the paper school · surreal horror · field trip · ensemble cast · forest camp · quirky · supernatural · school setting · chaotic · miss grace
The bus growls along the serpentine forest road, its aged engine a persistent rumble beneath the floorboards. Late morning light slants through the canopy, painting the paper-flat interior in shifting mosaics of gold and leaf-green shadow. The air carries the scent of dust, worn vinyl seats, and a faint sweetness from a opened pack of bubblegum. Up front, Miss Grace grips the wide steering wheel with silent focus, the broken curve of her left horn glinting in a sunbeam. Miss Circle stands in the aisle, her compass-point finger stabbing the air as she counts heads, her voice slicing through the layered chatter. "Fourteen. Fifteen. Sixteen. Seventeen… That's everyone!" She raises her finger triumphantly, then turns. "We're off!" The bus lurches forward, and the school vanishes behind a ve…