[2021]
With her eyes closed and both hands pressed together while all her fingers pointed up as if she were praying, the woman, who was wearing a green cap and whistle tangled on a leather string hanging around her neck, listened to her surroundings. Loud cheers, overlapping chatters, and even bashing can be heard from where she was standing.
She ignored the overwhelming anxiety in her system and tried to focus on what was happening at the moment. She was there to try. She was there to prove herself. And she was there to win.
But not just her. All of them. Everyone on the team had one thing on their mind right now-victory.
The moment she finally opened her eyes, she saw the group of girls that she was all familiar with hyping each other, all energetic. She smiled lightly at the sight and walked toward them, finally ready to face the team.
"Coach Nat!" greeted the captain of the team she's handling.
"Who's ready to be the state champs?" Natalie asked the girls, who screamed on top of their lungs out of excitement, collectively uttering the name of their team.
Natalie watched as the girls cheered loudly, waves of nostalgia hitting her.
She used to be like them. She used to be just like them.
"Alright," she said, blowing her whistle to finally get their attention. "Let's warm up and start the drill while we all wait for Rhett to arrive."
Most of the girls started warming up while the others assembled the training cones they would use for the drill, except one. The girl shyly approaches her slowly. She was tall, brunette, and had wavy hair that was tied in a nice ponytail.
She reminds her of someone she used to know.
"Rico is not here yet," said the girl in a worried voice.
Natalie could only nod her head when she noticed that there really was one missing from their starting lineup. And she also knew that if the game started without the said girl, they would be at a disadvantage.
"Any idea why she might not be here yet?" Natalie asked the girl in front of her in a gentle voice.
Hesitant about whether to lie to her coach or just be honest with what she knew, the girl responded in a low voice to ensure her teammates wouldn't hear her. "Her last message says her mother is screaming at her for not quitting soccer and school yet."
Natalie clenched both her fists upon hearing what the girl said. It wasn't the first time she heard about that thing. But unfortunately, she can't do anything about it either.
She then shifted her attention back to the girl in front, giving her a light tap on her shoulder in assurance.
"I'm sure she'll be here soon," she told the young woman. "Go join the other girls."
Minutes had passed when her peripheral vision caught a familiar figure. Natalie watched as a pale young woman wearing the same uniform as the other girls on the team was walking in their direction. Her head high and still proud, with the huge number printed on her jersey as the first thing you will recognize on her oversized uniform from her small and dainty body. Number 12.
As she gets closer, Natalie recognizes the smudged make-up on the girl's face, her unbrushed and dry pixie hair due to the streaks of gray dye on it, but most importantly, the bruise on the left side of her upper lip.
She reminds her of someone she wanted to forget.
"We'll talk after the game," Natalie told Rico, her voice full of authority. "For now, I want you to focus and give your best."
The girl didn't reply and just gave her a quick nod. Despite her slacking off during their practice and being late for their real match, their team won't win without Rico. Even Rhett knows that. They were both trying to be as understanding of the teen's personal situation as they could, since they both know what it feels like to be in that position.
Although sometimes it can't escape the eyes of the rest of the team as they claim that the coaches were playing favorites with Rico and were too lenient to punish her. Natalie ignored their complaints and simply told them to focus on something bigger.
They would never understand how it is to be like that and how hard it would be if not a single adult person showed their kindness whenever they were at their breaking point. But Natalie also knows how great it is to feel if someone tries to understand someone's situation without asking too many questions, just like her high school coach did to her. Just like how Ben treated her before.
Just after the girls had finished warming up and their drills, Rhett arrived in the field wearing the same uniform as her. But what confused her was the expression on his face, which looked like he was both scared and apologetic as he turned to face her.
"I'm sorry, Nat. I have no idea they would do this," said Everett.
Puzzled by what he meant by his statement, Natalie asked him, "What?" only for a loud announcement from the speakers to interrupt them, saying the game was finally starting.
Obviously, she can't push the topic anymore, but Natalie had noted she would ask him about it again once the game is over, and Rhett still owed her an explanation about whatever he was trying to tell her last night. It kept her up all night after he woke her from a nice sleep.
The game was going so well that every time they scored a goal, the opponent would score as well and immediately catch up. Natalie watched some recorded games of their opponent and tried to find their members' weak spots. Although she had found some and discussed it with the girls on how they could possibly counter everything, the opponent was tough.
It was the second half of the game, and she was discussing some things with the girls during break when her eyes caught two familiar faces from the bleachers who were watching her intently, one of them giving her a quick nod as their eyes met. Natalie returned the gesture kindly, but she knew she wouldn't be able to focus on the game anymore knowing that they were watching her.
Rhett immediately avoided Natalie's gaze when he noticed that she had finally known about their presence. Natalie shut her eyes firmly. Of course, it was related to them.
As the game came to the last ten seconds with the opponent playing with the ball and not their team, she could only watch as the striker scored their last goal and led them to victory. Her eyes immediately searched for Rico, who was sitting on the grass field and looking disappointed in their play while the other team cheered for their win.
When the young woman saw her, all she could give Natalie was an apologetic look. But like how she always was to her, Natalie only gave her a proud smile before slowly leaving the field.
***
[1996]
Something was definitely up-that was what Agami had on her mind the moment she woke up. She knows because none of the remaining girls with her in the cabin, and even the three guys, were nowhere to be found. Her unintentional late-night talks with Jackie and what she wants to call hallucinations kept her awake until dawn, which caused her to wake up a little later than usual.
And since she had nothing better to do, Agami decided to pack some of her things. She would go south. She hasn't decided yet how far she would go, but something's telling her that she must go south, and she has learned that ignoring what her instincts have been telling her in the past few weeks is not the best thing to do.
When she went down from the attic, the rifle was resting on the table, and neither of its users was near, so she picked it up without thinking twice. But on her way out, she bumped into someone.
"Why do you have the gun?" Lottie asked her.
She spared a glance at the woman as she spoke. "And why do you care?"
"In case you missed it, that's not yours," the brunette countered.
"Then tell everyone that I borrowed it for a while," Agami said, nonchalantly. "Out for a hunt."
She had only taken a few steps when Lottie grabbed her arms to stop her.
"You're going after them, aren't you?" she asked Agami. "Why?"
The woman snickered at Lottie. "I think you know damn well why."
"It was their decision to leave. Nobody forced them," the tall brunette argued at Agami.
"Apparently we didn't try that hard to stop them either," responded Agami.
Lottie's mind went back to her conversation with someone earlier, repeating the same words to Agami. "They're in God's hands now. Have faith in them."
Agami let out another provoking laugh as she spoke. "Oh yeah? Who said that? Saint Laura?"
Lottie did not reply to Agami and simply stared at her. The woman looked hostile toward her for some reason but chose not to ask why. So she let go of her arm. She could only let go of the woman, as she couldn't decide whether to stop her or join her.
"Stay out of my way," said Agami sternly, with Lottie finally backing off.
She didn't waste any time after that and headed straight to the woods. Her mind was wandering in different directions as she walked. What was the thing that happened to her last night? Did the girls finally find a civilization out there? Are they even safe?
As Agami moved forward, she was surprised to see another person.
"Dick?" Natalie said, her eyes then landing on the rifle hanging on Agami's shoulder. "Where the hell are you taking that gun?"
Agami didn't hesitate to respond truthfully to her friend. "After them. I'm going after them, Scat."
Natalie glared at the woman, Agami's stunt adding to the pile of shit things happening to her in the past few days.
"Are you kidding? You were there when I told Tai they couldn't bring the gun, and now you're taking it!?" the shorter woman can't help but scream.
Agami tried to avoid Natalie's gaze. She was right, and Lottie was right.
She can't just take the gun for herself because the group's survival depends on it. But she can't just go out there without anything, and there's no way she won't go either.
Agami faced Natalie once more, pleading. "Can you come with me then?"
The woman gave her the same look she always has when she's in doubt. She knows Natalie, and that face she's giving her certainly means that the woman is against whatever she's trying to pull. She must do something about it.
"Hunting. I'm not gonna go after them anymore," she tried to convince the woman. "But can we go hunting in the south just for today?"
Natalie ran her hand on her face out of frustration. It's only noon, but she already had a long day after what happened between her and Travis, all because of Jackie being herself.
"Fine," she agreed with Agami. "Stay here, and don't you move a fucking muscle, Dick. I'll get my stuff."
When they started their trip in the south part of the woods, where Taissa and the rest of their group headed, there was only silence between her and Natalie. Agami wanted to ask the woman what happened before they came across each other because she could tell from those red eyes that Natalie had just cried. But she also knows that Natalie wasn't the type of person to share stuff like that just to make a conversation unless you caught her first-hand when it happened and she'd fill you in about it.
Hours. They'd been walking for almost two hours straight already, but there was nothing.
"Okay, cut the crap, Agami." Natalie finally broke the silence. "We should head back."
The woman shook her head. "No, we can still go further. There might be something in a few more miles," she told Natalie.
"I know we're out here not to hunt," said the bleached-haired woman. "And I still let you lead us here, but we need to stop. We have to go back."
Agami stopped on her tracks, turning around and facing Natalie, who was walking far behind her.
"Another mile, Scat. One more, then we're going back," she pleaded.
Natalie shook her head. "No, I've had enough."
"Please?"
"You haven't even told me yet why you wanted to follow them. If you really wanted to do this, why not a few hours after they left?" Natalie asked Agami. "There's no way you're gonna catch up to them, Dick. It's already been a few days."
"I want to know if they are safe."
"The fuck are you talking about? We both know that is impossible!"
"What if something happened to them? I think Palmer might-"
"So, this is what it's all about? All this because you miss your playmate?"
"What the fuck, Scat? Don't dump your pent-up anger over something on me!"
"Then what else could it be!?"
Instead of responding to Natalie's accusation, Agami pulled the rifle hanging from her shoulder and pointed it to where Natalie was standing upon noticing something. Slowly, she cocked the gun as she focused on her target.
Natalie turned pale, waiting for Agami's next action, worried that she probably pushed the woman so hard that she ended up wanting to shoot her. She stared directly into Agami's eyes, and there she definitely saw an unmistakable intent to kill. Her lips parted in an attempt to say something, but nothing came out.
"Don't move," Agami told her. "Or you might scare it."
That's when Natalie realized that the gun was not pointed at her but rather something near her. Something on her back, perhaps? Or side. She doesn't know. But she didn't dare check either and took Agami's advice to not make a move.
A few seconds later, a gunshot echoed in the woods as Agami finally fired the gun. It frightened Natalie because she felt that the bullet went past her right cheek. If Agami wasn't an excellent shot, she's sure to be dead.
As the woman lowered the gun, she walked towards the dead animal and tapped Natalie on her shoulders lightly.
"Sorry 'bout that," she apologized to the shocked woman.
Natalie let out a heavy sigh of relief and simply followed Agami.
The women stared at the still-slightly-moving deer. It looked like it was an adult, guessing from its bulky build, closed to a grayish brown coat, shedding antlers just like what they'd brought back a few days ago, but fresh blood was flowing from the hole in its neck that Agami just made.
This could feed them for a week and a few more days if they preserved and rationed them to everyone equally.
But after weeks of not getting any bounty, why now? Not that Agami was complaining about it, but she's still doubtful and has many questions on her mind.
Natalie swallowed the huge lump forming in her throat. Her thoughts are already far ahead of Shauna butchering the deer and them cooking it in the fire to finally have something to fill their hungry stomachs.
Their thoughts were interrupted when they heard rustling sounds behind their back. Agami quickly pointed the gun across them, ready to fire again in case it was a wild predator charging.
But instead, they were greeted by three girls who immediately collapsed on the ground once they were only a meter away from them.
"Shit, Quigley?" Agami said, immediately checking on the woman.
Natalie did the same thing to Akilah and Mari, who were both catching their breaths. Agami's hand wandered on one of the pockets of her bag, giving Misty some water she brought for their trip and the woman handing it to the two girls after she satisfied the thirst in her dry throat.
"What happened?" she finally asked Misty. "How did you get here?"
Misty took another deep breath before responding.
"We were on our way back to the cabin, but we're starting to get a little lost," she said as a starter. "Then we heard a gunshot coming this way and we didn't hesitate to follow it, knowing it might be Travis or Natalie nearby and hunting."
"Why are you three going back to the cabin?" Natalie asked further. "Where's Tai and Van?"
"They are way behind us," Akilah replied, then stopped to drink the remaining water from the bottle that Mari offered her.
"Tai told us to go first and get help as fast as we could," Mari said, taking the liberty to explain.
"Help for what?" Agami asked.
The three fill them in about the horrible situation that happened. All the time they were telling them about what happened last night, Agami's heart sank.
But they don't have the time for that right now. They still had to help them, so she tried to set her head straight and quickly gave them instructions.
"Quigley, come with us and show us the way to where Turner and Palmer were," she told Misty, who only nodded in understanding.
Agami then faced Mari and Akilah, who both looked terrified. She can't blame them. They almost died last night, and she's sure that they won't feel safe until they reach the cabin.
"The two of you," she said, getting the younger girls' attention. "Run as fast as you can back to the cabin and tell everyone about the situation. Make sure to bring Martinez along and meet us halfway."
This time, she focused her attention on Akilah. "Prepare everything that Palmer might need once we get her back, okay? Can you do that?" Agami asked the younger woman in a gentle tone, trying not to give her additional worries.
"I-yeah," stammered Akilah. "I will."
Agami nods.
Her gaze shifted to Natalie, then she threw the rifle in the woman's direction, which she caught in one hand. "Just to be sure. We need you to be alert."
Before they went their separate ways, Agami spoke again to Akilah and Mari, giving them some assurance.
"You'll be safe from here. Don't think about anything else. Run," she told the two, who didn't say a word and simply nodded. And that's enough. "Now, go."
Misty tried to remember every familiar and distinct tree that they'd come across earlier, which she used as signs to guide them on the right path that they used on their way back.
Natalie kept calling for the women's names, hoping they'd probably hear them as they searched for them. Agami, on the other hand, has her eyes focused on where it can reach, mindful of every movement happening around them. Dangerous predators might appear randomly before them, but they are all hoping for one thing, to find Tai and Van.
They lost track of how much time had passed. But Agami was sure that every minute of it felt longer than usual, and every step they took brought terrifying thoughts of Van's safety. Are they going to make it? Will Van make it?
"Tai! Van!" Natalie screamed one more time.
No, it didn't earn a response from anyone. Not another scream. Not a verbal answer.
But as Agami pushed aside the tall plants blocking them from moving forward, a pair of eyes met hers.
Taissa stared at her intently, pleading but also relieved that the help she'd been waiting for since last night had finally come. Agami's attention shifted to the red-haired woman, who was probably only able to stand by leaning onto Taissa's body to support her whole weight.
Her left face was covered with bandages that the girls probably made after the attack, which were now also bloodied, indicating that the injury was severe and Van was definitely losing a lot of blood.
The two collapsed on the ground, and that made them rush towards them immediately.
Natalie separated the two women first, with Agami taking over to support the injured woman's body, and Misty rushing on Taissa and giving the woman some damp fabric to wipe herself first before letting her drink some water.
"Hey, Palmer," she tried to call Van's attention, making sure the woman was still awake.
Although she was too weak to respond verbally yet, Van did her best to look at Agami to give her a slow nod.
"Stay with me, alright? I'll get you back as fast as I can," Agami told Van as she lifted the woman's body with Natalie's help, carrying her on her back.
Finally, with the remaining energy she still had left, Van was able to give her a response.
"Of course."