Episode 02

Natasha's POV cont'd:

"I think I have an idea", I said to them with smiles.

They look up to me with quizzical gaze. "What?" both of them asked in unison.

I asked them to bring their ears closer and I whispered to them my plans.

"We can tell our parents we're going for a picnic at the Coronado beach in California" I suggested.

"Wow! Such a brilliant idea. I'm good with it!" Bernice exclaimed given me a high five.

"No objection from my end", Trisha said.

"Awesome. So,Uhmm... Let's continue with the movie?" I asked.

"Yeah...but,I have a question" Bernice said nervously.

"C'mon,speak girl" I replied.

"How do we get into the forest?" Bernice asked me.

"According to what I read, a map of the forest is the tool for us to use for our tour there", I replied.

"Oh. That's good. Much easier" Trisha chirped in.

"That's right" I said with smiles.

*********~~~~~**********

The next day being Friday, after having my last lectures of the day of the psychology course, my two friends were waiting up for me by the school garden. I meet up with them and we made our way towards the car park. Trish came with her car today, so we'll just join her for a ride home.

As we were walking towards the car park talking about the newest couple in our Dept a girl dressed in a skinny black jeans paired with her wine colored leather jacket jogged toward us. I've seen her a couple of times taking same courses with me, but we've never interacted with her, and I'll say we ain't friends either and I don't even know her name. But here she is, now standing right in front of us panting. I hope everything is okay with her.

"Hi girls", she greeted shyly with a smile adjusting her glasses.

"Hello to you", Bernice and I greeted back in unison while our dear Trisha just waved at her.

Yeah, Trisha is that kind of girl that don't give a damn about who you are, she can be bitchy most of the times. But she does has good heart especially to her close friends.

"Sorry to bother you girls..I..its..well.."

"Can you quit stuttering and get straight to whatever brought you to us?", Trisha snapped at the poor Missy.

"C'mon,Trish, don't be cold towards her, allow her to say what brought her to us", I whisper-yelled to my friend.

"She was just stuttering like she forgot what she wanted to say and..."

"Trisha that's enough. Let's hear her out. Maybe she needs our help", Bernice cut Trisha mid- sentence.

Trisha grunted and mumbled a " fine" with an eye rolling.

"Please go ahead cutie", I said to her with a smile. Yeah, I called her cutie because she's a beauty to behold.

"Thank you. Let me first introduce myself. I'm Catherine Jones, I offer same courses with you, Natasha. I doubt if you'd ever notice..."

"Yes I have, a couple of times. But to say the truth, I never take in your name" I interrupted her.

"Its no surprise. I'm not popular you know, I'm always all to myself. I'm new to this school and to this country as well, so I've got no friends at all. So..Uhmm, I don't know if I can be your friend or if I'm allowed to join your group. I just like you, you're not proud like most girls in this school, and you're also intelligent, so I thought...".

"Yes you can", I replied her with smiles even before she could make the request of being our friend.

"W..o..w. Really?", she asked with wide eyes.

"Yes, for sure. We're not special, so why can't you be our friend? Or girls, do you have an objection to that?" I asked my friends.

"No, I don't. You're most welcome to our group. I'm Bernice", Bernice said.

"I know your name already", Catherine replied nervously.

"Oh, you do?" Bernice asked and she nodded like someone who is guilty of something.

"May I know how you got to know my name?" she added given her a quizzical look.

"Uhmm, I didn't mean to stalk on you Natasha, but I liked you and did a little background check on you and also who your friends were. So that's how I got to know...please...I'm sorry if I stalked on you a little" Catherine apologized with her head bow low.

"You might become a snitch if you're accepted to our group" Trisha snapped at her with a glare.

"C'mon Trish, don't say that. She's a nice person I suppose, she wouldn't do that" I replied.

"You're trusting her already?" Trisha asked with a raised brow.

"Yes...I mean not hundred percent, but still, we can give her a benefit of doubt you know. Don't judge a book by its cover, remember" I said to her.

"Hmm" was Trisha's response.

"I take that as an acceptance" I said to Trisha and she just waved me to go ahead with whatever I want to do with Catherine.

"So...Catherine its a privilege to have you among ourselves. Welcome to the winning team" I added opening my arms to pull her to a hug.

She stood there adjusting her glasses and acting like one of those nerds that can be found in high school before walking towards me and embraced me and she whispered a " thank you to me".

Bernice did the same and whispered "you're welcome to our group" and patted her back before releasing her.

She walk up to Trisha and stood in front of her. She gulped and said in the best calm and low tone she could offer at that time, "can I please hug you?" she asked.

No response. Just a stare from Trisha to Catherine. The stares of Trisha got Catherine squirming, she couldn't stare back at her anymore and was now staring at the floor. For godsake Trish just hug the poor girl, I mumbled to myself.

The next move got us surprised, Trisha pulled Catherine to a hug unexpectedly. Catherine was still in shock for a minute, she got herself and hugged her back.

"You're one of a kind" Bernice said to Trisha when she released Catherine from the embrace.

"I know right" Trisha replied with a wink grinning at Bernice.

"Thank you Nat, Bernie and Trish for accepting me as your friend. And I hope you girls don't mind if i should call you by those nicknames?", Catherine asked.

"Of course not!" Bernice and I exclaimed in unison. "That's what we call ourselves actually anyways" I added.

"Okay", she replied.

"We can call you Cathy if you want?", I suggested.

"Sure. You can", she replied smiling.

"Good. Cathy it is then" I said to her.

"Uhmm...I don't know, would you girls like to visit the Coronado beach tomorrow with me? We can have a picnic and have a lot of fun?" Cathy asked.

My friends and I glance at each other with a gape. We stared at each other that way thinking of what to say to our new friend. We already have plans tomorrow and there's no way we're going to cancel it.

"Uhmm its OK if you guys don't want to go with me. Maybe some other time", she continued with a sad face.

"No, its not like we don't want to go with you. The thing is...we.."

"We have plans tomorrow already" Trisha helped me out from stuttering.

"Oh. Is it something that would be fun? Maybe I could join?", she asked.

"Uhmm...eh...its..not something you'd like, trust me" I replied given her an assuring smile.

"Hmm. May I just know what it is about? Are you guys travelling? Going for a tour? An adventure? Or..."

"Eh...yes...an adventure you might say" I answered.

"Really?!" She exclaimed with a lit up face.

Wait, a lit up face? The word adventure should have scared her. Why does she feel excited at the mention of it? I asked myself.

"Yes, really" Bernice answered for me.

"I love adventures. Please can I join you girls?" Catherine begged clasping her hand leaving the three of us gasping in disbelief.

"Do you even have an idea where we'd be going?" Trisha asked her with furrowed brows.

"Uhhh, nope. Please tell me?" she replied.

"A forest. A forest is where we're going for our adventure, so there's no way you try something as crazy as..."

"Of course I want to. All my life I've been waiting for this opportunity, and now I've got it, I can't let it go" she cut me mid-sentence.

The three of us stared at her dumbfounded. Me in particular couldn't belief my ears. I never knew I'll meet someone that would wanna try something crazy like I wanted to.

"Please! I've been wanting to do something adventurous, and now I found not one but three girls of the same age with me that is ready to do the same. Oh my! I'm so glad I came to you girls. I would have missed such a big thing" Catherine blabbed grinning from ear to ear.

Trust me she looked more excited than I am to embark on this journey.

"Wow...I'm really surprise but impressed on hearing this from you" I said to her.

"I agree with you, Nat" Bernie replied and Trisha gave a nod as well.

"So, I'll be going with you guys isn't it?" she asked with wide eyes that were pleading "yes" for an answer.

My two friends stared at me and shrugged their shoulders, leaving me to make the choice.

"Okay. What about your parents would they accept?" I asked and her smiles suddenly faded to sadness.

"Uh... I'll figure it out" she replied. I felt there was something behind her sadness apart from this.

"So what do you now intend telling them?" I asked again.

She did a little thinking and she clapped her hands. I raised an inquisitive brow at that.

"I'll tell them I'm having a picnic with some new friends at the Coronado beach", she replied excitedly.

"Holy moly!" Trisha exclaimed in a gasp. Followed by Bernice who was dumbstruck. And then me, well me...I was...what word should I use...I was flabbergasted.

I mean how can she share same ideas with me. Who is she? Where does she come from? And what...?

"What do you think about the idea I came up with?" Catherine asked interrupting my thoughts.

I gulped, not once but twice. I cleared my throat as I stared straight into her eyes.

"If its really what you want...then..." I paused and gulped again, "you're in", I added.

"Yes!", she exclaimed in excitement and pulled me into a hug.

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