Chapter 9

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Planet: Eteran

First Insurgency War

AVA

I've never met someone able to grin more than me and get excited over even the small things people look over. Ava sat underneath the protective awning with Yvonne and Kylie while they planned the upcoming events, and her gaze caught Meryn, who shuffled along the path to his favourite place for lunch. Alone. She slid her shoes against the foundation while some of her classmates held their own conversations in quiet splendor. Rayan was nowhere to be found, while James was one of the first to leave when the lunch bell rang.

Maybe Rayan's with James? Those two hit it off during the first few weeks.

"Is Camp Shennen going to be open by the big Fourth Quad outing?" Lorie, another one of the student coordinators asked. "It's going to be one of our last ones when it comes to school." Her friend tapped her pen against her datapad. "This is our tradition, I'd hate to have it cancelled without us having any other plans." She pursed her lips as she hung over the datapad.

"I'm keeping an ear out," Kylie said. "First is the scary halls."

"Ah, spooking freshies every Quad brings a tear to my eye." Yvonne wiped her finger across her eyelashes. "I remember my first time in the absolutely terrifying halls of our school. I walk in everyday and I still get scared."

Ava checked over her datapad of supplies. "We've gotten permission to use the school warehouse to set everything up. We still need some refreshments and a lounge for those who want to relax." Her own pen tucked in her fingers, she sighed. "We're also going to need to create the atmosphere in the warehouse."

"We could always ask the arts class for help, I don't want to make you do all that work by yourself," Kylie pointed out.

The art's class... Ava's gaze drifted over the paths as she spotted Jon's team wander past, with James hovering far in the back. Hm... Rayan's not with him. "I'll work on it," she said and escaped from her seat, scooping her bag over her shoulder. "I'll talk to you all later. Send me a message if you need anything!" Out of the range of the conversation, she slid into James' path, who came to a stop.

"Hey, Ava," James said with a smile. "What's... up?" His eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Where's Rayan?"

"Why are you asking me? Aren't you the one who knows everything?" James teased.

"Very funny, James."

James tucked his hands in his pockets and nodded behind him. "He went to go talk to Meryn." He faced her with a knowing frown. "You've noticed it too, right? Meryn's not been himself since the quad started. I started to wonder if it's because Kylie asked him if he'd like to join the last quad camp-out... or Yvonne strong armed him into helping with the spooky halls, but I don't know."

"I did notice." Ava hesitated when Rayan came from the direction of Meryn's lunch spot. "Ray, what did Meryn say?"

Rayan eyed James, who nodded. "Well, we talked for a bit," he answered. "I asked him how he was, what he was doing. What plans he had for the day and if he wanted to talk after school." He frowned with a touch of shame. "He got... a little defensive to say the least. Barked at me for insinuating that he couldn't handle his workload." He threw his hands in the air. "I didn't even mention his workload." He flicked his gaze between the two of them. "Did I do something wrong? Is this unusual for him? I can go after him and apologise—"

"You're doing it again, Rayan," James said and folded his arms.

"Oh." Rayan tucked into his shoulders. "Sorry."

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