Naviere was sprawled on her bed, phone in hand, scrolling through social media like every other burned-out teenager after a long day of doing absolutely nothing. The endless cycle of contemplating productivity, only to succumb to procrastination, felt like second nature at this point. She had just double-tapped another video when a notification lit up her screen.
It was from her group chat with her best friends.
Anastasia: Reminder to drop by the clubroom tomorrow morning!
The message made Naviere groan audibly. Tomorrow meant school, and school meant dealing with people, assignments, and all the chaos she wasn't emotionally prepared for. Why couldn't summer break just stretch on forever? Oh, right-summer break had ended just last week. Unfortunate.
As she sank deeper into her self-pity, a soft knock at her door pulled her back to reality.
"Hm? Come in," Naviere called, shifting slightly to sit up.
The door creaked open, revealing her older sister Natalia, who stood in the doorway with a tired yet gentle expression.
"Mom says it's time to turn off the lights. She wants us to get some sleep for once," Natalia said, her voice calm but firm.
"Ugh, already?" Naviere whined, dragging the moment out with a dramatic sigh. "I don't wanna go to school tomorrow."
"No one does," Natalia replied with a small laugh. "But goodnight, Nav."
"Goodnight," Naviere mumbled as the door clicked shut. She stared at it for a moment, noticing the weariness in her sister's eyes. She looks so tired... I hope she's okay, Naviere thought before setting her phone down and reaching for the lamp switch.
With a sigh, she settled under the covers, staring at the ceiling as her mind raced with unfinished thoughts. The silence felt heavier than usual. She closed her eyes, forcing herself into sleep.
.
.
.
The next day,
The hallways were eerily quiet as Naviere made her way toward the clubroom. It was early-too early for most students to bother coming to school. Her footsteps echoed faintly, accompanied only by the occasional sound of a distant locker slamming or muffled chatter from a classroom.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket, but she ignored it. Probably another forwarded link from Archie about the pandemic. She wasn't in the mood to read it.
Reaching the clubroom, she hesitated for a moment before holding her ID to the scanner. The beep sounded, and the door unlocked with a faint click. As soon as it opened, a cacophony of noise erupted from inside.
"JFGHJHJFD!"
Naviere froze mid-step, startled by the sudden screams. Her friends stilled as well, all eyes turning to her.
"Good morning, Nav!" Anastasia greeted, a bright smile on her face as though she hadn't been shrieking seconds ago.
"Am I late?" Naviere asked, closing the door behind her and taking in the room.
"Not at all," Archie replied casually, leaning back in her chair.
Naviere raised an eyebrow. "Is that sarcasm?"
"What? No! I was being serious. Rei and I just got here too," Archie insisted, looking almost offended.
"Sure," Naviere muttered, dropping into the nearest seat.
"Alright, enough of that," Reigan cut in, her tone authoritative. "Ana, what's the agenda?"
Anastasia straightened up, clearing her throat. "Okay, so as you all know, the school festival is coming up, and-"
"Let me guess," Artesia interrupted, her tone flat. "The student council dumped the job on us?"
"Well... yeah," Anastasia admitted sheepishly.
"And what exactly are we supposed to do?" Archie asked, folding her arms.
"They said to 'liven up school spirit.'"
"Great. Very specific," McKenzie deadpanned, rolling her eyes.
Anastasia sighed, visibly frustrated. "Look, I don't have all the answers, okay? That's why I called you all here!"
"Well, lucky us," Reigan muttered.
The conversation spiraled into scattered quips and half-hearted suggestions until Naviere finally interjected. "Guys, we don't have to decide right now. We have time. Let's brainstorm during lunch."
"I second that," McKenzie added. "My brain doesn't function this early."
"It never does-" Naviere taunted.
"Bruh, shut the fu-" McKenzie retorted.
Reluctantly, Anastasia nodded before they broke into a fight. "Fine. But don't blame me if we end up rushing later."
"Great! I kind of need to do my homework," replied Artesia, while smiling sheepishly.
With that, the tension eased, and the group settled into their usual morning routine-some chatting, some catching up on homework, and others simply dozing off.
As the first bell rang, Naviere stood and stretched. "Alright, time to go. Let's not be late for class."
The others groaned but began gathering their things. One by one, they filed out of the room, leaving it empty once more.
Ever since the start of high school, Naviere and her friends had found themselves scattered across different classes. Their once inseparable group was now split into pairs, each navigating the unfamiliar dynamics of their new environments. Despite the distance, they made it a point to reconnect whenever they could.
Naviere and McKenzie were in the same class, which made mornings a little more bearable. As they walked down the hallway, their conversation meandered through trivial topics.
"Ugh, I wanna go back home," Naviere groaned, stretching her arms above her head.
"You always wanna go back home," McKenzie replied, her tone dripping with mock exasperation.
"Exactly. Why would I wanna be anywhere else?" Naviere shot back with a smirk.
McKenzie shook her head, a small grin tugging at her lips. "By the way, when are you gonna stop pestering me about Battle of Heroes?"
"I'll stop when you actually play it with me," Naviere retorted, nudging her friend lightly.
"I downloaded it, okay? I just haven't had time to check it out yet."
By this time, they had reached their classroom. Both held their IDs up to the scanner, the device beeping softly as it cleared them for entry.
The classroom buzzed with the early morning energy of students chatting and settling into their routines. As soon as they stepped inside, a voice called out to them.
"Hey, McKenzie! Naviere!"
"Phoebe!" McKenzie shouted back, startling both Naviere and the girl in question.
"Could you not yell first thing in the morning?" Naviere muttered, trying to reprimand her friend but knowing it was a lost cause.
They made their way to their seats, which conveniently were right in front of Phoebe's.
"When'd you get here, Pebbles?" Naviere asked, a cheeky grin spreading across her face.
Phoebe rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed. "I've been here for a while. And stop calling me that, SilverHella."
"Never," Naviere replied, her grin only widening.
"Anyway," Phoebe said, steering the conversation away from nicknames, "have you heard? The Global Alliance finally found a cure for this wretched disease."
"It's about time," McKenzie said, leaning back in her chair.
"Apparently, they started spraying the cure yesterday," Phoebe added, her voice a mix of disbelief and relief.
"Spraying it? Instead of a vaccine?" McKenzie frowned. "That sounds... weird."
"ZRDS-II is airborne," Naviere explained. "Spraying the cure might help contain the spread faster. Makes sense if you think about it."
"Still feels odd," McKenzie said with a shrug. "But I guess whatever works."
Before the conversation could continue, the bell rang, signaling the start of lessons. The chatter around the room quickly died down as students hurried to their seats. Moments later, the teacher walked in, carrying a stack of papers.
"Guess we're getting our pop quiz results," McKenzie muttered, slouching in her chair.
The day had officially begun.
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