We Are Meant To Be

Club Interruption: Looky What I See

Kati's POV:

You know that moment in dramas when the best friend is caught with their mouth open in shock? In cartoons it's when the jaw drops to the floor like the chin suddenly became heavier than Thor's hammer. That's me as Crystal tells us about how she caught Ming and Yo having a... what would you call that? A mutual wank? But it sounded like Yo got a handjob while Ming got himself off... damn, aside from being hot, that needs an easy name for future reference. Regardless, Crystal had perfect timing for a toilet trip. Who did she save in a previous life to be that lucky? And why can't I have some of that luck? I look at our group and they all seem as bored as I am, just sitting on the sand. I know we're internet friends but c'mon guys, we don't have to fulfill the nerd stereotype and sit on our arses all day. This is supposed to be a holiday!

"Let's go explore," I suggest.

"Sure, what did you have in mind?" Crystal asks.

"Well, there's supposed to be this gorgeous waterfall nearby, and I bet the hike will be nice too." It may have been one of the key features for me being so enthusiastic about this place when we were all trying to decide where to meet. It's hard, being seven friends from six different countries. Not only is the distance between countries a factor, but the different economies means that holidaying is easier for some of us than others. Not that it was difficult to decide on Thailand: most of our writing is set in Thailand so we're claiming this trip as a "research" trip rather than a pure vacation. It doesn't save us money at all, but it does make it easier to justify when loading down the credit card.

"Hike.  As in: walking a far distance?" Lisa doesn't sound at all excited about the prospect.

"Oh come on it'll be fun.  How many times are you going to do this ever?" I ask.

"Well I'm hoping to keep that number at zero." She replies.

"Shut up.  We're going. You're coming with." Rising to my feet, I brush sand off my arse, make a mental note to eat less at the hotel buffet, and then stare at the others until they slowly stand. We all look at Lisa, who is the only one left sitting.

"Fine." She says and actually pouts. Cute. If she was half her age, or a character in one of our fan fictions.

We head back to the resort and change before setting out. I lead us up the third walking trail: when I was asking questions this morning, the concierge told me about the third path. It's not as clearly marked, he'd said with a grin, but he'd assured me that the scenery was even better because fewer people disturbed the wildlife along that trail. If even a fraction of Crystal's luck rubbed off on us, then we'd possibly see some parrots, or even a monkey, that was truly wild and not half tamed. Maybe. We weren't actually going too far from the resort so the chances were low but remember how good Crystal's luck had been? I was desperate to see animals, that I'd previously only seen in zoos, in their natural environment.

The hike is beautiful; the rainforest is lush and green and smells like new life, and even Lisa is having a good time despite the bugs. Enjoying the view doesn't stop her complaining about the mozzies though. Eventually, Filo snaps off a palm frond for her to use as a fan to keep the critters away from her legs. We're chatting, or trying to considering we've already walked further than most of us usually do and I'm ashamed to say I'm one of the ones panting already, when a scream splits the air.

We stop. They say that monkeys scream sometimes but that sounded human. Is someone in trouble? A second scream makes the leaves above us shake and.... nope. That is not a pained scream.

"Oh God Forth!!!" That's Kit's voice.  Damn it's echoing through the entire area.

We all stare at each other for a moment.