Day 6

Chapter 10: The Seven Wonders of Twilight Town

Falling….falling...into darkness…

I sat up in my bed, gasping. I looked around my room; I was safe and sound. I fell back onto my bed and stretched my arms out. That was pretty terrifying. I thought I was dead, for sure. I sat up, lightly brushed the side of my hair, opened the window, and looked out. I had to get some air. Maybe it'd clear my mind.

"I'm dreaming," I said. "But…which parts…were the dream?"

I arrived at the Usual Spot feeling slightly groggy. Dream or not, I didn't get good sleep last night. I smacked my cheeks, forcing myself to wake up. Hopefully hanging with my friends would boost my energy. Unfortunately, when I entered to see Hayner and Olette arguing, I suddenly felt like going back to bed with ear plugs.

"Only three days left of summer vacation – so don't even mention that assignment!" Hayner said.

"But we agreed to get it done yesterday!" Olette argued. "Have you forgotten it's supposed to be a group effort?"

"C'mon, after everything that happened, I want to relax!" Hayner complained.

As they continued arguing, I saw Pence playing a game of darts. Obviously he wanted no part of this discussion. I quietly sat in my seat and began thinking about the dream again. It had to be real. It was like when I encountered the surfer guy. It felt like someone was playing a prank on my brain. I was at a point where I couldn't distinguish between reality and fantasy. Wouldn't surprise me if I was still dreaming. Of course, Hayner and Olette arguing like a married couple sounded like something that would happen in the real world.

"Roxas, do you agree with her?" Hayner asked.

Geeze, not even a hello. This must've been serious. I didn't hear most of the conversation, so how was I supposed to answer? Instead, I decided to ask him about something else, in hopes that I wasn't losing my mind.

"Yesterday…I fell off the station tower, didn't I?"

Hayner looked at me in confusion. "That…wasn't the response I was looking for. But you wouldn't even be here if you did."

Can't argue with that logic.

"Yeah," Pence said. He was now sitting down. "Man, was THAT a close call, though."

"Stop changing the subject!" Olette snapped. "If one of us slacks off, we all fail!"

Hayner sighed in annoyance. "Fine! We'll do the stupid project! I hate summer homework! So, remind me, what do we have to do?"

There was a pause before Pence asked, "You didn't look at the assignment, did you?"

"Of course I did!" Hayner said defensively. "I just skimmed past the important parts."

There was another pause.

"Wait, let me rephrase that," Hayner said.

"We have to do a report on something interesting that's happening in town," Olette said, ignoring Hayner's fib. "It could be anything strange or unusual."

"Maybe we could do the report on the stuff happening with me," I said. "You know, like the dreams – and the guys in white."

"Forget it," Hayner said.

I gasped in surprise. What could've been more interesting than my entire week?

"Why?" I asked.

"Because we got something planned for that," Hayner said. "Things HAVE been weird with you and the town lately ever since the photo incident."

"So tomorrow we're going to search the town and find out what's goin' on," Pence said.

Olette smiled. "Lots of people are helping us."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Everyone was taking time out of their day to help me with my problem. I was so stunned. How do I react? This was by far the best thing I heard all week. And by far the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me.

"All that…for me? You guys…."

"Say no more, man," Pence said. "You're our best friend. We'd do anything to help."

I had the greatest friends in the world. With lifted spirits, I said, "I'll go get us some ice-cream!"

Well, I had to find some way to show my appreciation.

Sometime later we sat around eating ice-cream. We were coming up with ideas for our project. Some people listen to music for ideas; others, as our English teacher once said, use free writing to let ideas flow out like a steady stream. For us, one good brain freeze was all we needed. We were throwing out ideas, trying to ignite something.

"There's this strange rumor going around," Pence said. "Wanna hear it? You know the stone steps at Sunset Station? We use 'em all the time, without even thinking about it. But – and this is the weird part – the steps count different going up and down!

"Seriously!" Hayner asked in surprise.

"And there are six other weird stories like that," Pence said. "It's like…the seven wonders of Twilight Town."

"We should investigate them for our school project," Hayner said excitedly. "Pence, you did it again!"

"There might be some other rumors going around, too," Pence added. "Let's split up! I'm going after the seven wonders."

"I'll come with you, Pence," I said.

"Then Olette and I will look for new rumors," Hayner said. "Let's roll!"

Olette and Hayner left to scout the entire town.

"Let's head for the train station," Pence said. "I heard all of the wonders are at Sunset Terrance."

I grinned. "Nice. This will be a cakewalk."

As we started to leave, Pence winced. "Shoot! I forgot to put the darts away."

"Leave 'em," I said. "I want to get this project over with!"

Pence nodded, and the two of us left for the train station.

When we arrived outside the station, I heard the sounds of construction going on at the door that led to the Underground Concourse; which consisted of tunnels that went to almost every part of Twilight Town. There were hissing power drills and buzzing jackhammers at work. Fortunately they weren't loud, but they were getting a bit grating.

"I wonder what's going on," Pence said.

"Hey, cats," K.K. said. I turned and saw him walk over to us. "Man, so hard to find a place to tune up nowadays!"

"K.K., do you know what's happening?" Pence asked.

"Mayor Wright finally approved upon making a tunnel in the concourse that connects directly to Sunset Terrance," K.K. explained.

"Sweet!" Pence said. "We don't have to waste money taking the train!"

K.K. looked at the entrance to the concourse, shaking his head. "That Mayor never stops building. He wants to make Twilight Town a better place, but all he cares about is remodeling buildings that aren't important. Glad to see he's making something useful for a change. I can barely afford the train. Erm…sorry, boys. I'm rambling about the man again. What's up?"

We told him about our school project and the seven wonders. We asked him if he heard any rumors.

"Haven't heard anything, boys," K.K. said. "Sorry.

"Wanna come with us?" I asked.

K.K. shook his head. "Afraid I can't. Trying to save up what little money I have."

I was slightly disappointed. Lately I've been feeling a bit closer to K.K. He was the first to try and extend a helping hand towards me.

"Well, I'm off," K.K. said. "I'll see you around."

We said our good-byes and headed into the train station.

After getting our tickets from Pelly, we headed up the stairs and arrived on the platform. The train was a single car that had orange coating. It was old fashion looking, but it got the job done. I had fond memories of riding the train when I was a kid. Even now it was still fun to ride.

"The time has come," Pence said overdramatically. "Our hunt for the seven wonders begins! What sort of dangers will we encounter? Will we uncover something that is beyond our comprehension? Maybe a monolith that holds secrets to the universe. Or a phone booth that will let us travel through time!"

He put his arm around me.

"The possibilities are endless!" Pence concluded.

I narrowed my eyes at him. That was…a bit too much. Pence noticed that I was giving him a look, and he grinned nervously.

"I'll shut up now," Pence said.

"Yo!" Hayner called out.

We turned to see Hayner and Olette running up to us.

"Whoa!" Pence said in surprise. "Find new rumors already?"

"Nothing on Market Street," Olette said.

"You twerps aren't going to scoop us. We're going to the terrace with you."

"Hayner, it's not a race," Olette said. "Did you hear me say this is a group effort?"

"I have selective hearing," Hayner said.

Pence chuckled. "Wow, two lame excuses in one day? You're getting good at this, man."

"Shut up," Hayner said. "I think having a race will make this project somewhat enjoyable."

"I'm fine with it," I said. "C'mon. Let's take the train together."

The train didn't have your average seating arrangements. It had two long couches that were up against the walls. If you wanted to get a full view out the window, you'd have to turn around. A little annoying, but the seats were very comfortable. We lounged around as we waited to reach our destination. I was leaning against the seat, and my legs were stretched out. We didn't talk much during the right. Olette took out her crystal, and I looked around to see Hayner and Pence taking out theirs.

I decided to join the fun. I went through my pockets, but a dark cloud soon fell over my happiness as I realized it wasn't there. No way! I couldn't have lost it! Not unless that pickpocket used his crazy magic to grab it. I sighed sadly and lowered my head. Yet another somber start to my day. I had to be optimistic. Could've just left it at home.

But with everything going on, I doubted it.

Sunset Terrance was another district in Twilight Town. Unlike the busyness of Market Street, the terrace was more of a housing area. There were a few stores, but they were for basic needs. The terrace was a peaceful area. On some days, we'd come to the terrace, sit on one of the houses' flat roofs, and watch the best view of the sunset (hence the name). We'd also watch the trains go by. The moment we pulled up, Hayner and Olette immediately made a dash out the door.

It was on!

Pence and I took our time getting out. Pence wouldn't be able to run for very long, anyways (and I don't mean it as an insult). We walked over to the stairs.

"Are these the steps you talked about?" I asked. "The one's that count different going up and down?"

"Ummm…actually," Pence said, "it's the stupidest thing ever, but…"

"What?"

"Rai's the one who counted the stairs," Pence explained. "He's like, 'Every time I count, it's different, Y'KNOW?' Ha ha ha ha!"

That wasn't a bad Rai impression.

"So…he just counted wrong?" I asked.

Pence nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me that sooner?"

"Sorry. I was trying to be hopeful."

I sighed in disappointment.

"Hey, no worries," Pence said. "There's still six other wonders."

He went through his pocket and pulled out a map.

"And this is going to make our lives a heck of a lot easier," Pence said.

Pence unfolded the map, revealing it to be an image of Sunset Terrance. I noticed certain places marked on the map.

"I marked each location as to where the other wonders supposedly are," Pence said. "Let's try the ally first. That's the closest one."

There wasn't much to the alleyway. It only led to a dead end. As kids, we'd play cops and robbers down that alley, pretending to corner one another. Now we were kind of iffy about going down there. There was a mugging incidence here one time, so that definitely scared a few people. We stood there in uncomfortable silence, unsure how to approach this.

"Let's head down there," Pence said. "After you."

"Hey, you're the expert on these seven wonders," I said. "You go first."

"Looks like we're both chicken," Pence said. "But I'm more chicken, so you go."

Growing annoyed over wasting time, I asked, "Wanna settled this with rock, paper, scissors?"

"Sure."

I ended up losing.

Taking a deep a breath, I slowly approached the corner of the alleyway. When I reached it, I placed my fingers on the edge. I wiggled them nervously. Who knows what was there? With my luck, Axel would be there, waiting to ignite me into flames. I closed my eyes and counted to three in my head. I ran into the alley and saw a dog sitting there. I was relieved – until the dog started growling at me ferociously.

"Uh, hai doggie," I said. "N-nice doggie."

There was nothing I could use to distract the dog. It wanted to take a bit out of me. The dog barked wildly and chased me out of the alleyway. I ran as fast as I could. The dog chased me for awhile. Eventually I hid behind a bush, and I think it gave up. I poked my head out, and Pence ran over to me.

"You okay?" Pence asked.

I came out of the bush, brushing any leaves off. "Dandy. Certainly wasn't friendly like K.K."

"But I bet it did explain one of those seven wonders," Pence said.

"Why was that even a rumor?" I asked angrily. I was still shaken up. "Anybody could've been behind there!"

"Take it easy, man," Pence said. "There's still five more to go. Our next stop is the tunnel."

Pence and I went over to the tunnel that was going to connect to the rest of the concourse. Right now it was mostly used for the kids to play in. We both stood outside of it.

"People say they hear ghostly moans down there," Pence said with an eerie tone in his voice. "Why don't you head down there and check it out?"

I angrily glared at Pence. Judging by his worried expression, he could tell I was ready to kill him.

Pence chuckled nervously. "Or I could go. I-I'm not doing anything important."

Before Pence got a chance to, Hayner and Olette walked out of the tunnel. I couldn't describe the relief that was on Pence's face.

"Hey, guys," Olette said. "We solved the mystery of the moans from the tunnel. It's only Vivi practicing his sword moves."

"Oh," Pence and I said in disappointment.

In fact, we heard Vivi grunting and shouting. It was followed by a loud thump.

"My spleen!" Vivi cried.

Olette shouted down the tunnel, "You okay, Vivi?"

"I-I'm fine," Vivi said.

"Does he even have a spleen?" Hayner asked. "For all we know he could have a squeedly spooch."

"What?" the rest of us asked.

"Uh, forget you heard that," Hayner said. "Come on, Olette!"

Hayner and Olette left the area. Both Pence and I shrugged to each other. Pence pulled out the map, and we looked it over.

"Two down," he said. "Let's try the rumor about Sunset Hill. They say there's a sack there that moves on its own. Something interesting might be inside."

I was getting paranoid again. What if the guys in white were in that bag, ready to capture me? Either way, I decided to go along with Pence. I'd do anything to get the summer homework done.

"If you say so," I said.

Sunset Hill was the highest point in the district. It was the best place to view the sunset. I personally disagreed; the buildings had a much better view. But considering how we're not supposed to be sitting on someone's property, Sunset Hill was a 'legal' alternative. The cool thing about Sunset Hill was that the train ran directly below it, so we were able to get a nice, close overhead view of the train.

The top of the hill had a large, round space; it was perfect for people to come and have a picnic. There was also a model replica of the bell tower. I'd say it was a couple of feet taller than me. Both Hayner and I got the top, and we saw the sack in the middle of the area.

Pence leaned in and whispered, "Let's sneak up on it."

The two of us slowly approached the sack. I had no idea as to what we'd fine inside. As we started to grab the string around the sack, it jumped, startling us. The sack started hopping around the area.

"After it!" Pence shouted.

The two of us chased after the sack. And it was fast! I couldn't catch up with it. At one point it stopped in the middle, and when went to grab it, the sack hopped out of the way; I ended up crashing into Pence. What a trickster this sack was, I thought. The sack hopped over the edge of the area, which was surrounded by a wooden fence.

Pence ran after it. "I got it!"

"Pence, wait!" I shouted. He was running right towards the edge.

As I expected, the sack moved out of the way, and Pence's stomach ran into the fence at full force (how did this sack know when to move out of the way?). He almost flipped over completely, but he stopped himself. He was dangling over the fence. I ran over and helped him up. We both saw the sack continue to hop around. I was getting fed up with this game. Using every ounce of strength in my legs, I sprinted right for the sack, leaped at it, and managed to pin it down for the moment.

"Quick, help me open it!"

Whatever was in there put up a good fight. It tried to pull me along, but I held on with all my might. Pence came over and removed the string around the sack. Like a balloon, it started deflating. This was it; the big reveal. What was in there? Something that would give us an A+? That'd be awesome. We waited in silence as something moved around inside the sack. It found an opening and stuck its head out.

Our dreams deflated faster than the sack. You want to know what was in there? That dog from earlier. How did he even get in there? Similar to how I felt right now, he wasn't happy to see us. He let out another growl.

Pence said through his teeth, "On the count of run…RUN!"

Both of us hightailed it out of there, and the dog was right behind us. We ended up back at the terrace, with the dog still chasing us.

"Quick, let's hide over there!" Pence said, pointing towards a large tree.

We hid behind it. I peeked out to see the dog still coming at us.

"It's not working!" I said.

"Over there!" Pence said.

I looked to see Pence pointing at a group of garbage cans. Because you know, dogs were never known for eating garbage. Regardless, I followed Pence over, and we ducked behind the cans. I looked around the can to see the dog running right at us.

"What now?" I asked. "Are we going to hide behind a fire hydrant next?"

Pence smirked. "Ha! All part of my ingenious plan! Cover your ears!"

I did so, and Pence pulled the lids off the cans. He banged them together as hard as he could. The loud noise scared the dog away. We both sighed and leaned against a wall. I was growing tired of this assignment. We haven't made any progress. I was ready to believe that every wonder was nothing more than a hoax.

"This is ridiculous," I said. "I'm ready to give up this hunt."

Pence gasped. "We can't give up! There are still three more wonders! Don't you want to get a good grade?"

"Last I checked…getting mauled by a dog was not part of the curriculum."

"Have a little faith, man," Pence said with encouragement in his voice. "We'll uncover a great mystery. Just you wait!"

I moaned. I might as well see this through till the end. After all, Pence does know where the other three wonders are.

"Fine," I said.

The two of us headed over to the next supposed wonder: the waterfall. It was a tall waterfall that had a white support around it. Imprinted on the support were flower designs. On each side of the waterfall were fully bloomed, purple flowers. When we were kids, we'd always play at the waterfall while our parents weren't looking. There was a space behind the waterfall, and we'd each get a turn sitting behind there, looking at the waterfall from within. Now there was a great secret behind it. But I was skeptical about any of these wonders at this point.

"They say something strange is lurking behind the waterfall," Pence said. "This time we're going to uncover something really special."

"Alright," I said.

We watched the waterfall for about a minute. Nothing happened. The only thing we saw was our reflections. I'm hoping that's not what the mystery was. I was about to give up when I could've sworn I saw something move. I wasn't the only one that noticed; there was a surprised look on Pence's face.

"Did you see that?" Pence asked. "Something is there! We're going to uncover the truth!"

We slowly walked closer to the waterfall. There was more movement going on. We stopped right at the edge, waiting in anticipation. Maybe this wonder would be the one. I couldn't wait to see what it was.

And out popped the dog. He started growling again. At that moment, I think Pence read my mind, as he and I yelled out the same thing:

"OH, COME ON!"

After losing the dog, we both returned to Sunset Hill, warn out from the chase. We were lying on the floor, catching our breath. I sat up and dropped my head towards the floor.

"H-how did that dog know we were going to be there?" I asked.

"Hey, I don't have all the answers," Pence said. "But that was really weird."

I stood up. "I'm going to find the others. Maybe they're having better luck than we are."

"Wait, I promise this next one is dog-free," Pence said. "It'll be awesome!"

I shook my head and started to turn away.

"I'm not kidding!" Pence said. "Wonder number six is closer than you think…"

I looked down the hill to see Hayner and Olette running up to us.

"We got another lead!" Hayner said. "Uh…why are you guys out of breath?"

"Long story," Pence said. "So what's the scoop?"

"It's the Ghost Train Mystery," Olette said.

"That's nothing new," Pence said. "Everyone knows about Wonder number six."

Hayner crossed his arms, slightly upset. "Yeah, well, I didn't."

"We can see the train come from right here," Olette said.

"What luck," Pence said. He looked at me. "I told you this one would be dog-free."

I nodded. "Then let's check it out."

We walked over to the edge of the hill to see the train track.

"If the rumors are true," Pence said, "it'll be here any minute..."

Being his goofy old self, Pence said dramatically, "For they say the train is empty. No driver, no conductor, no passengers... NO RETURN."

With my luck, there would be a dog on the train. We decided to lie down and wait for a little while. Despite waiting for the train, it was nice to just lie around and do nothing. We hardly had a chance to because of everything going on. Olette and Hayner were talking about making plans to go to the beach next summer, but I wasn't really listening.

For some reason, this wonder really intrigued me. With all the craziness going on, I wanted to believe it was real. I started theorizing about the train, and let's just say they really were stretching the imagination. I was thinking that the train had some connection to everything going on. Maybe it was how the strangers in black and white were coming to the town.

I was snapped out of my train of thought when I heard a familiar voice.

"Good afternoon, slackers," Seifer said.

I turned around to see him looking at us with a smug look.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked.

"What do you care?" Hayner asked.

"I don't," Seifer replied. "Tell me anyway."

"We're waiting for the ghost train," Pence said.

I could tell Seifer was trying to hold back his laughter.

"Waiting for the ghost train," Seifer said mockingly. He burst out laughing. "Just when I thought you guys couldn't get any lamer."

I angrily stood up. I was growing tired of him always picking on us. Seifer glared at me for a moment. I wasn't sure how he was going to react.

"Why does looking at you always tick me off?" Seifer asked.

"I dunno," I said. "Maybe it's destiny."

Seifer scoffed. "Destiny. In that case, let's be friends. I don't feel like cooperating with destiny."

"Since when have you cooperated with anything?" Hayner asked.

"I don't need this from you right now," Seifer said. "I have other things to worry about."

"Like what?" Olette asked.

"What do you care?" Seifer asked.

"We don't," Hayner said. "Tell us anyway."

Seifer smirked at our echo. He turned away from us, placed his hands in his pockets, and looked up at the glowing sky.

"A new disciplinary committee started up today," Seifer said. "Already people are flocking to them like a bunch of blind seagulls."

Saki must've finally green lit his new committee, I thought.

"No one pays attention to us anymore," Seifer continued. "People look at us like a joke. How could this new committee gain the public's trust in one day?"

For a few moments, no one said a word. I guess they felt uncomfortable telling him the truth. I wasn't uncomfortable at all.

"Because your 'group' isn't a committee at all," I said.

"R-roxas!" Hayner said with a shocked tone in his voice.

Seifer slowly spun around to face me. He looked like he was ready to punch me in the face for that one.

"What did you just say to me?" Seifer asked.

"You heard me," I said. "Disciplinary actions don't involve bullying. Your job is to keep people safe, not make them feel bad about themselves! With the respect you show people, what makes you think they'll show you it back? Get a grip, Seifer! This new committee probably does their job the right way!"

Seifer's face was now red like lava. "Are you trying to start something?"

"By giving honest advice?" I replied. "Because there's a huge difference. Why don't you actually listen to the other side for a change!"

I stared right into Seifer's eyes. My comment had to have hit him right in the ego. I continued to stare him down, showing that I wasn't afraid of his threats. I was sick and tired of Seifer treating us like garbage. Someone had to stand up to him. Seifer didn't reply to my comment. Instead, I noticed his intense glare start to loosen. He turned away and took a deep breath.

"Smell ya later," Seifer said calmly.

Just like that, Seifer left. I was shocked that shut him up. Was he really considering what I said?

"Dude, that was gutsy," Hayner said.

I turned to my friends. "I'm just fed up with him, you know?"

"Hey, it was awesome!" Hayne said happily. "Man, I wish I had my camera. I'd play it over and over again!"

Olette rolled her eyes with a smile. "Oh, Hayner."

"Hopefully Seifer will get off our backs now," Pence said.

I hoped so, too.

"Hate to change the subject," Hayner said, "but we've been here forever. I'm callin' it quits."

"I agree," Pence said. "We're wasting time."

"C'mon," I said. "I really believe it's gonna come. Can't we give it a few more minutes?"

"Sorry, Roxas," Olette said. "I do want to get back. We'll think of something else."

"You're not giving it a chance!" I said.

"What's with you all of a sudden?" Hayner asked. "Why are you so interested in the ghost train?"

"Because I want a good grade." That wasn't my actual reason, but I didn't want to tell them my crazy theory that connected to the guys in white.

"Whatever," Hayner said, growing annoyed. "Do what you want. We're going to go wait for the real train. If you're not with us when it shows up, we're leaving without you."

Olette and Pence looked like they wanted to say something, but I'm positive they didn't want to get involved. Without another word, they left. I continued looking over the edge, hoping the ghost train was real.

A few minutes went by. Nothing. Hayner was right; I was wasting time. I got my hopes up, and it blinded me from the truth. I was about to leave when I saw a train coming. It wasn't the one that usually picks us up. It had a light green coating. On top of it was a giant crown, and imprinted on the sides were stars. This had to be the ghost train! I couldn't believe it!

I ran to the train station to tell the others. When I got halfway to the station, I saw Hayner and the others – talking to Seifer! What the heck? But that wasn't my focus at the moment.

"Hey!" I shouted.

Seifer saw me, said one more thing to Hayner, and then left. I ran up to the others, catching my breath.

"Whoa, where's the fire?" Pence asked.

"I saw it!" I said. "The stories are true!"

Hayner's jaw dropped. "For real!"

"Yeah," I said. "It's heading for the station! Let's go!"

When we got to the station, I saw the train parked there. There was a magical quality to the train. It was so unique. I couldn't believe I was looking at an actual ghost train.

"This is incredible," I said. I walked a little closer to it. "And there's really no one aboard!"

I turned to the others. They weren't very responsive to seeing a ghost train. Perhaps they didn't know how to react.

"What's the catch?" I asked. "There's gotta be a catch, right?"

Everyone looked at each other in confusion. What was with them?

"Well, let's go inside," I said.

I walked over to the train. What kind of surprises awaited us behind the door? Ghosts? A passage to a new world? Or, maybe, just maybe, the answer to my problems? I was almost there when I felt someone grab my arm. I turned around to see Hayner.

"What?" I asked with irritation in my voice.

"Um…you'll get hurt," Hayner said.

I didn't understand what he meant. I looked back at the train – I'm sorry, I mean the train that was standing there five seconds ago.

"Huh?" What happened to it? It was right here; in plain sight!

"The train will be arriving shortly," the automated intercom said.

The orange train pulled up and let the passengers off. I don't get it. I saw it! However, I had the feeling my friends didn't see the same thing. Have I gone crazy?

"Come on," Hayner said.

I refused to believe it. I spun around and said, "It was there. It came from the beach. There were no passengers on board!"

"Let's head back," Pence said.

"Olette, you believe me, don't you?" I asked her.

Olette shook her head. This was unreal. I was losing my mind. Before I could try to question this further, I heard Hayner groan, and he pushed me right on to the train.

The train ride home was miserable. We didn't say a word to each other. I lightly tapped my fingers on my legs, unable to believe that happened. I didn't want to know what the others thought of me now – most likely a nutcase. Would they ever look at me the same way again? Hell, would I ever look at myself the same way again? So many things have been happening to me.

I'm sure everyone, especially Hayner, was getting frustrated with me. I know; I'm thinking too negatively, but each day seemed to be getting worse. How could anyone not start to lose their patience? I know I was! I sighed. Need to pull myself together.

Silence followed us to the train station, and continued to the follow us out the door. I walked behind the others. I wasn't sure what to say to them.

Hayner said in a miserable tone. "Let's go home and work on the paper."

"The rumors were bogus," Pence said. "The end."

"We can still make it sound good if we write about all the work we did," Olette said.

"I'll most likely BS to fill the five page limit," Hayner said. "Fuuuunnn."

I stopped. Something crossed my mind.

"Wait, wasn't there a seventh wonder?" I asked.

"Who cares?" Hayer asked angrily. "It's probably about as riveting as the other six!"

"Well, I care!" I said. "I'm seeing this through till the end. C'mon, Pence. What do you know about the seventh wonder?"

Hayner threw up his arms and exhaled loudly. "Whatever!"

Hayner stormed off. Olette and Pence looked at me as if I was a completely different person. I was starting to think the same thing.

"Roxas…" Olette said.

"It's at that haunted mansion," Pence said.

Both of them left without saying another word. I see how it was. Perhaps I was meant to do this on my own. Everything was starting to become clear. Despite people offering to help me tomorrow, what would they find? Nothing. Everything was in my head. It would all be a waste; people would feel like I wasted their time.

My problems would become their problems, just as I said before. No one understood me; no one ever did. Not even my best friends. From now on it was me against the world. Hey, I'll always have amazing friends like Hayner, Olette, and Pence to be there for me, but sometimes, the only person you could rely on was yourself.

With a heavy sigh, I headed for the mansion.