A day like any other: birds chirping, the sun shining, a cool breeze blowing.For most people, it would be the perfect day to exercise.
For Joshua and Samuel… it was pure hell.
Working out wasn't their thing. Eating, gaming, and sleeping—that, they could do.But sadly, reality had hit them hard just a few days ago: the elevator in their apartment building broke.
Two massive blobs of flesh had to climb six floors of stairs.It wasn't pretty. And oh, how they cursed their past selves for choosing that building just for the damn view.
Their knees begged for mercy. Their feet, in solidarity, joined the cause.
It was a cruel—very cruel—way to realize they needed to lose a few pounds.The scale they bought afterward only confirmed the obvious.
So, they decided to go jogging… or at least they tried.Before they knew it, they were already walking.
Samuel was furious with his brother.Wasn't it his fault they were this fat?
He cooked a lot—and not just as a hobby. He was a well-known chef in the city.
Plus, they both loved to eat. The fact that they'd turned into living balloons had a name. And a face.
Joshua didn't argue.He was too focused on breathing after nearly ten kilometers of walking.
Sweat drenched him, and to be honest, he was starting to see double.
Maybe he should've eaten breakfast before leaving?
His brother had at least downed a smoothie and some whole-grain bread.He had mocked him for it, saying he wouldn't lose an ounce that way.Now he regretted it deeply.
Gasping, they finally reached the top of the mountain—or hill; to them, it made no difference.Crawling, they managed to enjoy the view from the summit.It was beautiful… if they ignored the fact that now they had to go back down.
Samuel spotted a slope.He was tempted to just jump.With all that fat cushioning him, wouldn't it be easy to get to the bottom?
Maybe he could try rolling down?
No. He shook the thought from his head.
First, he needed to test if it was safe—by pushing his brother and seeing if he made it.
Joshua, completely unaware of his younger brother's borderline psychotic thoughts, kept walking.Surprisingly, he wasn't feeling dizzy anymore.
Probably thanks to the exercise…Not because of the chocolate bar he had secretly brought along, whose wrapper he buried while Samuel was admiring the slope.
Yes. Just exercise.
Strangely, once they descended the hill, the usual paved trail was nowhere to be found.
Samuel grumbled. Joshua pulled out his phone.
No signal.
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Wandering around like headless chickens wasn't exactly the smartest move—but for two guys used to GPS and 5G, this was the best they could manage.
Joshua vaguely remembered reading that if you got lost, you should stay in one place and wait to be rescued.Unfortunately, he remembered that after walking for several kilometers.
Okay… maybe not entirely his fault. His brother's nonstop whining had pushed him to keep going.He'd rather be eaten by a puma than keep listening to him.
Sadly, Samuel was still behind him. And still complaining.
Samuel just wanted to go home.In his sweet 23 years of life, he had never spent this much time away from the city—much less without internet signal.
As one of the top strategy game bloggers, not posting updates could mean losing his entire community.
And with that, the sponsors.His career. His life.Especially the money. That was the most important part.
Joshua, exhausted, sat down on a tree root.The trees looked pretty tall.Now that he thought about it… weren't they too tall for a park near the city?
How far had they walked?Shouldn't they have gotten out of here by now?
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Joshua was starting to feel genuinely worried.Samuel wasn't far behind.
The sun was beginning to set.Getting lost in a park was already humiliating…But starving to death in one? That was triple the shame.
Their water bottles were nearly empty.Joshua remembered a survival video that said drinking less in emergencies was the smartest move.
Sadly, he had been forgetting useful things lately—and remembering them too late.Looking at his nearly empty bottle, he wondered:Was the fat damaging his brain?
"Josh, what do we do? Do we make a fire? Do you know how to make one? Didn't they teach you that when you were training as a cook?"
Hearing his brother's blissfully oblivious tone, Joshua could only sigh and start gathering branches.
Thankfully, yes—he had been taught how to start a fire.It was during a camping trip where they learned how to cook wild boars.Turns out, that was one of the best investments he'd ever made.