three | 03.

WASHINGTON.

    Cameron stood there, just inside the foyer, watching as the others stripped off their coats and stomped the snow from their boots, laughing, chatting.

    But she couldn't move forward, not yet.

    She looked around at the others, already scattering through the lodge, acting as if this place didn't hold the ghosts of their past mistakes.

As if it wasn't haunted by the weight of what they had done. What is wrong with her? Why couldn't she just... let it go like they could?

    But Cameron knew the answer. She had never been good at moving on, not when something was bothering her the way this was. The prank. The running. The endless white of the snowstorm swallowing Beth and Hannah whole.

    She clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms as the familiar surge of guilt flooded through her. It felt like an old wound that had never healed properly—still raw, still aching, even after all this time.

    She should have stayed out there with Beth. The thought came unbidden, sharp and cruel. She had been too cold, too nervous to argue when Beth had told her to go back.

    But if she had just pushed harder, insisted, maybe they could have found Hannah together. Maybe the night wouldn't have ended with two missing girls and no answers.

    Cameron felt her throat tighten as the guilt pressed heavier on her chest. She hadn't just been running from her friends this past year; she had been running from herself, from the memory of how she hadn't warned Hannah about the prank.

    She had convinced herself that staying away from the group, from Blackwood Mountain, would make it easier. That if she didn't have to look into their faces—especially Josh's—she wouldn't have to be reminded of her own failures.

    But now here she was, standing in the very place that held those memories, being dragged back to the same emotions she had tried so hard to bury.

    Cameron swallowed hard and finally unzipped her coat, letting it fall from her shoulders and drop to the floor.

    The heat in the lodge wrapped around her, but it didn't feel comforting. She rubbed her hands together, trying to rid herself of the nervous energy that tingled in her fingers.

    You can do this, she told herself, though she wasn't sure she believed it entirely.

    As she stepped further into the lodge, her footsteps echoing against the wooden floors, Cameron glanced around, trying to focus on anything but the knot of anxiety twisting tighter in her stomach.

    She found herself moving toward the large windows that looked out over the mountain, the snow continuing to fall in thick sheets. She pressed her hand against the cold glass, her breath fogging up the window as she stared out at the endless white expanse.

    "Cam?" Josh's voice cut through the quiet, startling her. Her hand slipped from the window as she turned to face him. He was standing just behind her, his smile easy. "You okay?"

    "Yeah, of course." She lied, her voice coming out more clipped than she intended.

Josh studied her, his gaze lingering a beat too long as if trying to read between the lines between her brows.

After a pause, Josh finally let out a soft sigh, deciding not to push further. "Alright. Wanna help me start a fire?" His tone shifted back to its usual lightness, giving her an out.

Relieved, Cameron nodded weakly, turning her gaze back toward the window one last time. With a quiet exhale, she followed him to the fireplace, kneeling beside him as he tossed a couple of logs onto the grate.

The faint scent of pine filled the room as the bark brushed against the stone hearth.

As they worked in silence, Cameron found herself hyper-aware of Josh's presence beside her. Every small movement, the brush of his arm as he reached for more logs, the quiet sighs of concentration—it all felt heightened, too close.

The sound of the front door crashing open broke the quiet, and Cameron flinched at the sudden noise. Mike's voice boomed through the space, his arms thrown up in an exaggerated greeting. "What's up, party people?"

    Behind him, Jessica followed, both of them wearing wide grins as if they hadn't a care in the world.

    "Make yourself at home, bro." Josh greeted with a grin, though he quickly turned his focus back to the fire. "Hey, can you pass me the lighter fluid?" He asked Cameron, gesturing toward the bottle beside her.

    Wordlessly, Cameron handed it to him, watching as Josh drenched the logs with the fluid.

    She could feel Mike's stare on the back of her head, her fingers drumming lightly against her thigh.

    Mike and Jessica wasted no time sprawling out on the couch, though, Mike's arm looping around Jess's shoulders as he leaned in to kiss her.

    "Did you get your lighter back from Chris?" Cameron asked, more to fill the space than anything, her eyes flicking back to Josh.

    Josh chuckled, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out the lighter with a triumphant grin. "Oh yeah. No way Chris is keeping this one."

    He flicked it open, the flame casting a warm, flickering glow over his features. His eyes sparkled mischievously as he held it out to her. "Wanna do the honors?"

    For a moment, Cameron hesitated, her hand hovering just above his, then she took it and let it sit in between her fingertips.

    She flicked the lighter, watching the small flame flicker to life, then guided it toward the logs. The fire caught instantly, roaring to life in a bright, crackling blaze.

    The sudden heat was overwhelming, and Cameron instinctively flinched back, her heart racing in her chest.

    The sound of Emily's sharp voice shattered the brief moment of calm. "Oh my God, that is so gross." She said with a sneer, her eyes locked on Mike and Jess still tangled up on the couch. "Are you trying to swallow his face whole?"

    Jess immediately pulled back from Mike, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

    "Excuse me?" Jess stood up, her posture defensive, her eyes narrowing as she stared Emily down. "Did you say something?"

    "Oh, did you not hear me? Was your sluttiness too loud?" Emily shot back, her lips curling into a smirk.

    Cameron shifted uncomfortably, her gaze flickering toward Josh. They exchanged a look. "I thought they were best friends..." Josh whispered to her, brow raised.

    Cameron shrugged in response. They used to be. But things change. People change. Boyfriends change.

    She couldn't help but notice the way Jess's smile turned cold, cutting, the same expression she had seen Jess use so many times before to tear others down. "Sounds like someone's bitter she didn't make the cut."

    Emily's eyes flashed. "Yeah, it's all a big cattle call with that dreamboat." She scoffed, throwing a glance at Mike, who looked like he wanted to be anywhere but there. "Congrats, you're top cow."

    The insult hung in the air. Cameron winced, her discomfort growing as the argument escalated. She hadn't expected to find herself in the middle of high school drama all over again.

    "Hey, you're making everyone really uncomfortable, Jess." Matt's voice finally broke through the tension, though it was strained, uncertain.

    Cameron looked at him, surprised. Matt usually avoided conflict, always the peacemaker, the one to keep his head down. Maybe Emily was giving him more of a backbone.

    Jess's eyes snapped toward Matt, her anger now shifting. "Jealous much? Emily too frigid for you, too?"

    Something inside Cameron snapped. She wasn't one to get involved in these petty fights, but the way Jess' words echoed through the room—how they seemed to target Matt's insecurities—hit too close to home.

    "Hey, that's uncalled for." Cameron said, rising to her feet. Her voice was steady, but her heart was racing.

    Jess turned on her instantly, her eyes blazing with fury. "I don't give a crap what you think, Cam." Her voice dripped with venom, her fists clenching at her sides. "You've got your skeletons too, don't you?"

    The words hit Cameron like a punch to the gut. Skeletons. Her throat went dry, and for a moment, all she could do was stare back at Jess, speechless.

    Images of Beth and Hannah flashed through her mind, the guilt she had been burying for months threatening to spill over.

    Without a word, Cameron sank back down beside Josh, her eyes fixed on the fire. Don't let her see it. Don't let anyone see it. But her hands were trembling, her breath coming in shallow, uneven bursts.

    "Jessica, you need to shut your mouth, okay?" Matt snapped, his voice rising in defense of Emily.

    "No, you're the one who needs to keep your nose out of other people's business!" Jess spat back.

    "Stop it!" It was Josh's voice that then interrupted the chaos, loud and commanding. He rose to his feet, taking control of the room. "This is not why we came up here. This is not helping."

    The room fell into a tense silence, everyone's anger simmering just beneath the surface. Jess and Emily exchanged one last glare before Josh intervened, pointing toward Mike. "Mike—why don't you check out the guest cabin? The one I told you about."

    Mike nodded quickly, eager to escape the suffocating cat fight. He grabbed Jess by the arm and dragged her out of the lodge, the door slamming shut behind them.

    As soon as they left, Emily rolled her eyes, muttering something about her bag being left at the cable car station. Matt reluctantly followed her out, leaving only Cameron and Josh by the fire.

"Come on, don't listen to Jessica of all people." Josh's voice cut through the tension, warm and familiar as he nudged his shoulder lightly against hers. "You never cared about her before."

Cameron let out a dry chuckle, more out of reflex than humor. It wasn't like she could just laugh it off, but Josh's attempt to lighten the mood wasn't lost on her.

She puffed air through her nose, shaking her head. "I shouldn't have said anything. I can never win with her." Her voice was tight and she blinked as she heard herself speak.

The truth of it all settled heavily on her chest. She knew better than to engage with Jessica, especially when things got heated. She always knew where to aim, where it would hurt the most.

Josh opened his mouth to respond, probably to offer some half-joking remark about how nobody could win with Jess, but Cameron barely registered it. Her mind was already spiraling, the present slipping away as a memory surged to the surface, uninvited and unwelcome.

Cameron could still see the way Jess had her arms crossed, that same smug expression she always wore when she thought she had the upper hand.

"You're blaming me?" Jess voice was sharp, dripping with disbelief. "You think this is all my fault?"

Cameron's jaw clenched, her breath coming in quick, shallow bursts as she tried to keep control of her emotions. "You're the one who came up with the prank, Jess!" Her voice cracked under the weight of the accusation, but she didn't back down. "You're the one who pushed it—who made Hannah think..."

Her voice faltered, unable to say it out loud, unable to bring herself to voice the full extent of the cruelty. "None of this would have happened if it weren't for that stupid prank!"

Jess' eyes narrowed, her lips curling into a twisted smirk that made Cameron's stomach turn. "Oh, so now it's all on me? Don't pretend like you weren't there, Cam. You didn't exactly do anything to stop it either, and you're supposed to be Beth's bestie."

Cameron's heart dropped, her throat tightening. The words hit her like a slap, hard and cold. She opened her mouth to argue, to deny it, but nothing came out. Jess was right—she hadn't done anything to stop it. She had been there, sitting in the living room, listening to the prank unfold.

Paralyzed. Silent.

"And don't act like you're so innocent!" Jess continued, her voice venomous now. "You're just as much a part of this as the rest of us. So don't go putting all the blame on me just because you feel guilty for leaving Beth to find Hannah by herself."

Cameron had stood there, her fists clenched at her sides, trembling with anger and shame. She wanted to scream at Jess, to tell her she was wrong, that she wasn't like her, that she didn't enjoy hurting people the way Jess did.

But deep down, Cameron knew there was a part of her—no matter how small—that had allowed it to happen. That had let the prank play out because she hadn't wanted to be the one to ruin everyone's fun.

The guilt of that moment had stayed with her ever since. It didn't matter how many times she told herself she wasn't like Jess, or that she hadn't been the one to plan it. The truth was, she hadn't done anything to stop it either.

Cameron snapped back to the present, the memory fading but leaving a bitter aftertaste.

Her fingers were trembling slightly as they gripped her knees, and she pressed her palms down hard to steady herself, trying to control her breathing.

Josh was watching her, his brow furrowed in concern, but he didn't say anything. He didn't need to.

"I just... I don't want to deal with her right now." Cameron muttered, her voice quieter now, more subdued.

She hated how fragile she sounded, like she was unraveling at the seams. She didn't want Josh to see her like that but it was so hard hiding it.

Josh nudged her shoulder, offering her a faint smile. "I understand. Jess is... well, she's Jess. But you're stronger than that. You've always been stronger than that."

Cameron looked at him, trying to find comfort in his words, but the guilt gnawed at her insides, relentless. She wanted to be strong. She wanted to be the person Josh believed she was.

But all she could see was the reflection of that night, of Hannah's face, of Beth's terrified eyes as they disappeared into the dark.

"Thanks, Josh." She finally said, forcing a small smile, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. She appreciated the sentiment, even if it couldn't erase the past. "But I think I need some air."

Josh nodded, understanding in his eyes. "I'll be here." He said softly, and it was a small comfort to know that he would be.

END OF CHAPTER III.