The announcement came on a rainy Tuesday morning.
"Due to curriculum revisions," Homeroom Teacher Sakamoto said, clutching her clipboard, "Class 2-B will participate in an overnight field retreat this weekend. This includes team-building, academic presentations, and scheduled nature activities."
Groans echoed like thunder.
"Retreat?" Will whispered. "Do we look like camping people?"
Rio looked genuinely offended. "My skincare doesn't survive humidity."
Yuuji blinked at the board. A whole weekend? With them?
Then his eyes flickered across the room—to Ren.
The boy was lounging at his desk, legs stretched, twirling a pencil like none of this mattered. But Yuuji saw it.
A spark.
Like he knew something was coming.
---
By Friday afternoon, they were crammed into a charter bus. Rainclouds rolled behind them as Tokyo faded into countryside blur.
Yuuji sat by the window. Ren dropped into the seat beside him uninvited.
"You're not even going to ask?" Yuuji mumbled.
Ren smirked. "Would you have said yes?"
"...No."
"Exactly."
Suguru, Ethan, Ian, and Rio were seated just across the aisle. Rio wore sunglasses like they were in Cannes, not on a muddy school trip.
"This is going to end in tears," he whispered.
Ian ignored him, reviewing his presentation notes with robotic focus.
---
The cabin was nestled in a clearing, surrounded by mist and moss-covered trees. Not quite wilderness—but wild enough for city kids. The students spilled out, stretching limbs and groaning.
"Phones will be collected before lights out," one teacher announced.
Half the class nearly rioted.
"I have a skincare alarm app!" Rio cried.
Yuuji glanced at Ren, expecting a joke.
But Ren looked up at the grey sky and smiled.
"I kinda like it here," he murmured.
---
The rooms were assigned by random draw.
Yuuji unfolded his slip: Room 4: Aikawa, Sakamoto, Moore, Wilson, Suguru, and Ethan.
His stomach did a flip. Ren and Ian?
And Suguru and Ethan?
Perfect.
When they entered the room, six futons were spaced tightly on the tatami floor. Ian picked the far corner. Yuuji took the one by the window. Suguru claimed the spot closest to the door. Rio called dibs on the middle.
Ren flopped next to Yuuji without hesitation.
"Should I be worried?" Yuuji asked as Ren unpacked.
"I don't snore," Ren grinned.
"That's not the part I'm worried about."
Ren's eyes glinted. "Are you thinking about something else?"
Yuuji flushed. "No."
"Liar."
---
After dinner—rice curry and miso soup—they hiked to a clearing near a small lake. The teachers arranged logs around a stone fire pit. It was too cloudy for stars, but the woods hummed with insects and mystery.
Students huddled in groups.
Rio leaned against a log, stealing heat from the campfire. "This is the part in horror movies where someone dies first."
Suguru and Ethan stood to the side, talking quietly.
Ren leaned beside Yuuji, watching the flames.
"They say ghosts linger in places like this," he whispered. "Wanna check out the woods?"
Yuuji glared. "Absolutely not."
Ren laughed.
---
Later, when the teachers wandered off, and groups thinned out, Ren stood.
"I'm going to the lake," he said casually.
"Don't go too far," Ian muttered without looking up.
Ren didn't answer.
Yuuji stood too.
Ren looked over, eyebrows raised. "Following me now?"
"You'll get lost."
"Worried?"
Yuuji rolled his eyes. "You're the kind of guy who'd provoke a bear just to see if it growls."
Ren grinned. "Yeah. But I'd still rather get lost with you than anyone else."
Yuuji's breath caught.
---
The lake shimmered under a faint moon glow. They stood at the edge, silent.
"I used to come to places like this," Ren said softly. "Back when things got loud at home."
Yuuji glanced at him. "Loud how?"
Ren hesitated. "My dad's… not subtle. When things go bad, he yells. When he drinks, he breaks stuff."
Yuuji's heart sank. "I didn't know."
"No one does. They see this," Ren gestured to himself, "and think it's attitude. But sometimes I'm just trying to make space. If I don't laugh, I scream."
Yuuji looked at him for a long time.
Then he stepped closer.
"Ren…"
"You don't have to fix me," Ren said, voice cracking. "I just… I want you to know. In case I do something stupid again."
"You already did," Yuuji said softly.
Ren froze.
"You made me care."
For a second, everything stopped.
Then Ren reached out—and touched Yuuji's hand, barely brushing it, but enough.
Enough to make Yuuji close the distance between them.
Foreheads touched. Breath mingled.
They didn't kiss.
But they didn't need to.
The silence between them was louder than words.
---
Back at the cabin, Rio was already in his sleeping mask. Ian had turned off the lights.
Yuuji slipped in quietly. Ren followed a minute later.
Under the covers, Yuuji couldn't sleep.
He kept thinking of Ren's voice.
And the space between their fingers.