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꒾ CHAPTER 9 ꒾
"SO BASICALLY, IF WE DON'T GET THROUGH THE MAGIC FOREST IN TIME WE'LL ALL BE CRUSHED?"
"Pretty much"
"That's awesome!"
Ju winced as Shang cleaned the cut on her cheek with alcohol. Xialing and Katy were talking about the forest outside of Ta Lo while Trevor was driving with Morris. Yes, with Morris.
"Sorry," Shang mumbled as he continued cleaning the cut. "Y'know this is pretty big, how did you get it anyway?" He furrowed his eyebrows.
Ju only shrugged as Katy and Xialing continued talking. Right now, the group was on their way to Ta Lo, and Ju was trying to regain her strength in the cramped car. The other two women were on the backseats, which left Shang and Ju in the truck. They could faintly hear the conversations going on up front, but they doubted anyone could hear them since they were talking lowly.
Shang sat back with a sigh as he finished putting away the first aid kit. He looked across the compartment at his friend, who was taking her hair out of the buns she made, making her hair flow down her back. The space they were sitting in was small, with their legs pressed up against one another and faces at most a foot apart.
"What do you think is gonna happen?" Ju asked softly.
Shang looked at the woman front of him, who was staring out the tiny window. He looked at her for another second before looking down again.
"I don't know Ju," he responded. "I don't know."
Shang looked up at the feeling of a hand squeezing his own. Ju had leaned forward, facing him as she held his hand. She had a gentle smile on her face. One that she hoped would bring a small reassurance to her friend.
The man squeezed back, thankful for Ju. Suddenly, the car jolted, causing Ju to jump forward at the force. Shang's arms quickly caught her, preventing her from getting hurt.
Both adults locked eyes with one another, and for a split second, forgot where they were. Forgot what their mission was, who they were trying to stop. They melted into one another's dark eyes. Time seemed to stop even as the car kept bumping around.
Of course, the moment ended too soon with both of them coughing awkwardly, and Ju choosing to sit next to Shang in order to create more space for the both of them. She subconsciously leaned her head on his shoulder as her eyes started to feel extremely heavy. Shang chuckled.
"Get some sleep," he told her. "You've had a long couple of days."
"So have you..." Ju started to retort, only resulting in her body entirely shutting down without warning.
Shang, waiting for her answer, looked down and smiled softly at the sight of the woman. She looked so peaceful, almost as if having no worry in the world at that moment. He wondered why there was a warming in his chest. It had always been there, but now it was so strong, it was almost overwhelming. The man's eyes widened as he continued looking at Ju. Something happened that he never thought would happen to him.
