Author's note:
Life is happening, and I'm trying to organize their recovery and emotinal journeys, so the next chapter might take longer as I sort out everything. And I'm not sure how long this story in general will be. It'll continue on with them learning how to live in society again. It's not a one-shot, and hopefully it'll tie into Fallen Kingdom and Dominion. If any sequel happens, it will be after Dominion establishes canon for me to work with.
Enjoy!
"I apologize for anything I said to you guys yesterday!" Kenji exclaims, storming up to his friends as he steps out of the helicopter. The six had just been flown from the hospital in Costa Rica to a hospital in Maryland. "I told my Dad NOT to let me see you guys under anesthesia! I have zero control of myself!" He gives his father a dirty glare.
"Is it any different from when you're sleep deprived?" Yasmina shrugs.
"Honestly, I thought you would've been way worse," Brooklynn laughs.
"Other than crying over something stupid, you were pretty much the same," Ben nods.
Kenji deflates a bit. "My Dad said that he took me out because he was afraid I would get inappropriate. Any particular reason why?"
"You made a comment to Sammy," Yasmina smirks.
"Oh, God, what did I say?!" Kenji paincks.
"Well, first off, you started crying and getting upset because you thought the doctors took your mouth and that you couldn't get a girlfriend without a mouth," Darius explains as the staff wheels him into the hospital, cutting him off.
"And then Sammy comforted you in your crying state," Yasmina continues for him. "And you told her that you loved her for her a**."
"First off, language," Sammy hisses. "Second, that's not exactly it. You said, 'I knew I loved you for a reason. It wasn't just for the great—"
"A**," Yasmina says again.
"Yasmina Fadoula!" Sammy snaps.
"I'm directly quoting him!" the athlete protests.
"Oh," Kenji deflates entirely. "At least I complimented you truthfully."
Sammy's cheeks heat up.
Their families come up to meet them. They had already flown to Maryland, with only one parent staying behind to ride with them. Brandon and his mother head into the hospital to find Darius while the others meet each other's families outside.
Ben introduces his parents to Kenji when a familiar man walks up to the group. Over six foot, burly and wide, the man strides up to them, wheeling Yasmina in her wheelchair. "Want to introduce me to your new friends?"
"Dad, you know this is Kenji and Ben," Yasmina looks up at him with a grin. "And that's Sammy and Brooklynn."
"I know, but I'll let you introduce me," her step-father grins.
Her four friends stare in shock. "He's your step-father?!" Kenji stutters.
"Yeah," Yasmina nods. "He's six foot, five, and a bodybuilding champion, so people often get surprised and intimidated."
Sammy sputters. "I bet most haven't seen him punch Rexy in the face!"
"What?!" Yasmina exclaims. "I was out for most of the rescue! What happened?!"
"He freakin' punched Rexy in the face!" Kenji's jaw drops.
"Did you?!" Yasmina asks in awe.
"Well, I guess I did," her step-father hesitates. "She was running towards us and I came up from the side and maybe knocked her off course."
"With your fist!" Brooklynn exclaims.
"She kinda stumbled to the side like, 'Wut…'" Kenji says, demonstrating.
"Dang it! I wish I had seen that!" Yasmina crosses her arms sullenly. "Ben? You okay?"
"You look like you're about to pass out, buddy," her step-father says, putting a beefy hand on Ben's shoulder.
Ben's face had paled and he was a bit wobbly on his feet. Mr. Fadoula's strong hand kept him from falling over, but he still felt weak in his knees. "Ben, sit down," his mother says, guiding him to the ground.
"Is everything okay?" a nurse asks in concern.
"It's okay, I think he's just nervous to meet me," Mr. Fadoula waves her off. "I look intimidating, but I'm a really nice guy."
"You wouldn't expect his personality in that kind of bodybuilder," Yasmina adds.
"What? The son of Chuck Norris and Dwayne Johnson?" Kenji asks.
Yasmina's father laughs. "It's okay, you don't need to fear me."
"This is the father of my crush," Ben panics in his head. "The father of the girl I kissed. OF COURSE, I NEED TO FEAR YOU!"
"Oh, Yasmina, we have a surprise for you," her father grins, and wheels her around.
"Bruh, you good?" Kenji whispers to Ben as he helps his friend up.
"I have a crush on Yaz and I kissed her," Ben whispers back. "I'm dead meat."
"You just fainted at the sight of her step-father," Kenji snickers. "I don't think he'll see you as much of a threat."
Her step-father and brothers walk close together as they come up to Yasmina. "Surprise!" Jabari exclaims as they step back to reveal Habeeba holding a puppy. Everyone who could get a glimpse of the puppy let out an aww.
Yasmina just about bursts into tears. "She's so cute!" she squeals. Habeeba gives her the tiny baby and Yasmina chokes back a happy sob. The fluffy little animal curls up into the athlete's neck, shaking from fear. "She's so fluffy and tiny," Yasmina chuckles through her crying.
The husky puppy was a dark red/brown on her back, and had bright blue eyes. She had dark red/brown rings around her eyes and a white muzzle, with a white stripe going up her forehead. "This is Roxie!" Habeeba giggles, petting the puppy's back.
"Why does she lowkey look like Roxie?" Brooklynn giggles through her tears, stroking the fur on her forehead.
"She's so floofy!" Sammy awws, booping the puppy's nose.
"Oh my gosh, she's beautiful," Ben says, smiling.
"We got her last night," Yasmina's step-father says, blinking back tears from his step-daughters reaction. "She's a little scared right now. Hasn't gotten used to us or her environment."
"I have like a week and a half to stay in the hospital," Yasmina says, wiping away her tears as she cuddles the puppy. "How is she supposed to adjust to life here and then move home?"
"You can't move home," Brooklynn protests, petting the puppy. "Roxie won't get to know her Aunt Brooklynn!"
"What did I walk into?" Roxie asks as she and Dave step out of the car they rode from the airport. The group laughs at her confusion.
"Why can't I stay down there with my friends?" Darius asks as the nurse sets up an IV.
"While you're stable, we want to be able to closely monitor your vitals," the nurse explains. "They can come visit you."
"What's going on out there?" Darius asks his brother, worried for his friends for no reason.
"Looks like they're meeting Yaz's new puppy," Brandon says, looking through the window.
Darius groans in frustration. "Why do I have to be injured and separated from my friends?!"
That night, all six campers felt restless and anxious. The idea of sleeping in their own room away from each other was torture, and moving to a new place made the fear unbearable. Finally fed up with his anxiety, Ben sneaks out of his hospital room and dodges the nurses and doctors. Locating Yasmina's hospital room, he enters.
"Piece of advice? Knock," Yasmina says dryly as he walks in. "You have no idea how clothed I am."
"I've seen quite a lot on the island, but thanks for the advice," Ben laughs. He sits on the bed, facing her. "How are you?"
"Can't sleep," Yasmina sighs, leaning back on the bed. "I tried, but I've been having nightmares about everything. Particularly the lab and the river. Doesn't help that when I woke up five minutes ago, I had phantom pains for the first time." She glances at her leg stump. "Doctors had warned me about possible pain that my body simulates from the lost limb, but I didn't understand it until now."
"Want me to pray for it?" Ben asks, gently touching her right, whole leg.
Yasmina gives him a weird, uncomfortable look. "I… I mean… if you want to…"
"What's wrong?" Ben asks. "Jesus took your pain on the cross. He can heal you."
"Of phantom pains or the actual limb loss?" she asks.
"Both," he says. "Miracles can happen. If it's in his will."
She winces. "Yeah, I don't know… seems… unbelievable…"
"You're backpedaling, aren't you?" Ben asks. "Giving back the gift of salvation he gave you."
"I don't know, okay?" Yasmina sighs. "I don't know what came over me back there. I don't know why I was so scared of Hell. I've never cared, I… I've never believed…"
"Then why did you ask?" Ben murmurs. "Why did you willingly get saved? I didn't bring it up or force you to, you did it of your own free will. I… I don't recall ever talking to you about God or anything of the sort."
"It… I… There was just this feeling," Yasmina says. "A feeling of… desperation. This need to ask and get saved. I guess on the off chance that there is Heaven and Hell, I wanted to be on the right path…"
"So you don't know if it's real or not," Ben says, trying not to show any sighs of hope or joy.
"I don't know what I believe," she admits, biting her lip. "I'm not really an Atheist, but I'm not Christian… certainly not Muslim of Buddhist. I can't think of many others."
Ben thinks for a moment about how to put it. "If you… If you felt this knowing, maybe it was God trying to get through to you. If you're not sure if God is real or not, why not stay saved? How can it hurt you to believe in Christ? Even if he isn't real and you're not going anywhere when you die, why chance it when you're not sure?"
Yasmina doesn't answer.
"Are you afraid of what people will think of you?" Ben asks. "Your family? Are they still Muslim?"
The word strikes a nerve for her. "Religion only exists to control people," Yasmina snaps. "There's no God. Just humans telling other humans what to do in order to go to paradise. I'm not joining any religion because all these 'Gods' are too picky and you can't satisfy them. They demand so much, and you break your back trying to follow all their rules. Be submissive, cover up, get married to someone your parents pick out and have kids…"
Ben leans back slightly. "Okay, guess I hit a nerve…"
Yasmina relents. "Sorry, I… you and your family are nice. Darius and his family are nice. Sammy is nice, but… I just won't join."
Ben sighs internally and stops arguing. There was no point in arguing with Yasmina when she was triggered. No, better to keep his head while he still had it.
"So, uhh…" Yasmina tries to change the subject. "The kiss…"
"Oh, that…" Ben stutters, his cheeks heating up. "Are you… are you mad at me?"
"No," Yasmina chuckles. "Surprisingly not. Kisses… bleh! I never liked the idea, but… there was something about that kiss… nothing romantic, mind you! I'm not developing any feelings or anything."
"Noo, of course not," Ben laughs.
"It was… comforting," she admits. "When you kissed me, it was like… like you were telling me it was okay. That you would keep me safe and wouldn't let me go. It was calming."
"I was worried you were mad at the kiss and wouldn't trust me," Ben sighs as Ghaleb walks in to check on Yasmina.
"What kiss?! You kissed her?!" Ghaleb snaps, protective older brother mode activated.
"Oh, calm down, it was on the island when I lost my leg," Yasmina huffs as Ben shrinks in fear.
"He took advantage of you when you lost your leg?!" Ghaleb exclaims. "IMMA KILL THIS PIPSQUEAK!"
Ben lets out the highest-pitched squeak as Ghaleb dives around the bed. He hurtles himself over Yasmina and her bed and sprints out of the room, with Ghaleb hot in pursuit. "Ghaleb! Stop it! Don't kill him!" Yasmina shouts, knowing she wouldn't be able to help with her leg.
Ben races down the halls before being yanked back. Ghaleb grabs the back of his hospital gown and lifts the boy up. "You kissed my sister?!"
"I-I-I, it, uhh…" Ben stutters in terror.
"Ugh, let's hear what Yasmina has to say," Ghaleb rolls his eyes, carrying Ben back to her hospital room.
Yasmina starts wheezing when she sees Ben being carried by her six foot brother. "Well, at… at least, he didn't kill you!"
"Not yet," Ghaleb grumbles. "What happened?!"
"I was panicking when I lost my leg, so he kissed me to calm me down," Yasmina explains.
"You kissed her to calm her down?!" Ghaleb turns on Ben. "What are you, stupid?!"
"No, I-I kissed her to get her attention!" Ben squeaks.
"Look, either way, the kiss calmed me down and kept my heart from racing," she says. "He saved my life that way."
"Fine," Ghaleb drops Ben and he ends up tumbling over onto his butt. "No more funny business, though!"
"Understood!" Ben squeaks, crawling to the other side of the bed and sitting down behind it.
Ghaleb laughs. "Pff! Guess I won't have to worry too much about you. Too squeaky to hurt Yazzy."
"Ghaleb! Leave him alone!" Yasmina snaps, defending Ben. Her and her brother begin to argue about Ben, while he stares at the floor, feeling unworthy of Yasmina's friendship.
"Darius, help!" his friends shout.
Darius runs through the jungles, searching for his friends as their voices echo. "Guys!" he shouts. "Where are you?!"
He hears high-pitched screams as runs towards them. He bursts through the trees and sees Brooklynn, Ben, and Yasmina near the edge of the churning river. The waters were dark brown and roaring as the river flowed violently down stream. Yasmina's whole left leg was missing and bleeding a river that mingled with the Cretaceous river. She was twitching slightly.
"Guys!" Darius wails, falling to his knees next to them.
Ben holds Yasmina's hand as she slowly stills, staring numbly as he watches his friend go. Brooklynn holds Yasmina close as she wails in despair.
"Yaz! Yaz!" Darius cries, shaking his friend. But she doesn't respond.
"Noo!" Brooklynn wails, holding her friend close. "We have to save her! Darius, save her!"
Darius hugs Brooklynn, knowing there was nothing he could do to help their friend. "Where's Kenji and Sammy?"
Ben turns to look forlornly at the rushing river, which had turned red as blood. Brooklynn sobs even harder into Darius's shoulder.
"Darius! Wake up!" Brooklynn's voice startles Darius out of his sleep. He opens his eyes to see her soft green one. "You were twitching and yelping like you were having a nightmare," she says, wiping her eye.
"What's wrong?" Darius asks, immediately pulling her into a hug. "Why are you crying?"
"I had a nightmare," she murmurs, curling up on the bed next to him. He was in the middle of the small bed, so she was on the verge of falling off. But he was injured, so she endured.
"Are you okay?" Darius asks, worried for her. Seeing her cry gave him a panic attack; he wanted to attack whatever made her cry.
"Mmhmm," she nods, resting her head gently on his shoulder.
After a bit of silence, Darius asks, "What was it about?"
Brooklynn is quiet. "Home…"
"Home?"
"I was locked in my house. No one was around. You guys weren't there. There were these… dark spirits, whispering to me and floating around. It was scary."
"Sounds like it."
"And then I woke up and…"
"No one was with you," Darius finishes.
"What are we going to do when we get home?" Brooklynn shudders. "I can't even be alone in the same building. The thought of living in different states, I…"
"Do you not trust your family?" he asks.
"I made up with them, but…" she bites her lip. "I don't exactly trust my life with them. I'm scared that nothing has changed and I'll be left alone again… and fall right back into depression and… commit…"
"Don't say it," Darius grips her tightly. "Don't say it."
"What if I can't handle the voices?" Brooklynn trembles. "What if I can't hang on till the sunrise?"
"We'll think of something," Darius says. "Some way to see each other. I'm not leaving you alone. I'll never leave you. The others won't, either. Yaz sure as heck won't let you do anything like that. She'd kill you."
"But if I did what she'd kill me for, I'd already be dead," Brooklynn chuckles.
"I don't doubt that Yaz would bring you back to life just to kill you again," Darius jokes. "Okay, you know I'm kidding, right? None of us would kill you."
"I know," Brooklynn giggles. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Darius says, squeezing her. The two lay there, comforted by each other's presence.
"What are you doing in here?" a brunette nurse asks, coming into the room. "You're supposed to be in your room."
"Don't make me go back there," Brooklynn pleads as a blonde nurse walks in. "I don't want to be alone. I can't be alone!"
"We can have someone stay in your room with you," the brunette suggests and she and the other nurse carefully pry Brooklynn away from Darius.
"No. No!" Brooklynn yelps, wriggling in the nurses grasp. "No, I can't go! Please!"
Brooklynn's struggling and cries for help trigger Darius's fighting response and he tries to lunge out of the bed to save her. The other nurse holds him down, and he struggles against her hold.
"It's okay! It's okay!" the brunette holding Brooklynn assures as the young girl elbows her in the chest to get away.
Spurred on, Darius struggles even harder despite the pain. The nurse puts her hand on his right shoulder and he bites it.
"All right!" the blonde nurse relents. "Let her go."
Brooklynn is let go and she immediately hugs Darius, who holds her tighter than ever. The nurses quietly discuss what to do with a doctor outside the room, and they decide it was best to let the teens stay the night. Brooklynn and Darius sleep together, undisturbed besides the occasional checkup from the hospital staff.
"Sam!" Kenji hisses, poking his head through her hospital room door.
Sammy sits up. "Kenji!" she smiles.
"Couldn't sleep," he says, sitting next to her. "You wanna sleep together? Eh, that sounded wrong."
Sammy giggles.
"Do you want to fall asleep in the same room together?" he rephrases. "Or do you wanna play a game of Uno that my Dad brought?"
"Uno sounds fun," Sammy shrugs.
Kenji lays on the deck on the bed and the two begin to play. He begins to start up funny conversations to fill the silence. "Chickens are like the rednecks of birds, therefore they would have guns."
"Really?"
"Yeah, can't you imagine a chicken with a gun?"
"I guess."
The two are silent for a little bit. "'Go to bed, you'll feel better in the morning,' is like turning off and on technology," Kenji says.
"Never thought about it that way," Sammy says, smiling.
Kenji thinks for a moment. "Good looking people with a horrible personality are basically clickbaits in real life."
"That sounds right," Sammy nods, forcing a smile.
Trying one last time, Kenji says, "Tall people are expected to help short people reach things on the top shelf, but if a tall person asks a short person to get something from the floor, it's insulting."
"I guess that's a little unfair," Sammy says.
"... Are you okay?" Kenji asks. "You're very quiet."
"It's fine," Sammy waves him off, her smile strained.
"No, really," Kenji says, putting down his cards and gently grabbing her hands. "Are you okay?"
She nods, her smile drooping. "It's fine. You don't need to worry."
"Are you upset or going through something?" he asks in concern.
She chuckles. "Aren't we all?"
"I mean in the moment," he sighs. "Is something bothering you?"
"I'm fine," she insists. "I'm good. This…" Sammy sighs. "We're going to get through all this."
"That didn't sound very convincing," Kenji says. "You don't have to pretend around me. I know that you're naturally more positive and happy, but don't think that you have to keep it up like a mask in front of me."
"I'm not," she insists again.
"You don't look very happy right now," he says, squeezing her hand. "And you don't sound like you believe everything will be okay."
"I'm not putting up a face for you," Sammy says. "God tells us to count it all joy and delight in our suffering. I'm staying positive because he tells me to."
Kenji gives her a look of confusion. "So… you're supposed to be happy about everything bad you've gone through? If so, why are you being positive about healing and things getting better? Shouldn't you be happy that you've gone through bad things?"
Sammy opens her mouth before pursing her lips. She wasn't sure how to refute his statement…
"And you're not allowed to grieve or be sad at all?" Kenji continues. "Never at all? Because you've encouraged Darius and the others to come to you with their problems. Are you not allowed to talk about yours? Are we not allowed to talk about ours?"
"That's not how it works…" Sammy mumbles. "The Lord commands us to be of love and joy so that we stand out in this world. I can't… I can't give into negativity. It's ten times harder to pick yourself up than to break down. I can't let myself break down."
"Sometimes you need that break down to build yourself up stronger," Kenji says. "Sometimes you have to tear down walls and build them up from scratch. They would be stronger than just patching up a couple spots with stronger materials. The wall's not strong, it's just… patched up, you know?"
"I'm fine, Kenji," Sammy says, her voice trembling with sadness and anger.
Sensing how tense things were getting, Kenji relents. "We… we should probably get some sleep…" he says, scooching up to lay next to her. She moves over to give him room, and they stare up at the ceiling.
"What are we going to do?" Sammy asks. "We live in separate states. How are we supposed to stay together? How are we supposed to support each other through our recovery?"
"I don't know," Kenji sighs. "I know that I'll convince my Dad to let me fly over in our helicopter whenever I can."
Sammy giggles. "Flexing on us, aren't ya?"
"Well, this flexing will let me come see you for a surprise visit," Kenji chuckles. "I'll pop in when you least expect it."
Sammy chuckles. "I'll wake up one morning to find you snoring next to me in bed."
"Yaz will be running track and I come up and run next to her," Kenji grins.
"Ben will come downstairs in the morning and you're casually sipping coffee like, 'Oh, your breakfast is getting cold,'" Sammy laughs.
"Brooklynn leaves school to find that I'm picking her up in a limo," Kenji snickers.
"Darius is getting ready for bed when you walk in in pinstripe pajamas for a spontaneous sleepover," Sammy cackles.
"How did you know I have pinstripe pajamas?!" Kenji exclaims.
"Just feels like something you'd wear," Sammy laughs.
"Okay, okay, what colors do I have?" Kenji asks.
Sammy thinks for a moment. "Maybe pink, green and white. Or Christmas-y colors."
Kenji starts wheezing. "That's literally the two pairs I have, what the heck?!"
"Guess I know you too well," Sammy grins.
"All joking aside, we're going to find a way to see each other often," Kenji says. "When I graduate, I want to move to Texas and find a college there. Or work on your ranch."
"Sounds like a plan," Sammy smiles, turning her head to rest on his shoulder.
"If your Dad will let me," Kenji says, chuckling sheepishly.
"It'll be fine," Sammy yawns, falling off to sleep. Soon, she's snoring.
"Guess some things never change," Kenji thinks amusedly as he falls off. Soon, both of them are snoring.
The next day, the campers are confronted by their parents. "You guys can't be ignoring the staff and going places you're not supposed to," Brooklynn's mother says.
"If they tell you to go back to your rooms, don't try to fight it," Darius's mother says. "You almost hurt yourself last night, Darius."
"I couldn't help it," Darius mumbles. "I just… I… When they tried to take Brooklynn away, it… it felt threatening."
"They're helping you guys," Kenji's father argues. "They're not threatening."
"Yeah, it's very helpful to be forced to stay in a room alone when it causes anxiety," Yasmina sarcastically retorts.
"We can't sleep well, we're anxious, we're stressed," Ben lists. "It might be better if we stayed with each other."
"What are you guys going to do when we have to move home?" Sammy's mother asks softly.
"Panic," Brooklynn says.
"Freak out," Darius nods.
"Have severe anxiety," Ben smiles sheepishly.
"All those three things," Sammy points to her friends.
"I think I'll be fine since I like being alone, but I'll probably be really anxious, too," Yasmina chuckles.
"I'll randomly pop up in y'all's houses for a spontaneous visit," Kenji grins.
Kenji's father sighs. "All right, we'll see what we can do."
"About the home situation?" the group asks simultaneously.
"About the hospital situation," Mr. Kon says.
"Aww," Kenji sighs. "Okay, we'll have to figure out a schedule of who stays with who. Yaz, Darius, and Sammy can't leave their rooms, so me, Brooklynn, and Ben can rotate between you guys."
That night, per the schedule they created, Brooklynn stays with Yasmina in her room. "Yaz," she hisses.
"What?" Yasmina lifts her head sleepily.
"You can actually sleep?" Brooklynn asks, standing next to the side of her bed.
"Yeah," the athlete nods. "Somewhat. Nightmares."
"Same," the Superstar nods. "Scootch over." After slipping off of Darius's bed numerous times, she didn't want to do it again.
"No," Yasmina grins.
"Please?" Brooklynn blinks her one good eye to look cute.
"Nope," Yasmina snickers.
"Move!" Brooklynn laughs, gently shoving Yasmina. The athlete starts tickling her in retaliation and the room is filled with high-pitched squeals and laughter. Brooklynn tries to use her knee to move Yasmina over while the athlete gently tugs on her hair. "Get your roots done!" she exclaims with a laugh.
"Hey, I haven't had time to see a stylist," Brooklynn protests, feeling defensive.
"It's a line from a movie," Yasmina shrugs, finally moving over.
"Oh," Brooklynn says, curling up next to Yasmina. "What movie?"
"Steel Magnolias," the athlete murmurs.
"Isn't that a drama?" Brooklynn asks.
"Comedy-drama, I think," Yasmina shrugs.
"Never thought you'd be into that," Brooklynn chuckles. "The drama, I mean."
Yasmina laughs. "Nah, I'm not. My Mom showed it to me and my sister. I'm more into the comedy part. Eh, the drama was pretty good, too. It exceeded my expectations."
"I would've guessed that you were more of an action or horror type of person," Brooklynn guesses.
"Action, thriller, horror," Yasmina lists. "I'll take a good dystopian movie. I'll watch a good mystery, too. A crime drama once in a while."
"So if it's dark, Yaz likes it," Brooklynn chuckles.
"Basically," Yasmina nods. "Have you seen Steel Magnolias?"
"No," the younger girl shakes her head.
"Oh, ho, ho, Sammy will love to show you that movie," the athlete grins. "We'll have to have a girls movie night sometime."
Brooklynn quiets down, jealous of how close Sammy and Yaz were, despite the Mantah Corp friction.
"What's wrong?" Yasmina asks.
"I wish I had the relationship with you that Sammy has," Brooklynn mumbles.
"No, you don't," Yasmina says. "Every relationship is special and different. What works between me and Sammy or me and Darius wouldn't work between me and you."
"I just wish we could be as close as you are with her," Brooklynn murmurs.
"That depends on what you mean by close," Yasmina says. "We were close in the beginning of Camp, but we didn't get close again until towards the end of our stay on Isla Nublar. We were never close throughout the beginning, but we bonded a ton towards the end. Sammy is the Mom friend and is trying to help me through my problems, while I'm supporting and keeping watch over you. Our relationships are too different to compare. I don't love either of you more than the other. We have more of an older sister, younger sister friendship. Me and Sammy have a… Mom friend/twin/best friend relationship."
"With trust issues," Brooklynn laughs.
"Sammy and I have a complicated friendship," Yasmina laughs. "You don't need to be jealous. I'm protective of Sammy in a physical way, while she's protective of me in an emotional way. I'm protective of you… in both ways, actually."
"Am I protective of you?" Brooklynn asks.
"RIght now, you're going through things," Yasmina says. "You don't need to be protective of me. Maybe in the future, you will be. Maybe not. It's okay if you're not. That's not to say you wouldn't save me if I was in danger, but… I guess I tend to be more protective than you."
"Yeah, that's fine," Brooklynn says. "I'm not the strongest or the fastest or the toughest."
"This wasn't a critique of your abilities," Yasmina says. "I'm not demeaning you or saying that you're weak or wouldn't give your life for me."
"I lost an eye for you, I definitely will give my life for you," Brooklynn thinks.
"It's just that in the situation you're in right now, you need more support and protection than I do," Yasmina continues. "You know that you can come to me with anything, right?"
Brooklynn nods.
"If you're ever in trouble, don't ever hesitate to tell me," Yasmina says, hugging Brooklynn tighter. "It doesn't matter how far away we are, I will fight for you. I'll come all the way from North Dakota to punch someone if they've hurt you."
Brooklynn shudders at the idea of living states away.
"Distance is a social construct," Yasmina sputters. "It doesn't matter how far away we are, I'll still be there for you. You can always call me or text me. I'm prepared to get spammed. And I'll convince my parents to let me fly over if you're ever in trouble. Or I'll fly with Kenji… either way, if you're in trouble, I'll come. I'll commit murder for you if I have to."
"Yaz!" Brooklynn protests with a laugh.
"If you're in trouble, I will not hesitate to commit murder!" Yasmina insists. "I'll figure out a strategy to hide the body in case I have to. Kenji would probably help. If I'm found out, I'll happily go to jail."
"No! You can't go to jail!" Brooklynn laughs. "I won't let you!"
"Okay, fine," Yasmina rolls her eyes. "I'll just beat them up. But murder is still an option. I'll just have to be very good at hiding the body and the evidence."
"Yaz, stop!" Brooklynn exclaims.
"It'll be a once in a while option reserved for terrible people," Yasmina promises. "Just know that I am willing to commit crimes for you."
"I'm not sure if I should be comforted by that or not," Brooklynn laughs. "I guess I'm thankful that you would be willing to go against your morals for me."
"If they've hurt you, I won't consider them human," Yasmina snickers.
"You are scaring me!" Brooklynn laughs.
"Okay, okay, let's try to fall asleep," Yasmina sighs with a chuckle.
"After talking about murder?!" Brooklynn cackles. The two snuggle in close and fall asleep.
Milton and Ghaleb crack open the door to check on their sisters and find them asleep. "What are you doing?" Ghaleb asks as Milton takes a picture.
Milton shows him the picture, to which he added a caption. "Brook finally found her older sister."
"That's pretty cute," Ghaleb smiles.
"Brooklynn has always said that she wanted an older sister," Milton says. "Someone who… who would protect her better than me. Guess she found Yasmina."
"Are you going to post that picture?" Ghaleb asks.
"Not without their consent," Milton chuckles. "Imagine Yasmina's anger… and Brooklynn just hasn't been herself recently. Not once has she asked about her following or her viewers."
"Isn't that a good thing?" Ghaleb asks, sitting down in a chair.
"Yeah," Milton nods. "It's just… different."
"A good different, hopefully," Ghaleb murmurs.
"Where is Kenji? He said that he would be here, per the schedule," Darius thinks to himself, his thoughts rolling around violently like a washing machine. "What if he's hurt? What if he's in trouble? Should I go find him? What if he needs help? What if something bad is going on? Where is he?!"
"Hey, you awake?" Kenji asks, sticking his head through the door.
"Where were you?!" Darius hisses.
"Chill out, bruh," Kenji sputters, pulling a chair up to sit next to the bed. "I got turned around in the halls."
"Okay," Darius sighs, trying to calm his racing heart.
"Are you okay?" Kenji asks.
"I'm fine," Darius shrugs.
"No, seriously, your heart rate has spiked," Kenji points to the monitor.
"I was just worried," the dino nerd sighs.
"Bruh, that's not okay. I don't think I was that late."
"I know, I just… I was just worried that something might've happened to you. Maybe you got hurt or something."
"Well, I'm in a hospital, so they would take care of me if I did get hurt."
"Yeah, but what if they couldn't get to you or couldn't find you? I was about to go find you."
"Dude, no," Kenji protests. "You can't get out of bed. You need to rest and heal."
"If you guys were in trouble, I won't just do nothing!" Darius snaps.
"And what are you going to do, huh?" Kenji asks. "Your femur is broken and you have a healing wound in your chest."
"I could be a distraction," Dairus mumbles.
"And what would you distract, Yaz?" Kenji sarcastically retorts. "We're in a hospital in the US. We're not in danger of dying from dinos anymore."
Darius looks down.
"I know," Kenji sighs. "It's hard to get used to. It's not easy to go from fight or flight 24/7 to safety and not be disoriented."
"Especially when you're bedridden," Darius murmurs. "I get that we're safe and that we don't have to worry… but I can't stop worrying. I can't stop panicking at the thought of being separated from you guys. I know the fear is irrational, but what if something happened and I wasn't there?"
"Yeah," kenji nods. "But now we can call for help and get aid. We're not alone anymore."
"I know," Darius grumbles. "I still hate the idea of being bedridden! If something were to happen, I'm useless! I can't do anything! I'm stuck in bed… now I can truly understand how Yaz felt when her ankle was injured."
Kenji winces. "I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"For leaving you. For not helping you escape the Scorpius rex."
Darius sputters. "You were carrying Sammy and leading the team. I ordered you to move on and save the team. I wanted you to use my life as a distraction to get away. Why are you apologizing for it?"
"I still feel bad about it," Kenji mumbles. "I was able to turn away and leave you to die. How… How can I be a good friend if I was able to leave you to a horrible fate?"
"Because you were leading the team," Darius says. "If the rescuers hadn't come, you would've left me to die and moved on and survived. I would rather you guys live and I die than we all die."
"It doesn't make you feel bad?" Kenji asks. "Knowing that we would move on and let you die?"
"Would you feel bad if I sacrificed your life for the team's survival?" Darius asks.
"No," the alpha male shakes his head. "I would prefer it."
"What makes you think I'm any different?" Darius smiles.
"But would you be able to sacrifice me?" Kenji asks.
Darius's smile fades. "See, we love each other so much," Kenji sighs. "It's easier to give our lives for our friends. But it's a lot harder to let your friend give their life for you."
"Yeah…" Darius murmurs.
The boy's heart rate begins to quicken. "Let's get some sleep," Kenji sighs. "I'm tired. Maybe we'll have better luck sleeping in the same room than alone."
"Falling asleep is easy," Darius mumbles. "It's staying asleep that's the challenge."
"Fair point," Kenji yawns.
"Hey, Sammy," Ben greets her as he enters her room. "How are you doing?"
"Good," Sammy lies.
"Mmhmm," Ben quirks an eyebrow, not believing her. "Want to talk about it?"
"Not particularly," Sammy mumbles.
"Okay," Ben yawns, sitting down in a chair.
The two are silent for a while. "What do you… How do you feel about your scars?" Sammy asks.
Ben lifts his head drowsily. He had begun to drift off. "Um, I don't know. The scars I got from the Pterodactyl?"
Sammy nods.
"I don't know," Ben says, yawning. "Guess they look pretty cool."
"Cause it's okay for boys to have scars," Sammy mutters.
"Girls can have scars, too," Ben says.
"No," Sammy shakes her head. "Everyone will stare at these scars and think I'm ugly." She touches the stitches on her face.
"You don't look ugly," Ben argues. "Right now it doesn't look pretty, but they'll heal up and fade."
"I was already bullied for my weight," Sammy sighs, tears fighting to fall. "I don't need facial scars added to the list."
"Think of it as a memory," Ben says. "A reminder of how you became stronger."
"No," Sammy sniffs. "It's a memory of torture. Your scars tell your story of how you became stronger. Mine tell a story of how I was tortured for information. Yours remind you of how you changed yourself for the better. Mine reminds me of how I lied and spied and tortured for that information!"
"The scars can make you stronger," Ben says quietly.
"How?!" Sammy asks, almost yelling. "How can these make me stronger?! All they do is remind me of that horrible company and those horrible people and the way they treated me! All it will do is leave an ugly reminder for everyone to gawk and stare at! I just know that the bullies at my school will ridicule me for these scars! I… I'm not beautiful… now I'm broken, too…"
"They can boost your confidence," Ben says after thinking for a moment.
"How?!" Sammy shouts, practically in tears. "Are you not listening?!"
"People are going to ridicule you no matter what!" Ben exclaims. "Whether it's your looks, your abilities, your personality, your religion, your experiences, whatever! It doesn't matter what it is, mean people are going to find a way to ridicule you. The only thing you can change is how you respond to it."
Sammy wipes away her tears.
"You're a wonderful, sweet person, Sammy," Ben continues. "And you're very beautiful. You don't have to worry about Kenji leaving you for someone else, and I know that's why this matters so much."
Her eyes dart away, knowing he was right.
"The only reason that these bullies can get under your skin and stab your heart with their words is because you care what they think," he says. "If their opinion didn't matter, it wouldn't bother you. You don't need to please them, or even give their words the time of your day. They don't know you. They don't have to affect you. When you can get to the point where the scars don't bother you, that's when you have true confidence."
Sammy looks up.
"When you can look at those scars and say, 'Yep, that happened. But it doesn't reflect on who I am,' you have true confidence in yourself," Ben says.
"Have you reached that point?" Sammy asks.
"Mm, I don't know," Ben shrugs. "I guess in some things. Right now, I'm more worried about losing the progress I've made. I'm scared that being safe again will let me fall back into my anxious, flighty self. Or I'll go the opposite way and become an aggressive jerk. I guess that I'm scared I'll be stuck in fight or flight mode."
"I doubt that would ever happen," Sammy smiles. "You're a really nice guy, and you've become really brave. I doubt you would go to those extremes."
"I doubt your doubt," Ben sighs.
"I doubt your doubting my doubt," Sammy retorts.
"I doubt your doubting of my doubting your doubt," Ben grins.
The two collapse into giggles. "That's quite the doubt, right there," Sammy laughs.
"How far could we take it?" Ben asks with a grin.
"Let's see," Sammy laughs. The two continue with their doubting of doubt and laugh through the night.
The next night, the hospital staff had given up on keeping the campers in their respective rooms. Besides, Kenji, Ben, and Brooklynn were being released from the hospital the next day. It was Kenji's turn to stay with Yasmina. "Hey Yaz!" he says, flopping on the edge of the bed.
The athlete startles and glares at him. "You woke me up."
"Sorry," he grins sheepishly.
She sputters. "It's not like it's great sleep, anyway. I'm not complaining about sleeping in a bed; it's soo much better than the ground. But it's kinda hard to fall asleep when it keeps moving up and down and stuff."
"Yeah, hospital beds are weird," Kenji laughs. "Hotel beds are going to feel amazing after this."
"You're sleeping in a hotel?" Yaz asks.
"Probably, when I'm released," he shrugs. "Or maybe Ben's parents will let me and Brooklynn stay at their house. They're like… twenty minutes away?"
"Fun," Yasmina says, smiling unenthusiastically.
"How are you doing with the idea of leaving and going home?"
"I'm handling it."
"Drop the act, Yaz. You don't like the idea anymore than the rest of us do."
"No, I love it. It's wonderful. I never want to see you guys again."
"You're funny," Kenji huffs. "You have separation anxiety just like the rest of us."
Instantly, the front of his hospital gown was scrunched up and her bared teeth were inches from his nose. "I don't have anxiety or fear. Maybe I don't want to leave you guys because some of you can't handle it," she snarls.
"Yaz, who do you think you're fooling?" Kenji quirks an eyebrow. "This reaction proves everything I said true."
"I'm not scared of anything," Yasmina hisses.
"Then why are you so offended?" he shrugs. "Look, there's no problem with you having anxiety about leaving us. We're not judging you; we're in the same boat. It doesn't make you weak to want to be around us. You can break down and we won't judge you."
Yasmina groans and lets him go. "I'm mad that I become a sniffy, snotty mess back on the island."
"We're not judging you," Kenji says, laying down in the bed next to her. "We all became snotty messes back there. Except for Ben, but he turned into a snotty mess after he fell off of the monorail."
"I know," Yaz grumbles. "I still feel weak."
"You can be strong sometimes and be vulnerable others," Kenji says. "It doesn't affect our opinion of you."
"I don't care about everyone's opinion of me," Yasmina crosses her arms.
"If so, why do you worry about looking weak?" Kenji asks. "You can break down and we won't judge you, Yaz. Stop putting yourself down for reacting like a normal human being. You don't have to be Wonder Woman all the time."
"Let's go to sleep," Yasmina mumbles. "If you can handle the nightmares."
"I actually haven't had nightmares," Kenji says.
"Right," she barks out a laugh. "Sure."
"I'm serious," Kenji frowns. "I haven't had nightmares."
"We've all had nightmares," Yasmina hisses. "You're not tougher than I am."
"Actually, me and Ben haven't had nightmares at all," Kenji says. "And it has nothing to do with how tough we are. Everyone reacts differently to trauma. Sometimes people take time to develop PTSD and have nightmares."
Yasmina rolls over and crosses her arms.
"Oh, stop being a big baby about it," Kenji chuckles, wrapping his arms around her. "It doesn't make you less strong and tough then me."
"I don't cuddle," Yasmina hisses, struggling to unwrap his arms.
"I say you do," Kenji grins.
"I say I don't!" Yasmina says, reaching behind her to tickle Kenji's side.
"ACK! StOp!" Kenji squeaks, wriggling away from her. She rolls over and begins to dig her fingers into his sides. "Hey! This is my no-no zone," he says, gesturing to his side.
"I know where your no-no zone is," Yasmina cackles. "I've kicked your no-no zone before."
"I have several no-no zones," Kenji protests. "My crotch, my butt, and my sides."
"Okay," Yaz says, digging her fingers into her neck and making him squirm.
"And my neck!" he exclaims.
"So basically, anywhere you're ticklish?" Yasmina smirks.
"I prefer the term, 'sensitive to unwanted touches,'" Kenji sticks up his nose.
"That's not fair," she protests. "If everything is off limits, everything is fair game."
Kenji immediately covers his manhood with wide eyes.
Yasmina falls back on the bed laughing. "Trust me, you couldn't pay me enough to tickle you there."
"And this conversation has taken a turn for the worse," Kenji laughs. "Let's go to sleep. Sweet dreams."
"Sweet nightmares," Yasmina smirks as she rolls over. Kenji slowly moves over and tentatively hugs her from behind. "... Fine," she grumbles, accepting his cuddles.
As they try to fall asleep, Kenji feels a sense of urgency to come clean about a particular mistake in his past. "Yaz, um… do you… can I… can I tell you about a past mistake?"
"Why?" Yasmina says groggily, half asleep when he started talking.
"Well, you know, you want us all to be honest with you," Kenji says. "And… I don't know. It's probably going to come out in the future. I just know Sammy's father is going to be furious when he finds out."
"What happened?" Yasmina asks, a bit more invested.
"I… er… slept around, years ago…" Kenji stutters, uncomfortable.
"Oh, that's it?" Yasmina blinks, bored.
"You're not surprised?"
"Not really. It's a stupid mistake many teenagers make these days."
"Well… there's more to it…"
"What is it, Kenji?"
"I kinda got a girl pregnant…"
"Oh," Yasmina says, a little more surprised.
"She got an abortion," Kenji mumbles. "I offered other solutions, but she didn't want to keep the baby. I was willing to take on the child after she gave birth and she would have never had to have been involved… She still did it, though…"
"Imagine carrying a baby for nine months and then giving birth," Yasmina says. "That wouldn't be fun."
"I know," Kenji sighs. "I wasn't going to force her or anything. I never would. I just… didn't want to be a failure of a father… I was scared and confused when I talked to her about it. I could barely form a coherent sentence; I was so confused. She just yelled at me the whole time…"
"Sounds like you were both scared and confused," Yasmina says. "Are you going to tell Sammy and her family?"
"I told Sammy the night I confessed my love for her," Kenji syas. "I know if her Papa ever finds out, he'll never trust me. But… being dishonest would make everything worse."
"I'd tell him and at least come clean," she advises. "If he finds out through other means, you have the added title of 'liar' to go with your mistake."
"Yeah," he sighs. "I just felt like coming clean with you. I trust you. So far you, Sammy, and my Dad are the only ones who know about this. The staff at my Dad's mansion might have an idea, but I never told them."
"Thank you for trusting me with it," Yasmina says, touched. "And I'm sure if you're honest with Mr. Gutierrez, it'll make a big impression on him."
Kenji smiles and closes his eyes.
The two fall off to sleep.
"Hey, Darius," Ben says, walking into the room.
"You're late," Darius grumbles.
Ben looks at the clock. "We agreed that we would go to each other's room at 9:00 PM. It's 9:02."
"That's still late," Darius shrugs.
Ben looks at his monitor. His heart rate was starting to go down. "Oh, I see. I need to be here exactly at nine."
"Yep, or earlier," Darius chuckles.
Ben looks at the small nightstand next to the bed. There was a picture frame lying face down next to the clock. He picks it up and looks at it. It was a picture of Darius and his dad at a dock. "It was hard to look at it today," Darius mumbles.
"He seems like a great guy," Ben murmurs.
"He was the best," Darius nods, tears fighting to slip out.
"I'm sorry," Ben murmurs.
"You didn't do anything, you don't have to apologize for his death," Darius says, chuckling slightly.
"I wish I could've met him…" Ben says.
"I wish he could've, too," Darius sighs. "He would've liked you guys. It's hard to imagine him here after everything that happened…"
Ben grasps his hand as Darius fights back tears. "So," Darius sniffs. "How have you been?"
"Okay," Ben purses his lips. "Nervous about going back into society. Will I change right back into the old Ben? Will I become violent and explosive due to PTSD?"
"Doubt it," Darius smiles.
"It's just…" Ben sighs. "The island was terrible, but we need to try to see the good that came out of it. One good thing that came out of it for me was that it helped me become brave and strong. If I fall right back into this flighty, anxious behavior again, I'll have suffered through all that for nothing."
"Ben," Darius says, squeezing his hand.
"What if I go the opposite way and my heart is hardened to deal with the trauma?" Ben stutters on nervously. "What if I lose all my compassion and love? That's not me. I can't become a jerk."
"Ben, I don't think you have anything to worry about," Darius smiles. "You've come a long way from the anxious kid I met. Even in the worst of situations, you were able to stay calm and be compassionate. Your approach kept Yaz from dying. I don't think you have anything to worry about. I wish I was as calm and level-headed as you…"
"Stop it, Darius," Ben orders. "Stop feeling guilty. Stop blaming yourself. It's not your fault what happened to her."
"I still could've reacted better or swam faster—" Darius mumbles.
"No, Darius!" Ben snaps. "It's not your fault! Even if you could've swam faster, she still would've done it! Yaz is bent on sacrificing herself for the rest of us. It's like she had a death wish! If she hadn't done it for you, she would've done it for someone else."
"I know, it's a pain in the butt sometimes," Darius sighs.
"You do the same thing," Ben says. "Want to sacrifice yourself for the team and then feel guilty when someone gets hurted. She's blaming herself, you know. Blaming herself for your injuries."
"She said that?" Darius asks.
"No, she never said it," Ben chuckles. "But we know how each other thinks."
"It's not her fault I gave my life for you guys," Darius says.
"Okay, what would she say?" Ben says, thinking for a moment. Then he impersonates Yasmina. "Yeah, but if I hadn't gotten injured… if I had just died in the mouth of the Spino, you would've been able to move on and wouldn't have to have sacrificed yourself for me."
Darius starts laughing. "Yep, that sounds like Yaz."
"Does that sound like anyone else?" Ben prompts.
"I guess that does sound like me," Darius mumbles. "But I still feel guilty."
"You're an amazing leader, Darius," Ben smiles. "Don't ever forget that."
"Sammy!" Brooklynn smiles, hugging her friend. "How are you doing?"
"Pretty good," Sammy nods. "The hospital bed is slightly uncomfortable, but I'm not complaining. It's better than wooden floor boards."
"Definitely," Brooklynn says.
"What are you going to do when you get home?" Sammy asks. "Hug your espresso machine?"
Brooklynn's heart starts racing at the mention of that word, but she hides it. "Haha, I forgot I said that. Geez, that was two months ago when I said that…"
"A lot changed in those two months," Sammy nods. "I forgot about that ride. I wanna forget Ben falling off, but… heh heh, the coffee was funny."
"Kenji being convinced that he could be coffee," Brooklynn laughs.
"I don't really drink coffee, so I can't say what kind of coffee he'd be," Sammy smiles. "I know Yaz would be the darkest cup of coffee out there."
"Oh, gosh, she would," Brooklynn laughs.
The two are silent for a bit. "I get my bandage removed tomorrow," Brooklynn says, gesturing to her eye bandage. She sighs. "I'm nervous."
"It shouldn't hurt to remove the bandage," Sammy says. "They must redress it a lot, right?"
"No, I'm nervous about…" Brooklynn gulps. "About what's underneath. I know I still… still have my eye, but… it'll be blind, probably. I just…"
"Worry about the scar?" Sammy finishes. Brooklynn nods. "It can't be too bad," Sammy reassures. "The doctors would've fixed it up so that it heals as nicely as possible."
Brooklynn nods. "My fans already told me that the prettiest thing about me was my eyes," she sighs shakily. "Now that's gone, too."
"Yeah," Sammy nods. "I understand. I'm scared that my bullies will use my scars against me. First my weight, then bad memories…"
"Well, at least, it'll be easy to cover up the scars with makeup," Brooklynn assures her. "There's probably nothing I can do for a blind eye."
"At least when you look at your eye, it can be a medal of heroism," Sammy says. "It is a reminder of when you were brave enough to jump into the river and save Yaz. Mine is just a scar of bad memories. Memories of torture endured at the hands of bad people… An ugly reminder that I lied to my family and paid the price…"
"The doctors should be able to fix it up," Brooklynn says. "I don't see it healing into an ugly scar."
"Your eye is going to be fine," Sammy says.
"No, it's going to be ugly," Brooklynn argues. "Your scar isn't going to be as bad as you think."
"No, your eye isn't going to be as bad as you think," Sammy says. "You're a really beautiful girl, Brook. You're really pretty and slim compared to my fat butt."
"You're not fat, Sammy!" Brooklynn protests. "You're very beautiful! Stop calling yourself fat!"
"No, you're very beautiful, and you don't need to starve yourself to feel good about yourself!" Sammy practically shouts.
"Stop arguing that you're fat! You're wrong!" Brooklynn snaps.
"Stop arguing that you're ugly, you're not!" Sammy shouts.
The two stare at each other before laughing.
"Okay, maybe we should start lifting each other up and not tear ourselves down hypocritically," Sammy wheezes. "I'm not going to lie to you, ever. And you're not going to lie to me. I know that neither of us feel beautiful, but maybe we should believe the other when we say it to each other."
Brooklynn chuckles. "Okay. It'll be hard. I know you wouldn't lie to me about this, but… it's still hard to not doubt your honesty."
"Same," Sammy nods. "We both need to stop being so hard on ourselves."
"What are we going to when we go back home?" Brooklynn sighs. "How are we supposed to lift each other up in different states?"
"Texting?" Sammy suggests. "I get it. I trust my family, but… the idea of leaving you guys..."
"Let's not talk about it," Brooklynn says, snuggling into Sammy's shoulder. The two fall off to sleep, holding onto each other as if their lives depended on it.
"Okay, we've all noticed how our children are acting," Mrs. Pincus says when all the parents had gathered.
"They've got severe separation anxiety," Mrs. Bowman nods.
"This isn't gonna work out well when they have to head back home," Mr. Gutierrez sighs.
"What can we do?" Mrs. Fadoula asks. "It's not like we can just up and move to another state."
"But we can't just force them to leave each other," Mrs. Gutierrez argues. "It's hard on top of all the traumatic things they've been through to separate and live miles and miles away from each other."
"They can't always be with each other, though," Mr. Kon points out.
"Right, but being states away is even harder," Mrs. Pincus says. "They were taken abruptly from Isla Nublar, and they're struggling to cope. They comfort each other, and we can't just take them away from that comfort. Not in their time of need."
"How can we fix this, then?" Brooklynn's mother asks. "We all have our lives in separate states. Which state would we move to if we did move?"
"All I know is, we need to find some sort of solution to this," Mrs. Bowman states. "They're struggling enough. We can't tear them away from their support system. It'll worsen their anxiety and hinder recovery. We have to find something."
The other parents nod, and begin to put their heads together to find a solution.