Hearing a monotonous alarm ringing repeatedly in my ear first thing in the morning should've made me sigh in annoyance. After all, that sound meant it was another school day, another boring session with boring teachers, boring peers, and boring food. It was all so boring. Yet when my hands reached out from under the covers to turn off my alarm, instead of hitting the usual snooze button to delay my inevitable boring day by another five minutes, I turned off the alarm and arose from bed pretty quickly. I felt refreshed for a change and when I looked through the small crack in my curtains that displayed the view of outside through my window, I felt myself showing a small grin. Do movie characters feel this way when they wake up in the morning and embark on a pre-planned, directed day filled with nothing but good vibes and happy endings? I felt like I should start breaking out into song.

With a small yawn, I reached out for my phone that was resting on the bedside table and unlocked it. Scrolling through the list of notifications, I noticed that the group chat had some new messages waiting for me. Curious to know what my friends were talking about, I opened the chat and started reading through the messages.

Connie

I'm up early for my practice. I'm already at school

Frankenstein

Owen you still owe me jam tarts from last week

Midnight Boy

my dad said he'll bake them tonight. patience!!

Jerry Can

Steven what episode of Crying Breakfast friends does the lore start???

Stevie ⭐

it gets really good at season 3! but theres comics to read too! i can bring them 2 u before school!

Jerry Can

Thx! Thatd be awesome! :D

Stevie

speaking of school @YOU am i still taking you or you taking the bus??

YOU

You think I'm going to take the bus when Lion exists?

Stevie ⭐

i'll wait for you at the stop <3

Jerry Can

DONT FORGET THE COMICS @Stevie !!!

Stevie ⭐

i won't! :)

Frankenstein

@Connie I think I see u??

U the one with the big ol stack of coloured binders?

Connie

???

Why are you at school so early?

Are you in a club or are you studying?

Frankenstein

I got bored :/

Midnight Boy

._.

I chuckle to myself at how I got stuck with such a band of ridiculous people. I took my time getting ready, savouring the peaceful morning. I stepped into the shower, the warm water cascading down, washing away the sleepiness of the night. Once rejuvenated, I got dressed and headed to the kitchen. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the air, which could only mean my mum was wide awake. Which she was; reading a magazine that she bought on a whim the other day. She looked up when she heard footsteps and smiled, "Up already? I didn't even have to yell at you through the door. Who are you and what have you done with my daughter?".

I took out some bread and chocolate spread to put together a generic toast breakfast. I did kind of sleep in, so I had no time to make anything extravagant or wait for Mum's cooking to be done. "I have her locked up in an underwater bunker in the middle of the ocean", I joked, "If you want her back, you'll give me three million in cash by the time I get back from impersonating her at school".

Mum let out a melodramatic gasp that sounded like it was straight out of a movie. She dropped the magazine she was reading on the counter to add some dramatic flair to the moment. "Three million in cash?! I don't have that kind of money!", she exclaimed in a soft manner.

I went through my breakfast as swiftly as I could, but not clean as I could. By the look Mum was giving me as she slightly broke character, I was probably getting crumbs everywhere. Oops.

I shrugged and finished the last bite, "Not my problem. Three million or (Y/N) gets it!".

My mother quirked a brow, "Gets what?".

"Gets it".

"What's it? Is it a prize?".

My brows furrow and my lips curl downward, forming a puzzled frown on my face. "Why would I give her a prize? To congratulate her?", I begin to speak, mockingly, "Congratulations! You've been captured and your mother is being extorted! Here's a consultation prize for your participation in my scheme!".

Mum laughed heartily as she went to sit on the couch. "Sounds legitimate".

With a quick eye roll and dish in the sink, I get the necessary school supplies I need for the day. I carefully assess and leave behind the ones I can borrow from Jerry. I haphazardly stuff them in my backpack and make a beeline towards the front door. I throw Mum a brisk "I love you" and a "You better have my money when I come back" and leave the house. As I hop off the smooth pavement and onto the sand beach, my shoes immediately sink into the sand. I felt tiny grains of gritty sand trickling into my socks. Usually, this sensation would have bothered me, but today I surprisingly didn't mind. The warm sun against my skin, the sound of waves lapping on the shore, and the gentle sea breeze blowing through my hair made up for the uncomfortable feeling in my shoes. With each step, I left behind a trail of footprints imprinted on the sand as I approached the bus stop. I surprised myself at what a good mood I was in lately. I wasn't sure if it was the weight of talking about my father with Steven being lifted off my back and shoulders like a drawstring bag filled with bricks, or just the fact that everything's been going pretty smoothly lately, but something was making me feel a little preppier than normal.

When I arrived at the bus stop, Steven was there, on the back of Lion. He looked carefree, his curly hair tousled by the wind, and his gaze focused on the road. He held a small stack of comics tightly with one arm. Those waiting at the bus stop were gawking at Steven with horrified looks for being on the back of a predator.

As I made my way towards Steven, he spotted me and raised his arm high in the air, waving it vigorously while flashing a wide, friendly grin. His exaggerated gesture caught the attention of a few passersby as if the lion didn't help, but he didn't seem to notice. His focus was solely on me.

"What's shakin', bacon?", Steven grinned, gently patting Lion's mane.

I sighed and sent Steven a bothered glance, "Steven, I told you to stop saying that. It wasn't fun the first time and isn't any more fun now".

I leapt onto Lion's back, way more smoothly than the last few attempts in the past. Like a computer following its programming, I reached into my backpack, pulling out a small container filled with sushi rolls. Handing one to Steven, he waved it in front of Lion, whose eyes lit up like starlights at the sight. Lion opened his mouth and rolled out his tongue as Steven plopped the sushi roll in. It had become a routine of ours. When Steven came to take me to school, I would always pack sushi the night before to feed to Lion. It was like paying for a taxi. He wouldn't move until he got his payment.

Lion's mighty roar reverberated across the street which materialised a portal in front of us, its energy casting an otherworldly glow around it. Ignoring the wide-eyed looks from the audience at the bus stop, Lion jumped through the portal. As we emerged on the other side, we landed right in front of the school where everyone else was waiting for us.

I slid off Lion's back as Frankie started approaching me with her arms open. Did she want to give me a hug? I don't really do hugs, but, whatever. I went to spread my arms out, ready for an embrace, but then Frankie walked right past me and wrapped her arms around Lion's neck.

"You're the cutest thing ever!", she cooed, pressing her face against his mane. Maybe it was the sun playing tricks on my eyes, but I could've sworn I saw Lion slightly leaning into the touch, basking in Frankie's warmth as he emitted a low, content purr. Oh man, maybe she really will steal Lion away. "If you ever get sick of Steven, my door is always open for you!".

Jerry approached me, for real this time, holding out his fist as I bumped it with mine. I spoke with gratitude while eyeing Frankie with a look she clearly didn't see, "At least someone acknowledged my existence".

I was certain Frankie didn't even hear me as she showed no signs of focus on anything other than Lion. She was very good at tuning things out.

Steven slid off Lion's back and handed the comics to Jerry, who took them appreciatively. They then began chatting happily amongst themselves, like old friends. It almost made me want to verify whether the events at the warehouse, where they were originally quite hostile towards each other, actually took place. But by the way they were discussing talking food as if it was some super deep and heavily lore-inducing literature, it's almost as if the events didn't happen and they've always been like this.

Man, it's been a hot minute! I've been so busy working on other things that I haven't been on Wattpad AT ALL, but here it is; The preview is better than nothing, right??