“Congratulations on your performance.”

“I must admit, that was a touching performance indeed.”

After the concert, we found ourselves back at class B51, where the traveling club gathered. This time, I took the elevator, though.

“Thank you. I’m glad you like it. Now, let’s discuss our traveling plans.”

Plona said excitedly. I glanced at Mina, who was still slightly shaking, her eyes looking at the floor. I looked at Aliya, who sat to the left of Mina, and sent her a code with my eyeballs.

“Mina, are you alright?”

She asked. Mina brought her face up, looking at Alita before shaking her head.

“Sorry… I… I’m not used to those kinds of performances…”

“Don’t worry. Your playing is emotional, raw, and moving. I really like it.”

… I did not get what Antonio was trying to say.

“I see… thank you.”

Oh well, at least Mina seemed to take it as a compliment. My mind went back to the matter at hand, traveling. I hadn’t traveled a lot. The only time I went on a vacation outside my little town was when the Moonuvert family took me and my Dad with them. When it came to understanding what to prepare, I had little to no idea, especially since now we were going without any adults…

“Are there any teachers in the group?”

I asked to confirm.

“Mr. Frowen usually accompanied us.”

Of course, the teacher that accompanied us was the one class where I had no ability in. I kinda want to use my ability as an excuse, especially since I could prove it, but it didn’t feel right.

But the idea of an adult accompanying our trip did sound reassuring.

“Wouldn’t discussing it now be too early, though?”

“A wise man once said, one could rarely make too many preparations, as even the smallest difference could be the deciding factor between life and death.”

But we were planning for a trip?

“Why ‘rarely’?”

Aliya asked, interested in Antonio’s words.

“It’s like when I spent too much studying for an exam, only to find myself too exhausted and sick on the day.”

Plona said sadly, as if speaking from experience.

“What she said.”

Antonio commented.

“You’ve felt that too?”

“At some point I found myself working on a project that required a lot of ingredients. At the time, I assumed that the more ingredients I prepared, the better, as I would have reserved in case things did not go as planned. Things… did not go as planned.”

He said, staring blankly into space, reminiscing about the past.

“I ended up having too many ingredients. The table became a massive mess, finding the required ingredients ended up being a challenge, I could not put in the right ingredients at the right time, and everything became a huge chaos. Ever since that day, I learned that one must prepare to the best of one’s abilities, but not go too much to the point one forgets other related but crucial matters.”

“The way you reminisce looked awfully similar to Ranold’s.”

Antonio looked at me, before looking back at Aliya.

“Well, based on the times I spent with him, I would confidently say that when it comes to flashbacks, I do not do it as often as him.”

“I haven’t even done it in front of you.”

“Shall I remind you of what happened last Wednesday? During the fundamentals of magic class?”

…

I didn’t think he actually paid any attention to me back then, turns out he did.

“One shall pull one’s words.”

“Very well. I believe that would be the best course of action.”

Antonio nodded and looked at the other three girls who sat across from us.

“But still, shouldn’t we wait until the end of the day? How about new members?”

It was around three, there were still two more hours before the event officially ended.

“Well…”

Plona walked to the side, reached into her bag, and brought out a large, printed map.

“Showing you guys what we do is better than describing it, right?”

She didn’t answer my question and just gave the printed map to Aliya and dragged one of the set-aside class tables to the center of our formation. Aliya stood up and put the map on the table.

“Why a printed map?”

“It’s more fun that way.”

Plona casually said. The three of us then stood up. We all surrounded the laid-out map.

“... What is this exactly?”

I couldn’t help but ask, but I’m not the only one confused. Aliya looked at the map as if she saw it a thousand times, Mina stared at it with great attention, while Antonio had his usual blank expression.

“It’s a map.”

“Of the island?”

Aliya asked, making sure. The map was the exact same map that you could see in those atlas books. It had the map of Virnimo Island, along with cities and towns marked. I could see Cutarvir at the south of the map and my and Aliya’s hometown, Loknartor, sitting slightly to the east. Sitting south of Cutarvir, separated by a small strait, was Pover Island, Mina’s home. The map also included the borders between provinces, including Manuvert province which Aliya’s family ruled.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“How is this related to our travels, though?”

Aliya voiced my questions. The map didn’t include any tourist spots or any points of interest. It did list the various transportation hubs scattered around the island, but I fail to see why we couldn’t use the internet for this.

“Pick a spot. Then, I’ll go to the library and look for more detailed maps.”

All four of us reflexively stared at her, Mina included.

“... I would like to discuss this matter with my friends. Maybe we could make a new traveling club.”

Antonio said before turning around and stepping to the door.

“I’m with Antonio.”

“I’m with Ranold.”

Aliya followed me, and Mina silently followed Aliya, albeit looking doubtful herself, leaving Plona who was about to burst into tears behind.

“Guys, this is a joke, right? Guys? Guys!?”

We managed to stop Plona from actually bursting into tears, somehow. I wasn’t expecting her to be that kind of person. We did stop her from using conventional maps for planning.

“So, our destination city.”

The club went on two major expeditions in a single year, with two small-scale ones. The small-scale trips happened after the middle exam, during the one-week break that they gave us, while the larger trips occurred during the summer and winter breaks. The smaller scale trips went around Cutarvir and only lasted a single day, while the larger ones tend to go off the city, often heading to destinations within or near the island. They tend to last longer, from three to five days.

“I visited some of these places in the last few trips, so I don’t really have a preference.”

Plona, who had calmed down, sat at the side and let us choose. We placed a virtual map, which we opened through Antonio’s phone, on the center of the table Plona previously used and looked at the destinations from there.

“Should we really choose before the festival ends?”

Aliya, who stood circling the table with us, looked at Plona and asked. Plona simply shrugged.

“Sadly, the possibility of someone coming in now is low. Besides, if someone did show up, you could just restart.”

That seemed mildly annoying. I didn’t like the idea of putting in all the planning just for someone to come in and mess it up… well, unless it was Aliya’s request. I promised to always side with Aliya no matter what, but considering her circumstances, she shouldn’t have a preference in the first place.

Besides, we haven’t had our first gathering anyway, were we not too early for this step? As my mind wondered what am I even doing here in the first place, Plona checked her watch and stood up. She clapped her hand, bringing all our attention to her.

“Unfortunately, time’s up.”

She showed the clock on her phone. It was exactly five in the afternoon, meaning that the club festival had come to a close. It didn’t quite feel like the day was over, though, probably because we didn’t participate in the closing ceremony. I wonder how long we spent trying to cheer up Plona whose mood took a nosedive after the map incident.

We helped her clean up the room, before finally parting ways with her.

“She’s one hell of a character.”

I muttered to Aliya, who walked beside me. We tried using the elevator, but it seemed like it had been turned off, thus we were forced to walk down the stairs, Antonio in the lead with Mina meekly following behind him.

The school buildings themselves would usually be locked by six, although thanks to the festival, the time had been extended to seven, but we had no reason to stay around. Plona insisted on returning the stuff to the library herself, and she needed to submit the report for today’s event later.

“She’s a nice person, really. I don’t think her mood usually wavers that much. Probably because she had strong feelings for the club.”

“Really? She’s not like that when you’re in the band?”

“Nah. She would still be the most cheerful and extroverted. The other two were relatively quiet when compared to her, but she tends to keep a straight face when things don’t go her way.”

“I know you said she has strong feelings for the club, but wouldn’t it be annoying if she keeps this behavior up?”

By the time I asked that question, we arrived at the first floor. Antonio and Mina had waited for us, albeit standing on two opposite sides from each other. Neither seemed to mind, though.

“I might mishear your conversation, but if I might give my two cents, I would say that using printed maps probably had some history tied to her. She gave us freedom when it came to choosing places, not even giving any recommendations.”

“That’s true…”

If she really was a petty crybaby, she should have forced us to go to her favorite place, given us suggestions, or at least talked about it. She seemed to care about the map more than she cared about the trip itself.

Antonio turned around, heading for the exit, and we all followed behind him.

“I found this person to be interesting, and as such, I would be conducting my own private investigation into her background. I shall excuse myself.”

He casually said before waving his right hand up and disappearing into the crowd.

“Antonio’s that kind of person, huh?”

“Yeah…”

“Anyway, I’ll text you the details about tomorrow later. See ya.”

“See ya.”

Aliya went to Mina and said something to her, and the two returned to the girls’ dormitories.

Guess it’s time I too return, huh?

Mimicking Antonio’s moves, I stuffed my hand into my pants pocket and went back to my room.

By the time I arrived back in my dwelling, I found myself without a thing to do. I had eaten dinner before returning. I cleaned myself, got changed, and did homework. It was eight by the time I finished. I received a message from Aliya asking me to wait a bit as she prepared tomorrow’s plans. I wondered where she planned on taking me, to the point she needed a plan.

When I said I would follow her no matter where she goes, I meant it, so she shouldn’t need to draft up a proper plan. I decided to wait for her plans anyway, though, not like having plans would harm anything.

After answering her, I looked back at my desk and tidied up all the homework I did for the day. The first week didn’t see as much homework, or at least that was what Plona said. This school had a balance between intelligence and Keepers-related strengths. Being smart in math didn’t mean the world here. Being a magic school, the ability to wield magic or any related aspects that support one’s aptitude for being a Keeper was considered more important. Things like magical abilities, physical strength, or weapons skills meant more.

The school didn’t seem to force its students to understand everything either, the rules were laxer here, which was weird considering the fact that this school placed top three in the country. If Antonio was here, he would probably start rambling on how this school could maintain its position by being lax, or how this school never had the intention of placing its name in the charts anyway, but the students, who thought this school was a ‘supreme’ school put in the effort required to keep the school’s name in the board.

Regardless, all of that didn’t matter to me. If I could stay by Aliya’s side… that would be what I usually say, but these last few days I couldn’t help but feel she grew a bit more distant from me. She spent a lot of her time with her new friends, including Mina, and we rarely talk outside today. If I decided to not visit the traveling club, would she even contact me?

The idea of her finding my replacement filled me with sorrow. I fully understand that I have no right to say anything about who she spent her time with, nor do I have the right to comment on her choices, but the thought scared me regardless. I told myself that the reason I felt this way was because I never had the chance to repay her kindness, repay all the things that she did for me so far, yet were those my true feelings? What were my true feelings?

When she said she hadn’t dated me yet, what did I feel? Did I feel confused? Did I feel embarrassed? Did I feel a warmness in my heart? I didn’t know, I couldn’t remember despite it only happening a few hours ago. Even if I could remember, what would I do with it? Say that I love her, in my current worthless condition? In the end, having a rare ability did not help me, at least not yet. Seeing what shampoo she used in the morning would only make me look worse than I already was.

So, if I were to be honest with myself…

What do I truly want?

Had I really given up the idea of remaining as her guard? Had my heart wanted more? To stay together with her as more than friends? The idea of Antonio starting rapping on why I’m a mess appeared in my head, and I couldn’t help but giggle at the imagination of that lab rat using a mic spitting out rhymes, insulting rhymes at that.

But it felt as if I was using my own imagination to run from the question. I had never spent a distance this far from Aliya…

So, had I really changed? Had being together for all these years caused my heart to change its mind without me knowing?

Had I truly fallen for her?

Not as friends, not as guards, but as partners?

Could I… could someone like me be allowed to hold her hand? Could I stand on equal footing with her? Someone who literally saved my life, pulled me out of death, gave me a chance to wish for the future.

Gave me a chance to apologize to my father for running away that night.

My phone vibrated, its screen lit up, showcasing a notification from a contact that had been silent for quite a while.

Meet me in the garden tomorrow, at ten in the morning. How does that sound?

Great.

Alright, good night.

Sweet dreams.

…

…

Sweet dreams. Looking at her beautiful face before lying on the bed. Kissing her forehead before closing my eyes. Hugging her body, like how she embraced me all those years ago.

Argh!

I raised up from the bed, nearly leaping off the bed.

These thoughts had become uncontrollable. Has love really taken over me?

Looks like I’m not sleeping tonight.