The theme for the day was Survival. Which, meant sending a bunch of hormonal teenagers into the woods with a backpack and minimal adult supervision. What could possibly go wrong? We were split into teams. Of course, Mason wasn't in mine.
"Guess it's my time to shine," Gabriella whispered dramatically as she tightened her hiking boots. "This is my Bear Grylls moment."
"You screamed when a butterfly flew at you yesterday," I reminded her.
"Trauma builds character," she replied, dead serious.
Oh, and my flashlight? Dead.
I sighed and dug around in my pocket, pulling out the one thing I did have: a compact mirror. It had an LED ring light on the edge, barely the size of my palm, but surprisingly bright.
"Well," I muttered, clicking it on. "Desperate times."
I got separated from my group. Not lost, but not where I was supposed to be.
"Scarlett?"
I turned at the sound of my name, nearly blinding him with the mirror light. Mason squinted, throwing a hand in front of his face. "Okay, wow. Didn't expect to be blinded."
I laughed. "My flashlight died. This is all I've got."
"You're ridiculous," he said, but there was that smile again, familiar, amused.
"Where's your team?"
"They left me behind," he replied with a shrug. "Or I left them. Mutual abandonment."
I snorted. "Can't blame them really."
"Wanna be lost together?"
"Please guide us, oh brave one."
We had just started walking when the dirt gave out from under my shoe. My foot slipped. And then I was falling.
I heard Mason's voice, sharp and panicked, calling my name. A moment later, Mason slid down the hill after me. He dropped beside me, his face pale in the light of my compact.
"Are you okay? Did you hit your head? Anything broken?"
"Just my pride."
Relief crashed over his face, and before I could stop him, he leaned forward and pulled me into a tight, protective hug.
"You scared the hell out of me," he murmured against my hair.
I froze for a second. Then, slowly, I relaxed into his arms. As much as I didn't want to admit it, it felt good in his arms, like I belonged there.
"Sorry," I whispered. "Didn't mean to worry you."
He laughed shakily. "Promise me you'll stop trying to die dramatically in the woods?"
"Depends. Are you going to keep chasing after me?"
He leaned back just enough to look at me. His eyes were serious now. "Yeah. I'll always catch you if you fall."
By some miracle, we found the last two survival items tucked between a cluster of rocks near the base of the hill.
"We're officially the underdog winners," Mason declared as he held them up like trophies.
Mason insisted on carrying my bag the whole way back. The second the staff saw us holding the last items, a whistle blew, and a few people clapped. Until it happened. I was just stepping away from Mason's side when someone shoved me from behind. I stumbled, and before I could even turn around, something cracked across the back of my skull.
Someone was dabbing gently at my scalp with a cotton pad.
"You're awake," a voice said softly. It was Gabriella. Her face was tight with concern, her usually bright energy dulled by worry. she handed me a glass of water. I barely took a sip when the door burst open.
He came in fast, eyes wild with panic, his chest rising and falling like he'd sprinted across the entire camp. His gaze found me instantly. I had never seen him like this before.
"Scarlett," he breathed, crossing the room and dropping to a crouch beside me. "Are you okay?"
His voice broke off. He reached out, fingers trembling slightly, brushing a strand of hair away from my face.
"I'm fine, it's not that bad."
His jaw clenched.
I stared at him, I realized… no one had ever looked at me like that before.
Like I mattered. Like the thought of me getting hurt was unbearable. He didn't say it. He didn't need to. No one had ever cared about me like this before.
Gabriella gave us a soft glance and stepped away, muttering something to the staff. Mason stayed there, kneeling next to me, my hand in his like he didn't plan to let go.
The last day came too fast. I stood at the edge of the water, while I tugged at my oversized shirt, I'd heard Chloe's comment earlier, just enough to sting. I told myself I didn't care. But I did.
"I was hoping you'd come."
I turned.
Mason was walking toward me, dripping from the water, hair slicked back, that damn smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth like he knew something I didn't. He stopped a few steps in front of me and tilted his head. "Are you not going in?"
"I'm thinking about it," I said.
His expression shifted. He stepped closer. And then, his gaze dipped. Not in a gross, objectifying way. But he was definitely teasing me.
He smiled. "Come on. You'll feel better in the water."
We were wading into the water when the voice I never wanted to hear again cut through the breeze.
James. Of course. He stood by the shore, arms crossed, that sneer on his face I couldn't stand.
"I didn't realize pity came with benefits now," he said, looking straight at Mason. "Or did you lose a bet? That's the only way this makes sense."
Mason stilled. And then he turned, slowly, and walked out of the water with a calm that was scarier than shouting. He stepped in front of me, body tense.
"I'm gonna say this once," Mason said, his voice dangerously level. "You don't talk about her like that."
James scoffed. "What, did she cast some spell on you or..."
"I said," Mason interrupted, stepping forward, "you don't talk about her. Not ever."
James faltered, taken off guard.
"I don't know what your deal is," Mason continued, "but you're not funny. You're not clever. And you sure as hell aren't someone I care to hear from again."
James opened his mouth. Closed it. Then walked off with a muttered curse. Silence followed him. Mason turned back to me, his jaw tight.
"Sorry," he muttered. "I didn't mean to cause a scene."
"You didn't," I whispered. "Thank you." I muttered before he took me into his arms.
He slid his coat off in one smooth motion, then laid it down carefully over the grass before sitting on it, and patting the space beside him. "Or," he added, "you can sit here." He patted his thigh.
I rolled my eyes, but the corner of my mouth betrayed me with a smile. I sat beside him. The sun was setting, glowing orange and gold, throwing streaks across the sky.
"I'll miss this," I murmured before I could stop myself.
He didn't answer immediately. Just looked out at the view with that faraway expression of his. We sat in the silence for a while, comfortable, gentle. The kind of silence that doesn't need to be filled. Until I broke it anyway.
"I don't… let people in, I never stay in one place long enough."
He looked at me.
"I've moved so much," I continued. "So often. I stopped making real friends a long time ago. It hurts less that way."
His jaw tensed a little. "So you plan to leave me in the end just because of distance?"
"I've spent a long time being the girl who leaves, or gets left behind."
Mason was quiet again. But not because he didn't know what to say.
"I promise, distance won't be the thing that breaks this."
I looked at him sharply. "Mason..."
"I don't care how far we are. I just want you. No one else. Just you."
He got up without saying anything and plucked some of the lavender growing around. He came back with a bucket of lavender, a beautiful combination of purple and pink lavender.
"My Korean name is Min Soo."
"What?"
"No one really uses it here, but… I want you to."
Min Soo.
I rolled the name around in my mind like a secret I wasn't sure I deserved. It tasted like warmth. It sounded like home.
He looked at me like the world had stopped spinning. And in that moment, beneath a setting sun as I held the lavender and his hand, on a hill that had become ours, I felt like maybe, just maybe…this could work.
His smile stretched slowly and certain, like he could carry the world on his back if I just kept saying his name that way.
Around the campfire, the chords to a song I knew by heart came to life. Valerie.
"Oh my god," Gabriella gasped before she started to sing along. I followed her example, singing along.