The Patriots

CHAPTER 12 (DEPARTURE)

So many thoughts were running through Kelvin's mind at that moment. "Run. Hide. Put the hood back on...." He was so lost and confused. Del's words played in his head over and over again. "I don't have to hide anymore. Maybe this is where I belong," he breathed, a long deep breath and lifted his head to face everyone on the bus.

His eyes went straight to the back of the bus. Then they shifted from head to head before finally landing on Cecilia. It was as if they were in a staring contest. Everyone was staring at him, but he was staring at just one person. Her. Cecilia stared for as long as she could, and finally gave up.

"He's soooo cute." Vera gushed beside her. "And he keeps staring at you," she wriggled her brows. "Do you know him?" She asked and Cecilia shook her head as an answer.

"How would I know? He never speaks to anyone." Cecilia whispered to herself but Vera heard her loud and clear.

"Mmm." Vera nodded thoughtfully.

"She knows my name now, everyone knows my name now. And they've all seen my face. What now?" Kelvin thought. There was pain and loneliness written all over his face, which made it seem like he had a frown. But he also had a calm look in his eyes. That look was deadly.

Kelvin was feeling so many emotions at the same time, he did not know what to do. He just stood there while people examined him with their curious eyes. He felt as though he had been dissected and was being used as a lab specimen. With the way he was feeling inside and the calm look in his eyes, there was this dangerous air around him. More like his survival instinct had kicked in, just that the only thing he did was to wait for it to be over.

Cecilia did not want to stare at him anymore but Vera wouldn't stop yapping about his looks. "Oh gosh, that's enough. We all saw him." Cecilia rolled her eyes at Vera's behaviour. Vera was not bothered. She just smirked teasingly and sat back in her seat. "He looked cute even with that frown on his face, what if he smiled?" Cecilia wondered, staring out the window.

Kelvin walked slowly back to his seat after Del beckoned him to go. It took a while before he found his legs and he cursed at himself at how dumb he thought he looked.

"Hi!" the boy sitting next to him said, smiling too broadly.

"Hi," he replied hesitantly.

"I'm Daniel. Dan for short," he grinned. "Oh and I already know your name, Kelvin. Everyone knows your name," he chirped and gave a little laugh.
Kelvin felt a bit weird but he wasn't uncomfortable around Dan.

"Can we be friends?" Dan asked Kelvin who didn't know how to react to that.

"Erm...I guess," he finally replied.

"Cool!"

They continued talking, Dan doing most of it-- all the talking actually. Kelvin nodding and looking confused every now and then. "This might not be so bad after all," he thought and smiled briefly.
Dan was a bit plum, he looked a bit younger than Kelvin and he had a good sense of humour. He was funny, actually.

About 3 hours later, they arrived at the airport. It was already noon. The kids had a fun time on the bus, even Kelvin and they were in awe when they arrived at the airport. Seeing all the airplanes close-up was breathtaking. They had always seen airplanes fly in the sky, but they did not know airplanes were this huge.

They were not taking a private plane but they were treated exclusively. All they needed were their passports and tickets. Anna and Del led the way as they headed towards their flight.

One by one, they all boarded the plane and were guided to the first class section. "Woooooooow!" they all said, their eyes wide open in awe as they entered the first class section.

"Who would have thought I would ever be on an airplane and that too, in the first class section?" Kelvin asked himself and so did the other kids.

"I wish I had my camera here to record all this," Dan said sadly.

"Don't worry, you might get a chance." Kelvin said to Dan, surprising even himself with his action.

"Sure." Dan smiled making Kelvin smile too.

"OH MY GOD!!" Dan exclaimed almost screaming and startling Kelvin.

"What?!" Kelvin asked puzzled.

"Has anyone told you this? No, I don't think anyone has. You're beautiful! No, handsome, but you know, you're beautiful because of your smile. You get me?" Dan blabbered.

"Whatever." Kelvin rolled his eyes blushing and trying hard not to smile again. He put on his expressionless look and took his seat. He took after his mum. He wanted to tell Dan that, but he didn't want to remember his mum now.

They had about eight hours before reaching Canada. They all had time to freshen up and explore. Kelvin, Cecilia and some other kids just sat admiring the ocean, clouds and vegetation. They were way up and saw things smaller, but they saw the beauty in the world more clearer.

"Alright. Settle down," Del instructed. "You can relax in your seats. You can push your seats back and sleep. You need enough rest. Once we arrive in Canada, training starts in three days." He announced with mischief dancing in his eyes.

The kids heeded and settled down. For those eight hours spent in that airplane, one could say, the kids really had their very first breath of freedom. They were literally flying with nothing to worry about. They all had a good sleep for the first time, in a long time.

"Fasten your seat belts please. We're about to land," a pilot announced from the speakers.

"We're there already!?" Dan yelled astonished as they all woke up and fastened their seat belts.

You could see the anxiety on everyone's face. They knew once the plane landed, their life and the real fight would begin.

A/N: Thank you for reading!
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