Rainbow Friends: Project ODD Vol. 1

Chapter Nine: "Goodbye Party"

"Ah, I can't believe we've made it this far! We're finally going home!" Maya squeals gleefully as she rushes down the hallway, her excitement clear on her face. Veronica chuckles at her little sister's enthusiasm and shakes her head fondly. Despite how chaotic things have been lately, Maya is still the biggest ball of energy in the group.

Jason and Aiden exchange nervous glances once in a while as Ronnie struts along confidently between them. Hopefully, whatever that weird speaker guy has planned isn't another sick game to mess with their minds; that's definitely the last thing that any of them need in their current situation.

They soon make it to the bedroom, where they spot a few golden tickets lying on the table by the door, along with a dispenser containing a variety of colorful party hats. The kids immediately nab a ticket for themselves and slide them into the machine, taking their hats once they fall out and sticking them onto their heads.

"Heck yeah, I got an Orange hat!" Jason proudly exclaims with a grin.

Maya giggles happily. "I got a Green hat!"

"Man, I got a stupid Blue hat." Ronnie pouts slightly in disappointment.

Aiden looks away from his Orange hat to see Leslie sitting on one of the beds, a blank expression on her face as she stares down at the floor. Feeling concern rising within him, he decides to go over and sit down beside her. "Hey, what's up? Feeling nervous about the party?" He gives her a small smile.

Leslie meets Aiden's gaze for a moment before looking back down at the floor again with a shrug. "Just wondering what'll happen if we manage to escape from here." She mutters under her breath. "I mean, most of the class is already dead, so what's the point in even trying to keep going?" She chuckles bitterly to herself.

A bunch of alarms instantly go off inside of Aiden's head upon hearing those words come out of Leslie's mouth. He takes hold of her hands and gives them a reassuring squeeze. "Don't think like that, okay? We'll make it out of here together, just like we promised we would." He tries his best to comfort his friend.

Leslie's eyes widen slightly when Aiden squeezes her hands, her face turning a light shade of pink, though she eventually smiles weakly in return. "Y'know, that's probably the cheesiest thing anyone's ever said to me." She laughs quietly. "But I guess you're right. I just hope we live to see tomorrow."

"See? I knew you had it in you!" Aiden squeezes Leslie's hands once more before standing up, pulling her along with him towards the rest of the group. "Now come on, we've got a party to go to, and we definitely wouldn't wanna miss it!" He winks playfully, causing her to roll her eyes despite the growing blush on her cheeks.

Everyone makes their way out of the bedroom into the Hemlock Woods area, none of them saying a word as they search the facility for where this party is being held. Eventually, they find a doorway with a large banner hanging above it that says 'Come Celebrate Your Freedom' in bright red letters.

"Well, this doesn't look suspicious at all!" Ronnie gestures towards the banner with an obvious hint of sarcasm in his voice. "Loosen up for once and stop worrying all the dang time, will you? It's just some dumb party anyway." Jason shrugs disinterestedly as he walks into the room, the others reluctantly following close behind.

Once they make it inside of the room, they happen to notice a bunch of party decorations set up, as well as a certain blue mascot sleeping soundly on the stage. Veronica clenches her fists at the mere sight; that speaker bastard has been setting them up this whole time, making it seem like they'd be able to leave here in one piece.

"Ah, I'm so glad you could make it!" The intercom crackles to life, bringing everyone's attention towards the source. "I hope you're all ready for some fun festivities and some delicious goodbye cake to celebrate your well-earned freedom!" The voice exclaims, seeming rather pleased with himself.