18 A Dangerous Field Trip

It was another chaotic morning for Subangdaku. The mediamen came back, along with their tents and gears. Locales were ambushed on the streets for interviews. While most preferred to stay at home and watched news, others cautiously went out and shopped in panic, before supplies got fewer and prices went up.

Jamie was restless upon waking up and the endless news about the event bothered him more. After eating a hefty breakfast, he immediately went out to his friends.

"Mother, I'm going to my friends!" he called out upon leaving.

"Be careful, honey," his mother answered back. "It's not yet really safe out there."

"Yes, Mom."

He fetched Tonton first against the will of his mother. Mrs. Tagalogon was not too happy of his son being out of the house.

"Mom, please," Tonton pleaded. "We will just hang out at Kiko's or Bogart's. It's not dangerous in their place."

"Ok, but go home right away just in case another bad event happens," she warned. "I'll die worrying about you."

Jamie smiled. Unlike his mother, Mrs. Tagalogon was a total worrier. If not for Tonton, they would have been always out for adventures at night.

"I'll take care of Tonton, Mrs. Tagalogon," he teased and pinched his friend on the ear.

They all laughed and the atmosphere got lighter. They immediately took their bikes and headed to Kiko who was all smiles upon seeing them.

"Glad to see you, guys," he beamed. "It's very boring to just stay home and wait for news updates."

"Come on," Jamie said. "We can play some games at Bogart's house."

Bogart had plenty of toys in his room. There are board games, action figures, and tons of Lego blocks. If they want to go outdoor, their yard was spacious enough to chase around, shoot some rings, and bat a ball.

"Let's hurry," Tonton said. "I can't stay out until evening."

Kiko asked permission from his parents and quickly left with his friends. Mrs. Pescador was ecstatic to see them. She was pleased to have them as her son's friends. They were good company and influence to him. That was why she always pampered them when they were around.

"I'm so glad to see you, though I was not expecting you could visit today."

She called her child and Bogart went out bouncing of his room. After some chitchat, they went back to Bogart's room and played Tetris and other computer games. For lunch, Mrs. Pescador treat them to some roasted chicken, vegetables stew, and overflowing orange juice.

They got bored with their games after a while and so they started talking about the meteor landing.

"I really thought we would all die last night," Kiko opened up. "That was a strong earthquake after the impact."

"At least the meteor did not explode upon impact," Jamie said hopefully.

"Was it really a big meteor?" Tonton asked. "The news were not clear as to what really hit us last night."

"The Mayor said that scientists were coming," Jamie answered. "But I did not hear any news update from them."

"I saw them last night!" Bogart said excitedly. "I'm not really 100% sure it was them but I think it's them. There were three big white trucks coming here, but instead of entering our village, they suddenly turned around and went to the direction of the grassland."

"The grassland?" Kiko was skeptical. "Why the grassland?"

"That's where the meteor might have fallen," answered Bogart matter-of-factly.

The three friends looked at each other in curiosity.

"That's too near," Tonton said, his nerdy instincts kicking in. "We should have all died with the impact."

"And we were really near last night," Jamie added. "We have just passed the haunted house when it happened."

"This crept me out so bad," said Kiko.

There was a moment of silence as they pondered on the situation.

"Want to check out the area?" Bogart proposed absent-mindedly. "I mean we can just see the place."

The three looked at one another again with mischief in their eyes.

"Won't it be dangerous?" Tonton asked.

"Then we stay away from the dangerous things!" Kiko answered to which they all chuckled.

They hurriedly stood up and left gently the room, hoping not to be caught by Bogart's mother. It was mid-afternoon and they were hoping she was sleeping so they could sneak easily. They just had to be back before nightfall.

"Where are you guys going?" Mrs. Pescador asked upon seeing them. She was doing some cross-stitch project in the living room. The boys were instantly startled that no one answered.

"Can we go outside?" Jamie asked nervously.

"Where is outside? It's still hot out there."

"Just outside, Mom," Bogart answered for everyone. "Maybe in the grasses. We just need some fresh air."

"You mean in the grassland?" She stopped sewing and stared at the boys.

"Yes, Mrs. Pescador," Kiko replied. "But we will not be gone for long."

"We will be careful," Tonton added. "We know the place too well so we will be alright."

"Please, Mom," Bogart pleaded.

His mother thought long and hard. Finally, she said, "Ok, just be very careful. We do not know yet what really happened last night."

The boys cheered in unison. After kissing her in the cheek, they happily left the house.

They biked hurriedly since it was mid-afternoon and the sun was still blazing wildly. Later, they passed by the river and took a break. The wide river of Subangdaku was another place they loved to hang around. The river was clean and the water in the banks were shallow. It was not muddy, in fact rocky, that they spent most of their weekend afternoons in the banks. But for now, they just stopped over and caught their breathes.

After gaining strength, they resumed biking and no sooner, the roof of the haunted house was seen. They looked at each other and smiled. The house was only scary for them at nights, but when the sun was still up, it was just another dilapidated old house, like many other abandoned houses in the district, except that it was huge and roomy.

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They stopped near the back of the house and propped their bikes on some trees. The grassland was already on sight. But unlike on ordinary days, some trucks were parked in a big circle. In the middle, a silvery plastic material was put up as fence, shielding whatever was inside it.

"Is the meteor inside?" Bogart asked inaudibly.

Nobody answered as they kept staring at the menacing setup in the middle of the grasses. Why is there a camp in the middle of the grassland?