CHAPTER FOURTEEN JUNE 18, 2020   After checking out of their last Airbnb and loading their luggage into the SUVs, the group drove to Point Loma Café for their final breakfast together. The mood surrounding them was somewhat somber, the knowledge that they would all be separating that evening hanging over them like a dark gray rain cloud.   Unable to stand seeing her friends deflate like this, Lucy clapped her hands together and grinned widely. “Cheer up, guys! We still have the entirety of today together, na,” she cheerfully pointed out. “Let’s enjoy the time we have left together to the fullest and end on a high note, na ka!”   Elliot leaned over to press a loving kiss against her cheek while everyone else all nodded and brightened up. “You’re such a gem, Ru,” her boyfriend murmured adoringly in her ear.   Lucy smiled and gave him a quick peck before returning to her breakfast.   Once they finished eating and paying for the meal, the group returned to the cars and drove to their final stop: San Diego Zoo. Instead of breaking off into smaller groups as they usually did, they all decided to move as one big group this time in order to maximize the remaining hours they had together. Russell and Kallie purchased tickets for everyone before motioning them to the entrance, and they all walked into the grandiose zoo with awe in their eyes.   The group headed west first into the Discovery Outpost zone. Since the Children’s Zoo was currently closed for renovation, they headed into the Reptile House first.   Upon entering the building, which had the image of a snake decorating the top of the doorway, Lucy and Elliot took their time curiously looking at each tank and exhibit. There were a variety of snakes, including a massive king cobra, a mang mountain viper, and dozens of different rattlesnakes. Most of them were coiled up and resting in damp, shadowy corners. Others were draped around small moss-covered logs, their forked tongues flickering lazily.   When the couple reached the green anaconda tank, Lucy noticed that there were two of them lounging together in a shallow pond. They were loosely draped over each other and one’s head was resting on top of the other. After reading the sign in front of the exhibit, Lucy squealed softly and motioned for Elliot to take a closer look.   “What’s up, Ru?” he asked as he turned his attention away from a tank of alligator snapping turtles.   “Look at how cute they are, El,” she excitedly whispered to him. “They’re a couple, na!”   “Oh, are they?” He peered closer and watched them nap.   Lucy nodded and pointed at the sign detailing fun facts about this specific pair of green anacondas. “They’ve been together for over ten years now, na ka. Isn’t that so sweet?”   “Who knew snakes could be so romantic?” Elliot joked as he wrapped an arm around Lucy and pulled her to his side. “They’ve been together longer than a good number of married couples nowadays.”   “We should follow their example, na,” the Thai girl said with a wide grin.   “Of course we will,” Elliot reassured her as they continued watching the green anacondas. “And our marriage will outlast theirs ten times more,” he sweetly declared.   Lucy giggled and lightly bumped his hip before they left the exhibit to continue roaming around the Reptile House.   The final exhibit that the couple visited belonged to a small group of Gila monsters. The giant orange-and-black patterned lizards were scattered around the exhibit, minding their own business. One hid in the shadows, its colorful snout just barely visible. Another ambled around the rocky, desert-like terrain. However, the Gila monster that caught Lucy’s attention was the one that was deftly cracking open a hard-boiled egg. Once the shell was shucked off, the lizard’s tongue wrapped around the soft white egg and snapped it into its mouth, swallowing it whole. Lucy recorded the entire thing on her phone and then played it for Elliot, the couple laughing together in amazement.   After exiting the Reptile House, the group walked past the Wegeforth Bowl, which was the zoo’s outdoor amphitheater for shows, and reached the entrance to the Reptile Walk. The metal gateway was decorated with the image of an alligator and many families were taking pictures underneath it.   “Let’s take a group picture too!” Bianca suggested before herding them under the archway as soon as a family of four finished their photo session. After enlisting the help of a kind middle-aged man and handing her camera to him, Bianca took her spot in between Lucas and Lucy, and they all smiled brightly as the shutter clicked.   “We’re taking as many group pictures as we can today,” Chanel said as Bianca briefly left to retrieve her camera. “I don’t wanna hear any complaints from anyone. We have to capture every single moment, since this is the last day.”   Estee nodded in agreement. “I’ll be shooting candids throughout the day and if anyone wants any pictures with any animals, just let me know!”   As soon as they began strolling down the Reptile Walk, they came across the tortoise pen to the left. Giant tortoises were sitting around the desert-like habitat, some of them sleeping while others looked around at the mass of people staring back at them. Lucy giggled loudly when she noticed one of the African spurred tortoises staring directly at Elliot and then opening its mouth to yawn.   Just as they were about to move to the next exhibit, one of the zoo’s wildlife care specialists arrived and asked if anyone wanted to enter the Galápagos tortoise zone. Amelie and Kallie’s eyes gleamed at the prospect, and Chloe also perked up at the suggestion. However, a group of children all shot their hands up and began shouting, “Me! Me! Me!” so the wildlife care specialist carefully herded them inside first.   She handed each of them some fresh kale leaves and carefully led them to feed the Galápagos tortoises. The kids all stared in awe as the giant tortoises gradually inched towards them and snapped the leaves from their hands. Some of the bolder children bent down and the shells, under the wildlife care specialist’s guidance. And their eyes sparkled like stars upon petting the massive reptiles.   After a few minutes, the wildlife care specialist ushered the children out of the zone and asked if anyone else wanted to feed the Galápagos tortoises. Amelie, Kallie, Chloe, and Lucy were chosen to enter the pen this time, and the four girls excitedly followed the older woman in. They were given some bok choy and Lucy readily held out a leaf to the nearest tortoise.   However, before she knew it, all of the Galápagos tortoises were angling their necks towards her and trying to snap the leaves from her hands.   “They’re drawn to your shirt color,” the wildlife care specialist explained with a laugh, causing Lucy to look down at her bright red top. “It reminds them of flowers, which they love to eat.”   “Aw man, I should’ve worn a red shirt today too,” Kallie said with a rueful smile, unable to capture the attention of any of the tortoises since she was wearing black.   “They won’t try to eat me, right, na?” Lucy asked as she quickly dropped the bok choy leaves into the tortoises’ open mouths.   “You’ll be fine. If you’d like, you can scratch their necks as well,” the wildlife care specialist offered as she also tossed some dandelion greens to the tortoises.   Amelie was the first to try and her grin widened even more as the tortoise eased into her touch. “This is so cool!”   Kallie and Lucy bent down to pet some of the other tortoises, mindfully following the wildlife care specialist’s instructions on how to safely scratch their necks. The Thai girl gently the long wrinkly neck of the Galápagos tortoise that was closest to her and it responded by stretching its neck out even further so that she had more to pet. “You’re so cute, na,” Lucy cooed to the tortoise as she continued scratching its neck.   “Chloe, come try!” Kallie said when she noticed the Korean-American girl hanging back. “This is such a rare experience! You don’t wanna miss it!”   With some urging from the others outside of the zone and some reassurance from the wildlife care specialist, Chloe gingerly approached one of the tortoises and its neck. When the tortoise nudged her hand, as if it wanted her to scratch a certain part of its neck, she smiled and shifted her hand to fulfill its unspoken request.   The entire time, Estee and Bianca gleefully snapped dozens of photos of the four girls interacting with the Galápagos tortoises until they stepped out.   The other enclosures by the tortoise pen housed various smaller reptiles in a similar desert-like space. There were Jamaican iguanas and Grand Cayman blue iguanas resting on giant rocks. And there were Panamint alligator lizards and giant horned lizards skittering across the sand.   Across the walkway from the tortoise pen were the amphibian exhibits. They were more leafy and moist to accommodate the animals. Lucy and Elliot made a game out of trying to spot a frog, toad, or newt of every color. The mantellas, Panamanian golden frogs, and poison frogs were incredibly easy to spot due to their bright-colored skin. The colorful, spotted Kaiser’s newts were also easily found amidst the arid scrubs in their habitat. Meanwhile, the couple almost missed the Surinam toad, which had its arms splayed out in front of its flat body to mimic a brown leaf floating in the water of its tank.   At the bend of the Reptile Walk was a giant pond filled with around a dozen turtles, terrapins, and a few gharials. The reptiles were slowly swimming around the deep pond or soaking up some sunlight on the shore. While checking the signage at the front, Lucy was able to locate a narrow-headed softshell turtle, a painted terrapin, and a striped-neck turtle.   “Help me find the General, El,” the Thai girl said, tugging Elliot’s hand while pointing at a picture of a Malaysian giant turtle. “He’s the only one I haven’t found yet, na.”   Her boyfriend instantly obliged and slightly leaned over the railing with her to look at all of the shelled reptiles living in the pond. It took them a few minutes, their eyes constantly going back-and-forth between the sign and the pond, but Elliot soon spotted the huge turtle as it emerged from what looked like a cove in the water. “He must’ve been hiding,” Elliot commented with a chuckle.   “I’m so happy he’s living here now, na ka,” Lucy said as she happily watched the General glide smoothly through the water. “This is so much better than ending up in an Asian food market,” she added, referring to the short blurb on the sign that detailed the turtle’s circumstances before arriving at the San Diego Zoo.   Elliot nodded with a lopsided smile. “It that not every animal gets saved like the General did, but at least this is a step in the right direction.”   Lucy nodded in agreement as she cast one last glance at the Malaysian giant turtle before moving aside to let a group of young kids look at the pond. She and Elliot then moved to the tanks containing some West African dwarf crocodiles and fly river turtles. The reptiles swam around the massive logs in their habitats and occasionally came up to the glass before dipping away after a few seconds.   Past the pond and the tanks was the Chinese alligator’s spacious habitat. Lucy’s expression slightly fell when she read about its endangered status due to shrinking wetlands being converted into construction sites. The Thai girl then gazed around the marsh-like habitat and craned her neck, trying to find the reptile. “Where is it, El?” Lucy asked her boyfriend.   Elliot also scanned the area until his gaze finally alighted on a short, dark gray snout peeking out from a patch of grass. “Over there, under that tree,” her boyfriend told Lucy. When she was still unable to locate the Chinese alligator, Elliot lifted her hand and pointed it at the hidden animal. “Do you see it now, Ru?”   The Thai girl squinted in that direction and was finally able to discern a set of sharp, bright white teeth against the foliage. The alligator was snoozing in the shade, camouflaged against the shadows and the leaves. Deciding that it deserved some peace and quiet, Lucy tugged her boyfriend away from the Chinese alligator’s habitat and the couple leisurely walked down the rest of the Reptile Walk.   As they waited for the others to finish looking at the reptiles, Lucy and Elliot took a quick water break before spending the rest of the time taking cute pictures with each other.   Once everyone was grouped up again, they all walked out of the Discovery Outpost zone and headed up to the Lost Forest zone. Right at the entrance was a small lake filled with dozens of bright pink American flamingos. They were all either pecking at the ground, pecking at the water, pecking at each other, or pecking at themselves.   The group then swerved to the right and began walking up the Orangutan Trail. There was a giant jungle gym for the orangutans and the siamangs along the trail, and Lucy’s eyes brightened when they landed on the black-furred gibbons. “Siamangs are native to Thailand, na ka!” she excitedly told Elliot. “I never imagined I’d see them here in San Diego!”   There were three siamangs playing in the jungle gym and foraging for fruit. According to the sign in front of the play area, Unkie was the father and Eloise was the mother of their young daughter named Selamat. Eloise and Selamat were hungrily tearing apart some spinach leaves they had found earlier while Unkie adroitly swung through the jungle gym, occasionally disrupting the orangutans.   Lucy clapped with joy as she watched the cute siamang family and laughed loudly when the adult male orangutan named Satu tried to swat Unkie away from his food stash.   There were three other orangutans also living in the exhibit, all of them female, and they were currently scattered around the jungle gym. Indah was poking at the man-made termite mound in the habitat with a stick. Karen was jumping from sway pole to sway pole, almost as if she were performing for the crowd that was gathered around the exhibit. Meanwhile, the youngest and smallest named Aisha was wearing a burlap sack and staring curiously at a young girl from across the glass. The young girl squealed ecstatically at their close proximity, pressing up even closer against the glass, and waved vigorously at the orangutan. The orange-red ape merely tilted her head curiously while she continued observing the human girl.   Elliot eventually had to pull Lucy away before they were left behind by the others and the Thai girl pouted slightly, causing her boyfriend to bop her nose with his pointer finger. “We’ve got a lot more to see,” he reminded her as they followed the rest of the group.   The end of the Orangutan Trail led to the Parker Aviary, which was filled with dozens of colorful tropical birds. It was quite noisy inside the aviary, due to the many shrill bird calls, and Lucy almost didn’t know where to look first.   She didn’t recognize most of the birds until she and Elliot came across the toucan. But even then, aside from the typical toco toucan, there were several habitats that housed other species of toucans. The Thai girl hadn’t known there were so many types until this moment, so the couple took their time reading all of the interesting facts about the crimson-rumped toucanets, the curl-crested aracaris, and the ivory-billed aracaris that also lived in the Parker Aviary.   “Alex, come over here!” Karter suddenly called, wildly waving his hands for the Chinese-American boy to join him. “This bird is called the -of-the-rock!” he continued, laughing hysterically.   “Dude, are you serious?” Alexander also erupted into raucous laughter upon reading the name plate of the Andean -of-the-rock, and the orange and brown birds began to wildly flit around their habitat because of the noise.   “I swear to god, you two are the most immature people on the entire planet,” Kallie said, shaking her head in exasperation as she pulled the two boys away before smiling apologetically at any parents who were looking at them with annoyance.   Deciding that it was best for them to leave before Alexander and Karter accidentally got them all kicked out, the group quickly walked through the rest of the Parker Aviary and continued up the Aviary Trail. Lucy hummed happily as she and Elliot walked hand-in-hand, swinging their arms in between them. As crazy as some of their antics were, she was going to miss this massive group of friends and all of the memories they had made over the past two weeks.   And seeing how much most of them had progressed in their love lives throughout the course of the road trip also greatly warmed her heart. Knowing how much happiness Elliot brought into her life ever since they had made their relationship official back in November, Lucy was ecstatic that her friends were able to indulge in the same happiness with their own partners and she only wished that they didn’t have to part so soon when there were so many other adventures to be had with all of them. Time had passed so quickly and the Thai girl didn’t think she was ready to let all of them go at the end of the day.   Elliot glanced over at her and searched her gaze before quietly asking, “Is something bothering you, Ru?”   Lucy sent her boyfriend a half-smile, knowing that there was no point in trying to conceal her feelings when he could read her like a book. “I’m just going to really miss being with everyone after this, na ka,” she answered. “I know we’ll still see some of them at school this fall, but we might not meet up like this ever again.”   “The possibility still exists though,” Elliot gently pointed out. “If there’s one thing I learned from being with you, Ru, it’s to always see the glass half full,” he continued with a loving smile. “Remember, positivity only, na ka!”   The Thai girl laughed at her boyfriend’s imitation of her saying one of her favorite sentences and felt some of the gloom dissipate. “You’re so sweet, El,” she said, pressing a chaste kiss against his cheek. “We’re definitely inviting all of them to our wedding and we’ll make sure they’re all there, rain or shine. That’ll be one of our big reunions, na.”   Elliot beamed. “They’ll be the first ones to get invitations. Aside from our families, of course.”   “They are family at this point, na ka,” she said, warmth blooming across her chest again.   Lucy never would have imagined it two weeks ago when the road trip had first started, but now she could confidently say this entire group of twenty amazing people was her family.   And family was forever.       “Okay, after taking a quick break at the Benchley Plaza,” Jeremy panned the camera around the forest-themed plaza, “we’re going to walk down Monkey Trail and see what animals live along this road!”   He was busily recording the last day of their trip, knowing that this would be the last chance for him to capture footage of all of them at the same time. Even though he knew that he was giving himself exponentially more work by recording so much footage today, Jeremy couldn’t bring himself to put down the camera, lest he miss a single precious moment that he wanted to look back on later.   To minimize his focus on being an internet personality and maximize his time with his friends for this final day, Jeremy had decided to only speak to the camera during the transitions in order to help his future self categorize all of the footage. When he edited the video in the future, he would add some voice over to better explain what was happening on screen. Otherwise, he was only filming what he saw, as if it were a nature documentary.   The first major exhibit along the Monkey Trail was called Gorilla Tropics. There was a massive crowd of people viewing the troop currently residing outside, so Jeremy had to switch off his camera and stow it away to avoid any possible mishaps from anyone accidentally bumping into him. He also pulled Ripley closer to him, shielding her from the pushy crowd, and they patiently waited for an opportunity to slip to the front.   When a family of four walked away, Jeremy hastily led Ripley to the gap they left before anyone else could and found a decent view of the gorilla habitat. There were three gorillas currently lounging around the lush habitat. Paul Donn, the head of the troop, was happily munching on some leaves while Jessica, his mate, was playing with Denny, their three-year-old son.   “We’re gonna be a happy family like that one day,” Jeremy said, smiling wistfully at the gorillas.   Ripley raised an eyebrow at his comment and lightly bumped his hip. “Who says we’re lasting that long?”   Jeremy instantly faced her, eyes wide like saucers and bottom lip slightly quivering. “Did I do something wrong, Rip? Are you mad at me?” His mind began racing with memories of the past week, trying to pinpoint anything he had done that might have upset his girlfriend.   “I’m just messing with you, Jer,” Ripley replied with a saucy smirk. “Did you forget that I already told you we’re in it for the long haul? I’m not going to back-track on that now.”   He let out a deep sigh of relief and smiled sheepishly at her. “I guess I’m feeling kinda jumpy since this is the last day of the road trip and we might not see everyone else for a while.”   “I’m sure we’ll meet up again one day,” Ripley said, shrugging nonchalantly. “Change is constant, as contradictory as that sounds, but so is paranormal activity in the realm of the living.”   Jeremy laughed and nodded in agreement as they left the gorilla exhibit. “Yeah, you’re right. This isn’t the end.”   On the other side of the Monkey Trail was another large outcropping filled with massive boulders and rope hammocks. Nine bonobos were scattered around the habitat, either playing on the sway poles or climbing on the rocks. Across the bonobos’ habitat lived a male crowned eagle and if it hadn’t been off of the trail that they were currently walking, Jeremy would’ve gone over to get a closer look at the powerful-looking bird.   Just below Gorilla Tropics were some Australian freshwater crocodiles and a male slender-snouted crocodile named George. The group managed to arrive at the slender-snouted crocodile’s habitat just in time to see a wildlife care specialist using a pole with a color-coded target at the end to feed the reptile. “Time to eat, George!” the wildlife care specialist called, causing the crocodile to snap his jaws in anticipation.   When the wildlife care specialist tossed several fish into the water, George made a beeline for the food and gulped it all in mere seconds. Since he was hunting in the front of the habitat, they had a clear view of the reptile eating his meal and Vanessa jumped back a bit, not expecting the crocodile to come so close. Leon comfortingly pulled her against him while Jeremy zoomed in on George, who was sniffing for more fish.   Next to George lived a pair of Wolf’s monkey siblings, Amara and Dru, and a pair of pygmy hippopotamuses, Elgon and Francesca, in a shared habitat. They were separated from the slender-snouted crocodile by a high wall of glass. Dru was currently riding atop Elgon’s back and rapidly scratching his tail, to everyone’s amusement, while Amara swam beside Francesca in the water.   “Monkeys can swim that well?” Jason asked in confusion as he watched the guenon glide through the water like a fish.   “I mean, humans are great swimmers,” Leon said with a slight shrug. “It doesn’t seem too far-fetched that a monkey could learn to swim as well as this one.”   Jeremy made sure to capture extra footage of the swimming guenon, knowing that it would make for great entertainment for his viewers.   In the middle of the trail was the Scripps Aviary, which was also filled with all sorts of colorful birds like the southern bald ibis and the Madagascar crested ibis. The winding trail then led to a string of spacious monkey habitats and the first one that the group visited belonged to the lesser spot-nosed monkeys, who were hooting raucously as they swung from branch to branch.   “Guys, come look at this!” Chanel suddenly waved them over to the capuchin monkey habitat.   There was one monkey who was smashing a large, spherical gourd against a tree branch. It paused every few seconds to check the shell for any cracks and then immediately resumed whacking the gourd as hard as it could. After the umpteenth try, a sizable chunk of the gourd fell to the ground and the capuchin monkey turned the sphere around to pry it open. Everyone quietly cheered, not wanting to startle the small animal, when the monkey finally cracked the gourd in half successfully.   Next door, the mandrills and the Schmidt’s spot-nosed monkeys shared a large, leafy exhibit. Most of the spot-nosed monkeys were noisily running around and screeching to each other from across the habitat while the three mandrills calmly sat with each other on the ground. The alpha male, Jasper, was picking at his fur while his mate, Kesi, and their son, Ajani, snacked on some peanuts.   The last few monkeys they saw were the colobus monkeys and the northern black-crested mangabeys in their shared habitat. Jeremy filmed the colobus monkeys playing on wooden swings and the mangabeys snacking on apples while simultaneously reading the information signs in front of the exhibits. His eyebrows furrowed with concern when he realized that the mangabeys were considered a vulnerable species and he made a mental note to himself to search up conservation efforts for all of these animals to include in the video description so that his subscribers could pitch in as well.   After making another loop around the American flamingos at the front of the Lost Forest zone, the group began trekking the Tiger Trail, which they were all extremely excited about.   The first exhibit along the new trail belonged to the babirusas. Having never heard of this tusked pig before, Jeremy took extra footage of them rooting around the grass that lined the dirt ground. And past the Tiger River lived several fishing cats that were perched on rocks and grooming themselves.   When a little boy tried to stick his hand through the fence, Jeremy swiftly caught him and gently said, “It’s not safe to do that. They might bite you,” while pointing at the caution sign in front of the habitat.   The little boy’s mother thanked Jeremy for intervening as she scooped up her child and lightly admonished him for running off without warning.   Jeremy rejoined the rest of the group at the Malayan tapir’s habitat, but since the black-and-white animals were fast asleep in their hut at the moment, they decided not to stay for long. They also sped through the milky stork and the Burmese python exhibits, although Jeremy slightly lagged behind since he was so fascinated by the albino snake that belonged to the zoo, in anticipation for the main attraction.   When they finally arrived at the Malayan tiger habitat, everyone scattered around the edge of the massive exhibit to try and spot all of the tigers. Jeremy steadied his camera and carefully panned it around the area, zooming in whenever he saw one of the striped felines. Most of them were dozing on rocks or next to logs. Although they weren’t as active as some of the other animals, it was still awe-inspiring to see such beautiful tigers up close and Jeremy had to keep himself from bouncing in place to avoid ruining his footage.   With that, the Tiger Trail ended and transitioned to the Hippo Trail, leading up to the northernmost section of the Lost Forest zone.   Karter did a double-take at the okapi habitat upon seeing its black-and-white striped legs with its brown body. “Is this like some weird cross between a zebra and a horse?”   “It’s apparently related to the giraffe, not the zebra,” Kallie said, reading off the sign in front of the exhibit. “Ooh, look at its tongue!”   Just then, one of the okapis shot its prehensile tongue out of its mouth to strip some leaves from a branch. As he filmed, Jeremy silently marveled at how similar it was to a giraffe, despite its noticeable lack of height and its vastly different pattern.   Beyond the okapi habitat was the hippopotamus exhibit and there was a sizable crowd around this area as well. Funani, the mother, and Amahle, her daughter, were resting underwater in their gigantic pond at the moment. Every few seconds, Amahle would float up to the top for some air before dropping back down next to her mother. When Funani opened for some food, showcasing her giant teeth, everyone gasped in amazement and snapped as many pictures as they could.   Jeremy smiled to himself, having caught the entire moment on film, and captured some more footage of the pair before following the others to the next habitat.   The spotted-necked otters shared their home with the red-tailed monkeys and the Allen’s swamp monkeys. The girls all squealed with delight when they saw the furry, brown otters skitter across the rocks and playfully bump into each other.   At the end of the Hippo Trail were several red river hogs that lived with a forest buffalo. Kallie exclaimed, “This is awesome! We get to see another buffalo on this road trip!”   Bianca looked at her curiously and asked, “When was the other time you saw a buffalo?”   “It was at the Golden Gate Park in San Francisco,” Kallie explained as she took out her phone to take pictures of the forest buffalo. “Did you not visit the Bison Paddock there?”   Lucas shook his head instead. “We must’ve taken a different route from you guys.”   Once Kallie finished taking photos of the reddish-brown animal, the group exited the Lost Forest zone and headed into the Northern Frontier zone.   They walked along the Eagle Trail, which housed several imposing predatory bird species. The harpy eagles, the Steller’s sea-eagles, the Andean condors, and the ornate hawk-eagles all fixed their sharp eyes on everyone who passed their habitats. Chloe shivered slight