A/N: Hey, so I still exist lol. Anyway, here's part one of That's Off the Chain. If you're like me, and don't like people getting sick, just be aware that it happens in this chapter. Pretty easy to catch beforehand if you want to skip that part.

The morning sun shone through the window as an alarm filled the cabin. Lindsay's eyes blinked open, and, for the third day in a row, she woke up in Courtney's arms. Smiling to herself, she reached to turn off the alarm and turned to face her friend.

"Court! Wake up!" Lindsay whispered, lightly shaking Courtney's shoulder. "It's challenge day!"

Courtney whined but opened her eyes, and Lindsay's smile grew. This was routine now, watching Courtney slowly and unenthusiastically stir awake before seemingly out of nowhere springing to full attention. "Can we not today?"

Giggling, Lindsay shook her head, "no. Sorry. I know it's annoying that we have to wake up, but it's a new day, and that's not annoying." She removed Courtney's arm from around her waist and stood. "Come on!"

"God. Fine." Wrapping her arms around her stomach, Courtney curled into herself. Lindsay frowned. In her limited experience, it had never taken Courtney this long to get out of bed. "I'm up."

"No, you're not. You're not even sitting." Lindsay squatted down and placed her hand on Courtney's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Swatting Lindsay's hand away, Courtney nodded, "yes. God. I'm fine." She slowly sat up, then winced. "I'm fine. Just extra tired this morning." Pushing herself up, she slipped on some sandals. She kept an arm around her stomach. "Thank you for waking me up. Good morning. I need to use the restroom. I'll see you at breakfast?"

"You're welcome! Good morning!" Lindsay waved a hand and tried to ignore Courtney's obvious discomfort. If she wanted to share, she would. "Yes, breakfast! Bye!"

"Bye." Returning the hand wave, Courtney left the cabin.

Once the door was closed between them, Lindsay started picking up around the sleeping area. She left the mattresses on the floor, but she folded the blankets and placed them on an empty bed with the pillows. Then, she pulled the blinds down over the windows so that Courtney could change when she got back.

She was putting off going back to the girls' cabin. She didn't want to see Heather yet, and she had no way of knowing if she was still in the cabin. Things had been rough between them since the last challenge, Heather only speaking to her in snide comments about her betrayal. And the glares… Lindsay hated how they sent shivers down her spine. Heather was scary.

Nothing was left for her to do to postpone leaving any longer, and she knew she needed to go before Duncan got there. She got Courtney during the nights, which she was incredibly grateful for, but he made it clear that the morning was their time. She didn't mind and completely understood; she just wished she didn't have to go back to her own cabin.

Opening the door, Lindsay came face to face with Duncan. She hadn't been quick enough. He was clearly displeased to see her, his gaze steely, so she plastered a smile onto her face. "Hi! Good morning, Duncan! I was totally just about to leave, so don't worry. Also Court went to the bathroom, but she should be back soon."

"Right. Okay." Duncan grabbed the door from her. "So, are you gonna let me come in?"

"Yeah! Yeah, you can come in. I mean, it's basically your cabin." Stepping to the side, Lindsay laughed. "I just sleep here. Which, again, thanks for letting me."

Duncan's annoyance was replaced with amusement, a small smirk on his lips. "Sure. You're welcome." He came in, and Lindsay went out. "Guess I'll see you later then."

Lindsay nodded, "totally! Probably at breakfast. Or the challenge." Duncan chuckled and began closing the door, but then she had an important thought. "Wait!" Raising his brow, he stopped the door. "Also I should probably tell you that Court looked like maybe she didn't feel very good. I dunno. She said she felt fine, but I don't think I believed her. Like, she was kinda tense and looked super uncomfy. Maybe just make sure she's okay?"

Now, he frowned. Glancing over Lindsay's shoulder, he cursed, "fuck. Okay. I'll do that." His hand slid down the door and let it close more. "Thanks for telling me. Well, bye."

Mouthing "bye" to the closed door, Lindsay left for the girls' cabin. Oh, she hoped Heather wasn't in there. It was too early to cry today, but Heather would find a way. Lindsay had been doing a lot of that in her presence recently.

As she walked up the porch steps, the cabin door opened. Before even knowing whom it was, she froze and closed her eyes. There was a two thirds chance it would be okay, but that didn't stop her from worrying.

"Oh. You." It wasn't okay. Lindsay opened her eyes and was met was Heather. "Thank God I'm leaving now. I don't want to deal with a back stabber this morning." Heather went down a step. She stayed frozen. "Feel lucky, Lindsay, because I'm going to be nice now. But later? I'd watch out if I were you. It is a challenge day."

Heather continued on to wherever she was going, and Lindsay rushed into the cabin. That went better than anything she could have expected. Her eyes were still dry, and now she didn't have to avoid Heather while getting ready. It was nothing short of a victory.

Even better, both Gwen and Izzy were gone. She had the cabin to herself, a truly rare occasion. Changing out of her pajamas and into her challenge clothes, she grabbed her makeup bag and leaned close to the mirror. Uninterrupted mirror-time was hard to come by, and she wanted to take full advantage.

After deeming herself ready, Lindsay left for breakfast. Almost everyone was in the dining room when she arrived, Tyler and Gwen the only two missing, and they sat in three groups. Izzy and Heather sat together at the gopher table, the bass boys sat on one end of their old table, and Courtney, who looked miserable, sat on the other by herself. That couldn't be good. Lindsay grabbed her breakfast and sat down across from Courtney. She was met with a glare.

"Hello again." Giving her friend a small smile, Lindsay cut her pancake into pieces. "Are you okay?"

"No," Courtney hissed, glancing over at the guys. "You told Duncan I looked like I didn't feel well. Why would you do that? I told you I was fine."

"Because you looked like you didn't feel well?" Lindsay set down her knife. "And, like, you still look like you're not doing great. I was trying to help. I thought that since Duncan's your boyfriend he'd want to know."

Courtney balled her fists into her sweatshirt sleeves. "Well, you shouldn't have. I think we're fighting right now."

"Over that? How?" Lindsay asked, tilting her head at Courtney.

"He asked me if I was okay, and I snapped at him. He snapped back. Then, more of that." Courtney rested her cheek against a covered palm. "Now he's over there, and I'm here, and all I want is him. I don't feel well."

Lindsay reached across the table and set her hand on Courtney's forearm. "I'm sorry that happened. And that you don't feel good. What's wrong?"

Looking around, Courtney leaned in closer to Lindsay. She did the same. "I, uhm, started my cycle this morning."

"Your cycle?" Lindsay knit her eyebrows together. "What cyc… oh!" It came out louder than she anticipated, and everyone turned to them. She cringed and lowered her volume. "Your period?"

Courtney nodded, "it's not something I really want to talk about with my boyfriend, you know?"

Squeezing Courtney's arm, Lindsay returned her nod, "totally! I so understand. I always feel so crummy when I'm on my period. I hope today's not too awful. And I hope I didn't cause too much trouble between you and Duncan. I don't want that. Forgive me?"

Lifting her head, Courtney smiled. "Okay. I forgive you. It's not your fault. This would have happened whether you told him anything or not. He would have noticed that I don't feel well; he's very attentive." She paused, and her face fell. "Dammit. He must hate me now."

"What? No! He can't hate you!" Lindsay took her hand back and sat up straight. "You're in love! And love is stronger than you snapping at him." She picked up a piece of pancake with her fork and stuck it in her mouth. "I refuse to believe that he hates you. He loves you."

"Yeah. I know." Courtney glanced at the guys again and sighed. "He does. I just…" She shook her head. "Hey, Lindsay?" The blonde hummed. "Thanks for that. I'm going to go now. I want to see if Duncan will talk to me before the challenge starts."

Lindsay hurried to swallow. "He will! Now go! I'll see you later!" She waved furiously. "Bye!"

Courtney returned the wave. "Bye, Lindsay." Then, she stood, grabbed her trash, and threw it away.

Closing her eyes, Courtney took a moment to gather herself before going to Duncan. She did more than just snap at him this morning. He had been sweet, asking if she was okay and offering comfort, and she told him she didn't need or want anything from him. It escalated from there. In the end, she had told him to "go fucking away," and he did, making it clear he would stay away until she came to him. She knew Lindsay was right, that he loved her, but she couldn't help but think that her mistake had caused some considerable damage to their relationship.

This was her fault, plain and simple, and it was her job to resolve it. She just hoped he wasn't too angry with her. He had every right to be, and she knew she'd be livid if the roles were reversed. All she could do was apologize. She opened her eyes again, and timidly walked over to the guys. His back was to her.

"Duncan?" Courtney asked, wrapping her arms around her stomach, and he turned to face her. He lifted his brow in lieu of a question. "Can we go? Together?"

His face softened as nodded, "yeah. We can." He picked up trash and waved to DJ and Geoff, who were regarding them curiously. "Come on, baby."

They walked to the trashcan with no contact between them. It was weird, Courtney decided, not to be holding his hand or have his arm wrapped around her or be touching at all. She didn't like it. Once his trash was gone, she looped her arm through his. He glanced down at her and stuck his hand in his pocket.

Neither said anything as they left the dining hall and walked across camp. She knew he was waiting for her to start, but she wasn't ready. What if he was deeply offended, justifiably angry, and needed hours, even days, of space? A tiny part art of her screamed that she had made an irredeemable mistake and that he would no longer want to be her boyfriend because of it. It was slightly ridiculous, but she couldn't turn the thought off. Her arm in his only slightly quelled her fear.

Then, "Court?" Duncan touched her shoulder, and she looked at him. "You wanna brush teeth before we go to the cabin?" She nodded. "Kay. Meet you at our tree after?" Releasing his arm, she nodded again, and they parted ways.

Courtney was grateful for the couple minutes of privacy. It gave her the chance regroup and remind herself that they were still in love. Though he hadn't said much, Duncan's words put her more at ease. Specifically, the "we" and the "our." He still spoke as if they were a team when neutral words would have worked just as well. It meant he hadn't decided he was done with her. The screaming inside of her got quieter.

Brushing her teeth and pulling her unstraightened hair into a messy pony tail, she exited the bathroom. Duncan was already at their tree, so she walked a little faster.

"Hi," Courtney whispered, and he gave her his real smile. That had to bode well for her.

"Hi." Grabbing her hand, Duncan laced their fingers together and started walking towards the cabin. The screaming stopped almost completely.

Courtney looked up at him, carefully keeping eye contact. "Duncan, I'm really sorry."

"I know." Duncan brushed the back of her hand with his thumb. "We're good."

Breaking eye contact, Courtney leaned her cheek against his shoulder. While she would prefer to have proper forgiveness, this was enough for her. They were good, and she didn't exactly have the right to demand more from him. If that was all he wanted to give her, then so be it.

They reached the cabin, and Duncan opened the door for them. After kicking off his shoes, he climbed into their bed and settled against the pillows. Courtney just stood near the foot of the bed and stared at him.

"Are you gonna come here?" Duncan glanced down at the spot next to him before looking at her. "Or are you gonna be weird about this?"

"I… I'm sorry." Sitting down on the bed, Courtney stayed a few meters away from him. "Just… are we okay?"

"Are we okay? Yeah, Court. We're okay." Duncan nudged her with his foot. "I told you we were good. Now are you gonna come here or what?"

Courtney didn't move. "It's just… you're not mad at me?"

Sighing, Duncan sat up and shifted closer to her. He grabbed her shoulder, rubbing it slightly. "No, baby, I'm not mad at you. I want you to come lie down with me. Can you do that?"

"Yes. If that's what you want," Courtney said, and he half-smiled as he lied back down. She crawled deeper into the bed and let herself curl up next to him. They faced each other. "I'm sorry."

"You've said that already." Grabbing her waist, Duncan scooted in closer to her. "You know I've forgiven you, right? You don't need to tell me again. We're okay, and I'm not mad at you. Stop worrying about it. Now, relax. It's just me. I love you."

Courtney placed a hand on his chest, automatically relaxing at those three words. "I love you, too," she mumbled. "I don't like that I told you to go away. It was mean of me, and you were trying to be helpful. You didn't deserve that. I happy you aren't mad, but you should be. I'd be furious if you told me to go away."

"I don't think you would be." Duncan stroked her side. "I thought I was so fucking pissed at you when I left you earlier, but then it just sorta went away after a few minutes. It'd be the same for you, I think. I wasn't mad at all. Hurt, yeah, but not mad. I mostly wanted to come back and make sure you were okay. Seriously, Court. Lindsay was right. You don't look like you feel well at all. Are you okay?"

"Not really," Courtney shook her head. "I feel shitty just in general. I woke up like that, and I took it out on you. I shouldn't have done that."

Pecking her on the forehead, Duncan frowned. "I'm sorry you don't feel well. What is it specifically?"

Courtney's hand migrated to his shoulder blade as she thought about how to answer. It felt like it was everything, and she knew he'd be more concerned than necessary if she told him the full extent of it. If she were a little less self-conscious, she might tell him it was period stuff, and maybe they'd reach that point one day, but that day definitely wasn't today. They were still a new couple, despite their high level of emotional intimacy, and it wasn't something she had ever talked about with anyone before coming to camp.

"My stomach hurts. I'm not nauseous or anything; it's more my muscles are sore." Courtney pressed the top of her head to his chest. "Also, I know I'll have a headache in an hour or so. But don't worry about me, I'll be fine."

"I don't care if you will befine. I want you to be fine. As in now." Duncan wrapped his arm all the way around her, and he rubbed circles into her back. "I hate that you don't feel well and that we have a challenge. I wish we could just lie here all day. Then maybe you wouldn't get that headache. How do you even know you'll get one, anyway?"

"I'd love that." Closing her eyes, Courtney reveled in his proximity. "And I know because…" Because day one of her period was always accompanied by an epic headache. "…just trust me on this, okay? I know how I feel before I have a headache."

Duncan's hand slipped under her sweatshirt, and he continued rubbing her back. "Okay, sweetheart. I'll trust you." His voice was low and soft, and she yawned. Everything about him was comfortable. "You tired?"

Breathing him in, Courtney nodded, "yeah. That's something else. I'm more tired than I generally am this morning."

Duncan laughed lightly. It vibrated through her body. "I am, too. I don't sleep as well without you next to me." He pressed a kiss to her hair. "Baby, I know you're trying to do something nice for Lindsay, but you have to talk to her. It's been three nights. I want to sleep with you again. Beside you, I mean. Nothing more than sleep. Well, not nothing, but…"

"I know what you mean." Lifting her head, Courtney kissed him. "And I'll see what I can do. I miss sleeping with you, too. This might sound clingy, but I don't like not being with you for so long."

Closing his eyes, Duncan shook his head, "I don't think you sound clingy at all. In fact, I feel the same way. It's you and me, Court. We're supposed to be together." He set his ankle on top of hers. "I think we should stay like this until we have to leave for the challenge. Is this what you're wearing today?"

Courtney closed her eyes again and hummed. "I like that idea." She closed the rest of the space between them. "Yeah, it is. I don't feel well, and I really don't want to put on my khakis or that button up. It's uncomfortable."

"Kay. Can't have you being uncomfy." Duncan's free arm snaked under her, and Courtney let that be the end of the conversation. She was tired, and this was the best rest she could imagine. She just hoped it wouldn't be too hard to get up come challenge time.

They were able to enjoy each other's closeness for 12 minutes before Chriss called everyone to the arts and crafts tent over the loudspeaker. It was challenge time. Slowly getting out of bed, they put on their shoes and made their way to the arts and crafts tent.

A pile of bike parts was off to the side, and the campers quickly learned that bicycles was their challenge. First, they each had to build a bike. Then, there would be two races, the second of which would determine invincibility. Chris threw them an instruction manual, gave them two hours, and sent them to work.

No one approached the parts pile for several minutes. There were nine campers but only one manual. A few knew, or thought they knew, enough about bikes to forgo the manual, but they still wanted to make a plan first.

As her castmates crowded around the instructions, Heather snuck into the arts and crafts tent. She needed the motor from Chef's "road hog." Immunity was a must, especially after Lindsay's recent betrayal. The motor would ensure she won both races, and, since no one saw her come in, her castmates would be none the wiser. Or so she thought.

"Heather?" A voice called from the doorway. Lindsay. "What are you doing?" Sitting up, Heather looked over her shoulder to the blonde.

"Taking the motor. Duh. How else am I supposed win?" Heather turned back to the motorcycle. "Now leave. I don't want to be alone with you. You might stab me in the back."

Lindsay flinched. Just a week ago, she had considered Heather one of her best friends, and now she treated her like dirt. She had known trying to vote her out would ruin their friendship, but she didn't think she deserved having it thrown back at her so often. After all, Heather had done worse and been less sorry for it, and Lindsay always forgave her. Not that she felt particularly sorry right now. Still, it hurt her knowing how quickly Heather threw away their seven weeks of friendship.

"Can you stop bringing that up? Please?" Lindsay walked closer to Heather. "Like, I know what I did. You don't have to keep reminding me. Stop treating me so poorly for it. And I'm pretty sure this is against the rules. You'll probably get in trouble for it."

"Who's going to find out?" Sitting up again, Heather stood and faced Lindsay. "I know you're not going to tell anyone. You wouldn't make that mistake. Wait. I forgot who I was talking to." She stepped towards Lindsay. "You're the traitor, and I'm never going to let you forget it. You should have thought about it before you tried to vote me out. Now go and don't tell anyone. You'll regret it if you do."

"How? What are you going to do?" Lindsay found her strength and crossed her arms over her chest. "There's nothing you even can do to me that you aren't already doing. You'll just keep being mean with your words, and it doesn't hurt as much as it used to."

Heather flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Oh, you wish. You'll be gone. Lindsay Hayes will no longer be a contestant on Total Drama Island." She paused. "I like the sound of that. I might make it happen tonight anyway."

Covering her mouth with her hand, Lindsay started giggling. It was getting harder to take Heather seriously. "I thought you were gonna do that anyway. Besides, you can't. People like me, Heather, more than they like you."

"They might, but I always find a way. You and I both know that. And you said the same thing about Bridgette last challenge," Heather said, and Lindsay's giggles stopped cold. "Where is she now? Gone. Just like you'll be. People can like you all they want, but that's not how you win this game."

Suddenly, Lindsay was overcome with competitiveness. Heather struck a nerve by bringing up Bridgette, and she was right. People liked Bridgette, and they still voted her out. Even DJ, one of her closest friends sent her away.

Digging her heels into the floor, Lindsay did her best impression of a glare. "I'm not going anywhere tonight. I'm gonna build the best bike, and I'm totally gonna win invincibility, and you're gonna go home. Not me. And I'm not even gonna cheat like you are. Because I don't cheat."

"There's no way!" Heather let out a loud laugh. "A bike with no motor can't beat a bike with a motor. That's, like, completely impossible! And if you really want to vote me out, which you can't, you better finish the job this time."

"I will. Everyone's going to vote you out with me after I win immunity. Cos I can win fair and square without stealing." Lindsay turned and walked towards the door. When she reached it, she looked over her shoulder. "I won't tell on you, but they're all gonna find out anyway. I dunno how you're gonna hide that your bike has a motor." Then, without waiting for a response, she walked out the door.

With a closed door between them, Lindsay lost her courage. It always seemed to happen like this. She'd stand up to Heather, feel proud of herself, then become clobbered by nerves. The proud feeling never went away, it just got overshadowed by much less pleasant emotions. How was she supposed to beat Heather?

Lindsay looked around and found that everyone had already started working on their bicycles. She was behind and had no idea where to starts. Riding bikes wasn't even something she did often, so building them was even more of a mystery. Maybe someone could help her!

First, she found a very captivated Courtney working side by side with a very excited Duncan. The scene looked intimate, and Lindsay couldn't bring herself to interrupt them. Looking for Tyler, she found him joking around with Geoff and a quaking DJ. While she felt less bad about interrupting them, she didn't really want to find out what they were talking about. Her list of allies exhausted, she resigned herself to working alone. At least no one was using the instruction manual. Grabbing the book, she planned out her perfect Sunset Sally bike.

Meanwhile, Courtney was finding it hard to focus on building her bike. Watching Duncan build and listening to him talk about his bike made her insides warm. It wasn't hard to tell how much he loved it, and it made her love him more. He was so eager to tell her all about what he was doing, why he was doing it, and how he learned to do it in the first place. She wasn't ashamed to admit that his passion turned her on a little, and she wanted to kiss him.

"And I didn't want to get in trouble again, right? So I knew I had to put it back together." Duncan's eyes shone as he recounted the first time he fixed a bike after deliberately crashing it into a wall. "I just didn't know how. So Tony and I took apart another one, cos you know that's the best to learn how to build something, and it was fu–"

Duncan was cut off by Courtney's lips on his. He didn't mind. Her hand cupped his cheek, and his found her shoulder. It was sweet, simple kiss and over as quickly as it started. Courtney's grin was full of affection.

"What was that for?" A smile lit up Duncan's face more than it already was.

"Just cos," Courtney shrugged, taking her hand off his face. "You're so happy right now, and I love you, and I just had to kiss you."

"I'm not gonna argue with that." Duncan caressed her shoulder. "How're you feeling? Any better? You look better than you did this morning, at least."

Courtney's heart flipped inside her chest. It was such a simple question, but she could feel how much he cared for her through it. She pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Yeah. I am. Thank you for asking. I know I'll feel worse later, but I actually feel really great. I'm kind of surprised. I thought by head would be pounding by now."

Moving his hand towards her neck, Duncan laughed, "I'm not. It's cos we're together, Court. A little time with me can cure any ailment. For you, anyway. It doesn't work for people who aren't my girlfriend." He paused. "What if you don't feel worse later? If that headache you're convinced you're going to have never comes? I think you should consider that and stop worrying."

"That's a nice thought. I wish it could be true," Courtney said, and Duncan frowned. Why was she so hellbent on feeling poorly? It didn't make any sense to him. He supposed she knew the innerworkings of her body better than he did, but he didn't want her to make herself sick. "I'm not counting on it, though."

"I got that. I just… I don't want you to focus too much on that." Duncan's thumb stroked her neck. "I want you to enjoy not feeling like shit for now, okay?"

Courtney nodded, "okay." Then, she leaned forward and kissed him again before moving away from him. "We should work on our bikes some more. I want you to help me make sure I have the brakes connected right. And the pedals. Can you do that?"

"Yeah, babe. You know I can." Duncan moved over to Courtney's bike and examined the parts in question. All was good, of course, as she had the best teacher and could follow instructions well.

The next hour passed, and everyone finished their bikes. No two looked the same, and some were better than others. Geoff's was barely holding together while DJ's was overfilled with safety features. Tyler's was somewhere between the two with mismatched parts. Gwen had built what could only be called the bat-bike and Lindsay had her perfect Sunset Sally bike. Izzy's had random pieces on nature strewn haphazardly across it; Courtney's was the closest to an actual bicycle. Heather's stolen motor was hidden in the sleek design while the motor Duncan built from scratch was proudly displayed as a skull. They were all excited to show off what their bikes could do.

Then, in a cruel twist, Chris announced that they would be switching bikes for the first race. They had to draw names, and that was whose bike they would be ridding instead of their own. If whoever had their bike managed to cross the finish line, they would get to participate in the second race for invincibility. There was a lot of grumbling, but they eventually all ended up with their new bikes.

While most campers were indifferent at best and furious at worst, Lindsay was excited about having someone else ride her bike. Duncan had drawn her name, and now someone who actually knew something about bikes would get to see how well she did. He was of the more upset, but his mutters of "what the fuck kind of bullshit bike is this" did nothing to discourage her.

What did discourage her was the name she drew. Lindsay had to ride Heather's bike. She was faced with a moral dilemma: give a halfhearted attempt in an effort not to cross the finish line or give her all and give Heather a chance to compete for immunity. She knew the second option was the right one, but the first was so alluring.

Heather, it seemed, was having the same thoughts. Saddling up right next to Lindsay, she whispered, "you better not sabotage me, traitor. If you don't cross that finish line, you're dead. You'll be begging for elimination."

"I don't cheat like you do," Lindsay said, though the thought was still in the back of her mind. "I already told you that I was gonna win fairly. I can't beat you on my bike if I crash yours."

"Still, I'll be watching you." Narrowing her eyes, Heather starting moving back to DJ's bike. "I don't trust you."

Lindsay was now convinced she had to cross that finish. Admittedly, having Heather's trust no longer meant anything to her, but she couldn't prove her right. She prided herself on always doing the right thing. "I'm more trustworthy than you are, Heather. Have a good race!"

Everyone spread out at the starting line. "On your marks! Get set! And drag!" Chris quickly brought his arm down, and the race was on. The campers sped by him the best they could.

Courtney, who had started feeling poorly again on the way to the beach, was downright miserable. Her headache had arrived, and her stomach cramps were growing in intensity. Her muscles ached everywhere. Tyler's mismatched wheels caused the bike to wobble back and forth, and it brought nausea. She couldn't do this anymore.

Looking around to make sure the coast was clear, she brought her bike to a stop and leaned it against a rock. There was an opening to a clearing ahead, and she rushed to it. She could feel the little food she had in her stomach coming up, and she didn't want anyone to see her vomit.

Courtney made it as far as she could into the clearing before she had stop. Kneeling next to a bush, she closed her eyes and let herself be sick. This sucked, but at least no one was around.

A few minutes later, her stomach settled, and she shifted into a sitting position. She was drenched in sweat, and her eyes stung with tears. She felt absolutely disgusting. Glancing at the bush, she moved a couple of meters away from it and peeled off her sweatshirt. When had it gotten so hot? She rested her forehead on her knees and tried to catch her breath.

"What are you doing?" Someone asked, and Courtney groaned. She recognized the voice as Izzy's, and she knew this would only make her headache worse. The only person she even somewhat wanted around was Duncan. If it couldn't be him, she didn't want anyone, especially not Izzy. She heard her get closer. "Ew, did you just puke? Gross! Anyway, what are you doing?"

Courtney groaned again and managed to raise an arm to shoo Izzy. It didn't work. "Go away."

Squatting down in front of her, Izzy poked her on the shoulder. "I don't wanna. Sheesh, what's wrong with you?"

"What do you think? I just threw up, and my head hurts, and you're making it worse." Courtney lifted her head and found herself face to face with Izzy. She was entirely too close to her. "Please, just go away."

"Ew, your breath stinks!" Her nose scrunching up in disgust, Izzy scooted back a little. Courtney didn't care. It got Izzy to move away, and she just wanted to be alone. "Maybe take a mint or something. Why'd you puke, anyway? Does it have anything to do with that boy I saw you kiss? Cos if it does I totally understand. Boys are gross."

"No! It doesn't have anything to do with Duncan. What are you even trying to imply?" Courtney shook her head. "I don't feel well. Riding the bike was making me nauseous, and… and it's none of your business! But you're making it worse. If you're going to be here, can you at least shut up? But I'd prefer it if you'd just leave."

For a moment, Izzy seemed to be pondering this question. Then, "nah! Neither of those sound like something I'd want to do. Anyway, are you friends with Heather? I see you talking to her sometimes."

Courtney squinted at her. The sudden topic change threw her off, but she felt too poorly to be suspicious. "Uh, I guess? I'm a little miffed with her right now because of how she's treating Lindsay, but we're still friends."

"Cool. You think she likes me?" Sitting down, Izzy leaned back on her palms. "I like her."

"Okay? I don't care." Courtney placed a hand on her forehead; she didn't want any part of this. "Maybe she likes you, but what does it matter? I know she wants to keep you around for some unfathomable reason, so I guess she likes you enough."

"Does she ever talk about me?" Izzy stretched her legs out in front of her. "It'd be cool if she did. You can tell me."

Courtney did not resist the urge to roll her eyes. Was this for real? Izzy's apparent crush on Heather was the least of her worries right now. "I'm not doing this! Izzy, leave me alone. Wouldn't you rather be doing the challenge so you could win invincibility."

"Not really. Bikes are fun and all, but I'd rather talk to you." Izzy grinned. "So, does Heather ever talk about me?"

Her mouth hanging open, Courtney just stared at Izzy. She gave up. "If I tell you, will you leave me alone?" Izzy shrugged, and that was good enough for her. "She does sometimes. When I tell her we need to vote you out, she always says she wants to keep you around. That's it, though."

Izzy briefly frowned. "That's it? Dumb. Ask her if she likes me. But don't tell her I told you to ask."

"I will not." Courtney rubbed her head, which was throbbing. Good thing her stomach felt almost completely fine now, because she didn't think this headache would ever go away. "Are we in the third grade? Ask her yourself. And I'm not talking about this anymore."

"Mmm… nah. I'll let you do it." Izzy tapped her feet together. "Play hooky for the rest of the challenge with me. We can have a wacky side story! Izzy and… I want to say… Victoria? Yes! Izzy and Victoria, two gals havin' fun!"

Closing her eyes, Courtney shook her head. "My name's Courtney! You still don't even know my name! Please, go away. My head feels like it's about to explode, and it's mostly your fault."

Back at the challenge, the camper waited for Chris' next instructions. It had been an intense race, and, outside of Courtney and Izzy, the only two who didn't finish were DJ and Heather. They had crashed spectacularly. Almost no one noticed their missing castmates.

Duncan looked around the beach, his eyes peeled for his girlfriend. He couldn't find her, and he wasn't afraid to admit that he was worried about her absence. Courtney hadn't looked well when the challenge started, and she seemingly disappeared out of nowhere. That couldn't mean anything good. He didn't register anyone else was gone.

Glancing back towards the course, Duncan noticed the two abandoned bicycles. He recognized the first as the one Courtney had been riding and the second as the one they built together. He couldn't remember who had been riding hers, and it didn't make him feel any better. If she was sick, or even if she wasn't, he knew she'd rather be alone or with him than with any of their other castmates. Lindsay or DJ were debatable, but he'd seen both of them.

The probability of her getting far on foot was low, so he went to do some sleuthing. Before he could get too far, however, someone grabbed his shoulder and stopped him. Groaning, he turned to tell them to fuck off.

"Duncan!" Lindsay, to her credit, let go of him as soon as he turned around. She had focused glint in her eye. "How did you like my bike? Wasn't it, like, totally the smoothest ride ever?"

Duncan sighed, "yeah, sure, it was great. Good job or whatever. Listen, I ne–"

"Yay! I worked so hard on it!" Lindsay clapped her hands; he clenched his jaw. "I hoped you would like it! I'm so happy you got my bike and not anyone else beca–"

"Sure. Hey Lindsay, you need to–"

"Yo, Duncan! What happened to Courtney?" A third voice asked. Looking behind Lindsay, Duncan found Tyler. While he was glad for the shift of focus to his girlfriend, he didn't have time for this. "She was on my bike, and now she's gone. D'you know she went?"

Lindsay turned to Tyler, confusion on her face. "What are you talking about? Court's not…" Following Tyler's gaze to the abandoned bicycles, her words died in her throat. Then, she looked back towards the beach. There was no Courtney. Or Izzy. She turned back to Duncan. "Hey, do you know what happened to Court? Izzy's gone, too."

Rubbing his eye, Duncan groaned. Of course crazy Izzy was the other missing camper. That couldn't fare well for either of them. "Does it look like I know where Court is? I was trying to find her before you started bothering me."

"Sorry." Lindsay grimaced. She wasn't offended at all by Duncan's harsh words. All he cared about was Courtney, and that was sweet. "I'll let you go then! Good luck, and I hope you find her! It's so cute that you're all worried about her. I'm so in love with you two."

"Sure, whatever you say," Duncan started walking back towards the bikes. "Anyway, if she turns up around here, and I somehow miss her, tell her to find me."

"I will!" Lindsay shouted after him. "But I'm sure you'll find her first! Bye!"

Duncan just waved a hand behind him and kept walking. He made it about four steps before a loud motor revved next to him. Jumping slightly, as did Lindsay and Tyler, he glared at Chris, who was riding his ATV. "Campers, get back to the beach! Now! It's time for the next part of the challenge." Rolling his eyes, Duncan continued in the opposite direction. His missing girlfriend was more important than the challenge. "Duncan! Now! Or you're out!"

Grumbling under his breath, Duncan turned and followed Tyler and Lindsay back to the challenge area. He didn't know what Chris was talking about, but he really didn't want to find out. Courtney would have to wait. Hopefully, she wasn't doing too poorly.

Chris waited until everyone was back at the beach before crossing the finish line on his ATV and jumped off, "Yes! What an exciting race! We had two awesome wipeouts by Heather and DJ! And five great finishes! We even lost two campers!" He laughed loudly. "Anyone know where Courtney and Izzy went?" He directed the question toward Duncan, who just flipped him off. He laughed again. "Guess you don't want me to send someone after them, then.

"Next, everyone take your bike back. If you can! Remember: everyone whose bike crossed the finish line gets to compete in the invincibility race." Chris grinned. "Congratulations Duncan, Lindsay, Heather, Gwen, and Izzy!" He paused, his face twisting as if he had realized something wasn't quite right. He ignored it. "Sorry, DJ and Geoff! Your bikes weren't up to the test. Try bolts next time."

"What about me?" Tyler awkwardly raised his hand. "Courtney was on my bike, and she… well…" He glanced at Duncan before looking back to Chris. "She's gone, man! But my bike's still here, and it's in one piece."

Chris winced, but his grin remained. "Sorry, dude! No bike across the finish line, no invincibility race for you. Life's tough sometimes, man. Moving on! As I said, we have four competing in the race for invincibility. And to make this fun: it's an obstacle course!" He went on to explain the hidden pitfalls. "It's also a sudden death round! The last one to cross gets voted off the island! No bonfire, do not pass go, do not collect a marshmallow. You have five minutes to prepare. No pressure!"

"But that doesn't make, like, any sense." Heather's hand was placed firmly on her hip as she argued. "It's like you're rewarding DJ and Geoff for building shitty bikes. And Courtney and Izzy for just, like, being gone. I'm pretty sure you can't do this."

"Actually, Heather, I'm pretty sure I can." Chris snickered. "I make the rules! You know that. And watch the language. Now, does anyone else have any questions or can I go?" His tone did not invite questions, but that didn't stop Duncan.

"And if I don't wanna do this?" He shoved his hands in his pockets. "I've got more important things to do than this."

Chris stared at him, annoyance on his face. "I guess I'll just have to eliminate you on the spot. You'll be out. Then it won't matter if you find your girlfriend or not, will it?" He hopped back onto his ATV. "No more questions? Great! See everyone here in five minutes. We wouldn't want three missing campers. I'm probably already in hot water for two." Then, he drove off.

Taking his bike from Tyler, Duncan stalked away from his castmates. He needed to be alone for a minute and also make sure Tyler didn't mess anything up. As everyone went to do their own thing, Heather and Lindsay found the best way to prepare was to try to destroy each other's confidence. Not that Lindsay was particularly adept at this or really wanted to be.

Heather clutched the seat of her bike. "It's gonna suck for you when I get first place, and you get last. I will happily escort you down the dock of shame tonight and wave goodbye as the boat of losers takes you away."

"I dunno. You might not win." Lindsay fingered the streamers coming from her handle. "Duncan's pretty good at this bike stuff, and he has a motor, too. He didn't even have to steal his! He built it himself! Or maybe I'll win and you'll lose because your stolen motor won't let you. Duncan did tell me my bike was great, but I'm pretty sure that was just to get me to stop talking." She shrugged. "Anyway, or maybe Gwen will lose. But I hope you do."

"No, I'm pretty sure things are going to go my way." Heather smiled condescendingly. "Gwen might not be good for much, but she'll have to beat you today. There's no way around that. And juvie's a nonfactor. He's too distracted to give any effort at all but too good to lose to you."

Lindsay pouted, "we'll just have to see. But I'm not gonna lose. I'm not gonna let you win this time. Or ever again."

Shaking her head, Heather tsked, "oh, Lindsay. So naïve. You think you can beat me? I can't wait to see your face when you're the last one to cross that finish line. It'll be priceless."

"Not as priceless as your face when you lose." Lindsay gripped the handles of her bike. "I'm gonna go be away from you right now. This conversation isn't very helpful to me, and I wanna be at my best for the race. Goodbye." Then, for the third time that day, she walked away from Heather with no fear.

Seven minutes later, Chris returned to the beach, and the campers gathered at the second race course. He wrangled the four competing campers to the starting line and explained the terms again before calling "go!"

Much to Heather's displeasure, she couldn't take the lead. She wasn't skilled enough to both have the motor on and dodge the mines. It was too fast for her. Unfortunately, Duncan's distraction didn't keep him from staying solidly in first place, and Lindsay had a single minded focus she could only wish to attain. Only Gwen was behind her.

Then, a miracle happened. Duncan's attention shifted to somewhere out to the distance, and his bike started to skid in the grease. He lost control and crashed. One down, one to go. Behind her, Gwen hit a mine. Heather started pedaling faster. Lindsay couldn't win.

"You're so going down!" Heather shouted once she caught up to Lindsay. "Might as well give up now!"

Lindsay just glanced at her before returning her eyes to the course. The piranha pool was coming up, and she couldn't let Heather distract her. It was already hard enough as it was.

"Hey! Lindsay! You don't get to ignore me!" Riding right next to her, Heather splashed water onto her. She was soaked, but she didn't care. She could dry herself off later. Beating Heather was the only thing on her mind right now, and no amount of water or taunts would change that. "Fight back!" Lindsay continued to ignore her.

Seemingly discouraged with the lack of response, Heather sighed and passed her completely. Her thighs burned, but Lindsay kept pedaling. She had no idea how far behind Duncan and Gwen were, but she knew they wouldn't be able to overtake her or Heather. Even still, she didn't want Heather to win. The finish line was a few meters from the end of the piranha pool, and they were almost out.

Then, two things happened: Lindsay regained the lead and felt comfortable enough to send Heather a proud grin; her back tire promptly got caught on the end of the pool, and Heather passed her again. Then, she crossed the finish line. It was over. Heather won. Lindsay got her tire unstuck and kept going. Second place was better than nothing.

Crossing the finish line, Lindsay stood as far away from Heather as the space would allow. The queen bee stood in the center of the area and mockingly waved to her castmates.

"See that, Lindsay? This is how it's done. I told you I was going to win." Heather called. Something inside Lindsay snapped. She couldn't listen to Heather anymore.

"Just shut up! Okay, so you won. Congratulations. I'm still second." Lindsay walked over to Heather. "Neither of us are going anyway, though, so it doesn't even matter. I'm so tired of you."

Heather rolled her eyes and opened her mouth, but, before she could reply, Chris rode up and stopped next to them. He cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "That's not exactly true. Heather is safe because her bike crossed the finish line first, but since Duncan and Gwen wiped out and didn't complete the race, they technically didn't cross the line at all. Which makes you, Lindsay, the last one to cross the line. Which means it's dock of shame for you."

"What?" Her mind replaying Chris' words like a record, Lindsay tried to make them mean anything other than what she knew they did: that she was gone. Looking out at the course, she saw Gwen limping towards her and Duncan preoccupied with Courtney. They were the only two who weren't gathering around them. "Do you mean… I'm eliminated?"

Chris nodded, a wide smirk on his face, "very astute, Lindsay! You are eliminated. Very sad, I know. I won't make you leave 'til tonight, but there's no voting and no marshmallow ceremony. Only the dock of shame. But hey! You made it all the way to ninth place though! Single digits!"

It was quiet for a full minute. No one knew what to say. Tears welled up in Lindsay's eyes. All this just to be eliminated because she built a good bike and two people didn't cross the finish line? It wasn't fair. Heather didn't just win the challenge; she won everything. And she had tried so hard.

"Did I hear that right?" Heather was the happiest Lindsay had ever seen her. It was devastating. "The traitor's out of the game?" She looked straight at her, and Lindsay felt like she was looking through her. She felt invisible. "Good fucking riddance. I win, and you lose."

"It doesn't even matter," Lindsay muttered. She almost thought she was the lucky one. She wouldn't have to be on this island or around Heather anymore.

"Of course it matters, Linds." Heather took a step forward. "I won. You lost. It's over. You're gone. Finally. It's been a long time coming."

A long time coming? But they had been working together since the second challenge until three days ago! Lindsay's face fell as she realized something important: Heather never considered her a friend. At all. She knew Heather didn't view them as best friends, but she thought she at least liked her. At her best, Lindsay enjoyed her company, and, at her worst, she still tried to like her. How could she have been so stupid?

She no longer cared about being nice to Heather. Her goal was to be nice to everyone, but she couldn't take it anymore. Any leftover goodwill was gone completely.

"At least people like me." This time, Lindsay took a step forward. There was only several centimeters of space between them. "Heather Mee Park, you're the meanest person I've ever met in my entire life, and everything people have been saying about you is true! I'm so done defending you. I've tried so hard to get people to see that you really aren't that bad, but you are! You're… you're…. ugh!"

"You are not doing this," Heather threatened as someone shouted, "say it! Keep going! Take her down!"

For the first time all summer, Lindsay listened to Gwen over Heather. "You're nasty inside and out. I don't like this word, but sometimes you can be a total bitch. You use people and backstab them when you're done. I'm not the traitor, you are! I thought that we were at least friends, but I don't think that was ever true! I don't think you ever even liked me. I'm so happy that I don't have to listen to you anymore. I don't know why I ever did."

Turning on her heels, Lindsay started towards camp. She heard a combination of laughter, applause, and Heather sputtering and gasping. She only walked faster as she smiled to herself. It would only be a matter of time before Heather regained her senses, and she didn't want to be around for that.

A/N: lol so I'm still here. Who would have guessed? I don't have any of the next part written. If you want to leave a comment, that's cool. If you don't, that's cool, too.