"Alright everyone, the buses are here," Mr. Bostav announced.
A week had passed and we were all sitting in the auditorium.
Why, you may ask?
Because we're going on a field trip.
"Let's go," I said, gesturing to the other students standing up.
Tristan, Nishimoya, and Soriel nodded.
We had been playing games on our phones as we waited for the buses to arrive.
So now that it was time to go, we were already prepared.
The trip was to a technology museum all the way in Jersey.
It was a freshman only trip, meaning that the other grades didn't come with us.
You see, we had gone on a few trips at this school but they weren't long and not often.
After all, we were still the newcomers so the better trips were reserved for the higher grades.
That made this trip pretty unique.
'I wonder what's going through her head…'
As we walked outside and towards the buses, I couldn't help but wonder about Soriel.
She seemed to be improving steadily but grief was a hard thing. Her former joy still hadn't returned.
I sighed.
'Only time will tell.'
"Elliot," Tristan called out.
"Yeah?"
"I'll sit with Nishimoya. You sit with Soriel."
I raised my eyebrow.
"Okay?"
Getting closer to Soriel, I asked if she wanted to sit with me.
"Of course," She replied with a small smile.
Her smile was too polite, too calm.
Despite the fact, I'd seen her at her lowest moments, it felt like there was a border between us.
A border of grief.
It disappointed me slightly.
We all got on the bus and the bus ride began.
It was a 3 hour drive.
**
"This place is massive…" I mumbled.
After our pleasant ride, we had finally arrived at the museum. And it was gigantic.
With sleek, modern architecture and projections of all kinds all around, the museum was quite the spectacle.
'I'm definitely going to have fun here…'
The ride to the museum was fun. We all joked and played games.
So now, it was time to have even more fun.
"You look like you're going to die from shock," Tristan commented.
"And you're going to die by my hand if you don't let me enjoy this," I retorted.
Some guides soon appeared and the freshmen were split into separate groups.
Fortunately, Nishimoya, Soriel, and I were in the same group. However, Tristan was in another one.
After splitting up, our guide took us to our first destination.
"Woah," Nishimoya muttered.
"Wow," Soriel mumbled.
"Wowwowowowow," I added.
In front of us, and all around us, were orbs of light.
They were almost like bubbles in a way, but glowing and seemingly ethereal in the dark room.
Each and every one surrounded us like they were being pulled by our very presence.
Apparently, it was done by special light technology designed to lower stress levels and calm the mind.
But I wasn't getting calmer, just really excited.
"Look at how cool this is!" I exclaimed, grabbing at some of the orbs.
I began to move from orb to orb, my hand passing through each and every one of them.
Nishimoya began to copy me as well.
"What are you guys doing?" Soriel asked full of confusion.
She gazed upon me with utter curiosity.
"Having fun of course," I replied.
An orb began to drift towards Soriel, about to hit her head.
Sticking my hand out, I made a gesture to block the orb.
"Ohhh nooo, watch out!" I warned dramatically.
The orb passed right through my hand and through Soriel's head.
Soriel gave me a puzzled look.
Then, she did something unexpected.
"Pfft, pfft."
Soriel began to giggle. She tried holding it in at first but soon it became full laugh.
She laughed and laughed until she began a coughing fit.
It was the first time I'd seen her laugh since her grandfather's passing.
She hadn't even chuckled since then.
But now, her face was bright, like a star in the night sky.
The orbs seemed to surround her in her laughter, as if the world itself had fallen in love with her.
At that very moment, I thought, no I knew…
Soriel was free.
"Hey! Stop laughing at me!" I ordered.
Coughing a few more times, Soriel smiled.
"Sorry, sorry. You're just so…heh heh," Soriel replied, still letting out a small laugh.
I frowned.
"Meanie."
'She looks so relaxed…'
In that room, an odd peace seemed to seep into my heart.
And I prayed that the same peace entered Soriel's heart as well.
**
Our group went to do a few other activities, all of which were fun in their own ways.
We all enjoyed it, and it was a great experience.
Nishimoya especially seemed interested in the coding behind a robot we got to meet.
Eventually though, we had to go eat lunch.
That's when I met back up with Tristan.
"So how was being separated from us?" I asked cheekily.
"Good," he responded.
I frowned.
"You didn't miss me?"
"I was happy you were gone."
My eyebrow twitched.
"You jerk!"
Nishimoya giggled and Soriel smiled softly.
"What did your group do?" Nishimoya asked.
"Some stuff on the second floor. We…"
"Shh. Don't spoil it. We're doing it after lunch, remember?" I cut Tristan off.
"Fair enough."
Soriel cut in.
"What was your favorite thing so far? You don't have to describe in detail in order to prevent spoiling the event. But I'm curious."
'Hm?'
Soriel speaking up had become rare. She still spoke frequently but more so responding than initiating.
Yet, this time she did.
And that brought a smile to my face.
**
"Man, that was awesome!" I exclaimed as we boarded the bus.
We had finished up all the museum's activities, and they did not disappoint.
From a garden made of pure steel and circuits, to a whole iron man exhibit, the museum really outdid itself.
Truly, the experience was unlike any other.
"I had a good time too," Soriel added as we sat in our seats.
"Me too!" Nishimoya adding, sitting in the seat behind us.
Silence followed.
"Aren't you going to say something Tristan?"
"Eh? Oh yeah, me too."
I smiled.
The bus began to move and our trip back to New York started.
We were all pretty drained so we didn't talk much.
I was playing a game on my phone with my AirPods in when something odd happened.
'Huh?'
I felt a weight rest upon my shoulder.
Looking to my side, my eyes widened.
'Soriel?'
With her head lazily rested upon my shoulder, Soriel sat completely asleep.
My body heated up and an odd feeling entered my soul.
'She's cute when she's sleeping…'
I sat there, staring at the unconscious Soriel.
Staring at her, I knew the look I had on my face.
The look of love.