The headlights of the van cut through the city streets, one of many lights on the night with cars and street lamps dancing on the night, casting fleeting shadows across weathered brick buildings and neon signs with the contrast of the lights on the windows. The faint smell of exhaust and fried food seeped in through the cracked window as a blonde bombshell scrolled through her playlist, determined to find the perfect track to blast through the van's speakers.
"Do we really have to listen to this again?" A messy ashy hair teen grumbled from the driver's seat, his yellowish brown eyes flicking between the road and the fuel gauge. He looked like he'd rather wrestle a bear than endure another hour of blondes pop marathon.
"Yes, we do," The blonde replied with an exaggerated sigh, her nails clicking against her phone. "My music has vibes. You're just boring."
"Keep saying that, and you're walking to the restaurant," the ashy haired teen muttered, earning a rubber band flicked at his head by Noah, who was lounging in the back.
"Hey, Sparky, maybe don't threaten the DJ," A brown haired boy quipped, grinning as he lobbed an rubber band at ashed haired teen's ear. His aim was impeccable, and it showed in teen irritated glare.
"Can you not, Noah?" I said from the passenger seat, pinching the bridge of my nose. "Some of us would like to make it there alive."
"Relax, Xin, I'm just keeping things lively," Noah replied, leaning back like he owned the van. "This group would be so boring without me."
"Don't flatter yourself," a girl with long black hair shot back from the far corner, her legs propped up on the seat . She was balancing her phone on her knee, occasionally glancing at it as if it could magically show her something other than a no-signal icon. "The only thing you're keeping alive is Jack's stress levels."
Two teens who are nearly identical in the middle row with a bag of chips between them who are seemingly ignoring the chaos unfold as they played chess against each other on their phone but looking closer they are whispering to each other, their quiet laughter barely audible over the music. Probably planning another prank—those two couldn't go five minutes without stirring up trouble.
It should've been a simple evening. Dinner at some hole-in-the-wall spot downtown, a nostalgic send-off before everyone got too busy to hang out. The restaurant wasn't even that far, just a few blocks down from Jack's usual coffee spot. But as we turned onto a quieter street, the night seemed to take on a strange, uneasy edge.
And then it happened.
A blaring horn. Blinding headlights. Jack barely had time to swerve before the impact.
The van jerked violently, spinning out as tires screeched against the pavement. The world became a blur of chaos—metal groaning, shouts overlapping, and the sickening crunch of glass and steel. My stomach lurched as I was thrown forward, head slamming into the dashboard.
I awaken my eyes in a only to see the van upside down I try to look around only to see the corpse of Jack on the steering wheel before I was about to comprehend what happened a loud siren is heared and instinctively turned to look as I see a light.
Before I could do anything my eyes start to lose focus and my vision closing as my senses becoming dull.
Only to be met with...
Pain. Darkness. Silence.
My eyes then was shot open as gasp for air, the first thing I noticed was the smell of damp earth. My head throbbed, and every inch of my body ached as if I'd been thrown into a meat grinder. I blinked, disoriented, and looked around.
I wasn't in the van.
I was in a forest.
The towering trees stretched into the sky, their dense canopy casting dappled shadows across the forest floor. Birds chirped somewhere in the distance, and a soft breeze rustled the leaves.
"What the hell?" I muttered, my voice sounded strange—higher-pitched, softer. My hands trembled as I looked down at them. They were smaller, the fingers stubby, like a child's.
Shaking the confusion I tried to stand up, only for my legs to give out and I was on my knees, so I sat down looking around the forest before attempting it again.
Panic surged through me as I scrambled to my feet, wobbling slightly, but didn't falling to my knees this time. I needed answers. Where was everyone else? What had happened?
A faint cry caught my attention, pulling me deeper into the woods.
I followed the sound until I reached a small clearing.
Only to see the most confusing thing in my life than what is happening now.
A group of babies lay sprawled on a patch of soft moss, squirming and crying. At first, I didn't believe what I was seeing. It didn't make sense. But as I stepped closer, my breath caught in my throat.
One by one, I recognized them.
The tiniest one, his face scrunched up in frustration, had to be Noah. His wild hair was unmistakable, and even as a baby, he looked ready to cause trouble. Beside him was Emma, her pouty expression making her look like she was already demanding room service. Mera was there too, her tiny hands clutching a tuft of moss like it was some great prize.
Cael and Star were curled up together, as inseparable in infancy as they were in life. And then there was Jack, the only one not crying, his tiny face set in a scowl.
"This has to be a dream," I whispered, rubbing my eyes. But no matter how many times I blinked, the scene didn't change.
Finally, I glanced down at myself, my heart pounding. My hands were those of a child, but my clothes were oversized and tattered, hanging off my much smaller frame. I must've been… what? Five? Eight, maybe?
"Okay, Xin," I said aloud, trying to steady my breathing. "Get it together. Figure this out."
The cries of the babies grew louder, and I knelt down, hesitating before picking up Noah. He immediately stopped crying, staring up at me with wide, mischievous eyes.
"Of course, even as a baby, you're trouble," I muttered.
One by one, I gathered them, doing my best to comfort them. It wasn't easy—Emma shrieked like I'd stolen her favorite toy, and Jack gave me a look that clearly said, What are you doing?
Once everyone was relatively calm, I sat down, cradling Star in my lap. The gravity of the situation began to sink in.
We'd died. That much was certain. But this… this wasn't an afterlife. It wasn't anything I could explain. We were alive, somehow.
And we were kids.
"I don't know what's going on," I said quietly, looking at the small, fragile faces of my friends. "But I'll figure it out. I'll take care of you guys. Just… hang in there."
As the sun began to set, casting the forest in hues of orange and gold, I felt a strange mix of fear and determination. Whatever had happened to us, whatever this place was, I wasn't going to let it break us.
We'd been through too much together.
And this time would be no different. Except one thing "Why am I the only one who's a kid!"