The Fused & The Muse Ch.5

 

London, England
Present Day
 

The whole class stood outside as Mr. Johnson took role. He counted the students one by one, making sure that no one would be left behind. I sat on a bench with Alyssa, playing with the fog that I breathed out. "Yo, where's Josh? You think he flaked?" Alyssa looked around, staring at all the students surrounding the vans. "Maybe he changed his mind?"

"Josh Kingston," Mr. Johnson called out. He looked up from his paper and made eye contact with me. I looked away, unsure of why he thought I knew where Josh was. Alyssa shrugged and picked up her luggage. "I'm here!" Everyone directed their attention to Josh. He just got off his car after parking it. I saw Edward's car at the parking lot too. *Did they both just arrive?*

Edward got off his car, but something was off about him. He didn't seem his usual self. I couldn't stand but to worry. What happened? I stood up from the bench when I saw Edward walking toward the entrance of the school. He passed by me but there was no word between us. He avoided eye contact with me and rushed to get inside. My heart felt needles piercing through. Josh made his way to us and smiled. "Sorry I'm late." His friends followed after him. "It's fine. We're just glad you're here now," Alyssa said. He stared at me, waiting for me to say something. I stayed silent, still bothered by how Edward acted.

Mr. Johnson stood on top of a bench to make an announcement. "Alright, everybody listen up! I will say this once and once only, so pay close attention." The students gathered around him to hear him better. "I hope that you've all packed well. This is going to be quite a long trip and I expect you all to behave accordingly. There will be some stops for bathroom and food breaks. If you were to have any questions, you all have my number. A safe journey to us all. See you on the flip side," he clicked his tongue and snapped his fingers. We all just shook our head and he laughed.

I pulled my luggage behind me and trailed after the boys. We walked over to a van and placed our luggages in the trunk. I lifted my luggage, which was almost twice my weight. I almost fell back from carrying it, but Josh held onto me. "What'd you pack?" He chuckled. "Food..." My cheeks began to heat up. His friends closed the trunk after and we all walked in the van. There were seven seats open in the van. Three in the back, three in the middle, and one in the front, next to the driver. Josh tilted his head to his friends and they filled the seats in the back and front. I was walking in first, with Alyssa following after, but Josh held my hand. I looked back at him and Alyssa laughed to herself.

"I'll just..." Alyssa swerved around me and sat in the corner seat. My heart began to beat faster. I'd never actually held hands with a guy before. "Do you want middle or corner seat?" I blinked at him then glanced behind me at Alyssa. "I'll sit in the middle..." He kept a hold of my hand, even as we sat down. I bit my lip and stared at his hands holding mine. Alyssa raised her brows at me and smiled. The car finally began to move and followed the two vans in front of it. The boys were playing games at first but after a few hours, the van got quiet. Alyssa was already sleeping and seeing her sleep made me want to sleep too. I jumped a bit when I felt Josh intertwine his hands with mine. I looked over at him but he was just staring outside the window. I gulped my saliva and closed my eyes. Pretty soon, I was sleeping too.
 

The road became bumpier and the van began to jump. I opened my eyes slowly. "Morning, sunshine," Alyssa cooed. Josh turned his head to look at me. My eyes grew and I popped my head up once I realized that I was resting my head on his shoulder. "Where are we?" Alyssa looked outside the window. "I think we're here..."

The van stopped and Mr. Johnson waved to the driver. The driver tipped his hat and we all got off the car. We took our luggages with us and the vans all parked away in the parking lot. "Gather 'round children and follow me!" It was gloomy and the clouds seemed to have turned darker around the castle. It looked exacty how you'd picture an old, creepy castle to look. The trees surrounding it were winter trees—their leaves had already shed. We walked to the front of the castle and a man came to greet us. He looked our age, skinny and tall. He had big-boxed glasses and his hair was completely combed back. "Why Heeellloooo~" He shook hands with Mr. Johnson.
 

"Welcome! To your darkest nightmare!!!" He held his arms out and flashed a creepy smile. The students showed no reaction. He cleared his throat and laughed. "My name is Jerome Thomlinson. I will be your tour guide on this trip. I am bummed that we only get to spend one day together...but any-who, let's just enjoy the time we do have. As you may all be aware, you will be spending the night inside the rooms of this very castle. Isn't that just fantastic?! It's not everyday that you wake up to be sleeping in a castle." He nodded his head while smiling, as he stood with his hands holding his waist. "There are a couple of rules, however. So listen and listen well. There will be no touching of any items inside the castle. And there is to be no one out of their rooms after 11:00pm. Capish?"

He searched our faces and clapped his hands together. "Alrrriigggtt. So, let's have your items brought in your rooms and meet me back down here at 1 sharp. You will all be escorted to your rooms. There will be an all-girls room and an all-boys room. Take your pick." He laughed to himself again. "I'm kidding by the way. Alright, go on then. It is now...12:32, so see you in 28 minutes!"

The students rushed to the rooms. I've never realized just how big castles were until now, now that I'm actually in one. There was something eerie about the atmosphere of this castle though—I mean, it was after all, the castle of Vlad the Impaler. But I felt it...somehow...I felt the pain of the souls lost in these walls. "Neat!" Aly popped my train of thought. I looked at her and she was touching some of the items inside the room. I saw Taylor rush over to her, pointing her fingers. "You know you're not thupothed to do that. Thethe are very prethiouth and valuable itemth that you and your dithcuthting fingerth thouldn't touch." Alyssa scrunched her face, listening to Taylor’s lisp. "Whatevs." She placed the book back down on the table. "And you!" I walked backwards when Taylor stomped her way over to me. "You thtay away from the Kingthtonth. I'm warning you!"

Taylor walked away and met back with her friends. Alyssa crossed her arms and shrugged. "She probably likes the Kingstons. I mean, who doesn't? Don't listen to her." I sighed. "Come on. Let's head back downstairs to meet up with Jerome~" Alyssa poked my arm teasingly. I laughed at her and shook my head. "Let's go."

"Different roads sometimes lead to the same castle."

-George R.R. Martin