[030] the right thing to do

                                        Suki and Lottie kept on with the blessings as normal, determined to protect Nat and Travis as they continued to venture out on the hunt for both food and for Javi. Nat couldn't even look at Suki, properly spooked out after their last conversation. But Suki was still determined to bless over her and Travis regardless. Her will was no longer her own.

                                        She had completely given in to the wilderness. And It had something planned for Natalie.

                                        When they left, Suki had decided to stay next to Lottie.

                                        "You can feel him too, can't you? You can feel that Javi's alive?" Suki asks. She couldn't help but go to Lottie for confirmation, seeing as she was the only other person connected to the wilderness on the same level that she was.

                                        "Yes. He's alive, Suki, and he'll come back to us. Don't doubt yourself, Suki," Lottie shakes her head.

                                        "Okay. It's just... I'm scared about being wrong sometimes. Or losing Its favor," Suki confessed.

                                        "You won't. It's pleased with you, Suki. And you've helped us a lot. You've even helped me," Lottie remarked.

                                        Suki smiles. "I have?"

                                        "Of course, never doubt that for a second," Lottie assured.

                                        Suki looks over at Shauna, her smile quickly faltering when she remembered her dream. Lottie follows her gaze before she looks back at Suki, holding onto her hand in assurance.

                                        "You and Shauna have some things in common. You both lost someone close to you. You can resonate with her pain because you feel it too. I think you two should talk to each other," Lottie advised.

                                        "Do you really think that's a good idea?" Suki bit her lower lip.

                                        "Of course I do. If anyone will be able to help her during this time, it's you," Lottie replied.

                                        Suki looks over at Shauna again, watching as she sat by herself close to the fire. She had never thought of herself as being even remotely close to Shauna but maybe Lottie was right about it.

                                        Before Suki could even bother to try and talk to Shauna, however, Taissa would ultimately interrupt them. She stormed towards Shauna and grabbed her arm, yanking her up in a hurry.

                                        "What the ever-living fuck, Shauna?" Taissa questioned.

                                        "Hey!" Lottie exclaimed as she rushed to her feet, glaring at Taissa and shoving the girl away from Shauna.

                                        Suki also stands up, all while Courtney decided to join them. She had no idea what was going on but she was already ready to witness the chaos that would follow.

                                        "Did you know about this? You've been encouraging her?" Taissa demanded as Van rushed towards her, holding her back to keep her from getting in Lottie's face.

                                        "What's going on? The fuck is happening?" Van questioned as she looked to Taissa for answers.

                                        Courtney knew it wasnt her place but she made her way over to Suki, rushing in front of her so she could protect her in case something did break out.

                                        "I knew it wasnt alright!" Taissa shouts.

                                        "What?" Akilah asks, voicing the same confusion that everyone else felt.

                                        "Go on, Shauna. Tell them," Taissa ordered, making Shauna fall silent. She ciuld only stare at Taissa, absolutely stunned. "Tell them what you've been up to with Jackie.

                                        "Just... talking," Shauna murmured as she looked down at her feet.

                                        "Talking?" Taissa scoffs before she turns to look at the others. "Shauna's been braiding Jackie's hair, she's been doing her fucking makeup -."

                                        "Taissa," Suki tried to speak up.

                                        "And you've been posing her, right? Adjusting her limbs like some fucked up doll," Taissa continued. Her words were enough to naks Shauna emotional, the grieving girl failing to hold back her tears.

                                        "Taissa, stop it! This is already hard enough for Shauna as it is. She doesn't need you shaming her for it," Suki argued.

                                        "You don't get it - !" Taissa exclaimed.

                                        "Don't you dare tell me I don't get it! I lost someone too! I know exactly what Shauna's going through. Who are you or anyone else to say what's proper grieving or not? You are the one that doesn't get it," Suki argued.

                                        "So you think it's okay to play dress up with a two month old corpse, huh? Is that normal, Lottie? What about you, Suki? Do you think it's normal? Is that healthy?" Taissa snapped.

                                        "It's okay," Lottie tried to comfort Shauna but Taissa wasn't having any of it.

                                        "It's not fucking okay," Taissa argues with wide eyes, beginning to step towards Shauna but Lottie blocked her.

                                        "She was her best friend, Tai," Lottie argued.

                                        While Lottie and Taissa continued to argue with neither one of them backing down, Suki decided to hold onto Shauna's hand as she started crying. Much to her surprise, Shauna held onto her. Whether it was because she was using Suki for comfort or something else, Suki was willing to comfort her for the time being.

                                        Taissa stepped forward after that, determined to remain the voice of reason. She too was emotional, as evident by the tear rolling down her cheek, but she was still determined to remain strong.

                                        "Shauna, this has to stop," Taissa remarked, "For your own good, and for the good of the baby."

                                        "Like you... or any of you know what's good for the baby," Shauna weakly argued.

                                        "Well, it sure as hell isn't this. We are getting rid of Jackie's body. We are getting rid of Jackie's two month old corpse," Taissa persisted, making Shauna falter in an instant.

                                        "No -," Shauna began to plead.

                                        "Yes," Taissa cut her off.

                                        Shauna looked towards Lottie and Suki, hoping they'd help and defend her. But Lottie didn't say a word. Suki didn't either. She felt compelled to remain silent. Shauna pulled her hand away from Suki after that, feeling betrayed by the girl who was supposed to be defending her.

                                        "We - we can't even bury her. The ground is frozen solid," Shauna argued, looking around at the others. She looked absolutely desperate and almost deranged, shocking the others.

                                        "We can cremate her," Taissa offered. But it eas less of a suggestion and more of a plan.

                                        "No, Tai, no -," Shauna shakes her head.

                                        "Help me gather firewood," Taissa orders next. "No, move! We need to do this before sundown. We're gonna do what we should've done weeks ago, and this is getting done tonight."

                                        In an instant, the others started gathering the firewood via logs and twigs so they could create a big enough fire. Suki felt bad for not saying more to help Shauna. But besides, the majority were for Taissa's plan. Even Lottie had gone along with it. This had to all be for a reason.

                                        "That's pretty fucked up, isn't it?" Courtney said from beside Suki, picking up some twigs. "I didn't think Shauna was so fucked in the head."

                                        "She's just grieving. People have different ways to grieve. It may not be normal but she's just doing the best. I mean, I still talk to my mom," Suki argued.

                                        The only difference was that Suki knew she was there. She saw her all the time. But, of course, no one else would get it except for Lottie.

                                        "That's different. You didn't dig up your mom's corpse and dress her up like Norman Bates. Now, if you did that, then things would be different," Courtney shrugged.

                                        Suki didn't know what to say to that so she simply didn't say anything at all. She then started thinking about her dream again, wondering what it all meant. It was just odd how she had dreamed about Jackie (or rather, her head) and then they'd need to get rid of Jackie's body.

                                        What did it all mean?

                                        Nonetheless, they'd soon finish and then Jackie's body would be carried out and placed onto the funeral pyre. Everyone would gather around Jackie's body and Suki just kept staring at her face, particularly her head. Her skin was gray, her face painted with bright makeup. Her hair was a little messy and Suki couldn't help but notice something off about her ear.

                                        Courtney just looked down at her body, not really feeling much of anything. It should've been jarring to see the slightly bitchy but preppy and gorgeous team captain now look so lifeless and stiff. Courtney never thought that she'd see the Jackie Taylor like this. But someone like Jackie never would've survived out here.

                                        She was too fragile.

                                        "Should we save her clothes?" Akilah asked, interrupting the heavy silence around them.

                                        Taissa glared at her. "You want to strip her naked?"

                                        "I mean, her jacket, mostly. It seems a shame to waste it," Akilah explained with a shake of her head, shrugging afterwards.

                                        "No one is taking Jackie's jacket," Shauna quickly shut her down.

                                        "Shauna, it's worth talking about," Taissa tried to reason.

                                        "We're not fucking debating whether Jackie gets to keep her clothes!" Shauna argued.

                                        But Mari didn't listen to her. She just rolled her eyes and started trying to take her jacket off. "It's not like she needs them."

                                        Shauna shoved Mari away from Jackie and the girl falls to the ground. She quickly rose back up, however, and Taissa grabbed her arm before she could get in Shauna's face.

                                        "Now you're her protector? Too little, too late," Mari retorts without an ounce of compassion in her tone.

                                        "Fuck you, Mari!" Shauna exclaimed, shoving Mari once again.

                                        A fight nearly broke out as Taissa pulled Mari back. Even Lottie and Van got in between them and Shauna continued to try and attack Mari, so much rage coming from her that even Suki could feel. Taissa even ended up falling to the ground and Suki could hardly believe that she was witnessing this.

                                        "Everyone, stop! Give her some space," Lottie shouted.

                                        Everyone stood still, listening to Lottie in an instant. She had a power over them, none that could be easily explained with words. Courtney was honestly jealous. But nonetheless, the others would start picking up more firewood with a thick tension hanging in the air. Courtney couldn't help but watch as Shauna knelt down besides Jackie. Courtney's eyes trailed down Jackie's corpse, noticing that something was off.

                                        On her forearm, some of her skin had been sliced off. Seeing as Jackie had died from the cold, there was no reason for her to have that cut. It had to have happened after and the only person who could've done it was Shauna since she had stayed with Jackie's body constantly. Lottie and Courtney look at each other, seemingly noticing the exact same thing. Shauna just pulled Jackie's sleeve down and Courtney backs off, although her mind was left reeling with thoughts.

                                        There had to be one thing Shauna did with the cold flesh. But Shauna wouldn't do that... would she?

                                        Nonetheless, the girls were continuing to prepare for the funeral by the time Natalie and Travis came back. Natalie looked the most confused as she and Travis approached the others.

                                        "What the fuck is going on?" Natalie asks, noticing Jackie's face all made up as she laid on the funeral pyre. "What did you do to her face?"

                                        "We decided it was time to move on," Taissa stated.

                                        "This has been a fucking day," Natalie says, scoffing.

                                        "Wait, are those Javi's?" Akilah questioned, noticing the bloodied cloth Travis held onto with his hands.

                                        "No, can't be," Lottie murmured.

                                        "Not another word," Natalie warned, staring coldly at Lottie.

                                        "That's not his. That's not Javi's. Javi is alive. Lottie and I both felt it," Suki insisted, shaking her head in disbelief. This couldn't be real. Even as she got closer and saw the blood stained clothes, Suki still couldn't believe it.

                                        It hadn't been lying to her.

                                        "For fuck's sake, shut up!" Natalie shouted.

                                        Lottie backs away, almost flinching from Natalie's rage.

                                        "Don't you see how much damage youre doing?" Natalie continued.

                                        "I'm telling the truth. Lottie and I both are. I don't know what this is but it isn't Javi," Suki argued.

                                        "Why, Suki, why? What is making you and Lottie continue to fucking do this? You can't just keep making him believe -," Natalie began to say.

                                        The sound of flames captures everyone's attention and they all turn to see Shauna holding onto a torch. She was preparing her final send off for Jackie and it was enough to make them all go quiet.

                                        "Jackie... I'll never have another friend like you. I don't even know where you end and I begin. I'm sorry, and I love you," Shauna declared  

                                        She then lit the corner of the funeral pyre with the torch and everyone watched the flames as they started to spread. Although the snow continued to fall, the fire proved to be nore powerful. Suki approached the fire, the flames illuminating her face as she struggled to control her own emotions. She was still angry with Natalie but she was also sad for Jackie, feeling heartbroken that she couldnt save Jackie from this cruel fate.

                                        But it wasn't her place to interfere in the wilderness's plans. Perhaps Jackie had fared a lot better than the rest of them. She had gotten the easy way out, no matter how absolutely fucked up that sounded.

                                        Even as the others started to leave one by one, Suki remained. Travis placed Javi's pants into the flames, saying his goodbyes before he and Natalie left as well. But Suki remained with Courtney by her side, the blonde holding onto her hand. Taissa, Lottie, and even Shauna stayed at the end of the pyre and watched Jackie's body become completely consumed by the flames. However, Suki stayed behind even when the other three girls headed inside. Courtney had to drag Suki back inside when it grew too cold but even while heading inside, Suki turned to look at her body.

                                        Or rather, what was left of it.

(🌲🔪🦌)

word count: 2316
notes: ahhhh we all know what's gonna happen next chapter!!! i have been so excited to write it (alarmingly so)