The Eruption- Volume 1

The Eruption- Chapter 3

                                                                                        Chapter 3

I woke up early the next day. I had set my alarm to 7 AM, but I was already up and ready to go by 5:30. "Good Lord son! You're never up this early!" my dad said. "What's the occasion?" he asked. I grinned. "I'm going to Yellowstone today!" I exclaimed. "Well aren't you lucky, already being spoiled on your third day in Wyoming. Well, you enjoy your day today. Keep your ears and eyes open. Learn as much as possible." Dad patted me on the head and then walked out the door to go to work. Mom then walked into the room, still dressed in her night clothes. She stared at me with a dropped jaw. "Are you sick?!" she shouted. "Nope, not at all mom!" "What's the occasion?" I face-palmed myself. "Oh, you and dad." "What?" "I'm going to Yellowstone today!" "Oh neato. Well, have fun then!"

I arrived at school about a half hour before the school day began. It was nice to walk down those hallways and not have to worry about anyone running into me and screaming at me to move out of their way. There were already a few students in the hallways. I walked into Room 201. I was the first one in there. I sat down in the classroom quietly. "Mrs. Snow?" I heard a voice say. I turned and looked towards the door. My mouth completely fell open at the sight I saw. It was a girl. She had long, blonde hair and was fairly tall. She was absolutely beautiful. "Mrs. Snow isn't here." I said to her. The girl laughed a little bit. "Okay then. Do you know where she is?" she asked me. "Nope. I haven't seen her since I got here." I replied. She smiled at me. "Well that's okay. Well I'll just wait for her to come back." The girl came into the classroom and walked in my direction. "Is it okay if I sit next to you?" I froze. I had no idea if I should say yes. I might do something stupid, like fart out loud, or giggle like an idiot. "Uhh... well Ed usually sits here." I replied. The girl laughed at me. "Well he isn't here now!" "Hmm, I suppose you can sit here then." "Well that's good because I was going to sit there anyways!" she laughed and took a seat right next to me. "So," she began "You're the new kid?" "Yes I am, I moved here just this week." "I can't remember from what you said yesterday, where are you from again?" "Kansas." "Oh! I've been out to the Midwest a couple times in my life." "That's cool." There was a long period of silence, then she began again "So, do you have many friends up here yet?" "Nah. So far, I think Ed is the only friend I've made." "Well, consider that you now have two friends! I'm Allison, by the way." She gave me a huge smile. "I'm Jacob. Just call me Jake." "Okay, Jake." She said with a wink. Mrs. Snow finally walked into the classroom. "What are you two doing here?" "Oh, just waiting for the day to begin!" Allison said. "You guys should already be in the gym. Come follow me please." We followed Mrs. Snow into the gym. The gym was packed full with students. I apparently didn't realize how long it had been since I got here. The school principal was standing in the middle of the gym with a megaphone in his hands. "Attention! Attention everyone! Students, please quiet down." The gym fell silent. "Okay, everyone will be in groups today. You will stick with your first hour teacher and your class mates. Make sure you check in with your teacher about which bus you will be on. That is all. Everyone, enjoy your day at Yellowstone!" "Okay class, we will be on Bus 748. You better pick who you are sitting with now so you don't have to worry about it later." Mrs. Snow said. "Hey Ed! Do you want to sit with me on the bus?" I asked. "Oh, I already have someone to sit by. Sorry man." "It's okay." "Hey, Jake, I don't have anyone to sit with. You can sit with me." Allison chimed in with a smile. "Uh... uh... uhhh..." I trailed off. She burst with laughter. "Oh come on! I won't bite, I promise!"

So, Allison was my sitting partner on the drive over there. We didn't talk a whole lot on the way there. It was only a 20 minute ride to the park entrance. "Class, everyone meet by that cluster of trees to the right of the bus. A park ranger will put a stamp on your hand. It's your free pass for the day." Mrs. Snow said. The class flooded off the bus and met by the trees. I waited by a large tree that was more distant from the big cluster of kids. "What are you doing over here by yourself?" Allison came up to me. "Eh, I'm just not used to everyone yet. I'm pretty shy at first." I said. "You seem pretty outgoing to me." "I guess there is just certain people I grow onto quickly." Hmmm... seems like I fit into that category then!" Allison nudged me and smiled. I blushed like an idiot.

"Hi everyone! Welcome to Yellowstone National Park. Today, you will be exploring the beautiful landscapes of the enormous Yellowstone Plateau, which is a large volcanic system that is still widely alive to this day. My name is John Cabela. I'll be your tour guide for the day." Mr. Cabela stamped each one of our hands, and we entered the park. The day began. I just completed a milestone of my life... setting foot into Yellowstone.