Everyone travelled for another few days before actually reaching a village.
You quickly found out that everyone has their own bags of something. Mostly clothes, but Yonsano obviously has her weapons and Dazai has his suicide book collection.
The only horses you guys kept were Taniyama and Kishou, obviously. The two carry so many memories. So whether you liked it or not, you were going to keep them both.
Actual medical equipment was bought that day. As well as tents, though some may have to share tents together. Trick is, they didn't give you money. It was a barter system.
For the most part, Kenji handled the bartering very well. He quickly made friends with the village and got everything cheap. Chuuya received two suits for the trade of a horse. The price was surprisingly fair, considering suits are hard to make and take a bit of material. All the tents were given with another horse. And then the medical equipment took another horse.
"What else would we need..." You mumble.
"(f/n), you need clothes too." Tanizaki points out.
"Oh! This person's willing to give you clothes and a net!"
"A net?"
"Nets are super useful..."
"I-I'm not doubting you, Kenji..." You let out a sigh, "Well, I don't really need anything flashy. If nobody figures out who I am, then we're safer." Everyone nods in agreement.
You were given clothes and a net and everyone else decided to trade whatever they seemed necessary for survival. You can only hope the equipment will come in handy in the future.
You made an agreement with someone. If you traded them two horses, they would give you as many apples as you wanted. That way, you can easily feed Taniyama and Kishou, and they could breed the horses to have more.
Everyone has to travel by foot now, the horses being led along by the reigns as they carry all the equipment. Thankfully, your training was harder than everyone traveling for long amounts of time.
A few hours later you hear the sound of rushing water.
"A river?" Yosano questions.
"No, it sounds too strong to be one." Ranpo points out.
"It's a waterfall." Dazai smiles and a massive clearing comes into view.
It's a barren spot of land, the water spilling over the edge of the cliff. You could see fish fall down through the roaring water.
"Well, I found our food source.." Atsushi jokes weakly. You smile.
"We can easily make this work."
The rest of the day was spent setting up camp. For now, this would be the permanent base. That is, until you guys could find a better location.
---
For the past few days you spend your time looking over the waterfall.
The issue with Chuuya had really weighed you down, and the running away bit of your life has been consuming you since the beginning. Now that everyone's settled in you can actually clear your mind and think things through.
'I mean... Four months of false information? He could have died if they ever found out...' You bite your lip. 'But the least he could have done was tell me everything in the first place...'
Most of the time you were just pulling out hair. The other part you were actually thinking. Nonetheless, everyone knew they should give you your space.
Everyone except Chuuya of course.
Near the end of the day he would always try to talk to you in hopes of rekindling friendship. That never worked because you would walk away every time. For the most part, you didn't need him messing up your thoughts by interfering. You also didn't want to go crazy for him like you used to. It led you to heartbreak, and that's not something you look forward to feeling.
He soon got the hint that you didn't want to talk, so he would just sit next to you by the waterfall, overlooking the scenery. It bothered you at first but you grew used to it.
A week and a half passed, and you were still just sitting.
"When's the commander going to sort out their feelings?" Kenji asks. Tanizaki lays a hand on his blonde hair. The two share a tent so they've recently been more comfortable with each other's presence.
"This stuff takes a while. Though not this long, but I can see why (f/n) is still thinking. They've been through a lot the past half a month..."
Yosano looks over at Ranpo, whom she had the honor of sharing a tent with since day one.
"What do you think will happen with the two?"
Ranpo watches Chuuya walk over to you again, taking his seat beside you. Ranpo then grins when he sees you look over at Chuuya with a smile before looking forward once more.
"I'm sure the two will be fine." He takes a bite out of an apple.
"R-Ranpo-san, that's for Taniyama and Kishou..." Atsushi cries. He knows he can't go to you- his tent partner- for help.
"Huh? But I don't have any sweets! Surviving is hard without them... I mean, even honey would be good at this point..."
Kunikida sighs, scribbling harshly into his notebook. He rooms with Yukichi, the two being the most quiet tent partners.
"I hope they get back together~ Chuuya is super moody without (f/n)'s love.." Dazai sighs. Atsushi follows after.
"That's because you're annoying Nakahara-san about it." Atsushi mutters under his breath.
Dazai and Chuuya had the misfortune of sharing a tent. It's havoc every night, and everyone can only wonder how the two can function throughout the day after sleeping four hours at most.
Everyone gasps in surprise when they see you stand up, giving Chuuya a hand. You wave to everyone, walking side by side with Chuuya into the woods.
"A-are they okay now?"
"I don't know..."
"Maybe they're just going to talk about it?"
"Or maybe they're going to go make out~"
"Shut up you bandage wearing freak!"
"You wound me, Kunikida-kun~"
---
You hold Chuuya's hand, walking through the forest. You're both silent, not knowing what to say.
"I-"
"I-"
You both start simultaneously.
"Sorry-" You both start again.
Chuuya stops before gesturing to you to go ahead.
You can only burst out into laughter as he stares at you weirdly.
"Wh-what?"
"Sorry," You laugh a bit more, "this just reminds me of our first horse ride together."
Chuuya brightens up at the memory. "We both started at the same time then, didn't we." He chuckles. "We were quite hostile to each other.."
"I mean I guess it was a good hostile? It didn't rush any feelings." You explain animatedly. Chuuya can only nod his head in agreement.
You both fall silent once more. Chuuya doesn't mind it though. So long as he's with you, he's fine with just about anything.
You sigh, "So here's the thing..."
Chuuya feels his blood run cold, his face paling.
'Oh shit.'
"I know my feelings for you now, and I think I understand your feelings for me." You swat away a branch, making your way through bushes. "But I don't want to 'start over' anything. You know? I don't want to start over anything and pretend the past 6 months didn't happen.."
Chuuya nods his head. He doesn't know whether to be frightened or happy with what he may hear next.
"Because everything that happened was real. It was so real, and I never want to trade that away." You look at Chuuya, staring him straight in the eye.
"Chuuya, I still love you."
His heart flutters, his cheeks burning.
"But I still don't trust you. Not after all that's happened."
He slowly nods his head.
"What's your angle?"
"I still love you, but I don't want to be with you romantically until I get back the feeling I had when we were just friends."
Another slow nod.
You sigh, "Before we were lovers, we were friends. That part of our bridge is broken, and I want to fix it first."
Chuuya nods his head faster now. He shrugs, "Alright, fair enough."
"Thank you, Chuuya."
He smiles, taking off his fedora to hold it to his chest. He then bows, "No, thank you, you annoying fuck."
You smile back, "You're very much welcome, you short asshole."
What a marvelous beginning to a new relationship.