Author's Note: This is my submission for CCOAC Silver Screen Challenge. My prompt was JJ, Morgan, Scream. Interestingly enough, though, after about three or four different attempts, I stumbled upon this story that suddenly needed to be told. If this chapter confuses you, search youtube for 'JJ tells a whopper', a scene in Boogyman where JJ explains her fear of the woods by teasing Morgan...or, in this story, by scratching the surface of a horrible secret from her past. It is completed, but it probably won't all be posted by the deadline because I have a million edits to do for the later chapters.
Enjoy.
It wasn't such a stretch.
Sometimes, she still thought about it. The day she had tried airing the darkest secret she had ever kept to the people she trusted the most, just to see their reactions.
But when the pity and the horror crossed their faces, she knew she couldn't share even the half of it.
'Why the woods JJ?' Morgan had asked conversationally, sipping his coffee as they all sat around in Ozona, Texas. 'Your fear, you said it was of the woods.'
'I used to be a camp counselor in the woods when I was a teenager in Northern Vermont.' She had shrugged, focusing on the beverage in front of her lest they see how much this actually affected her. 'I had the night shift.' She had clarified, unable to keep details from seeping into the story. 'You know, tuck in the kids, put them to bed.' She hadn't been able to stop herself from drifting back to that time, from remembering the dark red sticky substance staining the floor and the odd smell that had wafted toward her. The details came out just as she remembered them, but she had paused as Reid sat back shocked by the horror that had been her adolescent years.
And in that moment, she had stopped herself.
She had stopped herself from mentioning how she had caught a glimpse of a shadow behind her, slamming the door only to feel the thin wood buckle as the unknown assailant beat ferociously.
She hadn't mentioned that the other counselor had heard her scream and called 911, only to be found with her throat slashed when the police arrived.
She hadn't mentioned the three campers that had been slaughtered.
No, this was her personal hell.
And the last thing she needed was their pity.
'You're serious?' Derek had asked, pity radiating off him at the thought that could be true.
Unfortunately, it wasn't even the half of it.
'No.' She had scoffed, redirecting the conversation to focus on Reid's fear of the dark.
It was easier that way. And hopefully, no one would ever find out the truth.
That she had never believed that the caretaker had been the figure she had seen out of the corner of her eye.