CHAPTER ELEVEN
title

JUNIPER.

I had never felt like much of a team-leader, despite being the co-captain of the Pirates. And I knew that was only because Lennon had put in a good word for me, otherwise Coach Stratford would never have gone for it. I had only ever had to live up to my co-captain status once, when Lennon couldn't play one game. That was the only time. But now, I had to take on something I had never wanted—leading a bunch of people in an unknown direction and hoping for the best. I wasn't my sister, I wasn't good at bullshitting like I knew what I was doing. I was winging it, and it was more than obvious.

               "June, not to be that person. But we've definitely passed this clearing before." Ethan spoke up from beside me. He was limping slightly, with his legs and knees still torn up, the same as mine, but it was obvious he was putting it aside to contribute. Ethan had always been a very hands-on kind of person, especially with the team. He used to nag me then and he was certainly nagging me now. But I couldn't exactly call him out for annoying me the way I usually would; not when his mom had just died in the worst way possible and he was grieving her death.

               I came to an abrupt stop, looking around the clearing. Ethan was right, we had been there before and I knew it from the formation of trees I had glanced at in our first passing. Somehow, I was walking us in circles—even though it felt like we were walking directly straight head. This whole jungle shit was really starting to get on my nerves.

               "Shit..." I whispered under my breath. If I had managed to get us lost within the first thirty minutes of walking, what hope did we have finding our way back to the crash site?

                "Are we seriously lost right now?" Kitty groaned, her wiry hair tied back into a low ponytail, sweat lining her forehead.

                      "Kitty..." Evie warned, looking up at her sister with her big-brown eyes, obviously not wanting another argument to stir between any of us. So far, Evie had seemed to be the mediator between us and I wondered if she had always done that in life, what with having such a hot-headed sister. It was pretty similar to Lennon and I, except we could both be explosive.

               Kitty threw her hands up, "I just think it's stupid that we're out here following someone who literally has no clue where they're going—just because her sister said so," She complained and I felt a margarine coming on, though it could be from the lack of food, withdraws and slight dehydration setting in. "Obviously, Princess Lennon doesn't trust any of us Devils to lead, otherwise the obvious choice would have been to make Ivy the leader of this team—"

                "Well, she's not, alright?" I snapped, turning around to face her. I rolled my shoulders back. "And last time I checked, my sister is the only one actually trying to help us find a way home. So less of the shit-talking. You've never been good at it." I hissed, shooting her a firm flare, the heat from the sun baring down on me.

               Kitty opened her mouth to argue back with me but I bet her to it, "Let's go." I ordered, marching ahead of them before they could argue against it.

               I walked in a different direction this time, going through the band of trees I had recognised. We walked for what felt like forever, my feet in my Doc Martin's aching since they weren't exactly hiking shoes. I reminded myself to borrow the spare sneakers Lennon had brought with her. The bottle of water I was sharing with Ethan was half empty and my throat was aching for a drink, but I knew better than to waste it, especially after Lennon's scolding.

                 We had been walking downhill for the most part, weaving through trees and stepping over fallen logs. Kitty and Evie kept to themselves, walking and talking behind Ethan and I who barely spoke a word to one another. I didn't quite know what to say to him—or what would be the right thing to say. I had noticed Lennon talking to him the day before and I assumed she had offered her sympathies in the most perfect way—but I didn't know how to do that, not even after losing my own mom. So I opted for saying nothing at all except for offering him some water and asking him if he was okay to keep walking every now and again.

                 After at least an hour, we noticed a break in the trees where I was sure I could see sand. My eyes lit up, glad to see something other than trees that stretched to the Heavens above us, "Ethan, look!" I exclaimed, pointing through the gap in the trees, my eyes lighting up with excitement.

                 Ethan squinted his hazel eyes, looking through the trees and then he saw what I did. He immediately picked up the pace and I took after him, Kitty and Evie in tow. We brushed by branches, pushing our way out of the tree line until eventually, our shoes were no longer sinking in mud, but slipping into sand.

                  I stopped in my tracks, my eyes widening at what was in front of me. To my left and right, was the stretch of a beach, palm trees with coconuts hanging from them, golden sand shimmering in the sunlight. It looked like the beach went on forever in a C-shape. In front of me was nothing but water—the ocean, rippling under the scorching sun above us that became all the much hotter now that we weren't shielded by the trees. It was all I could see for miles—just the ocean. Not a town, not a city, not a single tourist. There was nothing in sight.

                  I found my feet moving slowly as Kitty and Evie took off ahead of us, laughing gleefully as they slipped off their socks and shoes and made an instant break for the water. It felt like a good idea to plummet myself in the depths of the ocean to cool down, but I couldn't help but feel sick to my stomach. I couldn't enjoy the moment, not even when the beach looked so beautiful because it was empty—completely fucking empty. There wasn't a single person in sight. If I went in that water, I would be drowning myself.

                     I looked back to the trees, glancing up to where I could see tall mountains stretching above us in different shapes, "I really hope you found something, Lennon." I whispered under my breath before sitting down in the sand, taking Rebecca's phone from out of my pocket.

                    I watched as Kitty and Evie splashed each other with the water, standing ankle deep and laughing with one another. I almost envied them in that moment—how they were able to enjoy the beauty within our situation meanwhile my sister and I were tasked with trying to communicate with someone who could hear us.

                     Ethan sat down beside me, his shoes and socks off, feet in the sand, "You think they've found anything?" He asked, giving a nod behind us to where my sister and her team had headed up the mountains.

                    I gnawed on my bottom lips, "I really hope so." I told him, feeling the tips of my fingers tingle as my body ached to panic. I almost reached for the joint I knew I had stuffed in my jacket pocket before suddenly remembering I hadn't brought it with me due to the heat. It only made me want it more and put a weight on my shoulders, making me feel more agitated. I just wanted to feel calm again.

                  "You two gonna play around in there all day or are we gonna try this damn thing?" I called out to Kitty and Evie who immediately stopped their laughing, turning to face me as their smiles fell. I felt like such a party-pooper, but I didn't really care—why should they have nice things when I couldn't?

                 They came back out of the water, their wet feet sinking into the sand. They both crouched down in front of me, "Should we call another number or try to call Brooklyn's parents again?" Evie questioned, staring at the phone in my hand.

                   "We should probably try the rich-girls parents again. Makes the most sense." Kitty suggested with a shrug.

                    I nodded and then inhaled, putting in the password—the name of Rebecca's dogs name. The phone unlocked and I went into the recent call log before pressing the number Brooke had put in the day before. All four of us waited in anticipation as the phone began to ring.

                   Each of our faces lit up, "Holy shit, it's actually ringing." Ethan gasped, a smile breaking out onto his lips for the first time since the crash.

                   "Pick up. Pick up. Pick up." I whispered under my breath, staring at the phone as if I could mind-control them to answer the phone.

                    The phone beeped one last time and then came the voice of Brooklyn's father, "You've reached the Bishop residence. Please leave a message after the tone." Each of us looked between one another as the phone beeped, allowing us to know it was going to voicemail.

                  I quickly inhaled, "This is Ju—" Before I could even properly start my sentence, the screen on the phone went black. I felt my stomach drop as a cold-sweat washed over me. The phone had died. It had fucking died.

                   None of us said anything, all we could do was sit there in a stunned silence. And then I felt something snap inside of me, "Fuck!" I screamed, jumping to my feet and launching the phone into the ocean, my heart racing, my skin hot.

                   Kitty barged into me, pushing my shoulders, "What the fuck, June? We needed that!" She exclaimed, her eyes wide and wild as Evie began to cry behind her, pulling her knees to her chest whilst Ethan stared into space, watching where the phone had sunk into the ocean.

                  I pushed her back, knocking her back a few paces, "In case you couldn't tell—it fucking died, Kitty!" I drawled out for her, as if she was hard for hearing or just plain stupid. I shoved her again. "It died! Its fucking useless! And now we're all probably dead!" I yelled at her, my nose almost touching hers as I got in her face whilst she stared me down, hot angry-tears in her eyes.

                   Arms suddenly hooked around my waist and yanked me back, pushing me down onto the sand, "Calm the fuck down, June! You need to calm the fuck down!" Ethan exclaimed at me, holding me in his arms, my back to his chest as I fought against him.

                  A maniacal laugh escaped my lips that slowly turned into sobs as I stopped fighting against him, allowing him to hold me in his arms like some frail child. And I felt like one. I was afraid—no, I was fucking terrified. And I didn't know what to do.

          LENNON.

           My calves were burning. Walking uphill for such a long time was a lot harder than it looked and even all of my cardio I had worked hard on wasn't helping. It helped ease it at first, but the longer we were out there, moving uphill in the scorching heat, my body was beginning to feel the exhaustion along with the lack of sleep.

               None of us had ate that morning, in fact, most of us hadn't ate since before the plane and we were starving. We had found some food, but it wasn't a lot and by the time I had woken up, I didn't feel much like eating. It had been easier to ignore when we kept ourselves busy, but that didn't mean I couldn't feel the empty void in my stomach that made my head spin.

                Despite myself being the leader of our excavation, Ivy was further ahead of me and I wondered if she ever ignored a single leg-day back home. I had been watching her for a long time, how the muscles in her calves flexed, how her curly ponytail swung at the back of her neck, exposing sweat that was trickling down her tan-neck. She was fucking bossing it and was making me feel like a slob.

               Abby was right behind me, with Maggie being at the back. She was struggling the most, what with being so small and slender. But Abby had complained the most, stating how she was just a goalie and rarely worked out—which I could understand. Abby hated nothing more than working-out and would do anything to avoid it back home, and now, she was really regretting it. 

               "Ivy! Would you mind slowing down a little!" I called out after her, slightly out of breath, feeling sweat slip down my spine as I used the ground beneath me to push myself upwards.

                Ivy glanced over her shoulder, her cheeks barely even red, "What, Princess? Can't keep up?" She teased, a grin breaking out onto her lips as I found a glare finding its way to my face.

                "Last time I checked, this wasn't a competition!" I argued with her, grabbing ahold of a vine in the dirt to haul myself up onto a small ledge, trying to catch up with her.

                  "Everything should be a competition. It makes things more fun." Ivy retorted and I watched as she put her foot on a pile of rocks, watching as they shifted beneath her weight and panic rushed through me when I realised they weren't steady.

                    "Ivy, wait!" I exclaimed, but before she could hear my warning, she had already put her full weight on the pile of rocks which immediately became loose beneath her, sliding out of the dirt and rolling by me.

                   I barley had time to think when Ivy slipped, all I could do was reach out and grab her on time, slamming her body into the ground beneath me on the small ledge I had perched myself upon. Dirt rolled by us, hitting me on the side of the head and falling down to where Abby and Maggie had been watching in horror.

                  I was breathing heavily, my body pressed against Ivy's, pushing her back into the dirt. I could feel her heart beating erratically against my chest, sharp breaths leaving her lips. All we could do was stare at each other as we realised what I had just done. I had saved her life. If I hadn't caught her, she could have potentially fallen to her death beneath us from the height we had managed to scale—or if she didn't die, she would have been gravely injured. And somehow, I had stopped that from happening, surprising us both.

                     I swallowed hard, my eyes locked on hers as she stared back. Her hands were gripping into my arms from where she had grabbed me on the way down, "Holy shit! Are you two okay?" Abby called up to us, her voice raised but I couldn't see the look on her face, too busy watching the unreadable look on Ivy's face.

                   It took me a moment to catch my breath, but after a moment, I responded, "We—we're fine!" I called back down to them before realising I had been straddling Ivy a moment too long and scurried off of her, wiping the dirt off my clothes.

                 Ivy sat up slightly, diverting her gaze, "Well, that was a shock." She said, letting out a shaky breath, resting her elbows against her knees as she hung her head.

                 Without meaning too, I grew defensive, "Okay, next time I'll just let you fall to your death." I snapped, sending her a glare.

                 I thought I was hearing things but after a moment, I realised Ivy was laughing at me. I blinked back, staring at her in confusion, "I meant the almost falling to my death part." She corrected me, making me feel so incredibly stupid. Of course that's what she had meant.

                "Oh... right." Was all I could find myself saying, my cheeks warming up in embarrassment.

Abby reached us on the ledge, offering Ivy her hand. She took it and allowed her to pull her to her feet, "You good?" She asked her, giving a nod.

Ivy dusted herself down, "Yeah. Nothing like almost falling off a cliff to wake up the senses." She sarcastically chirped, momentarily catching my gaze.

I cleared my throat, looking away from her, "We should keep moving. We don't know how long this is going to take." I urged, glancing between the three girls.

We began moving again, somehow managing to claw our way further up the mountain, until we seemed to reach the top. Or at least, the top of the mountain we had chosen to scale.

We came to a stop in a clearing, taking a moment to look around. I gnawed on my bottom lip, taking a few steps forward towards the ledge. All I could see in front of me were the trees below us, stretching for miles and then, connecting to a long beach that seemed to go on forever. From our angle, we could see the entire side of the island that was shaped like a crescent moon and beyond that was water—nothing but fucking water. And behind us, was more mountains.

I felt my heart drop. There was no people, no city, no town. There wasn't a single sign of civilisation around us. We were well and truly alone out there—with not a single soul to stumble upon us.

My hair was blowing in the wind, smacking against the side of my face but I could barely feel it. I felt numb. My eyes were burning with tears that threatened to fall as I stared out at the vast jungle around us, trapping us with their vines and trees. The ocean stretched for miles, looking like it fell off of the side of the earth—like it ever ended. I felt physically sick to my stomach.

"We're really alone out here..." I whispered more to myself than anyone else, the horrifying fact dawning on me.

Maggie was shaking her head, curly ponytail whipping against her face, "No, we can't—it can't just be us out here. It can't be." She refused in denial but she could see what the rest of us could. There was truly nothing. We were on some kind of island—perhaps an island that had never belonged to anyone in the first place. A deserted island.

"Try the phone." Ivy urged, coming to stand beside me but her eyes were on the scenery in front of us, which in any other situation would have been gorgeous—something so surreal to see in our lifetime. But it wasn't. It was a fucking nightmare.

I did as she said, reaching into my pocket to pull out my phone. I unlocked it and opened up the call log, seeing that I had multiple missed calls from numbers that wouldn't show their caller ID—still not having enough signal. I held the phone up higher and clicked the most recent number, knowing it was my fathers since I had memorised the last four digits.

I put it on loudspeaker and the ringing echoed around us, bouncing off the mountains behind us, "Come on, dad. Answer." I pleaded, my eyes hot with tears as the phone continued to ring.

Suddenly, there was a large gust of wind that knocked us forward, making each of us lose our balance, "No!" I exclaimed as the phone fell from my hand, rolling across the ground towards the edge of the cliff.

I quickly dived for it, hanging off the edge of the cliff. My fingers grazed it before I was being yanked back and I watched in horror as the phone fell to the trees below, disappearing amongst them, "Are you fucking crazy?!" Ivy was yelling at me from behind me. She had been the one to yank me back and was still holding onto me, her arms wrapped around my waist.

I immediately pushed her off, flying to my feet, "I fucking had it!" I yelled back at her, throwing my hand out, the tears finally dripping from my lashes. "And thanks to you, we've just lost the only thing that could help us!" I exclaimed, feeling my anger rise from deep within my chest, screaming to get out.

Ivy scoffed, "Your dad probably wouldn't have answered anyway, he was probably too busy on his yacht or something—"

"Fuck you!" I yelled at her, giving her a hard shove on the shoulders, making her stumble back a few paces.

Abby was between us in an instant, "Stop it! We don't need this shit right now!" She yelled, whipping her head between us as we stared each other down. "We have to go back and hope that the others found something." She insisted but I couldn't. I didn't want to move. How could I? We had just watched one of our only hopes slip right between my fingers. How could I go back and tell everyone else that I had dropped the very thing that could save us? How could I tell my sister?

"No, we have to find it! We have to—"

"Len, please, let's just go back," Maggie pleaded, her voice small, tears in the blue of her eyes. She reached out for me, putting her hand on my shoulder. "Lets go back." She said more softly, giving my shoulder a squeeze.

I felt so angry—about everything. I was enraged this had even happened to us in the first place. We should never have been there. We were supposed to be at fucking Nationals! Not stuck in some waking nightmare we couldn't escape. And I didn't know how to leave the place where I had watched our hope fall from. If I did, it felt like I would be leaving a part of myself behind, a part of me that still had any hope we could be saved.

Ivy backed down, taking a step back, "She's right. We're almost out of water. We wouldn't last long if we tried to find the phone—we just have to go back." She said, playing it off nonchalantly with a shrug.

I looked straight by Abby and Maggie, locking my eyes on Ivy's smaller form, "Do you even give a shit about anything?" I asked her, my voice coming out small as tears threatened to fall from my lashes. "Do you even give a shit that we just lost our only hope of being found?" I demanded, my voice raising.

"Of course I give a shit," Ivy retorted, glancing up to glare at me. "But I'm not gonna have a fucking breakdown over it—"

Something in her words made me snap and I found myself lurching forward at her but Abby caught me by the waist, "I'm not having a fucking breakdown!" I screamed at her, the tears finally falling from my lashes as I fought against Abby.

Ivy didn't even flinch, she just stood there, staring straight at me. I stopped fighting.

It felt like she could see right through me. Like she could see the person I pretended to be—someone who was brave and kind. Did everyone else see it too? Did they see the massive liar I was? Had I been too stupid to realise that I wasn't that good of a fucking actor? Had they all saw through me the entire time?

I hung my head, sniffling slightly, "You're right. We should get back." I said, pulling myself from Abby's grip and marching by them. Maggie tried to reach for me, probably to comfort me but I didn't allow her to catch me on time.

I wasn't going to allow them to see what a fake I was. I would walk off ahead and regain my composure and then I would put a smile on my face, assuring everyone that we would be okay because that's what I had to do. I had to do it. If not, I wasn't so sure I would be okay. Ever again.

           AUTHORS NOTE.

          and just like that... it all starts to go downhill🤪👀

            please let me know what you thought of this chapter!

            — taylor xx