The Secret Switcheroo

The gray skies seem to mirror what I'm feeling right now. I've never thought of myself as unlucky, but everything that's been happening lately all boils down to that. My feeble grandmother closed her eyes a month ago and never woke up again, leaving me all alone in the world. Except she left me Mr. Whiskers, the fluffy white cat she suddenly took home one day. The thought of Mr. Whiskers waiting for me at home consoled me a little bit. Then two weeks later, I got fired from the cafe I've been working as a waitress on part-time, 'cause I've got way too many absences and always get into arguments with customers. Tsk, those hoodlums, they always try to take advantage on me, or either try to dine and dash. Though in the end it was always me who get reprimanded, for they'd turn the tables on me and say I was the one doing the harassment. Thinking of those moments made me seethe in anger, but it wasn't enough to rouse me from my sadness. Adding to the blows is when our homeroom teacher suddenly called me to the faculty room, telling me I flunked three subjects and I have to get remedial classes or else I'll have to repeat this year. It was because of the odd jobs I've been doing lately that I haven't had the time to study or even sleep properly. I sighed. "What's up? You look like the world's crashing down on you." Peah called out, stuffing a snack into my hands as she fumbled for her earphones in her bag. Her long black hair got in the way, ending up getting tangled with the bag's zipper. "It just did." I muttered and looked outside the window listlessly, the passing trees becoming a blur as the bus sped by. "Don't worry, the world's not ending without us having our fill of fun! Just unwind tonight, teacher said we're going to have a campfire and a game when we reach the location." She loudly said, finally finding her earphones and with a tug, the tangled strands of her hair came off of her bag, though I could see a few actually got ripped out of her head. I sighed again. We've known each other since we were kids, yet her violent tendencies haven't shrunk for even a tiny bit. Her words though got me out of my blank state, remembering that the trip this time was actually heading to a mountainside with the goal of cultivating survival skills in the woods for three days and three nights. With sixty senior year students from two classes riding two buses, six teachers were sent to accompany us and help prevent mishaps. But six against sixty... it'll be quite a challenge for them. While others were chatting away the time, Peah happily munched on her snacks while watching a movie on her phone that was cleverly held up by her bag and the seat in front of us. She offered the other side of her earphones, but I declined. I wasn't in the mood to watch movies or anything of sort. Thinking of my plight, it just made me sigh even more. An hour later, the bus drove into the woods, going up the rocky road quite easily. The jolt every now and then tosses everyone a bit, but Peah still looked like she is watching in a theater with her unfazed demeanor. The bus finally arrived in front of a two-storey lodging house, looking out of place in this green forest, but still looked quite neat and well-maintained. Everyone excitedly got off the bus with the teachers guiding them inside. I waited until everyone was out before I nudged Peah to get off. "Oh, we're here already? Why didn't you say so!" She spiritedly stood up and kept all her stuff inside her bag in one quick swoop. She dashed out while yelling at me to hurry up. "We've been here for sometime now, " I chuckled helplessly then stood up and picked up my bag, stuffing the cookie snack she gave me inside and went down after her. The bus closed its doors silently, and with a rumble, the driver parked it in the open area beside the building. When we went inside, the students were just standing idly scattered around the lobby. Ms. Donson, our homeroom teacher, was at the counter talking on the phone. "You're near now?.. Gasoline station...okay." Ms. Donson put her phone back into her jean pocket and loudly clapped. "Alright everyone! Round up! The others will be here soon so let's get ready to go into the woods." The students cheered as the other two teachers gave out some warnings like not to stray too far from the group, avoid being alone and to always follow the instructions. "I heard there are fireflies around here at night, want to check it out?" Peah whispered, her eyes darting left and right. I sensed some mischief brewing with the look in her eyes. "I heard ghosts are rampant around here, want to check it out?" I countered, the corner of my lips twitching when I saw her rapidly paling face. My stomach's hurting from keeping my laughter from bursting out. It seems until now, she never got over that story of ghosts. "Haha, aha, n-no thanks then.. let's follow the teachers, yeah?" She stammered, holding my arm in a tight grip. "Of course, of course." I patted her hand lightly, chuckling as I thought that it only takes a little scare to get her to follow the rules again. While I was pacifying her, the doors opened and another group of students came in, trailing after the teachers walking in front of them. "Ah right! Neo's with us too." Peah murmured just as the other students broke into excited chatter. "Neo who?" I asked and turned to look through the crowd. Everyone seemed to stare at the same direction, yet all I saw is the back of a tall, black haired guy that is being followed by the class that had just arrived. "Well, he's-" Peah started to explain, but a shout drowned out her following words. " Everyone gather up! Let's go!" Ms. Donson yelled and turned to walk outside while the other teachers called for the boys to help bring the materials. I pulled Peah along, not really caring about who's who. The sun was close to setting down, so the teachers hurried us to get our tent up while grouping us into teams. Peah, me and two other girls from the other bus were to share one tent, so we quickly set it up. I've got experience from our camping trip back then in my childhood, so while the others were still struggling , ours were already up and laid with thick blankets. "Wow, you're still good at this Rina," Peah said looking with wonder at the tent, probably reminiscing about those times where she would always squeeze in with me whenever we camped out. " Yeah, if it weren't for you, who knew when we could get this up." Sheena, the tallest girl among us praised and went inside to arrange our things. I just nodded at them, and turned to help the other groups. Mr. Rufus, our biology teacher called out loud for us to gather. "Our final task for today is for you to gather fruits and edible plants in the woods. A red yarn is placed at the edge of the allowed perimeter, so keep within the area, alright? The team with the biggest harvest gets to choose their menu later at dinner. Now, go!" Mr. Rufus whistled and everyone in groups of four quickly rushed out, while Peah and the others dawdled by the tent, not hurrying after them. " What's wrong?" I asked when I noticed their downcast faces. "Uh you see, we're not sure which is which around here. What if we get something poisonous?" Sheena scratched her cheek timidly. I looked at Lisa and Peah, and they both shrugged, having the same thought as Sheena. "Well, I guess you'll just have to follow me." I said and waved my hand at them to follow after me. The three looked hopefully at me and quickly walked behind me. "Be careful, " I warned as we traversed the rocky path and brushing away tree twigs in front of us. It's a good thing we're wearing our P.E. uniforms and long sleeves to prevent some scratches on our arms. Along the way I found a few blackberries, huckleberries, apples and placed in the bag given by the teacher earlier. "After all those years, I still can't remember how to differentiate them." Peah mumbled while picking berries and showing them to me. "Generally, white and yellow are poisonous." I pointed out, and Peah happily gave the purple colored berries to Lisa behind us. "Guys, I think this is enough," Lisa said suddenly and we all turned to look at the bag in her hands. It was full to the brim, reaching up to her chin. Sheena went to her and reached for the bag, placing it into her own arms. "I'll carry this, it's a bit heavy. Let's go back now, it's getting dark anyway," " No worries, I got flashlight." Peah bounced to them cheerfully, lighting up the way as she went to reach for some berries in the bag. I slowly trudged after them, picking up a few berries to eat but after a while I heard some shuffling to my left. I turned and saw an approaching shadow, and without thinking I abruptly gave a roundhouse kick to whatever it was. "Ah-!" A muffled voice called out, falling into the bushes near us. A guy? I thought it was some wild animal or something. I sweated as I approached the person lying on his back, a muddy footprint on his stomach clearly visible against his white shirt, an evidence of my murder - I slapped my head to clear away the nonsensical thoughts while walking to the bushes. "I'm sorry, you okay?" I said and crouched down beside him, reaching for his shirt to check out whether I kicked him too hard. "Don't touch me," He groaned, slapping away my outstretched hand too hard I could feel a sting. "Tsk, who asked you to approach so silently? One would think it's someone with evil designs." I could feel my temper rising, but I held it in cause I knew I was in the wrong. "You? Ha, dream on." Though the surroundings were dark, I could feel his gaze looking me up and down with a scoff, and he angrily turned around to kneel on one knee, dusting the mud off his shirt. Waves of coldness emanated from him, and I cringe internally from what I did just earlier. Just great, now I get another hostile creature for such a weird reason. Seeing his back towards me, I slowly backed away, turning to the direction where I last saw the others. Without looking back, I sprinted to the trees behind me, but not even a moment later I slipped on a moss-covered rock, and I almost fell flat to my face. A light chuckle rang out behind me. I blushed as I got up and went away quickly, feeling all the more depressed and unlucky. "Where were you? You missed the fun!" Peah exclaimed as I emerged from a line of trees, and she suddenly took my hand to do a victory dance while laughing uncontrollably. "Great! My goddess you're really great! Hahahahaha!" "Don't mind her, and thanks by the way. Ms. Donoson had just announced that we got first place for the food hunt tonight, so we got to pick our meal from the lodging menu." Lisa smiled and gestured to the table situated at the center of the tents. Other students only managed to fill half the bag, yet others were full but pushed to the side. "Poisonous berries." Sheena shrugged, seeing my confused gaze at the table. "So, did you got lost? We were just about to head back to look for you." "No, I just saw some rat creeping behind us." I calmly said, spewing curses at the guy internally while letting Peah drag me around. "Let's go pick our dinner!" She said loudly, attracting upset gazes towards us. "Ms. Donoson said the person in charge of the kitchen is a great cook." And true to her words, it was delicious meal for the four of us. Peah actually ordered braised pork as a reward, and needless to say it was heavenly. The others were given some edible plants and meat, and they had to cook their own dish for tonight. As the night deepened, the teachers ushered us into our tents. When I opened the tent flap, Peah was haggling with Lisa over the innermost side of the sleeping position. "Sheena took the side, I'm next to her okay?" Lisa said, placing her pillow next to the sleeping Sheena and plopping down to sleep. "But I don't like to be by the opening.." Peah bit her pillow and dejectedly shuffled after her. "I'll take this side, will that do?" I offered, placing a pillow next to the tent flap after pulling off my shoes. I knew she's just trying to avoid sleeping in this side of the tent because of her fear of ghosts. I felt quite guilty mentioning it to her earlier. "Really? Thanks Rina! Good night everybody!" She beamed and immediately burrowed into the blanket. A few minutes later, a soft snore sounded out from her, making me smile. "Good night." Lisa softly muttered, looking at me for a moment before closing her eyes. "Good night." I laid down, watching the sky through the tent flap. The twinkling stars gave me an odd sense of comfort, washing away a bit of the discomfort I'm feeling all day. 'Grandma, how is it up there?' I sighed, and reached for the red-stringed moon bracelet grandma gave me on my right wrist, but all I felt was my cool skin. I sat up in shock, and looked at my right arm carefully. Yet all I saw was a white, thin wrist, no signs of my beloved bracelet. The scene of a hand swatting away my wrist played suddenly in my head, and the feeling of sting that came right after. 'Damn it.' I slipped into my shoes quickly and stood up, silently zipping the tent flap after I got out. My hands were sweaty as I nervously checked the surroundings. The little crackle of fire sounded out in the silence of the night, and with the person keeping watch having their back towards me, I stealthily creeped into the woods. A safe distance away, I used my flashlight and followed the path to where I kicked the guy from earlier. Thinking of my bracelet getting lost somewhere made me worry even more. "Why did that weirdo even slap my hand? It's not like I'm taking liberties with him.." I mumbled angrily, searching around the ground for even a hint of a red string. I kept feeling like there's something wrong with my foot, but I dismissed the thought as I wandered deeper into the forest. A few turns and swatting of twigs overhead, I suddenly found myself standing by the edge of a low cliff, overlooking the sea of green trees and the dark night sky dotted with stars. A cool breeze swept by, clearing my overworked mind a little. "Huh, I could have actually done this in the morning.." I facepalmed, thinking of the dark surroundings and my stupidity. A throbbing sensation from my ankle made me sit down, and I took off my right shoe to check. My ankle looked reddish and a bit swollen, I think. A sprain? This must have been the slight pain I've been feeling earlier when I slipped. I fumbled for a cool rock around me with my hand and placed it against my ankle inside my sock, hoping to relieve it of pain. Standing up, I stretched a bit and looked at the starry night sky. "Grandma, I actually lost the bracelet. But don't worry, I'll surely find it tomorrow." I muttered, my voice lost in the wind. I closed my eyes and thought of her kind face when she gave the bracelet to me. "What do you think you're doing?!" A low voice startled me out of my stupor, and my arm was caught in a tight grip. My head snapped back and saw it was the guy from earlier. His white skin set off his shapely black eyes filled with panic and anger. 'Didn't you tell me not to touch?' My brows furrowed as I pulled my hand off in annoyance, but a flash of pain seared through me from my ankle, making me lose balance. Falling backward, he caught my arm again but my other foot flew up... and hit him squarely where it hurts the most. Our eyes went wide in shock as I felt something snap behind me, and we tumbled down the cliff. I felt like I was floating in the air, then a painful crash and my mind went blank. ** Beep. Beep. Beep. 'Too noisy.' I grumbled in my sleep, my arm reaching out to stop my alarm. But a flash of pain in my wrist made me open my eyes wearily. I looked down and saw that an IV drip was attached to my wrist. The mechanical beeping sounded out again and I realized it came from the machine beside me, a monitor of sorts that you usually find in a hospital room. Glancing around the room, it finally dawned on me that I was in the hospital. Remembering that stupid fall, I sighed. It really pays to listen to the teachers. I slowly got off the bed and ambled to the bed next to me while holding on to the wheeled pole connecting my IV drip. In the room, there was only the two of us, so I got curious to see how the guy fared after that fall. The person in bed stirred as I got closer to him. His long hair fanned outward, making me wonder, 'did years went by after we fell?'. As I reached the bedside and saw the person clearly, my pupils shrunk in horror and surprise. The person laying down already had her eyes open, expressionlessly looking at me, but then it quickly morphed into one of surprise. She blinked, I screamed. 'Why am I seeing my own body in front of me?!' "What the hell?! Who- you, ghost!!!" I sputtered, backing away while pointing at her in panic. "Shut up!" 'Rina' yelled, her eyes narrowed as she sat up holding her head. Oh my god, my body, oh my goodness, what's happening here? Did they operate on us wrongly? Are there other ghosts too? Gosh, I'm never gonna laugh at Peah's fear of ghosts again after this. I looked around in fright, but I froze as I saw my appearance reflected against the window on the other side of my bed. Like a puppet, I walked closer to clarify, but the image was already imprinted clearly in my mind. I pinched myself, hoping to wake up from this scary dream, but that flash of pain was like a hammer giving the final sentence. A voice floated behind me, exasperated. "Stop pinching, that's me. I'm Neo Racinelli, and I don't think we're dreaming."