Survival

Disclaimer: These characters are owned by CBS and the CW network. I mean no infringement of any sort and am only using the characters for personal enjoyment and for others to enjoy as well!

DISCLAIMER: THIS FIC IS RATED M FOR LANGUAGE, CONSENSUAL SEX, AND REFERENCES TO VIOLENCE. IF YOU ARE UNDER 18, SCRAM! IT IS NOT MY JOB TO POLICE WHAT YOU ARE READING! IF YOU DON'T WANT TO READ IT, SCRAM! I WON'T TOLERATE BULLYING!

This chapter begins the new, unpublished chapters. Hope you enjoy and leave those reviews!

This story is told from Catherine's POV, in the first person. May throw in Vincent's POV down the line.

Chapter 14

Opening my eyes was a chore. I didn't sleep well, thinking about what Vincent had said to me last night. There is too much between us for me to forgive him. Right now, our survival is more important. I couldn't lose track of that. I just couldn't.

Vincent groaned, his eyes still closed. I'm going to have to check his back once he wakes up. He had slept fitfully as well. Was it because of his back, or because of something else? I wasn't going to bother to ask him. After yesterday, I'll be lucky if he still wants to talk to me. I wouldn't be surprised if he froze me out the rest of our time here. I wouldn't blame him and I certainly won't hold it against him if he does.

Vincent groaned again, and his eyes slowly opened. We stared at each other. "Morning..." he finally said.

"Morning..." I whispered. We continued to stare at each other. Yeah, this isn't awkward.

"I'm sorry about yesterday," Vincent said quietly. Wait...what?

"Why are you sorry? I was the one being a bitch," I asked, very confused.

"I'm sorry you had to take care of me while I was sick," he continued, ignoring my question. "I'm sorry I wasn't the friend you deserved."

"What are you talking about?" I felt his forehead, thinking he was feverish again. But, he was cool to the touch.

"Just trying to get back on the right foot with you," Vincent replied. "Following the truce we agreed to..."

"Vincent..." I sighed, "You don't need to apologize. You were sick. I was the one being a bitch. I should be the one apologizing, not you."

"Is every conversation we have from now on going to be so damn awkward?" Vincent asked.

"I hope not. I don't know," I told him honestly. "I just don't know..."

The next couple of days passed by fairly quietly. Vincent continued to recover from the bear scratches, and we existed in relative harmony. We spoke little, but that was fine by me. I only missed hearing the sound of his voice a little...

Vincent has been moving stiffly around the camp, and I've noticed his face contorting in pain every so often. We decided to use our supplies sparingly, so Vincent wasn't using any pain medication. Every time his face shows pain, I remember the bear attack all over again. Why didn't I do what he asked? Then, none of this would have happened...

I got up from my seat near the fire, causing Vincent to look at me from his seat across from me. "Where are you going?" he asked me.

"Well, we've been here for over a week, and since you got hurt, we haven't attempted to find out where we are. So, I guess I'm going to have to go out and look around."

"No, Catherine! It's too dangerous. You don't know what could be out there. What if you run into the bear? You can't protect yourself."

I tried not to be angry at his words, but he was right. "Well, what do you suggest then? We can't just sit here and rot away."

"My back is feeling better," he said. I knew that was a bold faced lie, but I let it pass. "Give me another day, and I'll go out looking myself."

"And, what if something happens to you? What do I do then?"

"Nothing will happen to me. I promise."

Fear arched through me. I don't want to be here alone! He wouldn't dare leave me here on my own! But, I knew I couldn't stop him if he decided to leave me behind. "Fine, do what you want. I'm going to go take a bath." You better not follow me, either!

"Just be careful," he threw out.

I grabbed my toiletries from my bag, as well as my towel and spare clothes, and headed toward my little pond. Once I got there, I stripped down, and got into the water. Floating around, I closed my eyes, blocking out everything around me. The only sounds I could hear was the water lapping against me.

I swam around for a while, before I washed my hair and body quickly. I didn't want to go back to camp, but I couldn't stay out here forever. I got out of the water, and dried myself off with my small towel. I got dressed slowly, knowing I was delaying the inevitable.

I laid my towel on the ground, and laid down on top of it. Closing my eyes, I listened to the sounds around me. Birds chirping, the water lapping gently...a low buzzing.

Buzzing? The sound barely registered when I felt something pinch me. "Owwww!" Right on the heels of that one, I felt another pinch, and then another. I opened my eyes and saw a swarm of bees circling above me.

"Vincent!" I screamed, as I scrambled to get to my feet. I couldn't remember if I was allergic to bees!

I took off running through the woods, screaming Vincent's name. I could hear the bees behind me. My foot tripped over something, and I felt myself falling. Just before my world went black, I heard Vincent yelling my name...