05
1136 Words
N E A D
I frowned while looking at Dean. He had turned his back to me and was covering his nose like I was some kind of disease. I lifted the collar of my shirt and sniffed it.
It didn't smell bad at all.
I looked back at Dean, but he suddenly stood up when the bus stopped at a red light and walked to the other end to talk to one of his teammates.
I just shrugged it off and turned my attention back to the window and the music playing in my earphones. A moment later, someone sat beside me—it was the guy Dean had just spoken to.
He smiled at me, and I gave him a small smile in return.
"What happened to your friend?" I asked, curious.
He chuckled. "Motion sickness. It's his first time riding public transportation."
I raised my brows and nodded.
Unbelievable. In his whole life, he's never ridden a bus?
"Must be rich," I muttered, and he nodded.
We arrived at the training campsite after almost an hour of travel. Everyone noisily stood up from their seats, grabbed their bags, and started scrambling out of the bus.
"Are you going to stay here forever?" the guy beside me asked when I remained seated. I just wanted the bus to empty out before I go out.
"You go ahead," I said, and he nodded before joining his friends outside.
I unplugged my earphones and placed them in the small pocket of my bag. That's when I felt someone tap the back of my seat.
"Let's go," Ariel said as I stood up. "You know that guy?" he asked, referring to the one who'd just been sitting beside me.
"No, but he's nice," I replied.
Ariel nodded and threw his arm over my shoulders as we exited the bus. My gym bag was already killing my right shoulder, and his arm was just another weight, making me groan. I tried to shove it off, but he only tightened it and pulled me closer, laughing.
"You're killing my shoulder," I complained. As I looked up, I noticed Dean staring in our direction. I quickly looked away and kicked Ariel's leg, making him jump away from me.
"Don't ruin my pants." He said and ran off.
I dragged my bag along and smoothed out my shirt, glaring at him.
We set up our tents first, on the grassy area. I helped Kevin with his since we were sharing. I didn't bring my own—since he told me we would be tentmates.
I was hammering a peg into the ground using a rock when I felt someone standing behind me.
"Need help?" a voice asked.
I turned my head and saw Dean, looking down at me.
"Hey, Dean!" someone from his team called out. We both turned. "How about helping us here instead of flirting over there? Or you'll be sleeping outside tonight!"
I looked back at Dean, and he looked at me.
"You should help your friend," I said, and he gave a slight nod before walking back to his group.
"That's my spot!" Dean shouted, then smacked his teammate's butt, making the guy jump and try to kick him in return.
"Ass!"
I shook my head. Why was he offering to help me when his own team hadn't finished setting up their tent?
"You close with the basketball guys?" Ariel asked again. I tossed the rock aside, now that the tent was standing.
"No. I don't know why, but they've just suddenly started talking to me," I said, glancing back at Dean's group.
They were playing like kids.
Once everyone finished setting up, we gathered in the middle of the circle of tents.
"Where's Connor?" the basketball coach asked.
"Here, sir!" someone from the tall group raised his hand and stepped forward.
That's when I noticed—all of them were tall. The shortest one was my height, 5'8", and the rest looked like towering titans. Dean, I guessed, was around 6'1".
"We'll divide you into four groups," the coach explained. "Since my team has eleven members, Connor will be the backup for all teams. You can call him if you need a substitute for an activity."
Connor grinned and nodded. "You can count on me."
His team booed him, and we all laughed.
Coach clapped to bring us back to focus as the other coach brought out a brown box.
"As you can see," he began, "inside this box are four different colors of wristbands. You'll draw one, and that will be your team color."
We all nodded.
"It would've been better if we got to choose our teammates," Luke muttered beside me.
"Yeah," I agreed.
"Line up, gentlemen," the basketball coach said, and I pulled Luke into the line with me.
One by one, they reached into the box. Dean drew a blue band. When it was my turn, I prayed not to get the same color.
I pulled out a violet band and quietly let out a breath of relief. Luke got green and groaned, cursing out of the line. I chuckled.
"Go to your respective team colors," the coach instructed.
I joined Kevin, who had also gotten violet. We were the only volleyball players in our group. The rest were basketball guys. One of them—Dave, I remembered—waved at me as he and his friends approached.
"Hey! We're on the same team!" he said cheerfully.
"Yeah. I'm Ned," I replied, then gestured to Kevin.
"I'm Kevin," he said.
"I'm Dave, and these two handsome devils are Garret and Michael," Dave introduced, motioning to his friends. Both had similar builds, but Garret's thin, naturally red lips were oddly striking—not in a creepy way, just noticeable. Michael had light brown hair with wild curls.
"Shut up, Dave," Michael said, while Garret chuckled.
We were told we had to act like a real team, including cooking our own meals.
They'd provided raw ingredients for us.
"What is this? A cooking show?" Michael muttered.
Kevin laughed. They were already getting along like they'd been friends for years.
"Leave it to me," Garret said confidently.
"Thank God Garret's on our team," Dave said. "He makes amazing food."
That was a relief. I didn't know how to cook anything complicated.
We helped Garret gather what he needed, while Michael and Kevin attempted to build a fire.
"My tent fits five," Garret offered. "You guys should join us so we can be a real team—even in our sleep." He chuckled, clearly enjoying the camp vibe.
Coach had told us the actual team-building activities and training would begin tomorrow. Tonight was for settling in and bonding.
"I'll talk to my friend. We're sharing a tent," I replied.
Garret nodded and patted my back.
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- Writer
