"My life has been such a whirlwind since I saw you
I've been running round in circles in my mind
And it always seems that I'm following you, girl
'Cause you take me to the places that alone I'd never find."
—Can't Fight This Feeling by Reo Speedwagon

Chapter 4: Unexpected

"Sorry I'm late, Leslie," I began and panted for air when I reached her under the tree house. "Mom wanted me to wash the dishes first before going out of the house."

Leslie smiled. She was wearing a sequin racerback tank with a yellow elbow patch cardigan—hugging her curves—and mattie boots. Ever since we started our freshman year, she'd changed her style of clothing a little, but the lively colors were still there.

"It's okay, Jess," she said. "You're only," she checked the screen of her phone, "five minutes late, anyway."

That's when I noticed she was carrying a blue backpack. I only had my jacket around my waist with me. I hadn't thought of bringing any stuff while we went, er, investigating. Or adventuring. Whatever.

She opened her bag for me to see what were the contents of it. I saw a rechargeable flashlight, rope, compass, magnifying glass, and many more survival paraphernalia.

I whistled. "Looks like we're ready to get lost."

Leslie punched me on the arm, laughing. "Get out of here! Since we'll be going to an unexplored area of Terabithia, we don't know what we'll encounter there. It's better we have these things with us, just in case. I even brought sandwiches and a canteen."

I grinned and said in my royal voice, "Makes sense, my queen. And because of your survival awareness, I shall carry the backpack for you."

000

We reached the area of the forest where P.T. and I had last seen "it."

"Here we are," I announced, gesturing my hand beside a large mahogany tree.

"How 'bout we give it a name? The Wicked One? 'Cause it seems more sinister than the Dark Master," Leslie suggested.

"The Wicked One? I like that," I said while tossing a rock.

Leslie giggled and pointed to the right side. "How 'bout we go that way?"

"Okay," I said. As I took a step forward, Leslie was looking intently at a tree to our left, like she just discovered an ancient tombstone.

"Is something the matter, Les?" I asked when she bent down to get a better look at what she was staring.

"Jess, look!" she exclaimed. I looked at what she was pointing at: an arrow carving in a tree that was pointing upward.

She examined the carving on the trunk using her magnifying glass, and I suddenly imagined Leslie wearing an outfit similar to Sherlock Holmes'. "It kinda looks old—old but bearable to see. And it's even back-to-back!"

I gazed up. "Is it telling us there's something up there?"

"I guess not, since it's impossible to climb this tree." Leslie looked in the direction where the arrow was pointing. "Okay, we're going to follow the direction of the arrow."

"You know," I said as we started walking again, "it's weird for someone to carve something like that here in the middle of the forest."

"Maybe someone got lost here and had to make a trail," Leslie surmised. "Or a hermit lives here somewhere."

I frowned. "Or maybe the Wicked One carved that."

This side of the forest had taller and bigger trees, more bushes and dried leaves that you couldn't see the forest floor anymore. There was a cry of a bird somewhere above the trees. It seemed like it was giving us a warning that we shouldn't enter this area.

Or maybe it was just me.

I turned to Leslie and saw she had a determined look on her face. She was so beautiful this way that—argh! Cut it out, Aarons! This isn't the time for such thoughts!

"Shall we enter, my king?" Leslie asked bravely.

I put on a brave face. "We shall, my queen."

000

I guess it'd been thirty minutes since we'd entered the dense canopy of interlocking branches—the dried leaves on the ground cackling beneath our feet. Some of the trees had moss and lichen growing on them. The air was cool and damp.

Leslie decided we should take our light lunch now. We sat on a fallen log, the backpack between us. We also noticed that there weren't any Terabithian creatures around. Maybe the creatures were just hiding. But from who or what? Even the silence of the forest got deeper.

"Hey, Jess," Leslie started as she gave me a sandwich.

"Yeah?" I said, accepting it.

"Have you read all of the script?"

I munched on the sandwich. Mmm, strawberry jam! Yum! "Yup, but I haven't read scene four yet. You did scene three yesterday, right?"

Leslie blushed lightly, and I wondered why. "Um, yeah. But you do know what happens after I defeat the witch, right?"

I nodded. "The prince goes into the castle, sees the princess sleeping, and then kisses the princess."

She glanced away. "Er, are you not nervous?"

I chuckled. "For the first few parts maybe, since I'll be talking and wearing a dress! I'll just be sleeping in scene four, right?"

"Um...repeat what you said."

I blinked. "For the first few par—"

"Before that," she cut me off.

I thought for a few seconds. "What was that again? Oh, right. The prince goes into the castle, sees the princess sleeping, and then kisses the princess." Then it hit me like I'd been splashed with cold water all over my body, making me suddenly choke on my food. There'd be a kiss. And I was Aurora and she was Phillip!

Holy crap!

"Jesse!" Leslie got the canteen from her backpack and handed it to me immediately. I opened the lid, gulped down the cold water, and then sighed.

"Are you all right, Jess?" Leslie asked with worry.

"Yeah. Thanks, Les," I said, looked at her, and my face suddenly heated up. The thought of Leslie kissing me sprung up in my mind. I rapidly shook my head to remove that thought away.

Stupid hormones.

"J-Jesse—"

"N-nothing! It's nothing, Les," I said, my voice squeaking partially.

Unfortunately for me, Leslie knew me too well, especially when my voice squeaks. "You've been thinking about the kiss." It wasn't even a question.

I couldn't look at her in the eye because I was still blushing furiously, totally embarrassed.

"I-I asked Ms. Thompson 'bout the kiss," she continued, and I turned to her, baffled. "And she said that I'd just kiss you on the cheek..."

Er, wait. Why did I feel disappointed? My feelings were like scrambled eggs now! Was this the life of a teenager who was in love with his best friend?

"But she also said it'd be better if I kiss you on the lips—"

"What?!" I yelled, surprised. Leslie flinched by my sudden outburst. What was Ms. Thompson thinking?

Leslie laughed, which I thought was a little strained, embarrassment from her face long gone. "I knew that'd be your reaction, Jess," she said. "But you still surprised me. Hey, it's also awkward for me if it's on the lips, especially in public. So on the cheek it is. Best friends do it, too, y'know."

I stopped the disappointment rising through my chest. Yeah, best friends.

I sighed mentally. I wouldn't mind if Leslie kissed me on the lips. In private, yes. I mean, your first kiss on the lips should be with the one you loved, right? It should be special.

Very special.

But Leslie doesn't love you back. Wait, what if she loves me back? Nah, it's wishful thinking, Aarons. She only loves you as a best friend.

"Well," she suddenly said, "if Bradfield was Phillip, I'm sure she wants the kiss-on-the-lips."

I shot her a look of bewilderment. "Huh? Sarah?" I thought this was the perfect time to ask her the question that was bugging my mind for a long time. "Say, Les, why're you and Sarah fighting a lot?"

It was Leslie's turn to choke on her food, and I gave the canteen to her instantly.

"Believe me, Jess, you don't want to know," she said after she was done drinking.

"But I want to know," I insisted. "I always notice whenever you two have this glaring contest or whatever. Did she do something to you? Tell me so that I can talk to her. We're best friends, right? We help each other."

Leslie sighed audibly. "That's the problem."

"What do you mean, 'that's the problem'?"

She panicked for a second. "I mean, it's a girl thing, Jess. I'm sure you won't understand."

"Then I'll pretend I'm a girl," I said, not giving up. "I'm Princess Aurora, remember?"

Leslie stared at me seriously, I thought she was about to tell me to shut my mouth. Then she suddenly guffawed freely, making me grin. At least I made her laugh. For now.

"Fine, Jess," she said after the laughing had subsided. "I'll tell you my problem about her when I'm ready, 'kay?"

I felt a stab of hurt in my chest. My best friend didn't trust me...?

Leslie noticed this and assured me, "No, Jess. It's not that I don't trust you. You're my one and only best friend; I trust you so much. It's just that...it's hard for me to explain right now. Please give me time."

I looked closer at her face. Leslie seemed a little bit upset...with herself...? This made me begin to worry again. Most of her face looked completely normal, except for her eyes; her green eyes were filled with a bit of anger and sadness. Anyone could change their facial expressions to not match their real feelings, but it was a whole lot harder to mask the emotion in the eyes.

I sighed in defeat when a minute had passed, though. There was no use in insisting Leslie at this moment. I was sure when she was ready, she'd immediately tell me. "Fine, Les. You win. But I'll be waiting, you hear? Don't forget 'bout it."

Leslie smiled warmly, making my heart beat faster again. "I just hope I'm not gonna lose you."

I returned her smile. "Why would you think that? Believe me, Les, you're not gonna lose me. No matter the circumstances."

We finished eating our food and set off again on our journey. We saw another arrow carving and followed the direction it was pointing at.

"I guess we'll not become lost after all," I said.

"Yeah." Leslie played a song on her iPhone and started singing while walking.

I chuckled. "Seriously, Les? 'Stayin' Alive' by Bee Gees? Are we in grave danger or something?"

She looked back at me with a grin. "Why, Jess, I know you love this song!"

"Touché," I said. "Just continue what you're currently doing to give this forest a new life." And 'sides, I really love listening to you, especially when you're singing.

We passed the sixth carving and could hear the rushing water of the creek again. Our eyes darted here and there, observing the overgrown trees, but nothing out of the ordinary came to sight, except for a small spring to our right.

"I'll refill the canteen; it's almost empty," Leslie said as she ducked and put the canteen into the clean spring.

We drank and she refilled the canteen again. After that I asked Leslie for the time.

"It's almost twelve noon," she answered.

"Whoa! So it's been an hour and a half since we started from the tree house," I said.

Leslie shrugged, smiling. "We didn't notice the time, huh?"

After a few minutes of walking, the trees began to noticeably thin out. I gazed ahead and forgot how to breathe.

Leslie, who was busy looking down while walking so that she wouldn't trip over the roots, noticed that I froze. She looked back at me curiously. "What's wrong, Jess?"

My mouth even stopped functioning. She followed my gaze instead, and then gasped.

Leslie and I were staring directly at a two-story Gothic building in astonishment and wary. The landmark that Janice Avery and the others were talking about.

The famous uninhabited mansion of Lark Creek, Virginia.