Sitting at the back of the class, Phil tapped his finger on the table, stealing glances at the time. It wasn't just him in a hurry; nine other students shared the anticipation, their excited faces signaling a post-school plan.
*Ring* *Ring* *Ring*
As soon as the bell chimed, the ten of them sprang to their feet, rushing out of the class, heading towards the rooftop where they'd planned a meeting after school.
"Are we all here?" Phil did a quick headcount, realizing they weren't complete. "Oh, come on!! Where's Zaid?"
"Who knows, he's probably immersed in his science stuff again. Can we not call him? I swear we'd get caught if he followed us," Leo suggested.
"Leo's right; Zaid will slow us down. He's a dead weight." Ethan backed Leo up, though his expression soured when he saw Phil's face. He could already guess what Phil was about to say.
"Come on, guys! We're a team, and a team isn't complete unless everybody is here. Don't leave a brother behind." Phil pleaded with the rest with his eyes.
"Ughhh fine!" Heidi reluctantly picked up her phone and dialed Isabelle's number.
"Hey Isabelle."
"Hey."
"We agreed to meet after school. Where are you?"
"On my way there."
"Can you bring Zaid along?"
"He skipped class again. I don't know his whereabouts."
"Okay." Isabelle dropped the phone, folding her hands below her ample bosom as she glared at Phil. The phone was on loudspeaker, so everybody heard what they said clearly.
"Okay, okay, the team is going to move without a member today." Phil raised his hand in defeat.
After five minutes, Isabelle joined them, and they started discussing how to execute their plan—turns out, they were heading to a restricted area.
"Trust me, guys, this trip is going to be worth it. Eliza, did you get the key?" Phil asked, rubbing his hands excitedly.
"Yes, I've stolen it. And please, no pictures! My dad would kill me if he found out about this." Eliza said worriedly, but Eloise reassured her that nothing would go wrong.
"I still don't get it. If this place is an extremely classified area, your dad can't just leave the key flying around. And it's not like you're that bright-minded to find out his secret hiding spot," Isabelle said impartially.
"Pfft." The rest covered their mouths, laughing silently.
"At least my father trusted me enough to leave the key lying around. What about your father, huh? A drunk old bastard who never trusted anyone. I heard he even tried to rape you weeks ago... A drunk old man rapes his daughter; that would be an interesting headline, don't you think?" Eliza fired back at Isabelle for mocking her, but she went too far with it. Isabelle was already fuming by the time she finished her sentence, and before she knew it, Isabelle's fist was an inch away from her face.
Phil, who had already sensed Isabelle's movement, quickly threw his hand in the way, grabbing her fist. "Stop this, guys! We're a team. A team doesn't fight; we support each other in tim—"
"Spare us the bullshit and let's go already. It's getting dark."
After settling Eliza and Isabelle's dispute, the group quickly assembled themselves in a small bus as Ethan drove them away.
Three hours later, they finally reached their destination. Just a hundred meters ahead, they could see the restricted area fenced by an electrical fence.
"I suggest we park the bus here; we don't want to make any noise," Morris said as he opened the back door and came down silently.