26.

26.
chapter twenty-six:
our English teacher's
handwriting is the
most elegant one
you'd ever be
blessed to see.


"Good morning, Ash! Rise and shine!"

I sleepily rubbed my eyes and blinked, taking in the surroundings. A smile spread to my lips as my vision cleared to reveal a smiling Serena. "Good morning."

"Seems like you've got your cheer back," Nurse Joy said from where she was handing over breakfast plates to Trevor, Sophocles, and Clemont.

"Yeah," Serena said cheerfully, playfully running her hands through my hair and pushing back my bangs.

"Thanks," I muttered, feeling my chest purr in contentment.

"I'm happy to see that! Freshen up, Ash, the breakfast is ready," Nurse Joy continued, and I nodded at her.

"Hungry?"

I looked up at Serena as I swung my legs off the bed. Then, I shot her a grin. "You bet! I could eat a whole human!"

She scrunched her nose in disgust. "That's cannibalism."

"Precisely!"

"Guys, we're trying to eat here," Sophocles piped in, looking cringed out. The room burst into laughter, and boy, was I glad to see Serena smiling again.

After breakfast and a shower, all of us headed to our respective classes. Clemont had to part ways, but we promised to meet up later.

Professor Wulfric was taking class when we made our entry. "Ah, come in, come in," he welcomed. The four of us said our greetings and took our seats. Gary was quick to usher me over to him and Misty, the latter going to sit in the front to give me a place beside my best friend.

Geography was fine. We learned about the mountainous terrains of Kalos and their erratic weather conditions. There was one near Anistar City, and the entire class had a good laugh when Professor Wulfric joked about the unpredictability of the city's school and its students.

The man didn't give us any homework or assignments, rather advising everyone to take a good rest as the coming days might be strenuous. His ending note left us feeling gloomy. All the same, we had withstood the worded stuff, and we were just two weeks into the first semester.

When Wulfric was done for the day, he dismissed us for an interval, stating that the class teacher would take the classes for the rest of the day. Professor Sycamore, our grade teacher, was an English lecturer. Him taking French or any other subject might as well be funny.

The discussion about it was still going on when the man himself walked in. "Good morning, class!"

We echoed his greetings and quickly settled down as he started scribbling something on the whiteboard. "Huh? Excavation?" Gary whispered to Misty, who turned around in her seat. "Are we supposed to be in danger?"

"I don't think it's excavation," Misty reasoned, frowning.

I let out a hiss when May commented on the man's rather shabby handwriting. Despite being an English teacher, his handwriting was not up to par.

The three of them got into a heated whisper-discussion, talking about what Professor Sycamore might be on about, and I found myself staring at my crush.

Serena seemed to be invested in her chat with Tierno and Calem. With the way she was pushing her hair behind her ear, I could tell she was excited.

But that was no good news. Sure, she was happy and all, but she was talking to my love rivals.

Not to mention, Calem seemed just as invested as she was.

I let out a low growl, earning a pat from May. "Our brother needs some love advice."

"Yeah, he's a kid, still," Misty snickered. I rolled my eyes and pushed May's hand away.

As if sensing my gaze, Serena glanced at me. She looked rather surprised but returned the gesture when I waved at her. The girl proceeded with her chat after that. As if I wasn't just caught staring at her.

"Is she oblivious, or am I?" I found myself mumbling.

"I'm seeing two identically shaped rocks on a mountainous terrain of Kalos, precisely near the Lumiose Badlands," Gary said with a shrug. I briefly considered asking Gary how he could view something miles away but dropped it when Professor Sycamore turned to us.

"As part of the class teacher's union," he started seriously, "Professor Olympe and I have decided to take our students on an excursion, two days from now!"

The announcement was greeted by "ohs" and "ahs."

"That's excursion?" Gary laughed in disbelief. "I was afraid we were in trouble again."

"And we're leaving the choice of place to you all!" The lecturer continued, pointing at the divided board. One half of it read something that I could make out as a picnic. The other, I had no clue. "The first option is a daytime picnic! We leave the college by bus early in the morning, have breakfast at a stop, and hike our way through the Snowbelle range. We set out the picnic blanket, have lunch, and leave by sundown.

"The second is a bonfire night in the Coumarine District. The departure will be in the afternoon, after lunch. We'll reach the top of the mountain by monorail and set up tents! Reminder, this includes staying the night out with friends, with dinner, of course."

The professor then pointed at his notebook. "I want you all to vote on which option you'd like!"

Discussion ensued, and I was dragged into it by Gary. "What do you guys think?"

"Campfire and stuff is a great idea!" May exclaimed.

"Yeah, but most of us are tired," Misty pointed out. "Staying the night might not be that great."

"We gotta hike for the first one," I put in. "Won't that tire us out?"

Misty seemed unsure, and we looked to the other groups. By then, Calem and Kiawe were discussing before they came over to us. "Our groups have decided on the first option," Kiawe said. "Because the second option involves camping, it would be cooler to do that when we're all in better shape."

"We are gonna hike in the first option," Gary repeated my words.

"True, but would you enjoy falling asleep on the only night out with your friends rather than pulling an all-nighter and chatting by the bonfire?" Calem asked, smiling. I could not disagree. I'd rather hike the way up than miss an opportunity to stargaze with my friends.

I exchanged a glance with Misty, then spoke, "Sounds good. We're in for the first option."

The two boys grinned and went back to their seats. I glanced at Serena in the middle of a heated discussion with her friends. I never knew outings would excite her.

"Alright. Have you all decided which option to go for?" Professor Sycamore asked, a good five minutes later. All of us nodded, and he took a pen out of his pocket, ready to write down the results of the poll. I caught Calem and Kiawe's eyes, and they gave us a thumbs-up. "Students for the first option, please raise your hand."

At once, every hand shot up in the air. Professor Sycamore was totally surprised, and mildly amused as well. I could tell by his smile. "Guess I have a really united classroom. There's no need for a voting poll, haha! I'll discuss this with Professor Olympe. Anybody have any doubts?"

"Won't the weather be chilly in the Snowbelle ranges, sir?" Serena asked.

"It will be in the early morning, but as the day advances, the temperature rises," Professor Sycamore explained. "It's no different, but as a precautionary measure, do bring warm jackets or hoodies along with comfortable hiking wear and boots."

Everybody nodded, and with no other questions posed, the lecturer took his leave. The entire class burst into enthusiastic chatter after he left. "I gotta go shopping!" May looked agitated as she began jotting down whatever she needed to buy. "Gotta get hiking wear!"

Misty agreed with her. "Same, to be honest."

Gary turned to me. "We've got our ol' hiking boots. Remember the ones we used for Gramps' summer camp?" I nodded and hoped I had brought them along. "Guess we're all set!"

"I was under the impression Gary needed a jacket. He's been at my head ever since he lost his last one," Misty said, flummoxed. The boy turned red and opened his mouth to retort. May and I exchanged one glance before escaping the venue and leaving the two to their devices—bickering devices.

"May! Mister Ketchum! Over here!" Lisia waved us over, so we approached them. Their group was planning everything as well. "May, you wanna go shopping with us?"

"You girls are going too?" I asked, exasperated. The three of them nodded happily.

"What do you expect? Shauna's always off at some mall on the weekends," Tierno whispered to me when May joined the girls, and I took a seat beside him. "Lisia's rumored to have a huge closet in her mansion, what with her being a child star and all. And you know Serena—she might as well be a fashion designer—"

"Wait," I interrupted, not quite registering his info dump. "Lisia is an actress?"

The three guys looked at me as if I had sprouted four heads. "You didn't know that?"

I shook my head. I knew I was living under a rock when it came to cinemas, but this was embarrassing.

"That's okay. Lisia is still growing in popularity. She did a few series, like the Netflix drama Blooming Hoenn. She's more into performing and dancing—something similar to an idol job," Calem explained.

I was stunned. Serena was friends with a child actress, and I never knew that? As I stared at the back of my friend's head, I wondered if there were more secrets she was keeping from me than just her friend's identity.

My chest tightened with a strange conscience; here I was, pouring out everything about my life to her, while she was hiding secrets behind my back. Why, Serena?

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