Author's note:
WARNING! Having tissues nearby might be a good idea. You have been warned.
Merry Christmas!
"Dad!" Darius cries, running to his father's bedside. "The-the doctors s-said that you-ou aren't g-going to make i-it. They're wrong. They're-re w-wrong, r-right?"
His father takes in a deep, unsteady breath. "D-man," he starts sadly.
"Noo!" Darius wails, burying his face in his fathers weak arms. "You can't! Don't go! Fight, please!"
"Darius," his mother says quietly, putting her hand on his shoulder.
"Look, Darius," Mr. Bowman says, sighing. "I've fought the best I can. And I wish I had more fight left… in me, but I'm sorry. I can't go on. You… You have to continue without me."
"Noo," Darius sobs.
"You gotta keep… keep going," his father sighs, struggling to breathe. "Pick up the pieces. Keep on going. You've got your… your whole life ahead of you. I'm sorry… sorry that I couldn't be there to… to see it."
Darius sobs, holding onto his father as he talks to his wife. Mr. Bowman turns to Brandon, who was trying to stay strong. "Take care of your mother and Darius… okay, B-man? They need you."
"Okay, Dad," Brandon nods, sniffling.
"I love you," Mr. Bowman says. "I'm proud to call you my son… and I wish I could see the man you'll come… come to be."
Brandon closes his eyes and nods. "I won't let you down."
"I love all of you," Mr. Bowman says. "I'm sorry, but I gotta go. The Lord's calling me home."
Darius sobs, then hears his father flatline. His father goes still. "Noooo!" Darius wails, sobbing uncontrollably. He slides to the ground and lays down, holding himself as he cries. His mother kneels down and hugs him. The doctors rush in, and unhook his father from the machine. Brandon and Darius's mother pick him up and hold him. The last thing Darius remembers is going limp in their arms, blacking out from grief.
Darius wakes up with tears streaming down his face. The dream leaves fresh wounds in his heart. He carefully wipes away the tears, making sure not move too fast and wake Brooklynn, who had slept as close as she could to him every night. "I miss you, Dad," he sobs in his head. "I miss you so much. Why'd you have to go?"
He sighs quietly, licking his dry lips. Pink hair gets in his mouth. "Ah, pff, pff, pff!" Darius spits, trying to get Brooklynn's hair out of his mouth.
"You okay, Darius?" Yasmina asks sleepily.
"I got Brooklynn's hair in my mouth," Darius sputters. Yasmina laughs.
Darius gets Brooklynn's hair out of his mouth, and notices cowgirl boots clad feet were in front of his face. "Wha…" he murmurs. "Why is Sammy so active in her sleep? She was sleeping across our feet last I checked."
"You think you got it bad?" Yasmina says, prompting Darius to turn around. In Sammy's moving around, she had placed herself on a diagonal line. "My face is dangerously close to Sammy's butt," Yasmina grumbles.
"Why don't you move her?" Darius giggles.
"I try, she won't budge!" Yasmina hisses.
A few minutes later, it turns out that Sammy was the one in danger. Darius hears smothered giggles, then the covers creep up closer to the group's faces as someone moves them. Moments later, Sammy shrieks. "OH, GROSS!"
Kenji starts wheezing, holding the covers down. The campers get a whiff of something bad. "Oh, Kenji!" Yasmina gags. "Bro, why?!"
"Dude, no!" Darius exclaims as he and Yasmina throw off the covers.
Brooklynn wakes up with a start. "Oh, what the h*** is that smell?!"
"My mouth was open!" Sammy gags. "KENJI KON, WHAT D'YA HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF?!"
"Merry Christmas!" Kenji exclaims. "You said the condo needed a new oven. That's my Christmas present to you, a beautiful Dutch oven!"
Kenji starts wheezing. Sammy irritatedly pushes him off the bed, smiling despite herself. Kenji rolls around on the floor, laughing.
Brooklynn gags as she holds her nose. "Ugh, talk about a rude awakening."
"What are you guys yelling about?" Ben asks, blinking drowsily.
"You can't smell that?" Sammy asks.
"I have zero sense of smell, what are you talking about?" Ben asks.
The group groans, jealous of Ben. Yasmina thwaps Kenji on the back of the head pretty good. "Sorry, guys, it was too good of an opportunity to pass up," he laughs sheepishly.
"I'll get you back someday," Sammy shakes her head. "All right, it's Christmas morning! Let's go find your presents!"
Sammy leads the group into the dining room. "My Christmas present to y'all is the recreation of your favorite Christmas dishes!" the Texan exclaims. "Or the best I could do with what I had. For breakfast, we've got Brooklynn's waffles and Ben's breakfast casserole!"
The six campers dig into their Christmas breakfast. With the limited supplies that Sammy had, she did a pretty good job cooking. "Okay, is it okay if I give you guys my Christmas presents?" Ben asks.
"Sure," Darius smiles.
Ben presents them with necklaces. "I used Compy teeth to survive on my own," he explains. "I know you had a raptor tooth necklace that was special to you, Darius, so I thought I'd do the same with the Compy teeth."
"Aw, cool dude!" Kenji says, slipping the necklace over his head.
"I like that idea!" Sammy says, doing the same. The others follow their lead.
Darius stares at his necklace.
"Are you okay, Darius?" Ben asks.
"Yeah, it's really cool," Darius smiles, pushing away the grief he felt at the memory of his father.
"Well, I guess I'll give you guys my presents," Brooklynn says. "It's not as sentimental as Ben's, but it's practical." She hands the others whistles. "They each have an individual sound. They could be used to call for help if you get stuck in a sticky situation."
Kenji blows his deep blue one, making the others flinch. "Awesome!"
"You had to give him the obnoxious sounding one," Yasmina shakes her head, pocketing her gray whistle.
"Thanks, Brooklynn," Darius smiles, holding his yellow whistle.
"Okay, this is what I made you guys," Yasmina says, pulling out folded pieces of paper. She flips through them, and hands one to Ben.
"Woah, how do you know what my Mom and Dad look like?" Ben asks.
"I kinda used my limited screen time to find pictures of your loved ones," Yasmina says, blushing slightly. "After probing a bit, I found out who you guys cared about the most and then sketched them. Now you'll always have a picture of them to carry around."
"How did you find our families?" Brooklynn asks, tracing her mother's face.
"Well, your brother commandeered your Youtube channel," Yasmina chuckles. "He's been posting tributes to all of the 'dead' Camp Cretaceous campers. I used the pictures he showed."
"Aww, I love that family photo," Sammy says, opening up the paper fully. She starts cackling. "You did not!"
"I did, too," Yasmina snickers, waggling her eyebrows at Kenji.
"You actually drew him like one of your French Kenjis," Sammy wheezes, showing the others what Yasmina had sketched. At the top of the page was her family. Beneath it were sketches of the campers. At the very bottom, Kenji was sprawled out on the couch—shirtless—with his posh sunglasses.
"Oh, that's what you used it for," Kenji's eyebrows raise up in realization.
The group cackles, just imagining the chaos that drawing session had.
Darius opens up his page. Yasmina had found the picture of him and his father standing on the docks. Underneath were various sketches of the other campers and his mother and brother. Darius fights back tears of happiness and longing. "Don't cry, don't cry. It's Christmas morning, don't let them see you cry," he tells himself. "Thank you, Yaz."
Yasmina smiles and hugs him. Darius hugs her tightly, his happy facade faltering for a bit.
"Bruh, you really captured Hayoon's happiness," Kenji comments, breaking up the hug. "Your drawings are so realistic."
"Who's on your page, Kenji?" Sammy asks.
"Hayoon, my step-sister," Kenji says. "My father… you guys…"
"Bumpy," Ben says.
"Just Bumpy?" Brooklynn frowns teasingly.
"No, not just Bumpy," Ben says quickly. "My parents and you guys."
"Do you have one, Yaz?" Sammy asks.
Yasmina bites her lip. "I did make one for myself."
"Who's on it?" Sammy asks.
"My loved ones," Yasmina shrugs, refusing to answer who exactly was on it.
Darius opens his paper fully and finds that it's actually two papers. Yasmina had accidentally given him hers. As the group discusses the drawings, he sneaks a look at the athlete's loved ones. There was a happy looking couple, an older boy giving a smaller boy a piggyback ride, and a young girl with a striking resemblance to Yasmina. Beneath them were the campers. All of the campers. There was Ben looking timid and shy, Brooklynn posing with the peace sign, Sammy laughing at a joke, and Kenji posing shirtless. Darius finds a sketch of himself nerding out over dinosaurs.
Darius smiles, now knowing that the campers meant more to Yasmina than she would admit. While the others are distracted, he slips the athlete her paper. A look of embarrassment crosses her face, but she doesn't say anything.
Darius stands up from the table. "Well, my present to you guys isn't tangible, but I… I thought I'd give you a list of everything I like about you. More or less in poem form, but I don't read poetry so I wouldn't call it that."
The group chuckles. "Okay, Kenji," Darius says, turning to the alpha male. "When I first met you, you were the alpha male. You were stubborn, braggy, and annoying."
Kenji's eyebrows furrow together and he chuckles nervously.
"But after showing bravery and kindness by coming back for me in Toro's cage, other sides of you started to show," Darius continues. "You're protective, smart, strong, and still stubborn—but in a good way. You have a strong loyalty to your friends and you believed in me even when I didn't believe in myself. You're super funny, and keep me laughing in these scary times. And even if I did have a say, I wouldn't say no to you being my older brother."
Kenji pulls Darius in for a hug. The group awws and claps for Darius. He moves on to Sammy. "Sammy, when I first met you, you were overly friendly."
Yasmina grunts in agreement.
"Being friends with you hasn't always been smooth sailing," Darius says. "You surprised us and annoyed us with your friendliness at times. But your ability to stay happy even in the worst times is inspiring. And you strived to make sure everyone felt welcome. It's your words of encouragement that have kept our spirits up. I've enjoyed watching you learn from your mistakes and grow into a kind, caring, and listening friend."
Sammy smiles and hugs him. "Thank you, Darius."
Darius walks around behind Ben's chair. "As you know, Ben, when I first met you, you were—"
"Scared of everything?" Ben finishes.
Darius laughs. "Yep. You were overly cautious and timid. But as we survived countless situations, I watched you grow into someone brave. And your compassion and love for the most helpless dinosaurs was amazing. Now you've survived on your own, trained an Ankylosaurus, and saved us from a Ceratosaurus. I'm proud to call you my friend."
Ben looks down and holds Darius' arm as he hugs him from behind. "Thank you."
"Brooklynn," Darius says. "I'll be honest, you were not my first choice of a friend."
"Ouch," Brooklynn giggles.
"You were obsessed with your phone and Youtube," Darius says, choosing how much to say. "I didn't think we'd get along. But after getting stuck in the mud and talking to you, I grew to like you. You may confuse me at times, but you've trusted in me. You're sweet and sensitive, and… I'm glad to call you my friend."
Brooklynn gets out of her chair and engulfs Darius in a hug. "You also stress me out, but I won't tell you that," Darius thinks. "I don't want any trouble between me and my friends."
"I'm sorry my gift isn't as precious as yours," Brooklynn says as she sits back down.
Darius laughs. "It's okay. Yaz, you know what I'm going to say."
"I'm standoffish and impossible to get to know?" Yasmina suggests with a smirk.
"Yeah," Darius nods.
"And insensitive?" Yasmina suggests.
"That, too," Darius raises his eyebrows.
"And hard to deal with?" Yasmina shrugs.
"Can you let me talk?" Darius chuckles.
"Sorry," Yasmina laughs.
"Yep, you were all those things when I first met you," Darius says. "And you're all those things right now to a degree. But when trouble arose, you stepped up for all of us. You're a reckless friend who will do anything to protect us. You're extremely loyal and caring once you get to know someone. I trust you wholeheartedly, and I hope you feel the same."
Yasmina nods in agreement. "Well, I'm honored to have your trust," Darius giggles. "And I'm thankful that I get to call you Baaji."
"Aww, look at you being fluent," Yasmina smiles and hugs him.
"That was really sweet, Darius," Sammy says. "Kenji, you're the last one."
The alpha male stands up and clears his throat. "I decided that my present to you all would be the recreation of your favorite Christmas memories and traditions. Ben, you said your favorite was caroling with your family."
"Ohh dear," Ben facepalms. "This is going to be interesting."
The group begins to sing classic Christmas songs, and boy was it interesting. Ben and Brooklynn were the only ones who could actually sing. Sammy and Kenji kept having voice cracks during the high parts, and Yasmina and Darius wouldn't sing higher than they were comfortable with, but everyone had fun.
After rolling on the floor with stitches in their sides, Yasmina sighs. "Why do you always make things a comedy?"
"Because that's my job," Kenji wheezes. "Darius said so. Oh, speaking of, you said your favorite Christmas memory was your brother imitating Peewee Herman while singing Let It Snow."
Yasmina nods. "Well, allow me to demonstrate more than Peewee Herman, because I don't remember what his voice sounded like." Kenji proceeds to imitate various cartoon characters while singing, giving his friends a performance to remember. They found it hilarious—yet not surprising—that he was a better singer when imitating Elmo and Goofy.
After the group calms down and wipes their eyes, Kenji continues giving his gift of joy. "Sammy, you said your parents would tie strings around the house and you would have to follow them to your present."
"Yee," Sammy nods, giggling.
Kenji opens the hall door to reveal a maze of string. "Where did you find all this?" Brooklynn asks.
"We have a lot of stuff laying around," the alpha male shrugs. He hands them their strings.
"You can't let go of your string," Sammy says. "Which makes it interesting when your string gets tangled with other peoples."
The group starts following their string around the condo, laughing as they get into jams. Kenji was very strategic with his string placings, so somehow the group ended up getting tangled up like a game of Twister. More than once a camper had to crawl underneath someone else, and towards the end, everyone got in a huge jam. The rule was you couldn't let go with either hand, so Kenji tried to climb over Yasmina while she tried to scoot past Darius—leading Kenji to get stuck on top of both of them. Darius was in the middle of trying to climb over Brooklynn's string, leading her to get stuck underneath him. While the group laughed at their traffic jam, Ben tried to follow his string over Kenji and almost kicked Sammy in the face. He slips as he tries to avoid her face and falls on top of her, adding the two of them to the group pile.
"I haven't laughed this hard in a while," Yasmina wheezes.
"I wish my family did this," Darius wheezes, looking up at Sammy and Kenji on top of him.
"This is the worst jam I've seen," Sammy laughs. "And me and my sisters can get into some pretty bad ones."
"Have you ever been on the bottom before?" Brooklynn grunts, muffled by the five campers on top of her.
Still chuckling, the teens give up on following the strings and Kenji leads them to the big surprise: Brooklynn's present. "Voila!" Kenji makes a bunch of arm movements, showing off the small movie theater. On the TV, the Chronicles of Narnia was read to play.
Brooklynn gasps.
"You said your favorite tradition was to watch the Chronicles of Narnia," Kenji grins. "And argue with your brother because he's so tired of it."
Brooklynn nods, smiling.
"Well, we're not watching it," Kenji crosses his arms and pouts. "Because I hate it. You watch it too much."
Brooklynn good naturedly pushes him, laughing at his impersonation of her brother. The teens sit down to watch the movie. Sammy and Brooklynn were wholeheartedly invested in the movie, Ben was trying to pretend like he wasn't, and Yasmina was waiting for the battle scene.
Kenji was bored as heck, and looks over at Darius. The young boy acted like he was invested with Brooklynn, but when she was distracted, Darius yawned. He gives Kenji a bored face. "I'm with Yaz on this one, where's the battle?" he whispers to the alpha male.
Kenji snickers. "Bathroom time," he whispers back.
Darius's eyes light up at the suggestion. "I gotta use the restroom," he says, removing himself from Brooklynn's grasp.
"Aww, you're going to miss the best parts!" Brooklynn whines.
"I'll be back for the battle," Darius says, and leaves the room. Kenji follows. "Thanks, Kenji. No offense to Brooklynn, but I find that movie boring."
"Yeah," Kenji nods, chuckling. "Well, you're the only one I haven't given my Christmas present to. What did you say was your favorite tradition again?"
"You remember everyone else's, but not mine?" Darius thinks. "Uhh, arguing with my Dad over when me and Brandon could wake him up in the morning," he lies.
"Same, dude!" Kenji laughs. "Although it was the staff I argued with. But that's not what you told me when I originally asked. You said you liked it when you and your brother would stand on your Dad's feet and dance to Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire."
Darius chuckles sheepishly. "Yeah, that's it. Brandon was always embarrassed, like, 'I'm fifteen, Dad, I'm getting too old for this.' Dad always said we would always be his babies…" Darius's face falls, remembering the last Christmas he spent with his father. "This is the first Christmas without him," he thinks sadly.
Darius hears Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire start to play. He turns around and sees Kenji typing on a computer. "Well, I recreated the others' memories as best I could," Kenji says softly. "Can't forget about you."
"You're going to dance with me?" Darius giggles.
"Do you not want to?" Kenji asks. "If it's too awkward we could try something else."
"I mean, it would probably be awkward," Darius chuckles. "But I… I don't have a problem with it."
"Yeah, that's why I decided to do it while the movie was playing," Kenji says. "Don't need the others laughing."
Kenji holds out his hand and Darius takes it. The younger kid steps on the alpha males feet and the two start dancing. They snicker and snort, feeling silly dancing together. It was more of an awkward shuffle because Darius was heavy on Kenji's feet, but the older kid tried his best.
As they dance, memories of dancing with his father each year come back. The farthest Darius could go back was when he was five and his father had to bend down to dance. He remembers when he was nine and they danced for the first time in their new house. The most painful to recall was last year, when he was eleven.
Darius stops laughing and slowly rests his head on Kenji's chest, getting lost in his memories. Kenji senses this change in behavior and stops dancing. He gently wraps his arms around Darius and pulls him into a hug. The two silently embrace as Darius grieves his father. Kenji rests his chin on Darius's head, letting the young boy grip him tighter as he silently cries. Neither speak; they comfort each other in silence.
The song plays two times before the boys separate. "Thank you, Kenji," Darius says, wiping his eyes.
"You're welcome," Kenji says, wrapping his arm around Darius's shoulders and leading him back to the theater room.
Back in Virginia, Brandon Bowman wakes up. Yawning, he sleepily leaves his room. Darius's door is open, and the older boy can see that his brother isn't in there. "Must be downstairs tearing up his Christmas presents," he thinks to himself.
Brandon walks downstairs to find his mother asleep on the couch. Her right hand was hanging off the couch, and a picture frame lay on the floor underneath her hand. He picks it up. It was Darius's picture of him and their father on a dock.
Brandon sighs as everything comes back to him. He grips the picture frame and leans against the fireplace, looking up at the stockings. There were four stockings hanging, one for each of their family members. Darius had insisted on hanging up their father's stocking, not wanting to let go of the memories. Now, only two stockings were filled; Brandon's and his mothers. Something about seeing Darius's stocking empty was wrong.
The sixteen year old man looks at the twinkling Christmas tree. If he squinted hard enough, he could almost see Darius sitting there. He was the most energetic kid on Christmas morning. It was the same routine every year. Darius would run into Brandon's room and jump on top of him. Then he would run into his parents room and jump on top of them. The rest of the family would grudgingly come downstairs. Then Darius would steal Brandon's stocking and the older kid would have to chase him around the house to get it back.
Brandon chuckles at the memory. The chase would generally end with Brandon catching Darius, flipping him upside down and carrying him back into the living room. Then they would see what was in their stockings, and try to eat the candy before breakfast. Their parents would get into their stockings, and then the boys would open a few presents.
The young man sighs, missing Darius's face as he tore into the presents. He always opened everything with such zeal, and his face would light up with absolute joy even if he didn't particularly care for the gift. He would give everyone a great big bear hug after opening their gift to him, and would thank them profusely.
"You were so innocent and happy, D," Brandon mumbles. "Why'd you have to go? You didn't deserve that…"
Mrs. Bowman wakes up and groans. "Merry Christmas, Brandon."
Brandon looks at her, unable to get into the Christmas spirit. "How could we lose both of them in one year?"
"Brand," his mother says, climbing off the couch and wiping away her sons tear.
"Dad told me to take care of you and Darius," Brandon says, another tear sliding down his face. "I failed Dad. And I failed Darius. I should've been there for him, Mom. I'm a terrible brother."
"You're not a terrible brother," his mother says, hugging him. "It's not your fault, and you didn't fail your father. You're a really good big brother. Do you know how many brothers wouldn't try to help their younger siblings? You were a really good brother, Brand."
"And yet, Darius isn't here," Brandon says, shaking with anger. "I should've broken that stupid video game! Then he'd still be here!"
"Brandon," his mother says sternly. "It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself. I had the last say in him going to Jurassic World, not you."
Brandon sniffs and hugs his mother again. The two embrace, mourning the loss of their deceased family members.
At the top of a pristine skyscraper, a man sat in a chair, lost in thought. He had important papers laid out in front of him, but the meeting room was empty.
The man's phone rings. He tiredly pushes his glass up to the bridge of his nose and answers. "You have reached Mr. Kon. Who am I speaking to?"
In a luxurious, pink bedroom in Korea, a young teen girl answers. "Mr. Kon, it's Choi Hayoon."
Mr. Kon takes a second to place that name, and mentally kicks himself. It was his step-daughter. "Hayoon, yes, how are you?"
"I'm good," she says, twirling her hair. "Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas to you, too," Mr. Kon says.
Hayoon is silent for a moment. "I'm sorry about Kenji."
"As am I," Mr. Kon sighs. "I don't remember the last time I told him I loved him. He died never knowing that."
Hayoon bites her lip. "Mr. Kon… if you… if you never told him and you never really spoke to him… did you really love him?"
Mr. Kon gets up from his chair and walks to the window, watching the sun come up. "You know you don't have to be formal with me, Hayoon."
Hayoon lets out a soft chuckle. "You still haven't answered my question."
Kenji's father sighs, knowing he couldn't evade the question. "I know my behavior towards him said everything but love… but… I did love him. It… It took Kenji dying for me to realize it, though… I'm a failure of a father, and I wish I could make up for it. But there's no going back, Kenji is gone."
Hayoon closes her eyes, tears collecting on her long eyelashes.
"I know that you lost your father years ago," Mr. Kon continues. "If you ever need someone to talk to—or a father-figure in general—you can come to me. I screwed up with Kenji and I can't go back. But I will be there for you if you need me."
"Thank you, Kuragari-nim," Hayoon says.
"You can just say Kuragari," Mr. Kon says. "You don't have to be formal. You don't even have to use my name. You can call me Father, Hayoon."
Hayoon chuckles. "Okay Abeoji."
Kenji's father shakes his head, chuckling. "You just refuse to do what I say, don't you."
"I really admire what you're doing," Hayoon says. "With the father program and all."
"I made the terrible mistake of choosing work over my son," Mr. Kon says. "And there are many fathers out there who do the same. I have a meeting later today with a couple therapists to discuss physiological effects of fatherlessness in children. If I can help, I'm going to use wealth to help others avoid my mistake."
Hayoon smiles sadly. "That's very noble of you, Kuragari-nim."
Mr. Kon rolls his eyes, giving up on convincing her to refer to him in a casual way. "Merry Christmas, Hayoon."
"Merry Christmas to you, too," she says, hanging up. The young girl looks at the present sitting in front of her. She slowly opens it and pulls out the gift. It was an ugly pair of disco-like, star-shaped, green sunglasses. She had found them near the end of November and thought of Kenji. It was her gift to him. She pulls out the second gift: a picture of her and Kenji goofing off with their posh sunglasses. Her lip trembles as she puts on her gift to her step-brother.
Mr. Kon puts away his phone, staring out the window. "Merry Christmas, my son… if you can hear me. At least… at least you're with your mother now."
His secretary arrives to give him his schedule, and with a forlorn look, Kenji's father leaves the window.
In North Carolina, Milton wakes up in his room. He hears the familiar sound of the Chronicles of Narnia playing downstairs. The young man sighs. "It was just a dream."
He walks down the stairs. "Brooklynn, I have never been so happy to hear that stupid mov—"
His parents stared back, but his younger sister was missing. "It wasn't… a dream…" he says sullenly, slumping down on the end of the stairs. "She's still… gone…" Tears start to slip out.
"We miss her, too," his mother says, coming over to sit on the steps next to him.
"I was a terrible brother to her," Milton cries. "I was a big fat jerk and a bully."
"You couldn't have been that bad to her," Brooklyn's father says.
"I made fun of her constantly," Milton continues. "Pushed her around. Messed with her stuff. One of my biggest regrets, though? When we were in the car to drive her to the boat. She was talking about mosquitoes and other bugs. I told her, 'Suck it up, Loser.' That was the last thing I told her. That's the last memory she had of me."
"Milton," his mother says.
"Imagine dying in the most painful way," the young man sobs. "And your life flashes before your eyes, and you remember your family. The last thing she remembers is me telling her to suck it up and calling her a loser!"
His mother holds him as he cries. "There is a lot we could've done differently with Brooklynn," his father says. "Your mother and I were too busy with work to pay attention to you and her. Maybe if we had given her the attention she wanted—the attention she needed—she wouldn't have looked to the Internet for love and acceptance. We're sorry for neglecting you, too, Milton."
"We all made mistakes," his mother says, rubbing his back. "I don't think you're as bad of a brother as you think."
Milton takes in a deep breath. "Actually, I am. You now know what Brooklynn was dealing with and who she was communicating with. But… I knew for a while. She made me swear not to tell you. I should've just told you what was going on. I didn't think there was any danger in what she was doing. But there was, and we're lucky nothing happened to her."
Brooklynn's parents look at each other. "Seeing the way that Brandon treated Darius," the young man sobs. "And the way Ghaleb treated Yasmina, and the way Miriam and Holly treated Sammy… I'm such a terrible brother. I know for a fact that if Yasmina was to get into the same stuff Brooklynn did, that Ghaleb would've at least told his parents. At most, he would've committed murder to help his sister. He did everything he could to protect Yasmina from her creepy fans. I could've… should've done the same."
His parents hug him as he sobs. "I wish she was still here," he says.
"Me, too," his mother sniffs. The three mourn the loss of Brooklynn.
Across the United States in Texas, a large family was gathering around the Christmas tree. Presents lay around and wrapping paper was strewn about. Dogs and cats run in between the kids. "All right, y'all," the father says. "What is everyone's Christmas wish? Youngest goes first. Shelby?"
Sammy's six year old sister stands up and clears her throat. "I wish that Sammy was still here with us."
The rest of the family feels a pit of dread in their stomachs. Of course, innocent, young Shelby had to twist the knife in deeper by coming out and saying it.
"I wish Sammy was still alive," Sandra says, going next. Her happy, cheerful face had been replaced with sadness.
"Rio?" Shelby blinks. "Your turn."
The twelve year old looks up from her crossed arms. She had distanced herself from her family and sat in the corner. She frowns angrily. "I wish I had been the one to go instead of Sammy," she says bitterly.
"Rio," Sammy's mother says softly.
The young girl breaks down crying. She runs to her father and hugs him. "I wish I had said yes to Mantah Corp instead of Sammy. I'm twelve. I was old enough!"
"But then we would lose you," Sandra says.
"I wish I had been there for Sammy in her last moments," Miriam says sadly, holding her head. "It's hard not to imagine the horrible things she endured."
"I wish I could've told Sammy about my engagement to Justin," Holly says. "She was so excited about the idea that we would get married. Our marriage wouldn't be the same without her being one of the bridesmaids."
"I wish my baby told us what she was doing," Mrs. Guiterrez says, tears slipping out.
"I wish Sammy didn't feel the need to fix our ranches problem," Mr. Guiterrez sighs.
Sammy's Abuela sighs. "I wish I didn't have to mourn the loss of a Granddaughter."
The Guiterrez family comes in for a group hug. "This is the worst Christmas ever," Rio sniffs.
Up in North Dakota, an exasperated mother reprimands her son. "Jabari, don't get into the presents just yet!" Mrs. Fadoula says, grabbing her son's arm. "Wait for your Father and sister."
"Mom, just one peak?" Jabari whines.
"Come on, Squirt," Ghaleb says, picking up his brother and slinging him over his shoulder. "You gotta wait."
"But I don't want to!" Jabari whines.
"Well, you can't get your presents if I'm sitting on you," the seventeen year old says, flopping down on the couch. His younger brother squeals, trying to escape.
Yasmina's mother chuckles and cracks the door open to her eldest daughter's room. Habeeba was asleep on Yasmina's bed, curled up with two of her older sisters hoodies. Sitting at Yasmina's desk was her father, reading something. "What are you doing?" Mrs. Fadoula asks.
Her husband looks up. "Reading her diary," he says, gesturing to the book.
"What does it say?" Mrs. Fadoula asks quietly.
Mr. Fadoula sighs. "July 1. We just had a family meeting about how we can all come to our parents with our problems and be honest with them. The problem is, I don't know if I'd trust them completely with my problems. At least, I don't know if I'd trust my step-dad. He's a nice guy and acts like he cares about us, but I'm scared that once I open up to him and trust him, he'll flip and become mean. I'm scared to trust him. It's been three years since Mom married him, but I'm nervous to open up to him. I feel like, if I want him to love me, I need to become the best athlete I can. He loves sports, so maybe I can earn his love that way. I've qualified for the AAU Junior Olympics Track & Field events, so later this month, I'll start competing. Maybe I'll earn his love then."
Mr. Fadoula closes the diary with tears in his eyes. "I… I thought… I had hoped that I made it clear to your kids that I would love them all no matter what they did. I tried to express to Yasmina that my love for her had nothing to do with sports."
"Yasmina had always been my most skittish kid," Mrs. Fadoula says, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall. "She was always shy and reserved. Always careful who she trusted. That probably comes from her abusive father. Her trust in any father-figure was shattered before she could build it. As much as I tried, it seems she still doesn't understand unconditional love."
Yasmina's step-father goes to say something when Ghaleb walks in. "Uh, Mom, Dad, can I tell you something?"
"Of course," Mr. Fadoula says.
"Where's Jabari?" Mrs. Fadoula asks.
"Stuck at the kitchen island," Ghaleb says. "I put cups full of water on his hands. It'll take him a while to get out from that. Gets him every time. Um… as for what I wanted to tell you." The young man winces. "I… I've decided that I don't want to be a professional swimmer when I graduate."
"What do you want to do, then?" Mrs. Fadoula asks.
Yasmina's brother holds his hands behind his back professionally. "I want to become a search and rescue worker, so that other families won't have to go through what we did. I want to make up for failing Yasmina."
Yasmina's step-father gets up and hugs his step-son. "I'm proud of your decision to help others," he nods. "You know that I love you, right, son?"
Ghaleb nods. "I know… Does this have anything to do with Yazzy?"
"I wish I had shown Yazzy more fatherly love," Mr. Fadoula sighs.
"You showed her more love than she had known from a father," Ghaleb says. "It's nothing you did; you did your best to show her love. She just wasn't open to accept it. She's afraid of you, and it's not your fault. She was hurt deeply by Dad's words… we both were. Habeeba and Jabari are lucky that they were young enough to not remember."
"I know," Yasmina's step-father says. "I wish I was able to change that."
"When I become a father, I want to be like you," Ghaleb says. "I don't want my children to be hurt by my words." His parents detect fear in his eyes as he says that. "I'm scared that I'll be like my biological father when I grow up."
"You're better than him, Ghaleb," Mrs. Fadoula says. "You're a lot more loving and sensitive than him. I can't see you ever becoming abusive like him."
"I know how much his words hurt," Ghaleb says. "And I saw how much Yasmina was hurt. I… I wanted to be there for her, while she was going through the healing process. I wanted to be there for her when she was in trouble, and when she was having a bad day. I guess… I wanted to be the father she didn't have. But… in the time she needed help the most, I wasn't there."
Mr. Fadoula picks up Yasmina's diary and flips through it. "I am so grateful for my older brother, Ghaleb," he reads. "I know there are many brothers out there who are complete jerks to their sisters, and I'm lucky to have gotten the best brother in the world. Sometimes I get annoyed with how overprotective he is, but it's better than him not protecting me at all. Today, one of the students in my school turned out to be a fan of mine. He was a creep and stalked me the entire day. It was really uncomfortable. I told Ghaleb about the boy, and I never saw him again. I'm still not entirely convinced Ghaleb didn't murder him. It's also nice that I can trust Ghaleb with everything I think and feel. I'm lucky to have such a good listener and secret keeper for a brother. I don't think I could ask for a better older brother."
Mr. Fadoula looks up from the diary to see tears in Ghaleb's eyes. "I'm glad she… she appreciated me," he says, sighing shakily. His parents hug him.
A thud is heard from the kitchen. "Uhh… everything's fine in here!" Jabari shouts nervously.
The three chuckle. "Next time, find a different way to trap your brother," Mrs. Fadoula says.
"Lock him in his room," Mr. Fadoula suggests.
Habeeba sits up slowly, rubs her eyes and starts crying. "I miss Yazzy," she sobs to her mother, getting off the bed and hugging her.
Jabari comes in. "Uhh… are we having a group hug?"
"Come here," Yasmina's mother gestures to her youngest son. The family comes in for a group hug. "Merry Christmas," Mrs. Fadoula whispers to her family.
Over in Maryland, Ben's father wakes up and notices that his wife is not in bed. He hears music in the living room and gets up. He finds his wife swaying back and forth, hands clutched to her chest. She was singing to Happy Xmas/War Is Over. "So this is Christmas, and what have you done? Another year over, a new one's just begun."
Mr. Pincus slowly walks up to her as she sings. "And so this is Christmas, I hope you had fun. The near and the dear ones, the old and the young…"
The song continues, but Mrs. Pincus does not. She sees her husband behind her and hugs him, sobbing. "I found the adoption files," she cries softly. "We prayed so hard for a baby, Christian. So hard. We tried and tried for years. For seven years we prayed and tried. And then we found out that I couldn't bear children."
"I know, Emma," Mr. Pincus says softly.
"And just like that, your dreams are crushed," Mrs. Pincus continues to wail. "I thought we would never have a child. And then, a couple weeks before Christmas, a friend contacted us, saying there was a little boy that needed a home. He was three years old and in an abusive home situation. She wondered if we would like to take him in. The little boy was traumatized and afraid of everyone, but she hoped that we could help him. And so we took in little Ben."
"He was a blessing to us just as much as we were a blessing to him," Ben's father says. "I can't even imagine what he would have to endure if he stayed with his biological family."
Ben's mother sobs. "It's my fault he's gone. I sent him to the camp."
"Emma," Mr. Pincus starts.
"I'm sure that the trauma he endured for the first three years of his life is the reason for his extreme paranoia," she continues. "I wanted to help him overcome his fears and become brave and strong. Or, at least, become more comfortable and less afraid. I hated seeing him so terrified of the world! And Ben hated himself, I know it. He didn't want to live in fear all his life, and hated himself for it. When I heard about Camp Cretaceous, I had hoped that maybe he could make friends and face his fears."
"Honey," Mr. Pincus tries again.
"Instead, it got him killed in some twisted, horrible way," Mrs. Pincus wails. "And it's all my fault, Christian. Our beautiful, sweet baby is gone."
"You had the best intentions and you couldn't have known what would've happened," her husband says.
Mrs. Pincus sobs, hugging her husband tightly. He holds her as she mourns the loss of her dearly wanted son.
"Where did that silly Ankylosaurus get off to, this time?" Ben huffs, planting his hands on his hips. He winces as he bumps his stitches.
"How are those doing?" Sammy asks.
"It's healing up fine," Ben says dismissively. "No signs of blood poisoning or infection. Now where did Bumpy get off to?"
"She's probably grazing in the grass," Darius theorizes. The six campers head for the edge of the park. Kenji and Yasmina get into an argument over whether she should walk or not. Darius finally overrules Yasmina with, "You're still ground." and Kenji picks her up bridal style. In protest, she goes completely limp, making it difficult for the alpha male. After he pretends to drop her on her head, she complies.
The campers arrive at the grassy plains near the park and find Bumpy grazing. "There you are, girl," Ben says, shaking his head.
"Uhh, guys?" Brooklynn says, tugging on Darius's sleeve.
He follows her gaze and frowns. "Kenji, where are all the agro dinosaurs kept?"
"In pens similar to Toro's," Kenji says, patting Bumpy. "Generally in the woods close to where the Camp was."
"Where was the Utahraptor kept?" Darius asks.
"Near Toro," Kenji shrugs. "Well, usually. Around the time we came to camp, they moved her to a small pen in the park because her enclosure was damaged somehow."
"Where was that small pen?" Yasmina asks, looking over Kenji's shoulder.
"In the back of the park," Kenji says. "It's a pretty small building with small cages for the agro dinosaurs. A bit cruel if you ask me, keeping them pent up in such a small cage. Why?"
Yasmina turns his head with her finger. Behind them were the park buildings. Long pipes crossed over each other; some broken, some still intact. A gaping hole close to the top was left in the building.
"That must be how she got out," Sammy says.
"But how would Utah break through the concrete wall?" Ben asks.
"That part is not concrete," Kenji says. "It's a series of metal vents laced with an electric fence. They left it there to make sure the dinos got fresh air. The electric fence must've shut down after the park was abandoned."
"I don't remember seeing that hole there the last bunch of times I've come around," Ben says.
"Looks pretty recent," Darius says. "Maybe she broke out a couple days ago."
"That would mean the Utahraptor's been stuck in a small cage for a little over two weeks," Brooklynn says. "Without food or water."
"She'd have gotten water," Kenji states. "The park has a pipe system that when not maintained after a week will break and drip water for the dinos to drink. As for the food, she would definitely have been starving."
"Still doesn't explain why she died," Yasmina says. The group heads over to the building to take a closer look. The group sees multiple other holes in the back of the building, meaning that other dinosaurs had escaped.
Darius looks down and holds up his hand. "Stop," he orders.
The group stops and looks down at the grass. The ground was bare and slightly soaked. Darius points to plastic barrels, a couple of which were knocked down and open. "Paraquat dichloride," the young boy reads. "A pesticide."
"I thought it was blue and had a strong odor," Brooklynn says. "This stuff looks like water."
"The blue dye and strong odor is added to make sure people don't mistake it for water," Darius explains. "And a chemical is added to make you throw up if you ingest it. That's what the United States does to keep people from mistaking it for a beverage, but I don't know what other countries do."
"Could that be what killed Utah?" Sammy asks. "If she was thirsty, she might've drank it."
"After ingesting it, you'll likely find pain and swelling in the mouth and throat," Brooklynn states, starting to list off facts. "You can experience nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhea. It can result in dehydration, electrolyte imbalance and low blood pressure. Within a few hours and days it could lead to confusion, a fast heart rate, liver failure, muscle weakness, seizures, respiratory issues, and a coma."
"You're just a walking Google, aren't you?" Kenji asks, impressed.
"Considering our lack of information, Paraquat Dicholride poisoning is our best guess as to how Utah died," Darius says. "Probably a bunch of other dinos fell for it, too."
"This is dangerous for all of us," Sammy says. The others look at her. "Well, who knows how many predators escaped," she points out. "We don't know how many drank the pesticide, or how many or out there. And if this stuff has soaked into the ground, it's not safe for Bumpy to be grazing out here."
"You're right," Darius says. "We need to move locations to somewhere without poisoning."
"Where will we go?" Brooklynn asks. "The condos are the safest place right now and—"
"We'll decide that tomorrow morning," Darius cuts off her questions. "Right now, it's Christmas. Let's enjoy our little break from immediate danger."
The group nods, and heads back for Kenji's fathers condos. Along the way, Ben stops by an ACU transport vehicle and crouches down. "What is it, Ben?" Brooklynn asks.
Ben picks up a large walkie talkie.
"Ooh! Ooh! It's the thingy!" Kenji exclaims, trying to jump up and down in joy, but is hindered by Yasmina.
"The thingy?" she asks.
"The uhh… argh, what's it called?!" Kenji groans.
"The special walkie talkie that can send a distress signal?" Darius asks hopefully.
"Yeah!" Kenji nods, grinning like an idiot.
The group crowds around Ben. Even Bumpy tries to join them. Ben turns it on. "Hello? Hello! We need an immediate evacuation. We're trapped on Island Nublar!"
There was no answer. Ben tries again. "There's nothing!" he shouts.
"No, there can't be!" Kenji exclaims, taking it from him. He tries a couple times. "No, the emergency responders were always tuned in!"
"Maybe they thought… thought there was no point in tuning in anymore," Yasmina says soberly. "It's been over two weeks since the disaster."
The group groans in frustration and sadness. Sammy drops her fists on the ground. Darius hangs his head and Ben holds his fists to the sides of his face. Brooklynn slumps against the ACU vehicle with a defeated sigh. Kenji drops the device miserably. Yasmina finds a pebble and throws it in anger.
"Maybe someone will pick up our signal," Sammy says hopefully. "Let's just wait. There's gotta be someone out there who would hear us."
Darius nods. "Yeah, let's wait." The group is quiet. Darius takes the walkie talkie and stands up. "Come on, let's head back to the condo."
The group solemnly heads back to the condos. "Put me down," Yasmina mumbles as they walk into the building. Kenji was lost in thought and didn't hear her. "Kenji, put me down," she says louder.
"You can't walk," Kenji says absentmindedly.
"I have a boot on, I can walk in the condo," Yasmina growls. "Put me down!" She takes her right leg and pushes his face. This startles Kenji and he drops her roughly. "Hey!" she protests. "Rude!"
"There was a foot in my face!" Kenji exclaims. "You startled me!"
"I've been in your arms the entire time, how could you be startled by me?" Yasmina throws out her arms in anger.
The tension is broken and the other four laugh. "Glad I got that on camera," Brooklynn says, causing Yasmina to hide her face with her hands.
"Come on guys," Kenji says. "I found a Christmas tree in the storage unit. Let's go decorate it!"
Across the globe in Liverpool, England, the Gianfortoni family was having a Christmas party. The sun had gone down and the house was filled with people. Roxie was talking with her younger sister, who had just announced her first pregnancy. "Are you hoping for a girl or a boy?" Roxie asks.
"I'd be happy with either," Fiora says. "Martin says he wants a boy, but I know he'd love a girl just as much."
"He better," Roxie chuckles. "It's his child."
"Don't worry, Rox," Fiora's husband says, coming up behind her. "You don't have to go ballistic older sister on me."
"We'll see," Roxie says, waggling her eyebrows threateningly. Her sister and brother-in-law mingle with other people when she receives a text message from Dave. "Video call time."
Roxie sighs and smiles. She heads into her younger sisters bedroom, which they were sharing for the time being. The brunette sets up her computer and gets on the video call with Dave. To her surprise, she wasn't the only one. "Howdy, Roxie!" Sandra says. All they could see was her teeth as she held the camera too close to her face.
"Mom, you turned off the video," Brandon says from his end. "Hit that button. No, the other 'that' button. No, you're—no, Mom, you're not listening…. Okay, well now we got the audio back but the video is still not on. Mom, just let me do it." Darius's older brother finally succeeds in turning on the camera.
"Well, looks like we're all here!" Dave says, recovering from his laughter. "We got the Bowman's, the Monell's, the Guiterrez's, the Pincus's, the Fadoula's, and the lovely Miss Hayoon. And Roxie, can't forget you!"
"Merry Christmas!" the families chaotically chorus.
"How's everyone been?" Dave asks. Everyone starts talking at once. "Guys, guys! Okay, Hayoon, you wanna go first?"
"Well, since we all first met, I've been trying to advocate for stricter and safer rules in theme parks," Hayoon says. "I've used my popularity to do that. And Mr. Kon has started a program for parents to learn how to manage work and show their kids love at the same time."
The group applauds. Roxie applauds as well, but winces at the mention of the campers.
"We were thinking of joining him in the program," Brooklynn's father says.
"I've kinda taken over Brooklynn's channel," Milton laughs sheepishly.
"Of course. Your sister dies and you immediately take her Youtube channel," Yasmina's older brother teases.
"Shut up, Ghaleb," Milton sputters. "We created another Youtube channel, me, Brandon, and Ghaleb. Holly and Miriam sometimes join in. It's meant to encourage brothers to be nice to their sisters and help protect them. Holly and Miriam deal with the older sister portion."
The families clap. "We've travelled to Texas," Jabari announces.
"I got to ride a horse!" Habeeba exclaims. "Sandra taught me."
"I'm going to become a Search and Rescue worker," Ghaleb says.
"Dang, you make my life sound boring," Brandon chuckles. "The most I've done is be on Milton's Youtube channel."
The group laughs. "So how's life in Texas?" Dave asks.
"I got engaged," Holly says. "The day of the disaster…" she adds.
"I've been working with Ghaleb and the other boys," Miriam shrugs.
"I've been learning how to play the violin," Rio mumbles.
"It's how she deals with the pain, other than hiding away from the rest of us," Sandra says.
"Shut up!" Rio snaps.
"I've been painting with Habeeba," Sandra grins.
"I learned how to spell Mississippi!" Shelby exclaims. "M-I-S-S-I-S-S-S-I-P-P-I!"
"You added another S," Miriam giggles.
"Dangum it!" Shelby states.
The group congratulates her. "How about the Pincus's?" Dave asks.
"Not much," Mrs. Pincus says solemnly. "How about you?"
"Working at Chick-fil-a and playing with my nephews," Dave announces. "Roxie?"
Roxie goes to speak when someone jumps on her from behind. "Ah! Keaton!" she exclaims.
"Did I scare you?" her younger brother cackles.
"Yes, you did!" Roxie exclaims. "Everybody, this is my youngest brother, Keaton. He's Habeeba and Sandra's age. As for me, I've been working at my family's restaurant."
"Wait, you take Ballet?" Darius asks as he and Brooklynn walk through the door to the foyer.
"Yeah," Brooklynn nods. "I've taken it for years now."
"I used to take Ballet as a kid," Yasmina says. "Then I got into track."
"Give us a performance!" Kenji says. "There's Ballet slippers in the lost and found."
"First off, eww," Brooklynn says. "And second, what sort of stuff is in there?"
Kenji shrugs. "You could wash your feet afterwards."
Brooklynn sighs and puts on the Ballet slippers that fit her. After warming up, Kenji starts Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and Brooklynn dances for them. She inspired oohs and awws as she danced on her toes to the beat. She is slightly wobbly and stumbles a bit, but the others thought it was beautiful. For the big finale, she spins over a dozen times and makes herself dizzy. Instead of posing at the end, she wobbles over and falls on top of Darius.
"Bravo! Bravissimo!" Kenji claps enthusiastically.
"Did you make that up as you go?" Yasmina asks.
"Whoo! Nah, I've watched a professional ballerina's performance over a dozen times and remember what she did," Brooklynn laughs.
"I wonder if I can still do some moves," Yasmina says, trying on a slipper on her right foot.
"No, you're injured and in a boot," Sammy protests.
"I'll put my weight on my right foot," Yasmina promises and stands up. "Ow, I've lost it," she laughs as she tries to stand on her toe. "I'll stick to my regular sneakers."
Kenji puts on Wizards in Winter by Trans SIberian Orchestra and Brooklynn and Yasmina dance to it. "Dance with me, Darius," Brooklynn smiles, holding out her hands.
"I can't do Ballet," Darius's face heats up.
"Come on, I don't care," Brooklynn laughs. She grabs his hands and takes long strides around in a circle. The two laugh as they spin around, going faster and faster. Kenji and Sammy get up to dance. They hold hands and start spinning their arms around wildly, and only stop when Sammy accidentally hits Kenji in the face. Yasmina motions for Ben and he supports her while she tries to kick her leg ballerina style.
"Hold your arm around my waist like this," Brooklynn instructs, guiding Darius's arm. "Put your weight on your back leg and hold your left arm out like this." She steps on one foot and leans down. Darius supports her. He shakes a bit but grins nonetheless. "This is close as we can get to a Fish dive," Brooklynn laughs.
Yasmina leans back and daintily holds out her leg. Ben awkwardly holds her waist and spins her around. The group can't help but laugh at the sight of graceful Yasmina and embarrassed Ben. He tries to lift her back up but ends up falling over. The two laugh it off.
Kenji and Sammy pretend to Ballroom dance, but purposefully look goofy. Kenji tries to lift Sammy, but she doesn't know what to do. "Come on," he whines.
"I can do it," Yasmina says. Kenji lifts her as she kicks her leg in the air. It was as close as they could get to looking professional.
The song ends and the group falls on the ground in giggles. "That was so much fun," Darius sighs. The six lay there, slightly cuddling in silence. Darius gets an idea. "What if we tried Channel six?"
"The Channel we talked to Roxie and Dave on?" Kenji asks. "Why would they answer?"
"I don't know," Darius shrugs. "But it's worth a try." Darius picks up the walkie talkie. "Dave, Roxie, if you can hear this, we're still alive. We need help. We've lasted this long, but… we need to get off the island."
The walkie talkie turns green, saying signal sent. Then it turns blue, saying the signal was received. "Now we just have to find a place to hole up until help arrives."
Roxie's two brothers ended up taking over her video call, talking to the campers' siblings. The brunette hangs back, chuckling as they talk. From her bag, she hears static. "Dave, Roxie, if you can hear this, we're still alive," Darius's voice says. "We need help. We've lasted this long, but… we need to get off the island."
Roxie races over to her bag and searches through quickly, scaring her brothers. She finds the walkie talkie she brought and turns it on. "Darius? Are you there?!"
Back on the island, the group is quiet. Darius and Yasmina have their heads close together, and the older girl is stroking his hair. Kenji is laying next to Darius, and Sammy rests her head on his stomach. Brooklynn's pink hair touches the top of Yasmina's head as she curls up next to Darius. Ben lies between Yasmina and Kenji folding his hands on his chest.
Suddenly, the walkie talkie starts working. "Darius? Are you there?!" Roxie says.
The group jumps and the six campers almost run each other over to get to it. Darius grabs it first and turns it on. "Roxie! We're here. We're all here!"
Roxie shouts with joy, and immediately shoos her brothers away. "I'm so relieved! We thought you were dead!"
"Huh?" Dave tilts his head.
"I'm on a video call with Dave and your families," Roxie says. "Brandon, Mrs. Bowman, here's Darius."
"Wait, Mom? Brand?!" Darius's eyes light up.
Everyone starts talking at once. "Everyone, mute yourself!" Roxie exclaims. All the families except Darius mute their call. Hayoon leaves the picture.
"Mom, Brand?" Darius asks, chuckling happily. "Are you guys there?"
"Darius!" they exclaim.
Darius has tears of joy in his eyes.
"Oh my God, honey," his mother cries. "You're alive. You're alive!"
"Bro, how did you survive?!" Brandon cries.
"Come on, I'm tougher than you think," Darius laughs.
"It's so good to hear your voice again," his mother says. "I love you, Darius."
"Yeah, I… I love you, too," Brandon says, ducking his head as he's overwhelmed with emotion.
"I love you guys so much," Darius cries.
"Okay, Brooklynn?" Roxie asks.
Darius's family mutes themselves and Brooklynn's family unmutes themselves. Darius hands Brooklynn the walkie talkie. "Mom, Dad!"
"Brooklynn, how are you?" her parents says, weeping with joy.
"Oh, as well as I could be on a dinosaur infested island," Brooklynn laughs, wiping her eyes.
"How's the mosquitoes," Milton says.
"Milton? I have never been so happy to hear your voice!" Brooklynn exclaims with a laugh.
"I'm sorry I called you a Loser," Milton apologizes. "I couldn't have lived as long as you for sure."
"Well, I've got my friends with me," Brooklynn smiles at the group. "I love you guys."
"We love you, Brooklynn," her family choruses.
"Sammy?" Roxie says.
"Sammy!" the Guiterrez family yells.
"Hey, y'all," Sammy laughs. She starts to babble in happiness.
"Scratch what I said earlier, this is the best Christmas EVER!" Rio shouts.
"Sammy, you're alive!" Sandra exclaims.
"I thought you died in the worst way possible," Miriam sobs.
"I was close to doing that, several times," Sammy nods.
"Sammy! Sammy, when are you coming back?" Shelby asks, crying tears of happiness.
"As soon as you come for me," the Texan sighs.
"We'll come for you no matter what," her cousin says.
"Are you going to tell her?" Shelby asks.
"Tell me what?" Sammy asks.
"Justin and I got engaged!" Holly exclaims.
Sammy jumps up and screams with joy. "Don't you dare get married before I get home. I love you guys so much!"
Her family noisily tries to convey their love for her.
Sammy turns the walkie talkie over to Ben. "Mom? Dad?" Ben asks.
"Ben!" his mother sobs. "I am so, so, so, so, sorry!"
Ben chuckles. "Well, you couldn't have known, Mom."
"How are you doing, Ben?" his father asks.
"Well, I'm raising an Ankylosaurus, fell off a monorail, fought off a Carnotaurus and a Ceratosaurus and survived about a week on my own," Ben says, causing his mother to panic.
"I'll tell you all about it when I get back home," Ben chuckles. "I love you, Mom, Dad."
"We love you, son," his father says, and his mother sobs in agreement.
"Yasmina, take that walkie talkie and talk to us!" Habeeba orders.
Yasmina laughs as Ben hands her the device. "Hey, Beebee."
"Yazzy! How much dino butt have you kicked?" Jabari exclaims.
"Uhh, not much since I'm still injured," Yasmina chuckles.
"How bad is it?" her mother asks, concerned.
"I'm fine, Mom," Yasmina rolls her eyes. "It's just a sprain. The others have carried me around a lot of the time."
"That's my girl!" her father exclaims. "Show them how to do it!"
"I wish I was there with you," Ghaleb says.
"Noo, you don't," Yasmina's eyes widened as she laughs. "But I can tell you all about it when I'm back. I love you guys!"
"Don't you dare die on us there!" Jabari says.
"We love you so much," her mother cries.
"Kenji?" Hayoon says, coming back on the call.
Kenji's eyebrows go up in confusion. "Hayoon?"
"Kenji!" she shouts. "You're alive!"
"Hayoon!" he exclaims, taking the walkie talkie carefully, almost not believing he was awake.
"I love you so much!" she exclaims. "Saranghae! And your Appa is on the phone. Here!"
Kenji stares at his friends in shock.
"Kenji? Son, are you there?" his father says through Hayoon's phone.
Kenji crumbles into a laughing, crying mess. "Dad," he is barely able to articulate. "I… I didn't think… I…"
Darius and Sammy hug Kenji as he tries to talk to his father through his joyful crying.
"Kenji, I know we don't have much time to talk," Mr. Kon says, making sure to express what he wanted to. "I'm sorry for not… not being there for you. There is so much I need to apologize for, but we don't have the time. Just know that I love you, son. I'm not going to leave you on that island. I'll do whatever it takes to get you out of there."
Kenji sobs. "I l-l-love you-ou-ou t-t-to."
"We're going to do everything we can to bring you kiddos back," Dave says. "We'll go to jail if we need to."
The families agree with him. "Merry Christmas, campers," Roxie says. "We're coming for you."
"Bye," Darius cries as they turn off the walkie talkie. The group hugs joyfully, crying. Back in the United States, Korea, and England, a plan was being hatched to get the kids back. Tired and happy, the campers crawl into bed, snuggling up close. "Merry Christmas," Darius smiles.
"Merry Christmas!" the others exclaim. They fall asleep with hope in their hearts.