I called Genie; we agreed to meet in the cafeteria in the head quarter.

It was Wednesday, 5 pm. I had just done my homework, like any other student.

Tomorrow I was going on a mission to find a magical me, unlike any other student.

Which meant I was quitting a ballet contest. Very unlike me.

I typed in another number on my phone and called it.

“Wei?” a voice answered.

“Hey Alien. Can we meet up? I want to show you a place.”

“Of course, where?”

 

Alien and I met up on a corner I had decided on.

“Hey Xiao Jie! What are you going to show me?” he asked. Even though he seemed to be uncomfortable; this wasn’t his part of the town.

“Close your eyes, I will lead you. You can’t learn the way to there,” I sighed. He did as I said, and I gave him some dark sunglasses on and led him like he was blind.

“Is this some kind of game?” he asked when we had been walking for ten minutes.

“No, not at all."

 

The reception was luckily almost empty when we entered, but I kept telling Alien to keep his eyes closed.

“Are we indoors now?” he asked like he still thought it was a game.

“Yes. Don’t look yet.”

“Wait! Stop!” A young guy came over and looked thoughtfully at me.

“Who is this?” he pointed at Alien. As I remembered him as an X Coder that had mocked me when I first entered the organization, I coldly said:

“That isn’t any of your business.”

“Why not? He doesn’t look like one of us.”

“I don’t either, right? But I’m Y10 and you haven’t even been on your first mission, so step away.” I showed him my fist with the ring. He quickly left.

“Who was that?” Alien asked ten seconds later.

“Just some trainee. I’ll explain everything in just a moment.”

I led him to the cafeteria. Genie waved when she saw me, but gaped when she saw who was with me.

“Gui Gui! What are you doing?! He can’t be here!” She covered and nose with her hands.

“I... wait,” I said, and removed the sunglasses from Alien. He opened his eyes and looked around.

“Wow, this is a nice pla... what the hell?” He just saw George make five plates fly to the kitchen.

“Sit down, please,” I said.

He still stared after the plates, but sat down. I called for George, and he came over.

“Hey Miss Wu. Who’s that?” George looked nervously at Alien.

“From a foreign organization. Korea. His Chinese isn’t that good,” I quickly said.

“Oh, nice to meet you, Mister,” George smiled, and shook Alien’s hand. Alien looked as confused as ever, but his silence supported my excuse.

“We have strawberry cake today. Can’t be missed. Let’s just say you order three pieces and your usual tea.” George grinned and walked back to the kitchen.

“What... the... HELL is going on here, Wu Ying Jie?!” Alien exclaimed. I hushed him.

“I have decided to tell you the real reason why I can’t marry you, Alien.” I sat down, and Genie did too.

 

With support from her, I started explaining everything to him; from when I found the Silver Ring till now. When I told him how I got hurt on the first mission, he was about to say something again, but I continued talking.

When I had finished, he asked:

“And this isn’t some kind of joke?”

Without a word, I made the vase on our table implode.

“So this... this is why you have been sick and tired lately?” he slowly asked. I nodded.

“Why don’t you quit? You promised me to stop this.”

“That was before I realized that I can’t.”

“Hell, Gui Gui. It’s hurting you!”

“I’ll get used to it!” I was shocked by my own words, and it didn’t help when Aaron suddenly showed up behind Alien.

“Why did you tell him?” Aaron asked. Alien turned around to look at him.

“What if I’m the next? Genie can’t bear the... b-burden...” I laid my head down on the table and hid it with my arms when all the tears I had been holding back for so long suddenly decided to burst out.

Genie laid her arms around me to comfort me. I pulled myself together and looked up.

“I mean, look what happened to Z7 and Z20. And they d-didn’t even h-have a ring...”

Genie sent a killer gaze to the two guys like it was their fault. They both looked troubled. Alien looked like he was having an inner fight.

“Alien?” My voice was now calm, but weak. He looked up.

“Will you help Genie tell my parents if something happens?”

He frowned.

“Nothing is going to happen. You can’t go on any more of these sick missions.”

“What did you call it? You have no idea how important this is!” Aaron exclaimed. Luckily, there were only two others in the cafeteria, and they sat far away.

“Important my ! My Gui Gui is getting hurt.” Today I had heard him say more swear words than ever before.

“Your Gui Gui? What is exactly your relation to her?” Aaron demanded to know. Alien hesitated.

“I... I have proposed to her.”

There was silent until Genie said:

“And she refused to marry you.”

“Yes, because of this, obviously. Something that’s not doing her any good.” He crossed his arms.

“Who says that?” My voice was now steady. I was done crying.

“Me. You’ve said it too. And it’s pretty obvious.”

“How? You think I’m weak?!”

“You’re not supposed to be anything else.”

 

If I hadn’t needed his help, his friendship, I’d have cursed him very badly. Instead, I leaned back and calmly said:

“I thought you could understand this.”

“What?” Alien hesitatingly said.

“I have finally kind of accepted that this is something I have to do.”

“But it will change you. Already has!” Alien broke in. Aaron glared at him.

“...have to do. And that I need support from my friends.”

“Already has?” Genie repeated from what Alien had said. “How?”

“You used to be so cheerful and carefree. Now you’re tired and stressed even though you try to act normal,” Alien said to me.

“And you don’t like it?”

He bit his lower lip.

“I will like whatever you become.” He didn’t look at me while saying it. I sighed.

“I’m leaving tomorrow to find the Flower Ring. You must help me co...”

“What?!” Genie yelled. “But what about our competition? We’ve been training for months!”

“If you can make him postpone it, I would also be very grateful.” I scowled at Aaron.

“Aaron, she can’t leave tomorrow! This is really important, and...”

“More important than saving her own life?” Aaron silently asked. Genie kept silent.

“Wait... HE is going with you?” Alien pointed at Aaron. I nodded. He seemed to struggle on the inside before saying:

“Okay, tell your parents that you, I, Genie and Show are having a movie night before the contest. Then I’ll call and say you got sick from eating too many popcorns and therefore can’t attend the competition, and that you’re staying in my house until you’re recovered.”

I smiled thankfully at him.

“Cake is here!” George appeared with three plates with strawberry cake.

 

My feet felt heavier than ever when I dragged them towards the head quarter Thursday afternoon. I had informed my parents the way we had planned, Genie had cried a lot, and told me to be careful at the same time she begged me to stay and attend the contest. But I knew I couldn’t.

Why was it never me who decided what I wanted to do?

At least I had packed my backpack more sensibly this time. A lot of water.

Aaron was waiting in front of the head quarter’s very discreet entrance (through the basement of an empty shop). With two motor cycles.

“No, wait.” I stopped in front of him, and looked at him with disbelieve.

“Are we going to drive on these?” I asked.

“Of course. How else had you expected? No cars can go where we’re going,” Aaron said.

“But I don’t know how to ride a motor bike.”

“What?” Now it was his turn to look at me in disbelieve.

“Yeah, I’m used to cars. And walking. But I don’t want to walk all the way!” I quickly added.

“But the paths are too narrow for a trailer.”

We stood a few moments in silence.

“So... I brought a map, and I’ve marked all forests in the northern mountains near the ocean,” I pulled out a map from my backpack and unfolded it. “We should start here and then follow the road I’ve drawn.” I moved my finger over the map while speaking. I nervously bit my under lip when Aaron just looked at me in silence.

He swung his leg over the seat of a motor cycle. He took his shoulder bag off.

“Take this on and jump up,” he commanded, but not in his usual, cold tone. Friendly.

I took the bag over my shoulder and regulated the strap so it fit me. But then I hesitated.

Sitting on the back of Aaron’s motor bike?

My parents would die if they knew. Alien would probably rather kill Aaron.

But there wasn’t anything I wanted more.

So I carefully sat behind him and told him to take a detour so we didn’t reach my part of town.

“You better hold on,” he said, and loudly started the bike.

“Where?” I shouted.

“Yeah, where do you think?”

When he quickly set off, I threw my arms tightly around him to hang on.

Luckily, he couldn’t see how I blushed. To distract my thoughts from his warm body, I started repeating the third verse of the riddle in my head, over and over.

Friends are worth searching for

Will find one another

But in the deep and dusky dark

Light is true a leader.

“What are you mumbling?” Aaron shouted to drown the noise from the town and the motor bike. I realized that I had been saying it out.

“The third verse of the riddle. I can’t solve it,” I yelled back.

He didn’t answer. Instead, he moved his hand to touch mine that were holding around his stomach.

I blushed deeper.

 

We were out of the town when my mobile rang. I picked it up.

“Wei?” I loudly said to drown the noise of the machine. Aaron slowed down so I could talk.

“Hey Gui Gui. Danson here.”

“Oh. I’m pretty busy right now, so...”

“Hey, what’s the matter? I see you one time and you disappear for two days. What have you been up to?”

“I’m... on my way to a movie night with my friends.”

“Who? Can I join?”

“No, it’s a closed thing. You know, me, Genie, Alien and Show, friends forever, tralala.”

“Alright, I get it. Call me when you’re free, k?”

“Of course,” I smiled, and hung up.

“Who was it?” Aaron asked, and speeded up again. The wind went through my hair like birds through the sky.

“A childhood friend, Danson. Recently came back from Russia. The very person who taught me to solve riddles.”

“Then I hope you can solve the last part of this riddle while we’re driving.” Even though I couldn’t see his face, I could hear that he was smiling.

 

I was very dark when we reached the first forest I had marked on the map.

The path was broad enough for the motor bike, but Aaron drove very slowly when we entered the forest.

“Aaron?” I didn’t want to speak loud, so I talked close to his ear.

“Yes?”

“Do you think the trees would lie down to sleep if they were allowed?”

Aaron had to stop driving because of his laughing trip. That was when I realized that I had never heard him laugh before.

When he almost had gotten control of himself, he started driving again.

“Do you always think about such naive stuff?” He still hadn’t completely caught his breath after laughing.

“It’s just because... it feels like the trees are yawning,” I said, a little embarrassed. I had realized how childish I sounded.

Aaron stopped again and listened.

“All I hear are grasshoppers.”

“No, listen closely,” I said. And then yawned myself.

“That’s cheating!” Aaron said.

“No, I’m just tired. I really felt they were yawning.”

“It is only ten pm, and you’re tired? All you’ve done is to sit on the back of a motor bike. Think of me, I’ve been driving.”

“It isn’t always about you,” I yawned again.

He turned his head to look at me with a glint I had never seen before. Tenderly? I couldn’t allow myself to think that.

“Let’s find a place to sleep. We can’t find the ring anyways as long as we haven’t solved the last part of the riddle,” he said. Slowly started the cycle again and drove on until we found a glade.

Tents made by the organization’s technicians didn’t fill up much space when packed down, and were fortunately easy to pitch.

I fell asleep as soon as I cuddled into my sleeping bag.

 

***

Clash between Alien and Aaron. Lol.

And Aaron and Gui Gui are on their mission together (:

I’m going back to town tomorrow.

Holy god. Thank you all so much for the lovely comments <3

Hehe, some of you are making good guesses (; more I won’t say now. Read on to find out :b

I love every single comment. I store them in my heart. Please comment (: <3

- Blitz