The Silent Forest

Summary: A field trip becomes a nightmare when the gang is separated from the rest of the group in the middle of a vast forest. Things go from bad to worse when they discover that they are not alone.

Pairings: Chaylor, Troyella and some mild Zekepay. Ryan will also feature but with no pairing.

Disclaimer: Yep, I own it. *Keeps dreaming*

Warnings: Possible character death(s). Rated T for some language and quite a bit of violence/blood. Probable spelling and grammar mistakes due to my lack of beta.

20. The Broken-Hearted End

Day Four; and the search for the missing teenagers finally comes to a close. At long last, we found them.

It wasn't how we thought it would feel. There was no relief. Just regret. We were too late.

We hadn't seen the smoke soon enough. By the time we reached its source, all that was left was devastation. Burnt ruins. And lives reduced to ashes.

What was left of their bodies was found in the smoking rubble. Seven bodies. At first. Then, eight. Ten. More? At least fifteen extra bodies. Bones. But not just burnt remains. Old, decomposed corpses. The type that must have been there for years.

Then another shocking discovery. Blood trails. Still wet. Fresh. Leading us to…

A mess of bloody bodies, six of them lay together like sleeping children. One was missing. Standing over them, all I could see was blood, burns and malnutrition. Evidence of the suffering they had endured. They were dirty. Their clothes were torn. Their wan faces were almost unrecognisable as their fragile skin clung to their worn and broken bones.

They were alive.

But barely.

Starvation tormented them and threatened to take them at any moment. Blood loss left them on the brink of fatal demise. Their vulnerable, weak hearts desperately fought the losing battle against the odds.

They needed help. But where we discovered them was such an awkward place. So hard to access. Precious time was wasted while we waited for ambulances to get to us. In the end, we had to have them airlifted.

I watched, helpless, as my unconscious students were carted onto gurneys. Frantic paramedics bombarded each other with medical jargon as they strived for the teens survivals in highly trained, almost mechanically perfected movements. Before I could even register what was happening, they were carted onto the helicopter and had disappeared into the darkening evening sky.

The blur of panicked events suddenly came to a sudden stop. I was left with nothing but my thoughts.

Four days.

After the first night, the situation had started to sink in. A kid going missing on a field trip is a teacher's worst nightmare. Seven kids getting lost in a forest where the water is acidic, the vegetation is poisonous and even the air is dangerous to breathe… it's unimaginable. With each second that they went unfound, their chances of still being alive grew slimmer and slimmer. My chances of forgiving myself for letting this happen disappeared completely.

They'd been gone a whole night. Without food or shelter. I rested my hope in the fact that I knew they were a smart bunch of kids. They'd probably know the basics of survival. They wouldn't do anything to jeopardise their healths. I hoped.

I didn't go home. The trip was meant to be a one day thing but, I couldn't just abandon them. I couldn't lie in my bed at night and sleep and dream like they weren't out there alone. To my surprise, the rest of the students from the class volunteered to stay and help the search party. Unfortunately, rules and laws prohibited them from doing that. Even though their presence was much needed.

We could use all the help we could get.

By the end of the second day, I didn't even care about my career anymore. I was more concerned about my conscience. I guess that was lucky since I was later informed that I wouldn't have a job waiting for me when I returned to Albuquerque.

I was past caring.

That night, I had a nightmare. I was falling into a dark pit. The drop seemed never-ending. When I finally landed, I was plunged into scolding hot water. As hard as I tried, I couldn't swim out. I couldn't save myself. Just before I awoke, the seven teenagers appeared in my mind. They were all dead.

I awoke the third morning in a cold sweat. By then, I had lost all hope. So far, regardless of the rigorous searches, nothing had been found. Nothing but the heel of a pink shoe.

I was stalked by reporters and pestered by parents. I had nothing to tell them. We weren't going to find their children.

Day Four; and the search for the missing teenagers finally comes to a close.

Now, it was my job to notify the parents. We found them. At long last, some good news. Overshadowed by the reality of their slim chances of survival.

Jack Bolton hadn't stopped calling me. It had been hard enough for me to convince him that there was no need for him to come and join the search party. He didn't believe that we had things under control. I suppose we didn't though. He was the first I called.

Next, I contacted the parents of Taylor McKessie. Her mother picked up the phone on the first ring, as if she'd been waiting for the call. Of all the parents, the McKessie's were the most accusing. I could tell that their youngest child, their smart daughter who had always had so much potential, was important. They blamed me for putting her future at risk.

The Evans' hired their own fifty-man crew of searchers. It didn't help. Their money, for once, didn't help. They weren't even in town. They were off in another country. I wondered if they'd have even noticed the absence of their kids had they not been told. Bitter, perhaps, but true.

Chad Danforth's parents were never acceptant of their son's disappearance. They always seemed to think that he'd just show up, unhurt. I could tell, as each day went by, that their naïve fantasy was crumbling. When I'd finally gotten through to them to tell them that we'd found their son, they had given up hope.

By the time I had called Ms. Montez, the Bolton's had already told her of the news. Gabriella was all her mother had left. Losing her daughter would be the end of Ms. Montez's world. Most important to me, was telling her that she was no longer alone.

I told them all the same thing. That we'd found their children. And the reaction was always the same. I heard them sigh down the phone or cheer or rejoice with relief and happiness. Then I had to hit them with the bad news. They were in hospital. They were hurt, badly. They would probably die. And, every time, I was met with silence. As if they had expected everything to be fine. I could almost hear their thoughts ticking away in their heads. I could hear the cogs of the clock-like mechanism in their minds, churning and clunking as they thought so hard it had to have hurt. I told them the location of the hospital. They thanked me and hung up.

Then I had the final task of calling the parents of Zeke Baylor. The one we hadn't found. At least, not alive. I had to tell them somehow that we'd found what we guessed was their sons remains; a scorched corpse. A faceless body. A pile of ashes.

As the phone rang, I still hadn't come up with what I'd tell them. I had no idea how they'd react. With every second that they didn't pick up the phone, my apprehension grew. I considered hanging up; letting someone else deal with this. But it was my responsibility. Zeke was my responsibility.

I was just a teacher. I had never been trained for anything like this. I had never imagined I'd ever have to deliver news like this to a parent. Zeke seemed like a good kid. He wasn't the best behaved in classes. When around his basketball friends, he could be quite mischievous. But he seemed to have a good heart. I'd heard that he even liked to bake…

When Mrs. Baylor finally picked up the phone, I was almost crying. I could barely get my words out past the lump in my throat. I hated myself for crying. What right did I have? Who was I to mourn a death that I had caused?

Luckily, I didn't have to say much for her to know. Mother's instinct, I guess. She begged me without shame to tell her that I was wrong. She wanted it to be a horrible mistake. She wanted it to be someone else's baby. She asked how she was going to tell her husband, her other son; Zeke's younger brother. I could do nothing but apologise repeatedly.

The journey to the hospital was the longest I had ever had to sit through. The wait once I got there, was agonising. I sat in the allocated waiting room while people bustled past, not even noticing me. Too preoccupied with their own little emergencies. I summoned a nurse and demanded that she told me what was happening. No longer would I sit in the unknown. I must have frightened her enough to break the doctor-patient confidentiality laws because she told me. Everything.

Every detail.

Chad Danforth had suffered a depressed skull fracture. He was bleeding into his brain. He needed surgery. If he didn't die; which seemed likely, he'd most definitely suffer from brain damage. The injury to his abdomen was mostly flesh but he had torn part of his small intestine.

Gabriella Montez had lacerated her Subclavian artery. She was enduring massive blood loss. Her heart had slowed and most of her body functions had already shut down. She would need an immediate blood transfusion.

Ryan Evans had completely shattered his Fibia bone. Despite advances in reconstructive surgery, salvage of mangled extremities still requires long periods of treatment with many operations that can be taxing both to the surgeon and the patient. Attempts at reconstruction often result in eventual amputation.

Taylor McKessie hadn't eaten in so long that her stomach acids had started to burn away at her insides. Her eyes were so damaged that the doctors were considering removing them to reduce risk of infection. If she ever woke up, there was a high chance she'd live in darkness for the rest of her life.

Troy Bolton had somehow undergone a brachial plexus injury which meant, in short, that his arm was paralysed. Treatment included occupational or physical therapy and, in some cases, surgery. However, for Troy it seemed there was no potential for recovery. Like Ryan, he faced probable amputation.

Sharpay was suffering from third degree burns to the face and neck as well as pulmonary oedema; her lungs were filling with liquid. Her lungs needed to be drained and she'd need a lot of skin grafts. The skin would have to be taken from somewhere like her thigh, scarring her further. That is, of course, if she lived.

Bryan Feeny; their young, enthusiastic teacher, had caused it all. He suffered from a fractured right scapula, right wrist, left tibia and fibula and a pulmonary embolism. And finally, the broken heart that finished it all. It wasn't the fall that killed him. But when he collided with the concrete floor eleven stories beneath him, his internal organs carried on travelling until they hit his ribcage. His lungs were punctured. The main artery from his heart was torn. And that's what killed him. His heart was literally broken.

Bryan Feeny; their young, enthusiastic teacher, threw himself from the hospital roof. He died instantly.

End

A/N: Now I know what you're thinking; 'This dark, twisted bitch can't just end it there!' But no fear, I'm already considering a sequel which will deal with the more personal side of the survivors… well, trying to survive. It would be more about character interaction and them trying to get on with life with each others support. I'm back at school tomorrow but, if I decide to do this sequel, I'll try and come up with a trailer or something and I'll submit it as an extra chapter on here before I submit it as a new story.

Now, the thanks I promised. But first let me say that it's been a pleasure writing for you guys. Your reviews can always put a smile on my face and, not only that, you light up my life! I can't believe we reached over two-hundred. Anyway, enough cheese.

Thank you; ChaylorBabyx3, lilmissmonique, NanoLuvsYouAll, ILuvZacEfronChaylorTwilightQueen10, InLoVe-13, Always-Here-Imani, EllaKnight22RissaIzDeBomb, BrownEyedGirl97, zanessatroyella4evr620,Daydreamer299,meganChocolatexChicaxCasey95, chaylorlover101,Saynt Jimmy, Start of something new, Kt luvs., utmy123, NavalHut, TheDiamondPrincess, Rawr- exclamation point, LadyKatyUltimateFan, autumnamberleavesandcorbinsbabygrl1. I really hope I haven't missed anyone!

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