"In the New Year, I'm going to talk more!"

Chanyeol's grin widened tentatively at hearing the eldest hyung's resolution, with Lay cheering him on in approval. Their voices echoed throughout the forest as they stood upon a plateau of rocks, shouting their resolutions at the moon. 

"Yah, that's your resolution every year!" Luhan complained. 

"Yeah, well, this time I mean it." Xiumin shrugged off casually. 

"Xiumin-hyung is improving, though. He said three more words this year, compared to last year," Baekhyun joked, quickly pulling back with a nervous set of giggles when Xiumin started following him around, ready to smack him. 

"H-hyung, yah, hyung," Baekhyun begged, holding out his arms as Xiumin advanced on him. Knowing that there was no escape, he just ran towards his hyung to embrace him. "Yah, Minnie-hyung! Saranghae~!" he said cutely to avoid punishment. His brothers laughed even louder when Xiumin remained unfazed and cuffed the back of his head anyways for good measure.

Chanyeol clapped his hands in amusement, bending over as a fit of laughter bubbled from his chest. He liked Baekhyun when he first met the boy. It was nice to see someone with the same humor as him, and it made him feel less awkward in this group of new people. When he saw that eleven pairs of eyes were on him, smiling at him, Chanyeol immediately recovered, standing straight and trying his best not to stand out too much. 

"Who's next?" Suho asked, looking around. 

"Me," Luhan stepped forward, but he didn't stand at the edge of the plateau as everyone else had.

"Move forward more," Kris teased, gently pushing the shorter teen towards the edge. Luhan immediately wriggled out of the grasp and punched his dongsaeng on the arm. 

"Cut it out, this is close enough, you crazy dragon," he scolded, stepping away from the ledge. 

Chanyeol looked on, a bit confused, but he said nothing. 

"Lulu-hyung has a fear of heights," Chen then whispered to him, and the information surprised Chanyeol. He didn't think that Luhan would be afraid of anything. The thought of any of them being afraid was strange to him to begin with. 

"For the New Year, I'm going to work even harder so I can become the captain of the soccer team!" Luhan shouted in the air, under approval of his brothers. Chanyeol clapped as well, though he wondered how realistic that was going to be. Would they let middle schoolers become captain?

"Was that everyone?" Suho then asked, looking around. 

Chanyeol curled his toes, pursing his lips together as he pushed his thick framed glasses on his nose. He hadn't shouted his resolution yet, but he didn't want to be impolite and shyly kept quiet. He was tall, probably one of the tallest boys in the group, but apparently, he didn't stand out much.

"Giant Yoda hasn't gone yet," D.O. then commented, making Chanyeol wince a little. He purposely didn't touch his ears, knowing that would only draw more attention to them. He could feel they were becoming red and when he felt the heat rise to his cheeks, Chanyeol shut his eyes and tried to stay calm. He knew what happened when the heat came and he didn't want to scare off his new friends. They said they understood, but Chanyeol knew they were just being polite. What could they possibly know of the ferociousness and savagery that was fire?

"His name is Chanyeol, D.O.," Baekhyun corrected, placing a supportive hand on Chanyeol's shoulder. "You're just jealous because he's much taller than you," he said and smiled brightly at the taller teen beside him. Chanyeol noted how Baekhyun's mouth was shaped like a square when he grinned like that.

"Go on, Chanyeol, what's your resolution?" he asked, pushing him to where Luhan had been standing a few moments before.

Feeling a little shy and nervous, Chanyeol swallowed and looked up at the moon. He looked back at the boys, feeling slightly more encouraged by their smiles and thumbs flashing up towards him. 

"Um, for New Year, I'd like to be more outgoing, and hopefully, maybe, allow fire to show me good things, too," he mumbled, looking behind him for confirmation from the others. He sighed in relief and smiled widely at them when they cheered him on. 

"Nice. Maybe you can start speaking louder, too, huh?" Kris noted with a smirk. 

"I'll try, hung," Chanyeol immediately piped up, since he had a profound admiration for Kris, who was only a few inches taller than him. It was funny to say that he looked up to him, both in the figurative and literal sense.

"Yeah, no need holding back when you're with us, hyung," Kai added quietly. 

"I know, it's just that—" Chanyeol trailed off, the words falling dead on his tongue. 

"Just what?" Sehun asked curiously.

"The thing about fire," Chanyeol started, a dejected sigh escaping his lips, "is that when it catches, it's difficult to douse. Fire is ugly, and I don't want to show it..."