For a while, no one dared to touch the two glass bottles.
They simply sat there in the middle of the group — between all of them — like something slightly dangerous that could change the mood of the night in an instant.
Kai was the first one to lean forward, his eyes still fixed on the smooth glass surfaces.
"…So," he said slowly, drawing out the word, "are we actually going to do this?"
Rui let out a long, uncertain breath and shifted uncomfortably in his place. "Are we even allowed to drink this? I mean… seriously?"
A short beat of silence passed.
Then Dev snorted softly, unable to hide his amusement. "You sound like you've never done anything risky or rebellious before in your life."
"I haven't," Rui shot back quickly, sounding a little defensive. "I'm pure. I've always stayed out of trouble."
Silence fell over the group for a moment.
Then —
Kai burst out laughing.
It was loud enough to break most of the tension that had been building up.
"Pure?" he repeated, still laughing as he shook his head. "You just tried to steal noodles from someone's bag ten minutes ago. How is that pure?"
"That's different," Rui insisted, frowning slightly.
"How exactly is it different?" Kai asked, still grinning.
"It's… food," Rui replied, as if that explained everything.
"That's your only defense?" Dev said, raising an eyebrow in disbelief.
Even Chen exhaled quietly, and something close to a genuine laugh slipped out from him.
Rui frowned deeper, looking genuinely bothered. "What? I really am pure."
"No, you're not," Kai said, shaking his head with amusement. "You're just really bad at being sneaky."
That comment earned a few more small laughs from the group.
They were light.
Easy.
The tension in the tent shifted noticeably.
It didn't disappear completely.
But it became much lighter and more comfortable.
Kai reached forward and tapped one of the bottles lightly with his finger.
"…So we're really doing this," he said, more as a statement than a question this time.
No one tried to stop him.
"…We don't even have any cups," Dev pointed out practically, looking around the tent.
Another short pause followed.
Jian leaned back slightly against his sleeping bag, his eyes half-lowered in thought.
"…We can just use the bottle caps," he suggested calmly.
They all turned to look at him at the same time.
"The caps?" Rui repeated, sounding surprised.
Jian nodded once, keeping his expression neutral. "Pour a little into each cap. Then pass it around."
A second of surprised silence passed —
then Kai suddenly snapped his fingers.
"Wow," he said, clearly impressed. "That's actually genius."
Jian didn't even look at him directly.
"…I know," he replied simply.
Kai grinned widely. "Not like the rest of our shitty brains could come up with that."
"Speak for yourself," Chen muttered under his breath.
The bottle opened with a soft, sharp sound that cut through the quiet.
The smell of the liquid spread slowly through the warm air inside the tent.
It was faint.
Unfamiliar to some of them.
Kai poured first — just a small amount into the bottle cap.
He held it up for a moment.
"…First round," he announced with a small smile.
He drank it quickly in one go.
He coughed immediately afterward, his face scrunching up.
"…That's strong," he said, his voice a little rough.
Dev took the cap next.
He was less dramatic about it.
But he still reacted noticeably after drinking.
Rui hesitated for a second, staring at the cap in his hand.
Then —
he drank it.
"…Okay," he said, his face tightening slightly as the taste hit him. "That's not bad at all."
"Liar," Kai said instantly, still recovering from his own cough.
"Shut up," Rui muttered, though there was no real anger in his voice.
Chen took his turn quietly and smoothly.
He showed almost no visible reaction.
Just a small, controlled exhale after he finished.
The cap continued to pass around the circle.
Again.
And again.
Not too fast.
Not rushed at all.
Just enough to slowly warm something inside each of them.
The tent felt noticeably different now.
Looser.
The edges of everything seemed softer in the dim lantern light.
Voices became easier and more relaxed.
"…What did you even manage to get?" Kai asked suddenly, leaning back against his bag with a lazy smile.
Rui lifted his small stash of snacks and showed them to the group. "Just some snacks."
"Boring," Kai said immediately.
"You got basically the same thing," Rui pointed out.
"Mine is better," Kai insisted.
"It's literally the same brand," Rui replied, rolling his eyes.
Dev showed his own items next.
"Bread."
Kai looked genuinely offended. "You actually robbed someone for plain bread?"
"It was easy," Dev said with a small shrug.
Chen placed his items down quietly without offering any explanation at all.
Kai pointed directly at Jian. "And you — bare minimum effort as usual."
Jian didn't react much to the comment.
"…It was enough," he said calmly.
Kai scoffed lightly.
Then —
his eyes shifted across the circle.
They landed on Wei.
"…Your turn," he said, his voice carrying a hint of curiosity.
The tent quieted down a little.
Not completely silent.
But enough for the shift to be felt.
Wei was sitting slightly apart from the others.
Not really distant.
Just not right in the centre of the group.
He held the small cap in his hand for a second.
He didn't drink right away.
"…Nothing much," he said quietly.
"No," Kai said immediately, refusing to accept that answer. "You don't get to say that after bringing back two full bottles from the teachers' tent."
He nudged the bottles slightly with his foot.
"Explain properly."
A small pause hung in the air.
Wei lowered his gaze briefly to the floor.
Then —
"…They weren't there," he said simply.
"Who wasn't there?" Rui asked, leaning forward with interest.
"The teachers," Wei answered. "The light was still on in their tent, but no one was actually inside."
Chen's eyes shifted toward Wei.
He was listening more carefully now.
Wei's fingers rested lightly against the side of one bottle.
"…The light was still on," he continued in the same steady voice. "But no one was inside."
Silence settled slowly over the group.
"I waited," he said.
Not dramatic.
Just stating a simple fact.
"…For a bit."
Kai leaned forward slightly, clearly intrigued.
"Then what happened?"
Wei's voice stayed completely even and calm.
"…Then I went in."
There was no pride in his tone.
No extra tension.
"…And took them."
That was all he said.
The tent stayed quiet for a second longer.
Then Kai let out a long breath.
"…You're actually insane," he said, half in admiration and half in disbelief.
Dev shook his head slowly. "That's not normal at all. Most people wouldn't dare."
Rui laughed softly, though he sounded a little nervous. "If we get caught because of this, we're all completely done for."
Chen didn't laugh along with the others.
He just looked at Wei.
Once.
Then looked away again.
Jian hadn't said anything throughout the explanation.
He was already looking at Wei.
Not at the story he had told.
Not at the bottles.
But at the calm way he had said it all.
Like it didn't matter much to him.
Like he had already decided what he was going to do long before anyone else had even agreed.
The cap passed around the circle again.
This time —
no one rushed to speak or fill the silence.
The night settled comfortably around them.
Looser now.
Warmer.
And somewhere in between the quiet moments and the soft laughter —
something stayed.
Unsaid.
But closer than before.