Adventures: a Monstercat Fanfic

Chapter 23

The next morning, I woke up to my phone buzzing like crazy. For some reason, it seemed that everyone on Monstercat had gotten my phone number, and were repeatedly texting me 'good luck's and 'happy release day's and 'you are going to die from the scrutiny of the fanbase's. The last one was only an isolated incident. And, as I kind of figured, it was from Leo. He's such a loving, supportive person. Really supportive.

I didn't have much time to read through the messages, since I was busy helping pack up for the long journey back. The morning flew by quickly, with goodbyes being exchanged, boxes being packed, and other 'end of journey' stuff. Soon, our happy little group left the grounds of the forest.

"It was such a great time there," Karma sighed. Her, Braken, Veela, and I had all taken Koinu's car. Something in me was slightly nervous about us four being in the same car together for a few hours. Maybe it was the fact that all four of us weren't human, and Braken, Veela, and Karma knew that I wasn't human, so strange things were bound to happen. However, nothing strange had happened as of far (five minutes into the journey), so there was a good chance that it would continue to be that way. In response to Karma's comment, Veela softly said,

"Yeah. Maybe we could go next year. If Mike doesn't take us, we could all get tickets and go together."

"But I'd be the only guy with you," Braken complained, "I'd be lonely and sad. Could I forcefully drag along Leo?"

"If he's not forced into babysitting Gabe again, then sure," Karma replied. Braken nodded, then said,

"You know, I'm pretty sure that there won't be a family reunion in France next year. If Leo's gotten the genes that he has from that side of his family, it's a miracle that they managed to arrange a family reunion at all. And it'll be even more of a miracle if they manage to do so next year."

"Good point," Karma mumbled. Her responses had gotten a little quieter, and she was staring at the road, but her eyes seemed to be staring off into space. I could hear her humming something under her breath as she gripped onto the steering wheel. She almost seemed to be feeling stressed. Veela must have sensed it too, since she leaned forward and asked,

"Are you alright? You seem tense. And don't say 'no, I'm fine', because you're not. When you are feeling something, everyone can see that you're feeling it."

Karma said nothing for a very long time, long enough that Braken began to nervously hum, then she finally muttered,

"Call me crazy, or call me paranoid, but something in me is saying that something bad is going to happen before we get to our campsite. I've been having this feeling since that monster was at the forest."

"And just when that had faded into the category of 'it happened, but I'm forgetting it', you bring it back, full force," I muttered, "Thanks."

"You're welcome," Karma sarcastically replied, "But anyways, I've just been having this bad feeling. It's just kind of a 'imminent doom' sort of feeling, you know?"

"Imminent doom?" Braken asked, a mildly startled look on his face. I was feeling a little nervous, and I wasn't sure if Karma was being her sarcastic self when she told us that she was feeling 'imminent doom', or if she was actually being serious. Either way, it did not give me a good feeling of security. Veela leaned forward and politely asked,

"Could you please elaborate on the 'imminent doom'? That was a little confusing, and I'm not too sure what you meant."

"I meant what I said," Karma replied, "I feel like there's imminent doom. Like that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach right before a jump scare in a movie. Like 'I know this is coming, but I'm still going to be scared crapless when it happens'. That sort of a wonderful feeling. Nothing like a little paranoia to rattle your nerves before a big trip, am I right?"