Yay for me, I managed to revive this story from the invasion of dust particles TwT

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except this story.

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A swirl of dark colors filled my tired vision as I tried lifting my heavy eyelids. It was then when I was accustomed in the darkness, Mari and Sieghart were the first to meet my vision. Both of them are still on the bench, staring outside the building just to alert the remaining Lass and I for some incoming trouble or the return of the others from their shopping. The atmosphere in the room is like waiting for the grass to grow, though it gave a rather unusual feeling, not that kind of killer boredom, but the one which sent chills to run up and down one's spine. Maybe it's because of noticing how quiet Sieghart is? I mean he's the usual loud mouth among the boys but now, he's like... I don't know... Unless he's sleeping in his position, which I found to be really doubtful because he isn't snoring. Oh well... I just think that he isn't in the mood to make loud and annoying jokes since he doesn't have, what you call, a 'playmate'.

Well, lying down in this couch will do nothing... And I'm starving! I probably should get up now and find something to eat, even if it just the leftovers of earlier's lunch. Until a painful wave flowed at the back of my neck, I was forced again to lie down on the couch. What was I even thinking, sleeping on this couch without thinking, and caring, about the consequences?

"Urgh...! Stupid neck...!" I groaned while doing light sit-ups. After ten sit-ups, a loud cracking sound was heard, which obviously came from my neck. I then sat up straight on the couch and stretched both my arms upward and forward. And the normal circulation of blood returned again from my once sore body. From the corner of my eye, I could see the blue-haired scientist glancing at me with an emotionless face. This is embarrassing...

"Excuse my actions..." I chuckled in an embarrassing manner then headed for the kitchen to avoid any remarks from Mari. I know that quiet scientist isn't the type of person who makes side comments but I can't help it; I was driven away by my emotions.

I finally reached the kitchen, which was dark as a pit, then touched the wall beside me and felt for the light switch, flicking it once to brighten the room. So far, everything's in order... and no squeaky surprises were made by those undead freaks. Though the kitchen lacks something... Something what we humans call food. There aren't even traces of leftovers from lunch earlier. I even checked the fridge, and only found cans of rootbeer and soda and eight large bottles of fresh water. Not even a fruit in sight...

Sighing, I closed the fridge and went inside Lass' room. I left the kitchen light on purpose, just to provide the small building an illumination since opening the light at the living room will only attract the undead. The door leading to his room is open, and I was able to see the outline of his body resting on the bed with a little help from the white light that came from the window. It was then I thought that this stillness will get over as soon as we locked eyes. Unfortunately, he's sleeping, another goody-good reason for me to keep my mouth shut for the next set of minutes. So I ended up sitting at the bench beside his room window and watching the snow covering the grounds little by little. It was then I recalled that the time is already 6:00 in the evening did I started to worry for the others.

*crack*

The sound was repeated several times, like a sound of cracking your knuckles and fingers, then followed by a soft yawn. I happened to look at the scene behind me, seeing the silver-haired boy sitting on the edge of the bed with his back facing me. The boy placed both his arms behind his neck and bent his neck downwards like a prisoner being escorted by the police. He remained in that position for who knows how long that I gave up waiting for his next actions and decided once again to watch at the falling snow. I assume he's trying to bring back the normal circulation of blood in that area of his body.

"Argh..." the next thing I heard are some series of footsteps, its tapping tone fading in the room and reaching the kitchen area where he's currently at. Like he's gonna find even a nibble there...

*sssssss*
*clank*

It sounded like he opened a can of cola or something... Wait, he doesn't drink cola. He drinks...

"Rootbeer again?" I asked when I felt a certain presence from behind. Something was continuously hitting my back several times in a soft manner. Maybe it's his finger? No, if it was his finger, I should had felt warmth already. It was when I turned around did I got my answer: the sleeves of his black jacket. In fact, the black clothing was tied on his waist and...

"Well there isn't any food left so I have to stick to this." was his reply to my question. He sat down beside me, seeing him wearing his favourite ripped white shirt. Lass took another sip from his drink but didn't dare produced any word from his throat. His face was devoid of any emotion while staring at the dark sky, all the while watching the endless fall of snow. We never did exchange a word with each other, creating an awkward silence in the cold room. Of all the words and sentences we learned from school, something must be said from those phrases to keep this stupid silence away.

"Are you ok? You look... a bit depressed." oh good, he finally spoke after a few seconds. But of all the things that needs to be talked about, why my glumness?

"I'm just worried for the others, that's all. I mean they left three hours ago and they're still not here."

"I'm guessing that someone must have thought of an important errand that's why it took them a little while to return here." I'll take that guess a good reason but I couldn't seem to find a way to accept that answer to lighten my mood. "They have their weapons to defend themselves... And Ronan and Amy are the medics... What could be more doubtful, yet frightening, than that?" I couldn't think of an answer to his query. Why am I filling my mind with such dreadful thoughts again...? Something warm and soft left me in the middle of my thoughts, then I noticed his pale hand resting on top of mine. It wasn't long when he took the last sip of his rootbeer and forming his hand into a fist to crush the aluminium can easily. With a single throw, the crushed can landed in the nearest trash bin. So cool...

The front door suddenly creaked open and voices filled the living room. As if on cue, the silver-haired boy walked outside his room, all the while gripping my hand tightly to drag me out of my seat. The two of us settled on the chairs beside Mari.

"Oh man, I never felt so tired in my whole life...!" Elesis threw herself on the couch, her dual sword laying carelessly on the floor. While the red-haired girl had the couch all by herself, Jin and Ryan were on the floor like doormats, the bags of clothes covering their tired faces. Some of the bags soon disappeared, as Amy and Lire took them inside Jin's room to try them out. Dio was carrying two more large bags and headed off to the kitchen. He left the bags on the table and went inside his room without saying a single word. Sure enough, all of them are blood-stained.

"Care to tell me what happened as to why you all took three hours to go home?" Seighart interrupted.

"Sorry for the long wait." Ronan spoke, leaning on the door. "We're trying to find the map of Bermesiah to identify a possible hiding place of Lich's." he took the said object out of his bag and spread it on the nearby table. Elesis and the other guys (minus Sieghart) stood beside the blue-haired boy to study the map. "Here's the answer..." he pointed at a certain area of the map.

"Forsaken Barrows..." Jin read, leaning closer. "It says here... Police reports show that numerous dead bodies were found walking at this gravesite of the City of Kanavan. Sounds like the right place for that necromancer."

"But the town's too far away from here. I mean, we're at Serdin City and that Forsaken Barrows' located at the northern part of Kanavan City." Ryan groaned tiredly.

"Then let's start tomorrow. No telling what'll happen if we didn't do something..." the red-haired asura stated and walked towards his room, bringing along two bags of clothes, which I assumed belongs to him since Amy took hers earlier. He twisted the knob and found it locked. The red-haired guy sighed tiredly and decided to wait for the two girls to finish their dress-up, tapping his foot on the ground with his arms crossed.

"Tomorrow? Are you kidding me?" a loud voice groaned, taking everyone's attention to him. It was obviously Sieghart...

Elesis glared at the old man. "Then accept the fact that we have to start the journey tomorrow! You know what old man? I think you need some exercise to strengthen up your fragile bones! You hardly do anything here but to eat and sleep! I think you're lazier than a dog! A dog can bark and guard the house when the owners aren't home, unlike you whose job is to guard us and you still couldn't do it!" the girl continued. Ronan was already beside the furious redhead, his hand resting on the girl's shoulder and whispering things about calming down.

The black-haired man, however, just yawned. "Oh whatever. And don't you dare compare me to a dog Cherry! I don't bark and kill my enemies by just a single bite. I'm a human, not a dog who was infected by some sickening zombie virus." he stated and went back to his relaxing position. Elesis said nothing and sat down on the couch beside Ronan, who continued to lower the temper of the red-haired girl. Apparently, the two of them forgot all about the match Elesis declared earlier. It would be better if it remained unsaid, since we're going to start our journey tomorrow.

A door creaked open and out came Amy and Lire wearing bright outfits. While they headed off to the kitchen to prepare dinner, Jin said a loud 'thank you' and headed inside his room, bringing along the bags of clothes. There's nothing left for the rest of us to do something so we waited patiently for dinner to be finished. The living room was filled with Sieghart's snores, Elesis already calmed down and made a conversation with Ronan. And Mari? Well, she never peeled her dual-colored eyes off the scene outside. Minutes later, we could smell the heavenly scent of food floating in the air.

"Guys, dinner's ready." Lire called out and we all rose quickly from the couch, walking towards the kitchen. The old man, however, ran to the kitchen and sat down on his seat. The rest of us sighed and Elesis began to steam in anger. Again. Though she remained silent even after sitting down on her chair, knowing the fact that Sieghart won't listen to her. Everyone ate in total silence, creating another awkward feeling. Even Amy and Lire aren't chatting happily. Even if I knew that nothing is wrong here, a question left unanswered in my mind: what the heck is wrong with everyone? Is silent treatment the trending action right now?

"Done. I'll be sleeping for now to refresh myself for tomorrow's journey, which I expect to be continued." Sieghart said in a firm voice and rose from his seat, walking towards his room and leaving us here. One by one, we began to finish eating and soon, we're washing the dishes. So far, no one bothered to speak. After washing the dishes, the others started to yawn. Everyone said good night to each other before heading off to their respective rooms, including me. I never noticed that it was already 9 in the evening until I arrived at Lass' room.

"We better go to sleep now. Tomorrow's the start of our dangerous journey." a voice reminded me from behind. Sure enough, I found the azure-eyed boy standing in front of me. He took my hand and dragged me to the bed, hugging me close to his. He didn't even bothered removing the jacket that continued to hug his waist.

"Better prepare warm outfit for you to wear tomorrow."

"Warm clothes? I'm full of them." we both chuckled. Of course, he always wears warm clothes for crying out loud. He would never be able to survive in this temperature wearing a sleeveless shirt. After a light conversation with him, he reached for the blanket and pulled it until it reached our chest, a sign which tells how tired he is.

"Good night." he kissed my forehead.

"Sleep tight." I cuddled close to him, taking all the warmth his body could muster. "Dear Gaia... Guide us on our journey tomorrow..." I whispered softly before joining him in the dreamworld.

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Classes will begin at June 13... *hugs her dearest laptop* I hope I can update the next chapter before my deadline TwT (please cooperate with me once again Brain... I plead you...)

And thank you for the reviews x3 Again, review please xD *hands reader a jar of cookies*