The Thoughts Between Us // CHALEX

Twenty-Five

Charlie

As the afternoon approached, Justin and I continued walking towards the old shack where the football team had been hanging about since yesterday.

We thought that they would be there laughing their asses off now, as they successfully messed up the treasure hunt and maybe also scared Clay.

It was confusing at first to find our way through the forest, but we were relieved once we caught sight of the familiar buses that were parked near the highway. We knew it would take just ten minutes to go where the team might be.

"What do you think?" I ask Justin, following him on the small track leading between the trees. "Which wild animals would be residing here?"

"Wolves, for sure." He answered, without missing a beat. "Maybe bears too, I don't know. But let's hope we don't come across any. I've never faced a wild animal before."

"Chances are low that they will come near this area," I replied, looking around and keeping an eye on everything. "Dad told me this place is famous for camping. So animals don't exactly roam here."

"Good to know. The only time I ever saw any animal other than cats and dogs was when I had visited a zoo seven years ago."

There was a change of tone when he said that, a hint of sadness clear.

"Your mom took you?" I asked him, thinking he must be missing his mother. But he chuckled and gave me a look over his shoulder.

"Dude, my Mom had always been busy with her boyfriends and drugs to take time for me to visit a zoo."

Shit. I shouldn't have mentioned his mother. 

I knew he never had a good relationship with his mother. That's why when he needed a parent in court to bail him out, the Jensen family decided to adopt him. 

"Bryce... he and his family took me."

Oh.

"I'm sorry, Justin," I said, sprinting to keep up with his pace. "I shouldn't have asked."

"No, man." Justin chuckled again, giving me another glance. "You didn't know and there's no need to apologize. Besides, that was a good day to remember. I saw so many different animals."

"Yeah?" I asked, gladly changing the topic. "Which animal was your favorite?" 

"Panda. I mean, think about him! He has a perfect life set in front of him. Eat, sleep, repeat. What else to do?"

We both chuckled because it was true. A panda's life was actually better than a high school student's.

"But Tiger is a second close," Justin added, then shooked his head. "Liberty's pride."

"You should get an animal," I suggested, amused by this side of Justin. "To keep you company when you grow old."

"Let's not plan that further right now." He replied, and motioned towards something in the front. "We have some other important things to look after."

The wooden shack was now visible through the trees and we made our way there.

Surprisingly, no one seemed around the place because everything was quiet. We got on the front porch and I tried to see inside the place through the gaps in the windows but no one was inside.

Justin first rattled the rusted and useless metal bolt on the door, then pushed the door open to reveal an empty room.

"Shit," Justin stated, looking around the dirty place. "They're not here."