The sound of metal clanging against metal vibrated through the campsite, awakening the poor souls at its mercy.

Taehyung opens one puffy eye, trying to get accustomed to the new state of consciousness that he was forced into. His hair is ruffled and his cheeks are slightly bloated. He feels his back ache as he sits up and his cramped joints scream with every movement. He lazily turns over to the boy sleeping across from him, happily tucked away in his sleeping bag without a care in the world.

Is he deaf? Taehyung wonders, confused over how the boy could still sleep through the chaos occurring outside.

"BOYS, OUT YOU'RE TENT'S NOW!" The commander shouts from outside, startling the whole campsite with his booming vocals. Well, the whole campsite excluding Jeon Jungkook, that is, who barely stirs in his sleep at the disruption.

Taehyung crawls over to the ravenette and taps him gently on his shoulder, "Jungkook, wake up," he whispers ever so gently. The ravenette doesn't move as he is too lost in dreamland to be pulled out into reality.

The voice from outside yells again, this time sounding rather irritant. "BOYS, IF YOU DON'T COME OUT RIGHT NOW I WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR TENTS FOR TONIGHT AND YOU'LL BE SLEEPING OUT IN THE OPEN!"

Taehyung flinches before frantically turning back to the ravenette. He shakes the boy's shoulder rather aggressively this time, hoping to wake him up.

But he doesn't.

Taehyung huffs in frustration. He starts beating his fist against Jungkook's back, calling out his name repeatedly in a desperate attempt to revive him from his apparent bedridden state.

"Jungkook, Jungkook, JUNGKOO-"

Suddenly, the blue-head is pulled into the embrace of warm arms, trapped between a firm chest and toned muscles. He yelps at the sudden action, confused as to how the sleeping boy managed to pull him into a koala hug.

"Judfkosk," He calls out the boy's name but his voice is muffled by the other's chest.

"What are you doing?" Jungkook's voice is raspy and strained from sleep and Taehyung finds himself blushing at this.

"Get up, we have to go," he manages to say while pulling his head away from the ravenette.

"Don't wanna," Jungkook says while hugging the boy tighter.

Taehyung squirms against him, trying to break free from his embrace but it is to no use. "Jungkook, let me go! We have to get up or we will be sleeping without the tent tonight."

But his protests are gone unheard. The ravenette seems to have fallen back to sleep and now Taehyung has no way of escaping from his firm grip.

Taehyung feels panicked when he hears the commanders loud voice yelling at other boys for not getting up. Taehyung stares at Jungkook's sleeping face, wondering what on earth he could do to get out of this situation. His eyes then trail to his lips.

Taehyung hesitates, feeling unsure and slightly nervous. What if he gets mad?

But then he hears the commander yell once again, something about the late ones having to miss breakfast and that's enough said for Taehyung to feel threatened.

He leans in and gently captures Jungkook's lips in his own. After a few seconds, he pulls away and opens his eyes. Jungkook's awake now, staring back at him with his dark charcoal irises. However, his face doesn't have the scowl on it that Taehyung was expecting, instead, there is an amused smile.

"You kissed me," Jungkook says with a cheeky expression. Taehyung groans and pushes the boy off, attempting to get up.

But he's yanked back to where he was, face to face with Jungkook. And then, without warning, Jungkook's lips are on his. He kisses him rather gently and Taehyung can't help but feel shy.

They pull away and Jungkook once again has that cheeky smile on his face.

"Don't." Taehyung says, stopping Jungkook before he can say something stupid. Jungkook chuckles, the deep sound spreading through the enclosed space of the tent and tinting a bright blush across Taehyung's cheeks.

Taehyung pulls himself up and then pulls Jungkook up, who stumbles behind him like a drunkard.

They both exit the tent and oh god. Oh no.

 They should have stayed inside and pretended to be dead or something. But they didn't. 

And now the commander is staring down at them, his menacing dark eyes twitching with anger.

"YOU ARE LATE!"

Taehyung slightly gasps and subconsciously hides behind Jungkook. Jungkook rolls his eyes at the commander, only further prompting the man's fury. "Yeah, and you're early."

Taehyung is mortified. He pinches Jungkook's back, silently telling him to shut up. The commander stiffens, his whole body taking on the stance of hulk as he tries to intimidate the ravenette. The ravenette isn't intimidated, but the smaller boy behind him is pissing his pants.

"YOU DO NOT DISRESPECT YOUR COMMANDER? DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"

"Yes, sir," Taehyung squeaks from behind. Jungkook doesn't say anything which only riles up Taehyung's anxiety and the commander's anger.

The veins in the man's neck bulge as he glares at the two boys. And then his booming voice turns rather quiet, which for some reason is so much scarier than when he was yelling. 

"There's a bonfire tonight, you two will chop and bring all the wood we need for it, I don't care if you miss all your activities. I want it done by tonight." His eyes darken with a stern look that tells the boys that he's not playing. 

And with one final pointed look, he leaves. 

~

Taehyung has this scowl on his face that is (in his head) intimidating and scary, but in reality, Jungkook can't help but coo over how adorable he looks. Like an angry puppy. But he doesn't tell him that, he pretends that Taehyung's cute glare is actually scaring him and continues chopping the wood because he doesn't want to further rile up the ticking bomb. 

Taehyung stomps around the forest, being obnoxiously loud to show Jungkook just how angry he is. He is hoping his stomps will intimidate the ravenette and he is pleased to see the boy working with his head bowed down but little does Taehyung know, Jungkook is ducking his head to hide his amused expression. 

Since Taehyung didn't get to eat his favourite meal of the day all thanks to Jungkook and his stupid big mouth, he is now at an elite level of hangriness. That mixed with his lack of sleep and back pain from sleeping in a stupid tent has made him rather irritant. Amongst all this, he is faced with the rather difficult task of chopping wood which has him sweating and panting despite the cold weather. 

"How much have you chopped?" Jungkook asks while looking up and wiping away beads of sweat from his forehead. 

Taehyung glares at Jungkook, "more than you!" 

It's a lie, they both know. Taehyung's pile is blatantly smaller than Jungkook's but the ravenette doesn't bring it up because Taehyung is salty enough right now. 

Jungkook playfully rolls his eyes and goes back to chopping the wood. Taehyung huffs and picks up the axe, raising it above his head to once again cut into the wood but his actions are halted when a sudden wave of dizziness hits him. He drops the axe and stumbles back, resting his heavy head in his hands. 

Jungkook looks back at the sound and his expression morphs into worry as he sees the boy. 

"Bambi?" He asks softly while walking up to him. "What's wrong?"

Taehyung groans, "I-it's nothing. J-just haven't taken my iron tablets today. Usually take them with breakfast."

Jungkook faces drops with guilt. "Dammit! I'm so sorry, Bambi, this is my fault. If I didn't-"

"s'fine." Taehyung waves his hand in dismissal, leaning against a tall sturdy tree. 

Jungkook frowns, "do you want me to go get you the pills? I can grab you something to eat while I'm at it-"

Taehyung shakes his head, "the campsite is too far from here to be travelling back and forth. "I-I'll be fine, just need to take a little break, that's all."

Jungkook furrows his eyebrows in worry over the sight of the pale boy before a sudden thought strikes his head. His eyes light up as he looks down at the smaller. "Get on," he says while motioning for the other to hop onto his back. 

Taehyung looks up, confusion written all over his weary features. "Why?"

Jungkook shakes his head, "just do it."

Taehyung hesitates before reluctantly getting on, tightly gripping onto the ravenette to secure himself. 

~

Taehyung is sure that Jungkook is taking him somewhere to kill him. I mean, why else would they be weaving through bushes and ducking under spider webs and entering deeper into the woods? 

But despite his internal suspicions, he continues to cling on to his possible murderer because he's getting a free ride and doesn't have to use his legs. 

"Jungkook?" The blue head calls out softly, his voice muffled by Jungkook's neck. The ravenette hums, prompting the smaller to continue with his question. 

"Where are we going?"

Suddenly, Jungkook puts Taehyung down, causing the smaller to frown. Jungkook doesn't answer the question but pushes past a big branch and then gestures for Taehyung to go through the cleared space. 

Taehyung hesitantly does so, unsure of what on earth he was doing. 

He ducks under the tree while looking confusedly back at Jungkook, who follows behind him.  

"Jungkook what-"

Cutting the boy off, Jungkook gestures for him to look ahead of him.

Taehyung turns his head and it feels like the air gets taken out of him. 

Beautiful isn't worthy enough to describe the sight in front of him. Taehyung's doe eyes enlarge as he takes in his surroundings. 

Lucious green trees cluster around the mass of opaque blue water, daring to graze its edge but never quite touching the freezing liquid. The lake rests with a prideful calmness, it's ocean palette reflecting the snowy mountains behind it. The clouds are scattered across the expanse of the serene sky and the birds fly across, trying to escape the biting coldness of winter. 

Taehyung's mouth hangs wide open in awe. He feels like a smudge of dirt tainting the glory of this breathtaking art. 

"J-Jungkook- how-"

He doesn't know what question to ask, yet so many questions beg to be answered. For a mere minute, amongst the flurry of his thoughts, Taehyung wonders if he has died and gone to heaven. 

But then the warm sensation of Jungkook's arm wrapping around his waist and pulling him into his side tells him that he is very much in reality. He manages to slowly pry his eyes away from the picturesque sight and looks up at Jungkook, who, much to his surprise, is already looking down at him with the faintest of smiles. 

"How did you find this place?" Is the first question he asks. 

Jungkook smiles wider, hand reaching out to ruffle the smaller boy's hair. "We come to this camp every year, Bambi. Once, I was given wood chopping duty, just like today and as a childish act of rebellion, I decided to run off into the forest. I ended up stumbling upon this beauty. This place didn't always hold the fondest of memories though. I had gotten lost that day and almost froze to death here, but luckily I managed to find my way back. It was quite the day."

Taehyung watches as Jungkook turns his head towards the lake, observing the sight with a soft sigh. "Despite my first time here being just a bad memory, I always come back. Every time we have a camp here, I sneak off and find this place. It's like it just draws me in and I can't seem to stop myself."

Taehyung has never seen Jungkook look so sentimental.  It feels like they're both dreaming; nothing of this artful landscape seems real. 

"Come on," Jungkook suddenly says out of the blue, tugging Taehyung's sleeve. Taehyung follows the boy down the jagged rocks, making sure his footing is steady before he moves on to the next. They both make it down to the flat ground, right near the edge of the lake. 

Taehyung opens his mouth to ask Jungkook why they came down but his words are cut off by a splash of icy water, hitting his delicate skin and sending shivers down his spine. 

He glares at the perpetrator. "Jungkook!" He exclaims, rubbing his hands across the wet patches on his sweater. The ravenette acts clueless, "what? It wasn't me."

Taehyung frowns, "You're literally the only other person here."

Jungkook squints his eyes, leaning in closer to the other's smaller frame. "What if it was a ghost."

Taehyung stills for a second, seriously considering the option. But then he shakes his head at his own foolishness. There are no such things as ghosts. He hopes. 

He bends down and cups his hands to collect the cool water, then, in a blink of an eye, the water is sent flying towards Jungkook's body. 

"Hey!" Jungkook exclaims. 

"Wasn't me," Taehyung says while raising his hands up in defence. Then he leans in closer to Jungkook, "it was the ghost." 

Taehyung squeals as he's lifted up by the other who wraps his arms around his waist securely. "Did you just play me at my own game?" Jungkook asks with a raised brow. 

Taehyung stares at the ravenette with big doe eyes before breaking out into a wide toothy grin. Jungkook's heart does this weird flip thing at the adorable sight and he clears his throat before looking away. He then looks back at Taehyung with a mischievous expression that manages to scare the little Bambi in his arms. 

"You can play me at my own game, but just know, I'll always win." 

~

Taehyung hates how wet his shirt is.

And he's also freezing to death. Jungkook winning his game meant Taehyung being thrown into the freezing water. However, Taehyung is quite pleased with himself. 

"I freezing my fucking balls off," Jungkook comes towards him with a grumpy expression. Jungkook lost his game. 

Just as he was about to playfully push Taehyung into the lake, Taehyung pulled an Uno Reverse on him and dodged the fall, however, his actions managed to pull Jungkook right into the water, soaking him from head to toe. 

Neither of the boys intended to get this soaked but Jungkook falling into the water lead to a huge water fight. At first, it was all giggles and rainbows. 

Now it's all sneezes and hypothermia. 

Jungkook looks over at Taehyung to see why the boy has been so quiet, he worries that the boy might be ill but he's caught by surprise to see the small boy crouched down and fiddling with some rocks. 

"What are you doing?" Jungkook asks while pulling off his wet sweater and wringing out the water from it, leaving his toned torso exposed to the blistering cold. 

"Making a fire," Taehyung says, his lips pouted in concentration. 

Jungkook rolls his eyes admiringly. He can't understand how someone can be this endearing. 

"Bambi, do you realise how hard it is to make a fir-"

Taehyung squeals out in joy when the rocks spark out a tiny flame which then catches onto the pile of sticks and rises into a slow-burning fire. He spins around to give Jungkook a smug look but his eyes catch on to the boy's bare chest and his cheeks light aflame. Now Jungkook's the one giving him a smug look. 

"Nice fire," the ravenette says while reaching out and stroking the smaller boy's pink cheeks. Taehyung swats his hand away and continues to blush, mumbling something about Jungkook being stupid. Jungkook chuckles fondly at his flustered state. 

But then he notices how cold Taehyung looks and he instantly frowns. "Tae, take off your shirt." 

Taehyung looks up with widened eyes. "W-what no! Why would I do that."

"Because your shirt is wet and it's only going to make you colder. We'll put our shirts in front of the fire and once they dry we will head back."

Taehyung looks down at his damp sweater and contemplates his choices. A cool breeze passes by and both boys shiver, but for Taehyung, it's worse. He then lets out a sigh before shyly pulling the sweater off, exposing his skinny frame. 

Taehyung can't help but feel slightly self-conscious. Next to him is Jungkook with his bulky muscles and toned body but then there's him; a walking stick. Yes, Jungkook has seen him naked before. Like really naked. But just being causally shirtless around him makes Taehyung feel exposed.

Jungkook tries not to stare at the boy, knowing that he would probably feel uncomfortable. So instead, he walks to the edge and finds two large sturdy rocks. He brings them over to Taehyung who stares at him with confusion (and awe, like how the hell did he manage to carry those two boulders by himself). 

"What's that for?" Taehyung asks while gesturing with his head towards the rocks as his arms are wrapped around his body to provide warmth. 

Jungkook walks closer to the fire and places the two rocks down. "Furniture," he says with a wink. Taehyung giggles before taking a seat on the rock. 

They both watch the fire in silence. They watch how the orange hues burst into an erotic dance, twirling their seductive bodies around one another before dying down and allowing for other flames to steal their light. The crackling noise is soothing, almost like a mother's lullaby on a stormy night. The fire radiates precious heat that tingles their bare skin with its burning touch but even with this warmth, Taehyung's goosebumps still rest across his skin. 

Jungkook notices this. Taehyung yelps, snapping out of his thoughts when two strong arms wrap around him and pull him into his lap. Jungkook wraps his arms around Taehyung's body and presses the boy's back into his chest. 

"Ah-h what-" Taehyung stutters out. 

"Cause your cold," Jungkook mumbles while nuzzling his face into the crook of Taehyung's neck. Taehyung squirms shyly as he presses his face into his hands, hiding behind his small palms. 

They stay like that and continue to watch the fire. Taehyung's tense body finally relaxes and melts into Jungkook's body warmth and Jungkook tightens his hold around the boy. 

It feels nice; the tight embrace, the warm fire, the memorising lake. 

In fact, it feels perfect. So so perfect. 

Almost like the calm before the horrendous storm. 

-

A/N: Do you guys feel like I need to slow down their relationship? Am I going too fast? Please tell me because I want to know how I can improve my story. Also, I know these chapters aren't that interesting but I need them so the story has balance :) 

Also, this chapter was supposed to have so much more content but if I wrote it all, that would have made the work count exceed 6000 so I kept it how it is.

I love you. 

(Also, I may or may not be working on a oneshot rn ;))