Jurassic World- Camp Cretaceous: Retold

A Terrible Birthday

Darius took in the moist air of the Isla Nublar jungle, now back at their makeshift camp. There was a melancholic happiness to his expression. After arriving at camp, he'd opened his little field guide, ready to document more dinosaur behaviors. And then he realized the date of his last entry. Just yesterday, March 4th, 2016. That meant today was March 5th, 2016. That meant today was his birthday. He hadn't told the others. He intended to keep it to himself.

There was a simple reason for this. He wanted them to focus on their survival, not try and force some kind of celebration. But, that didn't mean he had no intentions of making today somewhat special. He collected a radio and his field guide. As he picked the field guide up, a photo of his father and himself slipped out. He caught it, and took a long look.

"Wish you were here for this..." he whispered. He couldn't process what the older teen was saying, too busy wishing that his dad were alive, that he weren't trapped here. That they could be back home, throwing a normal birthday party. Or, in a perfect world, on Isla Nublar, but with a functional Jurassic World.

"Hey man, what's wrong?" he heard Kenji ask. He finally looked to the older boy.

"Oh, nothing. I always meant to check out a Gallimimus for my..." he trailed off, stopping himself from revealing to Kenji that today was his birthday.

"For my book. But, I never got around to it," he improvised.

"Go now. Brooklynn and Sammy are off investigating a mystery, Yaz is on a run, and Ben is probably somewhere being weird," Kenji encouraged. It was what Darius had intended to do.

"Alright..." Darius said, but then he realized. With everyone else already busy, there was nobody else to ready up the supplies for the boat.

"Actually, nevermind. I'm gonna start readying up the supplies for the trip to Costa Rica," he said.

"I'll do it for you," Kenji spoke up.

"You, seriously?" Darius asked.

"Like I always say, 'the more to do, the more I got this'," Kenji reassured, placing a hand on Darius's shoulder.

"Never heard you say that," the younger boy bantered, "but if you're sure..."

"Dude! Dude, positive! Go find your Galileo," Kenji insisted.

"Awesome! Thanks, Kenj," Darius said, his smile warming and softening as he set his bag down, only taking his field guide and radio. "Just- make sure to pack everything we need. Food, water, and uh, I'll be on channel six in case of emergency!"

Darius climbed down the ladder, grinning from ear to ear.

"An emergency packing supplies? Broseph, I said I got this," Kenji said.

"You are officially in charge! See ya!" Darius shouted as he exited the camp premises, marked by fencing. He then took off into the jungle, a smile on his face that had last been seen when he first laid his eyes upon the herd of herbivores on their first day here. He soon slowed down, listening closely for any Gallimimus or potential danger.

And it didn't take long. It was about a 30 minute walk away from camp when Darius ended up at the Gallimimus Valley, or what was once the Gallimimus Valley, observing both his and his dad's favorite dinosaurs. He took note of their speed, their builds, their vocalizations, their herd behavior, everything. He looked back up to see that one individual had stopped, grazing on some grass. Darius saw a golden opportunity, getting marginally closer and jotting down what he'd seen. He looked back up to see that the herbivorous dinosaur was looking right at him.

The dinosaur slowly and cautiously approached him, and that childish grin of fascination and adoration was back on his face. But, then, a loud, blaring static scared the dinosaur away.