The hardest part that I worried about before I came was over. I just didn’t know how to behave myself when meeting them for the first time after all those 6 years of solitude. Sure, I got nervous at first, but now all of us, or at least most of us had met, greeted and were chit-chatting so friendly together that made me really felt at ease and nostalgic at the same time. Everything up until now had turned up to be so successful. We were also on our way to the real destination of our reunion by bus. We had talked so much, and here were the summaries of my own.

The first that I had to talk about is inevitably the one who sat beside me. He was currently showing his outstanding flirting skill to Elena since she had looked a lot more sociable to us after chatting so much about those sweet but also embarrassing recollections that happened in the past. Kazuki is one of my best friends that I encountered in my middle school period. On the outside, he may look like a young and charming Casanova because of his great interaction skills with humorous and relaxed behavior. But on top of those facts, I know him better than anyone else here. Even he likes to joke around with every beautiful girl and often teases me like a romance moron, he isn’t a bad person at all. Truths to be told, he is very royal to his friend, and maybe also to his girlfriend too? Always tries his best to help when I am in trouble. But it was more often from my side though.

The next one is Kaede who sat in front of Kazuki. She is an overactive and determined woman. Likes to study though wasn’t too remarkable at it, likes all kind of sports but also fond of cooking, makeup and all those girly stuffs. She even volunteered to almost every school club activities while she still could manage her over-occupied schedules. And sometimes, she likes to tell cold jokes too.

But it is her righteous and equal trait that make me need to take off my hat. She likes to protect everyone in needs, regardless of who they are. Every time when there is an injustice happened in school, everyone already acknowledged her to be the fair and wise judge instead of the teachers. I really admired her at those moments and even now she hadn’t changed at all. I am sure that she would be just the same Kaede in the future too.

The mysterious one in front of me is Elena. I had the most rights to say that she was far friendlier to me before our graduation, especially during ‘that incident’. My positive thinking concluded that she must have been still one of those most primitive tsundere types. Well, she actually was a pretty severe one already back when I first met her in middle school or might even be a long time ago before that. So freaking difficult to approach, but a nice personality will surely be rewarded if you were to stay patient and give her some time. By ‘some time’ I mean random time. Not as quick as you may see right now. This was just an exception because we had already known each other for so long before.

I must say that she really hadn’t changed much in appearance nor behavior. It was just my perverted buddy that didn’t notice back then. And if I were to be honest, in respect of everyone else here, she was the one who had stayed the most same. Just her hair style that had changed a bit from the straightest I had ever seen to a more mature one. Her body looked like hadn’t grown much like us, making her almost as small as Chika right now. Is she immortal or something? Or had she reached the end of her growth already?

She suddenly looked questionably at me for a second. Maybe she could feel I was thinking … no, explaining about her. How terrifying. I am surely a dead meat if she ever knows.

The next is a blonde who sat alone looking at her classy fashion magazine uninterestedly. I am not particularly close with her because of her much higher living style. As far as I know, Megumi is a rich young woman with princess syndrome who like to be respected by the others but never humbles her self-esteem. She only accepts those who are in the same status like her as her friends. Maybe except me who is considered the luckiest student in the class, I supposed? And I still don’t know why.

Maybe she really was participating in this reunion because of me and will just cancel it right away if I didn’t show up at the rendezvous location? After all, I might not look like it, but there really was no one who was as close to her as I am in here. I started to felt a little conceited, and at the same time, I felt ashamed of myself.

The twins who were of course sitting together are Kaigo and Ringo. They are quick-witted, sharp minded and very intellectual persons. Since geniuses are usually the ones who are somehow crazy in our normal view because of their unusual thinking perspective. When we were still in the middle school, they were the model students that everyone wanted to become. Perfect in all kind of subjects and extremely friendly to every student.

They are utterly eccentric though, and never talked about their personal matters. So, we really know nothing about their background, where do they live, who are their parents, what is their hobby, what is their secret of perfection and many others. Most curiously personally for me is, whether they have another sibling or not? If they have, then I really want to see if he/she is just as peculiar as they are, and even talked simultaneously with them. If he/she is, then that would mean at least 3 persons to focus at the same time to make sense of what they are talking about. While with only the 2 of them already making me so confused.

I happened to remember, despite their excellency in everything that resulted in the skipping of their second-year, there were rumors that said they were ungraduated for 3 years after that. That was why we were only to be acquainted as the same grade in the last year. I had never gotten the chance to investigate on that case though ever since their strange giggling as their first expression for me. Are they really that unpredictable? The only predictable thing is they almost never parted from each other. They also seem to be very friendly with Elena particularly, a lot more than the others since we were into the same class, so suddenly, almost like Megumi to me. Why? Maybe they have known each other before. I never asked Elena about that. Since I don’t want to be thought as creep.

The little living doll who had stolen all our attentions and hearts earlier and still even now is Chika on the left most front seat. She really looks like an early-teens girl. But in fact, she is on the same age with us. Don’t be shocked too much as it will cause scars in our still pure heart. With her great sense of anti-mainstream but modest dressing style, and an indescribable charming, adorable, cute, beautiful, innocence, pure, honest, angelic, chaste, virtues and most importantly her unusual way of friendliness toward those who have earned her trust. And on top, top, top, top most ‘concern’ that do not need to further explain anymore is no other that her holy shyness toward those newly acquainted kinds. I seriously think she could become a top-class cosplayer for any moe character if she wants. It is a serious business, I told you. That is why we like to tease her as Lolita. If she hasn’t discovered that ultimate talent of hers yet, then I would be the first one to recruit her.

Also, she likes the nature so much that we don’t need to worry about watering and taking care of the plants as a part of our classroom assignments anymore. She is also an active girl but not as hyper as her adopted big sister, and like to follow the latter to almost anywhere innocently. I wish I could replace Kaede for just one day no matter what it would cost. Kaede also likes to be followed by her little sister as well. Never mind, I am just joking.

The man who was sitting next to her is Ryouta. I heard from our busybody Kaede that Chika went to the same high school as him after our graduation. Might even be her boyfriend right now. Somehow, I felt some unreasonable disappointment. But I saved myself by thinking that if they were a couple, then why did they come in separately. Aren’t I genius? Mua-ha-ha-ha. Enough of that.

Ryouta is the one who provided this bus that will be soon reached the mansion for the reunion that is also his property. He could be called as the leader of this party and was coincidentally also our class leader back in 9-2 class. He was the only student with enough resolute and responsible mindset that could control us from destroying the classroom. In fact, he is also just a normal person like me, which make me feel even more envious. But he has gotten a lot more determination and purpose in life. Even now, he doesn’t change a bit. I could see from the fixed tone of words he put in the emails. He really is a true leader.

Next is the two of my ex-classmates that to be honest I am not so well informed with. They are Ken and Takuma. Ken is the biggest and strongest in our class. As far as I could remember, at that time, he already had a bigger and stronger built than any of us now. I am sorry to say that he was one of those delinquent students who like to cause troubles and often being called to the discipline room because of smoking, drinking, fighting and many other issues. I know very little of him, more like a stranger than a classmate. We almost never talk to each other. No connected topic really, and it isn’t just me alone.

Maybe he had changed since his barely graduation. But as far as I could read from his attitude up until now, he seemed to care nothing about us being inside the bus. The only one who is a little friendlier with him, is probably the guy who sat beside him. Takuma is actually not one of those troublemakers like him but he likes to merge along with them, and he doesn’t seem to like the kind of us, the normal students. He also tells nobody about his mind and we never understand him, just like the twins. Among all reunion participants presented, 12 people, they only interacted with each other and paid no attention to the others. Why would they even want to come to this reunion in the first place, I wonder?

The last is Fionna. She is certainly not the most sociable person in the earth, and I almost never heard her voice in normal conversation or met her gaze. If she ever talks when you have annoyed her, then be prepare for a very penetrating sarcasm that wouldn’t heal for at least a week. It is even more severe than our gang’s Elena, was what I heard from those few ‘lucky’ ones who ever experience it. Really isn’t the most pleasant experience that could be forgotten easily. Seems like there is no one she ever trusted. Maybe that is why the twins are so interested in her and sometimes challenged their best to make the impossible possible. But of course, even as ‘the perfect twins’, failed. I know nothing about her except for being a foreigner and has an exceptional linguistic skill. Though, she behaves very cold toward us, but she bears no ill thought. Maybe she also wants to deepen her relationship with us although we had only been together for a few months in the middle school, or that is the exact reason for her to come. I hope we could open to each other later. I am seriously intrigued by how she is as a friend.

That mystical female pulled in the red folded curtain by her side as the sunlight was too bright on her reading. Her perfectly white collected face was cast a bit more lifeful by the horizontal shades with beautiful motif as she continued to read her book without getting carsick even the slightest while the bus was advancing unsteadily. She is untouchable.

Hmm? She just looked at Chika or Ryouta for a second. Then she seemed kind of spaced out. Even that little flaw of a human being that everyone must have had is the rarest thing I ever saw from her face. Maybe she really had changed. Though at the first time I saw her, she also looked exactly like that.

Ah, I just remembered that Chika might be her only friend in here, or even in the entire middle school before. When Fionna moved into our class, her seat was beside Chika’s. More accurately, she chose there unreasonably when there was actually another vacant seat. Moreover, that seat was in fact already occupied by Chika’s best friend, May…, our fellow classmate, who happened to be absent on that day. But of course, the kindhearted Chika still welcomed her and is basically her first and only ‘friend’ ever since. Not only that, after ‘that incident’, Fionna still sat on that seat like nothing happened. Kaede almost had a clash with her at that time. Too many things happened since she … moved in. But, everything was just some coincidences. After all, she is just a foreigner who had never been here before, or it should be.

I just remembered another interesting fact about her. She was using a fake name and even another green contact lenses despite her thick glasses at the first time she introduced herself to us. Even the teachers got fooled by her likely until she fought with a fruit-named delinquent girl from another school in front of us. How curious, right?

And hiding some other things, not the usual things normal people would do, awkward things for most of us.

Apparently, most of us here had already been in the working society which made this reunion felt even more meaningful. They had used their limited leaves just for the upcoming few days for the rest of us. I am speechless. I am grateful that I had participated in this seemed to be impossible for a future meet like this. We must make use of this reunion to the fullest, together, all of us here, who are mostly three years in a row in the same class back then.

The repeated introductions should be finish by now, and the bus already left the city for quite some time. The buildings and people seemed to look fewer and fewer, and the scenery were becoming greener and greener. We were currently enjoying the great sight of the countryside through the self-opened window while the fresh wind striking our face dry.

Our rightest member here is also the most generous one. Just like she has always been. She used to bring joys for us the gang members, with only the additional exception for her little cute sister particularly, secretively. One for each of us, a candy. Though we are not kids anymore, but that kind of excited feeling was still unchanged even just a bit.

Hooraaaayy!!

She likes to be called Superwoman but dislikes to be addressed as Granny Santa. I wonder why?

But the one who sat beside her was acting too childishly. She wanted to pick one herself. Kaede allowed her to search in her bag but with only one hand moving inside, blindly. The result was wasted on a ginger lemon flavor which I myself also found that weird. She begged for just another try and succeeded, because our Kaede is just too kind. She clapped her hand for the fortune and tried again while all of us couldn’t see the inside. At last, she finally got what she wanted, a chocolate milk. She was overjoyed.

And why did I waste my time to pay so much attention for that seemed to be a small thing? Because that random thing really is the one which brings back one of our best memories. No matter what kind of flavor actually, the sweets from Kaede will always be the best. It can cure our down feeling and make us spirited like her again. This isn’t an advertisement. We really never felt this contented for so long already.

But, there was quite some ruckus she had caused, so we had to explain ourselves in an adult way. Just like the old times.

Not long after that, we passed through a self-opened fence displaying its warning sign, and entered into a very fertile and wild rain forest region. Kaigo and Ringo howled. We joked around, but Elena was taking too seriously before Ryouta ensured our safety in the bus. The forest seemed as though just a tree being copy-pasted programmatically and endlessly from the start to the end. But that didn’t bore me at all. After all, in this trip … I was finally with them, my dearest and forever friends, laughing and enjoying together.

What an indescribable fulfillment.

Somehow, these forest sceneries made me felt like déjà vu. Though I should have never been in a place like this before. Maybe just my artistic imagination again. The big and tall plantations covered up almost everything inside from the sunlight. Besides the rustle of the leaves, we could also hear some wild animals’ sounds like birds, insects and some unseen mammals, a natural one, not human-made anymore. The only human-made thing in here is just the small soil road that connects the outside world with the isolated mansion. Is this road particularly made just for this? How cool!

Despite of its still uneven flatness and occasionally some holes on the road, the bus could still speed up faster than usual as there really was no other vehicle around. From time to time, some animals invaded into our way making the trip felt like a journey inside a safari park. The driver needs to honk it away to advance while some of the weird ones were also hushing it childishly. The one who built the mansion, Ryouta’s family really seemed to like the natural environment and far from any urban lifestyle. Furthermore, my phone had gone from emergency only mode to stop receiving any signal for good for the first time since I brought it. After all, this was also the first time I had wandered so far away from the outside world.

Some were complaining, and the most behind ones even cursed some words. But, all of it was so quickly passed by.

Now the bus had stopped as it finally reached our destination in the very deep forest. Maybe approximately 120 km from any human residential area. We queued ourselves, and came out of the bus one by one neatly like a group of ant. At last, the big and somehow … intimidating mansion was lying before us.