Brisk POV
The man-made raft sails swiftly through the water. Sammy and Kenji splash each other with the salt water. Brooklyn, Yas, Ben, and Darius tighten the vines around the raft. I sit against the mast of the raft, knee's against my chest. My heart gets more heavy as we drift further from the island. This island has been my home for nearly my entire life. My father died here, my son died here. Was I really going to leave their resting place, my home, for the mainland? What about my remaining two children? I hear their loud roars of confusion and distress from the shore alongside Bumpy's longing bellows. Ben stands near the center of the raft, I take my place beside him. Our fingers intertwined as we stare at the dinosaurs begging for our return.
I don't know how long it had been since I had...taken my revenge, but the weight I had on my head and my chest only got heavier. We had all run around the island for supplies for the raft, while also trying alternate methods of escape. It didn't really matter to me, for every time I had tried to leave the island the weight got heavier to bear. Everytime I ran with my children, I kept seeing his form run beside us. Every night I only wake to the echoing sound of a gunshot, flashing visions of my baby's blood on my hand invade my mind like brutal intrusive thoughts. And for some reason, memories of my fathers helicopter crashing against the glass dome looped in my dreams.
"Goodbye, Bumpy." My love whispers. I don't say anything. I couldn't say anything. My eye's prick with tears much to my annoyance. I wasn't one to cry in front of others, what is wrong with me. I don't normally cry in the first place. I know that no kid should be going through this, but I thought I was stronger than this.
Darius places a hand on his shoulder. Ben looked so heartbroken. I place my arm around his waist to pull him into a side hug. He leans against me.
"See ya never, stupid dino island! You thought you could eat us? No way! You thought you could stomp on us? Think again!" Kenji screams at the island.
"Yeah! You thought you could crush our spirits? Impossible!" Sammy and Kenji cheer as they dance on the raft. I wince at their loud volume.
"To be fair, the island sure crushed my spirit." His face turns to one of confidence, "But then, I defeated Toro." I snorted, a smile stretching across my face.
"Ugh, not again." Yas groans.
"Well, Bumpy and Brisk like it when I tell it." A wave hits us and I grasp Ben.
"Um, guys..." A large wave forms, heading straight to us. My eyes widened in panic.
"Everyone secure the vines!" Brooklynn shouts. I ignore her, holding Ben close to me.
"How!?"
"I don't know, pull on them?"
"I thought you said you have raft experience!"
"I have some raft experience, SOME!"
"Oh, so only SOME of us will die!" Yas and Brook bicker and I growl.
"The wind's strong, we can just power throu–" The sail blows off the mast. The wave gets closer and I don't hesitate to shield Ben. In a quick, harsh blow we are sunk. We survived, obviously, but were both tired and beat. The rest of the campers and I trek through the jungle. Lovely and I stayed close with one another, keeping each other warm.
"Bumpy? Bumpy, we're back. Bumpy?" Ben calls out.
"Teal, Bane, Sw–" I wince, "Babies?" The bushes rustle behind us. Ben and I turn around.
"Kids?" Ben asks, and my heart warms up. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" I didn't even register our babies until one crashed into me. It took me a solid few seconds to figure out who it was. A baryonyx was licking my face and bear-hugging me. I could tell it was Teal though, she's the only one who eats fish. I glance over to see Bumpy having her own heartfelt reunion with Ben.
"Wait where's–" Bane steps on my stomach and begins to curl around me. "Wait...no...sleep pile...Ben, help." He laughs, and drags me from the reptile.
"Circle up guys! Camp meeting!" Darius announces.
"Ugh, another one?" Kenji scoots up the slide.
"Don't worry. We'll be right back." Ben gives Bumpy a nuzzle as I do the same with my kids. I climb up the ladder after Ben. He leans on a pole, grabbing my hips to hug me from behind. I place a soft kiss on his cheek when he rests his chin on my shoulder. The blue eyed boy blushes. Nice to know I still have that effect on him.
"Okay, on the plus side, still no Compy's seen around camp, so that's good. On the minus side, raft escape plan number one was–"
"Wet"
"Bad"
"Didn't work" The campers finish for Darius. Ben pulls away from me and heads to the railing by the slide. I was still surprised they managed to build this whole makeshift camp by themselves.
Ben leans over the railing, watching Bumpy play with Bane. The two were currently playing tug of war with a large tree branch they found. It was my turn to hug him from behind.
"Are you okay, lovely?" I whisper. He slumps a little.
"Just thinking, darling." He whispers back holding one of my hands.
"About..." He takes a large breath.
"Hey B Team!" We jump at Kenji's shout. "What do you think?" My brows furrowed in confusion.
"Uh, yeah, what you said." Honey, you weren't paying attention.
"Really, you think a human catapult is the best solution?" I burst out laughing at Yas' response.
"Such wisdom beloved." I cackle as he playfully pushes me away.
"No," He 'sternly' stares at me before looking back at the group, "that's ridiculous. Darius is right, a raft is the way to go."
"Thank you!"
"Fine, since there are no other options, raft it is." I thought that was obvious Brooklynn. Every other way has been in vain. A raft is the closest we've been to–
I turn my head to the dino kids. Bumpy was now trying to shake Bane off her back. Teal snacking on a small Compy while watching the show.
"Awesome! Now, where can we find a sail that we haven't already looked?"
"It's a shame we can't just hang glide all the way to Costa Rica. That would be so dope." Kenji leans back.
"Wait, what's Lookout Point?"
"It's this hang gliding activity stationed at the top of the mountains to the west. My dad took me there when I was seven." I smile at the memory.
"Hang gliders, as in pieces of fabric designed to catch the wind?" The camp cheers at their newfound solution. I hang my head, once again. Ben takes my hand and gives it a small squeeze. He noticed.
"Hey, we could use that as a sail!"
"Good idea Kenji."
Kenji had led us to the base of the west mountains. The walk there was quiet, and I got stuck in my own head. I notice Ben was trapped in his own thoughts as well. I hope he's okay, though I can probably guess what he's thinking. I should know, I felt the same way on the raft. I pet Bane's neck softly. I didn't want to leave my babies. I raised them. I watched them take their first steps, catch their first prey, and have their first sleep pile in my lap with Swamp. I taught them to run in formation, taught them swim, and taught them how to understand my whistle commands. Now that Swamp was gone, how could I abandon them?
"Last one there's the last one there!" Kenji yells and they all run to the sky gondola. I didn't even realize that they turned it on.
"I call shotgun!" Sammy yells, jumping into one with Kenji. Teal walks with Bumpy to the brush and I don't stop Bane from making me follow them.
"Guess it's you, me, and Brisk then, Ben." I hear Darius from a little distance away.
"You go on ahead. I'm gonna stay behind with Brisk and the kids."
"Uh, are you sure?"
"Go ahead. We're fine." Ben waves him off, before heading in my direction. I give him a soft smile. Bumpy meets him halfway before leading him to me. Bane nuzzles Bumpy and Ben places a hand on my leg. I playfully kick him away as Bane follows Bumpy deeper into the forest, me still on his back.
Darius POV
I watch Ben chase after Brisk. "Kenji, you guys get the hang gliders without me. I think something's bothering the B team." I speak through the walkie-talkie.
"What?" Kenji yells back. Sammy is laughing in the background.
"I think something's bothering the B team"
"What?"
"Nevermind."
"What?" I turn off the walkie-talkie.
"Forget it" I shove it in my back pocket, before running up into Ben.
"Oh! I thought you were going up."
"Nah they got it covered"
Brisk POV
I laid rested on Teal's back as Bane spazzed around the area. Ben dropped a pile of leaves and branches next to Bumpy. Darius grabs one of them.
"So, B team, how's it going?" Darius asked.
"Fine. Just making a Bumpy sled so she can carry the hang glider. Might as well be useful while we're down here." He turned to my direction with a small smile, "Darling, would you mind grabbing those vines above you please?"
"No problem, Honey" I stand on Teal's back and tug at the vines to pull them down.
"Ah, a Bumpy sled. Of course!" He follows Ben to a berry bush. "Besides the Bumpy sled, how's it going? Like, going–going?" He seemed concerned. Why?
"Wait. Why are you asking me how I'm doing?Did Kenji put you up to this?" He stood up with a branch in his hands. "Kenji, if you're pranking me, oh, you're gonna regret it." He slices the bush in front of him and I laugh.
"Kenji's not here, Lovely. He went up with Sammy." Ben pauses, confused before turning back to Darius.
"Yeah! No one's pranking you. Jeez. Aggressive."
"Totally." He glances warily at his surroundings. Upon looking at me I blow him a subtle kiss and his face flushes.
"Look, I just thought something was bothering you guys and wanted to check on you two." Aw, how considerate of him.
Ben sighs, "It's nothing." I hopped off Teal and walked with him. I looped the vines around my arms like rope.
"You sure?"
"We'll be fine." I reassure him. He gasps.
"There it is." He whispers. Ben looked confused.
"What?"
"She said you guys will BE fine. Which means you're not fine, right now." The leaves rustle and we jump up.
"Wait. Did you hear that?" I nod, scanning the greenery. Something was out there. Bane had stopped running and Teal was on full alert. Ben grabs the materials and I follow his lead. "We should move on just to be safe." I nod, trying to stay as silent as possible.
"Okay, and then you'll tell me what's wrong." I shush him. I hear a faint roaring in the distance. I didn't recognize it though, like how I didn't recognize the Indominus roar. I was probably overthinking it though, right?
Ben POV
Brisk was securing the vines around half of the sled while I did the other half. Darius was currently interrogating me as Brisk decided to stay silent.
"You're insecure about your headband?"
"I doubt Brisk would even let me." She snickers and I send her a teasing smile.
"Out of hand sanitizer?" I snort.
"Never."
"You have a phobia of some sort? Oh, acrophobia!"
"No."
"Autophobia?"
"What's that?"
"I think it's being afraid of being alone?"
"Isn't everybody?" Brisk chimes in.
"Oh, yeah. Well, whatever it is, I'm sure I can help."
"No, you can't! Not every problem has a solution!" Brisk holds my hand gently. I storm off in the opposite direction, dragging her with me.
"Yes it does"
"Not this one."
"Well, if you tell me what it is, we can figure it out!" I feel Brisk rubbing my knuckles, but it did little to calm me down.
"You're worried about carbon emissions. You're out of clean underwear!"
"I don't want to leave Brisk and the kids, okay? That's my problem!"
Brisk POV
I froze. Ben and I both silently knew we didn't want to leave the kids, but how did he know I wasn't going to leave the island. Darius looked shocked and confused. I wrapped an arm around Ben's shoulders and he held that hand.
"Well, you don't have to leave any of them. Brisk is obviously coming with us, and we'll build a bigger raft."
"Darius! We've been through this; Bane and Teal can't go to the mainland, and Bumpy will never fit on a raft. She has to stay here with the others. There's no other way."
"When we got back to camp and I saw them, I realized that it was a mistake to leave Bumpy. She's always been there for me, and then..." He pauses, grasping my hand tighter. "I just abandoned her? I can't– I can't do it again. I just can't." Bumpy growls softly before nuzzling Ben's arm.
"Ben, she'll be okay without you."
"Of course she will, she's a survivor. It's just that...I don't know if I'll be okay."
"You will be though! You have Brisk, she'll be with you every step of the way."
"No, she won't" Both me and Darius stare at him in shock. Ben pulls away from Bumpy and gently holds my face in his hands. "Brisk, I saw you when we were on the raft, you were heartbroken. You lived here all your life and you raised Teal and Bane. I can see it in your eyes, Love. You don't want to leave the island, and what kind of partner would I be if I held you back from your family, whether they're dead or alive." I rest my forehead against his.
"Brisk, you want to stay here." I glance at Darius, who has tears in his eyes. I nod.
"This is my home, Darius. I can't leave..." I choke back a soft sob as Ben searches my eyes.
Ben brings me closer for a hug, "I appreciate what you're trying to do, Darius, but some things just can't be fixed." Darius looked defeated. Teal and Bane nuzzle their heads against me as Bumpy growls softly.
**** Time Skip ****
Ben, Darius, and I were roaming around the forest. I don't even know where we're going at this point. Ben was holding my hand in deep thought. Darius was probably thinking too. Ben had outed me for wanting to stay, but I still was so conflicted over the matter. Yes, my fathers resting place was here, Swamp's resting place was here, Teal and Bane needed to stay here, and this island was my home for my entire life, but Ben was so important to me. He felt like home. He holds a very important part of me that I don't want to lose. He–
Screech
Scary, familiar shadows covered us. I looked up to see several Dimorphodons flying above us. A hang glider carrying a certain internet blogger and track star flew above us as well, currently being under attack. The boys and I rushed in their direction as they came crashing down to the trees.
"Yas! Brooklyn!"
"Darius, watch out!" Ben tackles D and they roll across the ground. I pull out my half lengthed spear and stand protectively in front of them. The aerial dinosaur dives at us. Before I could even strike it, Bumpy jumps and headbuts it to the ground. My Baryonyx's jump to her sides, Bane gives Bumpy's head a little lick as if her own attack hurt her somehow.
Simp.
The boys charge past me yelling dramatically at the smaller dino. I watch the boys and their shenanigans. It didn't long for the small dino to fly away scared. Someone claps slowly behind me.
"Wow, that was impressive," Brooklyn and Yas join me as the boys make their way over. "I mean, not as impressive as Yas and I literally flying away from danger but..." Yas gives her a high five and they laugh. Kenji giggles as both he and Sammy rush to us.
"Oh, I love it when we're all alive!" Sammy makes her way around the group, giving each of us a rib-cracking bear hug.
"Yeah! Take that, Dino Island!" Kenji cheers.
"Yeah it's a little torn, but it will make a perfect sail for our next boat." I study the hang glider. It would need a lot of elbow grease to get it fixed, but hey, we're not in a rush.
"Boat. BOAT!" Sammy yells at Kenji.
"Boat!" He replies and they jump around in excitement. Wait, did they find–
"Uh...what are we talking about?" Darius asks.
"We saw Tiff and Mitch's boat!" Kenji answers.
"It's on some rocks not far offshore. We can totally get to it." I try my best to not show a negative reaction. I thought it went adrift after Bane and Teal...
Sammy and Kenji led us to the boat. The others ran up ahead while me, Ben and Darius stayed behind. "Hey, that boat's big enough to fit the dinosaurs! That means Brisk can come too!"
"Darius, I guess you were right, every problem does have a fix." D smiles in response before joining the others. I noticed he immediately looked down after he left.
"Hey, you okay?" He shakes his head.
"I know you still want to stay here, Brisk. Darius might not get it, but I do."
"I don't even know if I actually want to stay. Yes, there are several things keeping me here, but I don't want to leave–"
"I'm staying too." I stare at him shocked. He smiles, grabbing my hands, "I'm staying too." he repeats.
"But, you have a mother out there who is mourning about her child, Ben I know that feeling. You need to go home."
"This is my home!" He pulls me closer holding me by the waist, "Brisk, you're my home. I'm not leaving." My heart warms up to a possibly concerning level.
"So that's it then. You're staying with me?" He nods. We lean in to press our heads together.
"It'll be just you and me, Daling."
"Sounds like paradise." He giggles. Guess that answers both our problems then. I know the others probably won't be too fond of our solution, but it's our choice. I take a deep breath. I needed to tell him what I did. "Ben, there's something I need to tell you..."
"Is it about Mitch and Tiff? You've been waking up from nightmares a lot lately. You talk in your sleep too, whispering about your father or Swamp."
"Tiff and Mitch killed Swamp. I wanted to take revenge. It's why you didn't see me till the docks. Mitch was eaten by Rexy, but Tiff..." I paused. Admitting to murder was harder than I thought.
"Did you kill her?"
"Technically, the kids did, but yeah." The silence was deafening.
"Okay."
"Wait, what? That's it?"
"She killed Swamp, you had every right to avenge him. Sure your...method was a little on the cruel side, but it was Tiff." I laugh. He had a point.
"But, you don't care that I just admitted to murder?"
"I would've fed her to the Mososarus." I gasp.
"I should've done that!"
"I suggested it to the others, but they refused."
"Shame, that would've been awesome to watch. We're not getting the full out of that beautiful creature anyway."
"That's what I said!" We laugh.
"Yo Tarzan and Jane!" We turn our heads to Kenji's voice. "We're heading back to camp to get ready."
"We're gonna have to take a swim if we wanna get to the boat." Yas shouted.
"We'll be there!" I shout out. Ben presses a small kiss to my temple. I hum, pressing my lips to his in return.
Word Count: 3,366