It was early—too early for Zee’s liking. The sun had barely risen, the sky still a hazy mix of purples and golds, and he was standing at the base of a rocky hiking trail with Mya bouncing next to him like she just drank three iced coffees.

“Do we really have to do this?” Zee groaned, yawning. “We literally stayed up past midnight editing that Roblox video.”

Mya turned to him with a grin that was way too cheerful for 6:45 a.m. “Yes! We need fresh air. You’ve been sitting like a gremlin in your chair all week. Look—nature! Oxygen! Trees!”

He squinted at the incline in front of them. “That’s not a hike. That’s a vertical death trap.”

Mya rolled her eyes, tugging at his hoodie sleeve. “Zee, it’s barely a trail. Come on, it’ll be fun.”

He grumbled under his breath but followed, mostly because she was already power-walking ahead and he didn’t want to get left behind. “You better carry me down if I collapse.”

Ten minutes in, he was already sweating. Mya, meanwhile, looked like she was training for a hike-themed fashion shoot—hair tied up, cute athletic set, and not a drop of sweat on her face.

“How are you not dying?” he gasped.

She smirked. “Because I’ve been doing more than just editing all week. Maybe you should touch grass more.”

“I did touch grass once. I tripped over it walking to Starbucks.”

She cracked up and reached back to high-five him. “Okay, that was good. But you’re still hiking, no turning back.”

Zee took dramatic, exaggerated steps behind her. “Tell my fans I loved them.”

But slowly, as the trail got prettier, the air got cooler, and birds chirped above them, Zee started to… not hate it. The views were insane—rolling hills, wildflowers, and patches of sunlight flickering through the trees. Mya kept pointing things out like a tour guide.

“Look, Zee! A hawk!”

“That’s a squirrel, Mya.”

“Oh.”

By the time they reached the top of the trail, Zee was panting, hands on his knees.

Mya, unfazed, pulled out her phone. “We earned this view. Smile!”

Zee gave the most exhausted thumbs-up ever while she snapped a photo. Then, before he could even recover, she sat down on a flat rock and patted the spot next to her. “This is nice, right?”

Zee sat, finally catching his breath. “Okay… yeah. It’s kinda peaceful. You were right.”

“Say that again?”

He gave her a side glance. “Let’s not get carried away.”

She leaned her head on his shoulder and grinned. “Thanks for coming with me.”

“Thanks for dragging me,” he replied. “Next time, can we hike to a pizza place?”

Mya laughed. “Deal. But only if we film it as a ‘Roblox YouTubers Try Hiking IRL’ vlog.”