Trigger Warning: Sexual assault

Don't push yourselves!

This was so hard for me to write. I don't want to hurt anyone or cause anyone any undo pain, stress, or anxiety.

If this is one of your triggers please email me at enbysaurusrex at g mail dot com and I will send you an edited version of this chapter without the passages that could be triggering or harmful to your mental health so that you can still enjoy the story without having to suffer to do so.

Love y'all! -ENBYsaurus RAWR!


-CCF Day Twelve-

Ben had made it through the night.

Sitting dazed, staring straight ahead at nothing, Brooklynn still couldn't believe it, but he had.

He had.

Katie was some sort of miracle worker. She'd diagnosed the problem as having been a sudden spike in his fever as his body did it's best to fight off the infection, one Katie admitted, there could be nothing done for if it reached his brain. They'd gotten him into the shower, Darius ran up and down the hall to fetch buckets of ice, and while Ben lay half frozen in the running water Katie got to work "debriding" the area, which in this case meant opening the stitches, cutting out the dead parts of the tissue, and brutally scrubbing away at what was left underneath.

What was left.

It was apparently an essential step in the healing process for wounds like Ben's, but Katie hadn't wanted to do it until they could get the IV antibiotics from the hospital, she said the procedure posed its own set of risks. The seizure, and his worsening condition had left her no choice however.

No choice.

Brooklynn sat slowly absorbing all of this information as it was given to her, but still, hours later, none of it had quite sunk in. She must have been in shock, she thought through a wave of dizziness, because she remembered him dying. He had died, hadn't he? The entire night was a blur.

A blur.

She remembered Yasmina holding Ben so tight as she cried, and the way his body snapped back and forth in her arms, liked he'd touched a live wire. Sammy had been on the floor. Brooklynn had never heard anyone cry the way Sammy did when she thought Ben's fight was finally over, she could still hear the wailing echo through the troubled halls of her mind. Then, when she had turned to reach for him and the solace he could provide, Darius was gone.

Gone.

She remembered wondering if whoever was posted in the hallway that night had given him any hassle, or if he'd gotten to Katie without any problems. Brooklynn remembered Bumpy running around the room, honking and hollering in a temper tantrum like a spoiled brat. She'd considered locking her in the bathroom, just to keep her from being tripped over, but after realizing how frightened the animal was, she didn't have the heart.

Didn't have the heart.

Lastly the girl remembered seeing Kenji sandwiched between a couple of pillows, screaming and crying until the veins in his neck and forehead stood out like thick angry bands. She wasn't sure why in the maddening chaotic whirl that was going on, but Brooklynn had the clarity of thought to realize that while everyone else was busy trying to help Ben, Kenji just needed someone.

Someone.

Honestly, Brooklynn hadn't been able to deal, and she had needed someone too. Mindful of the dangers a distressed ankle biting, ankylosaurus posed Brooklynn had painfully wrested Bumpy up off the floor and then gracelessly collapsed onto Kenji's lower half. She remembered the way he clung to her, nails biting into her back as he squeezed her close. She remembered not caring either, she hadn't cared because Ben was dead, and somehow nothing seemed to matter after that, not even the pain.

The pain.

Sitting alone on the floor Brooklynn remembered all of this, she even remembered how Kenji had cried to the point of vomiting, and Katie had to suspend her work on Ben to sedate him so he didn't wreck his ribs anymore than they already were, while fending off complaints, orders, and arguing from the other ACU guys who didn't think it was a worthy enough use of supplies. Still, Brooklynn couldn't remember, or convince herself of the fact that Ben was alright, because he'd died.

He'd died.

Glancing up she could just see the crest of his side, skin pale, and clammy. He was laying right there, Yasmina's arm draped over him, breathing, she watched his ribs rise and fall, but the girl kept expecting to look back and find that it was just her imagination, and that he was indeed, dead. She was cold and numb, and despondent. None of it seemed real.

None of it.

It couldn't be real.

It wasn't.

None of it.

It was too terrible to be real.

It was all just a bad dream.

He died.

They were supposed to be safe here.

They weren't.

They were supposed to go home.

They couldn't.

It was too much.

It was too horrible.

It couldn't be real.

It wasn't real.

They were all going to die here, weren't they?

Blinking hard Brooklynn found herself caught in the periphery of an emotional whirlpool. She was beginning to spiral, and if she wasn't careful those swirling waters of despair, uncertainty, and denial would drag her down, deep beneath the surface and drown her.

Drown her.

This fear should have been normal by now, she thought. How long had she been afraid? Fueled by anxiety and her fight or flight instincts alone? Too long. It was hard to remember a time when she hadn't been afraid, though she knew there must of have been, before she'd come here. Before the island.

The island.

The real kicker was she hadn't been expecting this to happen. It was different, somehow than being afraid out there. Out there she knew what to expect no matter how gruesome it was, it was a truth she had faced head on more time than she could count or wanted to remember. Out there, there was something tangible, something real stalking her. Out there death had teeth and claws, and out there her fear had a name; Indominus Rex.

Indominus Rex.

In here it was different. In here the fear was just as constant, but it was distant, like a far away siren. In here the danger felt removed. In here it felt safe, the four walls and a roof lending to the illusion of security. In here it felt like the only thing that could hurt them was time, and perhaps each other. In here, it felt like they were going to be alright. In here it felt like death couldn't reach them.

Reach them.

But last night death had cast its gaze upon the hotel. It had reached its chill touch fingers past the walls and roof that had made the children feel so safe, violating their sanctuary, and ensnared one of their own.

One of their own.

Last night Brooklynn had been too busy mentally preparing for the trip to think that anything could go wrong. She was doing her best not to think about the day ahead of her, and to stamp out her nerves. Watching a movie with the others, she had been trying to remember, and recapture what it meant to be sixteen. Niether she nor Sammy, or anyone else for that matter wanted to admit it, but it was supposed to be one last good night with their friends just in case they never made it back again.

Never made it back.

She had actually started to relax and enjoy herself, sitting in the dark, bumping elbows with Darius as they crammed into the space between the beds. They'd talked off and on through the afternoon, and by evening most of the upset had been forgotten. He'd even offered to share his coveted sour gummy worms with her, the ones Katie had give him. It was a good night.

Good night.

Brooklynn just couldn't shake it. Everything just all felt so surreal, like she was trapped in a waking dream. Looking back in everything that had happened, she couldn't believe that any of it had happened at all. In all this time since the observation tower, she'd never really given herself a good moment to think, and reflect. She'd told her story to the camera, but that was different, it just scratched the surface of everything boiling to get out beneath her mask.

Beneath the mask.

Blinking back tears Brooklynn wondered who that girl was, where she went, and if she would be there if Brooklynn needed her again. Because she certainly wasn't the kind of girl who ran from raptors or jumped from moving trains. She had never battled a huge, angry, snub-nosed, T-Rex wanna be armed with only oxygen tanks and a cattle prod. She had never been a field medic or headed a recon mission to aquire a cellphone. That wasn't her.

Wasn't her.

None of that was her.

It couldn't have been her.

It had to have been someone else.

This wasn't real.

None of this could be real.

This whole terrible Godforsaken place wasn't real.

It too horrible to be real.

It wasn't real and she wanted to wake up already!

Why couldn't she wake up?

She just wanted to wake up, and realize that it was all some bad dream, some terrible mistake and that she was home and safe with her family.

Her family.

She just wanted her moms and her dad, and stupid fuggly Skittles!

"I can still go." she heard someone say at the edge of her consciousness.

"Brooklynn, I can still go." they repeated, but she was caught in the spiraling tides, and the whirlpool was starting to pull her under.

Under.

She just wanted to go home!

Why couldn't she get home?

She just wanted to be safe!

She just wanted her family!

She just wanted to go-

Jolted out of her listless state by Darius patting her with an abrupt thump on the knee, she followed his arm up, and found soulful brown eyes staring at her, awash with concern.

His eyes.

"Brooklynn, are you still with us?" he asked, the worry on his face and the way he seemed to second guess reaching over to wipe her tears away with a hand that trembled spoke of how truly alarmed the boy really was.

Brooklynn wondered how long he'd been sitting next to her, and how long they had been holding hands. Staring down at the connection they had made she allowed the still tender fingers of her right hand to curl more tightly about his.

His hand.

"Yeah," she rasped, surprised by how thin and airy her own voice sounded. She needed water, she thought then. "I'm still here."

"I can still go." he repeated, his voice low, but full of compassion. "I'd rather be the one to go."

His voice.

"No." Brooklynn shook her head, the distance closing between them as, with his help, the girl came back into herself. "I can do it." she promised.

Darius didn't say anything for a long while, his lips forming a solemn line, he seemed to be considering his options, or what argument to use next.

His lips.

It was as he thought that Brooklynn was given the opportunity to really look him over. The bruising on his face from their numerous falls, and Kenji's haymaker had begun to fade, while in contrast those around his shoulder and clavicle were only deepening. His body, swimming in a shirt too large, seemed bent somehow, as if he were bowed beneath a heavy burden that had been piled a top him. More than any of that, he looked tired, the kind of tired that went straight down to your marrow.

His bruises.

"We can go together." he offered hopefully.

Staring at him the girl could already see the guilt seeping in behind the color of his eyes, at the mere suggestion. She squeezed his hand, and offered up a sad half smile as she shook her head.

His guilt.

"You and I both know that someone has to stay here, for them." Brooklynn nodded towards the beds.

His limp, and weighty figure left in what looked like an uncomfortable position, Kenji breathed heavily, still very much affected by the medication Katie had given him. To their left Yasmina's face was still contorted with fear as she lay with her head on Ben's chest, listening desperately to the beat of his heart, and the pull of air into his lungs. Brooklynn was frozen for the space of a minute, just watching, but still not quite believing.

"Yeah," Darius sighed, his shoulders hanging a little lower as if this was the weight he carried. "Yeah I know. Don't think Sergeant Purdy will just let me swap places with Sammy do you?"

His burden.

"Not unless you know how to shoot." Brooklynn muttered.

"I mean, how hard can it be?" he shrugged in a cartoonishly exaggerated manner, eyes rolling towards the ceiling. Caught off guard by his sudden irreverence towards the situation the girl felt a fit of giggles catch in her throat. Elbowing her a bit as he laughed himself, Darius encouraged her to let loose. Soon, they were trying to stifle their poorly timed humor before they woke someone, but it was like trying to put a cap on Old Reliable, it just couldn't be done.

His laugh.

"Can I see it?" he asked, when their frivolity had finally died down.

"Yeah." Brooklynn croaked after giving the question some thought. He might have wanted to see what a mess she was, but that didn't mean that Brooklynn had to. Cautiously, her gaze darted to where Sammy slept on one of the bunks, just to be sure her secret was safe, before turning her head away from Darius, and what he was about to do.

Gently the boy took the hem of her shirt and slowly lifted it, until the port in her stomach, and the raw, acid burnt flesh beneath it was fully exposed.

"Oh my God, Brooklynn..." Darius breathed. "Why didn't you tell me it had gotten this bad?"

As she continued to stare at the lightening sky beyond the balcony, the girl found that she had no words to explain herself. She only knew that everyone else, and all they had been going through was more important than this, solitary, and embarrassing little inconvenience. Brooklynn shrugged. His finger tips danced lightly, ticklishly across her stomach then, until they reached a point that flared with a searing pain. A breath hissed between the girl's teeth.

His touch.

"I'm sorry!" he apologized, taking in the ugly sight one last time before lowering her shirt back down.

"Are you sure taking it out is the best thing to do?" Darius inquired, his brows knit when Brooklynn turned to look at him. "I mean, its so ulcerated already, and no offense but where its been leaking looks like a strip of raw meat."

"It is raw meat. We're all just meat, remember?" Brooklynn said trying to keep the playful banter going, only to grimace at her own choice of words.

"Sorry." she whispered, a shudder running throughout her body, unable to banished the sight or sound of the wet crush of bones and muscle.

They sat in silence, unbroken, for a long while as the sun peaked over the horizon.

"Doc said two weeks." Brooklynn intoned.

"What?" Darius asked, not quite following.

"When they put it in, the doc was trying to be super optimistic and get me to see the silver lining. He'd said in most cases you don't even need sutures, just keep it clean and dry, and your body will heal itself. Average time for that to take is two weeks." Brooklynn explained, staring ahead at her new favorite space on the wall. She wasn't sure why she liked it, it was just good for looking at when you zoned out.

"But what if the helicopters-" Darius began with an urgent, and naive hopefulness.

"Darius," Brooklynn cut him off, her tone harder than she intended it to be. "Answer me honestly, how long do you think we're going to be stuck here?"

"I- I don't know." the boy murmured his gaze faltering.

"Its been over a week now, Darius. The news keeps saying they're sending people for us, that the helicopters are coming, but how many have we actually seen? One. I don't know what's taking them so long, or where they are, but they aren't here, and I can't wait anymore." Brooklynn explained her voice wavering as she blinked back tears.

She hadn't said it out loud, and she still hadn't, but it was close enough to the languishing questions that tore at her soul to stir fearful emotions. They weren't really coming for them, were they? She wondered with devastating clarity. The first forty-eight hours were the most critical after any sort of accident, but it had been twelve days, and there was still no sign of rescue.

"If two weeks is the best chance I got, I'm going to take it. Because if I can't get the leaking to stop, if I keep hitting this thing and ripping my stoma- Darius, I don't even know how my stomach, the organ, is doing. I've got all these ulcers, and tears in my skin, so it can't be much better on the inside of me either. It's got to come out, and if I take it out and by some miracle the helicopters do come, then they can always put it back in when I get home." Brooklynn looked at the sorrowful expression of loss, and helplessness on Darius' face, and she regretted instantly how she had sown her little seeds of fear and doubt into his heart.

She should have just kept her mouth shut, she thought, this was exactly why she couldn't be real with people, because when she was real people got hurt.

"If you're sure." he said.

"I am." she nodded.

"I trust you." the boy declared then, a spark of his old self coming to life as he did. "But if anything goes wrong or if it gets worse, or anything else, you have to keep me in the loop."

"I will." Brooklynn smiled.

"Promise?" Darius arched a brow.

"Promise." the girl said, giggling when Darius slowly and deliberately raised his hand, pinky up. "I promise ok, jeez!" Brooklynn rolled her eyes as she hooked her pinky around his.

Their promise.

His eyes, his hands, his voice, his lips, his laugh, his touch, his caring, tender heart with room for everyone, sitting there gazing up at the boy she had found so annoying when first they'd met Brooklynn couldn't stop herself from taking stock of his features. She wondered what it was about him that made her feel so safe, and how his mere presence could calm the terrified thoughts that plagued and echoed throughout her mind.

Whatever it was, it had been there from that terrible moment in the gyrosphere when they were sinking, mud sliding over their bodies, and they knew they were going to die. Instead of panicking like a caged animal, like Brooklynn had, bloodying her fingers by clawing at broken glass strong enough to stop a bullet, he'd remained calm. Scarily calm. Darius grabbed her by the shoulders and said, "It's ok. Whatever happens it's ok. You're not alone, I've got you." and pulled her in tight. She'd still been scared, she still hadn't wanted to die, but at least she knew she wasn't dying hollow and alone, and somehow, her ear pressed against his chest as he whispered a prayer, it made her feel even just a little bit, better.

Wherever his astounding strength came from she was grateful for Darius and all he'd done for her, for all of them, because she knew they wouldn't have gotten this far without him.

Looking at the clock the pink haired girl felt a pang of regret mingle with the chill of nerves. Her smile fading she whispered, "I should probably get ready."

"Yeah," Darius nodded. "Probably."

They sat for a few minutes longer before Brooklynn reluctantly got up and made her way to the bathroom. She needed a shower, more than just to ensure the site of her g-tube was clean, she needed to feel the hot water on her skin, to wash away the tension of everything that had happened, and the anticipation of what might happen on the away team's journey to the hospital.

She really should have kept her fears about the helicopters to herself, she thought then, Darius, the others, they were all carrying so much already. She shouldn't have burdened them with more. Gingerly washing around her mic-key button, she felt condemnation seeping into her soul, she was burden. The first tears to fall emerged then, but Brooklynn refused to allow anymore to fall. Determination steeled her core, she might have been a burden, but she vowed not to be any more. She was going to prove her worth, she was going to get the meds, she was going to save Ben, and then, somehow, eventually, they were all going home.

Renewed by her fresh resolve the girl let her head fall forward on her neck, absorbing the comforting heat on her back and shoulders. Like magic, as she had hoped it would, the warm water seemed to melt her concerns away. Things weren't perfect, but they would be alright, she reasoned.

Brooklynn would have stayed in there for the rest of her life if she could. It was only a knock at the door, that drew her from her steamy oasis.

"Brooklynn, we gotta be to 605 soon," Sammy said, cracking the door an inch. "You doin' alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm getting out." Brooklynn groaned. Head back she faced the spray, it's radiant heat soaking into her pores and muscles alike. Nirvana couldn't last forever, she conceded, and shut the water off.

Getting out of the shower, she stood with her back to the mirror. It was habitual at this point, she didn't want to see the hideous creature that lived there, even if it was veiled by a layer of steam and condensation. It was just her distorted self image, corrupted by her sick and unhealthy mind. She knew that, and she'd actually started to see a beauty in the girl reflected back at her, but that was before everything went to shit.

Brooklynn was scared, scared that if she looked now she wouldn't find a single redeeming feature. She was already starting to think of food constantly, obsessively, even. Planning, counting, dreading, hating. She'd been doing so good, she could see her progress looking back, but it was different when everything was out of your control. She could feel the shift in her mindset, she was backsliding, she knew it, but it wasn't a little trickle, it was a landslide, and she had nothing left to stand on. Brooklynn was so disappointed in herself, but she couldn't fight it, either.

"Hey," Yasmina called, catching Brooklynn's attention when she stepped out of the bathroom. "Come here." she motioned.

"What's up?" Brooklynn asked cracking a smile as she approached the athlete's side of the bed.

Moving faster than she would think possible or could even react, Yaz looped her arms around Brooklynn's neck and pulled her off her feet into a tight hug. Sniffling back tears, the girl who had once seemed hard as stone fought against her tears.

The pink haired girl felt her heart begin to race. "Hey," she said retuning the gesture as she knelt awkwardly half on the bed. "It's going to be alright."

"Please, please be careful!" Yasmina begged in a whisper, her battered form trembling. "I can't lose you guys, any of you."

Brooklynn's stomach knotted with anxiety. "I will be." she swore, suddenly hoarse. Then her eyes shifted to where Sammy stood dejected near the door, head hanging low, and she couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"You'd better be." Yasmina commanded, letting go so that Brooklynn could look her in her stern, earnest eyes.

"I will." Brooklynn repeated, taking a step back.

Yaz turned away from her then, and looked towards the cowgirl, her brows furrowed tightly she stared for a long while before grumbling. "Both of you."

Sammy smiled sadly, gave a nod and moved to the living room.

"Tell Kenji and Ben that I'll... I'll see them later, when they wake up." the teary eyed influencer instructed.

"Yep." Yasmina nodded, trying to rid herself of her tears.

"See you later too, Bumpy." Brooklynn added reaching out to stroke the pebbled surface of the dinosaur's head. Bumpy responded with a weary, but happy hoot.

Brooklynn paused at the threshold of the door, a nervous tremor washing over her as she gripped the doorframe, struggling to find her balance. Fending off tears of her own she was struck with the idea, the feeling, that this might be the last time she'd ever see any of them again. She blinked hard against the anxious bout of vertigo she was suddenly overcome with, the girl weighed everything they had been through against the task laid out before her. This was it, she thought dizzily, she wasn't going to see any of them ever again.

Ever aga-

Darius took her hand and gave a sad smile.

He walked with the girls down the short distance to the room where they were meant to gather. In 605 several people were gearing up, including Katie who looked them over with an expression of shame. The woman's eyes darted up then, narrowing scornfully on Sergeant Purdy who sat fixated on his tablet. From the other room a man could be heard groaning weakly, the only sound in the otherwise silent, and electrified atmosphere.

"Didn't think you were serious about coming with us Pinkie Pie." Reed smiled as he double knotted the laces of a boot. Caught off guard Brooklynn turned to the man who made her feel uneasy. "Green looks good on you."

Crossing her arms tight over her chest the girl couldn't keep from wishing she'd worn anything other than green. "Thank you." she said giving him a polite, tight lipped smile.

"Brings out the color of your eyes." he added.

Brooklynn found herself drifting to stand closer to her friends. She couldn't name what, but there was something off about that guy, more than just his morbid fascinations. A voice in the back of her mind told the girl to be careful around him, and she intended to be.

"Thanks!" she chirped, smiling again, though she wasn't sure why, she didn't feel like smiling, even if it was a compliment.

"Alright, I want you guys to play it fast and tight." Purdy announced to the group then. "That means no distractions, keep the chatter to a minimum, stay on mission, and do not deviate from the planned route unless you meet hostile action."

The ACU folks got a strange look about them then, like this was routine. The more Purdy railed on, and he did, listing things they could and could not do the more they seemed to relax, as if the familiarity of such a briefing was a comfort to them. Some even started smiling, or nudged one another with quick, whispered commentary. It was the civilians who were tense, shifting nervously. One of the men, someone Brooklynn hadn't met before kept looking at the guns lined against the wall as if he half expected them to come to life and attack him.

"In, out, no heroics." the sergeant instructed before turning pointedly to those wearing plain clothes. "If my men give you an order, you will obey it as if that order came directly from God himself, your very lives might just depend on it. Do you understand me?" he asked his tone firm but clear as he looked them over.

Brooklynn felt herself shudder when his gaze fell upon her, his green-brown eyes were hard, and bloodshot as if he hadn't slept once since arriving. There was no warmth to them anymore, only a tempered sense of dread, as his thick brows lowered over his glowering expression with firm judgement.

"You're in the army now ladies and gentlemen. I said 'do you understand?'" he bellowed then, startling the children who jolted at the sound.

"Yes sir!" the civilians replied in a range of tempos as they hastily tried to get the answer that he was expecting out.

"Good." he grunted, passing the tablet about the room. "This is the route: memorize it, visualize it, do not deviate from it. There has been large predatory activity in the area. I've charted out the most direct path from here to the hospital without crossing into unfriendly territory."

Sammy took the tablet when it was handed to her, and the three kids huddled around it with worried faces. Pinching the screen to zoom out a little, Sammy reoriented the map on the screen after things had gotten jumbled in the hand off, mindful of the large cracks marring the face of the device. The map showed the central hub of the park, Main Street, all of the eateries, and attractions located near the heart of the island in blues: darker for the roads, lighter for the buildings. Standing out in stark red was the route they were meant to take leading off into the jungle.

They would be leaving the Pre-Historic Plaza, and heading towards the rubble laiden capital of the park. Letting out a shaky breath, Brooklynn tried not to think of her narrow, and soda bathed escape from the raptors the last time she ventured anywhere near there. According to the map however, they were just using this stretch of the journey to skirt around that cluster of moving dots to the left, their destination lie further north.

Finally, when the kids were satisfied they handed the tablet off to the next person. It looked like it was going to be hard, but if they "walked a fast klick," as Purdy had put it, they'd be back by nightfall. Brooklynn really, really hoped that they'd be back, by nightfall. As much as she hated the idea of running into anything out there, being trapped in the park, without shelter in the dark was much, much worse.

"Alright, you've got your orders. Now move out, HOOAH!" he shouted.

The ACUs responded with hooahs, and a few oorahs, of their own. Then, suddenly everyone was moving, shifting about the room, their mission underway already. Brooklynn didn't feel prepared at all, but it didn't seem to matter. Making room for the adults the kids stepped out into the hallway as they shouldered backpacks, and took up arms.

The trio stood awkwardly for a minute, no one was sure what to do, or say. Sammy threw herself at Darius, sniffling back tears before long how ever and hugged him with all her might.

"Y'all take care." she said through the strain in her voice. "We'll be back before you know it, and we'll get the medicine for Ben, and everythin' will work out just fine!" she said with optimism enough for everyone.

"We will." Darius nodded. "You two be safe, and take care of each other."

"You can count on that!" Sammy laughed as they pulled apart, wiping at her eyes.

Brooklynn wanted to say goodbye too, she just wasn't sure how. It was different saying goodbye to Darius, somehow. He knew her better than anyone, especially after the debacle in the tunnels. She hesitated, the edge of her lower lip caught between her teeth. It was different because she'd almost kissed him. It seemed so far away now, a long distant moment from her past, though it had only been a few days. Still, that moment, that night, lived vividly in her memories.

It had been his birthday, they stood, just the two of them out on the balcony. The park was muted and still, in ways it never could have been before the incident. Nature seemed to ready to reclaim her domain, while the birds, and insects sang their night songs to a slumbering island, the only sound to be heard. It was so incredible, and surreal to her then, and even now, that when all the world was ugly and wrong, that there with him underneath a radiant band of stars, that so brief a moment had just been so beautiful, so right.

Brooklynn had wanted to kiss him, but, she couldn't. She knew, deep down, that no one could ever really love her, especially not when they saw how broken and ugly she really was inside.

Beaten down by her insecurities once more, and pressured to move things along by the flow of people leaving 605 Brooklynn grabbed onto him as tightly as she could. Feeling herself trembling she never, ever wanted to let go... but that just wasn't how life, and the real world worked.

"I'll see you tonight." the boy smiled, though his eyes swam with tears.

"Yeah, right, see you tonight." Brooklynn nodded, tucking a cotton candy hued strand behind her ear.

"Think about what movie you two want to watch," he instructed them as they started drifting away, swallowed by the crowd of adults. "Whatever you want!"

Brooklynn felt her resolve faltering as she stood in the elevator and watched the metal doors slide closed, separating her from Darius, possibly forever.

Even walking in a fast paced, tight knit group, with armed members of the ACU on point, traipsing through the dilapidated and destroyed buildings of Jurassic World like they owned the place flooded Brooklynn with an unbridled sense of terror. Keeping quiet she clung to the center of the group, the group which consisted of Sammy and herself, Colton Smith, Terry Steele, Isaac Reed, Katie, and those two guys she didn't catch the names of. She felt small and powerless, and though burdened with a backpack containing water, she was unarmed, and couldn't help but feel that if anything went wrong she'd be the first to go.

The nervousness must have been written all over her face, because as she moved to keep up, her ears pricked for sounds of danger Reed slid into position beside her and said, "You doing alright there Pinkie Pie?"

Sparing him only a glace Brooklynn felt her stomach knot, she really wished he'd stop calling her that.

"Yeah I'm fine." she nodded.

"You don't look it." he remarked.

"Just feeling a little exposed, I guess. I mean I'm the only one without a gun." she muttered allowing her strides to drift nearer towards where Sammy was positioned.

"Well, tell you what, I'll give you my side arm if it comes down to it, but I don't think your hollow little bird bones could handle the kickback." he intoned, a light humor in his voice. With a thoughtful hum he went on. "But as much of a frightened little bunny you are, we just can't risk it right now, I wouldn't want you popping off at every little sound, giving us away."

Brooklynn didn't respond, she wasn't sure how to. If she wasn't scared enough already, calling her a bunny, and saying she had hollow bones wasn't really helping matters. She already felt vulnerable enough, why did he have to point out just how weak she was? Resolving to ignore him she kept her eyes on Katie's back for a few paces, glad that she was there with them. She was tiny, the pink haired teen thought then, not much taller than Brooklynn herself, why wasn't Reed giving her shit? Or maybe he did, the two didn't seem particularly fond of one another.

Continuing in her endeavor to ignore the man who still hugged tightly to her left side Brooklynn took in the rest of the group. Smith was at ease, at the head of the pack he'd occasionally say something to Steele who would cover his position, allowing Colton to circle back behind the others and take up the rear for a while. She wondered why they did that, but seeing a nervous twitch tug at the corner of Steele's mouth from time to time, she decided it was best not the bother them with questions.

Just behind of her the two men she didn't know were parallels: one seemed strengthened and overconfident as he held his rifle with a coveting smile; the other was stooped, and apprehensive, his eyes trailing nervously to the gun in his hands more often than he scanned their surroundings. Unlike the ACU team, their index fingers didn't rest on the sides of the guns with a collected reserve, but instead curled lightly around the triggers.

What were any of them doing out there? Brooklynn questioned herself. They just weren't trained for this shit, and it was going to get someone killed, she thought wondering which of the two was going to accidentally fire their weapon first.

They were walking over an uneven, ruble strewn avenue only breaking apart to side step the fettering corpses that lined their path here and there when one of the civilians started to complain. No one gave his concerns any merit or weight, the ACU team just trucked right along as if they were strolling through the park, not stumbling through a graveyard.

"We stay on mission." Smith barked after a while, and the chatter died down.

Sticking close to Sammy Brooklynn couldn't help but appraise the other girl, seeing her in a new light. She had always been the heart of their little group, well, almost always, there was the whole spy thing. It was still mind boggling how devastating that revelation had been, especially with how insignificant that fact was now. Brooklynn had all but forgotten it had even happened. After that Sammy became the warm, gooey center who held them all together when the stresses threatened to pull them apart. She was the mom they all needed, caring for them when she should have been thinking of herself.

Now though? Something changed in Sammy, she held the rifle with an undaunted self-reliance, her face hard as she observed their environment with a keen hunter's eye. How many elk did she bag a season? Brooklynn pondered looking at her friend with admiration. Was there anything the cowgirl couldn't do?

It was as she was staring that something caught the toe of Brooklynn's shoe. Falling forward her bent arms shot out to catch her, a dull ache of protest reminding her that they couldn't take much more of this. A hand caught her tightly just above the crook of her elbow and her momentum was jarringly halted before she could hit the ground.

"Whoa there Pinkie," Reed laughed pulling her back onto her feet. "It's alright, I've got you."

"Thanks." Brooklynn muttered, finding her feet and continuing on.

He didn't let go.

Brooklynn had been able to steady herself, and was walking under her own power, but Reed still didn't let go. His hand held her tight, not tight enough to hurt, but just enough that the girl knew she wasn't getting out of his grip unless she really fought him. Her heart racing with a new sense of malease her eyes shot about to those around her, hoping someone would notice and say something to him.

"Thanks," she said again flashing a brief smile over her shoulder to let him know she was grateful for the assist, but had it from here. "I think I'm ok now."

"It's alright," the man replied. "I've got you girlie."

Swallowing hard Brooklynn's gaze fell to the pavement, watching where she was going, she reluctantly resigned herself to the fact that he was going to hold onto her no matter what. This was the most time she'd ever spent around Reed, and she found his demeanor extremely uncomfortable. Maybe he's just trying to make sure I stay safe, the teen tried to reason. Like he said before he thinks I'm small and frail, he could be watching out for me, and just because he gives off creepy vibes didn't mean he's a bad person, right? Something in her gut rebelled against this concept.

Listening to these instincts she tested the waters by giving her arm a little tug, the gloved hand held firm. Her lips pressed together Brooklynn wondered if appealing to one of the other adults would work, or if making a scene would make him angry, and make things worse. The teen remained quite in her unease.

They'd been walking for a few hours when the party reached the hook in their planned route. It was the part where they stopped trekking south-east and turned north, practically backtracking the way they'd come to get around that hotbed of predator activity. Pausing for a moments break, Brooklynn was glad to have her arm back, and massaged the space Reed had been gripping. She bruised easily, part of having an iron deficiency, which was part of her ED. Squeezing her bicep where it hurt she could only guess if it was going to leave a mark or not.

Washing the dryness from her throat with a big swig of water Brooklynn settled next to Sammy on a bench. The group was loosely dispersed around the area, Colton Smith standing the furthest away earning a curiosity from the girls who were trying to figure out what he was doing. Then a yellow stream hit the concrete. Turning away with equal amounts of disgust, embarrassment, and giggles they started elbowing each other.

Sammy winced then, reaching towards the top of her shoulder.

"Are you ok?" Brooklynn asked with a furrowed brow.

"Yeah, it's just these dang cuts on my back. I twisted wrong steppin' over a broken guard rail, and I think I opened some of them up again, 'cause they hurt." Sammy explained before turning to let Brooklynn have a look.

"Yeah," the pink haired girl nodded. "You've opened a couple up for sure, but it doesn't look like they're bleeding too bad. When'd this happen anyways? The monorail?" she asked lowering the other girls shirt back down.

"Nah, before that. Remember, after- after the helicopter crashed into the aviary, before the kayaks?" Sammy asked her tone dropping with reverence for the lives lost.

"Oh shit, that's right! The CKK!" Brooklynn gasped, how could she have forgotten?

"Thought we weren't allowed to call it that." Sammy said jokingly.

"No, Kenji's not allowed to call it that. He was having way too much fun for someone in life or death situation." she explained with authority.

"It's Kenji, what do you expect? I mean, I think the only thing he's ever taken seriously is his hair!" Sammy larked.

Doubling over with laughter the girls reveled in their poorly timed humor, and allowed the madness of their situation to wash over them, ignoring the glares thrown their way by the adults.

"We really have been through hell haven't we?" Brooklynn asked swinging her legs in the air.

"We sure have." Sammy agreed, asking after a minute. "How're you holdin' up?"

"Not as good as you." Brooklynn shrugged.

"Are you kiddin' me? I'm out here sweatin' bullets, and shittin' bricks!" Sammy scoffed.

"Well you could have fooled me, I mean you're a total badass!" Brooklynn said holding an imaginary firearm and taking aim at a figmented enemy through her pretend scope.

That was when she spotted it. The building was still completely intact, little glass walled tanks and cages gleaming in the flickering florescent lights that struggled with failing power to stay on. Pacing in front of one such glass window the girl could see a small brightly hued dinosaur frantically searching for a way out.

Brooklynn didn't know what it was, or if it was dangerous or not, but as she watched it walk from corner to corner claws sliding desperately over the slick, unforgiving surface she couldn't help be feel sorry for the thing. It didn't seem right, or fair that it should be trapped like that, the people it relied on to be fed long gone, its water supply undoubtedly running low by now. It didn't ask for this, and it certainly deserve the slow, painful death it was sure to suffer.

It was going to die if someone didn't do something, she thought then. The girl's heart bled with empathy for the little guy, able to see but not quite reach it's freedom.

"You ok?" Sammy asked when Brooklynn had fallen silent.

Pointing Brooklynn gestured towards the little animal that had stolen her attention.

"Wanna check it out?" Sammy offered as she stood.

"Girls?" Katie called when she saw them breaking away from the group.

"Need an escort?" Reed asked at the same time, already falling into step behind them.

"Bathroom." Sammy explained dismissively. "I'll keep watch."

"Don't know if that's such a good idea you girls, all alone." Reed argued, still trailing after them.

"I'll go." Katie said with a hardness to her voice Brooklynn hadn't expected to find there, but she was grateful as the medic hastened her strides to put herself between them.

Inside the exhibit Brooklynn found a short hall filled with little critters trapped in terrariums of varying sizes. Her heart sank as she looked them over knowing that they had been condemned to die when the park was evacuated. The dinosaur who had drawn Brooklynn over was no bigger than a crow. It panted heavily, it's skin sucked in tight around it's ribs from dehydration, eyes wild as it walked back and forth, then back again it's clawed hands slipping across the glass as it tried to dig it's way out. In the rear of the tank three more replicas of the vividly colored animal paced along the back wall.

"Fruitadens," Sammy read from the placard beside the tank. "Meaning 'Fruita Teeth,' the first skeletal remains of this animal were discovered in Fruita Colorado. The smallest known or- ornithi- I can't say that word." she muttered pointing out the italicized word ornithischian. "It is believed to be one of the smallest true dinosaurs in the fossil record. It's diet consists of various plant matter, and some varieties of insects. Living in tight knit family groups these minute creatures used their skill as endurance runners evade predators. They are a beautiful, but shy addition to Jurassic World."

"Awww," the cowgirl muttered, lightly tapping the glass. "Poor little fellas, they wouldn't hurt, well, a fly maybe but... It's just so sad."

"It is so sad." Brooklynn agreed, making eye contact with the pitiful little thing. They were just animals, she thought as the first tears threatened arrival. They were all just animals doing what animals did, it wasn't their fault they were what they were.

Brooklynn, feeling her breath constrain tightly in her throat, pulled away from Sammy who reached to hug her. She couldn't breathe. It wasn't right. It just wasn't right! They were going to die in there, forgotten and alone. Just like she was. Just like her friends would. Shaking all over the injustice of it all was just too much. They didn't deserve to die, not any of them.

Her eyes wide and wandering frantically as she struggled to keep herself somewhat together Brooklynn spotted a large stone that had been used to prop the door open. Just because she was going to die here, didn't mean they had to, she thought palming the weighty rock. Katie shouted for Brooklynn to stop, but she wouldn't listen as she brought the rock to the glass. The impact reverberated through the barrier, while sending a painful jarring sensation that burned up the disfigured bones in the girl's wrist.

She hit the glass again, and again, watching with a nagging guilt as the little animals became frantic to escape her, scurrying at the walls, breathing in a rapid flutter, clamoring over one another to find shelter and safety. Sammy found something, a pole, and joined Brooklynn's efforts as fractures appeared in the glass. Katie was still yelling for them to stop.

Then, all at once in a glittering shower the window shattered.

They were free, Brooklynn thought tearily as she watched the little things pooling together in the corner opposite her. Letting out a shaky sigh the girl found that she could breathe again. Overwhelmed with joy and relief she turned to hug Sammy when a hand latched onto her wrist and turned her with a flair of agony to face Colton Smith.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" the man roared in her face as her knees buckled.

"Colton her wrist!" Kaite snapped laying a hand on his chest and pushing him to step back. "It was stupid and reckless yes, but let her go!"

"She gave away our position!" Smith spat as he shoved the teenager away.

"I'm sorry!" Brooklynn sobbed in a tone that was broken. She hadn't thought of that, and her arms burned with fire. Already the swelling of overuse and toil had begun to show in her fingers. Normally she if didn't move around too much the swelling wouldn't get this bad until evening. Now though, before midday they had already begun to balloon.

"Sorry?" Smith laughed condescendingly. "You're sorry? Well, I sure hope you are because you just got all of us killed for a handful of fucking lizards!"

The man glared at the frightened Brooklynn for a few minutes longer before turning and calling out, "That's it, pack it in we've got to move, now!"

Wrapped in a hug from Sammy, Brooklynn looked to Katie who gave her a sad smile as she put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry kiddo, your heart was in the right place." she sighed. "Come on, we gotta go."

The three were on their way out when they noticed Steele looking at them. "What, you come to yell at us too, big man?" Sammy, who felt open hostility towards the man since their horrific first encounter shouted.

Steele watched for a second, but remained quiet. Then as if coming to a decision he opened a small control panel hidden beneath and ornately decorated art piece on the wall. Producing a badge attached to a pull cord which streamed from his breast pocket the man scanned it, then punched in a pin, followed by a command code. With a dull, electronic buzz as indication of the action taking place every glass door slowly slid open.

A monitor lizard bolted immediately, racing past the girls with such urgency that its tail slapped against Sammy's calf earning a yelp from the girl. From the back a few rather large snakes took their time, slowly and methodically lowering themselves to the floor. The little therapods Brooklynn had set out to rescue didn't move. They eyed her fearfully, still pressed against the far wall too afraid to move.

"Thank you." Brooklynn said, feeling the hairs on the back of her neck prickle at the sight of a large, hairy spider creeping from a tank to her left.

"Come on," the man muttered. "Smith says we gotta move, we gotta move."

Nothing more was said on the matter, but the teen felt like in spite of popular opinion, that she'd done the right thing. Sammy, who gave her an enthusiastic thumbs up, clearly agreed.

They reached the hospital just after noon without much incident. Only a few compys had crossed their path and though the sound of distant calls and shrieks set them on edge, nothing came of the terrifying sounds. Rushing in from the bright humid world outside, the air-conditioning was an instantaneous relief. Eased by the presence of walls and a roof Brooklynn let her shoulders sag.

The interior of the building was done in whites and neutral tans, with a dusty rose color for the accents. It looked pretty, and was very clearly meant to be a calming environment. Though much smaller than any hospitals she had seen it seemed well stocked, and divided into and orderly layout. There was even an interactive map near what she assumed was the welcome desk.

"Alright," Smith muttered turning towards Katie as he walked at a swift pace. "Show me what we're looking for."

"Yeah," Katie nodded. "It's this way."

Curling his fingers in the air over his shoulder Smith wordlessly indicated that the others should follow. Trotting to keep up the rest of the team couldn't help but feel a sense of tension welling within as their leader who had been so self-assured as they traipsed through the jungle, took on an edge. Winding towards the back, past gurneys in the hall, and rows of patient rooms, surgical suites, and even a lounge they seemed to find what they had been searching for.

"The sutures, gauze, and the like should be in that closet there. The narcotics are locked up to your six, break it. The IV fluids should at your ten, and the IV antibiotics near the same area. Look for sulbactam, and vancomycin." Katie intoned, holding her hands out towards Brooklynn who gingerly tossed her the backpack she'd been tasked with. "I'll get the blood and some ice to keep it chilled."

Dispersing everyone got fast to work looting the place. Now more than ever they could truly feel that time was of the essence. This was it, their chance to save everyone. It was as they got to work, breaking locks, overturning shelves, and emptying cupboards that Brooklynn's gaze wandered to the closet where Katie had said the gauze was stored. She was going to need a lot of that to keep her gushing stomach contents from spilling everywhere until the stoma could close. Eyeing the area, she also didn't see any syringes out here either.

Wandering to the closet she slipped inside while everyone was distracted. Neatly organized were rows and rows of various sized and styled gauze, coban, ace wraps, and tegaderm wound dressings. Pocketing handfuls of the clear protective films she used to cover her port for swimming, she felt that it stood to reason that they would be a good way to keep the dirt out too. She grabbed gauze, medical tape, and anything else she could think of with puffy, fumbling fingers, before finding the syringes near the back.

Rifling through them she found was she was looking for, a ten ml small enough to deflate the balloon in her stomach. Angling for better light the teen pulled up her shirt, nose wrinkling at the sour odor of her own body eroding away. It looked bad, even after caking it in diaper cream, and she couldn't wait for it to be over.

There was an odd rushing sensation as she filled the plastic tube and plunger with water. Now came the hard part. She hated this part. The g-tube had to be changed ever few months or so to prevent infection or bacterial build up, but worming it out of the pencil wide hole in her body always felt weird. Not to mention this time it was probably really, really gonna hurt.

The stinging sensation became an inferno as fresh acids and enzymes poured from the now uncorked hole. Teeth gritted, eyes watering Brooklynn slapped a thick layer of gauze over the site, letting the plastic port drop to the floor. Bouncing on her toes the girl did an agonized little dance in the confined area as she tried to take her mind off the pain.

This sucked so much, she thought one second.

And it had better fucking work! she thought the next.

After changing out the spent martial for fresh linens Brooklynn stood with her forehead resting against a shelf. Her breath coming out in a shudder, she tried to recompose herself. It was as she was taking a moment to rest that a voice to her right made it alarmingly clear that she was no longer alone.

"What happened here Pinkie Pie?" Isaac Reed asked as he stared at her.

His eyes.

"Nothing." Brooklynn spat out turning to face him.

"That doesn't look like nothing." he commented pulling his gloves off as he approaching her.

His hands.

"It's fine. I'm fine." Brooklynn insisted eyeing the distance between her and the door, wondering if she could somehow squeeze past him.

The girl's heart was tolling like an alarm bell in her chest, while a voice screamed inside her head that she needed to get out of there anyway she could. It wasn't safe. She wasn't sure where this knowledge came from, but she knew it in her bones, it wasn't safe. Yet even as every primal instinct inside her raged to the surface, and her hands began to shake, Brooklynn found herself questioning her own panic. Doubting herself, and her judgement. Maybe it was just all of her nerves catching up to her, or her embarrassment of being caught in such a compromising position, or maybe-

"Come on now, let me see." Reed said his voice light and airy. The way he took ahold of Brooklynn's arm, using his strength almost effortlessly to move her hand away from her stomach, indicated that despite the ease of his tone it hadn't been a request.

His voice.

The girl was struck by a blinding flare of pain, her ears ringing, head swimming she struggled to keep the gauze over her seeping wound. Knees trembling Brooklynn let out a whimper, try as she might, she was unable to fight him. In the dim halflight provided by the narrow window in the door, Brooklynn thought she saw the curve of his lips forming a smile. He was so much stronger than she was, Brooklynn realized as the tears started to spill. So, so much stronger. Even if her arms hadn't been battered to a painful uselessness, she knew there was no way she could have out muscled him.

His lips.

"Now you're really going to stand here and tell me this is nothing." the man asked tracing angry and inflamed skin with calloused, and rough fingers, indifferent to the pain he caused.

Brooklynn moved to try and get away, but with an almost effortless shove he pushed her back into the wall. Her head smacked hard against the smooth surface, her attempts to catch her balance overturning several boxes of medical supplies. Staring up at him with wide frightened eyes Brooklynn felt the breath hitch in her throat. She wanted to scream, needed to scream, but it just wouldn't come out. Gazing down with an appraising eye, a predator's eye, Reed was definitely smiling.

"I like my girls skinny," he laughed, making her stomach knot violently, at the thought of being 'his.' "But dang girl do you need a cheeseburger."

His laugh.

"Don't." he snapped with menace when she move to pull away, turning her face this way and that as his looming presence came barring down on her. "Just don't."

Before she could do anything else his mouth was pressing down hard on hers.

Everything happened so fast.

And everything hurt so much.

Brooklynn wanted to fight him, to run, to scream, but she froze up. So afraid, and shocked by what was happening, by what he was doing to her, Brooklynn's body no longer felt like it belonged to her. There were people right outside, she thought through her ordeal. Good people, people who could help her if she could just scream. Her throat was closed tight, asphyxiated by her own dread and anguish she couldn't breathe much less make a sound.

There, alone with a monster more terrible than Indominus Rex, the girl was completely helpless, her body ignoring her every command: to run, to fight, to scream, to do anything but stand there a cry as he did whatever he wanted.

His touch.

An eternity in hell passed before the small dark room filled with light.

"Brookly-?" Sammy's voice called as the other girl looked for her, before becoming shrill as she screamed. "What the fuck are you doing? Get off her!"

Sammy was there in an instant, beating the man with closed fists, pulling and shoving him away, kicking and clawing at him she left his face scratched and bleeding. Unbalanced Reed stumbled into the shelves toppling everything over in a shower of jumbled disarray. He swore violently but moved to take his leave.

Standing numb, and in shock, Brooklynn could barely see her friend through her wavering tears, or the shape of her assailant as he fled the scene, shoving past a third figure who now stood in the doorway.

"Brooklynn?" Sammy asked in a tear strained voice. "Brooklynn I'm so sorry! I shouldn't of- I- I'm sorry!" she cried reaching towards Brooklynn who flinched away. Slowly, gently Sammy moved to tidy the pink haired girl's torn and disheveled clothes.

"Don't!" Brooklynn sobbed as Sammy lowered what was left of her godforsaken green shirt. "Please don't!"

Steele who was red faced and breathing heavily in the doorway took several long strides across the room and before either girl could react manhandled them both against the back wall.

"What in the hell were you thinking?" he shouted, his rage freeing the scream Brooklynn had trapped inside of her.

"What were you thinking?" he repeated, his voice harsh and accusatory. "Never, ever be alone with that man do you understand me? Never! How, how could you have been so stupid? And you, you left her!" his voice broke then as if he were fighting a deeper well of emotions.

"Steele?" Katie's voice sounded near the door then. "Steele what's going on?"

"If he ever finds a way to get you alone, or comes into that room of yours without one of us, no matter what he says the reason is you raise hell, do you understand me?" Steele questioned. Ignoring the medic he stooped slightly trying to make eye contact with each of the girls, but Brooklynn couldn't look at him. Her eyes fluttering, and still trying to get a breath of air, she turned her face to the wall. "You raise hell."

Sick, and scared, and hurting, the taste of blood on her tongue Brooklynn couldn't quite understand what was happening, or what she'd done wrong. She hadn't wanted that. It wasn't her fault. She was disoriented. She was scared. She was so scared. Why was he yelling at her? Cold with fear Brooklynn tried to get away, horrified at the thought of what Steele intended to do to her, but the man shook her by the shoulders.

"I'm not hearing a yes sir Kelsey." he shouted. The man blinked then, confusion clouding his gaze. "Brooklynn, Samantha, do you understand me?

"Yes sir," Sammy nodded teary but resolute as she pushed through to stand in front of Brooklynn. "If he ever comes near us again, we give him hell."

"Good girls..." Steele's voice broke into a timerous sob, he past a spiteful glance over his shoulder to Katie as he tried to pull the campers towards him. "Good girls..."

Brooklynn's form raged against the embrace, she threw her head back, eyes closed she cried, "No!"

The man who was trembling, seemed to remember himself. Recognizing how wrongly he was treating the scared and wounded girl he let go immediately. Backing away, hands indicating surrender, he tearily apologized. Brooklynn bundled herself into the corner as soon as she was released.

"Steele?" Katie question with a remorseful lilt to her voice.

"I told you that I wanted you to keep these girls ten and two at all times, Katie!" the man turned to yell. "Ten and two!"

Katie nodded her wide brown eyes flooded with pain. "I know," she whispered. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!"

"Sorry doesn't cut it." Steele bit out as he fumbled with the knife at his waist. "Brooklynn." he stated, waving the blade by it's sheathed tip in Katie's face before slapping it down into the woman's palm.

Katie looked bitterly at the sleeping weapon as he shoved through her, and out the door.

"I-" Katie started, but couldn't finish.

Brooklynn's skin was crawling, her stomach was in knots, she hugged herself tightly into the corner willing them all away, while dreading being left alone in that tiny, dimly lit room again. Quaking with horror and disgust Brooklynn was trapped, a prisoner in her own body.

"I don't know what happened." she said in a hollow tone. "I- I couldn't- I froze. I just froze."

"It's not your fault." Katie murmured inching closer. "It's not your fault."

"I couldn't move!" the girl wailed. "I couldn't do anything! I couldn't make it stop! I wanted it to stop! I wanted it to stop!"

Nails digging into the flesh of her arms Brooklynn scratched herself with a feverish need to get the filth and shame she felt off of her. To punish herself for not being strong enough, for not fighting back. To hurt herself and mask the deeper more harrowing pains that rended her body and soul. She hated herself! She wanted to die!

"No. No." Katie commanded pulling her hands away. "It's not your fault."

"I froze!" Brooklynn cried then, falling into the folds of the woman's arms.

The three sat in the supply closet, crying, and providing what little words of caring they could, in a world where comfort did not exist. When finally they emerged they found Steele waiting for them at the mouth of a narrow hall.

"They're this way. Found a couple doctors hunkered down." he said taking note of, without acknowledging that Brooklynn now wore what had been Katie's white undershirt, and his knife.

"We're coming." Katie nodded as she readjusted her armored vest back into place.

Bundled tightly to Sammy's chest Brooklynn relied on the cowgirl's strength to hold her up, every step beyond her capability. It was too much. She just couldn't do it anymore.

Down a short winding hall, there in the staff break room the group found the rest of their team. They were all sipping on cans of soda and talking casually with a man and a woman who had not been with them at the hotel. Perched atop a pool table Isaac Reed was laughing about something, all smiles as if nothing had happened. His charisma infectious he seemed to be making fast friends with the doctors.

His eyes, his hands, his voice, his lips, his laugh, his touch, her bruises, huddled behind Katie, and wrapped in Sammy's protective arms Brooklynn couldn't stop herself from replaying what had happened in her mind. She could feel him looking at her as he spoke to his friends with amusement in his voice, as if everything were fine, as if nothing had happened, as if she were so inconsequential that what he'd done to her didn't matter in the least. It made Brooklynn feel so dirty, how his mere presence could hurt and terrify her, causing thoughts to plague and echo throughout her mind. What happens if there's no one there next time?

Next time.

As she stood rooted to her ground, unable to face him, she felt Sammy reach across her to pick something up off the table. The pink haired girl was jostled back and forth in a brief, but frightening altercation. Eyes wide she looked up to see Steele wresting the rifle she'd been tasked with out of Sammy's grip. From the corner of her eye Brooklynn could see the color draining from Reed's face.

Reed's face.

"That son of a bitch is gonna-" Sammy started in a low biting tone.

"He will." Steele cut her off with a heated promise. "But killing a person changes you. It's not something you can take back. It's not something I'm going to let you do."

"Is something the matter?" Smith asked with a curt gesture to the two as they vyed for the weapon, before reaching out to reclaim it.

"No," Steele shook his head, handing the piece over. "Nothing."

"She's overly emotional," Reed mused then from where he sat. "It's what happens when little girls handle big guns."

Everything inside Brooklynn went cold. She didn't want to be in the same room as him. She didn't want him looking at her. She didn't want to have to look at him. She didn't want to have to hear his voice. She just didn't want to be here. She didn't feel safe. It just wasn't safe.

Wasn't safe.

Then, just like that everything and everyone seemed to move on. The entire world went on without her, as if oblivious to what had happened. Plans were made, people geared up with snacks for the road, they were chatting, laughing, smiling through their nervous dread of the dinosaurs. Niether Katie, nor Steele said a word to Reed, or anyone about it. They all just kept going. Brooklynn felt herself trailing behind, unable to keep up as they just went along without her, leaving her trapped inside her mind, one that couldn't seem to find it's way out of that closet.

That closet.

Drifting behind them as they made their way back out into the hot, humid day, Brooklynn was dazed by the sheer indifference of those around her. No one noticed how badly she was hurting. No one saw the black and blue on her arms, her neck. No one recognized how her bottom lip was swollen and bloody, or the red angry tracks left by her own nails. No one realized how small she was trying to make herself, because no one cared. She was more than broken, and dirty, she was worthless.

Worthless.

After exiting through a side door and skirting across a small field they banked south. Brooklynn was only vaguely aware of the gravely wounded Ankylosaurus the team was passing by after it was in her periphery. The fleeting spark of a thought ignited in her mind then. It was hard to believe that Bumpy was ever going to get so big.

No one seemed concerned by the animal as it struggled with long labored breaths. It was wounded, and an herbivore, it couldn't possibly be a threat. Brooklynn's mind was too far elsewhere, buried deeply beneath her pain. She had strolled by the dinosaur, her hand around the bittersweet comfort of the knife at her hip when there was a rush of air at her back and she felt that, for some reason, she just had to turn around.

Turn around.

The doctors were gone.

Not gone, not entirely, just lying in broken, pulpy heaps several feet away. Smith who had taken up position behind her shouted something as the beast's giant clubbed tail swung back in the other direction, like a fatal pendulum. With a dull, wet impact Colton Smith was a crumpled ragdoll flying through the air.

Reaching up with disjointed thoughts Brooklynn touched the fine red mist that has sprayed across her face.

Her face.

Someone grabbed onto her then, pulling her after them.

Brooklynn stumbled back, caught off guard. Her legs reacting faster than her freshly wounded mind and soul could Brooklynn was racing away from the defensive animal. Heart hammering, with everything she had in her, the girl was running before she was even fully aware of what had happened.

What had happened...