Camp Cretaceous: What Do We Do Now?

by Ecaetheerein

We thought it'd be fun… We thought we'd be safe… But we didn't realize the horror waiting for us on the island. Claws, teeth, screaming… so much screaming. But despite the challenges, we survived the night. Well... some of us. And now that we've been left on the island, we're faced with the challenge of surviving until help arrives... If it arrives...

48. Ep48 Friction

Author's note:

Merry Christmas, y'all! I almost didn't make this chapter on time, but pulled through at the last minute, lol. This be my Christmas present to y'all. I hope you guys enjoy it!

Hmmmm... I think this might be the first chapter in a while where I don't have any major warnings...

As for Ben and Yaz and their little... issue... sorry, y'all should know me by now... it's a slow burn, lol. BUT! We are coming closer to the reveal of the problem... just 3 to 4 more chapters, if my planning is correct... Stayed tuned for that and be patient! It will be worth the wait! I promise!

Enjoy! And have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

---

"Hey, Kenji," Mrs. Fadoula calls from the kitchen as he wheels Sammy through the door.

"Howdy, Mrs. Fadoula," Sammy greets.

"Hey, Miss Ayishah," Kenji waves.

"How did it go?" she asks.

"Are you a felon?" Jabari asks as he plays tug with the dog.

"Jaba," Sammy chuckles, then squeals with delight as the puppy bounds over to her. It soon turns to a yelp of pain as Roxies sharp teeth make their mark. "AHT!" She snaps loudly, startling everyone. "NO BITE!"

Roxie stares at her, before barking out a complaint and trying again. Sammy lets out a loud, very puppy-like yelp. The Husky backs away in confusion, and finally turns her attention away from the parapelgic.

"Sorry, Sammy, we're working on no biting," Mrs. Fadoula apologizes.

"It's all right, I'm used to puppy training," she laughs. "We got like fifty million doggos in our house. Dogs will yelp when the fighting gets too rough, so sometimes we'll try yelpin' like em."

"Does it work?" Mrs. Fadoula asks.

"Depends on the dog and their mood," Sammy shrugs. "Sometimes they back down, sometimes it riles them up even more."

"I've resorted to sticking my hand down her throat when she bites me," Yasmina says from the hallway entrance.

"That sounds mean," Kenji remarks.

"I mean, it deterred her after the third time," the athlete shrugs emotionlessly. "All it does is make her gag. I don't even have to gag her now."

The Husky skitters over and begins to nip at her knees. Yasmina holds out her hand with her fingers straight and together. The puppy turns her mouth away, watching the athlete's hand. She wanted to bite, but the hand deterred her.

"I guess that works," her mother chuckles.

"Huskies are known for being pretty mouthy breeds, anyway," Sammy shrugs.

"How'd it go, Kenji?" Yasmina changes subjects.

"It went, um, pretty well," he nods. "My lawyer is pretty confident that we'll win the case. He's actually certain that we won't get past the preliminary hearing. Says he thinks the evidence is so decisive, we won't have to go through with it."

"That's good news," Mrs. Fadoula nods.

Kenji almost says what he was thinking, but refrains. "I don't think it will be that easy," he says to himself. His gut feeling said the trial would be blown out of proportion. While he knew all the evidence pointed to his innocence, he couldn't shake the feeling that something else would happen… there was more at play… Sammy made a great point. What would Lydia get out of this? Why now? If she wanted fame, why portray herself as the victim? If she wanted to destroy his reputation, why take him to court? The rumors were enough to damage him…

Something told him that there was more behind this.

"How's your physical therapy going?" Yasmina asks, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"Um, okay," Sammy sighs. "Sensations are definitely not as muted… She wants me to try water therapy…" She shudders. "Nope. Not doing it. Nuh-uh."

"What about your exercises? Are they helping you regain movement?" Mrs. Fadoula asks.

Sammy bites her lip guiltily.

"You haven't been doing your exercises," Yasmina raises an eyebrow judgingly, crossing her arms.

"No, I have," Sammy insists. "Just… when my parents remind me to…"

"Do you want to walk again?" Mrs. Fadoula asks.

"I do, I just…" the parapelgic sighs, her shoulders slumping. "I just don't think I should do them."

Yasmina and Kenji's faces scrunch up in confusion. "Wait, why?" the athlete asks.

"Because…" Sammy murmurs. Kenji comes to stand next to her and sees her eyes are glossy like she was about to cry. She was holding her breath like something was bothering her. She finally takes a breath. "Because I'm trusting that the Lord will heal me… and I'm gonna lean on him in faith."

"So you're not going to do therapy to get better because you're waiting to be healed?" Yasmina narrows her eyes, not understanding her logic.

Kenji subtly shakes his head at her, knowing something else had developed, much to his chagrin. First she refused to admit anything was wrong because God told her not to, and now she wasn't trying to get better because she was waiting to get healing from the Lord? He didn't understand her religious thought process, but he was starting to think that it was more her than her religion. Her family didn't act like that and neither did Ben or Darius. He was willing to bet this was more her dealing with something internal than religion.

But how did they combat that thought process… Sammy was being completely irrational! "Maybe she's lost hope in being able to walk again," he theorizes. "Maybe she feels like nothing is getting better—for whatever reason—and is turning to her religion to find hope…"

Refraining from getting frustrated with this new development—he realized from the last outburst that this could be some manifestation of PTSD or trauma—he crouches down. "Hey, why don't we make a deal," he suggests. "When you can stand on your feet, I'll… dye my hair whatever color you want."

"Pink," Jabari pipes up mischievously.

"Hot pink," Yasmina grins in agreement.

"Hey, this is Sammy's decision," Kenji protests.

Sammy chuckles. "Why can I see you pulling off hot pink hair?"

"He totally could," the athlete mumbles, looking intrigued and horrified at the same time.

"Is that what you want?" he asks.

Sammy bites her lip. "You'd really do that?"

"Yeah, I'd wear it proudly," he declares. "And probably soon."

Her eyes dart down to the ground in doubt.

"Come on, let's see if you can," Kenji suggests, standing up and holding out his hands.

Fear flashes through Sammy's eyes. "N-no, I'm not…"

"You said you trust your God, so stand," Kenji shrugs. "Isn't he going to heal you?"

"Yeah," she nods, the most confident in that answer than any of her others so far.

"So, when?" he prompts.

"I don't know… I'm waiting on the Lord," she murmurs.

Fear flares up in the boy. Fear that she was hurting herself. Fear that this would drive the two of them apart. Fear that religion would be the end of their relationship…

"This is hurting her… she could lose progress if she doesn't continue to try to walk… But she's never going to believe me… She's convinced herself that this is a part of her religion and me telling her otherwise would be interfering with it…"

"But I can't let her continue on like this! She'll hurt herself! I have to say something about it!"

"I promised her that I wouldn't interfere with her faith… that's all I can do to bridge the divide…"

"I'm not good enough for her… That's what this is… It's not a coincidence this popped up when Lydia's accusations surfaced… Religious differences is an excuse for her to back away for her own good…"

The guilt hurt, and Kenji didn't want to feel it… He had been feeling so much guilt about this already… He was tired of feeling guilty. "No, they had already known about my past when they accepted me… So why does my beliefs change that now… they knew about it then…"

A hand on his shoulder brings him back to reality. "I'm fine, Kenj, don't worry about me," Sammy assures him.

Kenji glances at Yasmina, who looks like she was having a heated conversation in her head. She rolls her eyes; she cared deeply for Sammy, but she felt she was being really ridiculous. Sighing, he drops the subject, really not in the mood for another argument. "Okay, well, when you do stand, I'll dye my hair hot pink to commemorate the milestone."

Sammy smiles gratefully. "Okay."

"Oh, hey, Sammy!" Brooklynn says, sticking her head around the wall of the halls. "You wanna vibe with me and Beebee in her room?"

"Sure, what are y'all listenin' to?" Sammy asks, putting back on her happy face.

"Itzy, Twice, the works," Brooklynn says, trying to veil her mischievous smirk.

"Oooh, classic," Kenji grins.

Yasmina frowns. "Who's that…?"

"Usually if you're going through the girl groups, you start off with Blackpink," Kenji comments, making Brooklynn's eyes widen in panic. "At least, that's how I started off. BTS for guy groups, Blackpink for girl groups."

Yasmina's frown turns to a glare and she slowly turns to Brooklynn. "You're exposing my little sister… to Kpop?"

"You act like I'm poisoning her," Brooklynn says, giggling under the athlete's intense stare.

"You're poisoning her mind!" Yasmina declares.

"Yer more dramatic than usual," Sammy comments.

"Kpop is an abomination," she sniffs.

"Why are you so against it for literally no reason?" Kenji asks.

"Yeah, it's really catchy and fun to dance to," Ghaleb adds.

"Ah," the alpha male's eyebrows lift. "You like it. That explains it."

The group laughs. "You like it?" Kenji asks in confusion. Ghaleb didn't strike him as the type to be into that genre.

"I liked the choreography," the older boy shrugs. "The workout it gave me was fun. Wasn't into the music itself much. Then when Yazzy got annoyed, I decided to stick with it purely for that reason."

"Whatever Ghaleb and Kenji like is immediately abhorrent," Yasmina openly declares.

"I like it," Brooklynn smiles.

"You're infected," the athlete replies, deadpan.

"And now your sister is," the pinkette says in a sing-song voice.

"Don't you dare teach her anymore," Yasmina growls.

Brooklynn freezes, then sings, "Jom deo gakkai, jom deo gakkai, geureoda gapjagi ssak!" before racing off down the halls.

"Oh, we having a round two?!" Yasmina shouts with a laugh, chasing after the younger girl.

Sammy and Ghaleb laugh. "Welp… maybe I should follow just to make sure Yaz doesn't cause too much of a ruckus," she suggests.

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea," Ghaleb nods, wheeling the parapelgic down the hall.

Kenji starts to follow when Mrs. Fadoula beckons him into the kitchen. "Kenji, can I ask you something?" she whispers.

Confused, he nods.

"Has anything happened between Ben and Yasmina?" she asks, her brows furrowing together in worry. "They've been acting funny, but won't say why. I'm worried something's happened and just genuinely curious."

"Yeah, they've been acting strange," Kenji nods. "I don't know why, though. Something has seemed off since… Well, Sammy and I noticed they were acting weird around each other two days ago, but Sammy said Yaz was acting up at their sleepover on Brand's birthday."

"I think something might have happened while she was at Ben's house the day of the party," Mrs. Fadoula nods. "That night, she refused to go to his house and has since."

"I mean, she's spent a lot of time with him," Kenji shrugs. "Maybe she just wanted to hang out with Sammy?"

"No, that's not the attitude she gave," Ghaleb interjects, coming back from the girls room. "She downright refused to go."

"It was like we suggested going back to Isla Nublar," his mother agrees.

"She's that adverse to hanging out with him?" Kenji raises an eyebrow.

The two nod. "She reacted almost like she would with PTSD," Ghaleb crosses his arms. "And Ben outright avoids seeing her now."

"I just hope they haven't had a fallout," Mrs. Fadoula sighs.

Kenji frowns. "They haven't seemed to hate each other or fear each other. It was more awkward and uncomfortable behavior from what I saw."

"Maybe he did something while they were at his house before the party," Ghaleb mutters.

"But they were hanging out together at the party like everything was fine," Kenji reminds him. "Maybe one of them said something to offend the other while they were there… Rio might know, she was sitting with them almost the whole time."

"Offensive words wouldn't cause this reaction," Ghaleb states.

"When I saw them Tuesday, they weren't that adverse," Kenji argues. "It wasn't like they were mad… more like just uncomfortable with each other."

"She's had a much stronger reaction than what you've seen," Mrs. Fadoula sighs.

"I can go see what's wrong," Ghaleb offers.

"You know your sister isn't going to open up," his mother sighs. "If something's really wrong, it'll take a while for her to open up."

"First of all, ouch," Ghaleb tschs. "I was her best friend before the island. And second, I wasn't referring to Yasmina." He punches his fist for emphasis.

"You are not going to beat up Ben, thank you very much," Mrs. Fadoula says, an expression of annoyance and disappointment setting in. It puts a smile on Kenji's face to see the similarities between her death glare and her daughters. Minus a few wrinkles and bigger eyes on Mrs. Fadoula's part, the two looked almost identical when they gave the death glare. He could see where Yasmina got it from.

"Plus, we don't even know what happened," Kenji reminds him. "For all we know, Yaz might have been the one to cause this. I think she'd be the more likely culprit, Caleb."

"Ghaleb," the boy corrects, frowning.

Kenji quirks an eyebrow, not hearing the difference. "Caleb."

"Gay," Yasmina's brother emphasises.

"You're gay?" the alpha male tilts his head.

"No, pffff," Ghaleb laughs. "G-H-A-L-E-B."

It dawns on Kenji and he chuckles sheepishly. "Ohhhh, I thought it was Caleb this whole time."

Ghaleb rolls his eyes.

"Wait, why didn't your sister correct me?" Kenji crosses his arms.

Ghaleb shrugs. "Probably to let you get on my nerves."

"Do the others think the same thing?" he asks. "Wait, why didn't you correct me?"

"I didn't know you were saying Caleb!" the other boy protests.

"Hey, Brook, what's his name?" Kenji asks as the girls come into the kitchen.

She frowns. "Ghaleb."

"How do you spell it?"

"G-H-A-L-E-B…"

"I thought it was Caleb," Kenji sputters.

"Oh, don't worry, you're the only one," Brooklynn says sassily.

"Shut up," he sticks his tongue out.

As the group hangs out, Kenji occasionally watches Yasmina. The athlete didn't seem to be bothered by anything… He was confused… Why would she react worse around her family than her friends? "She seems fine…" he frowns. "Then again, she's a great actress… when it comes to hiding her feelings. Not so much with other stuff." He silently snickers at the memory of greatly offending her when he told her that she couldn't act.

"Maybe he said something to her… Maybe she feels worse around her family than her friends?"

But what could he say to her to make her feel so bad… or so uncomfortable?

"Wait… this started around the time me and Sammy had our fight… Did Ben mention something about how Christians only marry Christians?"

The thought made him wonder. On one hand, that might do it… Her family was ex-Muslim and agnostic currently, so perhaps any idea of religion made her feel uncomfortable with her family… And her friends were more accepting… Perhaps that was the reason? On the other hand, that reasoning didn't make too much sense. And Yasmina didn't have a crush on Ben, so the idea wouldn't affect her… would it? Did she have a crush on him secretly?

"That's the only thing that appeared around the same time they started avoiding each other…" Kenji thinks. He was starting to believe that that was the issue. But why would Ben even bring it up to her? The thought makes his blood boil. There was absolutely no reason for him to do so! Telling her about it didn't do a darn thing! If she had a crush on him, it would break her heart and make her feel hurt knowing that he wouldn't return her feelings purely because of religion. If she didn't have a crush, then all he was doing was reminding her that she was unworthy of love from him because of her beliefs!

Irritation towards his friend builds up. It was bad enough that Ben was defending the idea… but now bringing Yasmina into the fight?

A deceitful thought enters. "Sammy only mentioned the idea during a heated argument… the Gutierrez's haven't mentioned it… Ben was the one who said I wasn't good enough purely because of my beliefs…"

Subconsciously putting the blame on his friend, Kenji can't help but scowl at the thought of Ben's actions.

A small groan next to him distracts him. He turns to find Brooklynn looking despondent. She pulls her knees up to her chest, hides her phone inside her curled up position and stares forlornly at the wall. "What's wrong?" Kenji asks, worried by the look on her face. He couldn't place the emotion… was she feeling sad? Regretful? Guilty?

"Ben," she mumbles. "Talking about the adulterous woman and murderous Romans…"

"Huh?" Kenji scrunches up his face in confusion.

"Something about Jesus forgiving immoral people…" she says, looking burdened. She starts to type a response.

Anger flares up again. "Okay, I think Ben's taking this too far," he thinks. "First butting into me and Sammy's relationship, then making Yaz feel guilty, and now criticizing Brooklynn? I'm gonna give him a talk about this…"

---

"Hi, Flopsy!" Ben exclaims, kneeling down and pursing his lips as his puppy attacks with an onslaught of licks. "Oh, yeah? Yeah, you're happy to see me, aren't you?"

Darius comes in through the front door and kneels down, too. Flopsy's tail whips Ben in the face multiple times as she violently wags with happiness. He laughs. "I don't think she's happy about being left at home alone."

"I think a lot of dogs would be used to it," Darius says, wiping his face. "Their owners are away all day. Like your family. You're at school and now both your parents have found a job."

"At least she has the Gutierrez's to take her out throughout the day," Ben says, standing up. "Maybe she should just stay at their house while we're at school. She could be with other dogs."

"It's like her own dog park," Darius chuckles.

"So, where's the party today?" the boy asks. "The ranch like usual?"

"Nope, Yaz's house this time," Darius chuckles, checking his text messages. "You wanna head over?"

"Sure," Ben nods, then realizes whose house it was. "Um… maybe we could hang out here for a bit? Cause it's a ten minute drive and your Mom might want a bit of time to sit before driving us again," he adds quickly.

"Yeah, she'd probably appreciate that," Darius nods, oblivious to Ben's hesitation. "I'mma use the bathroom real quick."

"No, you're not allowed to," Ben says seriously, a smirk cracking at the edge of his mouth.

Darius hesitates for a second before grinning and heading to the bathroom, anyway.

Ben chuckles and checks his phone. It was a text from Yasmina. Opening it, he finds a couple long paragraphs explaining her fight with Brooklynn the night before. "I know she's still hiding something. I think she feels guilty about it, too. Asked me what it would take to drive me away. If you could talk to her about it and see if you can coax more out, that'd be great. I think we need to attack this at all angles. She can't be left to simmer in whatever problems and guilt she has."

"All right, we're going to war with the issues that are attacking Brooklynn," Ben thinks, opening his thread with the pinkette. Yasmina had tried opening up first, then forcing it—almost physically—out of her. It still hadn't worked… Course, that wasn't Ben's style, anyway. He had a different approach… more spiritual perhaps, but they couldn't be picky now. They had tried so many different ways to help Brooklynn; it couldn't hurt to try his approach for once.

Taking a notepad, Ben writes down an outline of what his argument was to be. He wanted it to be formulated and clear. After writing all that down, he begins to text her. "Hey, how are you feeling?"

"I'm good," she sends with a winky face.

"Yeah? I heard you and Yaz had a fight last night."

"Eh, it was petty."

"That's not how she made it sound."

"Huh, not sure what she made it sound like, then…"

"She said you were feeling bad about something."

"Yaz has been a bit… paranoid about my safety."

"Even so, you haven't given us reason to believe you're fine."

"Ben, please, I'm fine," Brooklynn insists.

"Why'd you ask Yaz what it'd take to push her away then?" he interrogates.

"I was just curious!" she protests. "I've lost friends before, why wouldn't I be curious about that? If Yaz asked it, would you be all judgy and questioning her about it?"

"Not judgy, but I would question it," Ben replies. "I would be curious what made her think that and assure her that she has nothing to fear. I'd address the underlying fear behind the question, much like I'm trying to do with you."

"Friendship PTSD and social anxiety like her, okay?" Brooklynn answers. "I'm scared of losing you guys… Like you guys are."

"Well, why don't I try to put that fear at rest," Ben says, not buying that this was the only reason behind this question. "We're not going to drop everything and leave you, okay? After all we've been through and how close we are, we're not going to up and leave you. And there's nothing you can do about it. There's nothing you can do to make us angry or annoyed enough to leave. We love you and you can't change that."

"Cheesy…" she replies.

"Why is that cheesy?"

"There's nothing that I can do to stop you from loving me? That's what couples in love say to each other, and 40 to 50 percent of them end in divorce. That's what childhood friends say to each other, then they grow apart with age. People change and love dies sometimes."

Ben smiles softly to himself. At least they were getting somewhere rather than her pushing away any attempt at a conversation. "While we might move away and not talk as much, we still have our bond. I can't see us changing so drastically that we lose that friendship. When I tell you that there's nothing you can do to make me stop caring for you, I mean it."

"Why?" Brooklynn asks. "We're not perfect. There's always something we can do to ruin our relationships. You're not perfect Ben. You can't love unconditionally no matter the circumstances."

"True, but first of all, you're like a younger sister to me," Ben tells her. "I care very deeply about you, and I can't think of any mistake that would drive us apart for good. I might be angry at some, or hurt by some, but it won't stop my affection for you. My storge love for you."

"You nerd," Brooklynn comments.

"Storge is family love," he explains. "Second of all, it would be hypocritical of me to hate you or be in unforgiveness just because you made a mistake. Jesus forgave the woman who committed adultery. The law commanded her to be killed, and yet, he forgave her. On the Cross, he begged his Father to forgive the Roman soldiers who were putting him to death. Paul, the one who wrote many books in the Bible, was murdering Christians before he got saved. My Lord died to pay for all of our sins. I'm not perfect and don't deserve it, but he gave his life for me, anyway. As a Christian, I am to extend that same forgiveness to others. To tell you that there is something you can do that is unforgivable would be wrong. I might not be happy in the moment, but I will forgive you and move on. It's what Christ would do, and it's what I will try to do. And because I care about you, it would be easier. Don't believe the lie that whatever you've done or whatever is in your past is unforgivable. Don't believe the lie that we will leave you if you make a mistake. My Lord forgave you, and so will I. And so will the others."

After a couple minutes, Brooklynn retorts, "So what's going on between you and Yaz? I heard you guys were acting awkward around each other, like something happened."

Ben's eyes widen in panic. "What do I say, what do I say?! She can't know… I can't tell her. This has to be kept under wraps… But keeping it a secret might undermine getting through to her…"

"What's going on between you and my sister?" Ghaleb bluntly asks through a new private chat.

"Oh, I'm definitely not telling you," Ben thinks, having no quarrels with hiding that from the older guy. Forgetting about Brooklynn, he turns his attention to Ghaleb. "Nothing, we're fine."

"Don't lie, I've seen how she reacts at the mention of your name," Ghaleb replies. Ben could feel the anger radiating from his phone.

He gulps. "It's going to be really hard to keep this a secret from him…" "We're fine, nothing is wrong."

"If you've done ANYTHING to hurt her, I will come after you," Ghaleb threatens. "One bruise from you and I will throw hands with you. If you make her even the slightest bit uncomfortable, I will make sure you can't have kids. Break her heart, and I will wring your neck like a chicken for dinner. Put your hands on her, and I will throw your lifeless, dead corpse in the river after brutally murdering you with our Great Grandfather's Althaar knife. Defile her and I'll torment you with ancient torture techniques before disposing of you. Treat her wrongly, and I'll make horror movies look PG. One wrong move and I will personally send you to Heaven or Hell or wherever you're going."

Ben stares at his phone with a lump in his throat. "If this subject isn't handled with care, Ghaleb is going to murder me… Maybe we should tell Kenji and Darius so that I'll have backup… They'd understand… But what—"

"You okay?" Darius comes out, noticing his fallen face.

"Uhh, yeah…" Ben lies, then decides against it. "No, Ghaleb is threatening me… I just… I get that he's protective and caring about his sister, but… have I not proved myself?"

"You have, he's a jerk," Darius states, getting a little heated seeing how upset Ghaleb was making Ben.

"Not really, he's just protective of Yasmina," Ben murmurs.

"You never did anything bad on the island when there was no adult supervision, you've never done anything here, you've always been an amazing friend and support to Yasmina," Darius declares. "He's too stubborn to admit it and biased against you just because he can't accept the idea of Yaz getting married or even being around a guy who likes her, even if she doesn't return the feelings."

"What if he's right…" Ben worries. "He knows her… What if I'm not the guy I think I am…"

"Don't take what he says to heart, he's a jerk," Darius advises. "Like Milton, except he actually cares about Yaz. Look, he's overprotective. He wants to keep her safe, but his standards are too high, and he's refusing to admit that you're a good guy. It's not anything you've done, he's just a stubborn donkey."

"He thinks I'm such a bad influence… and a bad friend…" Ben mumbles.

"He's wrong," Darius says bluntly. "He's jealous that he wasn't the one on the island with her. Ghaleb was Yasmina's best friend before the island and acted like her father when they were being abused. He's not willing to let her go and he's not willing to accept you. You don't have to prove anything to him. Nothing will be good enough."

"It's not his approval I'm worried about… It's what would happen if I ignored him," Ben shivers.

"If he tries to hurt you for no reason, I'll step in," the leader promises.

"He's six foot and a muscle boy," the boy protests.

"And? I've faced dinos for y'all, I'm not backing down from a human," Darius shrugs, an intense glint in his eyes.

"Oh boy…" Ben thinks, remembering his reaction to the boy pulling Brooklynn's hair. "You need therapy."

Ben thinks for a moment. "Did you just say y'all?"

Darius grins. "I live in Texas now, remember?"

Ben laughs. "Right, I guess we'll catch onto the lingo eventually."

---

"Annnnnnd the party has arrived!" Kenji announces, walking through the front door.

Ben is sitting on the couch with one of the Gutierrez cats. He and Darius had driven to the ranch on a gut feeling. Sure enough, Mrs. Fadoula had kicked the party over to the ranch because it was getting hectic. Darius immediately gets up from the couch and heads into the kitchen where the other campers were.

Ben sits where he is, listening to the others talk. "I. Saw. It," Yasmina insists forcefully. "It was there!"

"I was looking at the exact same person at the exact same time, you're crazy!" Brooklynn states.

"No! I'm not crazy! Ghaleb!" Yasmina protests.

"I'm with Brooklynn on this one," the smug voice comes.

"Bah! I'm not crazy!" Yasmina insists.

"What did you see?" Mrs. Gutierrez asks.

"We were driving here and stopped at a light," Yasmina explains. "A lady was walking through and had this strange creature, spider/squid thingy on her back, and no one else saw it apparently!"

"A what?" Mr. Gutierrez asks.

"I'm not totally sure what it was," the athlete sighs. "It was like a… a spider… no, more like a giant crab, but thin and skinny… but the leg/tentacle thingies were also flappy…"

Laughter erupted at her attempt to describe the thing.

"It was a mix between a squid, a spider, a crab, and a demon, okay?!" Yasmina finally huffs. "It was freaky."

"Maybe the rest of ya didn't see it?" Miriam suggests.

"I think a squiderabemon would be noticeable," Kenji comments, causing another round of laughter.

"And Brooklynn was looking straight at her," the athlete explains. "But apparently, all she could notice was her crop top, and not the sq… squididercrabmon, on her back!"

"Squiderabemon," Kenji corrects, deciding to officially coin his new term.

"There was nothing on her back!" Brooklynn protests.

"How could you not notice that?!" Yasmina barks. "It was clinging to her back! The… the… the tentacle/leg flappies were digging into her back!"

The group starts laughing again. "That's not funny!" she protests. "It's scary! Imagine seeing a scary squid… squiderabemon attached to someone's back and digging into their skin and bones! It's not the most pleasing sight!"

"It's the fact that you called it tentacle/leg flappies that's funny," Darius explains.

"You got some mighty scary hallucinations there, Yasmina," Mr. Gutierrez says. Ben can practically hear the athlete glaring in frustration of not being believed.

"Have you seen other things?" Ghaleb asks.

"Yeah, I've seen Jabba the Hut's little pet muppet sitting on two different people's shoulders," she says.

"You're not helping your case," Kenji says. Ben can hear her smack him.

"Mom says maybe we need to get you a mental diagnosis," Ghaleb explains. "She's curious if maybe you're developing Schizophrenia or some other mental disorder."

"Tell her I'd like that," Yasmina says. "I'm seeing monsters and it's not just during sleep paralysis now. At first, I could've chalked them up to PTSD, but I'm not sure how Jabba the Hut's muppet and a squiderabemon fit into that explanation."

"Yeah, the sooner this gets checked out, the better," Brooklynn says, walking next to Yasmina in assistance as they begin to walk into the living room.

"I'm honestly relieved that it is a mental disorder," Yasmina admits quietly, low enough that Brooklynn and Ben could hear it, but not the rest of the group. "I was beginning to get worried that I was seeing something else…"

"Nothing has been diagnosed officially," the pinkette reminds her. "What did you think it was?"

"I don't know," the athlete sighs. "Part of me was wondering if I was seeing into another dimension or world or something…"

Yasmina looks up and spots Ben. She stops in her tracks, her eyes widening, and she immediately turns around and heads back into the kitchen. Confused, Brooklynn follows, glancing back at Ben. The two maneuver around Kenji, who was standing in the doorway. He looks between the girls and Ben and sighs. "Okay, what is going on between you guys?"

Ben tenses. "W-What do you mean?"

"I mean, what happened between you and Yaz to make you guys so awkward, and why are you treating Brooklynn like that?" Kenji asks, coming over to stand in front of the couch.

Ben truly becomes confused. "Wait, treating Brooklynn like how?"

A flicker of anger crosses Kenji's face. "Don't play dumb, I heard about your conversation this morning."

Ben blinks dumbly. What about his conversation was wrong?

"You can't keep forcing your beliefs on others," Kenji states, crossing his arms. "Just because you think there's a God doesn't mean you have to bring it into every conversation. And you don't just start up a conversation about murderous Romans and adulterous women out of the blue with someone who's agnostic! I don't know why you think you need to discuss that with Brooklynn, but it needs to stop."

Ben begins to feel defensive. "I'm sorry, did you even read what I texted her? I was demonstrating love."

The older boy barks out a laugh. "Yeah, cause comparing her to murderers and adulterors is really helpful for her. Making her feel guilty about her beliefs and past mistakes isn't helping, all you're doing is making her feel worse!"

Feeling defensive already because of Ghaleb, Ben bristles. "So, what? Am I not supposed to say anything to her?"

"Say something, just not about your stupid religion!" Kenji snaps. "Some of us aren't part of your group and you bringing it up all the time in every conversation is frustrating!"

"Like you bringing up how rich you are all the time?" Ben retorts hotly. He can see the muscles in his friend's neck tense. Frustrated, Ben continues on. "Forgive me for not knowing this. I have zero clue how to help Brooklynn cause I'm not her 'older brother.' Clearly, I have nothing to contribute to the group because I'm Christian. Forgive me, all-knowing Kenji." He stands up from the couch and mockingly bows.

"Why does everything revolve around your God?" Kenji asks in frustration. "It's like you can't think of anything else!"

Ben could feel his neck getting warm. "Since when has this bothered you so much?! I don't go on and on preaching to you guys! It's not like every conversation I bring God up! Besides, the Lord saved and provided for me on the island, as well as the rest of us! I've dedicated my life to him, so he's important! Just like your wealth and all the cool rich kid things you've done is to you!"

Ignoring his point about his wealth, Kenji snaps, "Just because it's important to you doesn't mean you need to force it on others!"

"When have I forced it on you guys?!" Ben barks.

"You force it on Brooklynn with that conversation this morning! You force it on Yaz with whatever the H*** is going on between the two of you! You force it on me! You're a jerk!" Kenji declares.

"It's not my fault you're the one who fell in love with Sammy and I wasn't the one who brought it up!" Ben protests. "I wasn't barging in all like, 'Hey, you can't marry her because you're beneath us because of your beliefs.' You asked me! You're the one who came to me with questions!"

"How was I supposed to know that was a rule?!" Kenji asks.

"How was I supposed to know you wanted me to lie?!" Ben retorts. "What was I supposed to do, lie about it?!"

"You don't need to put others down purely because they're not a religious nut like you!" Kenji snaps. "You don't need to go around telling others they don't measure up because they believe differently!"

"I never said that, you're putting words in my mouth!" Ben defends himself. "I never said that you were less of a person because of the way you believed. Maybe you're feeling that way because you're insecure!"

With a feral growl, Kenji shoves Ben back. Falling back into his post monorail self, Ben lunges forward. He headslams his friend in the chest like an Ankylo. Kenji grunts and knees Ben in the chest.

Backing up, he gives it a running start to put some weight behind his headbutt. Kenji throws his fist forward and collides with Ben's forehead, hurting both of them. Enraged, the boy aims a kick at his friends groin. The alpha male turns in time to receive a kick to the right hip instead.

Kenji tries to punch his friend in the face. Ben leans back, quickly grabbing his arm and taking advantage of his exposed torso. His elbow connects painfully with Kenji's lower ribs, causing the boy to grunt. Ben brings his elbow down inside Kenji's, forcing his arm to bend. The alpha male takes advantage of it and awkwardly punches Ben in the jaw.

Ben stumbles back a bit, following the momentum of his head. Kenji grabs the front of his shirt and rears back like he was about to punch him again. Ben trips over his friends leg and falls over on his back. Unsteady and off-balanced from the fighting, Kenji ends up following suit, bringing the fight to the ground. Using his weight to his benefit, Kenji pins down Ben, who refuses to go down without putting up a fight.

"Hey! Woah, enough!" Darius exclaims, coming in and finding the dispute. He immediately gets down on his knees and tries to get between Ben and Kenji, fighting Kenji's weight and Ben's punches and hits.

"Hey! Enough!" Mrs. Gutierrez snaps, catching the attention from all three boys. "All of you are grounded!"

Kenji immediately lowers his fist and Ben relaxes in shame. Darius's reaction, on the other hand, was priceless. His jaw drops. "I was trying to stop them!" he protests, almost pleading with her. "I wasn't a part of the fight!"

Darius pleading to not get grounded for attempting to break up the fight was perfect to break up the tension. Laughing at their friend's desperation, the two boys roll away and move to separate sides of the room like Mrs. Gutierrez instructed. Giving a mumbled "Sorry," the two head to different places on the ranch to cool off.

---

"Delivery!" Shelby announces, handing Kenji a folded piece of clothing.

The boy takes the shirt and holds it up. Memories flood back. It was his old, long-sleeved, blue shirt he had worn the entire camp experience. The tattered shirt was still mud and blood stained, despite obviously being washed. A great deal of faded red and brown stains took up the material. Practically all of it was tinted a dirty color.

"That will be five dollars," Habeeba declares with a laugh. Her, Shelby, and Sandra had pinned pieces of paper that said UPS onto the fronts of their shirts, pretending to be delivery drivers.

"Five dollars?!" Kenji protests, making the girls and Yasmina laugh. "I wouldn't pay two for this bloody piece of crap!"

"How about one dollar?" Sandra plants her hands on her hips.

"One penny," Kenji crosses his arms.

"Seventy five cents," Sandra bargains.

"Twenty five cents," he raises an eyebrow.

"Fifty?" Sandra suggests.

Kenji groans and pulls two quarters out of his pocket. "Take your money and go, you little negotiator."

The girls giggle as they run back into the kitchen. "She could be a business woman with that attitude," Yasmina chuckles, rubbing the belly of one of the Aussie Shepherds.

"I don't remember being this covered in blood…" Kenji mumbles, trying to figure out what happened to his old shirt.

"I can't think of what would have caused that," Yasmina narrows her eyes at it.

"Here's the rest of your…" Ben starts to say, coming into the living room and trailing off as his eyes meet Yasmina's.

The two stare awkwardly at each other for a second, before the athlete gets up. "I, uh… I'm not paying fifty cents for my stuff," she excuses, hobbling past Ben into the kitchen. He gives her a good deal of space to do so.

"Here's the rest of your stuff," Ben says before Kenji could ask anything. The boys had an awkward pause, as they still hadn't resolved their conflict from the other day. After a few seconds, Ben sits down next to him on the couch and hands him a pile of stuff. Kenji picks up a dirty butter knife from the pile. "Ah, my trusty butterknife," he grins, holding up the knife, bent from attempting to stab a dinosaur.

Ben snorts. "What happened to it?"

"I tried to stab Sarah in the eye when she attacked," Kenji explains. "It was actually the night before we found you."

"You mean, I found you guys?" Ben corrects.

"Pfft, whatever," the older boy sputters. "I still can't figure out what happened to my shirt…"

"Same thing that happened to mine," Ben shrugs. "Yaz's amputation. I gave up mine to give a somewhat clean table for Sammy to work on, Darius sacrificed his to start a fire so that we could cauterize the wound, and you gave yours to wrap her leg."

"So we all ended up shirtless by the end of the experience," Kenji laughs. "And I'm the only one who got my shirt back."

"You were shirtless periodically throughout the experience," the younger kid points out.

"Draw me like one of your French Kenjis," the alpha male says dramatically, recalling that memory.

"I still can't believe Yasmina actually did that," Ben wheezes. "Did she pull you aside?"

"Actually, she was pretty sly about it," Kenji raises his eyebrows. "We were once again fighting over the sunglasses and I was shirtless… again. I said it for the umpteenth time and she told me, 'Fine, let me get my sketchbook. If I draw you, will you stop it with the sunglasses?' I did for a week or two… The deal didn't stick around for long."

"Ha, sounds like a pretty good deal for her," Ben grins. "A Christmas gift and you stopped annoying her for a period of time. Speaking of, we were also able to recover the pictures Yaz drew for us for Christmas. Brook had the genius idea to seal them in a waterproof bag. Kept them safe throughout our water and mud adventures."

"I forgot about these," the older boy smiles as he opens up his. Yasmina had found a professional picture of his father in a crisp suit. It suited the image he had had of his father in that time period. Now, he wasn't sure if it fit completely… Next to him was his step-sister, Hayoon. Her delicate features were scrunched up with joy and she was making two little finger hearts. Underneath her was Darius, fists held tightly in excitement, with his signature grin. Kenji could practically hear him spouting off dino facts. Beside him was Brooklynn holding up her phone to video herself. It looked like it could be a screenshot; it was so realistic. Beneath and in between the two was Ben holding up his childish drawing of Bumpy. The athlete had done a pretty good job of copying his artwork. To Ben's left was Sammy, laughing at a joke. Her hair was astray and her face looked tired. He assumed Yasmina had drawn her from memory when they were sleep deprived in the woods. To his right was Yasmina. Kenji guessed that she had gone into a bathroom to draw herself. For his present, she had puffed up her cheeks and given him a thumbs up, trying to be goofy for her comedic friend.

He chuckles, showing Ben the picture. "It'd be fun to see what went on when she was drawing herself."

Ben snickers. "I think we accidentally got an early look at her being goofy. Look at mine." On Ben's paper, Yasmina had crossed her eyes and again puffed up her cheeks.

"Either Yaz struggles to draw herself, or her cheeks are cuter than I realized," Kenji mutters, making his friend laugh.

"You should see Sammy's," Ben's eyes widen. "She looks like she's screeching like a pterodactyl."

"I gotta see this," Kenji laughs. "Pfff, she used the French Kenji picture for all of you, didn't she?"

"Probably easier than trying to find another one," Ben shrugs. "That was so funny. 'Oh, you're embarrassed Ben? Let me take off my shirt!'"

"Heheheh, would you expect anything less?" the alpha male grins. His eyes dart to the item strapped around his friend's waist. "Ohhhhhh, your dork pouch!"

"That you stole!" Ben points out with a laugh, patting his trusty fanny pack.

"I was carrying on the Ben legacy," Kenji protests. Picking out another item from the pile, he blows into his blue whistle, making Ben cover his ears. "Brook really did give me the obnoxious one," he mumbles.

"And here's your Compy tooth necklace," the younger boy says, handing him it. "I think that one's yours. They all look the same."

"My gift was recreating memories…" the older kid mutters.

"Ah, right," Ben smiles. "Mine was caroling… yeah, cause Brooklynn and I were the only ones who sounded good. You and Sammy sounded like dying Compies and Yaz and Darius were too shy to fully try."

"And the only time I sounded mildly okay was when I sang Let It Snow for Yaz," Kenji grins. "And I was imitating Peewee Herman."

"Sammy's was the string/tangling up and dog piling on each other event," Ben recalls, chuckling. "Brooklynn's was watching the Chronicles of Narnia… What was Darius's? I don't remember you giving him a recreation of a memory."

"Darius said his favorite Christmas memory was dancing with his father to Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire," Kenji murmurs. "I pulled him aside to do that one. Thought it'd be better than having the others commentary."

"Oh… that was sweet," Ben says softly.

"Yeah…" he mumbles, remembering it.

"You're going to dance with me?" Darius giggled.

"Do you not want to?" Kenji asked. "If it's too awkward we can try something else."

"I mean, it would probably be awkward," Darius chuckled. "But I… I don't have a problem with it."

Kenji held out his hands and Darius grabbed a hold of them. The younger boy stepped onto his feet which hurt a bit. Darius was heavy, making it difficult to actually dance. The awkwardness of being so close while dancing made the boys snort and laugh. After a minute, the mood changed. Darius became quiet and slowly rested his head on Kenji's chest. He was lost in memories of his late father.

Sensing the change, Kenji had stopped dancing and wrapped his arms around the younger kid. Darius returned the embrace, clinging tightly to him like a child. Kenji could feel silent tears wetting the front of his shirt. He had felt a sense of brotherhood while holding the grieving younger kid. After the ups and downs in their relationship, the fighting and the rescuing each other, here they were. Darius was allowing Kenji to comfort him, even if it was just holding him during his time of grieving. The older boy hadn't seen him cry before; he had a feeling Darius didn't allow himself that liberty too often. There was something honoring to know that he was letting down his walls for a moment in front of him.

"What was Brooklynn's gift?" Ben wonders, bringing Kenji back.

"Brooklynn's present was the whistles…" Kenji continues to recall. "Yours was the Compy teeth… Yaz's were the pictures… What were Darius and Sammy's presents?"

"Darius gave us small speeches," Ben reminds him. "And Sammy gave us—"

"Memories," Keji interrupts.

"I was gonna say breakfast, but yeah, she did that, too," Ben nods.

Kenji snickers. "LIFE, LIBERTY, AND THE FREEDOM TO JUDGE EGGS!"

"GOD BLESS AMERICA!" comes from the kitchen.

Kenji laughs, surprised by the feeling of relief that came from hearing Sammy finish the quote. It was a relief that after the bickering and arguing and disagreeing they had done recently, she was still willing to laugh and remember their fun memories.

"Remember Christmas night?" Ben asks. "When Brooklynn put on a ballet show?"

"And she flopped over onto Darius in the end?" Kenji grins. "Ahhh, dancing was fun. Except for when Sammy smacked me in the face accidentally."

"And I dropped Yaz?" Ben facepalms.

"Remember when we finally got through to Roxie and Dave?" Kenji raises his eyebrow.

"That was such a relieving moment, getting to talk to them and our families," Ben nods. "You were so surprised to get a call."

"I honestly thought no one would be there for me," Kenji murmurs. "I couldn't believe Hayoon was there… and to hear my father was a complete shock."

"Simultaneously the worst and best Christmas ever," Ben smiles. "Wish I could've been there for the other inside jokes."

"Eh, you didn't miss too much," Kenji shrugs. "You missed the egg conversation, mostly. And Darius learning what menstruation is."

"That I wish I could've seen," Ben laughs.

"Guys, guys, guys!" Brooklynn exclaims, coming up behind them on the couch. She was grinning wildly and laughing mischievously. "You will never guess—"

Brooklynn bends over the back of the couch as Darius tackles her from behind. "You are taking it out of context!" he exclaims.

"We were listening to—" Brooklynn starts.

"It was a friend compliment!" Darius insists.

"Angels We Have Heard On High and—" she continues in between his protests.

"Friends!" he interrupts.

"And Darius told me that the song reminded him—"

"F-R-I-E-N-D-S!"

"Him of me because it sounded—"

"FRIEENNNNNNNDS!"

"Sounded so angelic and beautiful!" Brooklynn finishes with a laugh.

"FRIENDS!" he shouts. "You're a good FRIEND and I think the song fits you. As a FRIEND!"

"You know, I think Darius sees her as something more," Kenji smirks at Ben.

"FRIENDS!" Darius exclaims again.

"You better only see me as a friend," Brooklynn says, then her eyes widen.

"Wait, what's that supposed to mean?" Darius asks in confusion.

"Why do you want to know? Do you like me?" she asks teasingly.

"As. A. FRIEND!" Darius exclaims, clapping his hand over her mouth as she laughs to keep her from saying anything else embarrassing. "Just like I said you were a good ballerina. It's as. A. FRIEND!"

"I was not a good ballerina," Brooklynn insists seriously.

"Yes, you were," Darius argues. "I saw the video, you were great!"

"Well, I'm not doing it again, too stressful to balance with all my other activities," she says quickly.

"Why are you guys listening to Christmas music, anyway?" Ben asks.

"Because," Brooklynn shrugs. "Yaz thinks we shouldn't because it's the end of March."

"Play Christmas EveL by Stray Kids," Kenji snickers. "Christmas music and Kpop."

"Ooh, double whammy," Brooklynn chuckles. "Well, I'm off to tell Sammy about Darius—"

"No, you're not!" he protests, picking up the cackling pinkette and waddling back into the kitchen.

"There may be something there that wasn't there before," Kenji smirks, watching the two bicker.

Ben sighs, then looks up at his friend. "About yesterday… I'm sorry. I was feeling defensive yesterday and when you started talking, I felt the need to hit back… I shouldn't have snapped like that. I was more goading than I should've been. I should've been calmer and not insulted you like I did."

Kenji looks at his paper silently.

"I had heard that Yaz and Brooklynn had a fight two nights ago," Ben continues. "After hearing about it, it seems to me that Brooklynn is struggling with feeling judged… or that we don't love her or won't love her if she does something or has done something. I wasn't trying to force her to believe in God, Kenji. I was explaining the way I believe and why I can't judge her. I was explaining why I wouldn't stop extending love and forgiveness to her. My aim is to become more like Jesus. Well, he forgave murderers and adulterors and all other sinners. So if he could forgive his own persecutors, why shouldn't I do the same? If he's forgiven me, what room do I have to judge her? I wasn't comparing her to those sinners."

"Brooklynn doesn't exactly think logically when it comes to these subjects right now," Kenji reminds him. "Even if you weren't comparing her to them, she seemed to take it that way."

"I understand, I didn't think about that…" Ben murmurs. "I was trying to comfort and assure her that we wouldn't leave her. As for you, I wasn't judging. I wasn't telling you that you aren't good enough because you don't believe the same way. And I don't think that's the way God looks at it. You came to me asking for clarification, and I was honest with compassion. At least, I hope I was. I'm not going to put you down, but I'm also not going to lie to you. I wasn't going to bring it up to you. You came to me asking."

"Yeah, I looked back over our conversation from that night…" Kenji mumbles. "You weren't judging… I was just sensitive. I'm sorry, too. It's just… I've come all this way with Sammy, only to have my beliefs hinder everything. No one has actually judged me for it yet… But it just kinda… hurts… to know that this might be the only thing that's stopped us from getting together. Her family has accepted me, and the only time she's actually mentioned this is during an argument… You have been the only one to actually explain what's going on… I guess I was feeling judged, and… I wanted to put the blame on someone else, and… you were the only one I could justify doing that to… Which I shouldn't have."

Ben nods.

"... Mr. Gutierrez knows about what I believe," Kenji continues. "If this is such a big deal, why would he allow Sammy to date me in the future and accept me now?"

"I don't know…" Ben murmurs. "Maybe… He can't control his daughters, you know. Right now he has more control over them, but really, all he can do is guide and advise them when they're older. And from his experience with Holly, cracking down and being very controlling isn't a good parenting tactic. I mean, he had the no dating policy with her and she still got pregnant at fifteen. Sammy's pretty loyal to her family and respects her parents, but if she wanted to, she could marry you without his permission. It's her choice, after all. Maybe if he were to reject you, she might marry you anyway and run away."

"So, you think he's accepting me because he's afraid she'd leave if he doesn't?" Kenji rephrases.

"No, not necessarily," Ben shakes his head. "Well, maybe… You're a really good guy, and I think you hit all the marks besides your beliefs. And you're pretty open to working with them and aren't against their religion. Maybe he's accepting you for right now and hoping that you'll change?" The boy shrugs apologetically. "I don't know, ultimately, it's Sammy's choice. They've probably talked to her about it. You're a good guy, and while they want her to marry a Christian, I think they'd support you guys even if she disobeyed their wishes."

Kenji nods. "She's been avoiding the subject uncomfortably… Oh, and also is refusing to do her physical therapy exercises."

The younger boy's face contorts in confusion. "Wait, why?"

"Because she's trusting that God will heal her, so she's waiting on the Lord," Kenji explains.

The look of confusion on his friends face confirmed to him that Sammy wasn't in the right here. "She, ghsdfks, what? We've gone from 'I must be positive to please the Lord,' to 'I can't do anything now because that's not trusting in him?' She did a full one eighty."

"Yeah, I think she's over compensating," Kenji nods. "Do you want to talk to her about this?"

"Looks like I'll have to," Ben chuckles. "Yay."

"Why were you feeling defensive yesterday?" Kenji asks.

"Ghaleb," Ben mutters.

"Pfff, hassling you again?" the alpha male sputters.

"I didn't do anything to Yasmina!" he immediately protests. "There's nothing going on between us, I swear."

"... I didn't say anything about Yaz," Kenji reminds him, frowning.

"... Right…" Ben mumbles. "Ghaleb was threatening me yesterday because he says me and Yaz are acting awkward… Says she reacts badly at the mention of my name… He was talking about all the graphic ways he would kill me if I hurt Yaz—but I didn't hurt her! He's overreacting. There's nothing wrong between us!"

"Don't take Ghaleb's threats to heart," Kenji tells him. "Nothing you can do will appease him. No one could ever be good enough for his sister. Jesus could come to Earth and like her and Ghaleb would have a problem. I think he's hurting. It's PTSD from the abuse from their bio father. He feels the need to protect her and he's overcompensating. Look at Darius with Brooklynn. It's the same thing."

Ben nods.

"You know how any guy does one little thing to her and Darius is ready to throw hands," Kenji shakes his head. "It's the same thing with Ghaleb. Understand that it's him and not you. You can respect his opinion and acknowledge that he's trying to look out for his sister, but he's not the one you answer to. It's Yaz's decision, ultimately, and he can't run her life. Don't beat yourself up if you don't please him. You'll never fit his standards because they're impossible. Just live and be who you are and ignore his threats. You have nothing to worry about."

The younger boy smiles gratefully.

"And second, I'm not taking your bullcrap," the older teen raises an eyebrow. "I don't believe you when you say nothing is going on between you and Yaz. I also won't judge you if you tell me. You can talk about it, you know."

Ben stares at him with wide eyes, that feeling of mild panic tightening his chest. "No, but I can't tell you! You can't know about this, Yasmina would KILL me if I told you…"

"Red alert! Houston, we have a pr—" Darius exclaims, running up behind the couch then grunts as he's tackled from behind.

"Now look who's overreacting!" Brooklynn snaps with a laugh, having jumped onto his back in attempt to shut him up.

"Brooklynn has a crush on someone outside of this group!" Darius informs Kenji and Ben.

"I never said that!" she protests. "He just wants to make a Youtube collab, I never said I had a crush on him!"

"Is he a bad guy?" Darius asks suspiciously.

"No, he's good!" she insists.

"Then why are you acting suspiciously weird?" he asks.

"I'm not!" she protests.

"You said he wanted to collab, then didn't say what his name was or what he wanted," Darius glares up at her.

"He wanted to collab on a video together and you wouldn't know who he is," she sighs.

"What type of video and why wouldn't I know who he is?" Darius interrogates.

"He does videos analyzing fictional characters' mental states and he wanted to watch and analyze survival and PTSD moments in movies with me because of what I've been through," she explains.

"So he's gonna place you in a situation where you could possibly be triggered? I don't like this guy!" he decides.

"You haven't met him! He's good!" she sighs exasperatedly.

"Let me read the text, I don't trust him," Darius states.

"Hey, you can't just snoop through my phone!" Brooklynn protests.

"What are you hiding?!" he asks.

"Nothing!" she insists. "I don't have to share everything!"

"Well, I don't trust this guy and I wanna meet him," Darius hmphs. "Wanna make sure the people you hang out with are safe."

"Darius, stop being a Dad," Brooklynn sighs, closing her eyes and looking tired. She looked worried…

"Wait, Yaz knows the password to your phone," Darius gets an idea.

Brooklynn's eyes snap open. "Wait, what?! You're going to have Yaz hack into my phone?!"

"Off to find Yaz!" he insists, sliding his arms under her legs, hoisting her up onto his back and carrying her off down the hall.

"Darius, nooo!" she protests, laughing as he carries her away.

Kenji and Ben laugh at the drama that had just unfolded. "Case of point," the alpha male gestures to them. "Darius is way too overprotective of her."

Knowing that the conversation would continue, Ben quickly looks for a way out. "Are you guys delivering more stuff?" he asks the younger girls as he spots them coming into the living room.

"No, we're makeup artists, now," Sandra states.

"Do you need models?" Ben offers, trying anything to get out of talking about Yasmina.

"Yeah!" the girls exclaim.

Kenji gives Ben the annoyed side eye, but he didn't protest as the two followed the girls up into Shelby and Sandra's room. "Dodged that bullet," Ben thinks. "For now…"

---

"WHY DO YOU BREATHE SO LOUDLY?!" Yasmina shouts, startling her friends. She gives Kenji the death glare, who starts to shake with laughter under her gaze.

"I don't hear him," Brooklynn breaks the silence.

"You're sitting down at the kitchen island, you don't need to breathe like a frickin' ox!" the athlete protests.

Kenji begins to breathe obnoxiously, making her even more irritated. "Ugh! I think it's a guy thing. My Dad does it. My brothers do it. KENJI does it!"

"You need some help," Darius says.

"You think?" she snaps. "I don't enjoy sound sensitivity, you know!"

"You seem to enjoy getting mad at us," Brooklynn snorts.

"No!" Yasmina protests. "I don't enjoy it, but I'd prefer it over the other reaction."

"Wait, there's another reaction?" Kenji asks in horror.

"Trigger noises cause a fight or flight response," she reminds him. "Fight results in anger and irritation. Flight results in me wanting to get away. But if I can't get away, I end up crying like a wuss."

"Why don't you choose flight more often?" Kenji asks.

The athlete whips around and gives him an incredulous look. "Why would I choose flight more often?!"

"If you started crying, I'd feel bad, whereas when you're angry, I'm annoyed!" he explains.

"Why do you think I'd rather not cry?" she snaps. "It's weak to cry over noises."

"We'd understand and help you through it," Sammy says sweetly.

Yasmina crosses her arms and slides farther down the couch. "It's weak," she insists, pouting.

"You don't need to be embarrassed about it," Darius reminds her.

"If I don't get angry, I start crying because someone's BREATHING!" she snaps. "How is this NOT embarrassing?!"

"Are you okay?" Brooklynn asks.

"No, I'm not okay, okay?!" the athlete snaps, her hands shaking just a bit. "Just give me a moment to settle down… if Kenji would stop breathing so loudly!"

She attempts to elbow him in the face as he had purposefully come up behind her, but he ducks just in time. Tears of frustration threaten to spill out.

"You really look anxious," Brooklynn comments.

"Yeah, that's kind of the feeling that comes with Miso!" Yasmina growls.

"Shh, let's think of something else," Ben says, motioning with his hands to calm down. "Let's think about adorable fluffy kittens mewling with their eyes closed."

Yasmina lets out a shaky sigh, but smiles nonetheless, pulling her legs up to her chest. "Cute."

"Okay, think about pizza," Ben continues. "Your favorite: hot sauce base with lots of meat and cheese on it. You know, chicken, bacon, some spicy sausage in there, too. Ranch drizzled on top."

The athlete can't help but smile now. "Mmm, yesss."

"No one else is around, it's just you and the pizza," Ben says. "Nobody is chewing or breathing. You get the pizza all to yourself."

"You're making me hungry now; that sounds good," Darius chuckles.

"Same," Kenji says, snorting obnoxiously behind the athlete. This time, she nails him in the jaw with her elbow.

"Okay, I don't feel sorry for you," Ben shakes his head. "Stop purposefully trying to trigger her."

Kenji slumps and exaggeratedly trudges back into the kitchen like a reprimanded toddler.

Yasmina smiles gratefully at her friend. "Thank you," she mouths in relief.

The group turns back to their previous activities, except for Brooklynn. "Did those two make up?" she whispers in Sammy's ear.

The parapelgic frowns in confusion, then it dawns on her: Ben and Yasmina were smiling and directly talking to each other without a problem. "Uhh… Hmmm… I don't know… Probably."

Refusing to quit poking the infuriated athlete, Kenji attempts a different tactic he had recently discovered: Kpop. He starts blasting fast paced songs with lots of beats and furiously dances behind the couch just out of reach of her. Yasmina turns around and gives him the death glare. It wasn't hard to draw parallels between her face and a cougar stalking its prey. He sends her an obnoxious smirk and she practically hisses at him.

Unable to help herself, Brooklynn dances and sings with Kenji, further irritating Yasmina. Sammy and Darius opted to stay silent and still—being indifferent to the genre and preferring to keep their heads.

Ben couldn't care less about the music, until Kenji pointed at him dramatically. "Show us what you got!"

The boy freezes. "Uhh…" he stutters.

"C'mon, show us your dance moves!" Kenji exclaims.

All eyes were upon Ben. Gulping, he pulls in his elbows, clenches his fists, and awkwardly dances to the beat. He looked very out of place—like an old man at a high school dance party—and clearly had no rhythm.

"Habeeba!" Kenji exclaims, pointing to Yasmina's younger sister. She immediately starts dancing.

Ben stops. "Nuh, uh, bruh, this is a dance party! Keep going!" the alpha male declares.

"Oh, sorry," Ben chuckles sheepishly, continuing with his old man dance.

As Kenji pulls in the younger kids and makes it an official dance party, Darius catches Sammy's attention. He discreetly points at Yasmina, eyes wide with shock. She had stopped glaring and hissing and was grinning as she watched Ben dance with the others in the kitchen. Not only that, but she had also begun to move to the rhythm.

Sammy and Darius stare at each other in shock. "What?!" Darius mouths.

Sammy shakes her head in disbelief. She was even more confused than before. Recently, Ben and Yasmina had been acting weird… Awkwardly avoiding each other, tensing up at the mention of the other as if something had happened between them. But now, all of the sudden, they were miraculously fine… to the point where Yasmina was more than tolerating Kpop! With the amount of aversion she had for the genre, one cannot change her tolerance level unless they have considerable influence on her… And while Sammy would've said Ben had that type of influence on Yasmina before, with their recent behavior, she questioned that… So why were they completely fine with each other all of the sudden?

Kenji plays songs that usually would have driven the athlete nuts, but Ben's awkward—yet endearing—dancing made it enjoyable for her. After a couple songs, Brooklynn approaches Sammy, plants her hands on her hips, and motions with her eyes. "Do you see Yaz?" she asks through her facial expression.

Sammy nods, eyes widening in surprise. "Normally she'd be madder than a wet hen."

"She's giggling," Brooklynn hisses. "Giggling! When have you heard Yaz giggle before?! Yaz laughs! She doesn't giggle! Giggling is cute and girly and shy, Yaz doesn't do that! She's acting like the typical high school girl around her cru…"

The realization dawns on the girls and their jaws hit the floor—metaphorically speaking. "Noo!" Sammy hisses, covering her mouth.

Brooklynn nods, then races over to join Kenji and the others for one song. She comes back and nods seriously. "Yep! She's smiling at Ben like she's got a crush!"

"Are you sure?" Sammy asks, hardly able to believe what she was hearing.

"Have you ever seen Yaz look like a Disney Princess?" Brooklynn crosses her arms.

Sammy studies Yasmina. The athlete had her back turned to the parapelgic, so she had to read her body language. Indeed, her position was very dreamy and Disney Princess-y. Her legs were out to the side like she was riding side saddle. Her body was gracefully laid out against the back of the couch, like an elegant queen lounging in her palace. Her left hand supported her chin, and she was leaning into her hand.

Sammy couldn't see her face, but her posture screamed shy, dreamy girl—which was extremely hard to picture on stoic, grumpy Yasmina. "You gotta show me a picture, I can't see it," the cowgirl shakes her head.

Brooklynn sneaks around to the kitchen island and stealthily snaps a pic while pretending to drink. She smothers her giggles as she shows her friend. "I caught her at the best possible time."

Sammy examines the picture. Yasmina's features were soft and relaxed, something she wasn't used to seeing. Her eyelids were relaxed and her eyes dreamy. A soft, delighted smile lit up her face. The cherry on top was her hand delicately brushing a lock of hair behind her ear, completing her starry-eyed look.

"I can't believe it," Sammy murmurs, shaking her head. "I've never seen 'er actin' like this!"

"Do you think this is why she's been avoiding Ben lately?" Brooklynn asks.

"Why would she be avoidin' him if she had a crush?" Sammy asks.

"Girl, you should've seen Kenji around you," Brooklynn rolls her eyes. "Yaz seems like the type to push away her crush because she's scared of her feelings. Which sounds like her before… but this isn't that type of behavior…"

"This right now is more you around Darius," Sammy says, snorting at her friend's offended face. "A crush would explain Yaz's behavior… but it doesn't explain Ben's. Why would he be actin' weird? And why are they all of a sudden acting fine?"

The pinkette sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose. "And I thought you and Kenj were complicated."

"Maybe they made up this mornin'?" Sammy suggests.

"What are we talking about?" Darius asks, coming up behind the two.

"Yaz most definitely has a crush on Ben!" Brooklynn fills him in.

The three watch the athlete. Ben runs around the couch to stand roughly next to Sammy—Yasmina's stare follows loyally. The picture Brooklynn took did not do her face justice; it was even dreamier in real life. It was almost laughable how in love she looked. Darius whispers to the girls that their friend looked like she belonged in a poorly acted Hallmark movie.

Oblivious to her longing gaze, Ben violently flaps his arms like a chicken with a psychotic look upon his face. He immediately crumbles into laughter, followed by Kenji as the two goof off. Yasmina wheezes with them, this time her laugh sounding more like it normally did.

"Wow, never seen her in love before," Darius comments louder than he should've. The girls immediately clap their hands over his mouth.

The two oblivious lovebirds don't notice. Kenji is the only one to hear. Curious, he abandons his phone to the whims of Sandra, Habeeba, and Shelby and comes to join the group. "Who's in love?" he asks excitedly.

The three point to the athlete, who hadn't broken her stare. The alpha male's face scrunches up in amusement. "I'm definitely teasing her about this," he says, immediately recognizing that starstruck face.

The four watch their friends interact for a few minutes. Ben continues to dance the best he can, and Yasmina joins in—much to Kenji's devious delight. "I'm definitely going to bring this up when she says she hates Kpop," he snickers.

"No, she still hates Kpop," Brooklynn reminds him. "She just likes Ben."

While dancing, Yasmina brushes her thighs and winces slightly. Looking down, she notices scabbing scratch marks on her upper thighs. "Huh, when did I get these?" she asks.

"What?" Ben asks, still dancing.

"I got scratch marks on my thighs," she says.

This gets his attention. "What? Why?" he asks, coming around to the front of the couch to look.

"I don't know," she shrugs. "I just noticed them… Maybe Roxie is the culprit."

Worried, Ben examines the marks, gently touching them. "It doesn't look like dog claws… Did you hurt yourself? Was it on purpose? This doesn't look like a dogs doing."

Yasmina's brain goes blank for a second under his touch. She doesn't even notice Baby Shark now playing on Kenji's phone. "Uh… Yeah, er, no! Um… n-no, no, I don't think I did this. On purpose, at least. I mean, I have no idea how these got here…"

"Maybe you were scratching yourself in your sleep," Ben mumbles, the thought of Yasmina being so tormented in her sleep that she harmed herself worrying him. "Did you have a nightmare?"

He looks up at her, genuinely concerned. Yasmina, on the other hand, was staring at his hand on her thigh, face heating up. All brain function ceased under his touch. Why did such a gentle, soft touch completely disrupt her train of thought?

Ben notices her face and takes the blush as discomfort. "I'm so sorry, am I making you uncomfortable?" he exclaims, pulling back his hand and stepping back. He begins to worry that his touch had triggered an… unpleasant memory.

"N-n, I… um… I don't know… my stomach feels funny…" the athlete stutters, beginning to feel really nervous under his increasing attention and worry. "Why am I so nervous? What is wrong with me? You know Ben, Yasmina! He's not scary! Why are you so nervous?! Why can't I speak correctly?! He's so attentive and caring… Gah! Why can't I think straight?!"

"Funny how?" Ben asks. "Funny as in anxiety? Funny as in indigestion?"

"Sit back and watch the cheesy love show," Sammy chortles.

"I'll make popcorn," Kenji says, moving to get up.

"No, she'll hear you chew!" Brooklynn hisses. "She can probably hear you breathe, too."

He sucks in air and holds it, puffing out his cheeks. This makes it considerably harder for his friends to keep from laughing.

"I think… Yeah, I… I… Anxiety, p-probably," the athlete nods, biting her lip.

"Like a panic attack? Are you having flashbacks?" Ben asks, worry increasing. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to trigger any flashbacks!"

"No, no lashflacks—blackflash—flashbacks!" she stutters, her English wrecked by his presence. "I just… I… feel nervous, I guess… This feeling is so confusing…"

"Is it anxiety? Fear? A sense of vulnerability?" he suggests, crouching down to look up at her.

"Uh, um… I don't know," Yasmina grimaces, chewing on her nail. "The best I can describe it is a funny feeling… Like butterflies in my stomach… But I don't know why…"

Her friends facepalm at her obliviousness.

"Any other symptoms?" Ben asks.

"Uhhh… palms are swearing… I mean sweating!" Yasmina stutters. "Or clammy… Are clammy and sweating the same thing? Ugh, why is my brain not wording correctly…?"

"Sweaty palms, funny, possibly anxious feeling," Ben nods. "Can't think straight or form a rational thought… Your mind is all over the place and your tongue is all tied? Does time feel like it's slowing down?"

She nods, letting out a small sigh. "I feel… warm… like the back of my neck and head is warm…"

"Is your vision unfocused?" he asks.

"I don't think so…" she mumbles.

"I think you might be having an anxiety attack," Ben declares. "I'm sorry, do you think I might have triggered it with uncomfortable contact?" he whispers, reaching to hold her hand, but retreats from the action.

"No, I… I don't think you're the one who triggered this… whatever it is…" Yasmina sighs, too oblivious for her own good.

"Your face is really flushed," he says, touching her left cheek with the back of his hand gently. Her blush increases and she ever so slightly leans into his hand, her eyes fluttering. "Do you have a fever?" he asks, touching her forehead to feel her temperature. A small, shy smile creeps onto her face at his concern, which goes unnoticed by the two.

Their friends give each other a knowing smirk, the blush and smile not slipping by them.

"Your heart is beating fast," he says, gently taking a hold of her wrist and feeling her pulse. "I think this probably is an anxiety attack. Or maybe your blood sugar levels are off. Have you had enough to eat and drink? Does your head hurt?"

"N-no, it's fine," she murmurs.

"I'll get you something to drink, anyway," he says, standing up and heading to the kitchen.

Yasmina rubs her temple before standing up, balancing on her right leg. "I don't think it's anything like blood sugar. More psychological… or emotional or something."

"Are you sure you should be standing up?!" Ben exclaims, setting the glass of water down on the small coffee table next to the couch and grabbing her arms. At this point, he was more anxious and panicked than her.

The athlete smiles gratefully, looking flattered and bashful. "I don't think I'm going to faint, Ben. I'm okay." In her brain fog, she neglects the fact that she was an amputee. Shifting her weight to her left side stupidly, her right knee pops out and there was nothing to support her weight. Within a second, she was falling, and squeaks as she grabs a hold of his arms for support.

With quick reflexes, Ben scoops his arms underneath hers and catches her awkwardly. "Woah, you okay?!" He pulls her up and holds her sides, supporting her. "Are you feeling light headed? Please don't fall, I've heard falls can reset your healing process as an amputee."

Yasmina nods, a little worried now. "Yeah, I think I am feeling a little light headed now…" She wraps her arms around his shoulders for support.

"Are you going to faint?" he asks, pulling her in even tighter on the chance that she passes out.

His protective gesture and touch made her feel even more dizzy and giddy—but of course, the two were only focused on the first feeling. "I think I'll be fine," she mumbles.

The two hear smothered giggles and simultaneously they look at their friends, who are sitting down watching them. "What are you guys looking at?" Yasmina asks, frowning.

The four scramble to act normal. "412, 413, 414," Darius snaps his head up and starts counting the little dots on the popcorn ceiling.

Sammy starts humming a happy tune as she grabs a feather duster and starts dusting her paralyzed legs.

"So, about the Boston Tea Party," Kenji says, grabbing a big boot from Mr. Gutierrez, sticking it on his head and turning to Brooklynn.

Brooklynn tries to look interested in Kenji's rant about the Boston Tea Party, unable to say anything herself as her lips twitch with laughter.

Ben and Yasmina stare at their friends in confusion before looking at each other. Their eyes widen and Yasmina pushes Ben away, falling back onto the couch. Still worried, Ben moves forward to check on her.

"Hey, back off!" Ghaleb snaps, seemingly appearing out of nowhere and roughly shoving Ben's face away. He had walked in at the wrong time and had gotten the wrong idea.

"I wasn't—" Ben tries to explain.

"What's going on?" Ghaleb asks, turning to his sister and crossing his arms.

"I think I just want to lay down in Sammy's room… alone," Yasmina mumbles.

"Okay," Ghaleb shrugs, grabbing her right arm and right leg and fireman carrying her up the stairs, much to her chagrin.

Worried, Ben follows the two up the stairs. He stands at the top of the stairs and waits. After setting down his sister in Sammy's bedroom, and a bit of arguing between the two siblings, Ghaleb leaves. Gesturing for Ben to follow him, the older boy heads downstairs and out onto the back deck of the ranch. Ben gulps and follows. He can hear the other campers laughing hysterically about something. Part of him wanted to ask them to follow… he had no idea what Ghaleb wanted.

Once out of sight of his friends and outside of the house, a strong hand grabs the back of his shirt roughly. Ben yelps in surprise and finds Yasmina's older brother towering over him with a death glare. "What were you doing to her back there?"

"Nothing!" Ben insists, fear rising up.

"Why was she so anxious?" he barks.

"That's what we were trying to figure out," Ben shrugs.

"Alright, wise guy," Ghaleb snaps, throwing Ben forward and advancing on him. The younger kid backs up against the supporting pole and Ghaleb corners him. "I'm going to ask you one more time: what is going on between you and my sister."

Fear rises up again, but Ben quells it. Kenji's words from earlier in the day come back. "I think he's hurting. It's PTSD from the abuse from their bio father. He feels the need to protect her and he's overcompensating."

"I am not the one in the wrong," Ben tells himself. "I have never hurt Yasmina and I have not shown any animosity towards any of them. HE is refusing to accept me… You don't have to take this, Ben… He's being a bully, and you don't have to take it…"

Quite possibly risking his life, Ben sighs. "Look, I have never done anything to hurt your sister, and I have no plans to ever do so. If Yasmina does not want to talk about an issue that is solely between us, then you have no right to come in between us and threaten me. Nothing is threatening her life, or anyone else's. What's happened is between the two of us and you can't order me to talk about it if I don't want to."

"You—" Ghaleb starts to growl.

"If Yasmina doesn't want to talk about it, what makes you think you have the right to force it out of me?" Ben asks. "That's a threat towards me and an invasion of your sister's privacy. Something she doesn't take lightly."

Ghaleb is fuming, but he couldn't deny what Ben had said… The only reason he was going to Ben—besides wanting to beat him up—was to understand what was going on with his sister.

"Nothing sinister or harmful has or is happening," Ben says. "It's something between the two of us. Would Yaz appreciate you prying at her private life by going through her other friends? By telling you, not only have you breached her trust, but so have I. As long as nothing is harmful, I don't see the issue with her not wanting to tell you something."

Ghaleb stutters, unsure how to respond. "I… I don't trust you with my sister, or anyone else for that matter!"

"You have made that abundantly clear, and I'm sorry about that," Ben nods. "You are the older brother of my best friend, and I would like to be on good terms with you. I have tried my best to extend my friendship, but you have pushed it away. I've tried to earn your trust, but you refuse to give it. I have done nothing to make you distrust me and I have done nothing to harm Yasmina. I have come to accept that even if I was perfect, I would never be good enough for her in your eyes. You're her older brother, and you care very deeply for her. You've taken it upon yourself to protect her from evil—specifically men wanting to abuse her. I respect your will to protect her, and I wish I could gain your trust. But I've tried my best and you've made it clear that I will never get it. I wish it didn't have to be that way, but ultimately, you're not the relationship I'm pursuing. Ultimately, it's Yasmina's approval and friendship I'm looking for, not yours. It is unfortunate that we cannot get along, but I'm not going to continue feeling horrible just because you refuse to trust me no matter what I do."

"Uh…" Ghaleb blinks, surprised by this confession.

"Currently, Yaz has no feelings for me other than platonic," Ben continues. "And I'm totally fine with it. If she just wants to be friends, I'm happy. If she wants to take our relationship further in the future, I'm happy. If she doesn't return the romantic feelings I have for her, then so be it. I'll love her the same and respect her decision."

"S-so you'd just walk away?" Ghaleb accuses. "Just like that if she didn't like you?"

"No, I'm friends or lovers with her," Ben explains. "The choice is up to her. I'm not leaving. Whatever I am to her is entirely her decision."

"W… You're no different!" Ghaleb hisses, stepping forward with a guttural growl. "You're no different from the other guys. You want what you want and don't care how you treat her!"

"What have I done to convince you that I would abuse her?" Ben asks.

"I… I don't know you!" Ghaleb snaps. "I don't trust you!"

"But you trust Darius and Kenji, right?"

"W-yeah, they're trustworthy."

"You've known them for the same amount of time as me."

"They're trustworthy!"

"What have I done?"

Ghaleb growls, unable to come up with a good reason other than "a hunch."

"So if you have no legitimate reason to distrust me, why do you trust Kenji and Darius and not me?" Ben asks.

"Be… because you're a wuss!" Ghaleb snaps, grasping at thin air at this point.

"So if I'm cowardly, how would I hurt Yasmina?" he asks logically. "If I'm cowardly and you still think I could hurt your sister, then you have a low opinion of her."

This takes the older kid aback.

"What do you really think would happen if we got together?" Ben asks. "If I'm a wuss, then I would cower from her rather than abuse her. If I was abusive, then why do the others trust me? Wouldn't everyone else have at least a couple red flags about me?"

"Y… You wouldn't be able to protect her!" he claims.

"So all of my experience on Isla Nublar is nothing?" Ben asks. "Everything she went through means nothing? In a fight, Yasmina would be a much better fighter than me, but we can both put up a fight if the other is in danger."

"I…" Ghaleb's face twitches; he's angry, but sees Ben's point. "I'm just trying to protect her, and I don't get a good feeling from you."

"I respect your opinion and your position as her protective older brother, but I have to say, I think you're overstepping your boundaries," Ben says calmly, knowing fully well that this could land him in deep water. But it needed to be said. "You can protect her and warn her and try to guide her, but she's not obligated to listen to you. You can't control her life. It's her choice who to be friends with and who to love. You can try to give advice, but that's all you can do. Unless something's seriously wrong, you're the one being toxic by stepping in."

Reflexively, Ghaleb shoves him back. "I'm the toxic one?!"

"You're slamming me and threatening me because I have a crush on her," Ben states. "You're being aggressive and antagonistic towards one of her best friends. She loves both of us. You're causing internal conflict within her, and the longer you go on, the more she'll hate you. You're trying to dictate who she's friends with and who she can love. There's a difference between being protective and being controlling. What you're doing is trying to control her life."

"I'm not trying to control Yasmina!" Ghaleb insists.

"Then what makes you think you can control who she falls in love with?!" Ben argues.

"I'm not controlling who she falls in love with!"

"Then what would you do if she fell for me?"

"That's different!"

"So you wouldn't respect her opinion and have faith that she knows me?"

"I trust Yasmina, I just don't trust you!"

"Do you trust Darius? Kenji? Sammy? Brooklynn?"

"Yes, they're not the ones with the problem!"

"If they all trust me along with your sister, then wouldn't you be doubting their judgment of me?" Ben counters.

"So I don't think they're right about you," Ghaleb admits, crossing his arms. "That doesn't mean I'm controlling her life!"

"You're interrogating her friends and trying to push away the ones you don't trust, even if everyone else trusts me," he says. "You're putting me through way more tests than your Father does. Everyone else trusts me and doesn't have a problem. You're the only one who is trying to push me away."

"Because I don't want you to hurt her!" the older boy shouts.

"And so you try to control the people she hangs out with," Ben raises an eyebrow. "You monitor her friends and threaten those you don't trust. Sounds more like control."

"Parents do the same," Ghaleb argues.

"Are your parents doing that?" Ben asks.

Ghaleb sputters, trying to think of an excuse.

"Being protective is a good thing, but not when you're controlling her life decisions," Ben states, stepping forward. "You don't have any right to tell Yasmina who to be friends with or who to marry. You can warn her and give advice, but anything beyond that is control. Sooner or later, she's going to resent you because you're pushing away everyone she cares about. What if Kenji started to like Yaz? Would you push him away? You can't control her decisions, and the more you try, the more she'll become frustrated with you. You may have good intentions, but trying to control what she does with her life is exactly what your biological father was trying to do."

The statement hit hard, and Ben knew he would get pummeled for it. But it had to be said. He can see it on Ghaleb's face; the statement hurt and shocked him.

Enraged, Yasmina's older brother rears back to punch Ben. Two hands grab his arm and pull him back. "Hey, back off!" Darius snaps, shoving Ghaleb back.

Kenji holds onto Darius's shoulder and practically drags him to stand in front of Ben. "No need to get physical," he says, his muscles taught with anger.

"Keep your hands off Ben, you have no reason to hit him other than you're a jerk!" Darius growls, ready to fight for his friend.

"Enough has been said, let's just cool off," Kenji says, keeping a firm hand on his friend's shoulder. He was as angry as Darius, but knew a fight wasn't what they needed.

Ghaleb gives one last angry—yet hurt—glance before he stomps down the steps and through the grass to the driveway.

Kenji slings an arm around both of his friend's shoulders. "Sorry we left you high and dry. We didn't hear you guys until he started shouting."

"It's okay, we kept it pretty civilized until you guys arrived," Ben says.

"Did he hurt you?" Darius asks.

"No, not really," the boy shrugs. "I finally stood up for myself."

"Welp, we'll see how this goes later," Kenji chuckles, clapping his friend on the back as they head inside. "You got some guts to talk back, though. He got some muscle behind that punch."

"He's like Toro in human form," Darius remarks.

"Pfff, I beat Toro, remember?" Ben boasts, making his friends laugh.

---

"No, no, no, no, no," Kenji shakes his head. "No, you pull back on the Ha!"

"No, you pull before that!" Brooklynn argues.

"No, it goes…" Kenji argues, trying to remember the dance. He sings slowly to keep with the song. "Ije noeheui hana dul set… Ha! How you like—Oh! We were both wrong! It's on the 'How.'"

Brooklynn tries it. "Oh, yeah, that's true! I still have trouble with the move before it. I feel so stiff doing it."

"I think we need more practice before we make a Tiktok," Kenji laughs.

Ben lowers the phone, looking annoyed. "So I can stop videoing now?"

"Yeah, for the moment," Brooklynn says, taking back the phone. "Until we need you to video again."

"Don't you Youtubers have some fancy phone stand for this?" Ben asks as the two leave the room, Kenji still practicing his dance moves.

"Funny how Kenji dances to Blackpink better than Brooklynn, and she stans them more than he does," Ghaleb says from behind Ben.

Ben yelps in surprise, not knowing the older boy was behind him. "Oh, hi."

Ghaleb rolls his eyes, begrudgingly rubbing the side of his forehead. It seemed something was on his mind. "I guess we have to talk about yesterday…" he grumbles.

"Um… we don't have to," Ben says, confused.

Yasmina's brother sighs. "I guess I owe you… an apology… For threatening you and all…"

"Oh," Ben blinks in surprise, then smiles. "Well, thank you."

Ghaleb groans like he doesn't want to continue. No one else was around, though, so he was making himself do it. "I talked with my family last night about it… Got my head ranted off by both parents and Yazzy… as much as I hate to admit it… You were right… I was being a… little overprotective… and maybe a bit controlling of her life…"

"What did Yasmina have to say about it?" Ben asks, curious.

"She had a H*** of a lot to say about it," Ghaleb sighs. "To sum it up, you were right… She appreciates being protected and warned, but she hates it when I… overstep my boundaries and try to regulate her social life… She wants me to back off… Stop threatening you and seeing you as a threat… She thinks that it's unfair to trust Darius and Kenji, but treat you like a criminal… And she thought it was misogynist to dictate who she could marry… she appreciates me caring enough about her to give input, but unless something is truly wrong, she doesn't want me stepping in…"

"Exactly what I told you," Ben thinks.

Ghaleb swallows his pride begrudgingly and grunts. "I'm sorry… I guess my standards are pretty high… And even if you didn't fit them, they're my standards, not Yasminas. I can't control who she chooses to be friends or lovers with…"

"So, you'll trust that she can take care of herself and pick good friends?" Ben asks.

"Yeah…" he mutters. "And… I guess… You're not perfect, but… if you were, you'd be a good match for Yazzy."

A sense of pride and accomplishment wells up inside Ben unexpectedly at those words. He can't help but smile; that was the closest he could get to approval at the moment.

"You don't hit all the marks… but I guess you're not bad," Ghaleb admits. "You're pretty nice and all… And you did survive Isla Nublar, so you can't be that weak… Yasmina has some pretty bad trust issues, so either you're a good actor or you're really genuine… I guess the thing I… I… Ugh… Respect the most is your courage and confidence… And how calm you can be… I know I'm pretty intimidating—at least, I hope so. You seemed pretty intimidated by me… except for yesterday… You didn't cower away and you looked me in the eyes with little fear… But you also didn't pick a fight… You stayed calm and were in control back there… I think… Yasmina and I are pretty similar… With how stubborn and reckless she can be, your calm and collected head during a fight is what she needs… I can see why you two have become such good friends."

Ben feels so relieved.

"Don't take this as approval," Ghaleb crosses his arms quickly. "I still don't approve of you… But Yasmina does… And you aren't as horrible as I've made you out to be… I'll tone down my protectiveness… You've proven that you're pretty trustworthy… But, my threats still stand if you do anything to my sister, you hear me?"

"Wouldn't expect anything less," Ben grins.

"Heh heh, your parents finally made you accept him?" Brandon asks as he and Milton approach the two.

"No, but I did get reprimanded…" he mutters.

"Darius came back pissed, and that was hours after you guys argued," Brandon chuckles.

Milton rolls his eyes.

"Well, did you guys at least make up?" Darius' older brother asks.

"I'm warming up to him," Ghaleb grumbles.

"Come on, everyone in the camp group is good," Brandon says, making Ben laugh. "You guys make a really good team. Y'all are all good people."

"Yeah, we all come from good families," Ben nods.

The group nods, but seems a little hesitant. "Go ahead, you can bash my parents," Milton shrugs, making the other boys laugh out of shock.

"I'm sorry for you, bruh," Brandon claps his friend on the back.

"But yeah, most of the group is pretty good," Milton nods, then grimaces slightly.

"Most?" Ghaleb asks, quirking an eyebrow.

"He's got the same problem you do," Ben comments, earning a 'gentle' slap from the older boy.

"You got a problem with my brother?" Brandon prompts.

"You don't have a problem with Ghaleb distrusting Ben, do you?" Milton asks defensively.

"I do! I'm not encouraging either of your behavior," Darius's older brother insists.

"I just don't think Darius is good enough for Brooklynn, no offense, Brand," Brooklynn's older brother shrugs.

"Why not?" Ghaleb asks.

"Same reason you have a problem with Ben!" Milton protests. "I don't want her to be in a bad relationship with someone who…"

"What has my brother done?" Brandon asks, siding with his brother.

"He… He's just… not good for her," he says, crossing his arms like a toddler.

"Really? You can't even come up with one reason?" Ghaleb quirks an eyebrow.

"And what's your reasoning for why Ben can't be friends with Yasmina?" Milton snaps.

"As flawed as yours," Brandon shakes his head. "You can't come up with one good reason why Darius and Brooklynn shouldn't be friends?"

Milton glares at the three, trying to.

"Come on, Darius is a really good kid," Ghaleb sighs.

"I could say the same about Ben," Milton growls.

"I thought you hated Kenji and me, too," Ben frowns.

"I…" Milton starts to argue, then realizes Ben was right.

"Maybe it's more jealousy and comparison than actual reason?" Ben suggests, starting to get deja vu to his fight with Ghaleb. "Maybe this is you wanting to feel like a good older brother by imitating Ghaleb? Maybe you're jealous that Brooklynn is close to the three of us and not you?"

Brooklynn's older brother glares at him.

Brandon barks out a laugh. "He's gotta point."

"No, he doesn't…" Milton mutters.

"Perhaps you feel bad about neglecting your sister, too, and want to make up for it?" Ben suggests. "Then you saw how overprotective Ghaleb is and tried to do the same? And maybe felt jealous that Brooklynn goes to us for protection and companionship instead of you?"

"I didn't neglect her!" Milton snaps, shoving Ben's head back so that the kid falls onto the couch.

"Stop," Brandon orders, putting a hand in front of his friend.

"I'm telling you, this kid is too smart for his own good," Ghaleb comments. "We should kill him off before he learns too much."

Brandon gives him a warning look. "Mil, is he completely wrong?"

"Yes," the boy hisses. "He's wrong! That's not my issue with Darius!"

"Then what is it?" Brandon pushes.

Milton merely crosses his arms, unwilling to admit it.

"Look… you can't control who Brooklynn is friends with," Ghaleb mumbles. "I still don't think Ben is good enough, but…" He glares at the boy in question. "But I'm being too cynical… And unfortunately, this kid seems to know exactly what your issue is. You should become a therapist."

"Not the first time I've heard that," Ben chuckles.

"I… One reason I'm so protective of Yasmina in particular is because I wish I had done more to stop the abuse aimed at her when we were kids…" Ghaleb admits uncomfortably. "It's hard to let go of… I think you're having the same issue… Wishing you had done more for your sis before the island and now you're trying to make up for it by overcompensating."

Milton lets out a very loud sigh. "Fine! I guess you're right! … She just… Has a lot more respect and love for the other boys than she does me… And I get why… But I still don't like it…"

"So you're taking your anger at yourself out on me and the other guys?" Ben asks.

"Shut up, I didn't ask for your opinion," Milton growls.

"Maybe you should tell Darius this," Brandon suggests.

His friend barks out a laugh. "Nope, not happening."

"Look, you're causing a lot of stress by doing this," Brandon says. "By causing conflict between you and Darius and the others all the time, you're forcing Brooklynn to choose a side. That's not what she needs right now. It's very stressful. You're also trying to micromanage her social life, something she doesn't like, either."

"The camp boys aren't hurting our sisters, yet," Ghaleb again glares at Ben. "So we don't have a legitimate reason to distrust them. For now, it would be better on everyone else if we laid off the threatening and fight picking."

"Darius gets it," Ben says. "He feels the same way about you with Brooklynn. You both see the other as a threat to her. If you explained this to him, I'm sure he'd understand."

Milton's pride refuses to relent.

"Look, if you really want to be a better brother, making her stressed and feeling like she has to choose between family and friends isn't helping," Ben says.

"Did I ask for your opinion?!" Milton snaps.

"He's got a point, one we're all saying," Brandon shrugs.

Milton didn't want to admit he was in the wrong, but peer pressure from his friends and brotherly role models helped. "Okay… Fine, I'll tell him… Where is he?"

---

"Are you in here?" Shelby asks, climbing on top of the hay and jumping on it.

"I don't think he's in the barn…" Sandra mumbles.

"Okay, should we look in the house again?" Brooklynn asks, filming this game of hide n' seek for her Youtube channel. "Guess he's gotten good at hiding. Part of the skills we learned on the island."

The girls leave the barn and head back to the house. A smile creeps onto Darius's face as he sits inside the cow's stalls. "Or you guys just don't look well," he chuckles, leaving the stall and walking to the entrance of the barn. After a few minutes of standing there, he notices Milton coming up to the barn.

"Boy, they're horrible at seeking," he chuckles, arriving at the barn.

"Yep, didn't even check the stalls," Darius nods.

The two stand in silence, then Milton sputters. "Ugh… I guess… I guess you're not too bad," he says, trying to copy Ghaleb's confession to Ben. "You're not the best kid in the world… But I guess you're pretty good…"

Darius crosses his arms and slowly leans against the barn door. "What the actual heck are you talking about?"

"I'm saying you don't meet the standards," Milton states. "You're not good enough for Brooklynn… But you're nice… and she trusts you… So… You're pretty good… I'm starting to warm up to you."

Darius is confused. "... Thanks? Why are you acting like you can control who Brooklynn is friends with?"

"I'm her older brother, I'm the one looking out for her," Milton states.

Darius laughs. "Wait, you're trying to be Ghaleb? You forfeited that right to be her overprotective brother when you neglected her."

"I—" he grunts, taken aback.

"You neglected her, bullied her, and ridiculed her for years!" Darius says, uncrossing his arms and stepping forward. "Made fun of her and ignored her for video games. Now, all of a sudden Brooklynn has close, good guy friends who actually care about her and protect her, and now you want to be her brother? Now you want to protect her? Now you want to be there for her when she's having a rough day? Now you want to have a say in who she hangs out with and who she's friends with? Why should you? Why do you get a say now?"

Any bit of resolve Milton had to amend things dissolves as his pride is wounded. "Because family is more important than friends," he hisses.

"Then where were you all these years?" Darius snarls. "If that's so, why do you ignore her until your neglect was put in the spotlight?! Why is it that you only care about her once Yaz's older brother makes you look bad?! Why do you suddenly care after being such a jerk to Brooklynn?!"

"You will never be her family and you will never be good enough for Brooklynn," Milton growls.

"And you will never be able to take back what you did to her in the past," Darius snaps.

"You can't push me away from her! You can't make me leave her!" Milton shouts.

"You're right! You've done it for me!" Darius shouts back.

Milton shoves him back and storms out of the barn. "So much for trying to fix things," he mutters angrily.

Darius watches him leave with a glare. "I'll never forgive you," he hisses. "Not after how you hurt Brooklynn. You're the one who's not worthy."