CHAPTER 6 - 21 QUESTIONS?

Thankfully, they found berries. Elderberries, Tae believed. There was a bush on the other side of the beach that contained a lot of them, so the two of them were peacefully eating. It wasn't much, but it satisfied the growl Tae has had in his stomach for a day now. He wasn't sure how long they were on the island, but it had been nearly a full day since the porcupine and cobra incident. The sun was setting on them now, Tae glancing around for any signs that another predator would come to finish them off. He found none.

They had a minimal amount of water and food, but it was enough to ease Tae's mind. Food, starvation, dehydration... all of those were problems he had never faced before. It made him wish he could shrivel inside himself, hiding from the world in a cape made of his own muddy flesh.

Although they were safe for the time being, they had to consider the possibility of no rescue coming. Y/n raised a valid point before: airlines were much safer than they used to be. The odds were, they were pronounced overdue, and a search team was out on the hunt for them. Now what was left was the team finding the survivors. With a vast ocean and potentially hundreds of islands in the surrounding area, how were they to expect a rescue in a timely manner?

Taehyung held out hope. If not for himself, then for his friends and family. His mind wandered to Jimin's eye smile, and how he wished he could see it one more time. Of course, he had pictures of Jimin on his phone, but he didn't want to burn battery. If he had any left, that was. He didn't want to bother checking.

His attention went to Y/n, who was nibbling on the berries. For a moment, he considered asking her how she was holding up. She beat him to the punch, her swallowing the food and allowing her voice to spew into the air.

"Well, now would be a good time to talk, don't you think?" she asked, plopping another berry in her mouth. They didn't have an unlimited supply, but there had to be several dozen in those two bushes, so there was that. He had to admit she was a delicate eater, if that made sense. Always chewing with her mouth closed and never got even a splash of juice on her face. Him on the other hand...

Taehyung used the pad of his thumb to brush off a spec of juice on the left corner of his lips, his eyebrows shooting up. "Talk about what exactly?"

"Each other. Play 21 questions. Do you have any better ideas? We're kind of each other's only source of entertainment."

"I thought girls liked to think of imaginary scenarios in their head and fall into them all day," he said, but he phrased it more like a question. She picked up on the questioning tone and tilted her head. "My ex-girlfriends were all that way."

"When I was in high school and college, sure, I did it all the time. Not much anymore though." She held another berry to her lips, a sigh passing by her tongue. "Times change, just like people." She ate the berry in seemingly one gulp, Tae noticing how this time, she did get some juice on her lips.

When he chuckled, she stared at him with wide eyes. Ah, this girl had some innocence left in her after all. He couldn't help but admire it. So, he leaned forward, using his thumb to wipe it off her flesh. "You don't have to worry about being so clean around me, I spilled juice on my clothes like 8 times."

Despite his thumb being on her lips and their proximity, she smiled. "9. I was counting."

"Of course you were."

He went to pull back, but she nearly hopped and kept his hand in place. "Double-check. I want to look presentable." He raised one brow. Mentally, he was dying a little. Why was she being a bit... flirty? No, this couldn't be flirting. Not when they started off on such a bad foot. "If I'm gonna die here, I'm dying in style. And if we get rescued, I'm doing that in style too."

"Being cool isn't everything you know."

"Of course not, but it sure as hell helps." She sighed and backed away once and for all, and he felt empty as a result. His hand floated in the air a second longer than it needed to before it returned to his side. "I wish we could play this game and have a drink or something. This berry juice is boring. If now isn't a time to get wasted, I don't know what is."

Taehyung grimaced without meaning to. "Alcohol is disgusting. Not my style."

"Then how do you de-stress?" she asked with wide eyes.

"Uh... a lot of lotion?"

"I took that in a really bad way-"

"Y/n!" She laughed at his reaction, him softening. Her, joking? Since when? "I'll have you know I don't need lotion for that." It was her turn to be embarrassed, her face flushing from the sudden words. "What's this? Miss L/n is being shy? I didn't think you knew what that word meant."

"Well, as nice of a distraction as this is, we haven't discussed night plans," she said, clicking her tongue as if that would help change the topic.

"Night plans?"

"The sun's setting," she said, her eyes in the sky as always. "Meaning that we need rest. Shouldn't we set up a watch schedule? There's dangerous creatures on this island. Cobras and porcupines for whatever fucking reason. Doesn't that terrify you?"

"This is the strangest game of 21 questions I've ever played." At her glare, he raised his hands in defense and pat the ground next to him as a form of truce. She took it, scooting over to his side and keeping her gaze level with his. "I'm terrified, of course I am. It's not a bad idea to have some precautions for the night times. We may have gotten lucky that nothing attacked us while we were asleep. Why don't we cover ourselves with dirt and leaves and make ourselves blend in?"

He knew that she knew his true thoughts. Taehyung didn't trust her to keep watch. Not that he didn't want to, but he didn't have much choice. Trust was something that wasn't very hard for him, but when in a life or death situation, he liked to believe he had his head screwed on right. Trusting her with taking turns with night watch would mean signing his safety while he sleeps into the hands of someone he barely knew. Or even worse - someone he barely liked at that. Someone who considered killing an injured bird for food as the first option.

Yes, Tae understood why she did it and wouldn't have forced her to stop if it came down to it. The point was, it proved she was willing to go far to achieve survival. That was a solid trait, but when it came to his personal safety, he didn't doubt she'd throw him to the wolves - or in this case, porcupines - to keep herself safe. He admired her will to survive as much as he despised it.

"Fine with me," she replied, giving a tight smile that he picked up on. The two of them gained a bit of distance without noticing. Tae guessed it was instinct for her not to trust anyone, and it was instinct for him to trust too much. He didn't realize he was learning a lesson from her until he scooted away.

"Shall we continue with the questions, m'lady?" he asked.

"Wow, I'm so impressed. Creamed my pants." He grunted at her words, her shifting her position so they were directly across from one another. "I didn't think we really asked any questions to begin with. What do you recommend? Favorite colors? Favorite foods? Favorite clothing brands?"

"No no and no, how about something more creative. Like... do you like... pizza?"

She blinked slowly. "I can't tell if you're dumb or if you're asking because you think I only eat elegant foods."

"For sake of not being called dumb, I'm going with the second one."

Her hand flicked in a dismissive manner, as if telling him that he wasn't dumb in any way. He smiled, her returning it seconds later. Huh. Maybe she wasn't so bad after all despite his distrust of her. "I do like pizza. Of course I do, who doesn't?"

"I've met a few people," he replied, shrugging. "How about movies and TV. You have time for that sort of thing?"

"You're the strangest nice guy stereotype I've ever seen." He raised a brow in question. "Stereotyping me as some businesswoman who doesn't have time for the more trivial things in life, like entertainment. I do have time for it, I'll have you know. Drama and fantasy are the perfect solutions to a long day of dealing with whiney adult babies."

He chuckled. "Well, two things. 1, you just stereotyped me as a nice guy."

There was a pause. "Touché."

"2, you're the last person on this planet I expected to be into fantasy of all genres." They shared a small laugh. Tae was completely serious when he said that. She didn't seem like the type to enjoy something so... vivid? Colorful? Dumb, even? Maybe she was right. Maybe he really was stereotyping her too much.

"Fantasy can be a lot of fun. You're telling me you don't like to transport yourself away into a realm of endless possibility and magic?" At his hesitation, she sighed and leaned back. "You think I'm a monster, huh?"

For a moment, he wanted to lie and say no. But he couldn't for some reason. "A bit, yeah. You're just not like anyone I've ever met. I'm used to being around people who'd give their lives to help other people, and here you are hiding behind me when a snake appears."

"There's billions of people in the world. You haven't met someone who values self-preservation over sacrificing?" she asked, but there wasn't any venom in her tone. It was a curious question that had him considering how he should word his response.

"Not in a situation like this, or a situation where it matters more. My best friend is like that. Caring, trustworthy. You'll never feel alone when you're around him. He's a work of art, really. I wish I was the same way."

"You sure as hell seem like it, if that's any consolation. There's no shame in looking out for yourself every once in a while."

"And there's no shame in helping others either," he said, the words harsher than he intended. Even she winced at them. Part of him wished to take them back, but he didn't. It was far too late now. He wasn't sure how he was expecting her to react, but saying nothing wasn't one of the possibilities he considered. She remained quiet, her eyes observing the horizon with no real emotion behind them.

Taehyung didn't consider the idea that maybe she was expressive on the inside, like one of those cold people from all those cheesy romance movies he watched growing up. Though he doubted that she would have a soft spot for him. He didn't doubt that bad things had happened to her. That was life, wasn't it? Everyone had some sad story. Some trauma, some tragic event that shaped who they were. It was depressing in itself that people learned to expect trauma from other people's lives, but that wasn't Taehyung's point. The point was he pondered what tragedy she suffered to make her like this. Or maybe it was who she was. The hopeful side of Tae chose to believe the former.

"I really need to get to my family. They'll be worried sick while I'm out here dicking around in a forest-jungle place," Tae said in a murmur. She tilted her head to glance at him, him meeting her eyes.

"I really need to get back to my business. I don't want to lose my chance at a promotion," she replied, sighing after.

"That's all you care about? A promotion?"

"Well, to be fair to myself, it's a pretty good promotion. Lots of extra cash involved, and I could use it. Plus, I think I deserve it after all the hard work I've put into this company."

Taehyung scoffed without processing that he did. "Do you have no friends?"

It was her turn to scoff. "Of course I do, haven't we been over this? Just because we have different views on life doesn't make me a monster. I'm not over here calling you Jesus because you're nicer than me. People have different lifestyles Tae, you need to accept them."

"Sorry I'm a little freaked out by someone sitting there with a stoic face and no real stake here. You're taking this so casually. Isn't there anything you care about other than your stupid business and yourself? Where's your best friend and roommate? Lover? Parents? Where are the people you love and why don't you have them as your priorities?"

He wasn't sure if the question was offensive or not, but he said it without thinking, something he tended to do a lot. Especially in stressful situations. Her unmoving mouth made his mood shift, his posture slumping. "I'm sure a rescue team will come soon," she finally said, making sure she wasn't looking in his direction. Tae pretended not to care.

It seemed that for every step they took, they took one more backwards and started at the beginning again. Was there a way to break this cycle? To stop themselves from ripping each other's heads off? Taehyung mentally made it his goal to find a way for both of them to survive. He wasn't sure if that was possible seeing as they were always going for each other's throats. Or at least, that was what it felt like. Them being petty and passive-aggressive with each other.

"Goodnight," she said, interrupting his thoughts. She poured a lot of leaves and dirt over her, making her blend in with the ground. That method wasn't tested by Tae, he wasn't sure if it would work, but it'd be better than taking the risk of trusting someone to watch his sleeping form. It may have sounded ridiculous, but they had a knife now. That was what worried him most.

"You're sleeping already?"

"Long day. Feels like that's every day anymore," she replied, turning away from him.

He wasn't sure if she meant daily life or life since they got on the island, but he interpreted it as both. She didn't speak again, so he didn't either. When he was sure she was asleep, he took a moment to admire her side profile that he could barely see. Despite knowing he was being weird, he scooted to her other side and noted that she was definitely passed out. Her eyes were shut, a frown on her face. Maybe a nightmare? Regardless, he brushed some hair out of her face and sighed. She wasn't evil. Not in the slightest, he just painted her out that way. She was no angel like he originally thought, but not a demon. Maybe he should have considered that people could be self-centered and still have a heart. Maybe there was more to her he should've-

"Staring is creepy," she said. "For future reference, it takes me at least half an hour to fall asleep. Nice try though, Tae Tae."

A shade of pink crept its way up the back of his neck, goosebumps forming as well. "S-Sorry, you had hair in your face and it bothered me."

"OCD?"

"Maybe, but I'm not diagnosed." 

He ran with the excuse and went to the other side, shifting so they weren't facing each other anymore. Okay, that was mortally embarrassing. Taehyung shut his eyes in a squint, attempting to forget that he just stared at a sleeping (but not actually sleeping) woman. He let out a small breath, his thoughts fading away. 

Sleeping at the same time was a good idea, but now that he knew it took her half an hour to sleep, he waited that long before feeling comfortable with truly winding down. Even now he felt vulnerable. Frail. Could he trust her to not stab him in his sleep? He wasn't sure who the hell she was and what she'd do if she became desperate enough.

And quite frankly, he didn't want to find out.