Who Doesn't Love Mickey Mouse

Chapter 5

Back at Disney World at about ten in the morning, the group arrived at the Animal Kingdom, and the first place they wanted to stop at before lunch was the Na'vi River. Without Lightning Lane, it would've been a 90-minute wait in line, but thankfully, they had Lightning Lane and didn't have to worry about that. It was a nice peaceful ride through a rainforest setting. It was a ride that they'd never seen before, and it was definitely an enjoyable one.

Shortly before lunch, the heat was starting to get to everyone. Luckily they all carried bottles of water with them to stay hydrated, but it didn't change the fact that being out in 90-degree sunshine had its disadvantages. As they continued walking, trying to stay cool, they decided on the Flame Tree Barbecue for lunch.

After lunch, their next stop was Kilimanjaro Safari, a ride Aubrey and Chad were fond of since it had been around for years. Unfortunately, Chad had some bad memories about this ride from a previous trip.

"Hard to believe this ride still exists. It's been around, like, forever," Aubrey pointed out.

"According to my Google search, it's been around since 1998. Which means the last time I was here was when this ride opened," Chloe remembered.

"Is something wrong, Chad?" Aubrey asked, concerned.

"Okay. I've never told you this before, but this ride reminds me of the last time I was here," Chad admitted.

"Why? Did something bad happen?" Chloe asked, prompting a flashback.

"When I was thirteen, my parents and I went on this ride. There were a lot of bumps in the road of the trail, much to the point where the bumps nearly made me feel dizzy," Chad explained.

"Aww, I'm sorry. You were eventually okay, right?" Aubrey asked.

"Yeah. I bounced back after a few minutes," Chad replied.

"Well, we don't want Finn getting dizzy during this trip," Aubrey worried.

"Exactly! So, how about you and Chloe go on this ride, and I'll take Finn to the Festival of the Lion King?" Chad suggested.

"Okay. Come on, Aubrey; Let's check this out," Chloe said as she and Aubrey got into the Lightning Lane line for the ride.

"I'll text you when the show lets out. Come on, Finn...you're going to really like where we're going," Chad said as he and Finn headed off.

When the group joined up again, they decided the next place they wanted to go was the Discovery Island Trails. It was a tranquil walk around the Tree of Life. The trails reminded Finn of the first time his father took him to the zoo, even though the animals from the zoo were much different than these.

"This trail is so fascinating," Aubrey said, admiring the scenery.

"Yeah, it is," Chloe agreed.

"I've never seen animals like these before," Finn said in awe.

"Well, you're probably used to the ones we see at the zoo every time we go there," Chad added.

"Yeah. These are nice too," Finn said.

"How about we get some pictures of these animals, so you can remember what they look like?" Chad suggested.

"Yeah!" Finn said as the adults took out their phones and started taking pictures of each of the animals they passed throughout the trail.

After they reached the end of the trail, Chloe remarked, "Who would've thought there'd be so many amazing animals to discover?"

"I can't wait to tell everyone at school about them," Finn said.

"You and me both, kiddo," Aubrey agreed.

"We've still got a couple of hours before dinner. What do you say we have a look at what else is in store for us here?" Chad suggested.

"Good idea," Chloe said as the group continued walking around the park.

Later that evening, when they returned to their hotel room, Aubrey remembered reading that the Disney resorts offer cake delivery as long as it's ordered a few days in advance. Since the whole purpose of the trip was for Finn's birthday, it only made sense to get one ordered! She ordered the cake right away to make sure it would be delivered in enough time before they left.