Truth In Trust

PART TWO Pages 224-231

9:16 A.M., MONDAY, MARCH 14TH, ON THE BUS

    I look out the window of the great white coaster bus, towards all the evidence of the beauty of nature. Dandelions, pansies, lilies, and roses all adorned each side of the bus, on the path. This morning I had awakened to a sense of the very same feeling I had months ago, of hope, dread, and curiosity all in one. Today’s field trip will certainly bring the unexpected, and yet, I feel a little unprepared. I almost feel like crawling right back into my turtle shell.
   
    There’s no room in my mind for conversation as each passing tree looks me in the eye. Yet, my friends are having the time of their lives. Before anything else, I choose to observe and listen carefully, as that mode of operation works wonders, as always. I had doubted any new experiences on this field trip(classic me), as even with new friends I’d rather keep to myself.

How do I best say this?

    Life is like a book with an account of each of the almost eight billion people on Earth. And guess what? There’s no such thing as a boring one. There are only different perspectives. And well, this guy I saw around is. . . the same as the same old. He’s the bad boy type, so automatically I’m steering clear. But he seems to be glancing my way more than just a few times. Again, I’m NOT stupid.

    I saw Katara go through what she did, and in some instances, it has only worsened my fears. But I have never let that keep me down, have I? Only for a short while. Plus, it must be taken into account that bad boys show up wherever they feel like. Jordan is no exception.

“Marisa! Marisa!” I hear Angel crashing into my thinking space. I don’t mind. Kind of, I guess.

I expect her to invite me into something, but this time, she just jerks her head in the direction of an average height, bulky brown-haired boy, who’s laughing and chatting his head off with a blond-haired, tall and quite masculine guy. The first one is Jordan, and I presume he and the other guy are best ‘buds’ or something of that sort. But why exactly is Angel acting so strangely? Of course.

She still wants to play matchmaker.

    I really didn’t see this coming; but I should’ve. She has already fully engaged in a relationship of her own, and now she must want the same for me. And, well, Jordan does look attractive, on the surface. But I usually see through everything. This is going to take some more observation.

One thing is certain though: I am not looking for a mate. Not one bit.

    After each of the moments I had with Noah fermented themselves in my brain, I realized I can’t risk my heart being stomped on. Like I said many times before, there aren’t many boys/guys like Noah; so if Jordan thinks he’ll win me over, he should think again. Not to sound arrogant or anything. I have just finally found my true worth in Christ. So, yeah; that’s how the story goes.

    Another thing, I’m curious to see how this field trip will play out. The sign of life is all around me, as we are nearing the entrance of Camassia Nature Preserve, and I can only feel free like I did that time on the park bench with Noah. At one point, I was a bit worried I’ll experience something traumatizing, like perhaps that of a camp. But I know that’s much less likely. Either way, I’m sure I’ll still enjoy myself immensely.

    I mean, come on: two nights in a hotel, and a nature setting? That sounds absolutely perfect to me!! All that’s really missing is a combination of my old friends with my new ones. Just imagine if Noah, Katara and Sonia were here with me. Oh, yeah. After the funeral, they’re probably all shaken up.

My mind snaps back into the moment as I realize Jordan is addressing me.

“Hey. You’re Marisa, right?”

“Yeah.”

“So, uh, would you like to be friends?”

“Sure. You’re Jordan, right?”

“Yes, that is correct. Anyway, I’ll see you ‘round.” With that, he winked and went back to his seat.

I don’t have any idea why, but for some reason I am very curious about him. It would seem that he’s quite mysterious.

“So, what do you think? I know you’re not looking for a relationship now, but you can always make new friends.” Angel says.

“I mean, I guess. But I don’t really want him getting the wrong idea, if you know what I mean.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that! I’ve got your back, you’ll be just fine! So, you should totally go for it!”

“Ehh. We’ll see. I just don’t know yet.” is all I could say.

Just then, we finally pulled into the entrance of Camassia Nature Preserve. I have to admit, the inside looks a bit less exciting and exotic than the outside. But it still looks enticing. The bus came to a screeching halt, then everyone slowly filed out of the vehicle. As I looked around me, I could see I was not the only one fascinated by and in awe of my surroundings.

However, after one or two final ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’s, a hush came over us, as a tall, slender black-indian woman with a strong Caribbean accent strolled over to where we were. She soon introduced herself as our trail guide and overall “teen-sitter”. And though I tried to focus on what she was saying(which was probably important), a rapid and deeply vivid memory came to my mind. A picture. Of someone important. For a moment I couldn’t place the person… But…

Of course! My childhood 4th grade best friend. She looked exactly like my childhood 4th grade best friend, Nickayla. For a moment, I stood there in a daze, such a delicate time in my life rushing back into my mind like a door being overrun by uninvited guests. But then, I immediately warmed up to her because of how nice that time in my life  was.

“... well, I guess that’s about all the introductions! Not nearly all the information, but we’ll have fun learning and understanding, as long as we work things out together.”

Murmurs of disappointment at the talk of work echoed throughout the space.

“BUT, I do have one last thing to ask you. Right after a test to see if anyone was truly paying attention. It should be super easy, since I just went through the meet-and-greeting. Who knows what my name is? The one I go by?”

I glanced at my friends and classmates/10th grade peers to see them all frowning in thought. Then [the tour guide] said,

“Bonus points if you know the last name in addition to what I go by.”
Welp. There’s no way I would be able to guess something crazy specific like that.

Jordan and Samuel both raised their hands at that moment. Samuel got picked. “Satire Stylk?” He said more like a half-sentence, half-question than a full-on question.

“That is… correct! Now, all I want to know is, are y’guys excited? If yes, let’s get ready to ruuumble!!”

Jordan clapped Samuel on his right shoulder; I guess, to celebrate him getting the question right. Simultaneously, everyone cheered to show their answer to the actual question: ‘are y’guys excited?’ I know I was.

Sashelle and Carissa turned to hug me in anticipation of the rest of the field trip. I returned the hug, while I saw Dev and Angel in the corner of my eye sitting on a bench adorned with beautiful flowers; I’m glad they were enjoying their alone time. Long story short, the day came, and went just as swiftly. We walked trails for a while, then took a break for lunch, and ended it all off with stargazing together as the 10th grade.