As soon as Luka heard their group wouldn’t be leaving until two days later, his stubborn attitude reached a new level and he refused to leave his room. Although Mika was sharing a room with his brother, small fights had started between them since Luka would ignore him for short periods if he spoke in favour of Zhang. Because he was becoming too frustrated to think, Mika decided to go for a walk with Alo for the remainder of the afternoon. By the time he had gotten back, Mika was a lot calmer but Luka hadn’t changed. Mika knew that if he were to get into another childish fight with his brother, it would turn physical quickly and with no other ideas, Mika asked Nakai to try and talk some sense into Luka. While the rest of their group made their way downstairs for a shared dinner, Nakai unlocked Luka’s room with the key Mika had given him and walked towards the bed. Luka was hiding under the blankets, refusing to come out despite being hungry, and Nakai sat on the edge of the bed. Nakai was never one to sugar coat things, and he knew this would be the best way to deal with Luka as well. While sitting on the edge of the bed uncomfortably, Nakai started talking to Luka as if he was a stern parent.
“Luka, I know you feel embarrassed and angry because of what happened between you and Zhang, but this is no way to deal with it. You say you’re not a child, but would an adult act this way? Accept that you were rejected then you can move on. Now get up, we’re having dinner as a group downstairs.”
Nakai started walking away before Luka could give him an answer, but when he reached the door he heard Luka step off of the bed while saying in his usual light voice.
“Wait for me.”
Luka ran across the small room to catch up to Nakai who was standing in the doorway, and the pair made their way down to the small restaurant attached to their motel. Although Luka was still hurt, he made sure to have a neutral attitude towards Zhang during the meal. He hadn’t planned on sitting next to the young man, but because Wang Bao was sitting beside Nakai and Alo sitting between Mika and Nakai, Luka had no other choice than to take the empty seat in between his brother and Zhang. Thankfully the meal was large enough for everyone to focus on eating without much conversation, and halfway through the meal, Alo started ordering alcohol for everyone, Luka and Mika included. The spiced liquor helped everyone aside from Wang Bao relax, and the meal carried on with a more uplifted feeling.
Wang Bao was also drinking, but he had never been a big drinker and the spiced liquor wasn’t to his taste. While everyone else drank glass after glass, he could only sip on the warming drink until the end of the meal. By the time there was no more food on the table, both Luka and Mika were red faced and giddy; Alo and Zhang weren’t far behind them either as they sat happily with flushed faces and bright eyes. The only two clear headed people were Nakai and Wang Bao. When Alo tried to order more drinks, Nakai had flashbacks to when they first met up for the trip, and he quickly put an end to the long list of alcohol Alo was wanting to order. Next Nakai told everyone it was time for bed, but aside from Wang Bao who was incredibly sleepy and a little sore, the rest of the group complained and whined like little children. Luka and Mika whined the loudest as their bellies were too full from all of the food and alcohol they had ingested, the thought alone of having to lay down for the next eight hours only made their stomach churn, and Luka lifted his shirt to reveal his pale pudgy stomach. Luka rubbed his belly softly while complaining in a child-like whine.
“I’m hot~ I don’t wanna go to bed yet.”
Mika nodded his head slowly as he wanted to do the same and rub his uncomfortable tummy, but when he saw his brother's round belly, he couldn’t stop from poking the soft skin. Luka instantly started giggling from the funny sensation, and both Mika and Zhang were happy to see an honest reaction from Luka for the first time during the dinner. Because of Mika’s constant teasing, Luka started to wriggle and squirm around on his chair, luckily Zhang was sober enough to keep an eye on his movements, and leaned his arm out to press against Luka’s side when he was close to falling off of his chair. When Nakai saw just how drunk Mika and Luka had gotten, he told Alo, who was also very drunk, to take them outside for a walk. Wang Bao didn’t want to stick around any longer since he was almost falling asleep at the table, and he walked up the creaky wooden stairs with Nakai close behind him. Once they were gone, Mika and Luka started getting up from the chairs with wobbly legs, wanting to try and find the door that would take them outside. Alo was close behind them since he knew he also needed fresh air, but it was Zhang who found the door first since he was the least drunk out of the four. Guiding everyone outside, Zhang leaned against the motel window and watched Mika and Luka stumble around in the snow happily.
At first Mika and Luka were mesmerised by the clear night sky, then they were in awe of the sound of the gentle breeze and started swaying back and forth, as if they were trees themselves. While Luka started stumbling forward to continue walking, Mika silently bent down with a cheeky grin, forming a small snowball in his cold hands. Calling out to his brother, Mika suddenly threw the snowball at Luka, but slipped and fell into the snow at the same time. Luka screamed from the sudden cold ice that collided with his cheek, while Alo stumbled over to help Mika up from the ground. As soon as he bent down, Luka threw his own sloppy snowball, colliding with Alo’s head. Luka had been able to keep his balance when landing the throw, and he erupted into a loud guffaw from the look on Alo’s face. As soon as Mika was back on his feet, an impromptu snow fight broke out, with Luka working against both Mika and Alo. Luka was quick enough to get a few shots in as his aim wasn’t half bad, but with two people throwing snowballs at him, he quickly became dowsed in snow and started running away. Zhang instantly started following behind Luka since he was moving too far from their motel. Luka’s speed quickly decreased from a run to a fast walk thanks to his full stomach, and when he felt it was best to turn around, he slipped on a large section of ice. Reacting quickly, Zhang lunged forward and caught Luka, taking most of the fall with his own body.
Both men were surprisingly breathless from the fall, and Luka laid on top of Zhang’s chest for a little while. Thinking Luka had hurt himself, Zhang patted Luka’s back tenderly while asking.
“Are you okay, Luka?”
The facade Luka had been forcing the entire evening suddenly cracked, and he couldn’t stop his eyes filling with tears. When Luka pushed himself to look Zhang in the eyes, his tears fell down and landed against Zhang’s cheeks. Luka didn’t want to show how much he had been hurt by Zhang because he trusted his own feelings, whether they were only because he is young or because they are real. Without wiping his crying eyes, Luka confessed to Zhang with a shaky voice.
“I promise I’m not a child, Zhang. I really do like you and I won’t regret it.”
Seeing how upset Luka had become, Zhang couldn’t stop a lump from forming in his throat, and he cursed himself for not properly explaining his thoughts to Luka. From down the road, Mika and Alo could be heard laughing and screaming as they continued with their snowball fight, but Zhang felt it was best for him and Luka to head inside. Without saying anything to Luka, Zhang stood up with Luka still in his arms and carried the sniffling young man back to the motel. When Alo saw the two of them, he figured Zhang was finally going to speak with Luka, and he nodded towards the young man with encouragement, before quickly running back to Mika who was trying to create a snowball the size of his head.
Once inside the inn, the temperature change was almost shocking, and Zhang only now realised just how cold it was outside. To keep Luka from getting sick, Zhang walked up the stairs quickly and entered Luka’s bedroom, helping the young man change into warm dry clothes. By the time Luka was being tucked into bed, he was exhausted and fighting the urge to fall asleep. He had a feeling Zhang had been wanting to say something, and he watched as Zhang sat on the ground against the side of the bed, looking towards the door. Zhang would be lying if he said he wasn’t nervous about finally speaking with Luka, especially since the young man was still quite drunk, and he wasn’t sure if Luka would remember everything the next day. Although there was a chance Luka wouldn’t remember, Zhang bit the bullet and started explaining in a low voice.
“I should’ve told you this earlier, Luka but it’s a little hard for me. When I told you that I believed you would end up regretting being with me, it wasn’t actually because I thought you were too young. It is… because of what happened to my sister...ever since she went missing I’ve had trouble allowing myself to get close to someone...in case they end up disappearing or something worse.”
Zhang didn’t think he would struggle as much as he was, and he took a few seconds to wipe his teary eyes. At the same time, Luka forced his drunk mind to remember when Zhang had told him about his sister; luckily a few things clicked while other things were left confusing him. Before Zhang could keep talking, Luka asked.
“What about Alo and Ala? You’re very close with them.”
Hearing that Luka was engaged in what he was saying gave Zhang some much needed relief, and he leaned back to look at Luka, who had also moved closer to him while replying.
“That’s different, I know I will never be bound to Alo or Ala in any way…Even though they are like family to me, I don’t feel responsible for them since they are older than me and sort of took me in. However, when it came to any potential romance with someone, I always chose to run instead of gambling with the person’s feelings or safety.”
While listening to Zhang, Luka was able to understand Zhang a little more and he was grateful they were finally having this conversation, even if he was struggling to keep up at certain points. Because Luka was staying quiet, Zhang double checked Luka wasn’t sleeping with his eyes open, and poked the young man’s cheeks a couple times. Instead of being asleep, Luka had been reminded of something he hadn’t told anyone yet, and he looked at Zhang with a solemn expression as he said.
“Mika wanted to leave me...when he was first...raped. He thought that his presence would bring more people like that and it would then happen to me. You may think that leaving will save someone from being hurt in the future but ...it does the opposite…Mika hurt me when he chose to walk away from me. I wish that you had told me sooner, but It wouldn’t have changed the fact that I have feelings for you if you did.”
The solemn expression on Luka’s flushed face abruptly changed to one of determination, as if Luka was set on not giving up on Zhang. Seeing this made Zhang’s heart flutter,causing a warm heat to slowly spread throughout the rest of his body, starting from his chest. The sensation was new for Zhang, and he would be lying if he said he wasn’t scared of the new feeling running through his body. Because the both of them had gone quiet for a little while, Luka was beginning to fall asleep, and Zhang felt it would be best to let Luka sleep the alcohol off. Moving Luka back into the bed properly, Zhang then leaned close to Luka’s ear and whispered quietly, unsure of whether Luka was asleep yet or not.
“I’m sorry for being selfish, Luka. Please wait for me.”
. . . . . . .
After another day of rest, the group packed their bags and headed out on their journey. With Alo’s direction, they walked along the baron snow covered dirt road. The group walked with Nakai and Alo leading, Mika and Wang Bao in the middle, with Luka and Zhang bringing up the rear. Alo had travelled this section of the mountain ranges for most of his life, and he knew the area like the back of his hand, while Zhang was more well versed in knowing his way around cities and rural towns. Usually Alo, Ala and Zhang wouldn’t travel through heavy snow areas during the coldest parts of winter, but the sporadic snow storms turned out to not be too bothersome for them. Compared to a couple days ago, the snow had melted a little, aiding in Mika’s, Luka’s and Wang Bao’s ability to walk; things were made easier for them as well since Nakai and Alo made sure to drag their feet a little, helping to create a small valley for everyone else to walk through. Wang Bao didn’t know how long it would take them to get to the next small town, but the white wonderland around him helped pass the time.
Luckily the weather stayed fine during the morning, and they made it to the next town within a few hours. Because half of their group wasn’t well versed in long distance walking, Nakai decided to have lunch in the town, but the break only lasted thirty minutes before they set off again. Wang Bao thought the next town would be just as close, but after four hours, the sun was beginning to set and there were no signs of any town in the distance. Wang Bao’s winter boots were usually very comfortable to walk in, and he thought he had gotten better at walking for long periods, but with every step, his feet felt like they were being stabbed with a thousand knives. Mika and Luka were also struggling with the long distance, but neither one wanted to be the first to complain. For the last couple of hours, Luka had been able to distract himself by talking with Zhang, but once the last of the light from the day was fading, Luka couldn’t stand to stay silent any longer. With a sour red face, Luka muttered under his breath.
“My feet feel like they're about to fall off.”
Zhang figured they had walked close to thirty five kilometres, and he didn’t know how much longer it would take to get to the next town, taking into account they still needed to find a place to stay for the night. Without saying anything, Zhang moved his backpack to hang from his chest before he crouched down beside Luka, who had also stopped because of him. Luka didn’t understand what Zhang was doing, and he waited for Zhang to stand back up. Before too big of a gap could happen between them and their group, Zhang said to Luka.
“Get on. We have too far to walk until we stop.”
At first, Luka wanted to decline Zhang’s offer out of pride, but when he thought of the sharp pain he felt with every step, he threw his pride away and almost collapsed onto Zhang’s back. At the front of the group, Alo could sense something had happened, and he looked behind him to see Zhang catching up to the group with Luka on his back. Alo then looked at Mika, who refused to say he was in pain despite having an obvious pained look on his face. Alo also switched his pack to rest on his chest before crouching down in front of Mika; like Luka, Mika just stood still while looking down at Alo, who quickly said.
“Get on, it’s obvious you’re tired.”
Mika didn’t hesitate any longer, and he climbed onto Alo’s back, almost sighing from the relief his feet instantly felt. Wang Bao couldn’t help but be jealous of Mika and Luka enjoying a free ride, despite not even being in relationships, and he couldn’t help but narrow his black eyes at Nakai’s back. Nakai had been so focused on getting to the next town, he had forgotten the others may struggle with the long distance, and when he finally looked beside and behind him, he was surprised to see Mika and Luka sitting happily on the backs of Alo and Zhang. Nakai also noticed how Wang Bao was quick to straighten his back and fix his scrunched up face to a more neutral expression. Instead of acting gentlemanly, Nakai was in the mood to tease Wang Bao, turning back to look forward without shortening his wide strides. Seeing Nakai’s act of ignorance, he quickly narrowed his eyes again while cursing Nakai with a lifetime of blisters and calluses. Wang Bao already knew Nakai was teasing him for being stubborn, but he didn’t want to back down and ask Nakai for a pity ride; instead, whenever Nakai would turn around to look at him, Wang Bao made sure he was quick enough to change his pained expression and hunched over appearance. At first the small game helped Wang Bao get through the never ending walk, but after twenty minutes, he couldn’t stop himself from walking with an exaggerated waddle. Wang Bao’s odd way of walking and hunched over appearance became so severe that Luka couldn’t help but ask in a loud voice.
“Why are you walking like you have a carrot up your butt, Bao?”
Nakai had been enjoying the little game he was playing with Wang Bao, but as soon as he heard Luka speak, he turned on his heels in time to see Wang Bao with his hands on his waist, while his legs were spread akimbo. Nakai couldn’t stop from sighing loudly as he walked towards Wang Bao with quick steps. Once he was close enough, Nakai could see Wang Bao’s face was covered in a light layer of sweat as well, and he switched his pack to his front while scolding Wang Bao lightly.
“Why do you do this to yourself? If you were in pain, you should have told me, I thought you were only tired.”
Wang Bao didn’t want to hear Nakai speak and he blew a raspberry childishly towards Nakai’s stern face. Nakai allowed Wang Bao to act this way since he felt too guilty about not noticing Wang Bao’s extreme discomfort, and he quickly crouched down. Nakai wasn’t surprised when Wang Bao suddenly jumped onto his back, and he made sure to hold under Wang Bao’s thighs to keep him secure, because Wang Bao’s arm strength wasn’t enough with how tired he was. With his feet finally able to have a break, Wang Bao didn’t care how far the next town was, he wanted to know how long it would take for them to get their hands on a vehicle to use. Nakai didn’t know the answer, and Wang Bao let out a groan when he felt Nakai shrug his shoulders. Because of his pitiful appearance, Alo couldn’t help but feel sorry for Wang Bao and he quickly answered.
“It won’t take too long, Bao. We are nearing the border of this country; once we have passed through the border, we can take a shuttle or bus to get to a small city where we can take a train to the next border. After the train ride, we will need to travel through one more country to reach the eastern coast of Werebeast Continent.”
The journey sounded long, but what kept Wang Bao’s spirits up was that they would be using a train, and he relaxed against Nakai’s back tiredly. It wasn’t until Wang Bao felt a comfortable plush mattress under his body, and his sensitive foot being massaged that he realised he had fallen asleep on Nakai’s back. At first, Wang Bao was happy to be on a bed, and he sighed happily while spreading his limbs out, but his comfort was quickly overridden by pain when Nakai started massaging the foot he was holding in his hand. With his eyes shooting open, Wang Bao tried to kick his foot out of Nakai’s grasp while complaining loudly.
“Stop, stop that hurts~.”
When Nakai had first laid Wang Bao on the bed, he had stopped feeling guilty about letting him walk until he was in pain, but as soon as he pulled Wang Bao’s boots off and saw Wang Bao’s feet had swollen to twice their usual size, he couldn’t stop his heart from becoming pained again. Now that he was having to listen to Wang Bao complain about the discomfort from the massage, and not from the pain because of the swelling, he quickly started scolding Wag Bao again.
“This is what you need to deal with now, Wang Bao. Look at how swollen your feet are; who said you should walk until your feet have doubled in size?”
Wang Bao knew he couldn’t complain since he should have asked Nakai to carry him earlier, but he hated whenever he needed to depend on Nakai for something he should be able to do. While Wang Bao laid on the bed with a deep frown, Nakai pushed the pad of his thumb against the ball of Wang Bao’s foot, slowly pushing his way up his foot to his calf. This motion was repeated multiple times, almost killing Wang Bao with each pass. When Nakai stopped pressing his thumb against the base of his foot, Wang Bao thought Nakai was done, but the Giant started to focus on the top of his foot as well. Wang Bao couldn’t stay still as he suffered for what felt like years. Wang Bao didn’t know how long the massage had gone on for, or how much longer it would continue for, but he had lost track of time when he finally heard Nakai say.
“Okay, finished.”
Wang Bao looked up at Nakai with a tired, red and sweaty face. Had he had more energy, he would have kissed Nakai, but he could barely breathe thanks to the massage, let alone move his body. However, the thought of giving Nakai a kiss quickly turned to wanting to kick him, as Nakai lifted his other foot while saying with an amused tone.
“Now for the other one.”
Real tears filled Wang Bao’s eyes as he twisted around the bed, trying to free himself from the torture Nakai was forcing upon him. Despite his constant tossing and turning, Nakai’s fingers found all of Wang Bao’s pressure points in his swollen foot, massaging them with a heavy hand until the foot had gone down enough to stop. With Wang Bao completely exhausted, Nakai picked up both of Wang Bao’s feet and inspected them seriously. Both feet were still swollen, but as long as they stayed elevated for the rest of the night, Wang Bao’s feet would be back to normal in the morning. Nakai had never looked at Wang Bao’s feet seriously before, and he found that Wang Bao’s slightly swollen feet were rather cute, especially his pudgy toes. Nakai couldn’t help but tickle the sausage-like toes, earning him a tired groan from Wang Bao. Nakai didn’t want to bother Wang Bao too much now that the massage was finished, and he gently laid Wang Bao’s feet on extra pillows he had ordered.
. . . . . . .
Like Nakai had predicted, Wang Bao’s feet were back to normal, and after an early breakfast, their group set off for more walking. Compared to the previous towns, Wang Bao was surprised to see the road had been ploughed of all its snow; this continued all the way to the border, helping the journey go by quickly. When they finally reached the border, Wang Bao was surprised to see there was a two way road with a constantly open barrier, and a small sidewalk for people on foot. The only building in sight was a small concrete building for the guards to rest in, tucked to the side of the road leading out of the next country. What surprised Wang Bao more, was that the guards weren’t asking any of the civilians for ID; instead they were almost shoving the small groups of people through the open barriers. There were large groups of people on foot wanting to pass through the border, causing their groups' fast pace to slow down to only a couple steps every few seconds. Wang Bao hadn’t noticed since he was too busy gawking at the large guards shoving people through, but Nakai’s body tensed up slightly while his eyes scanned around the surroundings, checking for any suspicious acting guards or civilians.
Although Wang Bao wasn’t well versed in legal travelling, he started to feel this wasn’t what a normal country border was supposed to look like, and he quietly asked Nakai why the guards were shoving the citizens through. Nakai was used to seeing this sort of thing in the parts of Werebeast Continent he had visited, and he explained to Wang Bao in a hushed voice as they slowly walked closer to the guards.
“In Werebeast continent, if you can get into one country then you're good enough to get into all of them; it’s very rare for people to be stopped or turned away.”
Once it was their turn to walk through, everyone was roughly pushed forward aside from Nakai and Wang Bao, who were held back by another gruff looking guard. Feeling rough hands on their body, Mika and Luka instantly clung to one another; it didn’t help that they knew all too well how often guards would take part in what Nakai and Alo had saved them from. Zhang and Alo also stayed close to Mika and Luka, making sure to keep a hold on their backpacks since they were so small and could be taken easily. Alo knew there was no point in fighting with the guards to let Wang Bao and Nakai through, and once there was a clear enough space to wait, he watched them motion for Nakai and Wang Bao to step aside. At first the guard had tried to roughly shove Nakai and Wang Bao off to the side, but because Nakai had pulled Wang Bao into his side, the guard wasn’t nearly strong enough to move him with brute force. Wang Bao was grateful to be in the current situation with Nakai, since he didn’t know how he would react had he been alone. Once they were separated from the growing crowd wanting to pass through the border, the guard stepped closer to Wang Bao, looking him up and down with narrowed eyes before doing the same to Nakai. When he was done entering their personal space, he asked in a low rough voice.
“What brings you to this country? Business or pleasure?”
Wang Bao felt like a deer in headlights, since he had no idea how to answer. Choosing to stay silent, Wang Bao stared at the ground and waited for the guard to let them through the border. Luckily Nakai knew how to answer the sudden question and he answered plainly without hesitation.
“Neither.”
Hearing Nakai answer, the guard nodded his head slowly then pulled out his scanning device, asking for their IDs as he did so. Wang Bao was glad he kept his phone on his person instead of in his bag, and he quickly pulled his phone out from his jacket pocket with trembling hands. Nakai also kept his phone in his jacket, despite never using the device and the guard looked through their ID details before finally scanning them. Once the guard gave their phones back, he roughly pointed to the border while shouting at them to move. Wang Bao didn’t notice, but when they were finally through the border, he felt he could breathe properly and quickly took Nakai’s hand in his to keep him from collapsing. Nakai knew how stressed Wang Bao had become since his hands had turned to ice and they wouldn’t stop trembling; he squeezed Wang Bao’s hand to try and comfort him, at the same time he looked over his shoulder to see where the guard had gone, and he watched carefully as the guard crossed the empty road then enter the small concrete building, causing a dull itch to be felt in his chest. Because there was nothing they could do currently, Nakai quickly looked straight ahead, and once they were far enough from the border, Alo finally said what everyone was thinking.
“What the hell was that about? I’ve never seen anything like that before. With everyone else, they couldn’t shove them in fast enough.”
Alo’s words only made the dull itch in his chest grow, and he couldn’t wait until they reached the coast. While Nakai was in deep thought about the potential of Queen Mother causing something like this to happen, he heard Wang Bao tell Alo about the question the guard had asked them. Alo knew what the question meant and he looked over at Nakai, who quietly explained why he had answered the way he did.
“A while back, I had come through a more coastal country in Werebeast Contient; this was when trafficking was really bad everywhere. I mean, it still is but the united government was trying to portray they were dealing with it. Anyway, at the borders the guards stopped every single person; it didn’t matter if you were in a group or not, but they would ask every individual one question. The same question we were just asked, and most people didn’t know this was a trick question that you should answer with caution. If you answer business, then you’d be arrested and interrogated for trafficking, and if you answered pleasure, then you would be arrested and interrogated for purchasing people through traffickers.”
Wang Bao felt a chill run through his body as he thought back to the group they had found in T City, a group his own Mother had ties to. At first, Wang Bao hadn’t noticed how quickly Nakai was able to take over the situation, as well as how quickly he could come up with a solution to get everyone out. The same happened when he and Alo saw the horse Werebeast. Because of this, Wang Bao couldn’t help but ask why Nakai would be in a coastal country in Werebeast Continent. At first, Nakai was hesitant to answer with Mika and Luka being so close, but he chose to answer anyway in a hushed voice.
“My private team and I were bringing down a major trafficking ring; we had worked our way through a lot of countries, taking out head coordinators and helping the victims since a lot of them were from countries all over Werebeast continent. Because most countries don’t involve Giant Country in their wars, our military spends a lot of our time doing secret missions for other countries or private jobs.”
Wang Bao was obviously shocked since he didn’t know the first thing in taking down one trafficking ring, let alone multiple. Despite Nakai’s attempt at quieting his voice, Mika had heard everything he said. At first he hesitated, but after seeing Wang Bao wasn’t going to speak, Mika asked in a quiet voice.
“What happened to the people you helped? Where did they go once they were saved?”
Like before, Nakai looked hesitant to answer, but not because of Mika; instead, he glanced at Wang Bao, who was also curious about the victims. He knew that Wang Bao was more than trustworthy, but he knew the people who were looking for Wang Bao had violent means of getting information. Instead of giving a clear answer, Nakai answered vaguely but in a warm voice.
“A safe place, Mika. I’ll make sure to take you and Luka there someday.”
Wang Bao had an odd feeling towards Nakai’s hesitation, and his obvious want to keep secrets. He knew Nakai meant well, but he couldn’t help but feel hurt from Nakai’s constant secrecy. However, instead of letting the feeling fester inside, Wang Bao pushed it away and focused on following Alo. They didn’t have to walk for long before they arrived at a small shuttle bus station, and everyone walked towards their pick up area while Alo separated from the group to buy their tickets. Similar to the border, there was a large crowd of people wanting to catch the various shuttles available; he didn’t know if it was because of the large group of people constantly around them, but Wang Bao could see Nakai was on edge, constantly checking their surroundings by using his peripheral vision. Seeing Nakai like this, Wang Bao felt his chest tighten from anxiety. By the time they had finally made it to their pick up area, Alo was making his way over with the tickets. Nakai was busy looking across the hoards of people now that they were standing still; it didn’t take long before he saw the guard from the border hovering ten feet behind Alo, using the crowd to try and stay covered despite still being in uniform. It was clear the guard hadn’t seen them yet, as he was trying to search through the large crowd surrounding him. Motioning to Alo to hurry, Nakai moved their group towards the back of the crowd for their shuttle, crouching down as he moved. By the time Alo had made his way back to the group, he had also caught sight of the guard behind him, and he motioned for Wang Bao to crouch down as well while they waited for their bus.
Despite Wang Bao’s anxiety for the people around them, Alo knew the crowd wouldn’t say anything to the guard about their odd behaviour. While Alo kept a close eye on the wandering guard, Zhang looked around for their shuttle; after two long minutes, he could see their bus pull into the station behind three other buses. By the time the shuttle finally stopped in front of them, Alo had lost sight of the guard, but he couldn’t trust that the guard hadn’t seen their group. As soon as there was a break in the line, Alo shoved both Wang Bao and Nakai onto the bus, followed by Luka, Mika and Zhang. Instead of following behind his group, Alo hurried the rest of the passengers while continuing to look for the guard; as he had suspected, the guard had seen them from the other pick up area towards the entrance of the station, his angry glare set on the back of the bus where Nakai and Wang Bao were seated. Alo hurried the last few people by pushing them up the bus steps roughly, despite a few grumbles from the people, no one said anything directly to Alo and they took their seats. Alo told the driver he was the last person while handing his handful of tickets over, and he breathed a sigh of relief when the driver closed the doors. Before the driver could step on the accelerator, loud profanities and banging could be heard from the door of the door, but Alo continued to block the view from the driver while saying in a loud voice.
“Don’t worry about that, driver; some people can’t accept defeat. You know what I'm saying?”
The driver didn’t know what Alo was talking about, but he nodded along anyway while pulling away from the shuttle station. At the back of the bus, both Nakai and Wang Bao could see the angry guard, and as the bus pulled away, the guard pulled out his phone to take a picture of their bus before walking away with a bitter face. Although the whole ordeal had only lasted a few minutes, Wang Bao felt his heart was about to beat out of his chest and he clung to Nakai tightly, hoping to calm down before the bus ride. Both Luka and Mika were on edge now as well, despite not knowing what was actually going on. Once Alo made his way down the bus, he sat beside Zhang. To show his thanks, Nakai clapped Alo on his shoulder; before Nakai could remove his hand, Alo squeezed it with a firm grasp to show he would always have Nakai’s back.
