SweetkinZ Journal, Chapter 5: Home Again

After a long and fulfilling vacation, Zeddy and his companions took a return trip home by train ride. However, this time the original trio was accompanied by five other friends, Percy, Honey-Buddy, Lani, Ivan, and Briella! They had all decided that it would be far more enjoyable to make the return journey together. The more the merrier after all!

There was plenty of storytelling on the cozy train ride, as Zeddy, Lavender, and Mable recounted some of their favorite memories of their vacation. In return, Lani, Ivan, and Briella also took turns catching the group up on what events they had missed out on back home. In particular, the group soon found their rapt attention on one of the quieter members, their patience and interest in equally large measure as she recounted a mishap at the Pony Postal Express.

Lani shyly explained that one of her courier bags was not secured shut properly and thus many letters fluttered out and scattered on the wind as she raced through her route. Ivan kindly offered to help her search for and deliver the missing mail before the sun set that day. Meanwhile, Briella then took care of delivering both her usual package deliveries, as well as covering for Ivan’s deliveries while he was helping Lani.

Lani flushed red from embarrassment of her mistakes, “I can’t believe I had messed up like that!” She shook her head vigorously in dismay.

Ivan looked over at her and spoke in a gentle and steady voice, “It all worked out in the end though. We found all the missing letters and got them delivered.”

“I can’t believe I actually managed to get both my package deliveries and Ivan’s done in time before my shift was over! It’s gotta be a new record for me!” Briella added with a laugh, trying to lighten the mood further.

Not wanting to be left out of the story telling fun, Honey-Buddy shared some of his adventures in the woods while hunting for “potential buried treasure” as he liked to call it. He was always optimistic about finding something undiscovered and amazing on any adventures he went on. However, the most he found recently were some lost coins in the dirt, a couple shiny rocks, and a group of colorful butterflies in a flower patch. He was excited to share these experiences with his friends regardless.

Percy also participated in some of the vacation story telling, but minimally. He was more content to cozily curl up in his seat while listening to his friends chat.

Inevitably, the group’s chatter gravitated towards thoughts of future vacations.

“That beach sounds amazing! I wanna go some time too!” Honey-Buddy declared while leaning forward in his seat. His tail wagged like a rapid propeller, thumping madly against the back of his chair.

“Yeah! There must have been so much space to run!” Lani pitched in, with her eyes lighting up at the thought of galloping along the picturesque beach shore.

“We should go together then, Lani. We can race each other!” Honey-Buddy said while bouncing up and down in his seat.

“Ok, yeah!…yeah.” Lani nodded with perked up ears and a shy, shaky smile. 

At the sudden thought of going to another new place with new strangers, however, she reverted back to uncertainty and turned to her best friend Ivan, “Will you come too, Ivan?” She pleaded hopefully.

Ivan grinned wide, “Of course.” His answer was calm and patient, but very glad.

That answer gave Lani instant relief. “Yay!”

When Briella lightly chuckled at Lani’s reaction, Lani turned to Briella. “…Briella, would you want to come with us…?” She asked in a quieter voice, embarrassed about sounding so loud, but her eyes upturned in hope that her friend would not say no.

Briella nodded thoughtfully, “Hmm…maybe. I think I would want to go visit Autumn Park first. It sounds magical, with a lot more places to explore. It’s got me curious.”

For the rest of the trip, the friends continued chatting about future plans with one another while lounging in the observation car. The six hours of riding on the train seemed to pass quickly for them amidst their excited talking. Soon they felt the train slow to a halt within the covered train station platform. It was then that they knew they had finally arrived home.

After they busily gathered their luggage and exited the train one by one, Zeddy suddenly had an idea.

“Hey! Since we’re all here together still, why don’t we make a quick visit to the bluff next door to the station. The sun will be setting soon and I bet the view of it from the top of the bluff will make for a great group photo!” Zeddy looked around at his friends eagerly.

“Oh! I love that idea! It will be a great reminder of our time on this trip,” Lavender agreed fervently.

As the thought settled in amongst the rest of the group, they happily agreed to do it before going their separate ways.

It took a few minutes to walk to the bluff, but after reaching it, they placed all their bags and suitcases at the bluff’s base before climbing to the top. Lani and Honey-Buddy immediately launched into a race with one another, with the others trickling in behind them to keep up.

“Look at that!” Honey-Buddy exclaimed, laughing and jumping up and down, “I finally won a race against you!”

“Just barely!” Lani playfully protested, “I’m still a little tired from the trip, so I couldn’t run at my best.”

“Sure, sure! Let’s race again later!” Honey-Buddy replied, eagerly spinning around in a couple of bouncy circles, and unbothered by Lani’s comments.

Lavender came up to them next, gasping for air, followed by Zeddy, Briella, and Ivan. Percy was the last one to arrive. Uninterested in sprinting up the steep angle, he preferred taking his time to follow.

“How are you two…so…fast?” Lavender asked, out of breath, “I couldn’t keep up at all!”

Zeddy laughed as he came up next to her, “You know, I have been wondering that myself for ages. They just seem to have a knack for running.”

Briella then interrupted the conversation, “Look at that sunset, everyone!” She was intently looking out at the sprawled town with the farmland and neighborhoods surrounding it on the outskirts. “We should get that picture now while we have the chance.”

The sunset cast beautiful hues of bright pink and orange light on the buildings and landscape, providing a panoramic view that took on the appearance of a painting brought to life. The world around them seemed to glow with etherial warmth.

“I still have some empty film space in my camera,” Mable piped up, “We can use it to take the picture, then I’ll give everyone a copy once the film is developed.”

“Great! I’ll help you set up the camera. Go ahead and borrow my tripod. You’ll need to set the camera high,” Zeddy began, “You can stand on my back so you can see into the viewfinder and set the timer.”

Mable nodded in agreement and quickly got to work, while the others tried to organize themselves for the group photo with the town behind them. There was quite a bit of shuffling around before they settled.

“These kinds of moments are the best, don’t you think?” Briella commented to the whole group.

“What do you mean?” Ivan asked, a little puzzled by her statement.

“I mean the moments we’re together and working totally in sync with one another are my favorite moments,” Briella elaborated with a smile, “And yet, we can still surprise each other and make new special memories like this one.”

“Ohhh… Yeah, I agree!” Ivan finally nodded in understanding.

“I hope we have more moments like this for years to come!” Lavender added.

The others in the group also voiced their affirmations earnestly.

“Okay, everyone! The timer is set. Get ready to smile for the camera!” Zeddy instructed excitedly while he and Mable hurried to their positions within the group.

The friends huddled together to stay within the frame of the camera.

“By the way,” Zeddy quickly added, still speaking to everyone, “I agree whole heartedly. Let’s keep making more amazing memories like today for as long as possible.”

Within a few more seconds, the camera clicked and flashed, capturing a beautiful moment of the close friends beaming as brilliantly as the sun itself.

To be continued…

© 2026 SweetkinZ