Watch Us Crash and Burn

Chapter 17} The House: Gwen's POV

I wake up as the sun is rising. The cave feels smaller than it was last night, but maybe that's just because all of us are here now. Everyone else is still asleep. Nikko and Dawn are cuddling. I feel a pang of sadness for Dawn after their confession. I wish they had told me sooner. But it's not their fault they didn't want to tell.

I look at Trilly. She is really pretty when she is sleeping. There's no worry on her face, and she looks like a goddess. She is so fudging pretty. I walked outside to where Dawn and Nikko were, ahem, kissing, last night. They think me and Trilly wouldn't notice. Losers. Trilly and I spent the night getting to know each other better whereas Nikko and Dawn got to know each other's mouths better. But anyway, Trilly is amazing. She is a junior in high school just like me and Dawn but she already has plans for a doctorate in mathematics or something when she's older.

Then she asked me what I want to do when I'm older. I honestly hadn't thought about it. I like programming so maybe that but I didn't think about the future much. Now I won't have to worry because I won't have one at this point. I look into the water at the pond and am slightly startled by what I see.

There's a long red cut across my face and another one across my chest. That dang cat, it is my fault though.

I sit down under the willow tree, watching the peaceful morning. It is truly fabulous. From my high vantage point, I can see the whole arena, tall trees, a river winding through the middle, and a giant house, near the center of the arena, surrounded by trees. Why is there a house in the jungle? I want to check it out. Then I hear a shout. Looking directly below our hill, I see Jessika, Warren, and Jessika's two dumb friends Vianna and Victoria chasing after two little girls. One of the girls trips and falls, and the other girl turns to help her up. Warren hits her on the head with a huge rock. She collapses on top of the girl who tripped. The girl screams as her friend lands on top of her, dead.

At this point, Dawn, Nikko, and Trilly have run outside to see what's going on. They're all standing next to me, horrified as I am. The girl has stood up now, but Jessika has already stabbed her with a sharpened stick. She pulls away and watches the girl collapse on the ground. And then they're gone.

The four of them are nowhere to be found. Nikko has run off and brought back our four bags. We all ran down the hill towards the girls. Maybe they're fine. Maybe they're still alive. Trilly doesn't flinch as she kneels towards them and checks the two girls' pulses.

"Dead. Both of them" she says quietly. I kneel next to her. Now that I've seen them at close range, I realize they can't be older than ten. They look like sisters, both with the same thin brown hair and green eyes. Blood trickles down from the first girl's head, and the second one has a large hole in her stomach. I turn away. It's fine. It's fine. It's fine. I'm fine.

Dawn is the first one who moves. They carefully turn the girls over to their stomachs and take off their backpacks.

"They only have food," Dawn says quietly. I zip open my backpack and Dawn slides the food inside. It's just a bunch of canned soups. Not much. We all slowly stand up.

"There's a house, in the middle of the arena. Do you guys want to check it out?" I ask, hoping that they'll agree.

"It might be dangerous. I don't know." Nikko says.

"I like the idea. Let's do it. We're all going to die anyway." Trilly says, staring into my eyes. She has nice eyes. Light brown with little flecks of green in them. Does that make them hazel? I don't know but whatever.

"Alright then. We should probably get going then. I don't want Warren and Jessika to find us here." Dawn says. I nod.

"Let's go," I say, starting to walk to the center of the arena. Trilly follows, and Dawn and Nikko follow after her, holding hands. Despite the circumstances, I'm smiling.