╔═══━━━─── • ───━━━═══╗
— DAY ONE —
season one, episode one, part two

❝𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧...❞

─── • ───

⚠️ TW: mentions of physical abuse and addiction ⚠️

LEAH RILKE

"All right, help me out with the timeline here," Agent Young spoke for the first time since the interrogation had started, consulting the clipboard in his hand and making notes in the margins. "How long had you been out in the water?"

Leah shrugged, unsure.

"I don't know."

"Two, three hours?" Agent Young suggested, hoping for one of the times to resonate with the young girl. "I'm just trying to pinpoint when the crash occurred."

"I honestly don't know."

"From the crash until you spotted the shoreline," Agent Young clarified, "you can't give me a ballpark estimate?"

"Look, I don't mean to be difficult," Leah sighed, her breathing uneven under the interrogative gazes of the two agents sat across from her. "But after the plane went down, there was a blackout period. So the beginning, it's... it's all a blur. And not just for me. No one knew the full timeline. Not even the ones that came to on the island..."

─── • ───

"MAAAAAARTHA! MAAAAAARTY!"

The distant shouts made Blaire flicker her eyes open, startled, as she coughed up the water that filled her lungs. Her first thought, as she hazily registered the view of the island shoreline, was of Heaven; the ultraviolet rays of the sun shimmered on her skin and the melody of the waves crashing around her sounded as peaceful as anything she'd heard before.

Blaire spluttered, wiping her lips on the sleeve of her shirt before her fingertips dug into the sand beneath her, attempting to move her body but it was no use. Sure enough, as her dark brown eyes adjusted, she raised her head and knew that any prospect of Heaven she'd once dreamt of was far from reality. With feelings of disorientation, she cursed under her breath and let her body collapse onto the sand.

Stranded... on an island...

"Holy shit!" came the sound of an approaching voice, and Blaire felt as though she was slowly losing her mind. However, as she felt someone's hand on her shoulder, Blaire felt the rush of adrenaline and panic bubble within the depths of her stomach. Without realizing it, she'd kicked herself free and scrambled back towards the shoreline, hyperventilating, as though it was an instinctive result of her trauma.

"Get off! Get off of me!" she screamed, flailing her arms ever so slightly as she struggled to get away.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, it's OKAY!" the voice responded in a hushed whisper, and Blaire shuddered, trying to keep herself present as the other girl's shadow hovered over her, blocking the warmth of the sun. "Look, our plane crashed and we need to find the others. So take a deep breath and relax, all right?"

"T-Toni...?" the name slipped from Blaire's mouth involuntarily, though it seemed to calm her nerves.

"Yeah, I'm here," Toni responded, kneeling down to the New Yorker's eye-level, and the world seemed to have finally stopped spinning. Blaire took a deep breath as instructed, her eyes focusing on the details of Toni's face as means to keep herself sane. "Bet I'm the last person you wanted to see, right?" she joked halfheartedly, inspecting any wounds the other girl might've had. "Come on, take my hand. We'll never find the others if we just sit here all damn day."

Her hand extended, Toni stood once again. Then, with a groan, Blaire tried not to flinch as she allowed the other girl to pull her to her feet, hobbling on her right ankle as Toni wrapped an arm around her waist — steading them both — and helped her walk along the beach in search of the others. Blaire's converse carried her across across the sand, letting out a breath of relief as the feeling came back in her legs.

"This is so fucked," she muttered, her eyes scanning the area around them. "So fucking fucked..."

"Somehow I don't think cursing like a drunken sailor is going to get us anywhere," Toni pointed out, her voice hoarse, causing Blaire to roll her eyes in annoyance. "Besides, we have bigger issues than —"

"— than being stranded on a deserted island in the middle of buttfuck nowhere?" Blaire finished sarcastically, her jaw clenched, and Toni could see how defined her face was in the afternoon sunlight. "Wow, you're right, Toni, because worrying about how many times I curse is clearly at the top of our priorities list."

"Hey, you can say whatever the fuck you want," said Toni playfully, nudging Blaire in the ribs with her free arm, causing the dancer to wince. With an immediate look of concern, Toni asked, "Fuck, sorry! You okay?"

"I'm fine," Blaire grunted, meeting Toni's gaze before she felt the hard look in her eyes fade away. Her heart racing suddenly, she cut the tension and added teasingly, "But you should know that cursing like a drunken sailor isn't going to get us anywhere."

Toni felt her lips quirk into a small smile at that.

"Touché, New York," she laughed, appreciating that the dancer had been so quick to use her own words against her. Her arm still wrapped around Blaire's waist, Toni remained silent for a moment, and that's when she realized that she'd felt bad about their altercation on the plane hours before. "Listen," she added softly, "I know there's probably a million other people we'd both rather be with right now, but..."

Catching Toni by surprise, Blaire stopped in her tracks and tried to decipher the look of apprehension in the basketball player's honey-brown eyes. Toni had so many emotions inside of her that she was always taken aback by how empty she seemed. The two of them stood in silence for a moment, the only sound the faint crashes of the waves and the muted animal noises coming from the inland forest behind them.

Somehow, even through the tension-filled silence, Blaire understood as though she'd heard Toni's utmost inner thoughts, and her gaze was intense and meaningful, never once breaking their eye-contact.

"But you're glad we're both alive?" Blaire offered kindly, their differences aside, and Toni nodded. "Yeah, me too," she added in a whisper, and Toni let herself smile for the first time since the plane had crashed. "Now, come on, let's go find the others..."

─── • ───

"Sometimes you collide with a person," Leah began prophetically, a wide, reflective smile on her lips, "and you get this feeling that they might become important to you. Maybe it's from a look or an act of kindness, or maybe you just like the way your world feels when they're in it..."

─── • ───

"MAAAAAARTHA! MAAAAAARTY!"

Much to Toni's disappointment, her and Blaire couldn't find Martha anywhere. Together, they walked along the beach for a few more yards before stumbling across two other girls hunched over, with their knees dug into the damp sand beneath them. Her brown eyes gazing ahead, Blaire let out an audible sigh of relief as she realized who it was: Dot, with her easily identifiable flaming-red hair, was consoling a hysterical Fatin, who had hugged her knees to her chest and sat along the tree-line of the dense inland forest. With a glance towards Toni, Blaire untangled herself from her arms and approached the others.

"Hey! You guys okay?" she yelled, lumbering over towards Fatin and Dot and stooping next to them.

"I'm fine," Dot said worriedly, "but she's in shock."

Sure enough, Fatin was sobbing and shaking uncontrollably, with tearful streaks of mascara running down her cheeks and sticky crumbs of barfed-up chocolate cake lingering on her lips. Her lips quirked into a reassuring smile, Blaire felt a pang of uneasiness as she used the sleeve of her plaid shirt to wipe the dreck from Fatin's cheeks.

"Fatin," she whispered, reaching out for the friend she'd made on the plane, "you gotta move into the sun, all right? It'll help you calm down."

But the Pakistani-American girl didn't budge, and instead stared off towards the horizon and mumbled to herself.

"T-They made m-me come... I'm n-not supposed to b-be here... th-they made me c-come..."

"Who, like, your parents?" Dot asked, and when Fatin offered a shaky nod, she added, "Well, if it makes you feel any better, they're probably feeling really shitty right now. Like, crushing guilt..."

"Dot," Blaire hit her lightly on the arm, "that isn't very helpful right now —"

"Hey, I'm just saying that she won, you know?" the redhead tried again, offering a smile that was quick to falter as Fatin's cries merely got louder. "Well, kind of... not really..."

"Enough," Blaire heaved a 'oh-for-fucks-sake' sigh before she slid her arms beneath Fatin and pulled her to her feet. "Just give me a hand, won't you?" she asked Dot kindly, and together they'd carried her into the warmth of the sun, next to the shoreline where Toni was still desperately screaming out for Martha.

"MAAAAAARTHA! MAAAAAARTY!"

"You guys haven't seen anyone else, have you?" Blaire asked, a look of anxiousness etched on her face as Toni joined the three of them at last. "We've been walking along the beach for a bit and still... nothing."

With a slight frown, Dot shook her head.

"No, we haven't seen —"

"Great!" came the voice of an exasperated Rachel Reid from a distance, throwing her hands up in defeat towards her sister Nora, before stalking over towards the rest of the group from around the bend of the shoreline. "Great fucking break, right?"

"Where'd you guys come from?" Dot asked, her eyes furrowed as the fraternal twins joined them. "Everyone okay at least?"

"I'd be better if I wasn't stranded on this island," Rachel scoffed, slumping down next to Fatin. "But my sister just had to run her mouth to our —"

"I s-said I was worried about you," Nora defended, flinching ever so slightly as her sister's voice rose; the breeze tousled her dark curls as it rolled in from the water, which was littered with debris from the crash. Blaire just stood there, watching idly from her spot beside Toni, and crossed her arms over her chest.

Rachel, her face blazoned with dissatisfaction and blame, glowered at her younger sister.

"Yeah, well, worry about yourself next time —"

"Leave her alone," Blaire spoke up in Nora's defence, her eyebrows raised toward Rachel accusingly. "You're acting as though she, like, knew the plane would nosedive into the fucking ocean."

With an incensed shake of her head, Rachel rose to her feet again, challenging Blaire in a heated stand-off.

"Stay out of this —"

"Okay, okay! Sorry to interrupt what I'm sure is an intimate heart-to-heart," Dot intervened, stepping in between the two girls, "but we're still missing a few others. So quit your bitching until we find them, all right?"

Her hands rises in a mock defence, Blaire took a step backwards from Rachel, heaving a sigh as she watched the sun sink lower and lower beneath the shoreline. To her immediate surprise, Toni came and stood next to her, a look of anxiousness etched on her features. Blaire glanced towards the girl with the braided hair, her gaze urgent and razor-sharp despite how worried she'd been, and this look proved to be enough to make Toni's head spin a little. As a result, she quickly coughed to relieve the pressure building in her chest.

"I'm getting worried," she admitted lowly, only loud enough for Blaire to understand. "We should've found Marty by now..."

"She's out there," Blaire gave the Minnesotan a reassuring nudge on the shoulder. "I don't know where, but we'll find her, all right?"

Toni opened her mouth as though she was about to say something in response, but the sounds of voices coming from the ocean pulled everyone's attention.

"Help! HELP!" came the gasping voice of Leah, her arms flailing in the water, as she struggled to keep something — someone — afloat next to her. From the shoreline, the other girls watched for a moment, stunned, as Leah tried to paddle towards the island.

"Hey! I see you! We see you!" Dot screamed back in reassurance, and without hesitation, she dragged Blaire and Toni out into the freezing cold water to help her rescue the two delegates from the plane.

Her teeth chattering, Blaire was the first to reach Leah, and she quickly pulled her to the shoreline of the island, her lips turning a shade of blue from the cold. Leah gasped for air, treading water, as the other girls on the shore helped assure her safety.

"Is there anybody else out there?" Toni asked Leah eagerly, scanning the water for Martha. "Think! Did you see anyone else?"

"I had her..." Leah mumbled, barely coherent, as she pointed to where Dot was struggling to pull Jeanette to shore. "She was... she was the only one with me."

"Fuck!" Toni cursed, splashing the water in anger.

"Guys, I need a little help!" Dot called, and Blaire noticed that Jeanette was unconscious, floating motionlessly in the water. Together, Blaire and Toni dived towards the redhead, each of them grabbing hold of Jeanette's legs and helping Dot carry her to the sandy beach, to where Leah was being assessed by the others.

"Toni!"

From a distance, Blaire noticed Martha limping towards them on the shore, propped up by Shelby, who was only wearing a floral bathing suit top; her bright yellow tank-top had been used as a makeshift bandage to wrap Martha's palpably swollen ankle.

"Martha!" yelled Toni, frozen in disbelief for a moment, before she dropped Jeannette's legs and bounded towards her best friend, leaving Blaire and Dot out in the water alone. Nevertheless, the two girls managed to carry Jeanette to the shore with no further issue, and Blaire watched as Toni embraced Martha eagerly, shoving Shelby aside in the process.

Her gaze focused elsewhere, Blaire hadn't even noticed the commotion erupting around the unconscious Jeanette before it was far too late.

"SHE'S NOT BREATHING!" came Dot's panicked shriek, and Blaire turned, wide-eyed, only to realize that what was supposed to be spiritual healing retreat had since turned into her worst nightmare.

With a sudden rush of adrenaline, everyone crowded around Dot, who was administrating CPR to the happy-go-lucky Asian girl from the plane. Blaire clapped a hand over her mouth, petrified, as Jeanette laid at her feet, eerily motionless and unresponsive.

That was all it took for Blaire to lose hold on reality.

Losing her balance, she took a step backwards, falling to her knees as she watched Dot rapidly pump down onto the unconscious girl's chest. Everything around her seemed to fade into nothingness, and despite the openness of the island setting, Blaire felt suffocated, as though hands around her neck were preventing her from breathing properly, and she had no choice but to let tears trickle down her cheek.

She's not breathing... she's not breathing...

Through the saltiness of her tears, Blaire felt herself shiver at the sudden exposure to the cool breeze coming off the water. Unable to help herself, she pulled her knees to her chest and allowed the vivid, traumatic memories of her past to consume her...

"S-Stop... please — I can't — I c-can't breathe," she choked out, whimpering, as two strong hands clasped around her throat, crushing her windpipe. "F-Finn... you're h-hurting me..."

Finn Hayward, the person who destroyed her.

His six-feet-four-inch frame towered over her, entrapping her under the weight of his body. Blaire was bewitched by Finn and continued to stare towards him, pleading with her tear-filled eyes, trying to figure out what had drawn her to him in the first place. His emotionless brown eyes stared into hers and looked nowhere else. Both their orbs bore into each other, and after a moment, Blaire felt herself succumb to a fear that was more palpable than anything she'd ever experienced before.

After a few seconds that could have been confused with a few hours, Finn leaned in closer, ghosting his lips over her ear tauntingly. So near that Blaire could smell her boyfriend's musky cologne, and he could smell her sweet perfume, and her mind was once again flooded with unwelcome images and ideas of him.

"You're so fucking pathetic, you know that?" he growled lowly, slamming her into her bedroom door in the middle of night. "Such a stupid bitch," he writhed, his grip growing tighter. "Did you honestly think that I wouldn't find out? That you could keep sneaking around behind my back?"

"I didn't — I can't b-breathe," Blaire gasped, her lungs refusing oxygen, as she tried to scramble out of his tight embrace. "F-Finn," she begged hopelessly, "please..."

Blaire's mind registered everything so quickly that she jolted back to reality, opening her eyes wide and forcing herself to wipe her tears. With her mind clouded with disorientation, she couldn't bring herself to remember what happened, especially as her faculties hadn't yet stretched to memories. Her hands reached for her throat, allowing her to gradually swim back into consciousness, as she took a deep breath and relished in the feeling of oxygen filling her lungs.

"Those compressions are way too fast," came the sound of Rachel's distinct voice, scrutinizing, as Blaire blinked in her surroundings. "You're pumping, like, double time," she was saying to Dot, who was still preforming CPR on the unconscious Jeanette, and Blaire shuddered as she realized where she was.

"There's no such thing as too fast," Dot argued, dismissing the diver's words of warning, "only too slow."

"Actually, compressions can be too fast if they're not deep enough," countered Nora matter-of-factly, coming to her sister's defence as Blaire managed to pull herself to her feet and saunter over to the group.

"Dude, slow down!" Rachel stressed, and Blaire felt her breath hitch as she stared down at Jeanette's lifeless body; her tainted memories were trying to spring themselves to the forefront of her mind again. Too preoccupied from her own reverie, however, Blaire hadn't seemed to notice that Toni, Shelby, and Martha had made their way across the beach, hovering over Jeanette for a better look.

"Ease up, Dottie. You're going way too fast," Shelby tried to intervene, stooping down next to the redheaded chainsmoker, who merely threw her hands up in a mock defeat.

"Okay, hell, if you're all such experts, someone else tap in," she exclaimed as she stopped her administration of first-aid on the unconscious Jeanette, causing everyone to freeze and stare at her in disbelief. "Who knows CPR?"

One by one, Blaire watched as each of the girls raised their hands in the air, including a catatonic Fatin and Leah, who had yet to move from the shoreline. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, Blaire failed to let this strange fact deter her, and she instead stepped forward and crouched down next to Dot and Shelby.

"Here," she offered, taking a deep breath, before she rolled her sleeves past her elbows, "let me do it."

Before Blaire could start administrating slow and deep compressions, however, she became suddenly tense under the intense gazes of the other eight girls.

"Holy shit," Dot cursed under her breath, her eyes transfixed on the multiple dark purple bruises that were marked along the New Yorker's forearms. The flesh below her wrists was fading to a lighter shade, though the inflammation of the skin was enough to make the few tattoos Blaire had inked on her body almost unreadable. "What — ? What happened?"

"Nothing, it's fine," Blaire said flatly, not bothering to try and sound convincing as she pumped at Jeanette's chest. However, when the girls continued to stare at her, she only shrugged. "Look, I fell out of one my turns, okay?" she sighed defeatedly. "I'm a dancer, remember? Shit like that happens all the time."

But Dot shook her head, unconvinced.

"Not like that —"

"Jesus fucking Christ!" Blaire suddenly snapped, her forehead creasing into fierce lines as she glowered towards Dot. "What's with the third-degree? Like, I'm sorry, but I didn't realize trying to save someone's life meant that I was suddenly in the fucking hot-seat."

Dot's eyes softened, "Blaire, that's not what I —"

"Just leave her alone," Toni spoke up in the dancer's defence, stabilizing Martha on her shoulders in the process. "Come on, we don't have time for this."

And as silence fell over the group once more, Blaire brushed a few strands of her hair from her face before resuming her compressions. Jeanette's body trembled mildly with every set, leaning into the weight and steady rhythm of Blaire's palms on its chest. Then, just as all hope seemed lost, everyone breathed out a sigh of relief as Jeanette's doe-eyes snapped open and she gasped for a needed breath.

─── • ───

"So, as it turned out, everyone had a working knowledge of CPR?" asked the stoic Agent Young, glancing towards Leah for a moment, before checking his notes once again.

"It's weird, isn't it?" questioned Leah, her eyes narrowed in suspicion as she thought more about that first day on the island. "That every single one of us knew how? Is that important for your, um... for your purposes or whatever?"

"Honestly, it could be," Faber told her, reassuring any doubts she may have had. "Anything could be relevant at this point. Which is why, it's crucial that you give us this full-picture account — of the flight, of the others, and what you were doing on that plane to begin with..."

─── • ───

After Jeanette returned to consciousness, everyone seemed to disperse and congregate near the rocks, creating a makeshift camp on the island. While Leah recuperated from her experience out at sea, the others had began salvaging any valuable resources from the shoreline they could find: a couple of suitcases and seat-cushions, small packets of nuts, and eight diet sodas that had floated in from the water.

The weather on the island proved to be colder than initially anticipated, even though the sun beamed brightly and the sky was a striking shade of blue. Laying out on one of the many rocks that surrounded the area, Blaire stared towards the clouds in the sky, trying to decipher how long they'd been on the island. Her thoughts ran rampant, however, and she found herself daydreaming about her family, about how worried they'd be once they found out what had happened. Impulsively, she clutched at the golden locket around her neck and closed her eyes, feeling unnerved, before a voice intruded on her thoughts.

"Hey, does anyone have a phone?" asked Rachel assertively, pulling everyone's attention, and Blaire propped herself up on her shoulders to join in on the conversation, listening intently to the close chatter.

"Don't you think we would've said something if we did?" replied Toni sarcastically from her spot beside Martha, her knees pulled to her chest as she sat amongst the rocks.

"I'm not even sure how many bars we'd get out here," Dot chimed in doubtfully, shaking her head.

"I'm just trying to think of lifelines, all right?" Rachel retorted, her eyes glancing between Dot and Toni with a sense of annoyance. "They're going to find us, but we can't be stupid."

"So what exactly are you suggesting we do?" Blaire questioned, her eyebrows furrowed with curiosity.

"We should make a big ass help sign," proposed Dot, grinning in Blaire's direction as though she'd be inclined to help, "like in that movie 28 Days Later..."

"What d'you guys think happened to the flight attendant guy?" Martha interrupted, a look of concern etched across her face as she thought of the man who had offered them each chocolate cake before the crash.

"We should be looking through suitcases, finding phones!" Rachel stressed to the group, using her hands to hopefully deflect some determination on the others, as she spoke over Martha. "We can't just —"

"Listen, y'all," Shelby spoke up casually, her southern drawl woven into her words. "It's the 21st century, okay? They will find us, but in the meantime, we've got to keep track of our resources," she knelt down to the pile of their salvaged items and grabbed one of the few diet sodas. "Eight Cokes. Right now, that's all we've got to drink, just eight of these. Okay, but don't worry, 'cause if God brought us to it, God will bring us through it."

"You know, the whole 'Jesus saves' thing isn't, like, literal," said Toni derisively, finding humour in Shelby's optimistic and religious beliefs. "He's not gonna jetpack down and pull us out of here."

"No, Toni," Shelby smiled tightly, her ponytail swaying in the wind. "The Lord saves those who save themselves, which is why I'm gonna take a look in the woods, see if there's some fresh water. Maybe you should come with," she added, with a glance at Toni.

"Hard pass," Toni denied harshly, and Blaire rolled her eyes at the turmoil stirring between the group. With a sigh, she climbed down off the rock and stood next to Shelby, tying her hair back quickly in a messy ponytail.

"I'll go," she volunteered, shrugging, as Shelby excitedly clapped her hands together, her eyes lingering on the New Yorker for a second too long. "I've got nothing better to do."

"Shelby, here," Martha spoke up, unfastening the straps of her blue hiking sandals, and Blaire's eyes glanced curiously towards the flimsy, white flip-flops Shelby had been wearing, knowing she wouldn't make it very far without proper shoes. "If you're really going," she added, offering her shoes, "you gotta take these."

"You're so generous," acclaimed Shelby kindly, taking the sandals with a look of heartfelt appreciation.

Her eyebrows raised at the interaction, Blaire couldn't help but wonder whether Shelby's icebreaker from the plane had actually succeeded at bonding a few of the delegates. She wasn't the only one who noticed either, for Toni watched the exchange through eyes of aversion, shaking her head at the newfound bond her best friend and Shelby had shared.

"You know what? Maybe I will go," she decided, rising to her feet. "Make sure Christ doesn't lead your asses into a fucking sinkhole."

"Oh wow, you're so generous," Blaire mocked the previous exchange, an amused smile curling on her lips as Toni looked towards her and laughed lightly. With a sideways glance at the other two, Shelby rolled her eyes, looking displeased with their attitude.

"Uh, guys," Dot called out, and everyone adverted their attention to her, their eyes wide as she held up her cellphone, the screen dark and waterlogged.

"What the hell, Dot?" Rachel crossed her arms over her chest, enraged, as no one had said anything when she previously asked if anyone had had a phone.

"I'm sorry!" Dot defended herself, chuckling lightly. "Look, I was saving her ass, okay?" she added, gesturing towards Jeanette, who sat cross-legged on the beach next to Fatin. But, with a suggestion from Nora, they'd dug a small hole in the sand and dropped the phone and classic yellow lighter inside. "You honestly think the sand will dry it out?" she asked, looking towards Nora, who stood idly behind her.

"I read an article on the internet about the alternatives to rice in a bag," Nora assured, her hands clasped timidly behind her back. "Sand was mentioned."

With a look of brief apprehension, Dot mumbled, "Yeah, well, good enough for me," before covering the waterlogged phone and lighter with sand, marking the location with a twig that pointed towards the sky.

─── • ───

Not long after they'd buried the phone, Shelby reminded both Blaire and Toni that they'd agreed to venture into the woods to look for water, which immediately left both girls regretting their decision. Tightening the laces of her converse, Blaire followed after Shelby as she took the lead, trekking towards a steep ridge of tall-grass.

"Keep your ears peeled," Shelby instructed of the other two as they clambered into the woods. "You'll hear moving water before you see it."

Blaire let her converse carry her along in Shelby's wake, noticing how high the sun remained in the sky. New York was known more for its cold weather and vibrant cityscape than it was for sandy beaches, so Blaire had naturally been more accustomed to tolerate the breeze sweeping in from the shoreline. Though, with a frown, she did wonder whether her plaid shirt would be enough to keep her warm during the evening. Her thoughts were interrupted, however, as Toni chose to break the silence between them.

"How come you know all this?" she asked Shelby curiously, for the blonde didn't seem like the type to engage in extensive activity.

"This may surprise you, but I'm not just some delicate indoor princess," defended Shelby, glancing back towards the two girls following behind her. "I go hunting with my dad all the time."

"So you do one hardcore thing?" Toni teased, purposely trying to get under the Texan's skin. "That doesn't mean your not mostly an indoor princess. How many pillows do you have on your bed? Bet you've got one of those mega beds with, like, fifty pillows. And your maid, Lupe, she's gotta keep taking them off and putting them back on and it's making her want to off herself, am I right? Come on, you know I'm right."

"Yeah, well, I've also shot down a ten-point buck, snapped his neck to finish the job, and butchered him in the field all by myself," Shelby proclaimed proudly, an amused smile on her face as Toni'a face fell.

"So much for respecting all of God's creatures," Blaire mumbled lowly under her breath, her face scrunched in slight disgust. "You know, you Christians have some twisted logic."

"God built us to contain multitudes, Blaire," Shelby called out, smiling in spite of herself, before turning around and grabbing hold of the New Yorker's shoulders. "Now could you please turn around? 'Cause I have to pee," she explained sheepishly, and when Toni and Blaire did as they were told, she added, "Plug your ears, or I'll have to sing."

With a glance towards each other, Blaire and Toni simultaneously rolled their eyes as Shelby squatted behind them, singing an unknown religious song to herself despite the other two girls' disappointment.

"The word is a lamp unto my feet..."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Toni groaned, shaking her head in annoyance, though she was slightly glad she wasn't dealing with two Shelby's. Blaire kept to herself at least, and Toni felt a sudden rush of intrigue to know that there was still so much left to uncover about the New Yorker.

"I never thought I'd be so jealous of the missing flight attendant guy," Blaire clapped her hands over her ears, nudging Toni as a means to wipe the amused smile off her lips. "This is the worst vacation ever..."

─── • ───

"It didn't happen consciously, but I was starting to notice the others," Leah confessed to the interrogative agents, her lips curling into a small smile. "Like Martha, how every creature meant something to her. Or Nora, how she always knew when you were looking at her and how her smile could mean a million different things. Or even Blaire, how she hid shamelessly behind the walls she'd built, unwilling to let anyone in. But I saw her... saw them. Because the veil of obsession was lifting, and the world I had narrowed down to one was starting to repopulate."

─── • ───

Once Shelby had finished her business, the three girls carried on the pathway towards the top of the steep ridge. Somehow, along the way, Blaire had taken over as the lead of the group, trekking further into the mountains with her athletic stamina, while the other two had began to slow down from exhaustion.

"I bet we'll get rich once they find us," Toni spoke up from the back of the group, attempting to make conversation. "Suing for damages or whatever. Not that your ass needs the money —"

"Shhh," Shelby hushed her, "keep listening for water."

"I'm so sick of looking at your fucking ponytail," Toni called out once more, her eyes narrowing towards Shelby. "I feel like it thinks it's better than me."

"You didn't seem to have a problem when Blaire was the one walking ahead of you," the blonde pointed out, heaving a heavy sigh, and Blaire laughed lightly from the top of the hill. "But if you care so much, why don't you go in front?"

"Fine," Toni huffed, pushing her way forward.

"Lord, in your mercy, grant us water so that we may drink," Shelby prayed aloud. "Lord, in your mercy..."

"Weren't you just telling us to shut up and listen?" Blaire cocked her head back, her lips pursed. "Besides, I'm pretty sure prayer is just as effective when you do it in your head."

"It's different," Shelby looked to the New Yorker with an adoring smile, "when you pray aloud, God opens your senses."

"God's such a joke," Toni snarked, her eyes ablaze as she stopped in her tracks and turned around to face Shelby. "Don't you know he's just a brainwashing tool to enslave the masses?"

With a sigh, Blaire came to a halt a few yards ahead of the other two before crossing her arms over her chest. The three of them weren't going to get anywhere with the constant bickering, and Blaire knew it was better to have them work it out before they'd continued on their hike up the steep hill.

"Even if he were just a 'brainwashing tool'," Shelby retaliated, using Toni's own words against her as she took a challenging step forward, "don't you think maybe your brain could use a good... scrub?"

"Fuck off," Toni cursed at Shelby, enraged.

"Are you two done with your pissing contest?" Blaire asked sarcastically, raising her eyebrows. "Or would you rather I kept looking for the Garden of fucking Eden by myself?"

At the sound of Blaire's voice, Toni turned back around, hair tousled, and zeroed in on the New Yorker's pale, drawn face, risking a glance into her eyes as her stomach sunk with guilt. Though, with a heavy sigh, she couldn't quite disregard the aggression that Shelby had stirred within her, her eyes narrow.

"Whatever," she scoffed, gesturing for Blaire to continue down the path so she could follow. "Let's just keep going, all right?"

"Lord, in your mercy, grant us water so that we may drink..." Shelby resumed her prayer, following behind the other two, and Blaire merely ignored her as she pushed a low-hanging tree branch out of her pathway.

Unbeknownst to Blaire, she had been looking in the opposite direction when Toni's irritation mounted, and she only felt compelled to turn back around when Shelby let out a loud shriek of horror. Losing her balance, the Texan wobbled and slid down the side of the steep ridge, landing on the forest floor below with a thud, as both Toni and Blaire froze in shock before hustling down after the other delegate.

"Fuck, fuck, Shelby!" Toni cursed out in realization at what she had done, her hands trembling as her and Blaire reached an injured Shelby, who shakily rose to her feet once again, her blood spilling slightly from an open wound on her forehead.

"What the fuck, Toni?" Blaire said impulsively, shaking her head in disapproval before wiping the blood from Shelby's head with the sleeve of her shirt. Her heart racing, she felt herself shudder as she helped stabilize Shelby on her feet, and asked, "You okay?"

"I swear, I didn't mean to..." Toni tried to reason before Shelby could answer, a mixture of horror and regret etched in her features, and Blaire suddenly felt the same suffocated feeling from before. With unshed tears dancing on her eyelids, she averted Toni's gaze at all costs, her thoughts running rampant as Shelby shrugged her off and stood on her own.

"It's alright," Shelby said with the fakest smile Blaire had ever seen. "Go ahead and go on back, both of you. I will too, but you should get a head start. I'd really rather walk back alone."

And without being told twice, Blaire turned and rushed back towards the incline, clutching at her stomach as though she was going to be sick. From behind her, she could've sworn she heard Toni call after her, but Blaire was struck with a sudden urge to get as far away from the basketball player as possible.

With the tall-grass rustling beneath her feet, Blaire vaguely remembered the way the sun peaked through the trees before her memories overtook her consciousness once more.

"Babe, come on," Finn approached her the day after, confronting her at her locker, and Blaire felt herself shrink under his gaze, clutching aimlessly at the crimson scarf that hid her bruises. "Please," he begged, "I swear, I didn't mean to..."

"I-I have to get to class," Blaire stuttered, trying to end the conversation, though her breath hitched when Finn stepped in her path and pinned her against the lockers, his arms placed on either side of her. "Finn, let me go —"

"Don't be like that," he demanded lowly, making Blaire shiver at the warmth of his breath on her skin. "You know I'd never hurt you, right? I love you so much, Blaire. Last night was a mistake... I promise, it won't happen again."

"Everything okay over here?" came the sound of an approaching voice, and Blaire looked up in relief to find that her three best friends, Mikayla Foster, and Kofi and Cleo Solarin, were walking down the hallway in her and Finn's direction. "Sorry, do we have a problem?" Cleo's voice sounded as her and the others finally reached them.

"Everything's fine, Cleo," Finn sighed, dropping his hands to his sides at last. "My girlfriend and I were just talking."

"That's not what it looked like," Kofi retorted harshly in defence of his twin sister and Blaire, his eyes narrowing suspiciously, as he stopped in front of Finn and gave him an intimidating look.

"You okay, B?" asked Mikayla lowly, trying to comfort her friend who was on the verge of tears. "What's going on?"

And as Blaire went to open her mouth, she could feel Finn's eyes lingering on her, willing her to keep her mouth shut. With an intrusive thought, she could almost imagine his hands wrapping around her throat again, silencing her as she sought out support for her abuse, and this image alone was enough to fuel a rush of terror that spread throughout her body, putting her heart and mind at odds.

"Everything's fine," she breathed out convincingly, an satisfied smile etching its way onto Finn's lips in. "We got into a little, uh... disagreement last night," Blaire lied to her friends like it was second nature, her eyes on Finn intently, "but, don't worry, it won't happen again."

Blaire was so lost in her thoughts that she jumped out of her skin when she felt a hand on her shoulder, spinning her around, and she flinched on instinct. Her consciousness swimming back into view, she found that the sight of Toni standing in front of her, with concern etched on her face, hit her like a blow to the chest. The proximity between them was enough to jerk Blaire out of the storm of her thoughts, and she took step away from Toni, unaware of the two frown lines embedded deep between her eyes. Her hands knotted so tightly in front of her that Blaire saw her knuckles go white, Toni stood there in silence, throat working, as she caught a glimpse of the New Yorker's pale white face and her unseeing, glazed-over eyes.

"Blaire?" Toni muttered at last, panicked and uncertain.

"I'm fine," the dancer gasped. "I'm fine, just —"

"You're not fine," Toni tried again, meeting Blaire's blank gaze as she tried to take a step towards her.

"J-Just stop, okay?" Blaire raised her hand defensively, halting the basketball player in her tracks. Her eyes ablaze, she crossed her arms over her chest and asked, "What was that, back there with Shelby?"

"It was an accident," Toni responded shamefully. "I told you already, I didn't —"

"— didn't mean to hit her in the face?" Blaire had begun to mask her fear with pure ire at Toni's actions. "Let me guess," she let out a light, rueful chuckle, "it won't happen again, right? Your anger got the best of you and it was an accident, wasn't it? Yeah, well, here's a little piece of advice: save your excuses for someone who's delusional enough to believe them."

Toni gulped slightly, the guilt overwhelming her as she noticed Blaire flinch away from her. Her lips pressed into a thin, inscrutable line, she thought it was better to hide her true feelings than to give the New Yorker power over her. Because there was something that stirred within her, something aching and painful, and Toni couldn't stop herself from snapping on instinct.

"What the fuck is your problem?" she asked harsher than intended, her shoulders tensed. "What exactly are you trying to say?"

"That you're full of shit," Blaire scoffed, emotionless, as she tried to walk away from Toni once more. However, when the basketball player grabbed her by the shoulder and spun Blaire around, she finally saw it. Her eyes wide with realization, Toni saw the fear in the New Yorker's face, the way in which she'd shut her eyes tightly as though awaiting the harsh impact.

"D-Don't... please don't..." Blaire pleaded in the same tone she'd used before, a single tear escaping from her eyelids and rolling slowly down her cheek.

"Blaire," Toni whispered sadly, her eyes softening with caution, unaware of the reason why she'd felt the sudden panic of guilt. Blaire meant nothing to her — nothing at all — and it certainly wasn't by choice that they were stranded on the island together. "I'm sorry," she felt her voice come out in a single breath. "And I know that we don't know each other all that well, but I would never — you know — hurt you..."

For a long, long moment, Blaire remained silent, her eyes still shut. Toni felt like her heartbeat was somewhere in her ears as she watched the New Yorker clutch for the golden locket around her neck and swing it from side-to-side, again and again, knuckles pressed bone-white against her skin. On impulse, Toni had a brief, uncharacteristic thought of reaching over and cradling Blaire's trembling hands, soothing her fluttering pulse beneath, though she merely shook her head to disregard her imagination.

And then, finally, after what felt like years, Blaire opened her eyes, looking up for the first time since Shelby's accident, and Toni was surprised at the resilience she found in the depths of her gaze.

"Please, you — y-you can't tell anyone," Blaire whispered, pride clogging her throat. "I mean it, Toni, I don't need anyone's pity. Not from you, and especially not from a group of girls that didn't even know I existed twenty-four hours ago. So just forget about it, all right? Because honestly, this was all just a complete fucking waste of time."

Toni had no response to this, unable to form words capable of mending what was already broken. So, with a reserved sigh, she took a step forward and threw her arms around Blaire's waist, pulling the New Yorker into — what Toni thought — was a much-needed embrace.

The hug was rather awkward and quick, with Toni holding Blaire tightly against her for a moment. Silence stretched between them, the only sound was that of their sharp breaths between the seconds, and Blaire made soft little sounds of comfort when the tears started but she willed herself to hold on. Neither Toni or Blaire knew where to put their hands, though it was somehow comforting all the same.

Eventually Blaire raised her head from Toni's shoulder, giving the basketball player a sheepish grin, and loosened her grip around her neck. Then, as something akin to a mixture of awkwardness and attraction stretched between the two girls, Blaire felt the heat rise in her cheeks before she coughed and took a step back out of Toni's embrace, wiping the tears from her eyes.

And without a word, as there would be time for talking later, they continued their walk back in silence.

─── • ───

The trek back to the campsite was uneventful, for both Blaire and Toni had fallen victim to the tension-filled silence still looming between them. They had yet to share but a glance since their altercation, and Blaire merely forged onwards through the wilderness without a feeling of remorse. On the patches of marram grass in the distance, the others were going over the haul and making inventory of the resources they'd gathered along the beach.

"Not a bad haul, but not great either. But wait, there's more!" Blaire heard Dot say to the others as she and Toni approached, and they watched as the redhead pulled out a few miniature bottles of alcohol. "You get a mini, and you get a mini, and you get a mini!"

"Hey, you guys partying without us?" Toni called out jokingly, making their presence known, as her high-tops carried her through the grass behind Blaire.

"Jesus, Dorothy, you're like a drunk, white Oprah," said Blaire playfully, catching the tiny bottle of Bacardi that Dot had thrown her way.

"You're back!" Martha composed a wide smile at the sight of the two girls. "Did you find any water?"

"No luck," Blaire responded shortly, and she felt Toni's gaze linger on the side of her face for a second too long at the sound of her voice.

"Where's Shelby?" asked Martha, and before either Blaire or Toni could respond, the sought after blonde girl hobbled into view, emerging from the marram grass with her injured head hanging low. "Shelby!" Martha called out excitedly, rising to her feet.

"Yeah, she's right there," Toni muttered under her breath, feigning a smile, and Blaire found herself wondering if any of the other girls had picked up on the tension between them.

"Your head," Martha pointed out as she limped over to the Texan girl, noticing the dried blood coating her forehead.

"Oh, it's fine," Shelby assured Martha with her southern drawl. "Ran smack into a tree, if you could believe."

"Are you sure?" Martha tried once more.

"Yeah, it was very silly of me," Shelby admitted, and her eyes danced between Blaire and Toni for first time since the accident, casual and unnerved.

"Hey!" Rachel's voice carried throughout the campsite from a few yards away. "Hey, the phone's working!" she announced, and without much hesitation, the other nine delegates made their way down the beach. "All right, listen, we have to be strategic. We only have one bar and almost zero battery left," Rachel told them as they approached, clutching the phone tightly in her hands. "Every second counts."

"May I just say, I am ready to make the call, okay?" Shelby volunteered, her smile wide with eagerness. "My aunt is a 911 operator, and I —"

"No, 911 is out," Rachel cut her off, shaking her head at the idea. "It doesn't work in every country, and we don't know where we are, so if we're closer to, like, Japan, then 911 is useless."

"Japan's emergency number is 119," Nora elucidated, tugging the sleeves of her hoodie over her palms.

"Look!" Rachel expressed loudly, her tone rising with frustration. "We only have to get in contact with one person, so I want you all to have someone in mind. Make sure you know their number, and make sure they love you enough that they're waiting by the phone right now."

Racking her brain for someone she could call, Blaire found that her eyes were transfixed on the sun reflecting on the ocean behind them, with her fingers still clutched around her family's golden locket. Her parents and her dance instructor were the only people whose phone numbers she had memorized.

Coach Diane never answered for unknown callers, and her father was probably in the middle of his weekly Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. Her mother's number did cross her mind, though Blaire had not even an inkling of a clue what time it would be wherever her mother had disappeared to, so she knew better than to risk their only lifeline on it.

Nora peered over her sister's shoulder as Rachel began punching a few digits into the keypad.

"You're not calling mom and dad?" she asked, her eyebrows knotted with confusion.

"They're in Morocco, remember? They probably don't even know yet," said Rachel bluntly, giving Nora a quick side-eye before typing in the remainder of the only other phone number she knew. "I'm calling coach."

"No! Not her," Nora's eyes went wide she snatched the phone from her sister's hands. "I won't let you."

"Nora, give me the phone!"

"I'm calling dad's cell."

"Stop, they're not gonna answer!" Rachel argued, "They're out of the country!"

"You can't just call coach!"

Turning back around, Blaire watched as the twins squabbled over the phone for a moment. Nora evaded Rachel's reaching hands and quickly dialled her fathers number, holding the phone to her ear. As Rachel had anticipated, however, Nora was met with a busy dial tone and ended the call, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"I told you," Rachel scoffed, crossing her hands over her chest and sending a glare towards her sister.

"Did — did you dial it right?" Martha asked, offering the academically inclined twin a reassuring look.

"Of course I did!" Nora practically hissed, hitting the side of the phone in frustration.

"Do you mind?" Shelby stepped forward and took the device from Nora's hands. "If I know Dave and JoBeth Goodkind, they're pacing holes in the carpet right now," she added, her fingers rapidly punching in the number before she held the phone to her ear. "We'll, that's... that's just strange," her eyebrows furrowed in confusion when she was met with the same dial tone as Nora. "Uh, let me quickly try my boyfriend —"

"Don't bother," Dot deadpanned. "Andrew's probably dick deep in Christa Findlay by now."

Stifling a small laugh behind her hand at the redhead's bluntness, Blaire had to advert her eyes from Shelby, who frowned at her, before she noticed that Toni took the phone into her hands and gave it to Martha.

"Go, Marty," Toni urged her friend lowly, and Martha's face contorted despondently as she removed the phone from her ear.

"It didn't work." she voiced, before extending the phone to Dot. "You wanna try? It's your phone."

"Nah, I'm good." Dot declined, and her hazel eyes found the sand as Martha offered the device to Blaire.

"My dad's probably not going to answer either," Blaire shook her head, shrugging slightly. "Someone else go."

"Here." Fatin took the phone, her acrylics clacking against the screen as she punched in a few numbers. "As much as I hate the idea of calling those assholes..." she added under her breath, putting the phone to her ear and stepping away as a few of the other girls broke out into their own conversations.

But instead of engaging in the meaningless chatter, Blaire found that her gaze fell upon the carefree Jeanette for the first time since she'd returned to consciousness. Her usual doe-eyes were hanging low as though she were struggling to stay awake, and Blaire's face contorted with concern as she noticed that majority of the colour in Jeanette's face had faded to a pale white.

"Hey, hey, are you all right?" Blaire went to put a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder, unaware that Leah had also rushed over to help, but before they could even make contact, Jeanette broke away from the group, clutching at her abdomen as she stumbled along the sand.

"What's wrong with her?" Leah spoke up for the first time since the crash, her gaze shifting towards Blaire, but both of them seemed unsure of what to do.

Her mouth falling open to speak, Blaire had been about to answer Leah when Jeanette caught her attention again, for she had turned towards the other two delegates, a single tear lolling down her cheek.

"I'm sorry..." Jeanette managed to choke out, and before Blaire could question anything, she watched as the sickly girl began spewing blood from her mouth. The crimson liquid coated her lips and chin before she collapsed onto the sand, lifeless and unresponsive.

Their eyes wide, both Blaire and Leah rushed over to where the unconscious Asian girl laid, and as Blaire checked her pulse, she was struck with the eerie absence of a heartbeat. Leah then swallowed hard before she reached out with trembling hands and pulled up Jeanette's orange and lavender cardigan, ultimately revealing the reason she'd struggled to recover from the accident. Her hands clutched stressfully over her mouth, Blaire looked down at the area surrounding the Asian girl's naval, noticing the bruises that were an indication of internal bleeding.

"Fuck! It's dead," Blaire heard Fatin exclaim ironically from a few years away, referring to the cellular device.

"Oh my God," Leah called out before anyone could respond, and they all turned towards Jeanette's lifeless body with a look of utter horror. "She's... she's dead."

─── • ───

As dusk embraced the island, the nine remaining delegates carried Jeanette's lifeless body across the beach, lowering her into a shallow grave they'd managed to create. Blaire hovered over edge, staring down in shock, as Dot had begun to pushing sand over their fallen comrade. Jeanette's final words had replayed over in Blaire's head, stirring a sense of curiosity as to why her last words were an apology.

What did Jeanette have to be sorry for?

The question was enough to deter Blaire from the moment of grievous silence, her body numbed in shock. Her arms crossed over her chest, she took a step backwards and fell into a line with the others.

"It's only temporary," Dot assured the rest of them, covering the grave. "Just to keep the animals away."

"Dottie, hold on," Shelby stepped forward, her brows furrowed. "Shouldn't somebody say a few words?"

"Sounds like you're volunteering," Dot commented.

"Well, I am an ordained youth minister." Shelby confirmed before clasping her hands together in prayer. "Lord, thank you for the gift of Jeanette. We didn't know her real well, but she had a really bright spirit, and because she was made in your image, we can be sure that she was beautiful... Amen."

"Amen," came the simultaneous chorus from the others, and before they could settle back into the silence, Leah inhaled and began to sing an effortless
rendition of P!nk's famous pop song, 'Raise Your Glass'.

And when the eight other girls sent her similar looks of genuine confusion, baffled by the timing of such a performance, Leah was forced to explain herself.

"I think she liked P!nk," she muttered endearingly.

"Yeah, she did." Nora confirmed, seeing as Jeanette had told her partner everything about her Spotify history during the icebreaker on the plane.

And so, Leah continued the song from the pre-chorus, and as though brought together by the unfortunate circumstances, everyone else seemed to follow suit. Their voices meshed with the crashing of the waves behind them, hauntingly in sync, as they continued to cover the rest of Jeanette's body with sand together, marking the grave with a small 'J' made of seashells.

─── • ───

Just as the phone had dried out, thankfully so had Dot's lighter, allowing them to create a small fire a few yards from their campsite. The remaining nine survivors sat around the warmth of the fire, and Blaire pulled her legs to her chest, staring at the flickering shadows of the fire reflecting on the sand. Each of the girls had since taken a miniature bottle of liquor into their hands, taking a shot in honour of Jeanette's lost soul, leaving everyone speechless.

"How's your stuff so dry?" Martha broke the silence with a question directed at Fatin, who had the only suitcase that was lucky enough to wash up on shore, which was basically overflowing with dry clothes.

"My parents bought me this watertight, one-thousand dollar suitcase for this trip," Fatin explained, casting a glance towards her luggage. "They thought it would, like, sweeten the deal. Those fucktards," she mumbled under her breath, shaking her head, before she realized everyone else was shivering. "Sorry," she immediately apologized, reaching into her suitcase and handing out pieces of clothes to the other girls.

With a playful wink, Fatin passed Blaire a pair of grey sweatpants and a white hoodie with 'CALIFORNIA' emblazoned across the front, well aware that the dancer couldn't withstand the night in her shorts.

(A/N: for reference! Blaire's other main outfit <33)

"So would it be crazy if I suggested a little icebreaker?" Shelby asked the group, smiling gently, as Blaire pulled Fatin's hoodie over her head. "Never have I ever feels... right."

"All right," Toni tilted her head across the fire towards Shelby. "But only if you go first. None of those bullshit lightweight answers. Give us the real."

"Fine," Shelby surprisingly agreed to Toni's terms, and the game had since begun. "Never have I ever had vaginal penetrative intercourse."

"Fucking cheers to that one," Blaire muttered, and she clinked her miniature bottle of alcohol with Fatin's before raising it to her mouth, relishing in the burning sensation in her chest as everyone except Shelby and Martha did the same.

"So that's why your boyfriend's a cheat?" Toni poked at Shelby, remembering Dot's comment from earlier.

"He's not a cheat," said Shelby defensively, her shoulders tensed as she pulled her legs to her chest.

"Glad I'm not the only one," Martha offered the blonde girl a weak smile. "I would've felt so stupid."

"Get out of here," Shelby assured with a laugh, her arm reaching out for the Indigenous girl. "It takes guts to save yourself, you know that?"

"All right! Never have I ever had a threesome," Dot admitted, volunteering to go next, and Fatin was the only one to knock back another swig of alcohol. "With two guys, not two girls," Dot carried on, and Fatin took another sip of her drink without shame.

"My God, I don't even want to imagine that much fucking testosterone," Blaire grimaced, and everyone else laughed.

"On my period," Dot added on, trying to see how far the Pakistani-American girl would go, and when Fatin brought the drink back to her lips, Blaire felt her mouth quirk into an disbelieving smile.

"I mean, I'm not a freak," Fatin admitted jokingly, lowering her drink at last, and the laughter that elicited from each of the girls was enough to drown out the crackling of the campfire between them.

"All right, I got one," Rachel went next. "Never have I ever... thrown my own piss at someone," and when everyone else looked around in confusion, Toni smirked slightly and raised her drink to her lips.

"Drink up, Toni," Martha chuckled, confirming the group's suspicions of her best friend.

"With pride, motherfuckers," said Toni playfully, and Blaire watched as she tilted her head back and took a swig, leaving the girls to fall back into laughter again.

And as the game came to its natural end, Blaire laid awake next to the dying fire, under the night sky, with her thoughts helping her realize how the other girls had somehow managed to get her to laugh herself back to life.

─── • ───

Leah's interview had finally drawn to its conclusion, and she stood, her eyes blazing, her brittle form in full view. With a glance towards the two agents, she hovered over the edge of the table for a moment, shivering, before her strength escaped her and she staggered towards the door of the interrogation room.

Faber and Agent Young watched her move across the room, bewildered, before Leah suddenly stopped at the door, turned around, and stared at them intensely.

"Remember this, when you see the others," she told them, her head hanging low. "There is no 'crazy'. There is only 'damage', and when you go looking for what caused it, don't waste your time on that island. It'll get you fucking nowhere..."

─── • ───

author's note:
*this chapter was not proof read*

hope you enjoyed chapter two <33 it took a bit longer than i thought, but i wanted to get the first day finished while also adding my own scenes!

how do we feel about blaire and toni's relationship so far? or even blaire's relationships with everyone else?

also!! just an fyi, but blaire's memories won't always be in chronological order or explicitly detailed, so it'll be up to the readers to put the timeline together <3

this is my way of making the story more interactive as the readers will be able to share ideas and theories as to what happens next!! lmk what you think about it :)

[insert begging for comments and votes]

see you in episode two!

xo, selena

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