By the time their school week was over, the group of best friends couldn’t keep in their seats any longer, buzzing with excitement and joy of their possible discovery. By Friday, Sayako wouldn’t cease her loud chatting, constantly talking about their adventure that was to happen the next day. The rest of the group were excited as well, but Sayako gave a whole new level of joy, practically skipping in her steps and bouncing when she was standing on the spot. She was a very hyperactive girl, who saw the amazement in everything, no matter how dull.
“I won’t be able to sleep tonight! Gosh I’m so excited! What if we do find something truly amazing?! Do you think we’ll become famous?” She would say, with her usually loud voice, not waiting for any answers to her questions, but instead answering them herself, and what she would do if the five did become truly famous. It would be nice, to be noticed within such a small town. None of the children in the town really stood out and made themselves the special one, so having this chance had immediately excited the group.
“She’s quite the handful isn’t she…?” Seto mumbled, his hazel eyes looking at Sayako with slight amusement, brow arched as he watched the girl prance around. His attention was then turned to Yuki, who giggled in response to his notion.
“She has always been like that, didn’t you notice?” She smiled up at him, earning a smile in return. Yuki had one of those smiles that one couldn’t help melting to, and end up smiling back because the very expression had warmed your heart.
“She’s never this bad.” He looked back at the excitable girl again, who had spun around so much that she was now stumbling all over the place. Seto chuckled at her. When the two didn’t argue, they were quite good friends, but they did argue a lot.
Kumiko walked behind the couple, following them out of the school building, more thankful than ever that it was Friday. She was always very quiet, having been taught not to speak when she has not been spoken to. Nowaki walked alongside Kumiko, flicking his hair from his eyes. He was also quiet, but not nearly as much as Kumiko. If he wanted to say something he would, and he voiced his opinion without hesitation.
“Do you guys remember the plan?” Sayako asked quickly, too quickly for half of the group to understand what she said. She blinked at them, awaiting their answer.
“Er… Yeah, we meet tomorrow at nine; bring food and water and other stuff.” Yuki nodded, smiling proudly at the fact that she remembered everything, although she was still unhappy that she had to get up so early on a Saturday. The grin one Sayako’s face was like that of a Cheshire Cat, wide and inhuman.
“Correct! And Nowaki don’t forget to bring your compass and the map of the forest!” Earning a nod in response, she twirled happily, “This is going to be so fun! All of us on an adventure just like we used to do when we were young!”
Laughter began to echo throughout the group, some quieter than others, but everyone had a smile on their face, also happy that they were reliving their childhood days. A small adventure was the one thing that brought the group together, whether it was going on a pirate ship and hunting treasure, or going to the forest to find a hidden artifact, just like the movies.
As the group split up to venture home, they all exchanged excited smiles, giving their goodbyes before going their separate ways. Seto left with Yuki, and Nowaki, Sayako, and Kumiko split up entirely. Their houses were rather spaced out, but the town wasn’t that big, so none of them seemed to care. As night fell, everyone set their alarms in order to get up early, snuggled into their beds, but unable to close their eyes and get some sleep…
It was something that everyone had been through at least once, where a thought had come to their mind just before they fell asleep, and that had caused them to feel much more awake, wanting to think about that one thought even more. Or something was happening the next day, something new and exciting, and all you could do was stay awake and watch the minutes tick by, afraid to sleep in case you may miss what is to happen. Some might say they have never felt this before in their lives, some might say they have experienced it so often that they do not want to talk about it, but these teenagers would not be swayed by the negative. Instead they kept to the highest positive, determined to remain that way.
By the next morning, the lazy teenagers dragged themselves out of bed and got ready. Unable to think of any other explanation to describe them, they were simply not morning people, especially Yuki, who barely looked alive as she forced herself from the warm comfort of her bed and to the bathroom. Every morning was crisp and fresh, therefore very chilly, and being cold and tired were the two things that no one liked, nor ever want to experience.
Sayako was already up and rushing to the entrance of the forest, which wasn’t that far from her. She knew she would be the first one there, since it was fifteen minutes before the actual meeting time, but she was surprised to see Kumiko sitting calmly on the fence, looking like she had slept peacefully throughout the night, fresh and awake. She lifted her head and saw her friend, giving a small smile and a gentle wave.
“Good morning, Miyu!” Sayako grinned, running over to her and giving her a big hug, careful not to push her friend off the fence, “What a surprise to see you here so early!”
“I woke up before my alarm, so I just got ready and came here…” She stated, shrugging. Sayako giggled, smiling up at her.
“Well I’m glad that you are here! I thought I was going to have to spend the last fifteen minutes on my own!” She stepped to the side before climbing onto the wood fence, sitting next to Kumiko with a smile. Soon Nowaki arrived, five minutes before the meeting time, panting slightly.
“Phew! I thought I was late! The time on my phone must be wrong…” He huffed, fishing his phone from his pocket and cursing lowly at the false time.
“Ha! Well, you’re not late! In fact you are early! Congratulations!” She laughed. Nowaki chuckled and sat next to her on the fence.
“Morning Kumiko.” He leaned forward and smiled at her, earning a smile in reply before he sat up straight again.
“Who wants to bet that Seto and Yuki will be late?” Sayako spoke up after a few minutes of pleasant silence.
“I will.” Nowaki smiled and kicked his legs for a moment before lifting Sayako’s arm to look at her watch. She gasped softly, not expecting that, before shrugging and letting him, “Well, they are late already actually.”
Sayako gave a dramatic sigh, annoyed that her two friends are late for something so exciting. Ten minutes later, the couple walked round the corner and towards the trio, smiling tiredly.
“Look, it’s Night of The Living Dead for real.” Nowaki teased, smirking at the tired and confused looks he received, before those expressions turned into shock.
“Shut up…” Seto yawned, “Can we get this over with please? I want to go home and sleep…”
Sayako smiled before sighing and hopping off the fence, “Next time you’re late, I won’t be as nice.” She helped Kumiko off the fence before pointing happily to the vast amount of trees, “Let’s go!” She yelled, before grabbing onto Kumiko’s arm and walking quickly down the path, the morning sky soon disappearing above the canopies of branches and leaves. Yuki shivered softly, still not liking the crisp morning air, burying her face into Seto’s arm. Looking around, the group began to realise just how hard their task would be. The forest was huge, and they had to find something that looked generally normal, or even something that didn’t seem to be there at all. But Sayako remained in high spirits, convinced that regardless of today’s outcome, they would still have a fun and happy day of adventure.
