Imperfectly Perfect 3

36 : Into the Dark

The time now is ten minutes before eight in the evening. The participants of the leadership camp are outside of the retreat place. After some orientation for the first activity in their event program, they are supposed to make a fifteen minute walk from the place's patio to a local camping site right beside the nearby lake.

"Mina, come here." Sana gently pulls her best friend to one side, a bit secluded from the crowd of students leisurely walking beside the calm body of water.

"Why?" The council president just lets the other girl pull her as they slow down their walking pace.

The place they are traversing is relatively dark given that the moon is far from being full. The participants are only using their phones as flashlights to help them cautiously see their path. The breeze around the area is a bit cold. There is also a loud, unified sound of nature that is a combination of soft rustling of the trees, occasional faint reverberation of water, and singing of the energetic night insects.

Sana spoke in whispers. "How is it? Did he get a schedule already?"

"Hey—" Mina quickly glances around to make sure no one is paying attention to them. She replies back in almost mumbles. "What are you doing? We can't talk about this while we're in public."

"But—"

"Chaeng and Tzuyu are literally just meters away from us!"

"But, Chaeyoung is glued to you all day and was even put in the same room with us!" The cheer captain pursued the topic. Her voice is laced with worry and anxiousness. "How am I supposed to find a good time to talk to you in private?"

"Sana—"

"Mina. When I saw that letter in the bedside drawer of our room, I swore—"

"Which is why you shouldn't have looked at it in the first place!" Mina mutters under her breath. "I already told you that I have a plan set in place. You just have to do your part when I tell you to—"

Sana looks at the other girl with conviction. "There is no way I'm making my best friend go through all of that alone."

Mina ruffled her hair and began walking a little faster. "This is exactly the reason why I wanted to keep things to myself. I didn't want to put any of you in danger."

"So, what? So that you could be a hero yourself for all of us?" The cheer captain grabs her best friend's arm, making the both of them stop in their tracks. "If that's what you really wanted in the first place, you shouldn't have made it obvious that there was something hidden in that drawer!"

"What?" Mina scoffs. "Is it my fault now that you looked into my personal belongings without my permission?"

"Yes! You should've hidden it better!"

"Sana, you're not making any sense."

The cheer captain stares deeply into her best friend's eyes with all seriousness. "Now that I know every single thing, there's no way I can forgive myself if something bad happens to you. You're not doing this alone now. We're in this together."

"I already told you that—"

"I need updates, Myoi Mina. Now."

Mina then lets out a deep, defeated sigh. "Okay, okay." She once again subtly looks around before continuing. "He's been emailing me as agreed so that no one could accidentally read his notifications on my mobile screen. His last update earlier was that the security is still making it hard for him. I'm still contemplating about what our next move should be, but he said he would try to proceed and execute the measures with the secretary and—"