ˏˋ°•*⁀ ➷ 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗧𝗪𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗬
─◌✰್ 𝗌𝗊𝗎𝖺𝗌𝗁
𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗮𝘀𝗵（𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻）/𝘀𝗸𝘄𝗼̂𝗦𝗛, 𝘀𝗸𝘄𝗮̈𝗦𝗛/
❝𝖺𝗇 𝖾𝖽𝗂𝖻𝗅𝖾 𝗀𝗈𝗎𝗋𝖽， 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗅𝖾𝗌𝗁 𝗈𝖿 𝗐𝗁𝗂𝖼𝗁 𝗆𝖺𝗒 𝖻𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗈𝗄𝖾𝖽 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖾𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗇 𝖺𝗌 𝖺 𝗏𝖾𝗀𝖾𝗍𝖺𝖻𝗅𝖾．❞

"Are you crying, Mya??"

"Of course not!" Mya exclaimed, snatching a napkin off of the bedroom floor they were sitting on and dabbing at her eyes. "This kimchi jjigae is so spicy, what did you put in it??"

"Kimchi, of course," you took a spoonful and sipped, nodding approvingly. "It's not even that spicy, what are you talking about??"

"It's a little spicy," Riley contradicted. "But I kind of like the pain, as long as there's a lot of rice of course."

You rolled your eyes. "Y'all are just weak. Besides, it was mostly Minho and Felix making it. Blame them."

Riley, who was polishing off her bowl, looked up, eyebrows raised. "You were cooking with Minho and Felix? Why didn't you tell us??"

Mya took another tentative sip. "How was it? I mean, after last night-"

She broke off coughing. "Got a chili flake down my throat or something," she downed her glass of water in two gulps.

"Wait, what do you mean 'after last night'?" You demanded, setting your bowl on the floor. "What happened?"

Mya opened her mouth to respond, brows creased in concern, when a yell came from the bottom of the stairs.

"Where are you girls, you're gonna miss out on all the fun!"

"Is Lanhua here??" Mya stood up, sending her half-eaten bowl spinning across the floor. Thankfully, no soup spilled.

"Oh shit, yeah, I forgot! Apparently Lanhua and everyone was invited over for breakfast! We should go down and see them!"

Despite the fact that you were still extremely confused and a little disconcerted about Mya's earlier comment, you wanted to have fun on this trip. Dwelling on the black hole that was last night wouldn't do any good.

At least for now. You placated yourself. You could ask Mya later. She was sober all night, so you could trust her. But what was more important right now was having fun with all of your friends. You could ignore Felix for the next eight hours, right?

"Oh my gosh, it's been sooo long!" Lanhua called as you, Mya, and Riley walked outside. Everyone was already outside, either sitting around the picnic table or playing in the grass. They had all finished breakfast and were talking and laughing.

"Oh my gosh, Laska, you have to come sit by me!" Lanhua ordered from her spot at the far end of the table. She was sitting between Changbin and JJ, an orange juice mimosa in her hand. You hadn't known anyone had brought ingredients for mimosas in the first place. You would have grabbed some juice on your way.

You waved and scooted in between JJ and Lanhua. Riley took a seat next to Hyunjin (who was uncomfortably wedged next to JJ) and Robin, who had clearly invited herself to sit by Han. Mya accepted a spot next to Jeongin, who had patted the bench wildly to invite her over.

On Mya's other side sat a girl who you didn't know. She hadn't been at the bar the night before, or you probably would have remembered. She, along with the rest of Lanhua's friends, was absolutely stunning.

"Hi! I'm Alaska, I don't think we've met," you couldn't help but introduce yourself as you turned to face the new girl.

The girl smiled a mouth full of perfectly straight, white teeth, her cocoa-brown hair literally shining in the sunlight. Her skin was lightly tanned, and, along with her friends, she was already wearing her swimsuit. The skimpy cow-print top barely covered her modesty, and it was clear the guys at the table were a mix of nervous and googly-eyed at the sight she was offering. You rolled your eyes inwardly. No matter how often you forgot, it was a friendly reminder that Hyunjin's friends were indeed men.

"You're right, I'm Tessa," the girl replied, reaching across the table to shake your hand. She didn't elaborate, just smiled at you earnestly. Her voice was low and a little raspy, much quieter than you'd expected based off the showy display she made with her outfit choice.

"We totally need to go to the beach!" Lanhua exclaimed, standing up without warning. "It's almost noon already and we haven't gone anywhere! Do y'all wanna play beach volleyball? JJ brought the net and a ball!"

"Ooh yes!" You agreed eagerly. You weren't the most athletic person in the entire world, but you'd played volleyball back in high school, and you were pretty good.

"I'm down," JJ agreed. "But y'all better watch out, Lanhua and I were on the team in college."

"Good thing I'll be on your team!" Changbin cut in.

Lanhua raised an eyebrow. "Are you good?"

Changbin shrugged. "I'm strong."

"Can you hit the ball over the net?"

"... I'm strong."

Everyone collectively rolled their eyes at Changbin. They knew he would do anything to get on Lanhua's team, even if it meant he had to beg.

"Is volleyball a short person-friendly sport?" Mya asked doubtfully. "Besides, we aren't even in our swimsuits yet!"

"Well let's go get you changed like, yesterday!" Lanhua motioned to you and your friends before practically dragging you up the stairs to your room.

"This beach house is nice!" Robin observed, following the girls, even though you could see the black straps of her bikini under her tank top.

As you, Riley, and Mya rummaged through your suitcases to find the perfect swimsuit, the other girls continued to discuss the art of volleyball.

"Anyone can play," JJ was saying as she leaned against the closed bedroom door. "I'm not that tall, and I've beat Lanhua lots of times."

"Hey!" Lanhua complained from her spot on Mya and your bed, crossing her legs and playfully glaring at her friend. "I heard that!"

JJ jokingly rolled her eyes before kneeling down next to Mya to assist in her swimsuit choosing process.

"How many swimsuits did you bring?" JJ asked as she started throwing clothes over her shoulder to land in a sprawled pile on the floor.

"Only four," Mya said nervously, as if this was a test and she was doomed to fail.

JJ tutted. "Maybe you could borrow some of Tessa's, you're about the same height, right?"

Mya took one look at the nearly-naked girl, who was sitting on Riley's bed scrutinizing your other friend's swimsuit selection, and shook her head vigorously.

"No thank you!" She barely managed to say. "I'd rather just wear the same swimsuit once or twice."

JJ shrugged, about to leave the subject alone, when Lanhua walked over to her.

"No, that's not an option. Don't you want to impress Jeongin down there? I saw you with him last night, you couldn't leave each other alone! When you run out of new swimsuits to wear, call me and we'll go shopping."

"I've tried to get her to go shopping with me like a billion times," you cut in, choosing an orchid-colored bikini from your suitcase. "She always says no because she has more than enough clothes already."

"No one has ever said no to Lanhua," JJ said with a laugh. "Trust me, I've tried."

As Lanhua and Mya argued over shopping dates, Robin, who had taken JJ's spot by the door and was scrolling on her phone, looked up and eyed your swimsuit of choice.

"That a gorgeous color," she observed. "A bit bright for my taste, but it would totally compliment your skin."

You smiled at her. She was the only one here who didn't have any friends with her, but she seemed really cool and fun to be around. "Thanks! I got it for the trip. I thought it would be perfect for hanging out in the sand, or maybe tanning."

"I wish I could tan, I always burn," Robin sighed. She herself was wearing a black and bikini top and short swim shorts that were accented with cobalt blue palm leaves. The ensemble was the perfect mix of sexy and athletic.

"You're so lucky to have pale skin though," you said wistfully. Not that you minded having slightly tanner skin, but it had never been one of your favorite physical traits.

"I think tan skin is super pretty, it makes you look sunkissed," Robin laughed. "Sometimes I feel like a vampire or something."

"Heyy, hurry up!" Seungmin's voice echoed up the stairs, and all seven of you rolled your eyes.

"They're so impatient," Riley grumbled as she held up a stunning black one piece suit  with a skirt as the bottom for Tessa to see.

"Are they always like that?" Lanhua asked, raising an eyebrow and popping her left hip as she held a baby pink strawberry-print one piece for Mya.

You nodded. "Pretty much. I guess we should get changed before one of those idiots decides to come upstairs and sees us all naked. Even though that would be kind of funny."

Finally, Mya agreed on the strawberry suit and Tessa relented to Riley wearing the "way too damn conservative" black one piece, and everyone took turns changing in the bathroom and bedroom.

"Finally!" Hyunjin called to them as all of the girls descended the stairs together. "How long does it take to pick a swimsuit??"

"A long time," JJ replied, raising a self-assured eyebrow at the man in front of her.

For once, Hyunjin didn't say anything. He just stood there swallowing air like she was trying to catch something in his mouth.

You giggled inwardly. Had your brother finally found someone that would shut him up?

"C'mon girls, let's go take some pics!" Lanhua gestured for her two besties to follow her. She shot you a smile of silent invitation, before leading the way back outside.

As you watched Lanhua, who donned a simple-yet-sexy white underwire bikini, JJ, who wore a effortless but stunning tan and chocolate-toned bikini, and Tessa, who looked shockingly hot and trendy as hell, force a horribly embarrassed Jeongin to take a billion pictures of them, you decided you wanted in on the fun.

"C'mon, let's join them!" You urged, grabbing Mya and Riley's hands and tugging them along. You waved at Robin to follow and she grinned in response.

Lanhua immediately tugged you into the photo, while JJ put an arm over Riley and Robin's shoulders and Tessa pushed Mya in front of her. It turned out JJ was a bad judge of height, because Tessa was at least three inches taller than your friend.

"We're heading down to the beach to set up the net!" Chan called to them. You watched as Riley battled between the urge to stare at him, and keep her eyes focused on the camera as Jeongin snapped away. He was getting pretty good at the whole Instagram boyfriend thing, although you suspected he was also taking close-ups of Mya at the same time.

"One minute, Chan!" You called back through gritted teeth as Jeongin took one last picture.

The man shrugged his shoulders, and began leading the rest of the guys down the sandy hill. Jeongin finally raced after them, nearly tripping over his sandal-clad feet as he went.

"I guess we should go too?" Riley looked at her two friends after they were done looking at the pictures on JJ's phone. "I'd like to see the guys play, especially if the uniform is shirtless."

"Ooh you're so right!" You laughed. "Are you guys gonna play?"

"I'm down to try," Riley said. "Especially if it means Chan might forget my embarrassment last night, even if it's in favor of some new embarrassment today. I couldn't possibly do something worse, right?"

Mya sighed. "I guess I could try. I've always liked the sound of volleyball."

"Let's try and beat the guys down the hill so we can watch them walk down," you giggled.

With that, you linked arms with your friends and raced down the hill, past the boys, to the beach.

As you all arrived on the hot sand, you studied the new girl, Tessa, a little harder than you had up at the house. She seemed shyer than you had initially thought she'd be. Despite her 10/10 looks and risqué (to say the least) fashion sense, she seemed almost... insecure. You wondered if you were just imagining things. After all, you'd just met her. And besides, she was nice, and clearly a girl's girl, and that's what mattered.

The other guys were still walking down the hill after you three, and even the other girls, had arrived. It must have been because JJ and Lanhua had forced Chan and Changbin to carry everything, including the net, stakes, and ball, because they were struggling down the hill, getting tangled in the net and falling the entire way. The others were trying to help, but only getting in the way.

You giggled as you came to stand next to Lanhua, who was also watching the spectacle. "Looks like you picked the right men for the job." You commented.

Lanhua laughed. "The net is taller than them, although that isn't saying much."

Tessa ran back to help the boys carry the net, laughing as she too nearly tripped in the sand.

"Need help?" She called out to them as she got closer.

Chan and Changbin shook their heads, even though they clearly did.

Then, something weird happened as Tessa came to stand next to the guys, who had stopped at the bottom of the hill. She was laughing and getting to know Chan and Changbin, and Changbin accidentally brushed her arm in a manner that could only be platonic. At that moment, Minho walked over to them and stood directly between Changbin and Tessa. Right as he did so, Tessa turned away and immediately started heading back towards you and the rest of the girls. Even from a distance, you could see she was muttering angrily to herself.

You frowned. "What's that about?" You asked no one in particular.

JJ, who had joined you and Lanhua in your observation of the boys, sighed. "I dunno girl, she won't even tell us, and we're her best friends."

Lanhua nodded sagely. "It has to be something weird. Tessa can get mad pretty easily, but not at just anyone. They must have some real history."

"I mean, does she even know Minho? And how?" You inquired, completely confused.

"Yeah, they've known each other since they were little," JJ replied. "I've never met him, but she used to talk about him all the time."

"They were friends," Lanhua agreed. "But not anymore, I don't think."

"Minho's never talked about her," you frowned. "Kinda weird, if they were so close."

"Oi, are you girls gonna help set up the net or what?" Chan called, grinning at them. All eight guys had stopped a small distance to your right. Han and Minho were helping nail the net into the ground, while Jeongin, Changbin, and Felix spiked the volleyball at one another nearby. Seungmin and Hyunjin had set out two lawn chairs and were sitting with sunglasses on, not helping.

Lanhua rolled her eyes. "I guess the manly men need our help setting up a silly little net."

JJ laughed, nudging her friend. "Rude," she said before jogging off to help.

Mya, Riley, and Robin, who had been watching the men themselves, followed you all over to the net, where they had nearly gotten everything set up.

"I don't want to play volleyball," Seungmin announced, finally standing up from his chair. "I want to explore the beach!"

Minho huffed loudly. "Why didn't you tell us, I don't know, before we finished setting up the net?"

Seungmin shrugged, but didn't answer.

"I'm down to explore," JJ agreed. "We play beach volleyball all the time, it could be fun to do something else."

"Me too!" Han agreed, ditching the nearly-finished net and running off down the shore.

So the entire group of you started walking down the beach.

"Wanna walk in the water?" Robin called to you and the girls, and you all followed her to the very edge of the water to dip your toes in.

You gasped at the sensation of cold water hitting your feet, which were warm in your flip flops from digging in the sand. But quickly the shock faded into to pleasure as the water, which had been warmed by the sun all morning, refreshed you.

"Ooh lookie, a lifeguard chair!" Changbin yelled, pointing a few yards away. He had been in the middle of trying to dump sand down Minho's swim trunks as the other man yelled and swatted at him to get away.

"We should climb it!" Seungmin exclaimed, starting to run towards the empty chair.

"Why would he do that?" Lanhua asked, watching as Seungmin, along with Han and Changbin, raced over to the chair and were now examining the stability of the ladder.

"Is he allowed?" Mya asked anxiously, kicking at the wet sand underneath the water's surface.

"Who the hell knows?" Riley chuckled. "Whatever happens, it'll be hilarious."

"He's not technically supposed to," You agreed. "But who wants to tell him?"

Nobody raised their hand.

All of the girls and the rest of the guys watched as Seungmin, who had apparently been dared, scaled the lifeguard ladder, and sat down in the chair like a king on his throne.

"He's such an idiot," you tried to keep yourself from laughing.

"You're all so short!" Seungmin called down, grinning cheekily at the rest of you and waving.

"Hey, don't get too cocky!" Minho yelled back, pretending to glare at him from his spot on the beach.

Just as Seungmin was about to reply, Han and Changbin, who had been whispering to one another secretively, grabbed both ends of the ladder, which was attached to the lifeguard chair, and started shaking it as hard as they could.

"Hey, what the hell!!" Seungmin yelped, immediately gripping the arms of the chair as the entire thing wobbled and shook beneath him. "This thing isn't as strong as it looks!"

Of course, since Seungmin wasn't actually that far from the ground, no one was really worried about him, but it sure made a spectacle, as other beach-goers watched him him with curious (and some judgy) eyes.

Han and Changbin started to shake the chair even harder, and Seungmin, who had started to laugh so hard he couldn't breathe, slipped from the chair and nearly toppled to the ground.

Mya let out a huge gasp, as if he was about to die.

Seungmin, with his insanely fast reflexes, caught one of the arms of the chair and held on, his legs dangling uselessly beneath him.

"I hate you guys!" Seungmin exclaimed, staring down the ladder at Han and Changbin, who were cracking up so hard that they had stopped shaking the ladder and were holding their stomachs.

Just as Seungmin was about to jump down from his hanging position, a woman walked up behind him.

"I'm sorry, are you here to take over lifeguard duty?!"

Seungmin struggled to turn around and face the young woman behind him. But as he made eye contact with her, his entire face changed from easy humor to beet-red humiliation. He opened his mouth to say something, then closed