In the evening twilight, a boy was staring out a window. Gazing out at the beautiful landscape before him, he looked neither astonished nor ecstatic. Not even amused. His expression was empty, as if his thoughts were elsewhere, and he didn't even seem to be consciously aware of the sight his eyes were presenting to him. This boy was Isaac, a 17-year-old student, a senior student to be exact. He was sitting on a bus that was taking him and his class on a class trip. A class trip that their teacher, Mrs. Anderson, had arranged in celebration of the students' final exams being finished and their time at North Dale High School almost being over. All of them were looking forward to it. All, it seemed, except for Isaac.
"Hey, Isaac!"
The sudden mention of his name snapped him back into reality. He turned around and looked at the person next to him, the one whose voice had called his name. With an unchanged expression, he answered.
"Whaaaat?"
The one receiving Isaac's uninterested gaze and 'undivided' attention was a person the same height as him. They were wearing an oversized, graphite gray hoodie, and had messy, short, brown hair with bangs that almost went down over their eyes. Of course, Isaac knew perfectly well who this person was, so he didn't feel bad for not taking an interest in their sudden attempt at interacting with him.
This was Jaden, an enthusiastic kid, and the only one Isaac felt comfortable calling 'friend'. Not that there was anything wrong with the other classmates, but the title of friend meant a lot to him, and it was a word he reserved for people he knew he could depend on. Isaac and Jaden had known each other for as long as both of them could remember, and they also lived in the same house, so they saw each other almost every day. Naturally, this meant they had ended up in all sorts of situations in that time, and Isaac had learned that Jaden would always have his back.
Just like Isaac's expression didn't change, neither did Jaden's. They were beaming with an expression of excitement, curiosity, and a hint of adrenaline.
"Do you think we'll see the northern lights?" Jaden asked, their eyes glowing ever brighter with excitement.
"I dunno? Why does that matter though? Just look 'em up on Gooble if you're so curious about what they look like," Isaac retorted, hinting at Jaden's phone with his eyes.
This time Jaden's expression did change.
"Eeeeeh?" With a face that almost looked like they were disappointed. "It's not the same as seeing one for real, you know that. If you're gonna suggest something as stupid as that, at least try to make it SOUND convincing."
Isaac shrugged and turned back away from Jaden, pretending once again to be looking out the window. Jaden, however, wasn't done with their conversation.
"Hey! It's my first time being so far north, and you know we don't get anything except snow back home. Can't you at least try to be excited on my behalf?"
After a pause, Isaac sighed and turned back around.
"Look, Jaden. It's not like I don't want to be here," Isaac said.
"Really? The way you're acting says otherwise."
"I know," he sighed, "I just wish that we didn't go on a class trip JUST to see the northern lights. Sure, they're pretty, but it's not that exciting once you've already seen 'em."
For as long as Isaac could remember he had only known the cold and snow. Living far north during his childhood, he had never gotten a chance to visit warm or tropical places. When he had heard that his class was going on a final school trip together, and the entry was free, Isaac hoped that for once he would be able to visit somewhere that was warmer than the town he was from. However, when he learned they would go to a northern lights sighting, which Isaac had seen multiple times with his family back when his parents were alive, all his excitement deteriorated, and he once again felt the hope of a warm vacation disappear.
"So where would you've gone then? If you could pick out our destination?"
"Honestly? Somewhere warm. A beach would be nice."
When Jaden heard Isaac's answer, their expression changed into a mischievous grin that all but said 'Oh, I see how it is'.
"Sure you're not just saying that because you wanna see Sarah in a swimsuit?"
Isaac's eyes widened and his face turned pink. Hastily he raised his hands and waved them while shaking his head.
"Nonono, it's not like that at all."
Isaac didn’t have feelings for anyone in class, but he knew that if he showed the slightest hint of attraction, Jaden would latch onto it, and wouldn’t let it go for months.
"Seriously, Jaden, you gotta stop joking about that. What if people will think I actually have a crush on her?"
Jaden's eyes were not convinced. They turned their head and looked outwards to the front of the aisle. A girl was standing there, talking to her friends who were sitting. She was wearing an elegant outfit that was most certainly tailored specifically for her. Her long, blond hair was braided and tied in a cinnamon roll. Her asymmetrical bangs were hanging to the left side, leaving an elaborate gold earring visible on her right. She was laughing at something one of her friends had said and seemed oblivious to the fact that Jaden was looking her way. Not that Jaden was the only one looking her way.
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
This was Sarah. 17 and older than Isaac by a month, She was the most popular girl in class, and the richest. Her father was the CEO of a large pharmaceutical company, and he had funded the entire school trip. Because of her father's money, Sarah had gotten used to unknown eyes gazing at her from all directions, so she had grown resistant to it.
After a little while, Jaden turned back to Isaac, who now seemed visibly annoyed at them. With a puzzled expression, Jaden spoke.
"What?"
"You're projecting," Isaac's annoyed face softened into a cheeky grin. "You're the one who wants to see Sarah in a swimsuit, not me."
However, Jaden wouldn't bite on Isaac's attempt at flustering them.
"Nah, man. She's not my type."
"Really? How so?"
"I'm not into the type of people who think I only care about their money or status."
Isaac held his grin for as long as he could, but after a few seconds, he exhaled and dropped it.
"Good point I guess..."
Jaden was now the one with the grin. Seeing as their best friend was no longer seemingly sulking, they tried to lighten the mood. Opening their backpack and taking out a bag of chips, Jaden squeezed it open with a satisfying 'pop!' sound. Isaac's smile returned once again as Jaden offered him some. They started eating, as the bus continued through the early night.
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Hours later, the sun had set, and the bus was now driving along in a heavy fog. It had gotten quiet on the bus, and everyone had either sat down and played with their phones, or gone to sleep. Isaac and Jaden were of the latter group.
However, suddenly Isaac and most of the students were awoken by a sudden jolt in the bus. The bus driver looked in the rear-view mirror and realized he had woken most of the students.
"Sorry 'bout that, everyone," he said, unapologetically. "There was a large rock in the road. Didn't see it 'cus of the friggin fog."
Isaac sat up and looked around on the bus. Most people tried going back to sleep, and some people who lost grip on their phones when the bus jumped were on the floor trying to retrieve them. Jaden seemed to be one of the few who didn't wake up, and Isaac could see their gray hoodie hunched forward, their chest compressing in steady intervals. Isaac turned his head and looked out the window. However, he saw nothing. There was no land in sight, because it was all covered by a thick layer of fog. Isaac started feeling uncomfortable, so he decided to exit his seat and walk towards the front of the bus.
The vision forward was not much better. The headlights shone brightly, but they just lit up the fog. The bus driver could probably only see a few meters in front of the bus, and with the speed he was going, Isaac felt unsafe. He decided to speak up.
"Sir? Can't we stop the bus for the night? The fog is making it dangerous to drive."
The bus driver looked back at him with a glance and then back at the road. His expression was serious, and maybe a little grumpy.
"Can't. We're driving along a narrow road. On one side is a taller cliff, and on the other is the end of our cliff. If we stop right here and someone drives up behind us, they might not see the taillights before it's too late."
Isaac could argue little with that logic, but the bus was still going dangerously fast.
"Can't you slow down at least? what if you don't see the edge of the cliff before it's too late?"
The bus driver gave a slight chuckle, but it was clear from his voice that he was tired.
"Lad, I'm trying to get to a clearing as fast as I can so I too can rest. Besides, I've driven this road so many times I have it all in my head. Heh, could probably drive it blind, too, but the fog is doing that part for me."
His answer did, of course, not convince Isaac. In fact, Isaac was infuriated that this man would put the lives of his entire class in danger like this, and brag about it.
"Sir, with all due respect, I thi-"
Before Isaac could finish his sentence, the bus driver turned his head and snapped back at him.
"I said I am handling this! Now get back to your seat and let me do what I am paid to d-"
Taking his eyes off the road, the bus driver could not see what Isaac suddenly saw in front of him. It was as if time slowed down, and Isaac could see, in the near distance, headlights as bright as the sun approaching rapidly. The truck they were attached to was bigger than the bus, and growing even bigger. Isaac felt like his heart stopped in horror, and that the only thing he could do was freeze and accept his fate. However, somehow he managed to shout out, at the top of his lungs.
"TRUCK!"
The shout echoed through the bus and everyone who previously were asleep jumped up in terror. The bus driver turned to see the headlights approaching. The truck let out a deep and terrifying honk, and it felt to Isaac as the whole floor of the bus shook with the vibrations of the oncoming doom's horn. He felt like he lost his footing and fell, as the bus driver swerved out of the way of the incoming disaster. Motionless, and halfway in the air, Isaac looked back at his classmates as his body was stumbling on its steady trajectory towards the floor of the bus. It was as if time stood still, and Isaac could see every detail in his vision. Their faces were all looking behind him, staring horrified at two bright orbs that reflected in their eyes. Some opened their mouths, probably to scream. Others tried to look away, trying to shield their faces with their hands. It was all happening so fast, but also so incredibly slowly. Isaac finally landed on the floor, and the pain in his back crept up through his body. Reflexively, he closed his eyes, waiting for the end.
The bus turned sharply and the oncoming truck whooshed past narrowly. Isaac opened his eyes and looked toward where Jaden sat, but all he could see was a terrified face, unlike anything he had ever seen. He didn't have time to turn his head back before
CRASH!
and then,
nothing.
Everything fell silent, but Isaac felt like he was pulled up. No, that was not it, the bus was pushed down. He already knew what had happened. The bus had hit the guardrail and gone straight through, off the road, and disappeared into the dark of night.
And so 22 souls plummeted off the cliff, trapped in a steel cage that would take them to their final destination.