Sleepy, Joachim sat in front of the steering wheel of the bus.

He hadn't been able to sleep a wink yesterday, and when he finally did. He heard noises behind the tent from himself and Kay.

The noises were not loud, but maybe that made them even scarier. They started slowly and then got faster as if something was running towards him. Until they came to a cracking halt and ended with a 'bang'. This had been repeated several times. Only after the 17th time had Joachim finally fallen asleep.

Only one hour later, he was woken up again to continue driving.

And now Steffen was sitting next to him.

He was surprisingly talkative.

Not that the topic was not interesting, no, Joachim listened to him intently. Because Steffen gave him new insights into the theory behind movements that Joachim had learned at his school. But Steffen's joy to find a like-minded person was quite big.

He had to yawn yet again while Steffen talked about the relationship between the perfect landing form and protection from injury. They were just driving through a dense forest, the green of the trees gave Joachim a nostalgic feeling.

"You seem to be very tired."

Joachim blinked a couple of times before he shot an embarrassed look at Steffen.

"Ah, yes, I haven't been sleeping very well..." Encouraged by his insomnia and the naturalness with which Steffen treated him, something that was entirely new to him, and which gave him terrible joy despite his tiredness, he hesitantly continued, "I had to think of my predecessor. I mean, we do, or did, have the same profession and he passed away, so..."

"You mean Nick?" Steffen's tone made a 180-degree turn. Joachim's sluggish thoughts immediately became clear. Had he accidentally chosen a taboo subject? That was bad! His 'Quest' was just to drive them, he shouldn't have stuck his nose where it didn't belong! Could that have opened the 'Death-Route'?

"Nick was an ass. He insulted everyone, always went drinking, and looked for a new whorehouse every weekend. He couldn't even drive well, the only thing he could do was babble on," Steffen continued pejoratively, the contempt was almost tangible.

That hadn't really answered his question, but Joachim didn't feel the strong need to continue this conversation.

"Oh, then it's good that I have taken over? Um, what is your favorite exercise again," he said with a questioning tone.

Steffen snorted in agreement before he started talking about apparatus gymnastics and other sports again. This time Joachim sighed with relief and fell back into a relaxed position. Driving a car was actually quite soothing if you ignored all the crazy people. It's a pity that such professions no longer existed in his world.

"I personally compete in the decathlon. It consists of a 100-meter run, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400-meter run, 110-meter hurdle run, discus throw, pole vault, javelin throw and the 1500-meter run, so exactly ten athletics disciplines, which is why it has to be split over two days, and I tell you, it is extremely exhausting, haha . While we're at it, do you know which discipline Aaron will be competing in?"

Joachim thought for a moment: "Gymnastics, right?"

"Mhm, in this case, you have to have very good body control, form and experience play an especially important role. It's similar to ballet, an art that has to be practiced early on to be good at it," Steffen paused briefly, probably waiting for Joachim to give a reaction.

And he was only too happy to do so: "Wow, how impressive! If that's the case, you must have been training very long and hard!"

"That is true, Aaron has a lot of patience if you like. But his passion is jumps, high jump, long jump, ... whatever, as long as it's jumping, haha. And I have to admit, it all looks really impressive, very elegant. Personally, I prefer athletics over gymnastics, but both have their qualities."

Joachim sighed with awe in his mind. Aaron was really an angel, he even enjoyed flying!

"I heard you talking about me. Really very grown-up from you two, talking behind someone else's back," Aaron's laughing voice resounded behind them. Joachim flinched in surprise and the bus swayed briefly to the right. Joachim quickly corrected the bus, but the two athletes behind him had already begun to laugh.

Astonished, Joachim noticed that this laughter did not hurt his heart. On the contrary, it invited him to laugh along. It was strange, a soft smile appeared on his lips.

"Luckily our coach didn't stand this time," Steffen grinned as he changed seats so that Aaron could also sit down.

"Yes, without his crutches he's not the most steadfast," commented Aaron, "but we shouldn't joke about it. The accident was really terrible." Now his voice no longer sounded amused, a deep sadness had emerged instead.

Confused, Joachim glanced at Steffen and Aaron. Both looked melancholic as if they remembered an event from long ago.

At that moment Aaron noticed his confusion and opened his mouth to explain the events to Joachim: "It is understandable that you do not know about it. You were probably too young at the time."

Steffen agreed: "It was twelve years ago, how old were you then ... ten? Or twelve?"

Steffen looked at him expectantly, unprepared for such a sudden question, Joachim simply parroted the given answers: "Twelve?

Although Joachim said this rather uncertainly, the two didn't notice his oddity.

"At that time, Kay Nowak was still an athlete himself, he also did gymnastics in addition to jumps and, to be honest, he was also my greatest role model. He was incredibly successful, winning medal after medal. At that time, he was supposed to participate in the Olympic Games. Everyone had very high hopes that he would take a medal back home. He probably did too."

"And then," Steffen added, "at his best and favorite discipline, the long jump, it happened. He jumped further than anyone would have expected and that, exactly, was the end of him. At a place that no one had ever reached before, a forgotten iron pole lurked, buried in the sand."

With endless sadness and regret in his voice, Aaron ended the story: "The pole was catapulted high by his landing and pierced his knee. His tendon, bone and nerve there were crushed thoroughly. The leg itself was saved, but he was never able to practice sports again. It was probably the saddest gold medal ever awarded."

Compassion and guilty conscience, both feelings stabbed Joachim's heart. No wonder he was always in such a bad mood! And he had already caused him so much trouble!

Determined, Joachim gripped the steering wheel tighter.
He would do his best until his arrival to make the trip as uneventful and stress-free as possible. That was the least he could do for all the wonderful time he spent here, even if it was only for a 'Quest'.