the playlist, and setting up speakers so they could blast music around the clearing. The cabin staff had given it the thumbs-up, and even provided them with some leftover decorations from the Halloween party.

"Changbin! Hi!"

A gorgeous girl with burnt-orange hair and cute tattoos all over her arms ran towards him, short crocheted skirt riding up her legs as she went. She exuded the perfect balance of casual and chaotic. Like she was used to everything in her life being crazy.

"Rory, hi, it's nice to meet you." Changbin reached a hand out to shake.

She ignored his hand, and reached up for a huge hug, a grin spread across her face. Changbin hugged back awkwardly, surprised at the amount of enthusiasm she held. Being your childhood friend, he'd assumed Rory would be a bit more reserved. Clearly, he was wrong.

"Sorry! I like hugs!" Rory laughed when she finally let go. "I'm so glad you called me! I can't believe you're throwing Hua a surprise party, I can't wait. It looks amazing!"

Changbin smiled. "Thank you for coming, I'm sure it'll mean a lot to her."

Looking around the clearing, Changbin was finally satisfied with everything. And Park and Paws was supposed to show up in exactly ten minutes. Who knew if they would, but Se Ri, after Changbin's third call, had finally given in, and said she would be there. It was time. He pulled out his phone.

jj 🤙

binnie
hey, we're ready

bring her out, and cover
her eyes

jj 🤙
yessir 🫡

He stood, eyed locked on the entrance to your cabin, for what felt like decades. He began getting twitchy, his neck hot and itchy. It had only been a couple days since he'd seen you in person, but he missed you like crazy. He'd been an ass, and he wanted nothing more than to tell you exactly that. Just the idea of seeing you again was enough to make him nauseous as hell.

Finally, the door opened, and there you were, looking stunning in a basic white t-shirt and fitted slacks. Uncharacteristically casual for you, and yet he'd never seen a more beautiful woman in his life. JJ uncovered your eyes, and your look of wonder almost brought him to his knees. With a great amount of willpower, he forced himself to stay standing. You were in awe at this grand gesture... but would it be enough to win you back?

laska's note —
well, the cats out of the bag! 🤭 changbin never actually left, he just needed to make it look like he did so he could get this surprise set up for hua! and tbh, it might have aided in her admitting the depth of her feelings for him, to herself! now, the farewell party is about to start! and we only have one day left at the campsite before everyone goes home! i hope hua and changbin are able to forgive each other, and find love! 😭😭 i don't want this book to end, thank god i'm working on the next one! i wonder whose story is next... 😏😏

𝖭𝖤𝖷𝖳 𝖴𝖯：
𝟰𝟮 - 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀
┊ ⇄ ◁◁ II ▷▷ ↻ ┊