Part 2

  Excitement!

  “Alright, students! Leave the bus one at a time—Woah!” Mr. Arlon quickly moved to the side as the whole class rushed swiftly to the bus door. Pushing against each other as the exit way becomes cramped and tight due to the class’ enthusiasm. Thomas had trouble leaving the bus at first, but he got the hang of it once most of his friends left the bus. He then leaps out from the exit with his eyes closed. He landed on the grassy earth with his sandals, opening his eyes to be greeted by many beautiful pine trees that peeked into the blue skies. The air he breathed was definitely different from the bus. While the bus had an air conditioner with that coffee-scented feel, the forest had this welcoming atmosphere that smelled like fresh-cut grass with the scent of pine leaves. ‘Nature Air’ is something that Thomas called it. He never liked that coffee-scented hanger that most cars and buses use. It makes him dizzy and gives him nausea.

  The class began to emit their chaotic excitement throughout the forest. To illustrate their chaotic behaviors, most of them would run around the place, chasing each other. And just out of nowhere, one of them started to punch one of the trees with a big smile on his lips. But luckily, no one was hurt at all.

  “FWEEEET!” The high-pitched sound was heard coming out from Mr Arlon’s whistle as he stepped out from the bus. Catching all of the class' attention as they all stopped on what they were doing recently.

  “Alright, kids! Line up properly!” Mr. Arlon ordered them. His students obediently follow his orders. Dashing through the air as they pushed the ground with their feet to gain some momentum.

  Unsurprisingly, Thomas was one of the kids who were punching the tree’s shaft. His ears were muffled by both of his thoughts and his actions of punching trees. He did not hear his teacher’s calling.

  “C’mon, Thomas! You’ll be left out if you don’t hurry up and join us!” Jason shouted at Thomas from afar with his squeaky voice as he joined the line as well. Thomas stopped when he heard Jason call his name. He turned around and saw his friends standing in a row, cheerfully. He was not with them. There was a sense of abandonment inside him. It made his whole body go goosebumps for a second. The distance between him and his friends made him feel that way. But he shook his head to escape the thought and tried to stay positive as he ran quickly to catch up. He ran towards his friends with a smile before he slowed down to join the line.

  As Thomas stood politely at the back of the line, a friend of Thomas who wore an orange shirt stood in front of him. That friend was Gio, widely known for his humor.

  “Hi, Gio!” Thomas touches his shoulder playfully. “Hey, Thomas,” Gio replied as he turned his back to face Thomas. “Man… The sun is too bright today. Hope that I don’t get sunburned!” The bright ball in the sky made Gio curl the sides of his lips back as he squinted his eyes.

  “I just can’t wait to enter this water park! It’s just too cool!” Thomas spoke out.

  “Same, Thomas. Oh yeah, I almost forgot!”

  Gio’s hand reaches through his pocket to pull out an item that made Thomas glare with his eyes.

  “I-Is that?—”

  “Yup! It’s the new JX4 Portable Console!”

  He holds his new console in the sky as if it were some sort of shiny trophy. Thomas, on the other hand, stared at the console with amusement in his eyes while he clenched both of his hands in excitement. Their friends are listening to their teacher explaining something, while these two boys are having a chat.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  “Wow! So can it play Soulbound Symphony?”

  “Thomas, this bad boy can play any game! Especially that 8-bit game that you always play. You gotta try more heavy games to use this console to the top!”

  “B-But Soulbound Symphony has five different endings with cute charact—”

  “Yeah yeah, I know! You’ve always talked about that game at school. Especially with that fifth-grade girl… What’s her name again?”

  “O-Oh! You mean Vi—”

  Their chatter was suddenly interrupted after Mr. Arlon snatched Gio’s console away from his hands. Gio’s expression was filled with shock to see his teacher take it with such easy movements that he could not decide if it was cool or just annoying for him.

  “H-Hey! Give it back!” Gio exclaimed.

  “I’ve already told you recently that you cannot bring toys or whatsoever inside the water park!” Mr. Arlon exclaimed back at him. The teacher then threw the console carefully inside his ‘Safe Keeping’ bag that he carries around.

  “No…” Gio whispered. His voice carries the weight of despair. His beloved console, freshly purchased, now rested in the custody of his teacher. His face, once etched with sadness, now bore the deeper lines of sorrow. Thomas felt a glimpse of sadness in Gio’s eyes. He knew that Gio was planning this moment and later to show off his new portable console. And seeing it being taken away that easily, he understood that.

  “C’mon, Gio. Cheer up!” Said Raoul as he patted his back. “Besides, we’re going to have fun inside the water park.”

  “Yeah, I guess so….” Gio replied as he tried his best to suppress all of his sadness.

  “Guys. I can’t keep telling you all the same thing over and over again.” Said Mr. Arlon with a hint of annoyance as he pinched the bridge of his nose. He then looks at all of them with eyes of both distrust and hope.

  “Look, you’re all in fourth grade now. You can’t just expect your parents or your teachers to handle everything. You’re all big boys now. You need to step up for the future ahead of you.”

  The words hung in the air, a gentle weight settling on their young shoulders. They understood—the safety net of parents and teachers wouldn’t always be there. Growing up was inevitable.

  “I know this ‘speech’ that I’m giving right now is kinda boring for all of you guys. But as your teacher, I’m telling you this because I care about you guys.” Said Mr. Arlon with his arms crossed.

  “What about as friends, sir?” Alex asked with a big smile on his face.

  “Hell no.” Mr. Arlon replied sarcastically. Then, laughter finally came out from the students’ dry throats. He couldn’t help but let out a small laugh while pinching the bridge of his nose.

  “Alright - alright,” The teacher spoke as he patted the air beneath his shoulders. “Let's just go inside the water park, shall we?” All of the boys then cheered widely before they began walking their way towards the water park’s entrance. They all couldn’t wait to discover what kind of happiness lies behind the splashy waters of Uprise Down.

  Considering Mr. Arlon’s words, Thomas felt neither discernment nor a desire to understand. He always thought that growing up is just an easy process. That it’ll just grow up with him over time. He wasn’t afraid of the idea, he was just avoiding being aware of it. He looked down at his feet as he followed his friends’ footsteps, staring deeply like the blurred eyes of an eagle. Kept thinking about Mr. Arlon’s words. But alas, he opened his mind and gave it the chance to think for once.

  “Maybe I’ll try to be more mature this time. Yeah! I can do that! I’m gonna set up plans and such. Yeah, yeah!”

  His mind jumped around his head in ecstasy.

  “But not now…”

  His heart whispered as it caressed the mind with gentle care,

  “We’ll grow later.”