Chapter 1 - School Field Trip (1)
「 Every story exists to be told, every story deserves a chance to be read; once read the meaning of the story changes and a new story is formed. From this stories are begun, concluded, and rebirthed. This is the evolution of stories. 」
What an ordinary and plain insight. I sighed.
"Looks like this story won't be any good."
Well it's a good thing I prepared forty other stories to read on this trip. There has bound to be a couple that are interesting. The 'Tales of Shorebreak' that told a story from the perspective of a shell was a good read. There was also a fable about a rabbit and a moon but I skimmed through it too fast so I forgot the details.
Anyways, why is it taking Teacher so long to come back from the convenience store?
We were supposed to depart early in the morning in case of traffic. We're in our last week of the exchange program so Teacher wanted to commemorate by taking us and the middle-schoolers to one of Japan's islands.
The island was a popular tourist area that held an old shrine. Teacher left to buy some wooden plaques to hang up near the shrine.
He says the things sold on tourist islands are overpriced so he left to purchase some provisions in advance.
I shifted from my position near the bus window to the aisle seat and peeked outside.
The clock on the front of the bus read 9:18. Teacher was 8 minutes late.
Teacher was usually on time, but I guess he was meticulous with choosing the plaque material. He was always meticulous with his work, especially in the classroom. His books would remain in perfect shape even after years of teaching, and his notes were blessings to many students.
Waiting on the bus was not so bad. The bus was made to seat around 12 people, but we were only 9 people including Teacher. There's another class visiting the shrine, but they got on another bus.
On that thought I remembered that my sister went to the other bus to speak with her friends. I'll have to let Teacher know once he returns.
"Squaaak!"
I ducked back into the safety of my seat just in time to see rustling feathers flying across the aisle.
"Waah! Bucky calm down!"
A young skinny boy chased a chicken with a straw hat. He scooped the squawking chicken and plopped it on his hat.
"If you stay put and behave I'll give you your favorite snack!"
It was one of the middle-school students whose name I don't remember.
The highschool program I'm in is tasked with chaperoning the children. Teacher allowed the pet to tag along since the island was animal-friendly. We had an informal get-together just yesterday, but their names have already escaped my memory.
Hell I can't even remember the name of some of my classmates. I even forget the name of my favorite books.
That's why I keep a journal to track my personal stuff.
It was much easier to write things down than to keep it in my mind. I wonder why other people don't like writing. Maybe they have a decent memory?
Outside the window, one of my classmates with spiky hair was helping a younger student carry their baggage.
What was his name... Naoki? Nanano? Uhh… I can't recall my classmate's name, but I know the middle-schooler's name was Ouga. I remember the middle-schooler's name since I helped him pack his bag yesterday.
"Is this the bag you were looking for?" The spiky haired person spoke.
"Yeah! Thank you Nakano!"
Nakano. A middle-schooler like Ouga had better memory than I do. I must be becoming old.
"I'll help you carry this to your seat."
As the two of them entered the bus, Nakano ducked low as he carried a large backpack. He was taller than average high school students and had an athletic build that made the spacious aisle look cramped. Looking at Nakano closer, his hair wasn't spiky but rather were ginger locks that curled in an unkept fashion.
He had a face that made me self-conscious of my own appearance. I dislike this feeling, but I try my best not to feel this way.
Human envy is truly frightening.
Nakano and the middle-schooler started talking about their favorite foods. I wanted no part in their conversation so I pulled out my phone.
Phones are amazing these days. It's like having a superpower. You would shift your attention to your phone and other people would get the gist and give you space.
It was like an asthma reliever for social interactions.
I scrolled through the chat messages that my sister sent.
[Me: where did u go
Yuriko: I'm at the other bus uwu
Yuriko: call me when the teacher comes]
I inwardly cringed upon seeing the diabolical 'uwu'.
I sent a message, "Hurry up we're leaving soon".
The battery on my phone was at 53%. Damn I probably forgot to charge it last night while downloading stories.
At least Xen has spare power banks so I could ask him for some. I glanced behind me. He had his headphones on, busy playing a game on his phone. His black hair with silver highlights was still damp from his morning shower.
This idiot, he's definitely going to catch a cold.
Xen is probably one of the few people I can speak with comfortably. Back in middle school, we shared similar interests and got along well. He even invited me to his birthday party several times. The cakes tasted amazing.
I turned at the sound of someone climbing onto the bus. It was my sister, her side ponytail was swaying as she made her way towards me.
Yuriko plopped next to my seat. "The other bus left a few minutes ago. Has Teacher come back yet?"
I shook my head.
The clock read 9:27.
The space in front of the digital clock seemed to distort. I took off my reading glasses and rubbed my eyes.
The distortion was still there. In fact it seemed to grow larger. The digital clock - no, rather the space in front of the clock - glitched. Whitenoise seemed to emanate from the bus speakers and grew louder and louder.
Then silence.
An alien voice spoke:
[The free service of planetary system 10238 has been terminated.]
[The main scenario has begun.]