It was a new day before the birds in the trees commenced their songs. Before the sky was illuminated by the bright rays of the sun all fifteen students were up and ready, already on their way to the meet up point agreed between them and the professors.
The time on her LED watch flashed 6am with the day's date blinking at the bottom right corner as Emma arrived first on the scene followed by her brother who was trailing closely behind her. The yellow school bus arranged by the faculty to help convey the students to the airport was already parked in a space within the university's parking lot, with the driver in his seat, his cap placed over his face as he slept and waited for others to arrive or further instructions from the professors.
"And here I was thinking I'd beat you here" Emma heard a voice say from behind her
She turned to see Max Baker with his brown hand held traveling bag in his hand, and a backpack slung over his shoulders "Did you even sleep at all?" He asked as he took his place beside her
"I don't think anyone had that luxury" Evan finally spoke
"You can speak for yourself" Avery Thompson said from behind the trio as she arrives on scene with a pink suitcase that looks too big for the trip
"Why's your bag so big?" Evan asked as she walked closer to the group "Did you pack out your wardrobe?"
"I have enough changeable clothes for every hour of each day that we spend at Misthaven Bay. I intend to look good always" She said as she rolled her luggage to a stop beside her
The front of her white top sits comfortably tucked into her blue fitted but yet stretchy jeans as she strides forward in her hiking boots
"Well you look good" Emma complimented her with a quick smile on her face
"Thank you" She smiled back at her as they all waited for the rest of the group to arrive.
One by one they started to announce their presence as they either rolled their bags in or carried it on their shoulders like bodybuilders. It took an extra thirty minutes after the students arrived, for the professors to make their ever so slow presence known to the rest of the class.
Professor Rachel Turner and Dr Oliver Bennett arrived at the parking lot together, stepping out of the taxi they both boarded and strolled over to the students who watched in shock and awe, with several thoughts running across their minds and faces.
Thin lines spread across the foreheads of Evan, Lucas and Elijah as they all shared a collective thought "You don't think-" Elijah started
"That would be the story of this generation" Lucas managed to say as the pair walked closer
"Why does it seem weird to think that they would be into each other?" Milo questioned
"Let's just pretend to be clueless to save ourselves the thought of it" Caleb shook his head, as if to shake off the thought of two of their professors in bed together
"Nice to see that you're all here and we won't have to wait for anyone" Professor Turner said as she got closer to the group "Shall we head out?"
The group looked at each other before a voice called out from their midst "Okay I'm just going to say it cause I know we're all thinking it and I don't want that thought lingering in my head as we begin our journey" Zara Ahmed spoke up with a hand in the air "Why did you both arrive together?"
The rest of the group turned their attention to the professors who didn't seem shocked by the question "Not like it's any of your business to begin with" Professor Turner started to speak "But we live in the same neighborhood" She finished turning to look at Dr. Oliver Bennett who nodded in agreement
"I happened to see her standing by the road on my way here and we decided to share a cab" Dr. Bennett added as he walked closer to the group "Now that that's out of the way, can we get going?"
He walked past the group and took a sit on the front row of the bus, leaving his bag beside him
The group looked at him and then back at Professor Turner and then back at Dr. Bennett before shrugging in unison like a premeditated action. One by One they all made their way into the bus, taking their seats in no specific manner or arrangement.
"Good morning Alex" Professor Turner said to the bus driver who was now awake, previously watching the brief moment of interrogation between the students and their professors and now he was fully awake and ready to drive
"Good morning ma'am" He responded with a smile on his face "Are we ready to leave?" He asked looking back to the group who were chattering away and then back to Professor Turner
"As ready as we'd ever be" She responded back "Thank you for taking out the time to drive us"
With all the bags stacked and arranged neatly at the back of the bus, with the keys turned in the ignition port and gears shifted from neutral to one, the journey began. The time read 7:30am as the bus pulled out of the university's parking lot and onto the open road, heading towards the first point of the journey.
Power lines arranged neatly on either side of the road, humming with energy as they supplied power across the county. The evergreen fields, with a few sheep and cattles munching on grass could be seen in the distance as the bus switched lanes to drive around a red truck that was driving a few kilometers below the speed limit on the highway.
It took a full hour before the bus slowly pulled to a full stop at what seemed to be a private hangar on the other side of the county. The students stretched as they stepped out of the bus, onto the paved runway in front of the open hangar with the nose of a plane poking out of it.
"I could get used to this life" Mia gawked as she stared at the white chartered Bombardier Challenger 850 jet plane
The plane has a sleek exterior with a white fuselage and the charter company's logo emblazoned on the tail. The plane's wings equipped with efficient propeller engines, provides the necessary power for takeoff and flight.
Inside, the interior was well-maintained, with clean and comfortable leather seating with overhead compartments that provides ample space for storing carry-on luggage, while large windows offer panoramic views of the scenery below.
As they stared in fascination at the beautiful plane in front of them, Professor Turner spoke with the driver as he dropped off the bags and luggages on the side of the bus, neatly stacked and easily accessible.
"Once again, thank you Alex for driving us here. I know it's a Saturday and you should be home resting" She said to him as he pulled out the last luggage belonging to Avery
"It's no problem, really" Alex said to her with a reassuring smile spread across his face "I'll be back to pick you guys up"
She pulled him into a quick hug and watched as he hopped into the bus, closing the doors "I'll be back here to pick you all up" He said driving off, leaving her and the students behind
"Well let's get going" Professor Turner said as she turned to face the class who had the same expression written on their face as they did when they saw her come out of the same taxi with Dr. Bennett "What is it this time?"
"Forgive our collective curiosity but who's he to you?" Lucas asked "I'm pretty sure we all thought he was just a hired hand"
"For university students, you're all acting like high school kids" She scoffed and then began her march down to the hangar with Dr. Bennett trailing closely behind her "You'd better hurry up and grab your bags if you don't want to be left behind" Dr. Bennett called from over his shoulder
The squad scrambled to their bags and luggages, and hurried over to the professors as they spoke to a man in uniform and others dressed in blue.
"Good morning Dr. Bennett" The pilot said as they shook hands
"Drop the formalities Jamie" Dr. Bennett said as their hands fell down to their side "It's good to see you again"
"Likewise. I can see you're already getting closer to the great beyond" Jamie chuckled, pointing to the few gray strands of hair on Dr. Bennett's head "Better take it easy on that hip of yours"
"Coming from someone who's at least three years older than me" Dr. Bennett shot back "Don't worry I'll give a nice speech during your funeral"
"Nobody's dying" Professor Turner said as she smacked Dr. Bennett on his shoulder. "It's good to see you Jamie. How's Lauren?"
The pilot smiled as he pulled her into a quick hug "She's doing good. We're expecting a little one in a few months"
"So I heard. Congratulations" Professor Turner said with a smile on her face as she pulled away from the hug "I'll be sure to send a present when the baby comes"
"Do you know if it's a boy or a girl?" Dr. Bennett asked asked
"We want to be surprised" He said back to him
Lucas looked between the three as they conversed, before clearing his throat loudly, reminding the three of them that the fifteen of them standing behind still existed
"Don't worry we haven't forgotten about you yet" Dr. Bennett chuckled as he turned to look at all of them
"My name is Captain James Bailey" He said waving to the class "I'll be your pilot for today"
"We're in your hands" Emma said with a smile on her face
"Well let's get you settled inside the plane" Captain James Bailey said as he motioned towards the plane behind him "The flight attendants would take care of your bags"
The class moved from the front of the plane and gawked at the beautiful interiors as they stepped into the plane, taking yet again, no specific seating arrangements as they chatted away
"At least we can rule Captain James out of the list of suitors for Professor Turner" Max said, taking a seat beside me "Do you think she's married?"
"I don't even know" Emma responded looking at Max "If it wasn't for the fact that she's a professor at the University I wouldn't even know what her first name was"
"What's her first name?" Zara Ahmed said from behind Emma
"You seriously don't know her name?" Emma asked wide eyed and shocked Avery's shrug and shake of Zara's head
"I just call her Professor Turner and forget about everything else" Avery said from the window seat on the opposite side of where Emma and Max sat
"Professor Rachel Turner" Professor Turner said as she climbed aboard the plane "And I am very disappointed with you Miss Zara Ahmed"
"Damn" Lucas laughed as he settled in his seat after stuffing his backpack in the compartment above
Captain James Bailey came into view as he climbed aboard the plane with Dr. Bennett behind him "We'd be taking off now so everyone please take your seats. If you need anything you can call on one of the two flight attendants and they'll serve you immediately" He said giving us a thumbs up before stepping out of view into the cockpit
"Thumbs up, really?" Avery Thompson snickered
"You don't see that everyday" Sophia Chen said from behind Lucas
"Oh wow Sophia. You finally speak" Lucas snapped his head in her direction to look at her "Thought you were giving everyone the silent treatment"
"Just didn't think there was anything worth saying" She rolled her eyes at him
"Some of us are just here to observe and get lost in the crowd" Owen said from beside Sophia "But we're not asking the right questions"
"What do you mean?" Isabel Rodriguez asks, looking rather uninterested in the conversation
Owen's gaze directly fixed at Dr. Bennett who seemed more focused on fixing his seat belt across his waist "What strings did you pull to get us this kind of luxury treatment? Cause I know there's no school budget to cover this beautiful plane"
All eyes were now on Dr. Bennett who for a second looked like he was in the middle of an interrogation. His expression quickly relaxed before a smile spread across his face "I plan on enjoying the trip, so I called in on a favor to Jamie who was more than happy to loan us one of his planes from his company and even fly us personally"
"You mean Captain James Bailey owns this plane?" Elijah's jaw dropped to the floor
"Would you believe me if I told you that he won it off in an auction?" Dr. Bennett laughed
"No" The group chorused
"Well that's up to you to believe or not then" He shot a smile over to Professor Turner who seemed rather uninterested in the groups joint curiosity
A voice spoke overhead breaking everyone's mental focus on Dr. Bennett "Good morning everyone. This is your captain speaking. Well be taking off in a matter of seconds so I'd advise that everyone is locked and buckled down with their seatbelts and I hope you all enjoy the flight"
The intercom clicked and the plane jerked forward as it began to move. The tires spun as it was pulled out of the hangar and onto the open railway. When in position, the engines hummed as the blades spun, pulling as much air through them as possible.
A few clicks here and there, a few buttons pressed and before the group could say Jack the plane pushed forward, slowly gaining momentum on the runway and was soon in the air as soon as Captain James pulled back on the control wheel before clicking on the switch pulling the tyres in.
The group cheered as they looked through the windows to see the hangar reduce in size till it was nothing more than an ant from where they watched. The whole town shrunk till it was lost in the clouds beneath it. A flight attendant, with a smile on her face, pushed a cart with bottled waters, a jar of orange juice and cups from the start of the walkway to the end, handing out drinks to those that requested.
"Again I could get used to this life" Mia squealed as she drank from the bottle of water handed out to her.
"Well the flight would only last about an hour thirty minutes or maybe two hours, calculating the air speed and all so I'd suggest you don't get too used to it" Dr. Bennett said settling deeper into his chair
"Way to kill the buzz sir" Elijah called out and everyone chuckled
"Just saying" He shrugged
"So guys, what's the one thing you're looking forward to seeing the most over at Misthaven Bay?" Lucas asks the group
"The girls in their bikinis" Elijah blurted out. The words escaping his lips faster than he could cover them
"As always, you can count on Elijah to be a huge perv" Zara rolled her eyes at him
Elijah shrugged before letting out a small laugh "What about you Emma?"
"Oh personally it's the different species of birds all over the Bay I'm more interested in seeing" She responded holding her camera in her hand "I plan on capturing as many as I can"
"That's cool" Avery said "I plan on sitting by a pool side or the sea side and just relaxing"
"So what was the point of carrying the heavy luggage?" Lucas asked
"Oh that," She chuckled. "The bags are almost empty. I plan on going shopping for clothes and taking them back home"
"So everything about having enough clothes for every hour of the day?" Max asked her
"That was just me pulling your legs a bit" She winked at him "But then when I do go shopping and get enough clothes, I'd definitely have something to change into every hour of the day"
"And what about you Ava?" Lucas asks
"Swimming with the fishes" She responds and everyone shoots her a confused expression
She looks around studying their faces and then it hits her "Wait no no I didn't mean it that way. I meant it in a literal sense. I plan on swimming and observing the fishes closely" She added
"For a second there we thought you were planning on dying" Owen heaves a sigh of relief
"I don't plan on dying on this trip" She says as she flips her wavy blonde hair behind her "Or anytime soon"
"That's good to know" Caleb says his eyes glaring outside the window "Hey guys check out that island" He calls and everyone's attention turns towards the windows on the left side of the plane
"That looks so cool" Mia coos as she takes a picture of the island on her phone
"Imagine having a private island, where you can access whenever you like" Zara says
"Or one you can escape to when the world around you starts to crumble" Milo says
"Or when the cops come knocking" Natalie Jokes
Emma returns back to her seat on the right side of the plane and then turns out to look out her window as well, smiling as the clouds pass by under the wings of the plane. Her brows furrow as she stares deeper through the clouds
"There's another Island over here" She calls and the group race on over to her side to stare at the island
The same island.
"Isn't that the island we were just looking at over there?" Milo asks pointing behind him
"That's not possible" Isabel chuckles smacking his shoulder "It's not like the plane turned around and we're circling back to look at the island"
"It's obviously a different island" Zara calls from behind Mia who stepped back to view the island from the right side of the plane
"Yeah you're right" Milo says in defeat "They look almost identical"
"You all should be seated" Professor Turner says in a rather disapproving tone
"There are birds flying out from inside the trees" Lucas says as he looks at the island through the window on the right
"Same…. Here" Emma paused, sweat trickling down the nape of her neck as the words crept out of her lips
"What do you mean by the same here?" Caleb pushed from his seat waltzing over to Emma's window
"A flock of birds just flew out from the trees, just like Lucas said" Emma pointed at the birds that just flew underneath the clouds
"I can't see them over here" Caleb said as he peered through the sealed window
"But I can" Lucas speaks up looking at the birds as they circle back to the island "They're going back to the island"
For a second the birds on the right side couldn't be seen through clouds but then they came into view as they flew right back towards the island "They circled back too"
"Go back to your seats" Professor Turner commands. The plane vibrates like a car driving through series of cracks and potholes on the road "Now" Her voice louder than before
The intercom above their heads beep and the voice of Captain James Bailey follows immediately after "Sorry guys, we've hit a little bit of turbulence, although there's nothing to worry about but I'm going to ask that everyone sits down if you're moving about.
Everyone does as instructed as the vibrations of the plane slowly turned into what seemed like tremors of the earth. The glasses on the table in front of the students and the cart close to the cockpit shook vigorously as the lights began to flicker.
Until everything stopped. The lights went dark. The teacup on the desk in front of Emma Reynolds slowly lifted from the table it was placed on, floating in the air, as if suspended by magic but the cup wasn't floating, the plane was falling
"We're going down" Captain Bailey spoke through the intercom.