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WHO: The Fearless Fifteen WHAT: The castaways girls go into the jungle in search for Shane who has been missing all morning. WHEN: Day 7 NOTE: For future reference.

Jenny By the time most of them had decided to start combing the jungle for Shane it was probably fair to say Jenny was verging on completely distressed. They were doing their best to hide it from the others. Swallowing every wobble in their voice, trying to keep anxious fidgeting under control by pushing themselves forward, and ignoring the constant ache in their hand but unfortunately right now they weren't all that convincing. " Shane! " Their voice was growing raspy quickly, they'd probably talked more today than they had any other day before, and yelling on top of that. They pushed past more of the jungle, barely holding the branches long enough so they wouldn't hit the person behind them.

Joss Joss: Joss couldn’t understand why Shane might have left the camp on her own. Sure, she’d had an argument with Lex but as far as Joss was concerned, just about everybody had had an argument with somebody else on the island by now and it had never been serious enough to warrant a disappearance. So if she hadn’t stormed into the jungle in a temper, why had she gone and where had she ended up? She was adept with a map, Joss had seen it first hand, so she couldn’t have been lost. Had something drawn her into the tree line, luring her into her own disappearance? It was the only theory that made any sense to Joss but it also happened to make her sick to her stomach. “Shane! Come on, Shane!” She called out at the top of her lungs instead of dwelling on it. “This is fucked- why wouldn’t she tell anyone where she was going?” She asked Jenny a little too pointedly since it appeared that if anybody was going to get the news first, it would be old mate- Shane’s best new buddy or hook up or whatever the fuck they were. Joss almost felt angry at Jenny, hadn’t they seen this coming?

Jenny If they hadn't already been deserted on a weird as fuck island for a week with no sign of rescue, someone Jenny trusted being missing would be enough for Jenny to be more irritable and irrational than normal. Combine the two, and fucking good luck to Joss. They were grateful for her shouting when their own throat felt dry as a bone but when a question came out, and too nearby for it to be directed at anyone but them, they were quickly agitated. " I don't know, Joss, " they started in already exasperated tone, not bothering to hold the branches they passed now they knew who was directly behind them. " Have you told anyone where you go every single morning yet? " They glanced over their shoulder for a second at the blonde, challenging her just a little, before their eyes were forward again. Back to the task at hand and trying to keep their head from spinning out of control. " Shane! Shane, where are you?! "

Joss It wasn’t enough for Joss, quite frankly. With all the one on one time Jenny and Shane had been spending together recently, she suspected that the other girl must have said something that might tip Jenny off about her impending disappearance, if it had been intentional. Then came Jenny’s question. If she’d thought for even a fraction of a second for opening her mouth, she might have questioned what her morning run had to do with anything. “Where I go every morning? As if it’s any of your business anyway, I don’t fucking go anywhere, I run and I come back. Have you told anyone why your head’s so far up your bloody arse yet?” She spat back in return, exhaustion, jealousy, worry and whatever else all balling into one as she responded to Jenny. She huffed then, hitching her bag on her shoulder and scrunching up her face, trying to think of another way to track Shane down, instead of just yelling into the ether for her to return.

Divya Divya gulped. Like most of the girls, she was worried and on edge about Shane’s absence but clearly not at the level Joss and Jenny were if their back and forth was anything to go by. It made sense to the Brit why the two were butting heads. They were by the far the closest to Shane amongst the girls, and while Divya appreciated their show of concern, it really wasn’t doing the already antsy group any favors. “Guys, could you please just– not fight?” She asked. After spending the better part of the morning looking for Shane along the beach and treeline, her exhaustion was weighing on her. She couldn’t think of a better way to phrase the request. And it might have been a low blow and a bit of a desperate attempt to settle the tension but she added, “Shane wouldn’t want this.”

Andrea As much as she appreciated Divya trying to step in and stop the others from fighting (they were starting to be more annoying than anything else), Andrea couldn’t help but feel that the girl’s efforts were only going to be in vain. “Don’t bother,” she offered. It was probably the most helpful thing she’d said in days. “They’re going to be angry either way — and it’s better if they take it out on each other than if they take it out on us. Just let them knock each other out and we’ll move on with our day.” Andrea crossed her arms over her chest, looking around briefly as if that would help the ongoing search.

Jenny " Oh, fucking bite me, " Jenny responded, pushing past another branch. Taking out as much frustration as they reasonably could in pushing it aside as opposed to just saying every single thing that was flying through their head. The least complex of the lot was that if Jenny thought anyone's head was up their ass, it was most fucking definitely Joss. They certainly didn't appreciate the belittling that followed from Divya and Andrea. Was it so impossible for everyone else to see what they saw? Joss had literally just then avoided answering their fucking question! In front of them all! " Move on with your day, " they repeated in an angry mumble, shaking their head. " Sorry this is such a fucking inconvenience for you, Jesus. " They commented with bitter sarcasm, before they yelled again, hands cupping around their mouth, " Shane! "

Andrea It was relatively easy to get a rise out of Jenny. Andrea would’ve laughed, if she didn’t think it would end in her getting slapped. “Listen, I’m not saying I’m not worried about Shane. But if all of us are out looking for her all the time, and nobody’s back at camp... what good is that going to do us? What if something comes through camp? Like an animal or something? Or what if the fire goes out? We’re being way too impulsive here. We need to have a plan.”

Joss “I’m not fighting anyone, it was old mate who decided to start on me for no reason,” she insisted, refusing to take any blame for the tension in the group as she tipped her chin, gesturing toward Jenny ahead of her. “Oh grow up,” she snapped back a moment later at the scathing comment from Jenny. Joss had suspected that underneath the easy going, quiet surface, the other islander had something off about her...apparently it was a temper under stress. “Yeah, nah, I’m with Andi on that,” she chimed not long after Andrea’s suggestion. “We should split up, we’ll cover more ground that way anyway,” and Jenny could fuck off while they were at it.

Jenny Well, if nothing else, at least Shane going missing was revealing to Jenny who gave a fuck about anyone but themselves on this island. Or at least, in their own perception. In reality, they had it a bit twisted. They didn't want to but they stopped and turned as it seemed plans were changing. Plus they'd also hit their hand a bit hard on their last swing at a branch and needed a breather for a second. But, they intended to think before they spoke now, even though they were incredibly frustrated, worried, and terrified. " Welbs is with me then, " they stated. Short of Shane, Divya was fairly high on the terribly short list of people Jenny felt they could even slightly trust. " Right, Welbs? " They looked to Divya herself then, they weren't going to drag her along unwillingly but it would be a fairly hefty betrayal if she decided against them.

Divya At the sound of her name, Divya tensed. Oh no, she was being dragged into this. Swallowing the lump in her throat, the girl nervously flicked her gaze between Jenny and the blondes. She really didn’t want to do anything to drive a wedge between the group, especially when the disappearance of one of their own was causing this much tension, but she couldn’t deny how much fondness and subsequent loyalty of hers that Jenny had. They’ve been someone she admired from the very start of all this and it would just feel wrong to turn them away. She didn't think she was capable of it. The decision was an easy one then even if it went against what she wanted for the group as a whole. She justified it by following Joss’s logic, that by splitting up they could cover more ground and hopefully locate Shane faster. “Right,” she affirmed with a nod of her head, taking a step toward Jenny and not really being able to meet Joss or Andi’s gaze after she said it.

Jude jude's joined in on the search, because the sooner shane gets back to camp, the sooner everyone can stop freaking out. "she's probably fine," jude offers, scanning the area with her eyes. "i mean, she's probably just pissed and wants to be on her own. or she's, like, jacking off or something. we shouldn't freak out yet. she's probably fine."

Libby Libby nodded her head as Jude finished speaking. The tension between Jenny and Joss was intense and having to stand by and listen to the two bicker was really awkward for everyone. Although she knew that she should probably be helping with the search for Shane, Libby was so tired and just wanted either split up or go back to shore, a solution that was ideal yet unrealistic. “Yeah, I agree with Andrea and Jude,” she piped in. “Like, it’s definitely concerning that we can’t find her but also… it’s a pretty big island. She’s probably just taking some time to be by herself.” Her eyes darted around the group of the other girls as she attempted to gauge their responses to her thought. “Anyways, yeah. Maybe splitting up is the best way to go.”

Jenny While it was a relief that Divya took a step towards them, the relief was short lived as everyone else continued on with their bullshit. Frustrated, they pushed aside some of their curls, forcing themselves to think before they spoke once. " Okay, maybe she is just fucking around out here somewhere. Maybe. But it's been hours since anyone's seen her and she could just as easily be hurt, or lost, or– " Or dead was the thought that crossed their mind but they managed to pull the word from their lips before they said it. " Or whatever. If it was you, wouldn't you want the rest of us out here looking for you? " They questioned the group. Still clearly worked up, but desperate for them to understand their perspective too. They didn't think they were gonna have to dumb down human empathy this much to get them to give a fuck about someone that had already done so much for the group but apparently so. As far as Jenny was concerned, it could just be them and Divya together and the rest of them could fuck off. But, they weren't stupid, obviously the more of them that were looking, the better their chances were. And yeah, two groups was better than one. " So what do the rest of y'all wanna do? Come with me and Divs, go with Joss, or go back to camp? " The last option left a bitter taste in their mouth but it would certainly allow Jenny to know where the fuck they stood with whoever picked it.

Jude "honestly, if i got pissed and decided i wanted some alone time, and then everybody started freaking out and calling my name, i wouldn't be super thrilled," jude said. that being said, she's still gonna fucking look. it's better than sitting around doing NOTHING, thinking about how miserable she is. how miserable they all are, for that matter. wordlessly, she follows on with jenny and divya, a silent but clear declaration that yeah, she was going to help.

Alexa she walked further behind everyone else, looking around as she did. She didn’t call for Shane once, not because she didn’t care but rather that she did. She felt guilty for arguing with the other, like maybe if she was less irritating Shane wouldn’t have wandered off and ended up dead in some ditch. But that must be what happened. She was dead, she was dead and being eaten by some weird animals and they will probably never find her. Maybe they’ll find a foot or something along those lines. Jenny stopped them in their tracks and Alexa wipes off a tear and speeds up slightly to catch up with the rest of them. “Guys what if she’s like stuck somewhere? Like James Franco in 127 hours? What if she’s dead? Like...she can’t be dead right it’s Shane? She’s like badass she can...scream off bears and fight...right?”

Joss Joss hadn't meant to so blatantly rolled her eyes in front of Jenny but she hadn't been able to resist it. Were they seriously hand picking their team right now? Embarrassing. Joss felt like she was on year eight camp again, all of a sudden. "Fair sure it's more important to decide where we're going, not who we're going with," even though Jocelyn needed Lex to pick her team before they went anywhere. A moment later, she visibly cringed at the thought that Shane was in the jungle somewhere, perhaps with the likes of Alfie but once she had gotten over the visual Jude had induced, she decided it was unlikely. "Yeah, nah, she's never done this before," not that Joss had known her any longer than any of the other girls had, "She's not dumb, if she planned on being gone all day, she would have told somebody," she insisted and though it was likely that Jenny would have been told first, Joss liked to think that she'd be on the list somewhere. Joss had no idea why Lex was talking about James Franco and admittedly, she could barely even remember who James Franco was but clearly, it wasn't helping the situation. "Of course not," she said with unwavering confidence that she had no reason to have. "She's somewhere for some reason, we just gotta figure that part out,"

Jenny To be fair, they're well ready to snap at Jude for her comment. But thankfully the other New Yorker stepped towards them before they could say something about maybe their mind being changed if they had a broken leg. And then, of course Jocelyn's got another fucking thing to say. " You're the one that wanted to split up. " They pointed out, it wasn't their fault everyone was picking their team. And they'd love to know where specifically Joss intended on going. They'd searched the camp, the beach, and now they were in the jungle. Where else was there to look, Joss? Then Lex, God sweet Lex. They didn't know what to say because they'd just avoided saying exactly what Lex had. What if Shane was already dead? " We'll find her. " Was about all they could manage as far as comforting the group, and their voice was stony at best. " We should head for the cave, maybe she was headed that way and got lost. " They suggested, addressing Divya and Jude and whoever else might join their search crew. It was one of the only locations within the jungle they were aware of at this point. And Shane had only been there when it'd been storming, easy to get lost trying to get back to it.

Joss Joss turned her attention back to Jenny then, one hand on the drawstring of her swag bag where it sat slung over her shoulder, her grip tightening when the other piped up unnecessarily yet again, "Yeah, I'm aware of that. I suggested we split up to cover more ground and find Shane quicker, not to form cute little cliques and piss around about who is best mates with who," she spat just a little more venomously than she'd intended, reminded that if they weren't searching for Shane, Shane would totally be on team Jenny and not on team Joss. Not that there were teams, Joss reminded herself, trying to keep her head level and her mind on the goal. She twisted her mouth slightly at the mention of the cave, the cave she still hadn't seen. "Righto, then I guess we'll have a group go the opposite way and then what, a group back at camp to wait in case she comes back and wonders where we've all fucked off to?"

Jenny " The fuck is your problem with me, dude? Spit it out. " Jenny retorted irritably, stepping forward. They really could not stand her, of all the times to decide to voice the problem she'd had with them since day one, she was doing it now? And claiming that Jenny was trying to form cliques or whatever the fuck when it was literally a case of needing someone they trusted around so they didn't totally lose it. " Shane is fucking missing so if you've got something to say, hurry the fuck up. "

Joss Joss raised her eyebrows at the sudden accusation, her fingertips meeting with the center of her chest as her mouth popped open with shock. "Are you actually joking?" she questioned forcefully, once the surprise had shifted into irritation."You're the one that started on me. If anybody's got a fuckin' problem it's you mate and I reckon you've got a handful of them," perhaps that was a little bit unfair and certainly unnecessary but the words had already come out before Joss had even the slightest thought of stopping them. She threw her hands in the air then, rolling her eyes once more, "Yeah no shit, Sherlock, cheers for that. We know Shane's missing- what we don't know is why she's missing and I just think it's a bit fucked that you've been spending all this time with her over the last day and suddenly she's gone and you don't even have a single useful thing to say about it,"

Jude it wasn't really a day on the island of hell if some kind of drama wasn't breaking out. jude sighed and crossed her arms. "do you two wanna fight to fuel some thinly veiled sexual tension, or do you wanna go find shane, who could be fighting off a tropical bear as we speak?" she pauses, but not long enough to wait for an answer. it's just for dramatic effect. "a couple of us head west, a couple head east, and a couple stay back at camp and tend the fire in case shane makes her way back. sound tolerable for everyone? please say yes?"

Joss "Okay, gross, that's actually fucked," Jocelyn announced immediately, raising her hands in surrender as if to distance herself from Jude's claim as much as possible. As ridiculous as the sentiment was, if it had been designed to distract the blonde from arguing with Jenny, it had certainly worked and at the very least, some of the aggression in her tone had lifted. "Like, no offense," she added, gesturing loosely in Jenny's direction. She'd meant that the suggestion was gross, not that Jenny was gross, whether that had translated clearly or not. She sighed, "-and there's seriously no such thing as a bloody tropical bear, I already said that," actually she hadn't said it aloud so much as she had questioned their existence and had quietly decided that they didn't exist without telling Jude. She tugged her ponytail a little tighter, preparing for the trek ahead, "Can we just say like- this way and that way. How is anybody supposed to know which way is East and West? We're gonna lose more people if make it too complicated. Let's split into groups, regroup like- when the sun gets-" fucking hell, life was so difficult without an iPhone. Joss couldn't even tell analog time properly let alone use the sun as a compass, "When the sun is right above us, like no shadows, we re-group and figure out our next move if we haven't already found her by then,"

Jenny They were going to hit Joss. They absolutely were. And she'd deserve it, they thought. The implying of Jenny having problems, which they'd heard a fucking million times before from cocky popular high school bitches just like Joss back home, and the outright stating that they should know more about where Shane was. They wished they did. They thought they should know too. But they didn't, because Shane hadn't told them a thing. While they trusted Shane so much, every time Joss brought up that maybe they should know more because they'd spent so much time together, it was like a punch to the gut of realising that maybe Shane didn't actually trust them back. Jude's intervention did little to deter them, their hands still clenched at their sides, pain searing in their dominant hand once more. They could still hit her with Jude's voice in the background, now finally on their side that Shane might be in danger. What did stop them, was Joss saying 'gross.' Immediately they stepped back, fists couldn't quite unclench so they took another couple steps back, physically turning themselves away from the situation. It was too fucking familiar. A humourless laugh escaped them when Joss said no offence. " Don't worry, I wouldn't touch you with a ten foot pole. " They said, hands finally loosening but their arms and torso still felt tight as the adrenaline tried to find a place to go. They brushed some hair out of their face as they looked back to the group. " Okay, whatever, sounds good– have we discussed it enough now? Can we keep moving please? "

Divya The air was absolutely thick with tension as Jenny and Joss sniped back at each other. Divya’s whole body was taut with nerves, caught between wanting to get in between and tell them to stop or just remove herself from the situation entirely and going off by herself if they couldn’t come to a compromise. It was thanks to Jude that the situation was diffused, saying something about tropical bears and sexual tension that utterly confused Divya. Was that what this was about? She looked at Joss and then at Jenny before deciding that you know what, this wasn’t the important thing. Shane was. “I think so.” Divya was more than glad to cut in and do anything to put distance between Jenny and Joss. “Let’s go this way yeah, Jen?” She suggested, nodding towards further into the jungle and just barely touching Jenny’s shoulder with her fingers in fear the other might shirk away like last time she’d grab them unexpectedly. “We’ll meet you lot back at the beach at noon,” she then said. She assumed that that was what Joss was trying to say when she’d said something about the sun being right above them. “Hopefully, we’ll find Shane before then. And if not, like you said,” she looked at Joss now, “we’ll regroup and figure our next step out. Together.” Hopefully. If Joss and Jenny didn't get into another spat. She looked at Jenny and Jude then and tilted her head, signaling that they should take their leave.

Joss Jocelyn's brow furrowed at Jenny's comment, "Okay, rude," she scolded, the irony of her own attitude going over her head as she folded her arms across her chest. There was no need to make it personal, she thought, though admittedly she had said something something about Jenny having problems- whatever, it didn't matter. What mattered was that the argument, or whatever it had been- anything but sexual tension- was practically over and the crew was starting to regain focus on the task at hand. "Noon," Joss repeated Divya with a nod of her head in agreement, glad that Divya was directing Jenny and whoever else wanted to tag along with them away from Jocelyn before she lost her patience with the other islander. "So, that leaves a group to go further into the jungle and a group to go back to camp. Any injuries, illnesses, anything like that, back to camp," she shot Luna a look but hadn't meant it unkindly. She just worried about the other girl's fortitude sometimes. "If you're fit and comfortable with spiders and shit, we're going in," she was fit but she was not comfortable with spiders or insects of any kind for that matter but she did want to find Shane.

Jenny Jenny looked away as Joss spoke again, unlike the blonde they had the decency to at least try to make sure the other couldn't see their eye roll. And they were the one with their head up their ass? Ridiculous. It was easier to ignore her when Divya addressed them directly. They nodded in agreement, taking a breath to try and release some of that tension. Shoving their hands in their hoodie pockets while the others confirmed the plan to meet at noon. A plan Jenny was already mentally excluding themselves from, they had no fucking interest in what Joss wanted to say in however long from now. When Divya indicated it was thankfully time for their team to make their leave, they pressed their lips together and did just that. A couple steps in, they cupped their hands around their mouth and started their shouting again, seeing as it had now been a couple minutes since anyone had called for the missing girl. " Shane! "

Alexa Watching Jenny and Joss have a go at each other did not help her paranoia in the slightest. Of course it was now of all times their tension would come to a boil. For some reason, it made her miss Shane slightly more. At least she and Shane had the decency to argue and shout at each other at the beach while no one was missing and there was nothing else to do. Still, she liked Jenny and she liked Joss and she didn’t want to pick a side. Which is what it felt like, it felt like picking a side. On one hand she liked the idea of splitting up and covering more ground, on the other she definitely did not wish to go deeper into the jungle. Glad to have Divya cut in, Alexa cleared her throat as they got going. She remained back with Joss, happy with the option to go back to the beach with Luna apparently. “I’m going back to camp, I’ll make some fire and some food for when Shane is back.” Of course she’d be back, Jenny and Joss both said they’d find her and had their own ideas of doing so. As she watches Jenny and Divya and part of the group leave, she takes a hold of Joss hand and pulls her into a hug. “You take care okay? I’ll meet you back at the camp. And watch out for big snakes they hide on trees, and also make sure the ground is solid. And also mark the way you’re going, here...” she’ll pass on the robe she’d wore this far. “You can rip this and tie it on things on the way so you don’t get lost...” she hoped Joss could figure it out, but if she couldn’t at least she wasn’t alone. “Good luck...”

Andrea All it took was Alexa saying she was returning to camp for Andi to perk up again. She might've hated being a follower... but deferring to Alexa hardly felt like giving up on any sort of power. Plus, if she was following someone back to camp, she'd follow them all day. Andrea uncrossed her arms and moved to follow her friend before speaking up. "And I'm going with her -- so she doesn't get lost... or whatever." That was convincing enough. She watched as Alexa whispered something to Joss, hoping that the girl would at least hurry up. "You all know it's better for all of us if I do, anyway."

Divya “Shane!” Divya called out, hands cupped around her mouth as she ventured deeper into the jungle with Jenny and Jude. She’d walk a little further in, letting silence befall them, only accompanied by the sound of their shoes moving on the ground below and branches being moved aside intermittently. It wasn’t long before that bothered Divya so she spoke. “So... you know what you said about tropical bears? What do we like... know about those exactly?” The only tropical bear she knew of was a sun bear. She saw some on a school field trip once ages ago but she couldn’t for the life of her remember anything about them. “Are they plant eating bears or.... not-plant eating bears?” And if they existed on this island, how likely are they to dig up graves and steal bodies? But she left that unsaid.

Joss Joss was a little bit surprised by the sudden contact but it wasn't unwelcome. If anything, in fact, it was nice, really nice. She leaned into the hug, relishing in the affection, realizing for the first time how much she had missed a hug goodnight from her Mum, a rub on the shoulder from her Dad or the squeezy embrace from one of her best mates when they met in the common room for the first time in the morning. The girls had pretty much been at arms length from each other on the island and Joss hadn't realised it until she felt the warmth of Alexa's body. She squeezed her affectionately and nodded her head in confirmation, "We'll be fine. You too," she insisted. When Lex presented her with the robe, it was even more shocking than the hug. "You're sure?" the garment felt sacred in the palm of her hand, even though it was just a bloody robe. "We got this, don't worry. Shaneo will be home for dinner, you won't even get a single night of peace without her ribbing you, promise," she joked lightly at Shane's expense, a smile on her face though she still worried about the other girl's fate. Joss nodded in agreement with Andi. She couldn't argue with that logic, it was probably best if both Andi and Lex were in charge of sitting at the camp for the afternoon. Not that she didn't believe they were capable of any greater responsibilities but....she didn't believe they were capable of any greater responsibilities.

Shane shane’s dreams were plagued with images of the ocean and plane crashes as she really slept for the first time in the week they have been on the island. not exactly the peaceful rest she had been hoping for. she could hear her name being called in her dream but she couldn’t quiet get to who was yelling it, as if her legs couldn’t move fast enough to catch up to them. but finally as they grew closer, it was enough to pull her out of her sleep. shane jolted forward, which was a bad idea considering her neck was stiff from sitting against the tree for hours. judging by how much sun was shinning through the trees, she must have been asleep for hours. hearing her name called again, shane tried to push the sleep out of her brain. she felt numb, both physically for sleeping in a tree but also emotionally after her breakdown. but slowly, she climbed down from the tree; her legs giving out when she finally touched the ground, falling on all fours. trying to regain her strength, shane finally got up and looked around. “joss?” she called out but her voice weak and scratchy from the sleep. clearing her throat, she called out again, louder this time as she started walking to where she thought she heard the others. “guys?”

Joss Usually when Jocelyn's name was being spoken on the island, she'd come to learn, it wasn't necessarily a good thing. Jenny had spoken it with disdain, Lex with concern, Andi judgementally and Oona in a way that made Joss feel almost pitied. When she heard Shane's voice however, her heart skipped a beat and without thinking or taking Alexa's advice about making sure the ground was steady beneath her, she took off running. She wasn't even sure she'd actually heard what she thought she had and didn't bother to check with anybody else for confirmation. "Shane!" she called, her voice breaking slightly as it ejected from her throat, her body clearly expending more energy on propelling her forward than on producing a clear sound. "Fucking hell, where have you been? Are you alright?" she didn't realize that she'd already gripped the other girl by the shoulders by now, as if to prevent her from disappearing again if she felt so inclined.

Shane shane was walking slowly, her body still trying to loosen up, when she heard joss call after her again. turning around, she saw the other girl running over to her before her hands grabbed onto her shoulders. while joss probably didn't realize it, it was nice and grounding after everything. "i-i'm fine," she said, blinking a few times, she could hear how dry and monotone her voice sounded. "i don't know what happened. i just-" she cut herself off, shacking her head as she tried to regain her memories, suddenly feeling embarrassed for the reason she was out in the jungle all day when she did remember. instead, she looked around at the fact that joss was alone. "what are you doing out here?" the idea of the group being worried about her never crossed her mind. she thought they would have loved a day with out shane yelling at them for once.

Joss Joss listened to Shane with wide eyes, waiting for an explanation that would justify the panic the group had fallen into. Lex had almost convinced herself that Shane had been eaten alive, Joss and Jenny had almost gotten into a fist fight while trying to convince themselves that she hadn't. She noticed how dazed Shane looked and she remembered the moments before Jill had collapsed and a shiver traveled up the length of her spine, chilling her skin as if she'd just had a bucket of iced water tossed over her head. She pressed her palm to Shane's forehead then to see if she had a fever, not that Joss would probably be able to tell, it was just what her Mum did whenever one of the King girls said they felt ill. "What do you mean?" the fact that she didn't know what had happened was worse than hearing what had, Joss decided. "What have you been doing?" she asked, probing for something to satisfy her panicked state. "Me? I- are you joking?" she asked rhetorically, "Looking for you, mate. You've been gone hours,"

Shane her eyebrows knitted as joss felt her forehead as if she expected her to be sick or something. pared with the concern in her voice and questioning, shane was honestly surprised, out of everyone, she didn't expect joss to be worried about her. "hours... shit," she mumbled as she tried to get her brain to catch up but it seemed like it was still stuck in that tree. she didn't even have a good answer for her to make up for everyone worrying about her. what could she even say? 'oh sorry guys, i was going to get high and ended up having a mental break down instead and passed out with no memory of how or why.' she'd never hear the end of it. "i, um," shane bit down on the inside of her cheek as she looked up at joss. "i don't really remember... i came out here this morning to clear my head. i think i passed out or something," shane tried to explain, her thoughts completely scattered. "i just don't know."

Joss Jocelyn's brow creased as Shane explained herself. It wasn't the answer she'd expected and it didn't exactly explain everything play by play but it was something. "You've been eating, haven't you? Like, properly?" it wasn't as if she'd cataloged the calorie intake of each of the other girls over the past week but she was pretty sure she hadn't noticed anybody actively avoiding food or eating suspiciously less than they should have been. Not to mention they'd both had their fill when they found the berry bush days ago. "Anything else? Like, I don't know, bug bites or any infected cuts or- anything um, like are you on your period, or anything?" for Joss it was an uncomfortably intimate question to ask somebody she didn't know very well but it definitely beat thinking that Shane could drop dead at any given second. Perhaps if any of them had bothered to keep tabs on Jillian's state, she would still be with them and that sentiment haunted the soccer captain.

Shane she wanted to laugh when joss started grilling her. they were all fair questions, but have any of them actually been eating? more than just berries and stale nuts? that didn't really make for a balanced diet. "i mean, i guess. i've been eating my share," not that that was a lot to start. she shook her head at the other questions. "no, no, i'm fine." but was she really? it took her a second to remember, but they had just lost someone a week ago. she realized that joss was trying to make sure she wasn't going to drop dead on her. "joss, i'm not going to die. i told you, i won't make you carry my body alone," she tried to joke, but her voice was still lacking any emotion like it typically had. "i think-" she started, her eyes darting around instead of looking at the girl who was far too close to her considering half the time they acted like they hated each other. "i haven't slept the whole time we've been here," she admitted. jenny was really the only one who knew that. "i mean, no more than an hour or two, but, yeah," as if that meant anything. the human body was not made to push itself that long with no sleep. it was a wonder that she made it this long.

Joss The laugh that left Jocelyn's lips was an attempt at entertaining the other girl's sense of humor but it was difficult for the time being, since she hadn't quite gotten over the idea that she could have just as easily have found Shane's corpse than her living, breathing self, that afternoon. "Yeah, nah, I get that," she agreed, though she'd been sleeping quite well herself, she still understood the desire to just collapse and stay that way for a few hours in peace, maybe even until the rescue came. "Just let us know next time, hey?" she suggested, almost desperate for Shane to promise that she would. Joss didn't realise how much she cared about the others on the island until Shane had disappeared and now the thought of any of them following suit made her feel sick. Even Jenny. She realised then that she was still holding the other girl, like a mum who had just lost her kid in the supermarket. "Sorry," she uttered, though she felt her concern and her subsequent grip on Shane was justified. "We just got a bit freaked out, like- yeah, you get it," she was sure that Shane could understand the fear that had taken over the group. She might have been less inclined to understand why it had almost resulted in a blow out between Jenny and Joss however. "There's another group looking for you and a couple of girls waiting at the camp just in case you showed up, so, we better let everybody know you're all good,"

Shane shane nodded, "right yeah, i'll do that next time." not that she wanted there to be a next time. today was draining enough. it had been so long since she had felt this way, of course something as traumatic as a plane crash would trigger it. it kinda made sense though, how much she lashed out at everyone, how impulsive she was with putting herself in harms way to do things with the group; of course it was all leading up to what happened this morning. she had been getting bad and no one even knew because none of them really knew each other. shane reached up to pat joss' hand on her shoulder, as if to reassure her that she was really there and okay. shimming out of her grip, shane roiled into herself, feeling so small in that moment. "i really didn't mean to worry all of you," she said, looking down at her shoes, dirty from days in the sand and falling in the dirt just a few moments before. "i honestly didn't expect anyone to freak out over me..." maybe jenny, but the rest of them surprised her. but if the tables were turned and someone else had gone missing, shane would have been right at the front trying to find them. "i'm sorry," she said quietly. "yeah, um, we should probably get everyone and head back to camp."

Joss Joss thought about Shane's words and for the first time since she'd met the other girl, she sensed a vulnerability in Shane. It shouldn't have been a surprise, Shane was human after all but Joss still found herself taken aback by it. Shane, the valedictorian, fuck boy, soccer captain with a full ride to NYU and parents that celebrated her for it, didn't think that anybody would freak out over her. Would anybody freak out over Joss if she'd been in Shane's position? "Nothing to be sorry about," she insisted, attempting to dismiss the other girl's guilt. There was no merit in feeling miserable about things, not when they should have been celebrating the fact that everyone was safe. "Just gave us a bit of a scare, that's all. It happens- like- fuck me, I've thought about just running away and hiding a few times and I can't even blame my sleep for it," she confessed sincerely. She cleared her throat and nodded her head, trying not to dwell on things, "Yeah, we should- get some water in you and then I reckon everybody should just chill for the rest of the night, maybe we could get another game going and just have some actual fun for once,"

Shane despite joss' reassurance, shane still felt guilty. she didn't mean worry everyone. she didn't mean to pass out in a fucking tree after reminiscing on some of the worst moments of her life. she didn't mean to have the whole group out looking for her as if she was dead somewhere. she was incredibly guilty. but instead of voicing all of that out loud, she just nodded again at joss' words. "i think we're all just kinda at the end of our ropes," she tried to explain. "i think we really need to start keeping an eye on each other more. i know i've been a huge bitch this whole time, but we're fucking stuck here and clearly rescue isn't coming any time soon. i just-" she shook her head, not really sure where she was going with this little speech of her. "we need to take care of each other." shane's hand went up to the back of her neck, trying to push away her awkward uncomfortableness. "yeah, that sounds good," the idea of a chill night was probably exactly what she needed after everything. shane didn't even feel like she was herself, like she wasn't even in her body right now. but she didn't want to worry joss more and tell her how she was feeling. "so... which way did the others go?"

Joss "Nah, not yet...we've got some rope to go," she decided, with renewed optimism now that the missing islander was safely located. It wasn't the most poetic sentiment but Joss believed that what she was saying was right. They hadn't been defeated yet and they weren't close to defeated either. Whether it was a little bit of rope or something longer, it wasn't over yet. "You don't stop trying to score just because you're a few behind, right? Wait for the final whistle before you slow down," she added, putting it into terms that she could relate to more easily and in turn, Shane could understand more easily. She threw her arm over Shane's shoulder then, giving her a bit of a ruffle, designed to encourage the brunette, "Yeah, you've been a huge bitch and yet everybody still packed up their bags to come looking for you, so I reckon you can't be that bad, hey," she suggested with a light chuckle to try and ease the tension.

Shane “i hope you’re right,” maybe if the rest of them weren’t nearly as far gone as shane felt, she could pull herself out of this hole she felt like she was in. it was kind of reassuring to know that despite everything, they were all growing to care about each other. they could say that days ago. “god, you’re such a fucking jock,” she shot back for the first time all day, shane actually smiled at the sentiment. leave it to the two of them to bring things back to the game the both loved so much. joss threw her arm over shane’s shoulder, and this time she didn’t even mind the closeness. now that she didn’t have to look into the eyes of the other girl as worry was written all over her face. “even lex?” she questioned. if there was one person shane expected to be happy by her disappearance, it was lex. at least that’s what she thought considering how much they fight. she didn’t know that the other girl actually cared for her so much to even go as far as to ask the others about why shane disliked her so much.

Divya “Shane!” It felt like they’ve been walking for ages. Divya would give anything for Shane to just pop out of a bush right about now. Or fall from a tree. Something. She moved a branch aside, tiredly stepping forward as she’s done many times before on their journey inward except this time, she couldn’t quite seem to lift her foot. She wiggled it, thinking it must have gotten her shoe caught in some seriously sticky mud but each time she fought against the substance, her foot seemed to sink further. “What the–? Guys?” She tried to get Jenny and Jude’s attention. Not thinking things through, Divya moved her other foot forward, thinking if she just had leverage or something then she’d get the other out. Unfortunately for her, that wasn’t quite the case. Now rather than just having one foot sinking into the mud, another was fast catching up. She begun to panic. “Uhhh, okay, something’s not right here.” She tried to wiggle free again but it only seemed to make things worse, her body sinking lower, mud reaching up to her calves.

Jude jude had been walking around aimlessly, a random stick she’d picked up off the ground in hand. lazily, she poked around at underbrush, as if shane was just in a bush or something. divyas call got judes attention, though, and she raised an eyebrow, approaching divya after jude had been lagging behind. “woah, what the fuck-“ jude said, stepping forward unwisely, her right foot sinking into the mud. “oh, fuck, fuck, fuck. what is this? what the hell?” she tried tugging her foot out, to no avail. “divya, shit, are you okay? uh- fuck. we, like... shouldn’t move? or are we supposed to move? i don’t know, i don’t remember cartoons, shit! jenny! what the fuck do we do?!” she panicked, trying to tug her stuck foot out and extending her flimsy stick to divya, as if that would help. “just... don’t sink any further down, divya,” was judes sage advice.

Joss Joss didn't know if she was right, she didn't have any way of knowing if she was right, all she could do was hope for the best. At Shane's teasing, she chuckled and nudged the other girl lightly in the side with her elbow, "We can't all be nerds, like you," she responded in jest, glad to see Shane smiling now. It was much more comforting than the semi-dazed, almost vacant look that had contorted her features beforehand; convincing Joss that she was about to vomit or drop dead or perhaps both. "Oh my God, you would have pissed yourself laughing- seriously, she was so worried," it wasn't funny at the time nor was it all that funny now but if Shane had been watching from afar, Joss was sure she'd have gotten a kick out of it. "She was worried you'd run into a bear or only had 120 hours to live or something," the movie reference had been lost on Joss who clearly hadn't seen 127 Hours before. "-she called you a badass though which I think she meant like- in a good way," she added, realising now that she was surprised by how compassionate Lex had been as well.

Jenny If you had asked Jenny two days ago what they thought they might be over thinking seven days in, they would seriously have never guessed a hug between Lex and Joss. Reasonably it wasn't a betrayal, they had already left the group. But they had seen it as they walked away and remembered all the personal truths they had shared with Lex and felt like they could throw up. Between walking and shouting, and shouting and walking all they could think was how many of the group were against them? They knew it was ridiculous, they knew it didn't even matter, but whisper of doubt kept them stuck on it. They were standing on an exposed root of a tree, trying to use the added height to see further than they could with their feet flat on the ground. That's when Jude and Divya pulled their attention. They froze for a second, brain scrambling to put together what the fuck was happening. Was – quicksand? Was that what it was called? It didn't look very sandy. They were closer to Jude on the edge of what looked like all the other muddy puddles they had passed, and so they moved to her first. Looping their arm through her's and trying to pull her back to the stable ground. " Stop moving, " they said, to Divya more than Jude, the memory of an Indiana Jones movie coming to their head. " And keep your arms up, " they instructed, trying to keep their calm as if they weren't on the fucking brink themselves. As the only one not in the mud, that responsibility fell to them. " Right up, above your head, " they demonstrated with the arm that wasn't looped through Jude's. So if you sink further, people could still grab you, you could still grab things. But they weren't gonna say that to Div. " It's fine, " they tried to assure the others but raspy, wobbly voice wasn't exactly a vote of confidence. " We just have to be smart, okay? "

Shane “fuck off,” shane shot back at joss, it was nice that despite feeling like a zombie, she and joss could still fall back into their teasing as if nothing happened. though, she was sure the others would have a lot of words for her back at camp, especially jenny. she didn’t even want to think about how joss finding her was going to affect her friend and their conspiracy. but she didn’t expect lex to actually care about her and be worried. in fact, she was the last person she would have expected to care about her. maybe she had read the other girl all wrong in all of their fights; not that shane would ever tell her that. she’d get too much satisfaction out of it. “badass huh? i don’t feel very badass right now.” she felt the exact opposite as the two of them walked through the jungle. she felt like a kid being escorted by their mom after getting in trouble at school or something, ready to go back to camp to apologize to all the girls for scaring them. after some time of walking, shane swore she could hear voices, and for a second she was almost scared they were just in her head. but when she heard them again, she glanced over at joss to see if she heard it too. “did you hear that?” it sounded like the others but shane wasn’t sure how much she trusted her brain right now.

Divya “I don’t know!” She answered hastily to Jude’s question. It was muddy, sticky and sucking Divya in. More and more so each time she tried to wiggle out. “Am I okay? Mate–” She cut Jude an exasperated look as more of the mud crawled up her body. Hearing Jenny’s name from Jude’s mouth, Divya then decided to call out for them, confident that Jenny would have a better idea. “Jenny! Jenny! Help!” She waved her arms around hoping that would get their attention more quickly. You’ll imagine her surprised when Jenny’s first instruction upon hurrying over was ‘stop moving’. Divya’s eyes went wide and she ceased movement. Though her trust in Jenny didn’t mean she was any less panicked because the ground was still quickly attempting to swallow her whole. She followed suit after Jenny, throwing her arms high up in the air. “Like this?” She shrieked worriedly as her ribs begun descend into the sticky mud. “Jenny, mate, I’m really freaking out, man. Like really freaking out,” she spoke loudly in response to them telling her to it was going to be fine and that she and Jude just had to be ‘smart’. “How are we going to do this? There’s two of us and one of you,” she reminded Jenny in her panic, as if that wasn’t painfully obvious already. She didn’t wait for Jenny’s response before she started calling out, needing to do something other than attempt to stay still with her arms in the air. “Help! Help!!!!!”

Jude jude didn't do smart. anyone could tell you that. "fuck, fuck. i can't die in mud," she says. "HEY! HELP!" she screams at the top of her lungs. she throws her arms up as jenny instructed, waving them back and forth like a strobe. "okay, shit, uh- shovels? maybe they can dig us out of here?" she offers to divya, once again proving that jude... doesn't do smart.

Andrea The walk back to the beach wasn't that bad -- they'd gotten to the woods quickly enough, and Andi was grateful that, at the very least, Alexa understood her point. And stood by her. Plus, Andrea wanted space from the other girls. She needed it. Their voices were starting to become the ones she heard in her head, and if she had to hear Joss or Shane or any of the others during the day, hearing them in her head at night was simply unacceptable. That being said, even at the beach, somehow Andi could still year their yelling. "You... you hear that, right?" she asked Alexa, keeping quiet, otherwise. "You can hear them yelling all the way out here? They've got to be screaming their heads off..." After a pause, something finally clicked for her. "Shit -- do you think they actually need us?"

Alexa Lex was halfway though grabbing the ingredients for the food as soon as they reached the beach and she was so far lost in thought that she hadn’t heard a thing until Andi pointed it out. However, it didn’t take long for her to click and start running, fully unaware of whether or not Andi was following after her. “You’re right let’s go!” She practically screams, knowing the other stamina was a disaster she runs back to pull her along. “They’re so being attacked by those tropical bears...should we...should we grab a weapon?” Alexa will look around standing in the spot fully confused as what to do next. She grabs the long firm bat-like stick Joss passes her to push the coconuts and continues ahead into the jungle.

Joss By the minute, it seemed that Shane was feeling more and more like her self, characterised by a familiar 'fuck off' in reaction to Jocelyn's teasing. She shrugged her shoulders and hitched the dawn of eve bag on her back, readjusting its position for the walk back to camp, "Her words, that's how she said it," she assured Shane. Regardless of how Shane felt, that was how she was perceived and there were worse ways to be characterised by your peers, Joss considered. Joss wondered what adjective the others would use to describe her, if they had to. Jocelyn stopped in her tracks, tipping her head slightly downward as she focused on listening. She nodded her head then, "Yeah, shit, that's the others," she uttered, a panic rising in her middle once again. "They went that way- but-" she closed her eyes, trying to listen to the direction the commotion was coming from. "I think they're that way,"

Andrea It was pretty incredible, really. All it took was Andi saying something, and Alexa was on her feet, running back into the woods. "Okay, shit. Wait a second. Shouldn't we like... figure out what we'll do if there are fucking bears or whatever? A stick's not gonna stop them. And a bear's gonna break it in two, and then break us in two." She looked around, though, and didn't see much of a better option. It didn't seem to matter, though. Alexa was running, and all Andi could do was run after here. "Hey! Hey! We're coming -- we're coming back!" she screamed, hoping that the others could hear her. She was running on adrenaline, her stamina better simply because it had to be. The safety of the others might actually depend on it.

Jenny The two of them both screaming was a lot for Jenny, like a lot a lot. Though their limbs were fairly long, it's not like they hand the length or the strength to reach and pull them both out at the same time. " I don't know, just– " and that was it, they were officially out of calming things to say. They gave up on talking, they couldn't think and try and calm the others down at the same time. A couple flustered moments later they pulled their hoodie from their arms and tried to fling it out to the two in the mud. " Grab the arm, and I'll try and pull you guys out. " They said, not even a little bit confident in such a plan but seeing as they didn't have any shovels handy, or at all, Jenny's old hoodie was all they could think to use. But, they were right about one thing, even with every bit of determination in them, they weren't going to be able to pull them out on their own. " Help! Anyone! Help! " They screamed at the top of their lungs while they tried to keep their eyes on the two in the mud, making sure they didn't sink too much further.

Alexa Andi’s words were just noise and she chose to entertain them on the go. She knew the other was right, of course she was, but now was not the time to ponder. Jennys voice echoed through the woods and the panic rushed so deep through her veins that she sped up as much as she could. “We..we’ll have to think of the way to fight the bears...” a deal breath through the panting and she looks over at the other. “...when we get there.” That was the saying after all, cross that bridge when we get there? She pushes the leaves out of the path, following the screams with a stick and determination to murder whatever tropical beast was causing the distress. “Come they can’t be far!”

Shane shane smiled slightly at the thought that lex could call her anything besides a bitch. she wasn't sure how much she believed it, but then again, if joss was right, it didn't sound like they were in the right state of mind from worrying about her all morning. but before she could even think of something semi witty to say, she heard the voices again. thankfully joss heard it too which told her that she hadn't gone completely mad in the jungle that morning. "shit, let's go, something wrong," she said before picking up her speed to run in the direction that joss said. not a great idea considering her body felt like jelly, but if someone was hurt, she felt as if it was her fault. they wouldn't be out here if it weren't for her. "we're coming!" shane yelled back as they got closer to the screaming.

Joss Joss could have sworn that her blood ran cold the moment she heard Jenny crying out for help. Just a half an hour ago or less she felt like she could have pushed Jenny off a cliff with her own two hands but now, the thought of them being in serious peril made her feel sick to her stomach. "Fuck," she uttered as she took off with Shane, keeping one eye on the other girl and one on the path in front of them, lest anybody roll an ankle on the way. Speeding through the jungle, Joss felt the lactic acid build up in her legs but the pain ceased the moment they came across the other girls entrenched in mud and getting deeper by the moment. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," Joss flung an arm out in front of Shane at waist height, barring her from getting any closer to the mud pit in front of them. "Stop wiggling," she instructed the other girls, though she knew that if she'd been in the same position, she'd probably have been throwing a fit. "What do we do?" she asked anyone, though her eyes were on Jenny now.

Shane her stomach turned as she heard jenny's screams through the jungle. her brain already filling in the blanks of what could have happened to them. fuck, if any of them were hurt, or worse, shane would never let herself live it down. she tried to push those thoughts away as the two of them ran for the other girls. she didn't even notice they got to them until she ran right into joss' arm, and thank god the other captain did so because she could have ended up in the mud pit that was now encasing two of their friends. "fuck," shane huffed out. looking between them all, jenny clearly struggling to keep the other two up. "joss, throw them one end of the robe, we can try to pull them up together."

Alexa Alexa rushes onto the scene, half relieved that there was no animals around and then mortified to find the quicksand swallowing them whole. She almost forgot they were out looking for Shane so when her eyes fell upon her a smile quickly passed her lips and she’ll spot the robe now being instructed to provide a tool. “Wait!” She will scream and then start taking her clothes off immediately to connect to the robe and tie to a tree. They needed security, real security and a non slip mechanism. “Tie this to it and...” she proceeds to tie the other end of her flare trousers to a tree.

Divya Divya couldn't believe her eyes when she saw it. Joss! And then, "Shane! Oh my God! You're okay!" Yes, she was being inhaled by the ground right now, but seeing Shane alive and well in front of her was a great distraction for all of two seconds before she remembered the mud was up to her chest at this point. "Help! Please!" She wiggled her fingers about, arms still high above her head. Seeing Lex rush onto the scene added to her hope. The more people to help get her and Jude out, the better. Though she was thoroughly confused when Lex started undressing.

Jenny Its a whole fucking whirlpool of emotions when its Joss and Shane that arrive first. Part of them is so relieved they could cry, and the other part was so weirded out they could fucking vomit. " I don't know, " was all they could put together from their position, kneeling beside the mud puddle, hoodie extended between themselves and Divya and Jude. Not to mention the fact that their crispy hand was looking extra fucked now it was coated in dirt and mud as well. And then as Shane and Joss started working to pull the two out with Lex as well, they felt completely cast aside. Useless. They stood again, leaving their hoodie to be stolen away by the mud. Almost like in a horrified trance they moved to help the others, they couldn't acknowledge any of them or they'd lose it. All they could do was try and help tie things together.

Joss Joss held the robe between her two hands and tugged on it as hard as she could, testing the strength of the fabric. Much to her surprise, despite how ridiculous and tacky it looked, it was evidently good quality and was likely to stand the tension. She supposed she should have expected as much from Alexa's collection. When Divya called Shane's name, it was the first time Joss had realised that the others didn't know that Shane was safe. As much as the blonde had previously wanted to return to camp with her chest puffed up and a smug grin on her face, announcing that yes, she had been the one to save the day,there was no time for that now. Joss steadied her stance, feet apart as she leaned forward careful not to lose her footing, "Better idea," Joss announced, holding the robe against her waist like a belt, "You guys hold onto the end of this, keep me up, like a belay," she explained, tapping Shane on the back and reaching for Jenny loosely. Thank God her school had taken the kids rock climbing in year 9. "I'm gonna go in, pull everybody out one by one, alright?" she was talking to her crew as much as she was talking to the girls in the mud, trying to make sure everybody was on the same page. "I'll grab your arms, you grab mine," she looked Divya in the eyes then, "-and As soon as we've got a good grip on each other, yank me back, we'll get 'em out," she added, addressing the group at large again.

Jude "i told you all she was fine!" jude said, gesturing to shane, because not even quick sand can halt her hubris. joss' idea made jude a little nervous, but it wasn't like she had a better one. "fuck," jude panted, "just.. don't fall in. because then we really are fucked. and i don't think any of us want to die in a mud pit." giving divya a half-hearted thumbs up, she added, "but, uh, knock on wood. you'll be fine. jocks to the rescue, right?"

Shane shane froze for a second when divya called her name, the guilt she had forgotten since hearing their screams suddenly came rushing back. her eyes darted between the girls in the mud to jenny who was clearly not reacting well to the fact that joss was the one to find her. she watched as jenny let go of their hoodie into the mud and she swears she feels her chest tighten as she realizes why. "jenny," she says as they move away from them. she didn't know what to say to them. but then joss tapped her and shane was pulled back to what was happening. she can deal with fixing things with jenny after their friends weren't sinking into the ground. "human chain, smart," shane nodded along with the plan. she grabbed on to the robe, glancing back at jenny. "jenny, please, help me with this," she begged them, afraid they were about to run into the woods to disappears as well.

Divya Divya rolled her eyes at Jude's half-hearted thumbs up. Any other time she might have returned it, perhaps even with an awkward smile of her own, but so much of her body had sunk into the ground that even comedy legend Jim Carey wouldn't be amusing at this point. She paid as much attention as she could to Joss's words despite all of the commotion, nodding her head as she begun to reach in Joss's direction as best she could with her arms.

Alexa As Jenny stepped in to help tie things together, Alexas eyes fell on Shane who seemed so incredibly different than usual. She didn’t know what to think of it, mostly because she was too busy ensuring that the trouser which had been tied to the trees end was tied firm and proper. Luckily, she was pretty good with knots. She had practiced a lot by tying people to beds and swings. Peoples lives now depended on it though, so she added in a little branch and twisted it up to ensure extra security. She then fell in line and waited for the command to pull using this time to examine the previous matter of everyone’s concern “Shane bro you alright? What happened?” She asks holding strongly to the makeshift rope.

Jenny They looked at Joss' hand, and then up at her when she reached over at them. Lips pressed together but they nodded. Every issue they had with Joss would have to wait. Then Shane spoke to them, directly and they had to look at her. They really could not say anything, there was too much to say and none of it mattered right now. So again they just nodded, this time lifting a hand to try and move some of the hair out of their face but only really managing to leave a streak of mud on their temple. " Yeah, " they said, all they could manage to say to assure the others they were going to help. Their hands reaching for the makeshift rope that was now wrapped around Joss' waist. " Is that tight enough? " They asked Joss specifically, nodding at the robe/rope she'd tied to herself. The last thing they needed was another person in the mud. Even if it would be Joss.

Joss Joss nodded her head in agreement with a quick "Yep," to convince Jenny as much as it was to convince herself that sure, it was good enough. She was trying not to think about what would happen if it wasn't or if Lex's knots came loose half way through. "Not now, Lex, focus," she instructed; she wanted everybody's attention on the task at hand, not wandering elsewhere. With that, she took a half step forward, maintaining a strong stance as she leaned toward Divya, arms stretched as far as she could. She felt her weight shift the moment she leaned forward enough for the makeshift belay to kick in, the fabric taught against her middle. "Alright, you got me?" she asked Div, "We're gonna pull on three, guys, Lex, you too," she announced aloud as she gripped onto Divya's forearms as tightly as she could without digging her nails into the other girl's flesh. "One....two...."

Jude "wooh! you can do it!" jude cheered from her spot in the mud. "go, jocks, go!"

Alexa She did not at all like the bossy attitude Joss took over, after all there was no reason she couldn’t strike a chat just because she was pulling a rope. She knew her knots were fire and she knew that it would take two seconds for Shane to say she’s alright. Either way she chose not to get into any of that, even if she did work better when she was distracted. “Yep, I get that includes me...” she replies with eyes narrow and pulls, this is what her leg and butt exercises were for, she’d used her legs as the main force of the pull and wrapped the trousers once around each of her palms for added security. “This is not a good time to strain yall, let’s hurry this up before I get a mud pie in my pants...” she really should not have been trying not to shit for so long but the pressure was not making it any better. “Come on you clumsy bitches...”

Shane "not now lex!" shane shot back at lex's poorly timed question, showing more emotion than she had since she had woken up. she understood that everyone was worried, but this really wasn't the time for it. instead, shane focused on gripping the robe, ready to pull when joss and divya were ready to be pulled out of the mud.

Divya With her hands on Joss's arms now, Divya nodded her head vigorously. "Yeah, I got you. Please, please get me out, please," she whined. Her throat felt tight. Her whole body felt icky from being trapped. She just wanted out. Desperately. Preferably before she started crying. Though that emotional reaction quickly became difficult with Lex mentioning a mud pie in her pants and throwing Divya's emotions for a loop. "I–" Nothing quite like a bit of shock to help your body go slack, her train of thought suddenly going blank.

Jude jude kind of wants to see the rich girl shit herself.

Alexa As Shane’s voice raised she almost let go of the rope. Truthfully, if it had been Joss and Shane in the mud she probably would have. But she couldn’t do that to Divya, or Jude. It was particularly rich coming from a girl who just a second ago was walking towards Jenny as if people weren’t dying. Either way she said nothing. She pulled and she gave her best and decided she no longer have a damn of what went down with Joss and her bestie.

Joss Joss remained blissfully unaware of the tension that was building, focused wholly on getting the girls out of the mud as her first and foremost priority, if not her only priority. It would have been nice if she could do something to make sure Lex didn't shit herself in the process but she wasn't spending any energy on that for now. She used every ounce of energy she could to pull Divya out of the mud on three, her arms already coated in a thick layer of greyish brown clay that was already starting to dry and cake everywhere it had landed.

Jenny Jenny too was trying their best not to pay attention to the tensions buddy around them. Though it was horrifically hard to ignore Lex's mud-pie comment, Divya's tears kept them more focused on the task at hand. Once Joss and Div's arms were holding onto one another, they dug their heels into the ground. Pulling the Joss and Divya back to steady ground along with the help of the others and with the help of Lex's sacrificed clothes.

Divya With tension gone from her body, being pulled out of the pit of ghastly mud became a lot easier. Divya gave everything she had to hold onto Joss's arms throughout the process, wanting with all of her to be free from its sticky clutches. She did her best keep her breathing steady and calm, recalling from Jenny's earlier instruction that wiggling or anything of that sort was unwise. Slowly, she felt more and more of her body lift from the greyish brown hell as the girls pulled with all of their might. "I can almost move my legs again!" She told the group, heart beating harder on her chest the closer she got to freedom.

Joss As soon as the vacuum seal of the mud pit released its vicious grip on Divya, Joss fell backwards with the other girl in tow. She was too thrilled by the success of the operation to take inventory of the fact that she was now absolutely covered in mud herself, though it slathered her front from head to waist. “Oh my God it worked” she practically squealed, perhaps a little surprised by the fact. “Okay, okay, Jude, we got you, you’re next,” she promised confidently, no longer as concerned that they might lose another islander that day.

Jude slowly but surely, jude's single leg had been sinking deeper into the mud from hell, putting her at a weird angle, to say the least. "okay, bidet, let's go," she nodded confidently, holding out her buff, buff arms for joss to grad onto.

Divya It was slow going for a moment, Divya being released from the ground inch by inch, until eventually it all went so fast and the next thing she knew she was collapsed across Joss. "Oh my god, thank you–" She heaved a heavy sigh, crawling out of the way and onto the ground beside the group of girls where she knew it was safe. "Hang on, Jude!" She called out lazily, head bowed to the ground. Though she was the one stuck and did none of the heavy pulling, she felt exhausted. "They're coming for you..." She mumbled, deciding then to lay down and rest her head on the ground to catch her breath.

Joss Joss checked the integrity of their makeshift belay before stepping forward once again, making a mental note to retrace her steps as best she could, repeating the process so that Jude's rescue could go as smoothly as Divya's. She was certain that it would but when Jude opened her mouth, Joss was thrown slightly off centre? "Did you just call me a fucking bidet?" she asked, unaware that her own words had been lost in translation minutes beforehand. Still, it didn't stop her from grabbing the other girl tightly and encouraging her to do the same. "Just zip it for a minute and grab on," she insisted, though when she actually spoke it sounded less encouraging and more scolding than she'd meant it to be. Whoops.

Jude "that's literally what you just said! you said you were making a bidet!" jude defended, grabbing onto joss' arms. "i didn't really get it, but half the time when people talk, it just goes straight over my head, so i've learned not to question it."

Joss Joss didn't even know where to begin with Jude's claims but fortunately, she didn't have to. Now was not the time for chinwagging or once again reminding Jude of how ridiculous she sounded. First with the bloody tropical bear and now with a bidet. "Shut up," she instructed, since zip it clearly hadn't done its job. "On three again, guys, give it everything," she insisted, if there was one time to blow out all of their energy at once it was now, they'd have time to rest when everyone was safe. "One....two....go! go! go!"

Shane divya was safe on the ground and now they just had to get jude out and make sure joss didn't fell in in the process. seems easy enough despite how much shane's body was screaming out in fatigue. but this was all her fault for everyone to be in the jungle in the first place, she had to keep pushing herself and pulling with all her might when joss counted.

Jude being torn from the mud is an odd sensation, but once her leg has been freed, she stumbles back onto solid ground, dirt dripping off of her leg. "joss, you saved my life. you're like my hero!" she fake swoons, batting her eyelashes and fanning her face with a crooked grin that shows her teeth. nothing like making other people embarrassed to keep from feeling like an idiot for getting trapped in a mud pit.

Joss If she didn't feel like she'd just run a marathon or two, she might have been inclined to push Jude back into the mud for being such a smug prick but instead, she fell back onto the ground with her arms folded and raised above her head in an effort to catch her breath as quickly and as easily as possible. "You're welcome," she offered in response, though it didn't sound quite sincere, whether that was due to the fact that Jude was being a cheeky bastard or whether it was because Joss was recovering from the whole affair. She felt leaves and debris shift under her back and behind her head and was sure that there were probably a few spiders ready to crawl down her top but she was already covered in mud and exhausted and she decided that she couldn't have cared less, as long as everybody was safe for at least the rest of the bloody day.

Alexa Judes reaction to Joss made her chuckle and with a satisfied grin she drops the rope that had started pushing itself into her palms. Knowing everyone was now safe and sound, she runs off urgently into the woods to deal with her upset stomach. “I’ll...I’ll meet yall back at the beach.”

Joss When Alexa spoke up, Joss sat up almost immediately, with slightly renewed energy. With her brow furrowed, she watched the other girl dart into the thicket, away from their group with seeming urgency. "Righto," she uttered, still trying to piece together what had just happened. Still sitting on the ground with her arms wrapped comfortably around her knees, she looked at some of the others then, "That was weird, right?"

Jenny They're unspeakably relieved when Divya is pulled free, nearly stumbling as the suction of the mud let her go. But it didn't last long at all, as soon as Divya was free it was a matter of getting Jude free too. Thankfully the other wasn't in as deep but it was still a giant fucking relief when she was free too. Though Jenny wouldn't admit it, they did realise how much they needed the rest of the group. They wouldn't have been able to do it on their own, there was no chance. Seeing as Jude didn't seem as totally traumatised as Divya did, they moved to her after they'd had a second to breath. Sitting down on the dirt beside her, a gentle hand on her shoulder as they looked her over to make sure she was physically okay as she could be. When Joss spoke, they looked back to her, for once they didn't feel like questioning her and everything she said. Maybe they were too exhausted. " Super fucking weird. " They agreed quietly, their throat too sore from all the shouting to speak loudly.

Shane once everyone was free and they could all relax for a second, shane let go of the robe. they all watched as lex ran off suspiciously fast. when joss questioned it, shane just nodded in agreement instead of voicing it out loud with jenny. now that everyone was safe, that creeping guilt came back to wash over shane as she watched everyone catch their breath. to keep herself from spiraling more than she already had that morning, shane picked up a long stick and started poking the mud pit in hopes to find jenny’s lost hoodie.

Jude jude nodded in agreement that it was weird before turning to shane, finally realizing she wasn't dead. "hey, shane, no bears! where the fuck were you?" she asked, more celebratory than accusatory.

Shane shane glanced over her shoulder to where jude was, realizing she should probably finally explain to everyone what happened. not that she had a good answer or one anyone would understand. she looked back at what she was doing in the mud as she spoke, telling them the same half truth she told joss earlier. “i came out here to clear my head and passed out,” she explained, not daring to look to see the other’s reactions. “i’m sorry i worried all of you,” she said, chewing on the inside of her cheek.

Jenny Jenny thought if they'd disappeared and then been asked the same question in front of everyone, they wouldn't answer honestly. But all the same when Jude asked, Jenny couldn't help but look over at Shane too, waiting for the answer. They were surprised to see her poking at the mud, but didn't even remember deserting their hoodie just there. When Shane answered, they didn't believe it but they weren't gonna be such a dick to question it in front of everyone. They might later, if they could process everything that had happened that day and if they came out the other end of all that processing still thinking Shane was someone they could trust. " We're just glad you're okay. " They said, unintentionally speaking for the group, pressing lips together into a tiny smile with a little nod too.

Joss Joss nodded her head in agreement, glad that despite being so bloody contrary, in her own opinion, Jenny had actually agreed with Joss on the matter. "Should I check on her?" she asked curiously, "Like in a few minutes?" she added, deciding that it might be a bit weird to run after her straight away, when she hadn't been sick or injured or even that covered in mud for that matter. Which reminded Joss that she was wearing an unsolicited face mask. As she attempted to wipe her cheeks and forehead clean with her forearm, she listened to the chatter absently. Then, deciding it was a useless effort without water, she watched Shane poke around in the mud, confused as to what exactly she was doing. In all of the chaos, she hadn't quite registered that Jenny's hoodie had been sacrificed during rescue attempt #1. She nodded once more at Jenny's words and gave Shane a tap on the back of the leg, the first place she could each, "Told you," she reminded her of their earlier conversations and her efforts to convince the brunette that everybody had just been hoping for their safe return, not furious that she'd vanished in the first place.

Shane shane glanced back over her shoulder, this time to look at jenny. as always, they were hard to read and if there was one person’s opinion shane cared about on the island, it was theirs. then came a tap on her leg and her eyes shifted up to joss who was, in fact, right about what she said earlier. shane just honestly couldn’t believe that everyone even cared enough about her to worry that she was missing for a few hours. though, it was more than just a few hours, but that didn’t mean her self hatred wasn’t still in full effect. she gave a half hearted smile, “yeah,” she said in the same monotone voice she had used with joss earlier. she didn’t want to give up on finding jenny’s hoodie, after all, they didn’t even have pants of their own, they can’t lose their hoodie too. but after a few more pokes of the mud, she could just barely see the sleeve of that oversized maroon hoodie they never took off. carefully, shane leaned over and used the stick to direct it into her hand so she could pull out the mud caked thing. “should probably get this and all of you into the ocean to wash up,” she said, turning around to the group, holding the hoodie in front of her with two fingers.

Jenny If they'd had the energy maybe their brows might have furrowed at the little exchange between Joss and Shane. Questioning the friendliness and remembering what Lex had said about the two of them. Instead they just watched on, exhausted as ever, staying in their spot by Divya. They watched her continue to poke around in the mud, surprised to see their hoodie again. It was touching that Shane had thought of it, and been dedicated enough to get it back. Jenny didn't even know what to say, there wasn't anything coming to mind that would accurately convey how much it meant to them. " Shit– thanks, " They landed on, standing once again. Long legs wobbling a little like they had when they'd first washed up on the island a week ago. If they weren't more than a few steps away maybe they would have reached for it, held the ugly muddy thing to their chest for dear life. But Shane was just a fraction too far away. " Yeah, " they said absently at first, but then seeing their own arms, and legs covered in dirt from the whole thing, they said it again with more behind it. " Yeah, that's a good idea. " Not quite enthusiastic, but at least not completely dead inside. They looked down to Divya, offering their non-fucked but still muddied hand. They looked to Jude a moment later, she might need a hand too. " You okay, or do you need a hand too? " They'd try and carry the both of them if they could, but hopefully someone else would step in.

Jude "no thanks, i'm good," she offered jenny an easy smile, trudging out of the muddy patch and pushing her chin from each side, cracking the muscles in her neck. "alright, listen up," she announced, waving one hand in the air, "new rule. no stepping in dubious mud, and no disappearing for hours without telling people which general direction you're going in. i mean, i get it," she grinned at shane, "i need my jude time too, i'm just sayin', leave some breadcrumbs or something, so we know the tropical bears didn't get you, 'kay?"

Divya Though dead tired, Divya managed to push her lips into a small smile when Jenny came over to sit beside her. She felt comforted by their touch on her shoulder, even reaching up to let her fingers brush over Jenny's in appreciation. "Sounds like a plan to me," Divya said in response to Shane's suggestion, moving to sit up. Hearing Jude speak, Divya focused her attention, best as she could anyway despite still catching her breath. "To be fair, it wasn't like we knew the mud was tricky. We were just walking about," she mentioned, brushing some hair out of her face. "But good rule." A beat. "Rules," She corrected herself before turning to address more of the group now. "But on another note: thanks, you guys. Seriously. We're all each other's got. Especially out here. It's up in the air whenever rescue will come so we've got to stick together. We really got to." She looked at Jenny and Joss. "No more tiffs." To Shane now. "No going anywhere for long periods of time without telling someone where you're going, and-" She looked to Jude now. "-possibly watch we're going more in the future." She ended on a sheepish note.

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