"Be careful as you climb, students! Pay attention to your step and don't be distracted!" shouted the female teacher leading the group up the mountainside.
Even though the climb was a bit steep, flanked by high rocky walls on one side and a sheer ridge on the other, the students were fortunate.
There were railings along the drop-off and old, yet seemingly strong, stone steps for them to scale. Because of those railings, the sixteen-year-olds didn't feel even a hint of real danger.
None of them took their teacher's warning seriously. They simply nodded their heads and continued their ongoing chatter.
"Hey, you know, I've been here two times already with my parents," a boy said with a smug smile on his face. "The sight from above the mountains is so beautiful that you just can't get enough of it."
Another boy with blond hair scoffed. "Really? It isn't that good. I've been here multiple times already and I'm bored. I don't find anything beautiful here. Hawaii is much better. As for mountains, Banff National Park is far superior; I went there last summer," he bragged.
"Wow, really, Jonathan?" Mina asked, a sparkle in her eyes. As one of the class beauties, she was a total fangirl for the blond-haired boy. After all, he was rich and good-looking; his family possessed vast wealth, and he was always traveling the world on vacation.
"Of course, Mina," Jonathan said, pride oozing from his voice. "Just last week I took off with my family on our yacht for a week-long tour. We even went to check out the Great Barrier Reef. It was a beautiful sight—far better than this countryside mountain. And yet, here are some people bragging about this place..." He glanced pointedly at Marcus, who turned away, speechless and embarrassed.
Mina chimed in, "Yeah, right? Some people just don't know what to say. Anyway, Jonathan, when are you taking us to the sea? You will, right?" She looked at him with puppy-dog eyes.
"Haha, of course I will," he said, waving a hand dismissively. "Next summer I'll find a place to go and enjoy the ocean again. At that time, I'll invite a few of you."
He turned his attention toward a girl with light brown hair and beautiful, pearl-blue eyes. Her face was heavenly, making anyone else's beauty pale in comparison. She was laughing with a similarly handsome boy with black hair and dark, piercing eyes. Seeing them together made Jonathan's smile vanish.
He clicked his tongue in anger. "Celeste, you're invited too."
Mina's expression soured. What is so good about her that you're so focused on her? she thought. She is at least a bit more beautiful than me, but our families are just as rich—if not mine more so than hers.
Why do you fancy her when she doesn't even care about you? She didn't say it aloud.
Instead, she glanced at the boy beside Celeste. He was far more handsome and capable than Jonathan—a legendary school genius—but he was poor (well thats what she thinks). He was an orphan without a family name, which was the only reason a girl like Mina, who only valued "beautiful" things, didn't spare him a second glance.
Mina focused back on Celeste, who was looking at Jonathan with confusion, as if she hadn't heard a word he'd said.
"Jonathan was talking about taking a few classmates on a trip to the sea next summer," Mina explained. "And he's inviting you."
"Oh," Celeste said. She shook her head and added, "Thank you for the invitation, Jonathan, but I have other plans with my family, so I can't join you guys."
Without another word, she turned her focus back to Adrian. "So, where were we?"
He smiled at her and pointed toward the summit. They continued their chat as they moved on, resuming their climb. They left Jonathan, Mina, and Marcus standing there, stunned—though Marcus simply smirked at the look on Jonathan's face before moving on himself.
Meanwhile, as Celeste and Adrian climbed higher to catch up with the rest of the class, a massive stone wall directly above the stairs they were on was riddled with fine cracks and deep fissures. It had already come loose—so much so that it was barely attached to the rest of the mountain. As if fate were playing a cruel game, the wall finally slipped and began plummeting toward them.
Adrian, who had possessed an acute sense of his surroundings since childhood, heard the shifting movement above. He looked up just in time to see the massive rock falling.
Knowing he had no time to spare, he lunged forward and grabbed hold of Celeste, pulling her tight against him. He threw them both backward, retreating from where they had just stood.
A mere millisecond later, the huge boulder smashed into the steps with a deafening BOOM! > The old, seemingly sturdy stone steps were obliterated by the weight, tumbling down into the ridge below along with the rock itself.
Adrian sighed, holding Celeste close, thinking they were finally safe. But they weren't. When he looked down, he noticed cracks spiderwebbing through the stone step they were standing on. They were expanding at a horrifying speed.
He knew the stairs would give way in seconds. There was no time for both of them to escape. With a final, desperate burst of strength, he pushed Celeste toward the stable steps below.
As the stone beneath him crumbled, he looked at her one last time. "Take care of yourself, Celeste. I think this is goodbye."
The stairs vanished. Adrian fell into the void along with the rubble.
Celeste, having been shoved to safety, lay stunned on the steps. She hadn't even recovered from the shock of the boulder before the sudden push and those final, haunting words hit her. She scrambled to the edge, turning her head just in time to see Adrian falling into the valley. Even as he plummeted, he kept a small smile on his face while looking up at her.
Realizing what was happening, panic seized her. "Noooo! Noooooo!" she screamed. She tried to lunged off the stairs after him, but several classmates rushed forward to hold her back.
She fought against them, trying to push them away, but she couldn't break free. She began to cry her heart out, her mind screaming Why? Why did this happen?
Then, the world turned black, and she fell unconscious.