Chapter 6: The morning warmth steadily rose upon the world, and the distant birds beautifully chirped at its arrival, while the cold air hissed at its prospect.
Buzz! Buzz!
However, artificial chiming sounds suddenly drowned out the natural sounds and bounced their presence off the walls of Oredell's dormitory room. This caused the young man to stir in his bed unnaturally, as if he wanted to block out all sounds unconsciously and continue his short-lived sleep.
Unfortunately, some reflex in his brain clicked, and made him raise abruptly like a zombie. With a swipe of his hand, he grabbed his phone and tapped his screen nervously. Thankfully, time showed him some mercy, and a recurring beep of 6 am with the message 'WAKE UP DUMBASS, THE TRIP STARTS AT 7:30 AM!' brutally flashed.
Oredell's lips twitched in irritation but silently breathed a sigh of relief at the prospect of not oversleeping. He stumbled back to his bed and rubbed his slightly red eyes, taking a moment to stretch out his limbs evenly and decently.
Eventually, his consciousness fully returned to reality, and he stood off his feet to the cold tile floor. He grabbed a plastic cup and a toothbrush, moving his way to the small bathroom.
The toothbrush was quickly brushed with toothpaste, and the cup was filled with water from the tap.
"Ugh..."
Oredell looked at his mirror and fixed his messy hair covering his temples, then continued to brush his teeth and gargled with water, quickly spitting it all into the sink.
"...Honestly, waking up early is a real energy drainer. I am pretty sure half of my energy for the day is already gone... So unfair," Oredell mumbled weakly, lowering his cup and toothbrush.
With some effectiveness in his movements, he swiftly removed his clothes and stepped into the streaming shower.
The water sprinkled down slowly, increasing its warmth before settling at his optimal temperature. The shower lasted approximately fifteen minutes, then he hummed some classical music under his breath while turning down the water.
Satisfied with his freshened skin, he stepped out and suddenly shivered from the loss of warmth.
'I could shower a bit longer, but the day is already long...'
A deflated sigh escaped his lips as he swiftly towelled himself dry. Oredell returned to his bedroom, selecting his second uniform that was identical to the first set and threw his old laundry into the basket for later washing.
Soon after, he sorted out his bed and mindlessly swept around his room with one of the wooden brooms, orderly clearing out any remaining dust and dirt into his little bin in the corner.
After tidying the dormitory, he hooked his bag over his shoulder and readied himself to leave adequately.
However, an alarming thought struck him in the midst of opening his door, and he froze. He instinctively looked back at his piled-up notebooks and went back to pick them up.
'Just to be safe. I mean, it would make sense to carry them since this is my last day of the trip... Although, it's really unnecessary since my phone already has the required notes and everything beyond it. But I don't plan on losing it in the event I daydream during the exploration. So better to be prepared than never...'
"Oh man, I am already stressing myself out in this beautiful early morning..."
He clicked his tongue and arranged his books accordingly. Oredell quickly made his way out of his room and cautiously locked his door. He navigated down the hall and down the stairs.
The lounge was still lit up in the early morning, but it was unusually quiet except for some distant whispers from early bird eaters like himself.
Before Oredell could enjoy the silence in the lounge, Professor Harper raced down with a phone to his ear.
"That's good; it seems you are already ready. Please wait in the lounge for your classmates to prepare themselves," Professor Harper urged as he passed by him to the receptionist.
Oredell simply shrugged his shoulders and aimed himself at a comfortable chair to relax in.
There was an antique painting looming over it, depicting a lonesome white house settled along a darkened forest on its left, and a striking signature could be observed at its bottom.
He analyzed the oil painting for a moment with slight interest before burying his complete focus in his phone. In due time, most of the students came down to the lounge and settled patiently in their usual groups.
Of course, numerous students avoided his area, except for some female peers who sat and chatted indifferently next to him.
Unfortunately, these girls' chatter would progressively grow louder and more unrestrained as time went on, making Oredell quite annoyed at his screen.
Thankfully, the professor and class leaders rounded everyone up briskly and organized them into different lines.
"Alright everyone, I want all of you to be on your best behavior until we reach the bus. There are still some students participating in lessons around the campus, so I personally urge you not to disturb them," he informed with an unsettling expression.
"Follow your class leaders and stay in formation. Oh, if I see any foolish misconduct under my supervision, punishment will be swift and according to the rules," Professor Harper warned for the last time, ordering the class leaders to take point and lead everyone out of the campus.
Everyone navigated the university in absolute silence, making their way through the empty paths to the parking lot. At least twenty minutes passed before they reached the first exit on the east wing of the campus, where buses welcomed them with rumbling roars in their numerous national colors.
Surprisingly, there were new additional flags from the usual batch in Oredell's group. These flagged buses included those from Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain—all paired together, which was not a common combination for this entire international semester. Professor Harper evenly split them up at random among the teachers who were waiting for their arrival.
Interestingly, everyone was free to move around and socialize with other national schools. In just a few minutes, the students mingled and occupied various benches and even quiet spaces to chat among themselves.
Oredell aimlessly moved around in search of a quiet place to sit down but encountered a mysterious blonde girl sitting all alone not too far away.
Moreover, a familiar figure could be seen approaching her. Yet, before Oredell could recognize those acquainted faces, the professors sharply called out to everyone to board any of the roaring buses of their choosing.
Like clockwork, he was swept up in the somewhat organized chaos and could only watch as the two familiar figures boarded a bus together, while he found himself hijacked into a black Germany-themed bus.
With a disappointed sigh, Oredell chose a seat near a window and sat comfortably. Just when he was about to busy himself with his phone, a Chinese-flagged student with a golden ribbon sat luxuriously next to him, wearing earpieces tied to an MP4 player.
Oredell didn't mind or care, quickly tapping away to read a web novel on his phone. The powerful engine hissed and began to move, causing everyone to stumble slightly.
It was followed by a line of various buses driving into the main road, and Oredell could see the distant horizon of the capital city of Abuja.
The clouds in the sky began to darken, and thunder boomed softly like a promise of upcoming heavy rain in the far distance.
The numerous buses paced through the main road, passing by the abundant greens in a blurring motion, like a modern projector screened on the windows.
The light of the sun darkened considerably and weakened from the ever-changing gray clouds. Luckily, most of the bus's internal lights were turned on, providing ample illumination for the students.
Soon, the buses buzzed loudly in the streets of the Capital City, and most vehicles respectfully gave way for them. The locals occasionally cheered when the buses passed through.
Although the roads leading to the Proto-Undergrounds were heavily blocked and monitored by the national police and security, Oredell silently leaned back in his window and watched the various lives of Abuja.
From what I know, Nigeria's GDP has been projected to have grown approximately 1.4 billion dollars this year alone... It's really incredible how much they have risen in these past few years, but it was pretty much inevitable since this historical discovery of Proto-Civilisation gained global attention in Africa in such a short amount of time...
Oredell mused before turning his attention to his webnovel.
However, Oredell caught something in the corner of his eye. He silently observed his neighboring student tapping his pen nervously as he browsed through his handbook.
...It just seems he lost some notes, but why is he panicking as if it were something significant? Oredell monitored the student's behavior and shook his head.
...Whatever, I could just lend him some of mine since I already have everything stored in this power bank...
Oredell redundantly reached down for his primary notebook and presented it nonchalantly to the student.
"Here, whatever you need should be inside. I hope."
The student looked up tensely and removed his earpieces with skepticism but took the notebook respectfully.
Oredell simply nodded and continued swiping down his screen.
Still, what he expected was for the student to randomly drop his handbook and point directly to one of his main topics of Proto-Civilisation.
"You wrote this?" he asked in perfect English.
Oredell turned his head with equal puzzlement and merely responded, "Yes."
The student browsed through the vast pages of Oredell's notebook and looked at him with some suspicion.
"This is a bit too detailed and well-organized for the standards of a normal student. Are you perhaps a chosen speaker of your national school?"
Oredell instantly wore a look of understanding and nodded indifferently.
"I was initially chosen but was resigned from my position due to my 'unpreparedness' or something like that..."
The student examined Oredell thoroughly and deeply sighed with an undecipherable tone.
"It seems you don't remember me."
"What?"
Oredell tilted his head in bewilderment and uncertainty.
"Yes... Please allow me to properly introduce myself. My full name is Yi Yong, and I am one of the chosen speakers of the Chinese National School." Yong introduced himself firmly.
"Moreover, I was right next to you in Yarisa's class lecture," he quickly added.
Oredell's memory kicked into hyper-drive, carefully focusing on any mentions of his name and involvement in the lesson.
'Wait a minute... Wasn't he the one who scoffed at me when Yasira was picking 'volunteers' for one of her questions?' Oredell lamented.
"Oh, right. Yes, I do remember you."
Yong silently examined him and bitterly asked, "In the time I was with you this past week, have you already forgotten my existence from your collective memory?"
He sat back straight and continued his stoic scrutiny of Oredell's notes.
"I would have felt offended if it weren't for your kindness in noticing my special situation. Thank you regardless..."
'...How am I supposed to remember every single encounter I have with a stranger? We are both equally at fault for not saying a single word to each other during that duration,' Oredell defended himself thoughtfully.
Maintaining his usual expression despite his drifting thoughts, Oredell clarified innocently, "Well, you know... I may have trouble remembering individuals who blend into the crowd easily, but I will try to do better in my social awareness."
Yong raised his hand in understanding and reassurance.
"Don't be apologetic. I do have a bad habit of mistreating my long hair in class, and in most cases, it could hide most of my facial features if I am not careful."
Oredell properly examined his face, but he was quickly internally shocked at how handsome he was.
"What do you mean by that?" Yong pressed and interrogated.
Oredell was beginning to sweat bullets and came up with an excuse.
"You know what I mean... the kind that's easy to miss. Ahem, anyway. Do my notes help you in any way?" Oredell switched the topic to the heavy notebook.
Yong tilted his head as if in deep thought and nodded, "Mm, it helps me. Thanks."
"Good... that's awesome." Oredell looked away, trying to keep his expression neutral and usual.
'Brother, why do you look like a K-pop idol? You can get a hairstyle like that nowadays? Man, that's something...' Oredell internally sighed and turned his attention back to the novel.