The Fall Out:

An Until Dawn Fanfiction

Synopsis: A decade has passed since the night of terror on Mount Washington - a night that defined them all and sent them spiraling in different directions - Jessica is a struggling, broken, single mother. Ashley hides out in the hipster haven of Portland. Sam has never stopped running. And everyone just wants to forget. So, when Josh asks them all to join him for a reunion, they'd be crazy to accept the invitation. Right?

Genre: Drama/Romance

Timeline: Post-Game Events, 10 years in the future

Deaths: Emily

Survivors: Everyone Else, +Josh

Pairings: [Josh/Sam][Ashley/Chris] Possibly more.

Rating: T

A/N: This is a project I've been working on for a while but have had a hard time getting off the ground. Hoping to have more up this week. We'll see! Read and review!

Chapter One:

You Are Here

-Josh, Chris, Ashley-

Joshua Washington - New York City, New York - January, 2025

The poised, brunette woman greeted him from her chair, sitting directly across from him. Josh leaned back in his seat casually. He was at ease; this certainly wasn't the first time he'd been in front of the cameras.

She cleared her throat, turning towards the teleprompter as the director counted down.

"- 4...3...2 -"

"The son of a successful, award-winning director. A family plagued by tragedy and scandal. And yet, amidst the pain and the loss, the ultimate story of triumph. You know him as the popular self-help speaker whose lectures are among the most popular on both Ted Talks and Youtube… Joshua Washington, thank you for joining us today."

"Thanks for having me," he replied evenly. He could felt beads of sweat attempting to pool at his hairline from the direct heat of the lighting. He reached over to the side table, stealing a quick sip of his lemon water. The ice cubes rattled in the glass.

"Trusting that a lot of viewers already know who you are, I'm just going to jump right in. You were already somewhat in the limelight growing up, what with a famous father and all," she began right away, not bothering with any more formalities. Josh glanced behind them - on a giant monitor, pictures from his youth flashed. Some were with him and his dad, some with him and his sisters. He forced his eyes back onto Janelle.

"But the incident that took place in 2014, when your sisters went missing, and then the horrific events a year after… would you say that's what really put you on the map?"

Josh opened his mouth but paused. He knew better than to answer without thinking first. It had already gotten him in a lot of trouble in the past. The media loved to twist his words. It was a fickle beast. Over the last ten years since the incident, he'd learned to think before speaking.

"Well, I mean… I would say everyone has those moments, you know, in one way or another. Moments in your life you can let define you. Really nail you down as a person. I was headed down a very strange path at that time. As I've said in some of my lectures… grief is by far the scariest, most dangerous monster there is. It can twist your mind and make you do things you never imagined you were capable of, in both positive and negative ways. You, as a person, make a choice to attack it in many different approaches. I used that experience and the aftermath as a totem. I let it veer me into a different direction. One where I could take that huge, crushing, ball of grief and use it to better other people's lives."

She smiled, glancing down at her notecard, "and you have. After your inpatient care, you went on to get your masters in psychology by the age of 27. Meanwhile, you created an incredibly popular self-help vlog with over 20 million subscribers on youtube. And now your book, Monster in Me, is a New York Times bestseller." She tucked her hair behind her ear, leaning forward. Josh could tell she desperately wanted to be Diane Sawyer one day. For now she was just pretending. "So, tell us. What does the future look like for Josh Washington? Any plans for taking a break? Maybe starting a family?"

Josh mulled on that for a quick moment. He usually only focused on his future, since his present was basically a whirlwind of video blogs, lectures and book tours. This interview was the first he'd had time for in months. When he got home and wasn't surrounded by colleagues… it was actually quite lonely. He had a girlfriend, Lana, but she was an actress. She usually wasn't even in the same country as him.

He cleared his throat, took in a sharp breath. He made it a point to stray from anything personal, so he dodged the question and focused on work.

Always move forward.

Keep moving forward.

"Well, my non-profit organization, Reach, has been incorporated in hundreds of schools across the country now. It's designed to target troubled youth, specifically kids that are at risk for undiagnosed or misdiagnosed mental disorders. It acts as a liaison to get them the help they so desperately need. You know. The help I never got."

"What was it that not getting that help cost you?"

"Well, my sanity, for one. But… I also lost a lot of good friends."

"It's hard to imagine anyone not liking you, Josh," she chuckled lightheartedly. Josh's eyes darkened. It was true - his media persona was somewhat loved and revered around the world… and yet he knew of at least five individuals that still hated him with burning intensity. Every time he thought of them his chest tightened. It made him feel like a fraud, preaching about goodness and redemption, but never seeking it for himself.

"You'd be surprised," he mumbled, taking another sip of water.

"What do you mean?" He gave a menial shrug.

"One of the most important aspects of healing is making amends with those you've wronged in the past. I'm ashamed to say I haven't followed my own advice, in that respect."

"Are you talking about those victims on the mountain that night?" she mused dramatically. Josh's head fell back with a silent, ironic laugh.

"Those victims were also some of my best friends."

"You don't speak with them?" she pressed. Josh shook his head lightly.

"No, not really. I still speak to one; my best friend. But that's about it."

"Your family was really tied up with lawsuits after what happened that night. Would you say that's part of why you haven't reached out to any of them?" Josh folded his lips, taking in a quick breath through his nose. He shifted in his chair a bit, fidgeting with the arms. He cleared his throat.

"They had a right to seek out what they felt they were owed. I am not sure it was all that fulfilling, the money. I'm sure it helped. But I don't think that's what they were searching for."

"What do you think they were really wanting?"

"...Probably what anyone in their position deserves... An apology."

Ashley "AJ" Jo Smith - Portland, Oregon - Powell's Bookstore - January, 2025

Ashley danced down the thin, towering aisle of books. Florence & the Machine poured from her headphones into her ears, drowning out her thoughts. She browsed the titles, slipping a few books in between others and continuing on her way with her cart. She rounded the corner, slamming into a tall, bearded hipster in the Botany section. His book on "Bonsai Tree Grooming" fell to the ground.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she gasped, snapping her headphones from her head and resting them on her neck. "I-I wasn't paying attention, are you alright?" He smoothed his shirt, pushing his black-framed glasses up his nose.

He reminded her of him.

Although, any guy in glasses like those seemed to do that to her, no matter how much time had passed.

"It's okay," he smiled politely, his eyes lingering on her for longer than she was comfortable with.

"Are you finding everything okay?" she asked him, her cheeks warming with a bit of a blush.

"Uh, yeah. I can't seem to find... your number?" he said coolly.

Ashley snorted, loudly and abruptly. And instantly wanted to die of embarrassment. She could tell he was taken aback by her strange reaction, but she just adjusted her beanie on her head of fiery hair.

"I think that's in another section," she smiled, pushing past him and moving quickly back to the safety of her cashier's counter.

Ashley sighed a long sigh. It wasn't the first time she'd been hit on at work but that didn't matter - no one even felt... right. She'd dated. But she seemed to have a hard time connecting with people or letting herself get close to others. She just knew it would always snowball into a place where they asked about her past and… that wasn't really something she liked talking about.

Her life before Portland didn't matter, anymore. Too many bitter memories.

"Hey, AJ. Where's a good place to take my boyfriend?" Her co-worker Jonah asked. It was still strange answering to that name, since she'd dropped "Ashley" the moment she moved to town, fueled by a desire to lose herself and become someone else entirely. She peeked over him; he was leaning over the counter, staring absently at his computer monitor, and skimming popular Portland tourist spots on the internet.

Buzzfeed's TOP-6 Spots you HAVE to Visit in PDX!

Ashley rolled her eyes. Stupid 'articles' like that were why Portland had such a population surge over the last few years. Which, of course, was why the cost of her apartment rent had shot up at least 50% in the last two years.

"He's never been here. He's from Quebec so he's suuuuper French and I don't want to let him down."

"Ummm…" she shrugged a bit, thinking on his question. She wasn't quite sure what Jonah's boyfriend being French had to do with it, but she loved it here. Portland was the best decision she'd ever made. The whimsy of this hipster city seemed to really suit her.

"Obviously Voodoo Donuts is a must," he started, confidently. She scoffed and his confidence shook, "No? What's wrong with Voodoo?"

"Ugh. C'mon, Jonah. Could you be any more cliche? Have you ever even been there?"

"Well, no, but-"

"Believe me. Don't waste your time. The line is long and the donuts?" She paused, looking around and leaning in like she was letting him in on a secret. "Are not that great," she whispered.

"Really?" he breathed dramatically, as though what she divulged to him might have blown his mind.

"Totally overrated," she nodded.

Jonah's shoulders slumped and Ash figured she should cut him some slack. He'd only just moved here, but she'd been here a good 10 years now. Still, she felt the need to add, "oh and if you say 'Saturday Market' next, I might really have to murder you."

Jonah laughed dryly, shaking his head.

"God, you are such a Portland snob. Weren't you a transplant, too?" he accused. Ashley shrugged again. She needed to steer the conversation off of her.

She could still remember the day she left so clearly - although she didn't want to, anymore. On a whim, glaringly aware that she couldn't be with Chris in her current state, she'd packed up everything her suitcase could carry. Which really wasn't much. But as she packed she realized she didn't have a lot to begin with.

She still thought of Chris all the time. She was haunted by him. She thought she'd seen him everywhere since - on the tram, in cool dive bars, in the faces of strangers. And she always felt a pang in her heart everytime her eyes scrutinized the doppelganger and deduced that it wasn't him.

And a part of her wished she'd seen him one more time so the last image of him that was burned in her mind wasn't his hopeless, tearful eyes as she told him she couldn't do it anymore. It was a cold, rainy day and she was still cloaked in a black dress she'd worn to her father's funeral.

The day he decided it was a good idea to ask her to marry him.

"What?" she'd breathed as he knelt by her childhood bed, holding out a ringbox. Mascara and tears streamed down her cheeks as she stared at him in awe - but not for the right reasons. Because he was clearly grasping onto her, desperate to keep her as he felt her slipping away from him. She'd just buried her father and he knew she was coming unglued… and this was his solution.

"I mean it," he told her, a knot in his throat. She could see it hovering above his Adam's apple. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Now?" she squeaked, unable to hide her ire. "You ask me this right now, Chris?"

She stood, pacing the room and clawing her fingers through her hair. She didn't want to look back at him - surely it would break her heart to see his confused, heartbroken expression.

"I mean… I know this probably isn't how you pictured it but, Ash-"

Ashley was beyond relieved that her mother interrupted the moment. She told him they'd talk about it when they got home, but a part of her now realized she'd already made up her mind.

"Just… I dunno, Jonah," Ashley snapped at her friend now, overcome with emotion she didn't care to carry. "Take him to the Multnomah Whiskey Library, the Grotto, and then end your night at the Academy Theatre," she spat off quickly, changing the subject. Jonah instantly went to google, and Ashley went back to sorting books.

Christopher Bennett - Tokyo, Japan - January, 2025

The city seemed alive.

The city always seemed alive - a bright, bustling, busy metropolis that appeared to stretch on forever. Chris' favorite part of the day was the coffee he enjoyed on his tiny balcony of his tiny apartment - in fact, everything in Tokyo was tiny. Miniature, doll-like versions of apartments and cellphones and gadgets.

He'd thought it was going to be enough for him, living here among the most tech-savvy, brilliant minds in the world. When his boss told him about the position - Chief Technical Officer at Yamagato-Tolko Industries - he'd leapt at the opportunity. He was practically a shoe-in; no one else wanted to relocate to Japan from New York.

Sure, he didn't know Japanese. And yeah, he didn't even know anyone in the country - not even the continent. But something about that was oddly refreshing. It was a new start, an adventure, one he didn't know he'd longed for so badly until the career move presented itself.

In Josh's seemingly infinite wisdom (and uncanny ability to crawl into Chris' mind), he'd accused Chris of running away. At the time, Chris had been dragging his feet through a long engagement with his post-college girlfriend, Alia, and this was the perfect way to thoroughly end it. The career-oriented, headstrong woman would never up and leave with him for the far east - she was an editor for a New York-based magazine. Her life was there. She told him, under no uncertain terms, that he needed to make a choice… she didn't know he already had.

"You're afraid of getting close, you know that?" Josh had told him. "You've been this way ever since-"

"Don't even say her name," Chris warned. Josh smirked at the instant shut down, shrugging and picking at his blueberry scone.

"You're gonna have to talk about her one day…" Josh mumbled.

Chris merely scoffed, changing the subject by telling Josh he was just trying to stop him from going to Japan because he'd be lost without him. Josh shrugged again, admitting that may be true, but also pitching the idea that maybe, just maybe, it wasn't an adventure he was seeking. Maybe it was a person.

A particular redhead, perhaps?

Chris had been here now for a year. He only knew the bare minimum of Japanese, and in the whole year he'd lived in Japan, he'd traveled to more countries for work than he could count. He'd seen Italy, Germany, Quebec… he'd even been to Indonesia and South Korea.

Maybe Josh was right.

Maybe he was running.

Or maybe he was searching. Searching for home.

Searching for her.

He still remembered the last time he saw Ashley so vividly, whether he wanted to or not. Her eyes were glossy and dark circles pooled under them. She was exhausted. Stressed. Frustrated.

He remembered the pain in his chest when she told him through tears that she couldn't look at him without remembering that night - that her therapy wasn't working. That she needed a fresh start, far away. That Chris remaining friends with Josh throughout his treatment felt like a betrayal.

And that she didn't think she could do it anymore.

"I love you, Chris. But I'm just not strong enough-" she'd cried. Chris just held her, begging her to reconsider - that there was nothing they couldn't get through together. Their entire origin was a testament to that alone.

"Then come with me," she tried, her fingernails digging into his arms as she clung to him. "Leave this place with me. We can start a new life somewhere, away from this. Away from Josh-"

"I can't, Ash. You know that. My whole life is here. I can't just leave it-" Ashley didn't interrupt him - he stopped himself short when he saw fire flash through her ember eyes.

"You can't leave him," she accused, barely above an injured whisper.

He didn't correct her.

They laid down on opposite sides of the bed that night, but neither of them slept. One of Chris' biggest regrets was that he didn't spend the whole night memorizing her face or taking in the scent of her, because when he got home from class the next day, Ashley's drawers were empty and her suitcase was gone.

It took him longer than it should have to really register it all, and when he did, he couldn't seem to catch his breath. He leaned against the wall, slumping down, his head resting in his hands. He ran his fingers through his hair and clenched, trying to choke back a sob but failing.

All he had left were their pictures on the wall, her ring on the dresser, and a note that promised she'd be back. She just needed to figure some things out.

But she never did come back like she said. And he never even got to say goodbye.

To Be Continued...