3;PLANS

The school day had ended, and the once-bustling corridors of Chrono Academy grew quieter as students trickled out. The sun was beginning its slow descent, casting a golden glow over the campus. Leo and Kai walked side by side, their steps unhurried as they moved toward the academy gates. The rhythmic crunch of their shoes on the gravel path was accompanied by the faint rustling of leaves as the evening breeze passed through the trees.

Leo's gaze was fixed upward, his blue eyes locked onto the sky. The faint traces of clouds drifted across the expanse, and the soft hues of orange and pink began blending into the blue. His expression was serene, as though the vastness of the sky was speaking to him in a language only he could understand.

Kai glanced at his friend and chuckled. "What's so great about the sky that you're staring at it like it holds all the answers to life?"

Leo didn't break his gaze, his lips curling into a faint smile. "Space," he said simply. "I get it if your broken mind can't grasp such complex physics."

Kai snorted, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Please! If only you knew. I'm basically what you'd call a space nerd."

Leo turned his head slightly, raising a brow. "Oh really?"

"Yeah, really," Kai replied with a grin. "But unlike you, I don't romanticize it. If anything, I say people should focus on what's right in front of them—like Earth—rather than obsessing over what's far away."

Leo rolled his eyes. "Space nerd, huh? If anything, you sound like you hate it."

Kai's expression turned serious, his brow furrowing as he looked ahead. "No, seriously. Think about it. We've explored what? Five percent of our oceans? And don't even get me started on the planet's core. Scientists still don't know what's really down there."

Leo smirked, knowing where this was going. "Let me guess," he interrupted, holding up a hand. "You're about to say there's a sleeping magma Godzilla waiting to wake up and destroy us all?"

Kai sighed, a mock pout forming on his face. "You always ruin it. I was going to say something way more sophisticated, like ancient civilizations buried deep in the mantle or—"

"Or magma Godzilla," Leo finished, a grin splitting his face.

Kai gave him a flat look. "Fine. Laugh all you want, but mark my words, there are things on this planet we don't understand, and it's a bigger mystery than all your stars and galaxies combined."

Leo stopped walking, sliding his hands into his pockets. His smile deepened as he pulled out a pair of crisp tickets and held them up between his fingers. "That's why I got these."

Kai tilted his head, squinting at the tickets before his eyes widened. "No way!" he exclaimed, snatching them from Leo's hand. His voice rose with excitement. "Are these—are these passes to the NASA ceremony happening this Saturday?"

Leo crossed his arms, looking smug. "Yep. Front row seats."

Kai stared at the tickets, his jaw dropping. "No way."

"Yes way."

Kai looked at Leo, his excitement bubbling over. "And since it's our first time there…"

Leo grinned knowingly and finished the thought. "We can ask for a tour."

Kai's face lit up even more. "And we can get firsthand data on what they really do there!"

"Exactly."

"Or," Kai added, his mischievous grin returning, "we can find out how many lies they've been feeding us this whole time."

Leo laughed, shaking his head. "You're hopeless."

As they walked, the conversation drifted into comfortable silence, both boys lost in their own thoughts. The path from the academy led them through a small park, where the golden light of the setting sun filtered through the trees, creating dappled patterns on the ground. Children played on the swings, their laughter ringing through the air, while parents watched from nearby benches.

Kai watched a pair of birds take off from a tree, their wings beating rhythmically as they disappeared into the distance. "You know," he began, his tone softer, "I never really thought I'd get to see NASA up close."

Leo glanced at him, curious. "Why not?"

Kai shrugged, keeping his eyes on the horizon. "It always felt so… distant. Like something you only see in documentaries or read about in books. But now… front row seats? A tour? This feels unreal."

Leo's expression softened. "Well, believe it. It's happening."

They reached the edge of the park, where the city streets began. The sidewalks were bustling with people heading home from work, their hurried footsteps blending into the ambient noise of cars honking and engines humming.

Leo and Kai wove through the crowd, their conversation flowing easily. For all their differences, there was a shared excitement between them—a feeling that something incredible was on the horizon.

When they finally reached the bus stop, Kai leaned against the metal pole, still clutching the tickets as though they might vanish. "So, what's the first thing you're going to ask them when we're there?"

Leo thought for a moment, tilting his head. "Probably something about the cryosleep drug. My dad's been working with them for years, so I'm curious about the expeditions they're planing to do,imagine if they start interstellar, and give it a horrible ending"

Kai nodded, his enthusiasm bubbling over. "And I want to know what kind of experiments they've been hiding from the public. There's no way they don't have a few skeletons in their closet."

"You and your conspiracy theories," Leo teased.

Kai grinned, unrepentant. "Hey, every great discovery starts with a crazy theory. Remember that."

The bus arrived, and they climbed aboard, settling into seats near the back. As the city blurred past the window, Leo found his gaze drifting upward again, toward the darkening sky. Stars were beginning to appear, faint pinpricks of light that dotted the canvas of night.

Kai noticed and smirked. "Still dreaming about space, huh?"

Leo didn't respond immediately, his thoughts somewhere far away. Finally, he said, "What else."