𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚊𝚑𝚊𝚔𝚒 | 𝚓𝚊𝚡 𝚡 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛

remembrance and diaries

I blinked open my eyes, seeing nothing but a field of pink before I realized that I had my face pressed against Jax's chest. Last night's events came rushing to my head as I remembered where I was and why I was here.

Blush spread across my cheeks, and it was lucky that Jax was still asleep or he would've teased me for it. Carefully, trying not to wake him, I wriggled out of his grasp, admiring his sleeping face and wishing I had a camera to document it, before slipping quietly out into the hallway.

Light flooded through, nearly blinding me, a drastic difference from Jax's cool, quiet room. I made my way to the main room, where Kinger and Zooble were already up and eating breakfast.

I greeted them with a yawn. "Good morning," I said, taking a seat and observing this morning's food choices. "Where are the others?" Zooble rolled their eyes, stabbing a fork into a pile of pancakes. "Still sleeping. Pomni had a sleepover with Ragatha last night, so they should be in Ragatha's room."

Briefly, a wave of jealousy coursed through my body. Pomni...she was also new, right? Why does Ragatha treat her better than me? I felt left out. Tears threatened to form in my eyes, but I managed to hide it, ducking my head low so no one could see my face.

I was soon disturbed from my thoughts, however, by the sound of a chair beside me. I looked over and came face-to-face with Jax's signature smirk as he sat himself down in the spot next to me. 

"Hey, newbie. Why didn't you wake me up - what's wrong?" I was confused for a few seconds before I realized Jax had seen the tears dripping down my face. I blushed before quickly wiping them away, muttering out a quick "nothing".

Jax frowned, but didn't question it further as Caine swept into the room, brandishing his cane. "Good morning, my superstars! I've got a thrilling new adventure for you today- where are Pomni and Ragatha?" he asked.

I glanced around, noticing that me, Jax, Kinger, Ragatha, and even Gangle, who I didn't hear approach, were gathered, but Pomni and Ragatha were nowhere to be found.

Caine snapped his fingers, ignoring the eye roll he received from Zooble, and suddenly Pomni and Ragatha dropped from the sky, dressed in their pajamas. Pomni turned bright red from embarassment, running back to her room as Caine realized what he had done.

"They were having a sleepover," I called helpfully from my seat. "Maybe next time go to their room and knock politely?" I tried to make it sound not like an insult, but luckily for me Caine didn't lecture me on manners.

"Oh, sorry, my bad-" he nodded to Ragatha, who quickly scrambled to her feet and dashed off to her room to get changed. Everyone went back to normal as if nothing ever happened, stuffing their faces full of the tasteless but somehow still addicting food. 

Eventually Pomni and Ragatha came back, Pomni still looking traumatized, and even though Ragatha didn't show it, I could sense that she was dying from embarrassment. They awkwardly took a seat at the table, selecting food to dump on to their plates as Caine continued with his announcement.

"Today's thrilling new adventure will be..." he paused for a dramatic effect, which no one appreciated. "Just get on with it already." Jax said in a bored tone, tapping the table with his finger repeatedly. "...MAZE OF SECRETS!" Caine finished, both his eyes literally popping out of his head.

He looked expectantly at everyone, as if hoping for some kind of reaction, but all he received were blank stares. He coughed, trying to cover up the awkwardness before explaining, "The Maze of Secrets is a dangerous labyrinth with surprises at every turn! It's up to you, to work as a team, to escape!"

Zooble pushed their chair out, seemingly losing their appetite immediately. "Yeah, no." they said in a disgusted tone before walking back towards their room, and for once Caine didn't do anything to stop them.