As the organizer of this event and the general leader, one of Janessa's responsibilities was to ensure
the safety of her team members.
Even if she had no desire to see Rayan and Gracie, she had no choice but to slow down and wait for
them.
While she was waiting for them, she attempted to call Rayan, but he wasn't answering her calls.
In about ten minutes, Rayan suddenly arrived with Gracie on his back.
"I didn't know you were waiting for us.Thank you, I appreciate it."
Gracie was slumped against Rayan's back and gave Janessa a nonchalant look.
"You both need to keep up with the team.There are a lot of wild wolves nearby.Something might come
and get you."
Gracie's attitude towards her was the least of Janessa’s concerns.
After making sure that both of them were fine, she walked forward.
Gracie glared at Janessa's receding figure in front of her.
‘Not angry yet? Well then, let's see how long it takes until you break.’ On the other hand, Rayan was in
great shape.
Even if he had to carry Gracie on his back, he was able to keep up with the rest of the group.
By noon, the group had arrived at a rest area on the hillside.
They each took out the food they brought with them and began to eat.
While Janessa and Alana were munching on the bread they brought with them yesterday, Eric came
over and handed them a can of luncheon meat.
"You have to eat this.Bread alone won't be enough to sustain you.You need the energy to climb the
mountain."
Janessa initially planned to buy some canned food to bring with her, but there were many things back
at home she needed to take care of.
To save some time, she only packed what was in her fridge at the time.
"I'm full already.You can give the can to Janessa."
Alana took a sip of her water and stood up to sit further away from them.
Eric looked at the can in his hands and then at Alana.
‘She only had a bite of her bread.How could she be full already?’ Janessa ate the last bite of her food
then wiped the crumbs from the corners of her mouth.
"Thank you for this, but I've also eaten enough.Please eat some more.I don't want to take your food,"
Janessa insisted.
"Janessa, is there something going on? Why do I get the feeling that the both of you are hiding
something from me?"
Eric placed the can back into his pouch and tried to hide the disappointed look in his eyes as he spoke
to Janessa.
Unfortunately, Janessa was observant enough to notice the shift in his mood.
She didn't want Eric to get the wrong idea.
"No! There's nothing wrong.Please stop worrying.I'm in charge of the team, so I should check up on
everyone.If you have some free time, could you make sure that Alana is okay? She's never hiked like
this before."
"Sure, no problem,"Eric agreed.
His mood lightened after hearing Janessa's comforting words.
When Janessa spotted Eric walking towards Alana, she smiled at them.
She continued to walk around the rest area to see how everyone was doing.
Gracie was busy eating, but her eyes stayed fixated on Janessa.
‘This is so boring!’ Gracie couldn't help but think to herself.Janessa continued to ignore them, but
Rayan suddenly approached her.
"Do you have any band-aids with you? Could you give me one?"
Janessa turned to look at who was speaking to her in confusion.
She didn't expect Rayan to approach her and ask for something he needed.
Janessa peeked at the woman behind him.
Gracie had taken off her high-heeled shoes.
Her feet looked red and swollen.
After wearing such inappropriate shoes for hiking, Gracie deserved the pain she was experiencing.
Without a word, Janessa took out a band-aid from her pouch and handed it to Rayan.
"Go and take care of her.I don't need the both of you causing trouble for the group."
After that, she left.
Janessa walked to the other side of the rest area and continued to check on the others.
When she turned around, she spotted Rayan kneeling in front of Gracie as he bandaged her feet.
His hands were careful as he held her foot, and his eyes were filled with concern as he inspected her.
Janessa had never seen him look that way before.
He handled her so delicately.
Anyone who had romantic feelings for Rayan would be overcome with jealousy at the scene.
"Everyone feel free to explore the area, but be back here in half an hour,"
Janessa instructed.Most of the people chose to stay and rest.
After trekking the entire morning, they needed all the rest they could get to finish climbing the mountain.
When she made sure that everyone was_ alright, Janessa found a place to rest.
Half an hour later, the group continued their hike up the mountain.
In the evening, they arrived at a site near the water.
Everyone proceeded to set up their tents for the night.
Janessa and Alana decided to share a tent for the trip.
The two worked well together, and soon enough, they had finished setting up their tent.
Unfortunately for Rayan, he had difficulty setting up his tent.
Gracie wasn't sure how to help him.
"Do I put it inside here? Why doesn't it fit?"
Holding all of these small parts gave her a headache.
Gracie had no idea what the parts were for.
Rayan finally got a little annoyed and asked Gracie to sit on the side and wait for him to finish
assembling their tent.
"I want to help! You need to rest as soon as possible!"
Gracie pleaded in a soft voice.
Without saying another word, he continued to set up the tent in silence.
Alana couldn't help but giggle to herself as she watched them.
She held Janessa’'s hand as she whispered, "She wants to help? If he lets her touch that thing, she
might end up taking it apart!" Janessa merely smiled and didn't say another word.
On the way to the mountain, Gracie didn't suffer as much as the rest of them.
When she was exhausted, Rayan offered to carry her.
When her feet ached, he bandaged them.
When Gracie was tired at the end of the day, Rayan was also there to build a tent.
"Don't you dare laugh at them! You're no better! Do you remember the first time you tried to put a tent
together?"
Janessa reminded Alana.
The first time Alana ever assembled a tent, she was determined to do it on her own.
She refused Janessa's help and ended up building her tent upside down.
No matter how much Janessa thought about it, she still couldn't figure out how Alana managed to do
such a thing.
Alana had banned her from mentioning it ever again.
Sometimes, Janessa would still use it to tease her friend.
"How dare you say that! I thought we made a deal never to speak of it again!"
That was one of the most humiliating moments of Alana's life.
Fortunately, they were only camping at home that time.
If she set up a tent that way in a group tip, she would have died of embarrassment.
"Okay, okay! I won't mention it again!"
She didn't want to start this battle with Alana.
"I'm going to get some water to wash my face.Lie down and get some rest if you're tired."
Alana went to the lake with a small bucket while Janessa entered the tent to get some rest.
It had been a long time since Janessa had climbed a mountain.
She exerted a lot of her energy today, so she was exhausted by the end of the day.
Soon enough, she fell asleep.
All of a sudden, Janessa woke up when she heard someone calling her outside.
"Janessa, are you there? Come out and help me."
‘Is that Eric? Did something happen to him?' Janessa thought to herself.
Numerous possibilities raced in Janessa’s mind at that moment.
‘Forget it.It would be best if I went out and had a look.’ Janessa quickly put on her coat and walked out
of the tent. As soon as she walked out, she was shocked at what she found.
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