Distortion.

All of it was a mistake. Josh knew that, he couldn't pull away from the idea of it. It was in his mind, infesting every little thing, the last expressions of his sisters and the last of his friends. Frightened, disgusted expressions beat out smiles. SHaking his head, clawing at his scalp, a whine left his lips as he curled on the ground.

You're a monster. Just like me, Josh. We'll stay together, forever.

Hannah spoke in gyrating groans echoing off slick cavern walls. She lingered in the shadows, her claws scraping and her snarls low.

Sometimes he could hear Beth. A dismissal voice, cold without a hint of feeling. Disappointment dripped around her, she appeared from the walls, from the shadows, a glare in her eyes.

He was alone with them and the monsters.

Feed. Josh. You're going to starve.. If you don't eat.

Hannah hissed, her malnourished arm, grey and dry crept into the light, along with her twisted face, her teeth enlarged and her eyes beady and watchful. The body of a man lay crumpled several feet away, blood dry and cold, the head was missing.

Josh shuddered, licking his chapped lips. He couldn't move, he was stuck on the floor against the wall. Hannah growled, scraping her nails against the floor, letting out a sharp sound that made Josh flinch.

Eat. Or die. Your choice, Josh.

He clenched his teeth together, his heart beating against his chest as he rose slowly to his hands and knees. He felt like he was about to collapse again from the fear running through his skin.

Hannah slowly moved toward him, sniffing the air. Eat. Josh. It's what you deserve, to become like us. To stay with us. It is your fault in the end. For what happened to us.

He closed his eyes, he could hear her voice echoing inside his head. He knew she was right. They died that night, alone while he was passed out and his stupid friends played a prank, ruining everything.

He moved, crawling with shaking limbs and as he knelt in front of the body. He sucked in a sliver of air at what he was about to do.

Hesitating?

Josh tensed, Hannah was gone, and now Beth stood in front of him, her head tilted to the side and her eyes bore into his. There was blood on her face, her skin ashen with soft purplish blue bruises along her jaw and the side of her face. She wore the toque she was last seen in, it was matted with dirt, so were her clothing.

Scared? Don't be scared. We're finally together again, Josh.

He took a deep breath and leaned down, closing his eyes as he bit into the cold clammy skin where the neck met the head. Of course there was no head. He let a tear roll down his skin, ignoring the disgusting taste and his hands gripping the stranger's jacket.

He looked up at Beth, and apparently Hannah who looked the way she did before she died, both standing to his far left, shrouded in the dark but still lit for him to see their silhouettes.

We're so disappointed in you, Josh.

They spoke at the same time, mimicking the same gestures.

You were so close, you were going to stay with us. Forever.

Josh leaned up, he swallowed the dead skin in his mouth. Shaking his head as another tear rolled down his face.

"I'm sorry. It wasn't my fault for what happened. I'm trying.." He ran his fingers through his hair, pulling at the strands. "I can't get it out of my head. I can't. I'm sorry.. I'm sorry."

"Josh!... Josh!"

He shook his head, ignoring the new voice. It wasn't real. He was left, alone in the mines with his sisters. He had to stay, it was his fault for what happened. This is what he deserved.

He leaned forward and opened his mouth to take another bite of the strangers skin.

"Josh!"

He shook his head, muttering. "No.. it's not.. It's not real."

"Josh!" This time a light struck his face and he looked up. "Oh my god. Josh."

Sam? What was she doing here? It didn't make sense. He looked to where Hannah and Beth were, but they weren't there anymore.

There were others behind her, but Sam said something to them that made them stop and she didn't waste time as she raced to him. She knelt down where he thought the body was, but there wasn't anything there.

"Josh. I've looked everywhere for you," Sam said, her voice filled with relief, she placed the flashlight on the ground beside her and brought him into her arms. She was warm, comforting and he felt… safe. Not just from himself, but everything that happened.

Sam pulled back and sighed, her brows furrowed as she leaned forward, pressing her fingers against his cheeks. "What's in your mouth?"

He couldn't swallow the flesh in his mouth and his hands shook. He could feel more tears at the brim of his eyes, threatening to fall. And when he opened his mouth to reveal what he did, she didn't back away in disgust like he thought she would.

He raised one brow and pressed her fingers into his mouth. "Why are you eating dirt?" She pulled out chunks of wet dirt and pebbles, showing him with a confused look.

Dirt? No. It wasn't dirt. It was..

He shook his head and turned to his side, coughing up the dirt he still had in his mouth and down his throat. After he finished, he slumped down and looked at his hands. He had no idea what was going on and he didn't know what to do.

Sam reached for his wrist and her ice cold fingers made him shudder. "Come on. Let's get out of here. We're going to get sick if we stay here for too long."

She helped him to his feet and wrapped his arm around her shoulders after realizing that it was hard to walk. He didn't know how long he was knelt there, how many hours, days, inside his mind, trapped with the constant thoughts of his dead sister's.

"Hannah… Beth…"

Sam held the flashlight to the ground as they walked toward the two police officers who were waiting for them up ahead.

"I'm sorry, Josh. But they died a year ago, remember. They fell from the cliff and were found a week later by a rescue team."

He remembered that after he isolated himself, alone with the thoughts, the regret, the hatred, it built inside of him until finally he thought of a plan to make it right. For some closure and decided to do that through Ashley and Chris. The plan went great, not until he found himself lost again, after his own friends who lead his sisters to their deaths looked at him with the same disdain he felt for them.

He ran, hearing screeches all over that he mistook for something else, for monsters stalking in the snow, and his sister, Hannah who was killed, came back for revenge while Beth, trying to save her, became a reminder of the harsh treatment.

It was inside his head, all of it, a lie. A distinct lie that grew and grew until he trapped himself in the exact place they died.

"Are we leaving?" He asked.

"Yeah," Sam replied, "we are."

He let her lead him out, away from it all. But their voices still spoke against the wind, in the dark, they never had the intention of leaving him and he wasn't sure if he wanted them gone yet.

fin

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authors notes: Hey. I've been really connected to Josh, for the mental illness and his own reasons in the game. I do think he didn't deserve what happened to him.

I ship Josh x Sam. I think the whole 'connection' thing could've been more explained, and I did like Josh lighting candles and tying balloons up for Sam in a twisted romantic ploy. It was obvious he knew she was going to get out of the bathtub sooner or later and wanted to make sure she didn't ruin his 'game' with Ashley and Chris, so he knocked her out, (or if she escapes.) There was no way he was ever going to hurt Sam in anyway and I liked that. :D

I wanted to write my own version of the ending and for Josh to be saved. It's not terribly romance-centric, but oh wells. :D

I hoped you enjoyed.

Reviews are appreciated. No flames or bashing please.