Melissa was sitting out on the beach, letting the lapping waves gently splash against her bare feet. She was zoned out, basically. Thinking about the life back home, with all her friends and family, and about school, was all she did anymore. After 5 months on the island, Melissa wasn't very strong about things, and would just sit away from everyone else and watch them fight and yell at each other. Melissa lost any thought of them being a family, especially after they spilt up, and even though the adventurous group returned, she didn't believe they were understanding or together like before, and she lost hope of going home. Melissa always lied down on the beach alone, and cries her eyes out. The group has yet to question her when she returns to the worn out fire pit, which was destroyed in another horrible storm. They knew she was having issues when Melissa's eyes were red and puffy.
The rest of the group also changed drastically. Daley resigned as leader a week after they returned. She had control of Nathan, Taylor, Lex and herself. Three people were easy to handle. One order got everybody doing something, cutting trees, collecting firewood, creating a fire or fishing, which Taylor took over when Jackson left. Daley didn't need to yell, or panic over any decisions. It was a snap of the fingers, and everything worked out. But when the others returned, Daley wasn't used to it after 3 months without them. They filed in one by one and started making there own decisions again. Fights broke out, and before you knew it, they were back to normal, or whatever normal was. They lost the tent, food started running out, and things were lost and stolen. When Daley realized no one was listening, she screamed until everyone was paying attention. "I quit!" She screamed, and ran into the forest crying. Then more "war" broke out and it all fell apart, worse than ever.
Nathan changed a little bit. Being strong from the beginning, he took every skill and amount of energy into keeping the three of them alive. Nathan climbed a coconut tree two times the size of the first one he climbed, getting 30 or even 40 coconuts, and fruit by the dozen. Nathan would often go deep into the forest, and collect so much food it would last for weeks at times. He would come back covered in dirt, completely wiped out, but would only rest for a minute before starting something new. Being the only real guy there, almost everything depended on him, or he thought that at least. Nathan also decided not to date or show any affection toward her, because he needed to put him energy in everything else. He would also sleep on the sand so the ladies and Lex had more room in the tent. A lot of things changed in those 3 months, and the storm affected a lot too. It destroyed the shelter, and the plane tipped over onto the side where the door was blocked, so it just took up room, because it was too heavy to lift. But Nathan took everything to the next level, and worked very hard. They might not have still been there without him.
But Taylor was amazing. Wow, did she change! Taylor was in another shock mode for a few days, but when it came into realization that the others had left, she took a breath and moved on. Taylor sat by the fire, and would occasionally stare into the flames and flashback at her other life. Such a good life she had, with so many friends, trips, and adventures. Now she was taking on a whole different world, dealing with nothing she ever had to deal with before. But Taylor shook off the lost feelings and started working. She fished as her job, because she wasn't good at anything else. But Taylor didn't complain, or cry, nothing. Just fish, and watch over Nathan as he climbed up the 100 ft coconut trees. Taylor would comfort Daley at times though, with words like, "they're alive, they'll comeback," even know she didn't believe it herself. Taylor did change though, because she never whined, and she toughened up. She couldn't even believe she actually had muscles!
Abby and Eric had a very strong bond. Daley swore she had seen them kiss once or twice. It got very mysterious when they ran off into the forest together. Work for them had worn off too. Eric didn't do anything anymore, like he did anything before. It was either he sat around and ate; he would sleep, or go with Abby. He didn't look depressed, though. Or happy, for matter. He was almost invisible. And Abby just took up space. She ate everything! She would go out into the forest alone, and come back with firewood, but that was only once or twice. Abby mostly cried in the forest, depressed because the whole world fell apart for her. The forest was so rough, and her ankle never got better, so she just limped. What she went through in that forest? No one knew.
But no one knew how much pain everyone felt when Jackson didn't return with the others.