Author's Note: Another huge thank you to Ramona (miss_heathen - Ao3 account) for beta reading. This chapter feels particularly Total Drama-esque; we see a lot of character interactions here. Trigger Warning: minor allusions to eating disorder behavior.

Here and Now Playlist:
1) It's hard to get around the wind by Alex Turner, 2) Who Said The World Was Fair by Daryl Hall & John Oates, 3) I'm Still Standing by Elton John, 4) Darkness by Peter Gabriel, 5) Therefore I Am by Billie Eilish, 6) Not That Simple by Mike Posner, 7) Bigcitydreams by Never Shout Never, 8) Thank You for Being a Friend by Andrew Gold

Her body ached, shock reverberating through her right side. She had been slammed into the side of the plane while on the way to their next location. She felt like she was gaining her bearings at this point. First location: the island. Second location: the action set. Third location: not entirely known but involved the World Tour plane. There seemed to be a pattern to this season, if she could think ahead she could probably predict which challenges they would see. Chris went on and on about ratings and how season one's cast had the best, so, if that held any predictive power, she would guess the challenges with the highest rating would be what they face each week. But she still wasn't sure about how often they moved and where they would move after they cycled through every location. Would they continue a cyclical pattern, visiting in the same order of the same cycle? Or would it start to go in a random order, but still end up with the same number of visits at each location? Or is it just the most highly rated challenges they would see, and the locations were all a chance game?

"Hey, is your shoulder okay?" A melodic voice broke her out of her analytical thinking. She let her eyebrows relax, not realizing they had been scrunched up before, and looked up to find Trent's pale eyes staring at her in concern. What is up with everyone this season? Is it just a pity party for Courtney? It felt like everyone was asking how she was or if she was ok. She felt like the energy around her was vibrating, it was uncomfortable.

"It's fine," she answered curtly. "Thank you for asking." She added as an afterthought, it wasn't Trent's fault he was the fourth person to check up on her since they arrived.

"That's good." He smiled. His teeth did a similar thing to Chris' where they glinted from their whiteness. Trent always did seem too perfect to be real. "I was coming over to ask if you brought your violin this season, and then the plane swerved. It must suck to play the violin with a shoulder injury, now that I think about it."

Why would it matter if she brought her violin? "No, I didn't. Not enough space," She gave a face that said 'I would if I could' as a cover-up for her mild annoyance at the inquiry. She hadn't touched the violin since the first season of this show. Over time, it felt like anything she enjoyed was tainted in some way. Her original violin was smashed. Her parents had a new one waiting for her at home, it was considerate considering how much of the show they despised. It surprised her they watched enough to catch that hers had broken. She had tried playing but the bow felt heavy and the notes sounded sour no matter what.

"Aw man, you have to make space," Trent urged her. "I was gonna see about a jam session! But if you don't have your violin and are ever craving music, you can borrow my guitar. Do you know how to play?" Kindness oozed from him; it's probably why he never made it far in this show. His shoulders were relaxed, unlike her own rigid ones. God, this was easy for him too, wasn't it?

"I've never played, but I understand the chords, I think." She pulled a smile to her face, the vibrating energy around her slowing down into softer waves. "Maybe I'll give it a shot sometime."

His smile got wider—she didn't think that was possible—and the brightness that surrounded him reached his eyes. "Good, I have to be honest, though. I didn't come over here for that."

She raised an eyebrow. "Then what did you come over here for?"

"Well," his brightness subdued, his pale green eyes mellowing to a greyer shade. "This is my first season back since my breakup with Gwen. It's been forever! And, I know I should be completely over everything. But, God, I saw her and it was like everything came rushing back—the good and the bad. And, yeah it feels really nice she and Duncan didn't work out either. But, being around her, it just feels like… it feels like…"

"Like you can't breathe?" she finished for him.

"Yes!" He shouted in agreement, drawing the attention of the other plane passengers. Quickly, everyone returned to their own conversations but a few. Or one, really—Duncan. He stared intensely at the two of them while Geoff went on about whatever he had been talking about. If Courtney had to guess, he was probably still going on about the 'talking crab' he saw at Wawanakwa.

Courtney returned her attention to Trent whose face was bright red after drawing that much attention. One would think he'd be used to stares with his measurable music success. "And you wanted to tell me this because?"

"Right." Trent let out a breath, speaking much quieter now. "This may be completely out of line, but how do you do it? You've competed alongside Duncan for so many seasons even after your relationship went south."

"Yeah, it is out of line." She rolled her eyes. Just because someone has gone through something similar does not obligate them to help another person through it. Trent's brightness dimmed entirely, his shoulders turning in on himself. Shit, now she felt bad. Wait, maybe this is sympathy. Maybe this is good. Maybe it's progress. "But, I am here for you."

He perked up again, the light returning. How did he do that so easily?

"It's never easy," she admitted. "But honestly, this season I don't have the emotional bandwidth to support the drama that surrounds Duncan. What I did before that, God, I tried so many things. I went at him, attacking him at any chance. Degrading him to make him feel as small as he made me feel. Then I tried ignoring him, which worked a lot better. So, if you have to choose one of those—ignore her. My therapist would say acknowledge the feelings, though, but I think that's a waste of time."

"Your therapist?" He leaned in.

"Oh, yeah I mean like influencer therapists. I watched a lot of online videos to cope with the breakup, haven't you?" She covered quickly for herself, surprised that she let it slip out. Objectively, she knew there was nothing to be ashamed of. But after hearing her mom cover for her to family, she realized the connotations that came along with seeking help. "I don't need my mother having another reason to think I'm a failure." She had overheard her mother confess to her dad once they had agreed to put Courtney in therapy.

"Oh, same! I think you're right, besides I don't think I have the bandwidth either. I'd love to win this season. I think I can this go-around."

"Well, you won't because I'm going to, but try to get far so I can use your guitar," she joked, impressed that she managed to do so.

He let out a laugh, silencing any remaining tense vibrations around her.

This had to be a joke. She had to go through this challenge again, the one that marked her calling out Duncan for his infidelity. The one where she fell for Alejandro's stupid charisma. The one where, once she watched back, she found out she was going to be eliminated for simply reacting as any normal, emotional person would. The stupid Sweden Sour challenge.

"But don't be fooled! Just because we're repeating the challenge in a similar way does not mean there will be a fake elimination. As much as I love tricking you all, I love kicking you guys out more," Chris cackled.

They had to build another stupid boat to drag them across the waters to do an unknown challenge. Courtney was already in a tense mood from her conversation with Trent earlier, now she had to repeat this dumb challenge where last time they actually built Gwen's face. If it were up to her, she'd never see that face again. Although, she did have the option not to come back to this show but she did it anyway. What does that say about her?

"And I take it the instructions were shredded again this time," Courtney shot back.

"No," Chris sneered, returning her attitude. "There were never any instructions to begin with. Now, get to work!"

Everyone let out groans, their whines syncing together to form almost a musical sound. The two teams stared at large piles of wood mixed with random tools.

"Wanna take the lead again this time, Princess?" Duncan threw out, a mix of genuineness and annoyance in his tone.

She rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to shoot a comeback his way but was interrupted.

"No, she's not. I am," Eva stepped up, hoisting a larger piece of wood over her shoulder. "I woodwork in my free time. So, shut up and follow my orders."

Everyone went silent. Who knew Eva was capable of something other than weight lifting? Courtney was learning so much about contestants she barely spoke to before. Were others close and knew each other's hobbies? Had she always had something missing that made her oblivious to others?

"I had no clue, Eva, that's really cool," Bridgette affirmed Eva also grabbing a plank of wood. Ok, so maybe it wasn't just her.

"Here's what we're gonna do," Eva dropped what she was carrying. "DJ and I are gonna do the heavy lifting and securing. Duncan, Tyler, and Geoff you're gonna nail everything together. Courtney and Bridgette, you're gonna be on sealing duty. Katie and Sadie, you're gonna be on gopher duty and bring anything people need to them. Break!"

Everyone quickly started moving. It took a while to get in the groove of building the boat. The Bass were making a wider Olympic rowing boat so that all people could fit on there. Each member was eager to help, wanting to avoid back-to-back eliminations—everyone, but Geoff. He sat, leaning back attempting to catch a tan.

"Hey, babe," Bridgette called out. "Wanna help Duncan and Tyler?"

"Nah, it looks like you guys got this." Geoff tipped his cowboy hat forward to shield his eyes from the sun, relaxing backward into a chair he got from God knows where. "Besides, haven't you ever heard of 'too many cooks in the kitchen?' Don't want to mess up the groove you all got going."

Bridgette rolled her eyes and shrugged towards her teammates. Courtney normally would've been annoyed at his indifference, but she knew Geoff's capabilities; he probably would just get in the way if he helped.

Courtney coated the outside of the canoe with a spray that she hoped was a sealant. Her teammates were working well together—all, except Geoff—it seemed they had all found their groove. They seemed to be slightly ahead of the Gophers in getting the supplies together and wrapping up the makeshift paddles. It was difficult being here; her trouble existing painstakingly obvious so far. She felt like she was always offbeat from the rest of the contestants. It was as if she was so far out of sync from the others that she felt dragged by her team. It was incredibly frustrating, even when she was feigning leadership she felt as if she was one false step away from falling and losing her place on the show. Last week had proven this true. But she didn't feel that way for a few moments. When she was alone. When Heather had reached out. And when Tyler checked in on her.

She wasn't naïve. There was no way Duncan alone was enough to save her last week. She knew someone had to have helped.

"Tyler," she called out. "Could you help me with the second coat? I'm worried I'm missing a spot."

Tyler had been helping DJ with some preemptive first aid supplies—at the suggestion of Courtney. He stopped packing the tote and jogged over. "Sure, let me take a look if I see any obvious bare spots first."

Most of the contestants kept going about their tasks. Duncan, however, faltered. He stopped his task, tightening his hand around the hammer he held. He stared at Courtney, she felt uncomfortable and averted her gaze. Judgment was clearly present in his gaze, but she couldn't understand why. She almost wished he would stop, she wished she could wish that or scream at him. But she couldn't, not after his help.

"It looks great to me! But I can do a second coat for ya." Tyler grabbed the can she held and started working.

"Thanks," she replied. She had more to say, but she wasn't exactly used to reaching out, even before her Now turned into such a hell. Before, she didn't need to ever reach out. She wasn't sure if that was a part of the Before she wanted back or not. She thought it was, at first, but if she didn't have the help of others she wouldn't be on the show anymore. And she didn't want to think about what came After. If there even was an After.

"There, looks good to me." Tyler pat the boat, smiling at her. "How are you doing, eh?"

No. She didn't like that question. That's not why she called him over.

"Fine. Listen, I need to talk to you," she said bluntly, not entirely sure how to open up this discussion.

"Uh, ok?"

"I know it's not possible for me to be here solely off Duncan's help. So, tell me. You helped too?" She knew the answer. Her mother raised her to never ask questions she didn't already know the answer to. It may not make sense all of the time, often scaring her from reaching out for help during school. Not knowing would admit weakness, but here she knew. Just like she knew with a lot of other things, like Duncan.

Tyler gave a genuine smile, scratching the back of his neck. "Well, yeah. But Duncan was wayyy more threatening. He's a scary dude, ya know?"

"He's not. Anyway, thank you. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you," she said sincerely. "This is new to me; I've never been one to strategize with others on this show. But I think we'd make a good team. Would you want to form an alliance with me?"

He dropped the can he was holding and started to have a coughing fit. Courtney felt her face get hot, embarrassed by Tyler's reaction. Was it that repulsive to work with? Of course she was, she never had friends in school. She never had friends here. Even Duncan made it clear what a pain she was while they were dating. This was a mistake. She already has an alliance with Heather, she shouldn't have reached out. This was so so dumb. How could she put herself in this—

"Wow, you'd really want to work with me." Tyler had his hands on his knees, still recovering from his coughing fit. He looked up at her with bright eyes; she didn't think her eyes could ever look like that. She was jealous, how could it be so easy to be so light?

"I don't make empty offers." She swallowed her embarrassment, feigning for fake pride.

Tyler stood up and gave her a firm slap on the shoulder—how is it possible to be so friendly? "I'd love to! I just was shocked because, well, I haven't done super well in past seasons."

"Neither have I. Seasons tend to benefit different people with a few recurring players—Duncan, Gwen, Heather. I don't think past performance is a good predictor, especially since this season is a combination of challenges from all locations. It's best to go with someone who got to watch more from the outside than in. After all, they would have the best insight on how to tackle repeat challenges in the most efficient manner. Wouldn't you agree?"

Tyler stared at her, jaw slack. "Uhhh, yes! I would agree. Man, you've really thought this through, eh? I'm honored! Really! Thank you for thinking of me."

"Shhh, alliances are best when unknown. Let's try our best to not end up on the chopping block. I feel bad enough that you had to save me last time, even worse, with the help of Duncan." His response was flattering but felt childlike. Much of what the contestants did felt childlike to her. A type of living she wished she could go back to. Or unlock? She couldn't remember a time that she felt excited. Maybe when she was falling. That was exciting. It should be exciting now. She was on a show, gaining media attention all while trying to win a huge sum of money. But it felt like work. Every day felt like work to her. Smiling back at Tyler while they agreed to the alliance was work.

The work was never worth it. Could she really fool herself into thinking that After would be worth it?

"Why are we making DJ push us again?" Sadie asked, peering over the edge. The Bass were making good progress, keeping in line with the Gophers but not ahead.

"That's a great question," Courtney agreed, turning to the boys. "Care to explain?"

"Why work harder when you can work smarter?" Geoff shrugged.

Duncan nodded, throwing his hands behind his neck. "Besides, let the momma's boy live out his hero complex. It worked great the first time." Duncan didn't even know what a hero complex was, Courtney thought to herself.

"He must be freezing, though," Bridgette shivered in her sweatshirt.

"We're also wasting our resources. My strength could easily have us rowing at a pace faster than this," Eva huffed. "Who's the dumbass that left our paddles behind?"

"That would be Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum's. I believe you two said they'd be 'unnecessary weight.'" Courtney pointed at Geoff and Duncan relaxing on the boat.

"Yeah, we had enough of that with you on board," Duncan snickered. Courtney swallowed, trying to prevent the oncoming panic. She felt her throat constrict and knew what she'd likely do in the bathroom tonight to make her forget that comment.

"That's it," Tyler stood up, pushing his hair back behind his sweatband. "I'm going in to help him!"

"Wait, Tyler! St—" Before Courtney could warn him about the shallowness of the water, Tyler dove headfirst. "Stop DJ!"

DJ stopped kicking the water, bringing the boat to a halt. Tyler seemed to have hit his head and wasn't coming up.

"Oh, my God, he's not coming up!" Katie cried.

"Someone do something," Courtney ordered. "Bridgette, aren't you a lifeguard?"

"Right! I am!" Bridgette jumped into action, hopping over the side of the boat safely landing on her feet within the waters. She yanked Tyler's head out of the water, dragging him to the boat. He wasn't opening his eyes. With the help of DJ, Bridgette was able to hoist Tyler up into the boat. She laid him down and began performing CPR. Courtney and the rest of the team held their breath as they waited for some reaction. The water became more upset around them, the wind picking up whipping their hair around; it was as if the world felt it needed to feel the stretching silence before them.

"Come on," Courtney whispered under her breath. This was why it was never worth getting close to people. They either hurt her intentionally or worry her unintentionally. She prayed to a God she didn't believe in for Tyler to wake up. She couldn't do this show alone.

With a few more pumps of his chest, Tyler choked up water. With his gasp for breath, the team all let out a collective exhale; no one realizing they had all been waiting to breathe.

"Oh, thank God," Bridgette cried, tears freezing on her face. Her clothes were clinging to her, highlighting her shivering frame. Katie and Sadie knelt down beside her, hugging her on both sides to warm her. Courtney felt ready to vomit, no longer needing to wait until later that night.

"Tyler, please never try something stupid like that again!" Courtney yelled, meaning for it to come out more of a sigh of relief than an aggressive command.

"I'm sorry, guys," Tyler let out a weak response. "Guess I really screwed up this competition for us, eh?" The team collectively turned their heads to see the Screaming Gophers already making it to the landing site. There was no way they would be able to catch up at this point.

"God, you kids make some great television," Chris shouted from above them. It turns out that the uptake of wind wasn't natural but created by him and the producer's helicopter hovering above them.

Courtney shielded her eyes from the glare reflecting from the helicopter. She knelt down beside Tyler, checking his pulse. His heartbeat was still way too fast for comfort. "Don't worry about that," she assured him, although she knew he would be facing a lot of heat from the team. "We need to make sure there isn't any risk of dry drowning. Let's focus on getting to land, first." Her CIT skills were kicking in. Eva nodded and hopped over the side to help DJ kick the boat and its passengers to land.

She hated this challenge.

"We need to vote off Geoff," Courtney stood before Katie, Sadie, Eva, and DJ. "He contributed absolutely nothing to the construction portion of this challenge."

"But it was Tyler who ended up getting hurt and letting the Gophers beat us," DJ countered.

"Tyler only jumped in to help because of whose idea to not make paddles?" Courtney propositioned the group.

"Geoff!" Katie and Sadie exclaimed at the same time.

"Frankly, I think we're better off if either of them goes home. There's only so much room for dead weight on this team," Eva grunted. Holy shit, how many weight references was her team going to make today alone?

DJ started to bite his nails, "I don't know, guys. I can't go against my buddy like that. Geoff and I are tight."

"Not as tight as he is to Duncan," Courtney said, feeling bad about hurting DJ's feelings but knowing that she'd have to start arguing harder for his vote. "Remember, who he took further with him in the first season?"

"…Geoff," DJ admitted.

"DJ, you're deserving of going far. I know your kindness is important to you, and this may hurt Geoff, but it's doing the rest of the team a favor. It's also putting yourself first, which you don't do often," Courtney reasoned.

"Yeah, but when I tried to get ahead working with Chef it just went all haywire. Momma told me never to lie like that again!"

"This isn't cheating, though. This is a normal process of the show, there's no way we can avoid elimination ceremonies," Courtney explained, hoping he would see the difference. Honestly, why would he come back to this show if he cared that much about morals? Has he met Chris?

"Tyler was trying to help you today, DJ," Katie placed a hand on his arm. The difference in the size of her hand and his bicep was laughable.

"Yeah, and it was Geoff who stuck you with the hard—and dangerous!—job of pushing us all through the water," Sadie backed up her best friend.

"I don't care what you idiots do," Eva huffed, standing up. "All I know is I'm voting for the loser who didn't even try to work: Geoff."

Courtney began to count the votes in her head. Ok, who would vote for Tyler? Duncan, Geoff, Bridgette, and maybe DJ. Who would vote for Geoff? Herself, Sadie, Katie, Eva, Tyler. Securing DJ's vote would ensure Geoff's dismissal in case someone was persuaded to switch, but they would be fine with or without his vote.

"What do you say?" Courtney asked him.

"Well, it's for the team's future to vote for him. The longer we go without facing elimination, the higher my chances are in the end."

"Exactly, that's the spirit!"

"O-M-G, this was like my first secret meeting about who to vote for," Sadie announced.

Katie swung around to face her. "No way! Me too!" The two started their usual squealing and hugged each other tightly.

Courtney grimaced, "Thanks for listening, guys. See you later tonight." She started walking towards the makeshift lounge area near the plane. It was empty, surprisingly, and she had spent more than enough time surrounded by people today. Today was the first day she felt stressed for someone else in a long time, she honestly couldn't think of the last time she felt stressed at all. Her Now had become muddled in passivity, something she was sure the Before her wouldn't be able to tolerate. Maybe this was good? Feeling stressed is something. But, God, it was draining. She plopped down in a folding chair and leaned her head back, resting her eyes before it was time to vote.

"Well, well, well. I didn't know you had it in you to strategize without threatening others," a snarky voice rang in her ears. Duncan. She peeked one eye open and saw that he had sat down beside her, a pocketknife scraping in the grooves of his shoe's sole.

"So," she closed her eyes again. "You heard us."

"Yeah, I did. Maybe try meeting in private for a group of five people if you don't want to look suspicious."

Courtney opened her eyes just to show him that she was rolling them, "It's not like I was trying to keep it a secret. We all know it's Tyler and Geoff on the chopping block."

"But why do you want to keep Tyler so bad?" Duncan leaned in closer to her. "Ya know, I saw you pull him aside while we were building. It's weird how close you guys are considering you've never talked in past seasons."

"You're not obligated to talk only to people you have in the past, Duncan." She noticed a twitch in Duncan's pierced eyebrow.

"Well, here's what I've seen. One: Tyler helped save you last week. Two: you pull Tyler aside today. Three: you actually care about Tyler's health when he got hurt. Four: you're trying to save Tyler over Geoff, Bridgette's boyfriend who has been your friend since season one. So, either you and Tyler have something going on or you're working together." Duncan held out four extended fingers, extending them one-by-one as he recalled his observations.

Courtney leaned in to face him, eyebrows furrowed, "Last time I checked, I don't have to explain myself to you. But since you're gross and have to assume something is going on with any two people who speak alone with one another, nothing is going on with me and Tyler. He's with Brittany, you know that." She swore she noticed his forehead relax, but kept going. "Secondly, Bridgette was friendly to me. Cordial. Which was more than a lot of you were, for sure. But I wouldn't go as far as to say we're friends. You should be nice to people without expecting something in return."

"Oh, that's rich coming from you."

"I'm not done. Thirdly, you shouldn't assume that what you want is what everyone wants. Geoff totally screwed over the team today and didn't help even a little bit! So, yeah, I want Tyler to stay because at least he tries."

"But Tyler always screws things up!"

"Well, so do you and yet you're still here."

He sighed, slumping back in his chair. "I can't believe you guys are voting off Geoff."

"I know you two are close, and I imagine it must suck doing this without him, but you've done it before."

"Just because I've done something before doesn't mean it's easy."

Courtney slowly slid back in her chair, suddenly feeling awkward. "I didn't realize you cared that much about him."

"I don't," Duncan snapped. "He's just helped me through some stuff. He makes the show more bearable."

"He does."

"But I guess you're right. He was an ass today."

"He was."

"And, you know him, he'll bounce back fast after getting out of here. He has a good time anywhere."

"He will."

Duncan whipped his head towards her, "When did you become so quiet?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, I think I'm just tired from today."

"That's not it," Duncan stood up, his eyes narrowing while he scrutinized her from above. He turned so he'd face away from her. "If it is, you're tired all the time now."

"And the passport with the most stamps is…" Chris lifted what was definitely more than 5 passports up, shocking Courtney. Who else voted for Geoff? "Geoff!" Chris had to announce the loser after Geoff failed to notice all of the peanuts had been passed out.

Geoff had been leaning back into Bridgette's lap, smiling up at her. He didn't even hear when Chris announced his name.

"Kid," Chef kicked Geoff's shin, earning a yelp from the teenager. "It's time to go."

"Wh-what?! What do you mean, brah?" Geoff sat up in shock. He was yanked up by Chef, who began strapping a parachute to him—it was just for dramatic effect. Courtney had it written into their contract that no physical harm could be posed after a contestant was eliminated. Well, her mom did.

Bridgette jumped up and gave him a kiss before he was thrown off the (grounded) plane. "Guys." She turned to the rest of the team, "You voted Geoff off? But… why?"

"He wasn't a team player," Eva huffed, stomping her way back to the sleeping area.

"We're sorry, Bridgette," Katie and Sadie said in unison before also leaving.

Bridgette sat down by the plane door, head in her hands. "This sucks."

Duncan pushed Courtney's shoulder, gesturing for her to sit with Bridgette. Why did she have to be the one to listen to this? It was stupid to expect any relationship from this show to be lasting, they were teenagers. Is it really that devastating to have one less person to beat for the prize money?

Courtney reluctantly sat down. "Hey," she said.

Bridgette just let out a grunt, not lifting her head.

"How are you?" Courtney figured she would keep it simple and just copy how her therapist opens their visits.

Bridgette laughed, but no humor was behind the sound. "This sucks. This was our last chance to do this together before everything changes."

"What do you mean?" Courtney inquired, the rest of the Bass members had cleared the area. Tyler and Duncan were the last to leave.

"I mean," Bridgette sighed, raising her head revealing tear-stained cheeks. "I'm going to college, and Geoff isn't. He's starting this shop with a couple of buddies, and I believe in him, but it's over 100 miles away from where I'll be."

"Oh, that is tough." Courtney thought it was futile to put in the effort to a relationship that would only fall apart due to distance. Total Drama always put the contestants in a unique environment where everyone had to deal with one another all the time. Nothing was the same when they went from spending all of their time together to seeing each other once a month if they were lucky.

"This was our last time to really be together. Why am I even here if I can't be with him?" Bridgette cried, Courtney cringed inwardly. Their codependence was leaning on the alarming side. But a part of her longed to have someone here—just alive, not on the show—that made her want to stay. It must be nice to feel like you belong with someone. She couldn't blame Bridgette for wanting to be with someone she loved. Courtney would too if she had someone she loved, she imagined.

"Yeah, but you belong here, too." Courtney nudged Bridgette's shoulder. "Imagine how many visits you can plan with the prize money. Staying here without him doesn't mean you'll be without him later." She was impressed by her own encouraging words. Tyler must be rubbing off on her with his ridiculously positive attitude.

Bridgette sniffled, wiping her nose on her sleeve. "You're right. Distance is only temporary, we can make it."

"You definitely can," Courtney validated Bridgette.

"You're a really good friend, Court." Bridgette lurched forward, bringing Courtney into a crushing hug.

Friend. That sounded nice. Courtney felt nice, at least for a moment.

Courtney was strapping herself in to sleep, she wanted to be the first to do so in hopes that she wouldn't have to speak to anyone else tonight. Her social battery was drained, and the number of weight comments today had gotten to her so she was physically exhausted on top of that. But, of course, that didn't stop Tyler from approaching her.

"I think I have to return your sentiment from earlier today," He smiled. "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you."

He was right. "Don't mention it." She closed her eyes. "I don't like owing people things, plus we're working together now. Helping each other out is what we do."

She heard him strapping in beside her. "True, thank you for staying true to your word. It means a lot!"

"You're welcome," She responded quickly.

"I just got done thanking Bridgette for saving me. She seemed to be doing a lot better than she was earlier."

"She is," Courtney agreed.

"That's because of you too, ya know?"

"Maybe, but she's strong. She can compete without him," Courtney mumbled, feeling her drowsiness overtake her. Her hearing had grown distant and words slower.

"I'm glad you're here," she heard him say. "We all are."

If you or your loved ones are having suicidal thoughts, please please please reach out to someone. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline can be reached at (800)-273-8255. If you are interested in supporting prevention efforts, please check out the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention for ways to get involved.

I have drawn a fanart of a moment in this chapter. Please take a look at my tumblr-uncorrelatedideas-to see it. As always, favorite and review!

With much much support,

RCR