We walked out of the classroom, still trying to decide what to do next. The location that Lena wanted us to go to was decently far, so we'd need to use public transportation to get there. On second thought, looking at it again, it seems like the trolley in town would take us directly to that area. Deciding on that, Jackie and I went to the station, bought tickets, and got on the first trolley headend south.
The ride went on in silence, cut through only with the sounds of the tracks underneath us and the wind gently blowing in, as if it was an external AC. Although this feeling was nice, the silence only served to unnerve me. If I was going to be working with her, I at least wanted to get to know her a bit. Thing is, I didn't know how to start the conversation exactly. What do I even do in this situation? I've never had to strike up a conversation before with people, so the thought never really crossed my mind.
"So, what do you like to do for fun?"
I looked at Jackie. Clearly, she doesn't think things through, she just acts. Maybe all for the better, I never would have said anything in my state. "Well, I don't really know. I just go to school, do homework, and try to stay out of trouble."
"Come on, everyone has at least one hobby!"
I thought for a moment. "I suppose as far as hobbies go, I take hikes sometimes. Seriously, the trails around here are perfect for summer and winter hiking."
"Ooh, outdoor stuff. I like it!" Jackie smiled and nodded. "Do you go with your parents, or by yourself?"
Yikes. I only have a mom, how do I answer that? I then brushed the initial concern off. Just be like Jackie. Don't think, just say. "Well, I only have my mom, and she works two jobs. Suffice to say, I often go alone."
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Jackie suddenly apologized. "I didn't know that was your situation."
"Huh? Oh, it's nothing," I reassured her. "I will admit that it's a little lonely sometimes, but it's something I'm used to. It really is alright."
"Well, alright. Say, what are those bracelets around your wrists?"
I looked down at the rings around my wrists. "Oh these? They're the reason I wanted to go after the Plasma Stars."
"Are they really connected like that?" Jackie asked.
"I don't know," I answered. "My mom told me once that the Stars made them. Of course, I was a little kid when I got them, so I didn't think much of it. But as I grew older, and I never grew out of wearing them, that made me curious. You'd expect them to not fit my wrists anymore, and they still do."
"I see, I see," Jackie followed along, nodding like she was very into my story.
"I wanted to find the Plasma Stars because if these rings really were made by the Stars, then I figured that maybe I could find some answers finding the Plasma Stars, or at least getting some clues."
"Oh, so finding answers. That sounds cool!"
"Likewise, why did you want to be an explorer?" I asked. "I doubt you have the same motivations as me."
"Well," Jackie started, "if I had to put it in words, I guess I'm just trying to prove someone wrong."
"Someone... like, parents? Friends?" I asked. This made me curious, she didn't seem to be the type to hold grudges.
"Well... to be honest, an ex I had once. He.. really liked reminding me of how small I am," she answered with an apologetic smile.
"Oh, yikes." That was one hell of an answer. Never expected that sort of an answer. "Are you still-"
"No, no!" Both interrupted, and no hesitation. "It was a bit ago, but I still get reminded of it from time to time."
Clearly a touchy subject. Maybe it would be best to avoid it for now. Maybe a subject change? "How did your parents feel about the whole exploration gig?"
Jackie smiled. "My mom was completely against it, but my dad said he didn't mind, as long as I was with someone reliable. I honestly should have called him before we left, but I guess I can always do that later."
As we continued, it somehow became easier to talk to her. It was almost like talking to an old friend, in a sense. In fact, she resembled my oldest friend from a while back. Just a bit, though. She was also a fox, but she had a blind eye. It was something she was born with. Even so, I couldn't help but think that maybe that was why it was so easy to talk to Jackie. She kind of reminded me of someone I used to know.
Before we knew it, we had come to our stop. We got off, and then walked the 5 minutes to the edge of town. There, just like it said on the map, was the cave Lena was talking about. It didn't look very deep, though, which was weird. Furthermore, there was a bridge over a steep gap across the way to the cave, and it looked very old. Like, I'm talking ancient. It swayed with the wind from side to side, and you could hear it creaking periodically. We weren't even standing near the bridge yet, and we could already hear its soft creaking. A bridge like this is something I'm sure a normal person would never go near. It didn't seem to me like it could hold anyone's weight.
"Xander.. is this bridge safe?"
I looked at Jackie. "Well, only one way to find out I guess. There's not much we can really do to test it."
Taking that as the answer, we began to walk across the bridge. It wobbled a bit, but it still held. Jackie stopped to look behind us, probably wondering if someone was watching us. Satisfied no one was, she quickly caught up to me. We were about halfway across when it happened.
Jackie stopped again, but I kept walking. Suddenly, she shot past me, telling me to run. I turn around, and see that the bridge was rapidly falling! I caught up to Jackie in an attempt to run to the other side, but as soon as we were almost across, the rest of the bridge fell out from under our feet.
And so there we were, suspended in midair. I slowly look down, and then look at Jackie. Jackie only looked back at me.
"Jackie, don't look down, but-"
"We're... standing on nothing, aren't we?"
I swallowed, and nodded. "Yes."
Right after, we both fell down into the depths of who knows where. Well, we certainly weren't getting out the same way we got in!