And we're back! Sorry for the delay, there were some things in Real Life that I needed to do that took time away from me writing. Plus, a part in another chapter I've already got written needed to be revised pretty drastically, so that also took some time to do.
According to the word count, this is the longest chapter I've written so far. I originally had intended to make another mini-chapter out of the ending here, but I figured it would be more impactful if I gave you guys the whole package. Personally, I think it works. Though there will probably be some people who think differently. It… might be sort of controversial in the long run.
But after mulling it over for a while, I realized that I'm not going to please everyone. Someone is going to not like what I have to write, and that's okay. And plus, this is my story, so the person I should please first and foremost is myself. There are some things I've written that maybe could be changed, but that would take far too much time and effort and replanning that I think it'll be fine if I just leave it as it is.
Thinking about it now, I should probably say this: this chapter covers some sensitive material, and I've been around people long enough to know that certain individuals likely wouldn't take kindly to being blindsided by this. There may be some readers out there who've gone through this or are going through this, and I don't want them to feel uncomfortable reading this story. This will likely spoil what's to come, but I value the readers' well-being over having it as a spoiler. So if you don't want anything to be spoiled, skip the next paragraph and start the chapter proper.
Otherwise:
This chapter contains implications and acknowledgements of self-harm. There is no action of it taking place in the story, but there is quite a bit of mention of it in the second half of the chapter, and it will continue to be discussed going forward in the story, though perhaps not to the extent of here. If it makes you uncomfortable and keeps you from reading, I am incredibly sorry and completely understand. I do not hold anything against you, as your health and safety is more important to me than forcing you to read this (not like I can force you to do anything, anyway). If you're able to push through it, I thank you very much for your time and willingness to do so.
Now… let's begin.
Chapter 6: Toss a Coin to Your Monkey
"You know, it's nice of you to come out and help this morning." Sammy pushed aside a tree branch and allowed her partner to duck underneath it. "Usually it's Shawn, or more recently Sky, who forages with me, but it's good to have someone new every now and then."
"For sure," Beardo replied with finger guns. "I've been spending too much time just chilling in the hut and waiting for the food to come to me. And you've been so gung-ho about collecting it yourself, I figured I might as well see what all the fuss was about."
Sammy shrugged and hopped over a couple of bushes. "Foraging was really Shawn's thing starting off, but for some reason he's kinda gone AWOL these last few days, so I've been doing it without him."
"You got any idea why?"
"Mmm… I think it has to do with Jasmine, more than anything else. He starts to freak out more around her nowadays than before."
"Ahh, true. Brother's got it bad," Beardo said with a sagely nod. "And it's obvious she's got a thing for him, too."
"Oh yes, definitely," Sammy agreed. They entered the foraging area, and Sammy began picking at some low-hanging fruit while telling Beardo what was best to get. A few moments into the picking, Sammy sighed. "I'm just worried that Shawn's obsession is going to make it difficult for them to get together, you know? It can be endearing sometimes, but more often than not it's all he talks about." And it's slowly starting to get to me, so I don't know how long it'll take Jasmine to get annoyed by it.
Beardo examined a few bushes before answering. "I think you're just getting the brunt end of it. I've hung out with him a bit while he goes through those giant junk piles, and he's a pretty decent person, all things considered. True, zombies make up about like, 70% of his brain matter, but the other 30 is him being an alright kind of guy. He's making sure the rest of us are fine out here on our own, even if he doesn't like to say he's doing it."
Sammy glanced down to the basket in her hand, and thought back. "Yeah, I guess I can see that." He had every opportunity to be the lone wolf that he kept saying he was, but in the end he helped them out of a jam more than once and actively participated in the challenges with gusto. A zombie nut he was, but he was also still human. "Maybe I'm being a bit too hard on him."
"Maybe, but I wouldn't worry about it. If there's something between him and Jasmine, they'll work something out."
"I kinda want to help them all the same. They're my friends, and I've…" She blushed and grinned. "I've never had the chance to play matchmaker before. This could be fun." Sometimes love was weird, like whatever the heck was happening with Topher and her sister, but love could also be beautiful, and she wanted to have front row seats to see it when it happened.
"Yeah? How would that even work when we're here, on this deserted island, in the middle of a game show, with them on separate teams?"
"Uhh…" Admittedly, she hadn't thought that far ahead. "I dunno. Maybe I could set them up on a picnic date or something. There's bound to be a decent enough blanket in the junk pile, right?"
"Would that be good enough though? Neither of them really seem to be picnic-material."
"Who wouldn't love a good outdoors breakfast? Or lunch, or dinner? Besides, Jasmine practically lives outdoors. It would be perfect!" She frowned, eyeing the bundle of blueberries in her hand. "Not sure what to do about food, though. Berries, fruit, and leftover fast food are getting kind of old by this point. And with there being barely any animals or fish around to catch and cook up, there aren't many options."
"Like I said, don't worry about it so much!" Beardo said, his voice just oozing with calm. "Just do what you can to help them out if you want, but don't overthink it. That's what gets me through life."
Sammy snorted at that. "You know, that's some pretty good advice. I'll need to try that out at some point."
There was a lull in the conversation, and Sammy marvelled at just how easy it had become to talk with Beardo. Actually, no, not just him, but all of the others as well. When it was apparent that they weren't going to judge her for being herself, it became so much easier to just talk and not worry about messing up her words. And she knew in this case that applying Beardo's words worked - just don't think about it, have fun, and everything would be okay. It was certainly something she would keep in mind.
"This is as good as any time to ask, but how are you and the songbird doing?" Beardo asked after a bit.
"Oh, really good!" Sammy answered, feeling her smile widen. "Everything's great between us now. We had a good talk yesterday about what happened during the challenge, and if anything, urging her to… ah, finish it helped her more than hurt her. N-Not to say we didn't mess up in the first place by forcing her hand, but still, it worked out in the end."
"That's good," he replied. "Ella doesn't seem like the kind of person to hold a grudge for more than, like, five minutes tops. I figured she'd come around sooner than later."
"Yeah, for sure. She's… really one of a kind, isn't she?"
Beardo snickered and said, "Yeah, you'd definitely be the one to think that, wouldn't you?"
Sammy turned to him with a quirked brow. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothin', nothin'," he assured, and went back to work.
It certainly didn't sound like nothing. With a shrug, she went back to work as well. After thinking about it a bit more, she decided to bring up what was troubling her. She was hesitant, but given what it was about she felt she should regardless. "Actually, I'm kinda worried."
"About?"
"There's something… wrong with Ella. Well, no, that's not the right way to say it. Something's upsetting her. And she doesn't really want to talk about it. Which, I mean, I totally get, I don't want to pry into her home life if she doesn't want me to, but... "
"But it's not something that you can easily take your mind off of, right?"
"Right! Exactly! And… I deal with anxiety all the time, but that was usually involving just myself. Now that it involves someone else, someone I care for, I'm… I'm scared. Scared that she might… I dunno, be going through something similar to me. And I don't want to just stand around and not do anything if that's the case."
Sammy moved on to another bush as Beardo hummed in thought. "The only thing I can think of to do is to just… ask her about it."
She looked back at him in surprise. "Wait, really? Just like that?"
"By the sounds of it, she's not going to bring it up on her own. And from what I've seen - mostly on TV - people don't get over their issues by keeping quiet about them. If you want to help, you may need to do a bit of digging."
"But I thought you said it's best to wait?"
"Different circumstances. This is outside our control, isn't it? If so, some intervening might need to be done."
She understood him well enough, but was it okay to just straight up do that? To force someone to face their problems if they didn't want to? Sammy had desperately wanted to get rid of Amy, and didn't have to be pressured into going along with it. But if Ella wanted to keep her secrets, why should Sammy force them out into the open?
But the more she thought about it, the more she came to understand the opposite. Another reason why she had been successful at becoming her own person was because of all the support she was given. Ella, Beardo, Shawn, Sky and Jasmine were all there for her when she needed it; they managed to guide her into becoming more confident with herself, and though she was still on the path to overcoming everything, she was certainly feeling much happier and more optimistic than when she first arrived on the island.
What if that was what Ella needed? A shoulder to cry on, an ear to talk to? Ella had been there for Sammy since day one - maybe Sammy needed to be there for Ella now, more than ever.
"You know, you're right," Sammy told Beardo. "I think after the challenge today, I'll try talking to her about it."
"That's what I like to hear," Beardo said with a chuckle. "Go for it, girl. You don't have anything to lose."
"You got it." A pause, and then, "How about you?"
Beardo looked up. "Sorry?"
"I mean, how are you doing? Feels like every time we talk, it's usually about me or someone else. How's Beardo doing today?"
He laughed, and similar to Ella there seemed to be a light musical intonation to it. "Beardo is doing okay, as far as I know. I'm gonna have to get back to you with a more up to date answer, I haven't seen him in a while."
Sammy laughed lightly as she continued the foraging. "Oh… so he's not around? Tell him I said 'Get back to the island and play the game!' next time you see him."
"I'll be sure to pass that along." They both chuckled, and Sammy appreciated that ridiculous jokes like this could be made so easily. "But for real, I'm good. It's been a lot less stressful since we've started winning these last few days. And aside from the constant danger and lack of technology anywhere, this island is actually pretty sweet! I could see myself coming back to a place like this in the future. Uh, you know, without the game show and all that."
"Gosh, I know what you mean," Sammy agreed. "Like, yeah, Total Drama is one of the more stressful things I've ever done, but when we're not in the middle of a challenge and we're not being threatened by the cannon…" She stood up from her bush and allowed her senses to take in everything. Trees towered over her, with only a bit of the morning sun breaking through the leaves; the sound of rushing water a short distance away; the smell of the fresh air, the abundance of flora, the wind rustling the leaves… "It's beautiful here. Like… seriously."
Her mind briefly flicked back to the waterfall incident yesterday. Although I get the feeling that there's something up with this island. I just don't know what.
Unaware of her thoughts, Beardo turned back to her. "Absolutely. It's like paradise here. Now, if only there was a resort and a five-star restaurant, I'd be set for life…"
She was happy that Beardo was happy, but the unease didn't leave her mind.
The two worked in silence after that, and soon Sammy lost herself to her thoughts. Beardo was a good person to talk to - though he tended to keep to himself on his down time, he was a friend, and someone more than willing to give his two cents to the current situations. Sammy was still somewhat surprised that the person who had difficulty opening up to newer people was also really good at giving advice on friendships. Maybe he learned everything from sticking to the back and watching people from afar…
Or maybe it was just from TV, like he insisted. Either worked.
But what he had said earlier about Ella was true - it was twice now that Sammy had noticed her being distant with something, and she was certain that whatever was troubling her, it had to do something with the glove she refused to remove. She didn't know what to expect, and decided not to come up with progressively outlandish ideas, but she knew that she'd be willing to help her out of it no matter what. It was only fair that she returned the favor, after all.
It was weird though. These last few days, her thoughts had begun to cloud over with Ella at the center more often than anything else. Perhaps it was because out of everyone, Sammy felt closest to her? Or maybe her friend had such a positive influence on her that she was just on her mind more often? Both seemed logical enough, but she felt that she still wasn't in the right head-space to be trying to figure this stuff out yet.
She wasn't sure when it happened, but silently working on foraging ended up separating her from Beardo. Sammy was still not used to talking very frequently, and though island life was crazy and wild, she sometimes found herself zoning out more than once when there was not too much on the go. I guess that's what happens when you don't really have anyone to talk with for most of your life. Your mind just wanders…
She placed the last of the fruit in her bag, turned around, and nearly collided with her sister.
Sammy gasped loudly, clutched at her basket and heart simultaneously, and then let out a large groan. "Oh, come on," she said, "when will people stop sneaking up behind me for once? I swear, this has happened more times here in a week than it would've back home."
Rather than reply, Amy stared at her. Particularly, her new hairdo, where most of her bangs had been pulled back by the hair tie. "The hell did you do to your hair?"
"I wanted a new hairstyle to make it obvious which one of us is which," she explained quickly and halfheartedly. "Look, what do you want? Actually, wait, no, why are you still here? I would've thought your team would've sent you home after losing to me yesterday."
She couldn't help herself to the jab, but shockingly Amy did not rise to the challenge. Instead she huffed and looked to the side. "Apparently I'm an 'asset' to the team. Unlike that rotten little rodent Max. He was annoying from day one, and now he's gone, thank God. Scarlett's actually the one who gave us the idea, if you can believe it."
"Wait, Scarlett wanted him gone?" Sammy found herself asking. "I thought she was friends with Max?"
"Guess not. For whatever reason he stuck around her like a parasite, demanding she do things for him, and she was getting sick of it. She'd been trying to get rid of him since day one, or so she says."
"I… can see where she's coming from. If I was in her shoes, I'd want him gone too. Max didn't seem like the most… pleasant person to be around."
"Yeah," she agreed, and she quietly added, "Especially after what he did to your friend."
And then everything came to a grinding halt when Sammy realized exactly who she was having a semi-civil conversation with. Amy seemed to realize it at the same time, and the sisters stared at each other in quiet shock, neither believing that they weren't currently at each others' throats.
Amy opened her mouth slightly, like she wanted to say something, then closed it just as quickly and clicked her tongue. She put up a stern face, looked Sammy dead in the eye and said, "So. Why?"
Sammy blinked, looking around unsuredly. Having to quickly bring her guard up disoriented her thoroughly. "Why… what?"
"Don't be an idiot," she said, causing Sammy to unintentionally flinch. "Why didn't you hit me in the final round yesterday? You had the chance, you had the motive, and you certainly had the balls because you did it on our first go. So why didn't you do it in the last one? Do you know how much of a dumbass you made me look, just sitting there?"
The familiar ire rose in her once more. Leave it to Amy to straight up ruin a chance to be polite to anyone. "The answer to that is simple. Because I'm not you."
Now it was her sister's turn to be confused. "What?"
"I only figured it out when we were fighting, but if I want to get out of your shadow and be my own person, I'm going about it the wrong way. Picking fights, calling you out, that sort of stuff… That's something you would do. You've proven that you're violent and petty, and if I want to prove that I'm not just some spare copy of you, I need to do things my own way." She let out a breath and turned on her heel. "And I think my own way of dealing with you is just to not deal with you at all."
Sammy started to leave, and though she couldn't see it she heard her sister sputtering. "W-Wha- Oh, so that's how it is, huh?" She felt a hand clench her shoulder and she was forcibly turned back around to Amy's livid face. "You put your hair up in a stupid little ponytail, come up with this big speech, and now you think you're all high and mighty? Don't kid yourself, Spareamy. This doesn't change the fact that you're still the inferior one between us."
Sammy physically pushed her sister away and groaned loudly. "Just what is your obsession with being better than me anyway?! You've been like this forever! Oh, wait, don't tell me - it's cuz I was born, or because my hair is more blonde than yours, or I fill out the uniform better-"
"Wh- That is a bold faced lie and you know that!"
"-or whatever. You know what? At this point, I don't care. I'm done. For real. You want to be the superior twin? Fine, you're the superior twin. Congratulations! But quit dragging me into your dumb little game just so you can inflate your already oversized ego." She spun around once more and stalked off at a faster pace than before.
This marked the first time where Sammy walked away from Amy, and her sister didn't utter a sound.
"Food time!" Sammy called into the shack, only to find no one there. "Orrr maybe not." She walked back to the unlit campfire and sat down to start dividing the food between everyone's bags. "Ah, well, they'll come running when they're hungry enough."
Her mood had skyrocketed since declaring Amy a non-issue in her life and walking away from her. She felt so free now; before there was always the thought that Amy was just around the corner with an insult at the ready, but now she just… didn't care. She was going to forge her own path by her own hands, and there wasn't anything her sister could do to stop her now.
She continued splitting the haul, pulling apart a bunch of bananas and placing each individual one in her friends' bags. She'd save her own for later; she wasn't the biggest fan of them, but they were still nutritious enough that she'd be a fool to pass it up.
Not too long after, Sky and Ella both walked into the area, the former carrying a pail of water and the latter, oddly enough, a single sheet of paper and a chewed-up pen. Both were happily chatting, and waved back at Sammy as she greeted them. "Morning, guys," she called out. "I've almost got the food separated. Shouldn't be too long."
"Oh, awesome, thanks," Sky replied, placing her bucket down. "Where are the others?"
"Beardo and I got split up while we were searching, but I think he'll be back soon. And Shawn…" With a roll of her eyes and a sigh, Sammy said, "Who knows where that guy goes? He'll have to come back here to get his food, I'm not bringing it with me to the challenge."
"No one was expecting you to," Sky told her, sitting on her rock.
She paused. "Oh. Uh, right. Sorry, force of habit, me assuming that sort of stuff, I guess."
"It's fine." There was an odd sort of smile on her face. "Actually… Here, let me take over for you."
"Huh? Are you sure? It's okay, I don't mind doing it myself if it's my decision to do it, y'know?"
"Ah, no, I get that, but…" Sky glanced to her side. "I think someone wants to talk with you."
Ella was gazing at her expectantly, a hopeful look in her eye, but one also mixed with anticipation. With such excitement clearly written on her face, who was Sammy to deny her the opportunity to speak? "Oh! Well, okay then. I'll leave it to you."
She stood and let Sky take over, and cried out slightly when Ella took her hand and dragged her just outside of camp. Ella turned back to her with a grin that was threatening to split her face in two. "Um. Hello!"
Sammy burst out a laugh, and grinned right back. "Hi there. What's up?"
"So…" Ella held out the sheet of paper, though she didn't reveal its contents. "As we both know, I've been forbidden from singing. After we parted yesterday I had been trying to think of ways that I could express myself without using song. I had thought of several different things, but none of them seemed right. And then it hit me: what is a poem, but a song lacking music? And so I located some paper and a pen, and got to writing. And the first thing I did was, um…" She breathed in deeply and her cheeks flushed heavily. "I wrote you a poem!"
That… was exactly the last thing Sammy expected her to say.
And, in some parts of her brain, exactly the last thing she wanted to hear.
"I… What? A poem? For me? Are… Are you serious?" The last time someone had written her anything - a stupid love poem, written by some jerk a year above her - it ended up being a prank that covered her in the cafeteria's macaroni and cheese special, and left her in tears in the bathroom during class. And now, just like always, her fight or flight instincts were kicking into high-gear, urging her to get out before anything could happen.
But she tried to quell them as best she could. This is Ella, stupid! What's she going to say to you that'll be bad? She could barely even call Chris a name yesterday. This will be fine.
It was only when she looked back up that she saw what her reaction had wrought. Ella, for all her enthusiasm, almost immediately deflated when it was apparent Sammy wasn't sharing in her eagerness. "Y… Yes, I'm serious. Sh-Should I not be?" Her voice lost the lilt it normally had, and her eyes were becoming downcast.
"Ah!" Sammy vaguely realized that she desperately wanted to see Ella's excited smile again. "No, no no no no! I'm sorry! That's not what I mean! It's incredibly sweet and thoughtful of you to write it for me! It's just I…" She clenched and unclenched her hands, wondering if she should even bring this up, but chose to go through with it anyway. "I've been burned by stuff like this before, and, I dunno, my mind went to places I'd rather it didn't. I'm still working on that. But I'm sure whatever you wrote is kind and supportive and everything that just screams warm and fuzzy, just like you are!"
The second Sammy brought up her past experiences with the written word, Ella looked horrified at her own work. It appeared that Sammy's explanation had backfired, as Ella stared down at her work in shame. "Maybe…" she said after far too long, "Maybe it's for the best if I…" Her hands went to the top center of the page.
"Wait, no!" Sammy grasped those hands and kept them there, keeping them from tearing the sheet. "No, I want to hear what you wrote! Don't rip it up because of something that happened to me in the past. I want to move on from it, so instead of running from stuff like that, I need to face it all head on. And besides, I know I can trust you. So please," she looked into her eyes and gave her the best pleading look she could, "read your poem for me."
There was a part of her explanation that caused Ella to go wide eyed for a moment. "You need to face it… head on…"
"Yes!" Thinking back to her conversation with Beardo earlier, Sammy said, "If you keep bottling stuff up, then it's just going to get worse. You know? So for stuff like this, it's best to not ignore it."
The only hint of acknowledgement Ella gave was a slight nod to her head, and that she seemed to turn even more red than she already was. Whatever revelations were going on inside her head stayed there, but when it was obvious she wasn't going to do anything rash Sammy took her hands away. Ella didn't rip up the sheet, but she still looked uncomfortable. "I had no idea."
"And you wouldn't have," Sammy told her. "I never mentioned it." There's… a lot of stuff like this I've never mentioned. "But it's okay. I'd love to hear what you have to say, Ella."
Her gaze flew up to Sammy's, and the two looked in each other's eyes for a moment. It felt like Ella was searching to make sure she was telling the truth. When she found the answer, her smile returned, though it wasn't as wide as before. "Well… alright. As long as you're okay with it."
"Of course!" Sammy said exuberantly. "I've never really, like, sat down to listen to poetry before, but since it's you who wrote it, I know it's going to be awesome."
This made Ella's smile return in full force. "Okay." They both sat on the grass, and Ella cleared her throat lightly. "I, ah, haven't decided on a title for this yet."
"That's okay," Sammy reassured her. "It doesn't change what you wrote."
She nodded, looked back to the sheet, and opened her mouth to start-
-only to be cut off by the infuriatingly loud air horn coming from the speakers.
"Hey teamsI" Chris shouted, almost tauntingly. "Stop what you're doing and meet in the clearing, cuz it's time for me to laugh at your pain! Also, there'll be a challenge. Just FYI. Hugs and kisses!"
He went radio silent just as fast as he blew his horn, and Sammy noticed that there was a speaker hanging from a tree not too far away. "Ugh, no wonder that was so loud. I'm sorry, Ella, but maybe-"
Sammy stopped short and stared. Since they landed on the island, this was perhaps the first time Sammy had seen Ella actually angry.
"Of course he calls us out just as I'm about to start," she was muttering. Her hands were gripping the paper rather dangerously, causing it to crinkle. "I bet it was on purpose, too, that… that little…"
"Ella?"
She immediately perked up, the frown and furrow in her brow vanishing entirely. "Oh! Oh no. I'm, uh-"
"Shh, sh sh." Once more, she clasped her friends hands to try and loosen up the page. "It's fine, it's okay. There's always after the challenge, right?"
With a sigh and a nod, Ella stood up. "I suppose you're right. This is… incredibly frustrating, though, I must admit."
"You're not wrong about that." Sammy followed after her back into camp, where Sky was finishing up dumping the blueberries into the bags. "How's the sorting going?" she asked her.
"Ran out of time," Sky said, and laid the basket to the side. "It's probably not even, but it'll be fine. We'll walk and eat. Any sign of the guys?" Both Sammy and Ella shook their heads. "Then I guess we're taking food with us."
"Beardo should have his own food," Sammy said. "Shawn, though…"
"Right. So just in case, we'll still take it."
"Sure."
As the two talked, Ella had started towards the hut and entered without a word. It didn't go unnoticed by Sky. "So, did she say what she wanted to say?"
Sammy had a feeling Sky knew what Ella had wanted, but she could only shake her head sadly. "Never got a chance. We're pretty sure Chris interrupted us on purpose."
Sky frowned. "Okay, that's pretty low."
"It was. But he's gone lower before."
Ella exited the shack, this time lacking anything in her hands. "I put it aside for the time being," she answered Sammy's unasked question. "Shall we get going?"
Sammy accepted her bag from Sky and nodded. "Let's go."
"This island is weird," Jasmine was saying as the girls entered the clearing. "Those trees weren't there last time we gathered here. And that mountain was definitely on the other side of the horizon, not where it is now. What the heck is going on?"
"Eh. You're probably just a few koalas short of a swarm," Chris said dismissively.
"What? A swarm of-" Jasmine shook her head. "No, really, there's something seriously off about this place. I don't mean to sound like I'm boasting but I've got a general knack for finding my way around wild areas like this. But unlike anywhere else I've been before, I just cannot get my bearings on this island. It's like… it's like it's constantly changing!"
"Hey, I've been feeling that too!" Sammy said as she and her team sat on their log. "Like, the confessional is almost always in a different spot every time I go to it, and yesterday I swear a waterfall just disappeared and reappeared in the blink of an eye! It's scary sometimes."
"See?! I'm not the only one noticing this!"
"I can 100% guarantee that this island is in complete working order," Chris told them, albeit rather vaguely. "Now, end of discussion! Maskwak, where's the rest of your team? You're two players short."
"That's… a good question," Sky answered him tentatively.
"Well, if they're not here in the next ten minutes, they can consider themselves willing volunteers for the cannon. Additionally, should Maskwak lose today's challenge, you guys still have to vote someone out, so that'd be three people going home tonight." The trio of girls looked at each other uneasily. "So let's hope those two find their way here soon, capiche?"
With how tense the air was, no one was willing to talk too loudly to each other. Topher insisted on bugging Chris and there were a few hushed whispers between Sammy and her friends as they continued to eat, but otherwise everyone kept to themselves. Possibly for the first time in her life, Amy wasn't sitting like she was the reigning queen - instead she seemed lost in her thoughts, and barely sent a glance Sammy's way the entire time. Not that she would complain about that, of course.
That said, however, there was someone else who was earning Sammy's glares. In all of the hubbub from yesterday, it failed to dawn on Sammy that, while Max was still at fault for what had happened to Ella and had gotten what he deserved, Scarlett had also assisted in that matter yet received no comeuppance. The shock of seeing Ella electrocuted and being forced to dive in after her had caused her to forget that the brainiac in a bun was just as complicit as the grey and purple garden gnome.
Scarlett was looking rather self-satisfied at the moment, no doubt savoring Max's elimination from last night. She was mostly keeping to herself, but when she looked up and locked eyes with Sammy, she merely gave her a quirked brow and looked away again. That made Sammy only more agitated. It's almost like… she doesn't care. I thought Scarlett was pretty okay, but if she's on the level of hurting other people like that then there's no way she's a nice person.
Unfortunately, there wasn't anything Sammy could do about it at the moment, and so she resigned herself to waiting for the rest of her team. About four minutes in, Beardo arrived on the scene, rather out of breath. "I'm here! Sorry for the wait," he said as he sat down. He quickly started working through his basket of food.
"Have you seen Shawn?" Sky asked him. She was starting to grow antsy with the waiting.
Beardo nearly choked on his apple. "Oh. Uh. Nope. Was just me the whole time."
That seems awfully suspicious. Despite that, no one bothered to ask him about it.
At the nine minute mark, Shawn finally showed up. Unlike Beardo dashing into the clearing, Shawn scuttled in with his head dipped and a few twigs sticking out of his hat.
"Where have you been?!" Sky nearly shouted. She had been tapping both her foot and her finger in agitation the whole time. "We could've been down two people if you were a minute later!"
"Uhh…" He grinned nervously, and Sammy briefly saw his eyes flicker towards the Salmons. "I had… some errands to run?"
"Errands?" she asked in disbelief. "We're on a deserted island, in the middle of a game show! What could you have possibly-"
"Alright, the time for talking is over!" Chris declared, effectively shutting the two of them up. "Now that everyone's here, we're gonna start, so sit down!" Shawn quickly did so, and though Sky followed him, her glare never left her face. Ignoring them, Chris went on. "Today's challenge is called 'Snack Attack.'" He gestured to the vending machine on his right. When they arrived earlier, Sammy had briefly wondered how it was lit up and operating in the center of the field, but chose to just go along with it. "This vending machine only takes gold coins. The first team to get their gold coins into the machine will win not only the challenge, but also a light snack to go with lunch. Sounds easy, doesn't it?"
"Well…" Beardo started.
"Wrong!" Chris cut him off. He snapped his fingers in his assistant's direction. "Chef? If you would?"
With a gruff harumph, Chef opened the lid to a box next to the vending machine, and out popped two small monkeys, practically identical save for the different colored collars around their necks.
"The coins are gonna be held by Alphonse and Betty here," continued the host. He tossed two gold coins towards the monkeys, who effortlessly snatched them out of the air. "Who will now proceed to run away."
And run away they did, out of the clearing and into the woods. "Ah! Don't let them get away!" Sky shouted, bolting to her feet as everyone else did the same.
"Whoa! Nobody move!" Chris instructed. "The monkeys get a one minute head start, and then you can go after them."
"Which one belongs to which team?" Jasmine asked him as everyone sat back down again.
"Kinosewak gets the monkey in the blue collar, and Maskwak the one in the pink." He pressed a button on his watch. "In 60 seconds, you're all free to high-tail it after them. Use this time wisely. Or not. Up to you."
Sky quickly urged everyone to huddle up around her. "That monkey could be anywhere by the time a minute's up!" she whispered angrily, slamming her fists on her knees.
"And I'd bet anything that Jasmine's just as skilled a tracker as she is a navigator," Sammy said. "So we might be at a disadvantage here."
Beardo hummed into his hand. "Shawn, you obviously know the signs of when a zombie's around," he said to him all of a sudden. "Think you can use that to find us a chimp?"
"Uhh, first, zombies and monkeys are very, very different," Shawn explained, completely perplexed by the question. "Second, I don't use those skills to track zombies, I use them to get away. That's outside my expertise."
"It's the best that we got though," Sky said. "We'll just have to rely on that."
"Is there any way we could possibly bring the monkey to us?" Ella asked. "It'd make it easier, that's for sure. Like, some leftover fruit or-"
Sammy then remembered her breakfast bag, and facepalmed. "Oh my God."
"What's wrong?" Ella asked.
Sammy reached into her bag and pulled out the banana she had yet to eat. "I… was putting off eating this since I'm not a big fan of them, but I think we have an alternate use for this now. What on earth are the chances?"
Sky's mood immediately brightened. "I think we have a miracle on our hands. We might just have a shot at this!"
"And you can go after your monkeys…" Chris said, his air horn at the ready as he drew out his sentences. "Right… about… now!"
The five of them took off at a sprint, Sky and Shawn easily overtaking them but not running off ahead so as to keep everyone together. The Salmons were hot on their trail, but after a few moments of running they ran off in a separate direction, leaving the Bears on their own.
"So, how do we find a monkey in an entire forest?" Beardo asked. "I'm guessing she's not just gonna pop out of a tree if we ask nicely."
"It's subtle, but I can see bent grass and broken twigs on the ground," Shawn explained, pointing at something below them that Sammy couldn't make out. "And they're going away from the clearing. I'd say we've got our mark."
"Nice!" Beardo exclaimed. "Told ya tracking them would be a cinch for you!" Shawn merely grunted in response.
"What if it's the Salmons' monkey?" Ella asked. "Chris didn't say anything about us taking the other team's coin."
"Hey, maybe we can hide it away so they can't find it," Beardo offered. "Like, I dunno, stuff it in a tree or something!"
"That… seems rather extreme," Ella replied. With a troubled look, she continued, "But… if the need arises…"
"Uhh, let's maybe talk about that after we figure out which monkey it is," Sky said. "C'mon, we should keep going. Shawn, lead the way!"
He did so, taking them past several trees and bushes. Shawn urged them to remain quiet, lest they scare the monkey away before they got close enough to nab it. After another five minutes of silently stepping through the wilderness, they all came to an opening where a handful of large rocks sat in the middle of it. On top of the middle rock sat the monkey, eyeing the gold coin in its hand and making appropriate monkey noises. It turned its body ever so slightly, and managed to reveal the pink collar around its neck.
"There she is!" Sammy whispered. She stood from the bushes without taking her eyes off of the animal, and at the same time reached into her bag. "Okay, I'm gonna try to trade the banana for the coin. Wish me-" Even that little bit of movement was enough for the monkey to take notice of her. Thankfully it didn't run away, but it did start hissing and screeching loudly in her direction. "-luck. Uh, anyone know how to calm a monkey down? I'd rather not go out there and risk having my face scratched off."
"I'd sing, but we know how that would end," Ella said dejectedly. Then she turned to Beardo. "Perhaps you could imitate her? You might be able to converse with her!"
He tapped his chin in thought. "That idea's so crazy, it might just work. Alright, lemme at 'er!" He pushed his way through the bushes and cleared his throat, and began to make noises so similar to a monkey that Sammy briefly thought the other one had shown up. Their monkey - Betty, she recalled Chris calling her - stopped screeching and tilted her head to the side curiously. Beardo kept making noises, waving his hands about like a monkey himself, and Betty followed suit with a laugh to her cries. He's doing it! Sammy pumped the air in excitement. We'll have this won in no time at all!
But luck was not with them, it seemed. Something in Beardo's mimicry caused Betty to tense and go right back to screeching angrily. She bent to the ground and started throwing rocks at Beardo, and in turn everyone behind him. They all yelped and scattered, hiding behind trees and bushes.
"What did you say?!" Shawn shouted, flinching as several rocks hit the tree he was behind.
"I don't know!" Beardo yelled back. "I was just making noises! I don't speak fluent monkey!"
"Whatever it was, I think you may have offended her!" Ella said. "You should apologize to her, you know!"
"What?! No way!" Beardo shook his head rapidly. "What if I just say something worse?!"
The rocks stopped raining all of a sudden, and Sky dared to peak her head out. "She's on the move!" she cried, and raced out of cover. "Let's go! Hurry!"
Everyone scrambled after her farther into the forest. This time around they had a clear view of Betty as she was hopping from branch to branch, but after a while it was obvious she was getting progressively farther away.
"Sky, you keep up with her!" Sammy called out to the athlete. "We'll catch up when we can!"
"Right, okay! I'll shout if I get too far ahead!" Sky called back, and with a little extra effort took off in front of them and kept pace with Betty. It wasn't long before the two of them were out of sight, but Shawn managed to keep track of their general direction - being a human, Sky left a lot more tracks than a monkey.
Soon enough, they managed to catch up to them. Betty had chosen to take a rest next to a river, and Sky was only a few paces away from her, ready to bolt again if need be. The rest of the Bears stopped just behind her, some more out of breath than others, and they began whispering amongst themselves a plan.
"Maybe we should avoid angering her this time," Shawn said.
"No objections on that," Beardo agreed.
"Sammy, go give her the banana and try to get the coin," Sky said.
"Okay." Sammy inched her way in front of the others, and quickly took the banana out of the bag. She held it towards Betty, who stopped her chittering and stared at it like a little kid walking past a candy store. Her hollers turned excited and she started jumping up and down on the rock. Figuring this was a good start, Sammy made her way to the monkey. When Betty attempted to reach for the banana, Sammy quickly pulled it back. "Uh-uh," she said with a shake of her finger. She pointed to Betty's hand where the coin was still located. "Give me the coin first. Then you get the banana."
Miraculously, somehow, the monkey understood what she said, and Betty squeaked and held up the coin to her. With a happy gasp, Sammy gave Betty the banana as she took the coin from her. She held it up to the sky triumphantly and it glinted off of the light of the sun. "I did it! I got the coin!"
Everyone whooped and hollered and ran out to congratulate her. There was no understating the feeling of joy Sammy felt coursing through her - two times in a row it was now that she had been able to win the game for her team. If this kept up they'd be riding high to the merge together in no time.
She felt a weight on her arm, and then on her shoulder. It seemed that after straight up devouring her banana, Betty saw fit to climb up and perch herself next to Sammy's head. "Oh! Hey there, little monkey," she said warmly, and she scratched under her chin. Betty enjoyed that, and leaned in closer to her fingers. "Aw, I think she likes that."
"She's adorable!" Ella approached and started giving her head scratches as well. "And so well behaved, surprisingly."
"Okay, we've got the coin," Sky said, and started making her way back towards the trees. "Let's head back before the others get theirs!"
Everyone followed her, and Sammy made to do the same, but she suddenly felt a tugging on her ponytail. It wasn't hard, but it did catch her by surprise. "Whoa! Hey!" Betty was pulling on her hair, probably looking from more scratches, but there wasn't any time for that. Sammy pulled the monkey off her shoulder and held her at arms' length. "You can't be doing that! That's rude!" The monkey chittered restlessly in response. "Hm. Tell you what, if you can sit still for long enough, I'll give you more bananas when we get back. Deal?"
The reaction was immediate, and though the monkey screeched in delight, she also quickly covered her mouth.
"'Atta girl. Thanks!" She looked up at her team, all of whom were watching and waiting for her. "S-Sorry about that. Let's get go-"
And then she noticed the look of absolute terror in their eyes. And the fact that they weren't looking at her, but past her.
Sammy's stomach began churning. "Uh… guys?"
And then she heard the heavy breathing and smelled and felt the warm, foul breath from behind her, and her stomach dropped entirely.
Slowly, ever so slowly, she turned her head around, and came face to face with a wall of fur. Looking up confirmed her fears - somehow, a gargantuan bear had snuck up behind her, and was looking at her with its dark, piercing eyes.
Huh, said the back of her mind, I thought this challenge was way too easy.
Betty screeched and leapt out of her hands. Sammy, mind in a whirl, decided the best course of action was to try and run away really fast. But against a bear that tall, it was a stupid idea to even consider. Before she even fully turned around the bear's arms shot out at her and wrapped her in quite literally a bear hug.
Her body started moving on its own - she attempted to push out of the bear's grasp, but its grip was like iron; she tried kicking it, but that barely did a thing. It's arms were wrapped tightly around her, and her own arms were pinned to her sides. It hadn't tried to eat her yet, thank God, but who knew how long it would take before it decided to feast.
"Sammy!" everyone shouted in shock. Despite that, no one moved to help, unsure of what to do. Sky took a single step forward and the bear growled in her direction.
Sammy had to force herself not to vomit when she felt its saliva land on her head and drip down her back. "Gross gross gross gross gross-"
"What do we do?!" Ella was nearly hysterical with fright - her hands were clutching at her hair and her breathing had quickened drastically. "What do we do?!"
"The first thing we need to do is calm down!" Sky instructed, though she didn't sound calm herself. "We have to take stock of the situation and figure out what we can do!"
"You might want to do that fast!" Shawn said. "There's no telling what this bear's thinking!"
Sammy's own breathing was heightening, her anxiety spiking through the roof. She was trying desperately to break free, but as a young girl weighing no more than 130 pounds she absolutely was not winning a strength contest against a grizzly bear. She felt water stain her face, and soon realized it wasn't the spit of the bear, but her own tears. "Guys, guys, I don't wanna die! Please, please help me, please!" she was saying, her voice sounding distant and just as panicked as she felt.
"M-M-Maybe we can distract it somehow?!" Beardo suggested. "And pull her away when it ain't looking?!"
"What are we gonna do, throw a rock at it?!" Shawn asked, throwing his hands to the air. "That'll just anger it more!"
"Maybe we can calm it down," Sky thought aloud, and immediately turned to Ella. "Are you able to sing?"
"I- what?" Now that she had something to focus on, Ella's panic died down. "But I can't! Chris said I'd get disqualified and sent home if I sing!"
"Who cares?! This is literally life and death here right now!" Shawn told her.
Sammy was terrified and her mind a disorganized mess - but the thought of Ella being forced to leave prematurely set everything back in motion immediately. "No!" she shouted at them. "Ella, you don't have to sing!"
"What?" she replied.
"But that's the only thing that can calm the bear down!" Sky told her.
"Then think of another way!" She wasn't sure if it was her nerves or if the situation was making her that way, but Sammy was absolutely determined to not let Ella sing. "I don't want her to leave because of me!"
"You have lost your marbles!" Shawn shouted at her. "You're about to get eaten and you're worried about someone getting eliminated? Priorities, sister!"
"My priorities aren't the issue at the moment, thanks!"
"Well, what else can we do?!" Sky asked.
"I-I don't know!" The bear grumbled lowly and its arms tightened around her. She thought she could feel its claws digging into her exposed sides. "Whatever you decide, do it quick!"
"If I need to, I'll sing," Ella said, entirely hesitant but stepping up to the plate.
"What?! Ella, please, no!" Sammy tried again.
"No, Sammy, it's okay," she said as soothingly as she could given the situation. "I care more about you and your well-being than my placement here. I'll save you, just like you saved me yesterday."
Sammy couldn't think of a response - if she was going to ignore her, then what else could she do? Chris would know immediately the moment she sang, thanks to all the cameras around, so as soon as she started the first note she'd be as good as gone. Sure, it had only been about a week so far, but Ella was by far her closest friend not just on the island, but in her whole life, and to see her go for something out of her control was just… heartbreaking.
She felt the tears start fresh again in her eyes, though this time for an entirely different reason.
She stepped forward, hands clasped together, and stared the bear down with her own tranquil intensity. "Let my friend go," she said to it, and sucked in air to begin singing.
But before Ella could utter the first sound, Beardo slapped his hand over her mouth.
"Wait, I've got an idea!" he declared.
Even in her panic, Sammy sighed in relief.
"What?" asked everyone else, though Ella's voice was muffled.
"We don't need to calm it," he answered. "We'll scare it!"
"And just how are we gonna do that?" Shawn asked.
"Shawn, you get on my shoulders," he said as he pointed to them. "Then Sky, you get on his." They both looked doubtful, but Beardo wasn't wasting any time. "Just trust me on this!"
Shawn and Sky shared a look, but did as he instructed. The three-person human tower was wobbly, but Beardo's girth managed to find its balance after a second. With both Shawn and Sky on his shoulders, the tower actually ended up being taller than the bear on its hind legs. "Now, roar as loud as you can!"
They finally got the plan, and without a second thought the three of them howled at the bear. Sky and Shawn, obviously, sounded like themselves, but Beardo managed to amplify his imitation of a bear roar to such a degree that the leaves on the trees seemed to tremble. Or maybe that's just me shaking in fear.
However improbable it seemed, in the end it still worked. The bear whined and backed up, finally letting go of Sammy and allowing her to dash forward into Ella's arms. The three continued to scream at it and advanced towards it, and finally the bear took off across the river and into the forest, leaving them in peace once more.
Sammy sobbed into Ella's shoulder, hugging her tightly as if the bear would come back and grab her again. "Thank you, thank you so much," she was saying ad nauseum, and mostly unconsciously.
Ella was stroking her hair, not caring that the bear slobber still in it was getting on her gloves. "It's okay," she was saying, "you're safe now. Nothing's going to hurt you anymore."
Sky and Shawn hopped off of Beardo's shoulders and circled around them. Thankfully they had the sense not to get too close - the last thing Sammy needed was to feel trapped again. "Are you sure you're okay?" Sky bent down and inhaled sharply. "You're injured."
Sammy glanced at the sides of her stomach, where her cheerleader uniform failed to cover, and saw a few long scratches going from front to back. They weren't bleeding, thankfully, but a quick look to the other side showed that there were a few more there too. "Oh," she said, voice still quivering. "That's not good."
"You're lucky it's not a deep wound," Shawn observed. "If it had punctured the skin, it had the chance for infection." He rubbed his chin in thought. "It's weird, though. You'd think a bear that size would've put more effort behind scratching its prey."
"I'd really rather not think about that right now, thank you very much," Sammy said. She turned to Beardo and offered the best smile she could, though it was still shaky. "For real, though, thank you Beardo. I owe you one."
With the bear gone, he was a lot more calmer, as was everyone else. "Heh, that's two now," he said with a nod.
"Two?" Sammy asked. "Oh, right, the balloon challenge! I had forgotten about that."
"Lucky for you, I hadn't."
"How'd you know to scream at the bear like that?" Sky asked. "I wouldn't have ever considered that."
Beardo shrugged. "Saw it on TV once."
Despite herself, Sammy barked out a laugh. "That is such a Beardo answer."
"Oh, uh, not to speed things along," Shawn said as he fidgeted on the spot, "but where's the coin? We're still on the clock."
In the chaos, Sammy had completely forgotten about it. She held out her hand, having been clenched this entire time, and dropped the coin into Shawn's open palm. "Right here. I think I'm gonna keep sitting down for a bit before I go anywhere, if that's okay with everyone."
"That's fair," Sky said. "We'll go on ahead, and you and Ella can catch up when you're able to."
Sammy and Ella nodded, and Sky and Shawn took off out of the area in a sprint. Beardo followed suit, though nowhere near as fast.
The girls stayed like that for a moment, Sammy trying to regain her breath, Ella rubbing her back to soothe her. With the adrenaline fading, the scratch marks on her sides began stinging, though she had certainly felt worse in her life.
Once she had finally regained her breath, Sammy slowly stood up and shook herself loose. "That took at least 10 years off my lifespan, I swear," she muttered.
Ella smiled warmly. "At least the only things you have to show for this are a few scratch marks."
"Yeah," Sammy said. And whatever mental scars this is bound to give me. Out loud, she said, "Pretty unlucky to have a run in with a bear here. Or… well, another bear. A regular bear. I, uh, really hope it doesn't happen again."
"Yes, hopefully. I'm just so thankful you're okay!"
"Me too." One thing was troubling her, however. "Although… Why were you so insistent on singing to help me? You know what would've happened."
Ella's relieved smile faltered ever so slightly. "I'm… very aware, yes. But I wasn't about to let my friend get hurt, or worse, and not do anything about it. I would've gladly given up my chances at winning if it meant you'd be able to walk out of here on your own terms."
She was looking at Sammy with such resolution that Sammy didn't doubt for a second she would've done it a dozen times over. "Okay, that's fair… But I also wouldn't want to see my friend be forced off the island when she didn't need to be." She realized how aggressive that sounded, and held up her hands quickly. "I mean, please don't get me wrong, I am so thankful and happy you'd be willing to do that for me… But you didn't need to risk sacrificing yourself to save me. I got out okay regardless, right? So you don't have to-"
"Samantha."
Sammy's mouth slammed shut.
Ella took her hands in hers, and rubbed her thumbs over them. Despite the gentleness, there was an intensity in her eyes, the same that she had when she stared down the bear. "You are my friend. You were in danger. And this is only a game show. The money doesn't matter to me as much as you do. No human life is worth a price, especially yours. So yes, I am very much willing to risk my chances at winning for you. And I will do so as many times as I need to. Do you understand?"
The soft smile, the slight tilt to her head, the seriousness but lightness in her voice… The fact that she was so determined to be there for Sammy, that she was willing to forgo one million dollars to save her butt, of all people… That she was so kind, thoughtful, happy yet able to understand her shortcomings and work towards fixing them…
All of these thoughts culminated into one easy, straightforward sentence in her mind.
I love this girl.
It took a few moments for the thought to register, but when it did Sammy's entire face instantaneously turned as red as blood. Her heart started beating as fast as it did with the bear, and she could feel her palms begin to sweat. She didn't dare take her hands away from Ella's though - they were comforting, and comfort was something she desperately needed.
She realized that maybe she should reply to her. "I, uh." She swallowed hard. "Yes. Yes, I completely understand. And… You know I'm willing to do the same for you, too, right? You're… You mean a lot to me."
Her flustered mind was working overtime. Was that too forward? Did it sound weird? It sounded weird to me, I've never said anything remotely like that to anyone before… God, can she feel the sweat through her gloves? My cheeks are so hot it's so obvious I'm blushing. Part of her just wanted to run away and never look back, so alien this feeling was, but another part of her was forcing her to stay. She doesn't care that I'm a broken mess or unsure of stuff, she likes me for who I am. She's, like… perfect.
Ella's smile didn't tell Sammy if she felt uncomfortable with her saying that or not. "Then let's be there for one another. What do you say?"
"I…" It wasn't something she dwelled on for too long. "I'd like that."
She let out a breath and squeezed her hands tighter. "That's just what I was hoping to hear."
It wasn't exactly the promise of an alliance - given how everyone on her team was a dear friend to her, an alliance didn't make too much sense right now. But it was a promise between them that they'd be there for each other, no matter how sappy it sounded. To have someone personally help her when she was down was something Sammy had been desperate for her entire life, and now that she finally had it, she couldn't contain the grin widening on her face.
It was a wonderful and heartfelt moment, one that was completely foreign to Sammy, but she decided that it was a good one and that she wanted to stay like this for at least another little while.
And she probably would have, too, were it not for Betty suddenly leaping onto Ella's head.
Sammy yelped and darted backwards, nearly tripping over herself in the process. "Oh, come on," she groaned, hand over her heart.
"Oh, goodness," Ella said in surprise. "I had forgotten you were here."
"Yeah, me, too," Sammy said. She gave Betty a glare as the monkey leaped off of Ella's head and onto the ground. "I'm guessing she still wants her bananas." The screech that came from Betty confirmed that, not that it did anything to lighten Sammy's glare.
"Then how about we get going?" Ella asked. "The others should be back to the clearing by now anyway."
Sammy nodded. "Yeah. Hopefully we can make it there before-"
The speakers kicked in once more, cutting Sammy off. "This just in!" came Chris's voice over the speakers, and both girls visibly tensed. "You're not gonna believe this: Team Kinosewak have won the challenge!"
The pit in Sammy's stomach came back in full force, and she shared a mortified look with Ella. "Wait… We… We lost?"
Chris continued, having not heard. "Which means, you guessed it, the Maskwaks lose!" Or maybe he did and he was rubbing salt on the wound. "Get ready to send someone home tonight, guys! I know you're all excited for it!"
The feed cut off, leaving Sammy and Ella to themselves and thinking over what exactly that meant. Once again, they were going to have to remove someone from their team. And now that she had time to get to know everyone else, the decision was going to be even more painful and distressing. "I… I don't want to have to do this. Not again."
Ella's mouth formed a thin line, and she wrapped her arms around herself in comfort. "Neither do I… Who on earth are we expected to vote for? I wouldn't want anyone to leave…"
"How did we even lose, anyway?" Sammy asked. "I thought we were pretty quick to get the coin…"
"Perhaps the Salmons were just faster. Or…"
"Or?"
Ella, looking uncomfortable, continued. "Well, there's four Salmons. And currently, only three Bears that were heading back to the machine…"
"So… So they may have gotten overwhelmed? Because we weren't there?" If that was the case, that was probably the worst outcome that could've happened.
"That's just a theory. It could be any number of reasons."
"I… I guess so."
They stood silently for another while. Betty was making quiet noises, looking between them curiously. Eventually, Sammy shook her head and took Ella's hand once more. "C'mon. We should regroup and see what the others have to say."
She nodded and said, "Y-You're right." She didn't take her hand away.
They started back in the direction Sky and the others had left, and had just reached the edge of the clearing when Ella stopped and looked back. Sammy did the same, and saw that Betty had grabbed a hold of Ella's right hand and was pulling on it. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did you want to walk with us?" she asked the monkey.
Betty hollered once, took Ella's hand in both of hers, and pulled again.
"Wow, she's feisty," Ella said, a giggle in her voice. "Come now, you don't have to be so needy! We'll go back to camp and get you your bananas and-"
Betty pulled once more, and Ella's glove began slipping off.
Ella gasped sharply, tore her hand from Sammy's and grabbed a hold of it to keep it in place. "N-No! No no no! Stop, please! Let go!"
What resulted was essentially a tug-of-war between Ella and Betty. But thanks to being caught off guard, and perhaps because of her overall lack of muscles, it was a losing battle on Ella's end. Her mind finally catching up to her, Sammy realized this was something Ella did not want, and so she quickly rushed to her other side and attempted to grab the glove to keep it on.
But then Betty won, and Ella's arm flew back right into Sammy's face, free of its constraints.
And then she saw them.
Scars.
Several of them, from the edge of Ella's wrist to about halfway down the underside of her arm.
Some were small and jagged.
Others long, thin and precise.
The majority were healed over.
A few of them, however, looked fresh.
The arm wasn't completely covered, but there were enough for it to be obvious that almost none of these were accidents.
Sammy forgot to breathe for a moment. Questions raced through her mind, blurred together to form nothing coherent. Even after Ella screamed and did her best to cover her arm with her body, Sammy merely stared at where she had been looking at the time. She tried to process what she saw, but the only thing her thoughts were doing was asking Why?
It was only when her friend's ragged breath and panicked whimpering broke through her eardrums did Sammy act. Without looking at her, Sammy attempted to leap for Betty, who was unconcerned with Ella's plight and staring at the glove curiously. "Give it back!" Sammy shouted, diving to the ground, but the monkey had the better reflexes and jumped away just in time. With the glove in her hands, Betty leapt for a tree and hid in its leaves, and by the sounds of it she was hopping away from branch to branch.
Sammy was just about to give chase when the thought of leaving Ella alone stopped her in her tracks. She turned back to her friend, who was on her knees and hunched over herself, trying to hide the arm. Her eyes were wide and staring at nothing, almost like she were watching memories unfold in the back of her mind. It was a look that was reminding Sammy far too much of the pain Ella went through yesterday. She clearly did not want the arm exposed, and if it was causing her to act this way then covering it up was the number one goal here.
But there wasn't anything to cover it with. No tree leaves large enough to hide everything, and Sammy wasn't about to slather her friend's arm in dirt. The only thing she could think of was-
Without another thought Sammy pulled off the top of her uniform, as grimy and dirty as it was, and shoved it towards Ella. "Here, use this," she said quickly.
Ella glanced upward only for a second before she snatched up the shirt and sloppily wrapped it around her arm. It took a few attempts to keep it from falling off, but finally when she was done her breathing started to return to normal.
Sammy waited for her to say something, anything, out of fear that whatever came out of her own mouth first was the wrong thing. Once she had calmed down completely, Ella shakily stood to her feet, accepting the help Sammy offered. The shirt was haphazardly wrapped around the arm, but Ella had managed to get everything covered. Her eyes were no longer wide and fearful, but they also refused to meet Sammy's.
"I'm… I'm sorry," she said simply.
"Why are you sorry?" Sammy asked her. "That's not something you have to apologize to me about."
"I know, but… still."
Sammy tried to say something, but came up short. Just… what was a person supposed to say to that sort of discovery? At least now I know why she wanted to keep it hidden. Though I wish I didn't have to find out this way. Lousy, no-good monkey…
"You're probably looking for an explanation," she suddenly said.
Ella looked far too uncomfortable to want to talk about it, and though Sammy was definitely wondering, if it would make her upset then she'd hold off. "No, you don't have to say anything if you don't want to."
Her other hand clenched the uniform. "Well, okay, but I feel like I owe you an explanation."
She had that same tone of voice as before, the kind where she meant no nonsense. It was still disorienting hearing it coming from her. "Then… I'll wait until you're ready to talk about it, and then we'll talk. So don't force yourself if you're not."
Ella mulled that over. Coming to a decision, she finally looked back up to Sammy, though the smile was still not there and her eyes were threatened to be flooded by tears. "Okay."
With a nod, Sammy turned back around. "Let's get going."
"Right."
The walk back was agonizingly awkward. Sammy tried to think of something to say, something that would bring the mood right back up, but the last half an hour had been just a string of chaos and mixed emotions. First, a bear takes her hostage and almost bites her head off. Then, she realizes she probably has feelings for her best friend of barely a week. Then, they lose the challenge and are forced to vote one of their friends off. Then... Ella's arm. Nothing she could think of would be able to lighten their moods, and so she chose to simply keep to herself and hope for the best.
The two of them finally arrived back to the clearing. Obviously, everyone's eyes were drawn to Sammy in her nightshirt, and her uniform wrapped around Ella's arm. Subconsciously she tried to cover herself up, but otherwise she didn't care. It was to help her friend, so she could stand a few stares from the others. She'd dealt with worse.
Sky immediately stood and asked what had happened, concern on every inch of her face. But Chris, uncaring as always, told her to stop talking and sit back down. He re-announced the winners and gave them their food from the vending machine, pointedly ignoring any looks sent his way. As he spoke, Sammy zoned out rather heavily, with several thoughts buzzing through her mind - so many scars, where did they come from, is she okay, who did this to her, is this what's been troubling her, what's her home life like, is she freaking okay - and it wasn't until the Salmons started leaving that she broke out of her trance.
Sky entered her vision as soon as she was able to. "Seriously, what happened? Are you two hurt? Did the bear come back?"
"N-No, we're… fine," Sammy chose to say. Ella had her head dipped and wasn't looking up. "Nothing… um, dangerous, happened. The monkey just stole Ella's glove, is all."
"Oh? Is that all?" She turned to Ella, but didn't seem convinced. "Did it scratch you or something? Should we get someone to take a look at it?"
Her head shot upwards. "No!"
Startled, Sky took a step back. "W-What?"
Ella tensed and crumpled into herself further. "I mean, um… It's nothing to worry about."
"Uhh, you realize you're clutching at your arm something fierce, right?" Beardo asked her. "Not to mention you've got her shirt wrapped around it like you'd do to a big cut. You sure it's nothing to worry about?"
Shawn suddenly gasped and backed up considerably. "D-Did you get bitten?! Are the zombies here?! Argh, I knew I should've stayed in my tree today!"
"Guys, everything is fine!" Sammy tried to tell them, standing up off the log. "Nothing happened in the forest. The bear didn't come back, she didn't get a big cut, and no, she wasn't bitten by a zombie. It's just…"
What on earth am I supposed to tell them? I can't go throwing Ella under the bus, but they're obviously just as worried as I am… And I don't want to lie to them… Agh, what am I supposed to do?!
"It's okay," Ella said, startling Sammy out of her thoughts. She stood up as well, but she kept her head down. "It's just… a scar from when I was younger. I don't like to look at it. Bad memories, and all."
Beardo looked from Sammy's nightshirt to the uniform. "Uh, bad seems like an understatement here."
"Beardo, shush," Sky reprimanded, lightly smacking him on the arm. To Ella, she said, "If you're sure there's nothing for us to worry about, then we won't. Just… talk to us if you need anything, okay?"
Ella simply nodded.
Sammy frowned, but remained quiet. It's… not an outright lie, I guess.
Shawn approached the group, though still kept his distance. "So, uh…"
Sky sighed and nodded. "Yeah."
Sammy figured they were talking about the challenge, and now was a better time to ask than any. She turned back to the others and hesitantly asked, "What happened, anyway? How did we… lose?"
Running a hand through her hair, Sky sighed. "We got here just as the Salmons did. Jasmine wasted no time charging at us and taking down Shawn first. And unfortunately, he was the one who had the coin, so it was just a matter of Scarlett popping their coin in the machine before we had a chance to do anything."
Scarlett. Great. "Couldn't you have stopped her?"
"I tried," Sky admitted. "But Amy came out of nowhere and tripped me up. That was our one chance."
Sammy huffed. "Of course she would."
"Sorry," Beardo said, mostly to Sky. "I could've done more, but I just stood there like a sad clown. I just… Everything was happening so fast, and I…"
"No, it's okay," Sky told him. "Given everything that happened, there probably wasn't much that could be done, anyway."
"I guess."
"So…" Sammy said quietly. "What do we do?"
Sky looked at her, at Ella, and at the boys, and shook her head. "I don't know."
Sammy's question was ultimately pointless. They all knew what was going to happen - one of them was going home tonight. The trouble was, Sammy considered them all friends and had next to no idea who she should vote for. She could always vote for herself, if it came to it, but that option no longer sat well with her. Not that it did before, but back then Sammy had such a negative opinion of herself that the thought came naturally. Now, it left a bad taste in her mouth.
With nothing more to say, the five Bears made their way slowly back to the shack. When they arrived, Shawn relit the fire and everyone helped themselves to the fruit and water. Staring at nothing and lost in thought, Sammy was trying to work out how best to solve this problem.
Someone had to go home, but the answer wasn't coming to her. Definitely not Ella, she didn't deserve that - and with everything that happened that morning, getting her kicked off now would be a huge middle finger directly in her face. Sky was a good person, and though there were times she didn't get the chance to compete due to unfortunate circumstances, she was a strong player and a good person to have around, both in and out of the game. Beardo was friendly, surprisingly good with advice, and pretty handy when it came to some of the challenges, even if he didn't necessarily believe it himself. And Shawn, while not the most social of them all, watched over them and made sure everyone was in peak condition to keep playing, plus was fully capable of handling himself in any situation. No one was truly deserving of going home. And that was what scared her most.
Someone is going to get unfairly booted, and it'll be all our fault. Or maybe… Ugh, more like my fault. If I hadn't gotten grabbed by that stupid bear, we wouldn't be in this mess…
Perhaps… she really should vote for herself? This was technically her fault after all, even if it had been completely out of her hands. And so far the general rule appeared to be whoever cost a team the challenge, they were the ones sent packing that night. Though I guess with Max gone and Amy still around, that point is moot.
Regardless, they lost, and Sammy felt responsible. So the only thing to do was to get rid of that responsible person, right? Everyone could continue their chance at the million because they did nothing wrong. And she…
Well. She had a good run so far.
She knew she'd meet resistance, but she gathered her will and took a deep breath-
"You guys should vote for me."
All eyes turned to Beardo as he spoke up. "Wait… what?" Sky asked.
"You heard me," he said. With his arms crossed, he didn't look like he was going to budge. "Vote me out tonight."
Silence reigned among them, and everyone shared the same shocked expression. Inwardly, Sammy was relieved that he spoke first, but she was still just as surprised. "But… but why?" she asked. She could understand herself going, as painful as it was, but why Beardo?
"Look," he said in a huff. "I've really enjoyed my time here, getting to meet you all and becoming more outgoing and stuff. But, c'mon, I ain't gonna kid myself - there's no way I'm ever gonna win this. Jasmine would crush me under her boot, and heck, both of you guys," he gestured to Sky and Shawn, "are forces to be reckoned with on your own. And me?" He grabbed his stomach and shook it around, jiggling it to and fro. "I couldn't outrun a sloth! Let alone the rest of you. Or a bear!"
"But, Beardo," Sky started, "I said this before, the winners of seasons one and-"
"I know what you said," Beardo interrupted. "And it's great they were able to overcome all of the more athletically built people in their season. But unlike them, I just… don't have the drive to keep going, y'know? I'm chill, I'm laid back. I don't… really care about winning. Money's good and all, but at the end of the day, it doesn't define who I am. And who I am is someone who wants the rest of y'all to still have a chance. Besides…" He rubbed his hands over his eyes. "I don't want us to backstab or gang up on each other now that we lost. I've come to see you guys as friends, and I don't want that to change."
To have come to that conclusion was incredibly noble of Beardo. He wanted his friends to stay as friends, and so he was willing to sacrifice his spot in the game to keep that from happening. Sammy's heart went out to him, but she was just as thankful she was still sticking around.
"I can get behind this," Sammy said, drawing all eyes to her. "I… I don't want us to fight either. So if Beardo's willing to do this for us, I'm okay with it."
"Well, it'll definitely save us the trouble of worrying about it," Shawn said. "So if you're cool with it…"
"I am," Beardo said resolutely. "It, uh, it'll be nice to not have to wake up to a challenge for once, truth be told. And in an actual bed."
"Yeah, I'm sure," Sky agreed. She didn't look very pleased with the outcome. "So I guess that's that, then."
"Guess so." He sighed and fell onto his back, his arms cushioning his head. "It was fun while it lasted. And painful. …Mostly painful. But still."
Sammy turned her attention to Ella, who was looking at the fire gloomily. Her gloved arm was still holding the other one tightly, and her eyes were telling Sammy that she was somewhere else, lost in thought. With a nudge of her elbow, Sammy asked, "Hey, you okay? Uh, about this I mean."
Without looking up, she nodded. "Yes. I think… this might be the best outcome out of any, really."
"Probably, yeah."
After lunch, Sammy took the time to find the confessional, though aside from voting she didn't really know what to say. Too much had happened during the morning alone that her mind was unsure of what to focus on. It was a shame about Beardo, a real shame - he valued the rest of them as friends just as much as Sammy herself did, so she knew what he must have been feeling. Besides, he was the one who saved her from the bear, so seeing him leave so soon didn't sit well with her to begin with. But the alternative was perhaps the worst possible thing that could happen. If the others managed to gang up on her and vote her out, all of the trust and confidence she had built up would probably go straight through the window. And who knew how anyone else would feel if that happened to them…
But, now that she thought about it, there was something she could talk about. Something that didn't involve voting out her friend, or getting eaten by a bear.
"I… I think I like Ella?" she asked, completely unsure of herself. "I mean, I'm not sure. I've never felt anything like this before. Is it just me liking her? Or do I actually l… lo…" Her face flared at the mere thought of the word. She realized that she wasn't entirely comfortable saying it out loud. "I mean, I've only known her for, what… six days? Can someone like someone else that quickly? Is that okay? And is it actually me liking her that's causing these feelings? I've never… liked anyone before. Or been liked, I guess. This is just so new to me."
Her frown deepend even further. "And… Ella's a girl. And I'm a girl. What would the others say? What would Mom say? What would Amy-" She paused and scoffed. "Actually, Amy can say whatever she wants. I… I just don't know. I mean, I knew I liked girls more than guys for the past few years, but I never expected to fall for- er, start liking someone while I was here. It could… really make things difficult. Even saying it to this camera is probably going to screw me over one day…
"Oh… And speaking of making things difficult… I guess I know what's been bugging her all this time." Sammy instinctually rubbed her arm, thinking of all of the scars running down Ella's own. "What on Earth happened to her for her to get all of those? Just thinking about it gives me chills. I mean, they were obviously self-inflicted, but… Were they from a bully? Or… from home? God, I want to ask but I'm… scared of the answer. …Well, regardless, Ella thinks I should know, now that I've seen them. I guess I should just… wait for her to be okay with telling me."
Unsure of what else to say, Sammy painfully voted for Beardo, and got out of the confessional before her tears got to her. She took in a deep breath of fresh, unpolluted air, and started the return trip towards camp. That's it. There's no going back now.
On her way, she crossed paths with Sky, who looked to be lost in her own thoughts. "Hi, Sky," Sammy greeted, stopping in the middle of the path.
She looked up in mild surprise. "Oh, Sammy. I didn't see you there."
"It's fine. How, uh, how are you holding up?"
With a sigh, Sky shrugged. "Okay, I suppose. I don't like the idea of voting off Beardo, but I can't see any other options that don't lead to us infighting."
"Yeah, I was trying to think of other ways this could work, but I don't think there is. If we went behind each other's backs and voted someone else off, I don't know if I'd be able to trust anyone ever again…"
Sky gave her a sorrowful look and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Oh, Sammy… I guess this means we only have one choice, then."
"Yeah, I guess so."
"It's just… so unfair." Sky started pacing in the middle of the path. "Beardo was doing so good here! Not just for the team, but for himself too. He's done well in challenges and he's managed to come so far out of his shell that it's almost a surprise he was so shy on the first day."
Sammy nodded in agreement. "You know, he got over his shyness pretty quickly… I'm glad we didn't judge him too harshly and get him eliminated on the first day."
"You're right, that's true. That's pretty impressive of him to be able to do that, really."
"Maybe he's just not as shy as he thought?" Sammy recalled him standing up to Amy pretty fiercely, and that was only on the third day.
"Well, still, that's all the more reason why voting him off just feels wrong to me." Sky stopped pacing and ran a hand down her face. "But I can't see any other way out of this."
"I mean… Total Drama isn't known for its easy ways out, right? I'm pretty sure past seasons had much more stressful situations than this one. Not… Not that I want this outcome to happen, but… you know…"
Sky sighed. "Yeah, I know. We'll just have to live with it."
She excused herself then, saying she needed to go to the confessional. Sammy, now left alone, resumed the trip back to camp, all the while wondering if things were going to be okay.
"And tonight's unwilling cannon fodder is… Beardo."
Since the answer had ended up being obvious, Chris chose to forgo any long pauses this time around. He tossed the last marshmallow to Sammy, who just barely managed to catch it. There had been a bit of nervousness in her about being the actual one eliminated, but thankfully it didn't come to pass.
Beardo wasn't upset with the result, of course, and stood with grace and his dignity intact. "Hey, man, I'm more than willing." To his now ex-teammates, he said, "Well, y'all, it's been real." Chef Hatchet approached him, but rather than sling him over his shoulder he simply directed Beardo down the cliff. Sammy shared a sad look with the others, and followed them down.
"We're sorry it had to come to this," Sky said when they reached the bottom.
"I know," he said. "But it's what I wanted. So you guys make sure to get far in this thing okay? Make me proud!"
"Yeah, you got it," Sammy replied. She raised her hand up, and Beardo eagerly clapped his against it. "We won't let you down."
He made his way towards the cannon. "Yeah, you better not. And you still owe me two favors, remember?"
"How could I ever forget?" Sammy asked, her smile going wide.
"Don't worry, I'll come to collect some other time. Lucky for you I don't charge interest."
She laughed, but it felt bittersweet. "Yeah. Lucky for me."
"Hey, this isn't supposed to be a happy farewell!" Chris yelled at them. "You should all be miserable for losing again!"
"Miserable? To leave this deathtrap of a gameshow?" Beardo asked, accepting help from Chef to get in the cannon. "Please. If anything, they're doing me a favor." Chris grumbled and stepped aside as Sammy and the rest of the Bears approached. "Welp, guess this is it!" Beardo called out from the cannon's mouth. Chef handed him a helmet, but it got stuck partway through his afro, so he decided to simply leave it there. "Y'all take care of each other, y'hear?"
"Of course," Ella said. Her voice still hadn't regained its luster. "We promise to do just that." Her hand briefly brushed against Sammy's and she immediately felt her heart rate spike. She really wasn't sure how much of that was a good thing.
"Awesome." He leaned causally against the rim of the cannon's mouth. "You know, you guys are pretty great. I'm really glad to have-"
BOOM went the cannon, cutting Beardo off mid-sentence and sending him soaring through the air. Everyone cried out in surprise, and tried to zero in on him as he flew away. Thanks to his masterful usage of his voice, though, he was able to shout one last sentence. "It was really nice to meet all of yoooooouuuuuu!"
"See you later!" Sammy found herself screaming after him, unsure if her words actually reached him.
When he was no longer in sight, she turned a glare to Chris, casually holding his remote with a self-satisfied grin on his face. "What?" he asked with a shrug. "We've only got so many minutes in an episode." Chris left it at that as he began to close it out. With a roll of her eyes Sammy followed the others back up the path and towards their camp.
On the walk back, she got to thinking. Back on the first day, when they had voted out Leonard after being the first team to lose, Sammy had thought that having someone disappear so suddenly after seeing them all day was weird. Now that they lost someone who they had known for far longer, one who she could perhaps call one of her closest friends, it was like getting punched in the gut and having a hole left where it impacted.
Beardo had been a source of humor and ease, and now that he was gone Sammy was nervous that she'd find herself falling into her old gloomy habits again. But then she noticed Ella walking alongside her, and Sky a little further ahead, and hoped that they would be able to help keep her from going off track.
It was late, the fire had been extinguished, and the only thing left to do was simply to go to bed. With the only guy left on the team being the one who slept in trees, the girls had full reign over the shack, and Sky had the honor of pulling down the blanket dividing the room. "We won't be needing this anymore," she said as she tore it down. "Now we have two extra blankets to use."
"Umm," Sammy said hesitantly. "No offence to him, but I don't think I want to use Beardo's blanket."
Sky paused as she was reaching for it. She sniffed experimentally, and then stood right back up. "…You know, you're right."
A thought occurred to her. "Then again, it's been… almost a week?" Sammy raised an arm and sniffed, and recoiled slightly. "It's been too long since we had a proper shower or bath. I don't think we have a right to complain about smell anymore."
With a groan, Sky nodded. "You're right. I really should've worn something with sleeves before boarding the zeppelin."
Beardo's blanket was tossed outside, and Sky set up her own blankets on the other side of the room to give everyone their own space. Sammy lid down and stared at the sorry excuse for a ceiling, wondering if Beardo made it out okay wherever he ended up at. She hoped he landed safely - there had to be some sort of safety net to catch them. They wouldn't just shoot people away with nothing to keep them from getting hurt, right?
"We should probably get some sleep," Sky was saying as she lid down. "We'll have to try extra hard tomorrow."
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Sammy tried her best to get comfortable. "It'll be weird without his snoring."
"I know. But we gotta push through this. This is what he wanted, right?"
"Right." Sammy looked to her left, where Ella was already on her side, arms wrapped around herself tightly. She was back-on to Sammy, and seeing her like this filled her heart with sorrow.
Her eyes wandered to the blanket underneath Ella, and she saw the corner of a piece of paper sticking out. Oh, that's right, we didn't get around to the poem… Now wouldn't be a good time anyway, even though I still want to hear it. Actually, I think I want to hear it even more now. I'll ask her… when things are better, I guess.
Sammy wished the others goodnight and settled into her blanket. The day's events played through her mind - Kinda crazy I got grabbed by a bear and lived. That'll be a story for the ages - and the exhaustion finally caught up to her. It wasn't long before she fell into a dreamless sleep.
…
Until she was woken up suddenly. She heard the calm breathing of Sky from across the room, but closer to her was the sound of whimpering, and there was a weight against her side that wasn't there before.
Quietly looking to her side and squinting through the darkness, Sammy saw Ella clinging to her arm, a troubled look on her face as she dealt with whatever nightmare was plaguing her sleep.
Sammy, still half asleep, was tempted to wake her up and save her from it, but she knew that waking someone from a nightmare could be dangerous. She sent a glance at Sky, who was sound asleep herself, and decided to try and help Ella another way. Slowly turning on her side, Sammy gently wrapped Ella in a hug with her free arm, and tried to soothe her by rubbing her back. Somehow, it managed to work, and soon her friend's crying subsided entirely.
Breathing in relief, Sammy quickly fell back to sleep herself.
She didn't move from where she was.
So there you have it. Episode 6 is done. Beardo is gone, Sammy has realized she has feelings for her best friend, and Ella's secret has been revealed.
In hindsight, perhaps having it be a secret and considering it a spoiler wasn't the right move. I didn't intend to discredit the harmful impacts self-harming could have on a person. Rereading this chapter, it feels to me that I had accidentally used the reveal of Ella self-harming as shock value over anything else. However, I want to be clear that that isn't and will not be the case. Obviously I won't say too much now, but know there will be more discussion happening in future chapters about everything that happened here.
Additionally, the pairing of Sammy and Ella has been a long time coming now. I can see them having such good chemistry when put together, and truth be told I'm kind of surprised I don't see many other stories with this pairing. But, oh well, I'm just one person in a sea of tens of thousands, not everyone is going to have the same ideas I do.
So. What are your thoughts? Did you like this chapter? Are you excited for more? Let me know in a review. I can't guarantee when the next chapter will come out, but I'm hoping it'll be soon. Until then, take care, stay safe, and I'll see you all next time.
