➳

S Y N O P S I S

Jin Hee was a daughter of strict parents that she hid her boyfriends from. Aaron was a rule breaker who easily received forgiveness. Jin Hee was a sucker for making collages and indie music. Aaron enjoyed long road trips and personalised playlists for his car.

They went to the same kindergarten, middle and high school. They shared memories at the playground when they were young. Their houses stood next to each other, their windows facing.

They were like parallel lines. Always close but never together. But when they wake up in the same tent together one morning, even the rules of geometry lose their order.

➳

E P I G R A P H

❝For the help we give

is the most powerful tool of raw friendship,

and the affection we build with others

is the scariest decision.❞

O n e – 

Gigs & Wrong Tents 

The last day of the Londoner Wild Kings Music Festival started with pain that I would describe in words like: My head hurt like a butt cheek on a stick. If it hadn’t been obvious enough, that was the indication of the drinks that I’d had the night before. 

Holding myself up on my side, I blinked a few times before falling back onto my pillow with a grunt. The newly familiar chirping around as well as my pained back reminded me that I lay in a tent. The dark shade of blue did a great job at keeping off the sun light but the laughter surrounding us and especially the sound of sizzling meat on the grill revealed a late morning. 

The past three days were tainted with a fucked up or nonexistent sleeping pattern, countless energy drinks, a lot of music and a lot of dancing. All fifteen gigs were now only left as parts of my memory of a great summer with my best friend – and so were the long conversations with enthusiastic strangers that we’d never see again. 

Everyone else were slowly starting to strike their tents and I could hear them throw shut the doors of their caravans. I closed my eyes again to savour the last moment of summer bliss that I would be waiting for again. 

Today I was the small spoon. Angus' arm lay on my hip, his warm breath tickling my neck. His chest heaved regularly at my back, a silent snore escaping from him every once in a while. The tent smelled of probably all the cocktails we'd ever had. 

My throat was sore, probably from all the cheering and singing last night, and I was thirsty. My attempt to get up was blocked by an even heavier grip around my hip now. 

Sighing, I buried my head in my pillow. “Get off me, Angus,” I muttered. “I'm going to kick you in the balls.” 

Angus didn’t move an inch. Only my phone had started to vibrate from somewhere underneath my pillow. Feeling it with my hand as well as I could in my current position, I pulled it out eventually and fidgeted to tap the Answer button while putting my phone to my ear. 

“Hello?” 

“Mate, don’t tell me you’re still sleeping!” 

“Well, I’m awake now.” I murmured, still keeping my eyes closed. 

“I didn’t get any sleep last night and stayed up with that group of hippies.” 

“Are you finally admitting you really are a hippie?” 

Totally ignoring my remark, Angus kept talking, “I got the car ready though and I cleaned it up. You should get ready so we can head back to Brighton.” 

A realisation interrupted my blurry thread of thoughts and I stopped. My eyes opened wide as I whisper into my phone, “Wait. Angus?” 

“Yeah?” 

“If you never went to sleep last night and are calling me from outside right now, who is the guy next to me then?” 

“Oh. My. God. Who is it? Which pretty boy did you snatch up last night?!” Angus asked on the other line. 

“I didn’t snatch up anyone!” I exclaimed and whirled around under this mystery person’s arm to face them. 

My phone fell out of my hand the moment I gasped. Only a few inches away from my face lay someone who didn't look like my best friend at all. It took few painful milliseconds until I recognised the boy who was actually lying beside me in my tent, his arm loosely around my body: Aaron Carter. 

SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SH— 

Aaron's eyelids fluttered open as my heart skipped a beat. Staring back at me, his expression altered from peaceful sleepyhead to a confused frown, seized with embarrassment. His arm snapped away from my body when he'd realized that I wasn't Leigh, his girlfriend, and I shot up and crawled to the other end of the tent, as far as the size of the double tent let me. 

My mind was in a whirl. Why and how did this even happen? There was nothing, no matter how hard I tried to rummage around in the insides of my brains. I'd had a few drinks with Angus — who should've been here, not Aaron, by the way. I recalled stumbling into my tent alone and I fell asleep before Angus could return from the festival. So what is this then? 

“What the hell are you doing here?” Aaron asked as he sat up with wide eyes. 

“That's what I should ask you! This is my tent!” I shrieked back at him. Horrified, he looked around him. “See, that's my Christmas blanket!” 

With one hand, he screw it off of him. “Why– Why do you have a Christmas blanket? It's in the middle of August!” He yelled in frustration. 

“Because every day should be Christmas! Why don't you have a shirt on?!” I yelled back. 

“That's how guys sleep! And you're to speak: You're only wearing your underwear!” 

It couldn't get any worse. I didn't have to look down on me to know that my black bra and slip where the only pieces of clothing I had on my body right now. My jaw dropped in embarrassment before I could react and grab my blanket. “That's how I sleep, pervert!” 

Aaron emitted a scoff. “Pervert?” 

“YES. You were hugging me from behind all this time!” 

Aaron's head sunk as his fingers massaged his temple. “Shit,” he said. He had eventually recovered from the shock now, as did I. “We didn’t do anything, did we?” 

“I think I would know,” I said, crossing my arms. “I got in here on my own. That's all I know. Your turn, explain yourself.” 

“I... I don't really know. The tents look so similar, I must’ve gotten in here by mistake.” 

“Huge mistake,” I corrected. 

“You’re sure you’re not hurt anywhere?” 

“Hurt?” A painful minute long I just stared at him. Before he could look farther down my stomach, I shrieked. He was asking if my lady part was sore. I couldn't believe it. “No, oh my god, no! It's not hurting and I don't think anything happened, okay? I would never! What the fuck,” I yelled. 

“Sh,” Aaron shushed me apologetically, “but you can't— please don't tell Leigh about this. I obviously got in the wrong tent last night. I don't know how but I'm also sure nothing happened between us. I'm really sorry... uh,” Aaron muttered as he crawled towards the exit. 

I nodded absently as I hurriedly threw on my big flannel and my black jean shorts. I grabbed my phone, seeing that Angus was still on the line. 

“Angus?” I asked. 

“Yes, I am present and yes, I've heard all of that.” Of course he did. 

“Where are you, Angus?” 

“I'm eating lunch with the group out here, do you want anything?” 

“No,” I was murmuring now, fastening my shoe laces. My headache was getting worse by the second but I was in no situation to be digesting anything. I was still digesting that I’d slept cuddled up next to Aaron all night.

“So… Aaron, huh?” I could already see that shameless grin on Angus’ face and I wanted to punch him for that. 

“I’ll come out. Let’s leave as soon as we can,” I said, hanging up as I watched Aaron put back on his clothes that were spread around the whole tent. 

Aaron silently unzipped the tent and stepped out. I hesitantly followed. Still in a daze, I took a big gulp of fresh air to help my hangover and was encountered by a stinging streak on my cheek. 

“What the–” 

In front of me stood Leigh, her head adapting almost the same color as her red hair that was up in a bun. She was furious. 

In the corner of my eye, I saw Angus hurrying over to me, stepping right between me and Leigh, almost losing his sandwich in his hand. “What the heck, Leigh. Don't touch her.” 

Closing my eyes, I gulped. Although nothing major had happened between Aaron and me, I knew how she must've felt. This didn't look good. And she didn't know about the fact that we were practically cuddling in underwear, either. 

“You're already with this handsome guy, why hook up with somebody else's boyfriend?” 

“Ew! We're not together!” Angus denied loudly. 

“Why, because she doesn't do relationships?” 

“No, because I'm gay as fuck.” 

At this point I realized something. No matter how bad this looked, in no way did she have the right to slap me across the face and talk about me this way. 

Angus’ loud statement shut her up. Only now did I realize that people had gathered around us because some were clapping and whistling for Angus. 

Obviously still fuming, Leigh kept giving me dirty looks. 

“Leigh,” Aaron pleaded, pulling his girlfriend away from us. Quickly checking on my cheek, he said, “I’m sorry, Jin Hee.” 

Looking even more upset now, Leigh stared at Aaron, then at me. “This bitch,” I heard her mutter, tears forming in her eyes. I never really liked Leigh but at this point I actually didn’t know what to do or how to feel. She looked devastated. Turning to Aaron, she drew a step back from him now. “And you. I trusted you. I didn't know you were just like the rest.” 

“It was a misunderstanding. I got in the wrong tent last night and fell asleep immediately. I didn't know I was in the wrong tent until I woke up like 5 minutes ago. Nothing happened, I swear.” 

“That’s right, I swear nothing happened. When I woke up I honestly thought it was Angus!” I tried to console her, too. 

“I'd say that too now if I were you, Aaron,” Leigh yelled, ignoring my input, her disappointed eyes in pain. She was having none of it, even though it was nothing but the truth. 

“I knew this kind of thing would happen between you two eventually, you know, you guys being neighbours and all. It was bound to happen.”