Chapter Text
"What now?" Kenji asks, looking up at the sky. Darius follows his line of sight noticing pterodactyls flying in the distance. "We should probably find shelter, right?"
"Didn't you say your dad owns some condo’s here?" Darius asked.
"Oh yeah, he owns like two condos. But they’re back where we just came from."
"I'm exhausted." Sammy exhaled. "And Yaz can barely walk."
"I'm sorry guys, but we can't stay here. It’s not safe. We need to find shelter."
Yaz and Sammy sighed.
"Besides, in the main hub there’s first aid, and maybe we can get food."
"How do we know if it’s safe over there?" Kenji asks.
Darius sucks in a breath, his confidence wavering.
"I say we take the chance," Brooklynn speaks up.
"I agree." Yaz pipes in. "I would like to sleep on a bed and eat food. Maybe take a shower."
"Yeah." Brooklynn looks down at herself, covered in dirt.
"We’re in agreement then?"
The group nods.
“Should we take the monorail back?” Sammy asks.
Kenji shakes his head viscously. “No way I’m going back on that thing.”
“We’ll just follow the line. We can at least take it slow.”
“Unless we run into another dino,” Sammy says.
“Let’s just go.” Brooklynn sighs.
The group nods and begins to follow the path below the monorail back. Kenji leads the group, being the one walking the fastest, Darius a few steps behind. Sammy’s walking by herself while Brooklynn offers Yaz some extra support. Darius looked fearfully off at the foliage that surrounded the path, wondering if there were any dinosaurs hiding. He looked back at the girls, grateful that at least they were in this together.
“How far Kenji?” Darius caught up to the older boy.
Kanji unzips Ben's fanny pack, which is still strapped around his waist. He pulls out the map, freezing for a moment as he holds it in his hands.
“Kenji.” Darius prompts.
Kenji shakes his head, getting out of his state. He points to the southern tip, “We are here.” He traces his finger upwards on the map, landing on the heart of the island where all the main attractions are. “We need to get here. It’s like a half an hour ride on the monorail. So like an hour, maybe more walking.”
Darius sighed. He was just as exhausted as everyone else. It would be nice to rest, but he’d have to wait till they reached the resort. The group falls quiet, the only noise is their footsteps, and occasional exhales. Darius’ hand comes up to grasp his tooth necklace, only to remember it’s gone. Pain hits his chest at the realization, his tangible connection to his father, gone. He’s slightly glad his father isn’t here for this. He’d hate that his dreams of Jurassic World would be crushed like Darius’ own were being. Or well, had been.
Darius hears humming coming from behind him and looks back to see Brooklynn smiling back at him. Darius thinks he can recognize the tune. Sammy laughs and begins singing, making Darius smile. Brooklynn joins in, and Darius starts to remember the words, so he joins in as well. Kenji looks back at them, judgingly, “Really?” He asks as if finding it all pathetic.
“We need something to cheer us up.” Brooklynn states before continuing the song.
They sing one song, then another, Yaz and Kenji don’t join in.
“You guys want to know what real good music is?” Kenji asks, turning around slightly. He starts beatboxing and muttering a rap song. Darius has never heard of it before and isn’t sure Kenji isn’t just making it up on the spot.
The girls start giggling away, finding it hilarious.
“You know Kenji, you’re not as cool as you think you are.” Brooklyn teases.
Kenji just folds his arms and turns back around.
Darius looks up, the sky’s getting even darker, and he doesn’t like the idea of them staying out in the open in the dark. He wonders how far they are, how much further they have yet to walk.
“Any more cool dino facts?” Sammy asks, walking alongside him.
Darius smiles, welcoming the invitation to talk about his favourite thing and to distract himself from their current situation.
-
“Guys! Guys!” Kenji starts running, laughing excitedly.
Darius runs to catch up, despite being totally and utterly exhausted, then he sees it. Buildings that he’s only ever seen on advertisements for Jurassic World.
“We made it.” He laughs with relief.
The girls catch up to him, and they cheer. A wooden gate stands in their way, Kenji is already prying it open. He grunts as he succeeds in opening the gates. They step out of the employee’s only path and on to the main road.
“What happened?” Sammy asks.
The sight before them is one of pure destruction. Beyond the Mosasaurus exhibit, Darius can just barely make out a fire burning.
“God, this pace has really gone to hell, hasn’t it?” Kenji shakes his head.
“Kenji, where’s your dad’s condo?” Darius asks.
“How should I know? All I know is it somewhere in the resort.” He points to the buildings closest to them.
“Why do we have to use Kenji’s dad’s condo?” Brooklynn asks. “I know how to pick hotel room locks, or have you forgotten already.”
Darius realizes she right. “Okay. Brooklyn, Sammy, and Kenji go find some rooms. I’ll take Yaz to the First Aid center.”
“Are you sure we should split up?” Brooklynn asks.
“We should be fine.”
“Besides, I got this.” Yaz turns on the prod, and it snaps with electricity.
Brooklynn nods, and the three head towards the resort.
“Do you want help walking?” Darius asks Yaz.
“I’m fine,” Yaz tells him, using the taser prod for support.
“The First Aid office isn’t too far.”
They walk along the path around the Mosasaurus tank.
“There.” Darius points to the red cross sign up ahead.
Nothing is locked up. Everyone clearly left in a hurry. Darius begins to walk through to a small room with an examination table. He hears Yaz riffling through some stuff.
“Do you know what to do?” He asks. He’s never sprained his ankle before.
“Yeah.” She hops up onto the examination table with some bandage cloth.
“Do you need some help?”
“I’m good.”
She begins to wrap the bandage around her ankle, securing it in place with some metal clips. He offers his hand and helps her down from the bed.
“Maybe we could find some crutches.”
“I doubt it. I’ll be fine. Maybe we should take some equipment, just in case. For the future.”
“Good idea.”
Yaz grabs the prod and hobbles over to the counter, grabbing a first aid kid out of the cupboard.
“There should be one in the resort room as well,” Darius tells her, and she nods.
He offers his shoulder for extra support, and she takes it this time.
“Should we get some food?’ Yaz asks, looking towards where the majority of the destruction was. Darius cringes at the thought of going there, where the fire is burning.
“Probably not a good idea. Besides, there’s probably some snacks at the resort. And we don’t even have to pay for them.”
Yaz snorts at that, making Darius smile.
“Let’s get back to the others.”
-
Brooklyn managed to the unlock door, and Sammy walked inside with awe. “This place is huge!”
“I’ve seen nicer,” Brooklynn started walking in after her.
“So have I,” Kenji says as if trying to one-up her. Brooklynn just rolls her eyes.
“Should we see what else they’ve got?” Brooklynn asks, spinning her bobby pin in her fingers.
“Do you think Yaz and Darius are okay?” Sammy asks from where she is lying on the bed.
“I’m sure they’re fine,” Brooklyn reassures her, cringing after catching a glance of herself in the mirror. “I’m going to go take a shower.”
Sammy gets off the bed as Brooklynn closes the bathroom door behind her. Kenji is standing in the hallway and nods towards her.
“I’m going to go wait for Darius to return, let him know where we are.”
“I’ll come,” Sammy says. “Brooklynn! We’re just getting Darius and Yaz. We’ll be back in a jiff.” She yells out.
“Okay!” Brooklyn yells back.
Kenji and her make their way downstairs to the main lobby and step outside. Kenji picks up a rock off the ground and tosses it away. Sammy tries to think of something to say, something they could talk about. Then she notices Darius and Yaz approaching from the distance.
“There they are!” She starts waving her hands in the air. “Darius, Yaz!” She shouts.
“Darius, Yaz, we’re over here!” Kenji joins her in her shouting and waving.
The other two notice them and wave back, beginning to head in their direction.
“We grabbed a first aid kit just in case,” Darius tells them when they arrive.
“Smart thinking,” Kenji tells him.
“It was Yaz’s idea actually. So, where are we staying?”
Yaz falls down on the bed as soon as she reaches the room, giving a sigh of relief.
“Where’s Brooklynn?” Darius asks.
“She’s in the shower,” Sammy tells him. “We were thinking the girls could have one room and the boys another. The two rooms are connected.” Sammy points to the closed door.
Darius walks over, opening the door and stepping onto the other side. It’s much the same as the previous room, and Darius falls down on one of the beds, exhausted.
“You want to take a shower first?” He asks Kenji, who is already lying on a bed in the room.
“Sure. We’re going to need clean clothes though, and food.”
“We could maybe get some shirts from the gift shop tomorrow. I can find us some food while you shower.”
“Thanks man.” Kenji heads to the bathroom.
Darius forces himself up off the bed and walks over to the other room where the girl share.
“Sammy, did you guys find any food?” He asks.
“No, I haven’t looked yet.” She tells him.
“Well, let’s look in the fridge.” Yaz gets up.
“Yaz, you should be resting your ankle.
“I’m fine.” She tells Sammy, pushing past her. Yaz kneels down to the min fridge, opening it. “Drinks.” She closes it and opens the cupboard beside it. “Snacks!”
She pulls out a chip bag and tosses it to the bed.
“What else is there?”
“Chips, granola bars, tea. That’s pretty much it.”
“Maybe we’ll have to look down in the buffet bar tomorrow.”
“Darius, no one is here to make food.” Yaz's tone turns serious. “How long are the utilities going to stay on for?”
Darius doesn’t want to think about that, but she’s right.
“We’ll take it one day at a time.” He settles on. Yaz sighs but doesn’t press him any further. “I’m going to look in my room for food. Have a goodnight.”
“Goodnight Darius!” Sammy smiles at him.
“Yeah, night Darius.” Yaz nods her head, and Darius leaves, retreating back to the room he’s going to be sharing with Kenji.
Darius grabs himself some chips, a granola bar and some lemonade. Kenji steps out of the shower after a few minutes.
“We found some food.” Darius gestures to the chips he found. “It’s not much, but it’s something at least.”
“All eat anything at this point.” Kenji grabs a bag of chips and sits on the other bed.
Darius was about to ask Kenji how they were going to survive, especially after the utilities stopped working. He couldn’t do that though. He was supposed to be in charge. Just because Kenji was slightly older didn’t mean he had all of the answers.
“Hey man, do you think we could sleep with a light on?” Kenji asked hesitantly.
“Yeah, for sure.” Darius nodded his head. He finished eating his snacks and got up to throw the trash out. “I’m going to take a shower.” He told Kenji.
Darius was grateful for the hot water, washing away all the dirt and mud. He wondered how much he’d miss taking showers once it stopped working. What if no one was coming? What if they were trapped on this island alone? Darius wanted to cry but just rubbed his eyes. He thought of his mother and brother, wondering if they were worrying about him. Surely someone would come looking for them. Maybe Kenji’s dad, he was rich enough to send a search party. Brooklynn was famous, so there was no way her followers wouldn’t look into her disappearance. Darian sucked in a breath. They just had to hold out till then.
He squirted some shampoo into his hind and scrubbed it into his hair. He knew it wasn’t the kind of shampoo meant for his hair, but he’d have to make do. After washing his hair, he scrubbed the dirt off of him. He noticed he had some minor scrapes on his knees and arms, nothing too serious though. After he was done washing up, he stepped out and put on his torn and dirty clothes. He wished that he had clean clothes to change into, but that’d have to wait till tomorrow. He stepped out of the bathroom and flicked the small light above the kitchenette area on.
“I’ll leave this light on.” He told Kenji, who nodded in acknowledgment. Darius began flicking off the other lights, leaving only a small glow to the room.
“Goodnight,” Darius told Kenji as he walked to his bed.
“Goodnight man.”
-
Sammy shifted on the bed beside Brooklynn. Despite how tired she was, she couldn’t sleep.
“Brooklynn.” She whispered. “Are you still awake?”
“Barley.” She murmured back.
“I can’t sleep.”
Brooklynn groaned. “Tell yourself a story. That’s what I do when I can’t sleep.”
“A story…” Sammy thought for a while. “Once upon a time.”
“In your head Sammy.”
“Right.”
Sammy thought of her family back home, her ranch, her bed, and her friends from school. She thought of what she’d do once she returned home, imagining her mother sitting with all her siblings by the fireplace, telling them a story. She wasn’t as worried, thinking of her family, of her home.
-
Brooklynn woke up early and stretched out, yawning wide. Sammy snored beside her. Brooklynn got up and walked to the window, opening the blinds. It was the same view as last night, the same destruction, she sighed solemnly, realizing that things would just get worse. She made her way to the bathroom. She’d have to get used to not having her make up. She brushed her hair out. It had been a hassle last night, untangling it. Between the three of them, they had already used up the small bottles of shampoo and conditioner in one day. Brooklyn figured she could just break into another room and take some bottles. She pulled her hair up into a bun. At least she still had her ponytail and bobby pins. That was a small relief.
Her stomach growled, and she wondered if the boys were awake. She went out into the hallway and knocked on the boys’ door from out there, not wanting to wake Sammy or Yaz. She knocked, and the second time and Darius opened it.
“Hey.”
“You’re up early.” Darius yawed, stretching his arms.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.” She apologized.
“No, no, it’s okay. How’d you sleep?”
“Okay. Is Kenji still asleep?”
“Yeah, the others?”
Brooklynn nodded. “What’s today’s plan?”
“See if we can find real food, maybe get some clean clothes.”
“Okay.” Brooklynn nodded again. “We can head out when everyone’s awake.”
Darius nodded, yawning once more.
“Get some more rest.” Brooklynn cracked a smile. She gave a wave and turned on her heel, heading back to her room.
She wondered what she could do to pass the time and dug around to see what was in all the cupboards and cabinets. She found a pamphlet for the resort, highlighting all the resort had to offer.
-
The group walked along the path towards Main Street. A small fire still burned up in one of the buildings. An ominous feeling washed over them as they stepped into the destruction. Glass shards covered the streets, the buildings were broken and crumbling around them. Darius was glad to not see any dinosaurs in sight.
They had found some real food in the kitchens of the resort and had moved on to their next mission of seeing if they could find any clothes.
“There’s what’s left of the gift shop.” Kenji pointed to the destroyed shop before stepping through the broken window. He offered his hand, helping everyone over.
“Take whatever might be useful,” Darius told them.
They headed towards the display of t-shirts. Darius grabbed the first t-shirt off the rack. It was one with a Jurassic World logo on it.
“Hey, there’s some camo pants over here,” Sammy called.
Darius breathed a sigh of relief. He was worried he would be stuck with the pants he was already wearing.
“Hey, look at this.” Darius turned his head to Kenji, who had put on a stuffed dino head. “Rawr!” Kenji curled his hands down like claws. Darius chuckled. “Pretty cool hunh?” Kenji took it off, smiling.
“Just take what we need man.”
Darius grabbed a few other shirts his size and made his way over to the pants, finding that there was only camo cargo pants and track pants, it would have to do.
“Here, I grabbed some bags.” Brooklynn handed him a plastic bag.
“Thanks.” He smiled at her, shoving his items in the bag.
“This place gives me the heebie-jeebies. I would like to leave as soon as possible.”
“Yeah.” Darius agrees, “For sure.”
The group decided that they grabbed everything they might need and decided to head back to their hotel rooms.
“So, are we just going to hide inside all day?” Kenji asked.
“You know, I was reading the resort pamphlet this morning, and it said something about an arcade room,” Brooklynn told him.
“We need to check that out!”
They put their stuff in their rooms as Brooklyn grabbed the hotel pamphlet to see where the games room was on the resort map.
“Let’s go!” She sounded excited.
“You guys go, I just want to hang out here,” Yaz told them, and the group nodded in understanding, but Sammy hung around, concerned.
“You should come Yaz,” Sammy told her.
“It’s fine Sammy. Besides, what do you care?”
“I do care.”
Yaz sighed. “I need to rest my ankle.”
“You’re still not mad at me, are you?”
Yaz chewed her lip. She was still kind of upset with Sammy.
“Come on. Even Brooklynn’s moved on. I’ve said sorry a thousand times.”
“I know,” Yaz sighed again. “I just don’t like people lying to me. I feel like you were using me to cover for you. I thought we were friends, but then I find out you were lying the whole time. It hurt me.”
“I still consider us to be friends.”
“I know. I’m just still mad about it.”
“What can I do to make up for it?”
“I don’t know.”
Sammy looked down, seeming sad.
“Look, go have fun with the others.”
“You sure?”
Yaz nodded, and Sammy left.
-
Darius began walking around the hotel, finding a little balcony outside. He walked out onto it, looking out at the park around him.
“I was wondering where you went to.” He turned to see Brooklynn standing behind him. “I got you something.”
Darius watched curiously as she pulled something out of her pocket. “I know it’s not the same thing, but I thought maybe it could make up for the one you lost.” In her hand she held out a dinosaur tooth necklace. “To be honest, I don’t think it’s real.”
Darius laughed and took the necklace form her. “Thanks Brooklynn. This means a lot actually.”
“You like it then?”
“Yeah.” He pulled the necklace over his head and held the tooth in his hands, surprised to find how much he missed the feeling.
“So, how are you feeling?”
“I don’t know to be honest. Worried maybe.”
Brooklynn nodded, coming to lean her elbows against the balcony ledge.
“Yaz was right. Soon the electricity will stop working. I don’t know what we’re going to do then.”
“We’ll figure it out,” Brooklynn told him, taking his hand and reassuring him.
Darius walked into his hotel room, finding Kenji already there. He was standing over a dresser holding something.
“What’s going on?” He asked.
“Do you think we should have a funeral for Ben?” Kenji asked as Darius walked over. He noticed Ben’s fanny pack on the dresser and that Kenji was holding a plastic toy Ankylosaurus.
“I know we don’t know for sure if he died or not, but…” Kenji’s voice quivered slightly, and Darius placed his hand on Kenji’s arm.
“It’s a good idea. I’ll ask the girls.”
Kenji nodded and rubbed his eyes. Darius wanted to tell him that it was his fault. If he had just held on tighter. If he had just been the one to crawl on top of the train. The words got stuck in his throat at the memory of that moment. He shivered and grasped his arm tightly with his hand. He pivoted away and knocked on the girls’ door.
It was Brooklynn that answered.
“Kenji was thinking that maybe we should have a funeral for Ben.”
“Oh.” Brooklynn pauses and looks over at Sammy and Yaz, who were back in the room. “I don’t think Sammy could handle that.”
Darius looks back at Kenji, who seems to understand. “We don’t have to.”
“It doesn’t have to be all of us.” Darius offers.
“What are you talking about?” Sammy asks.
"It’s nothing Sammy." Brooklyn tried to wave her off.
"No, I know something’s going on. No more secrets, remember?"
Brooklyn sighed.
"We were thinking..." Darius started. "We were thinking of having a funeral."
"No. No." Sammy shook her head wildly. "We don't know if Ben’s dead."
"There's no way Sammy." Brooklyn tried to say, but Sammy was already running off.
"I’ll get her." Yaz offered.
"What do you want to do Kenji?" Brooklyn asked.
Darius helped Kenji with finding broken bits of wood. The pieces were thrown in a pile outside the resort. Kenji started the fire with some papers and a lighter he picked up from the gift shop.
"Ben was a good kid." Kenji started, placing Ben's fanny pack and the toy Ankylosaurus in front of the fire. "A good friend."
Darius sniffled. For the first time since it had all happened, he allowed himself to really truly cry. It wasn't fair. It wasn't right. Ben didn't deserve it. He should be here, alive, with them.
Yaz sat beside Sammy with an arm around Sammy’s shoulder. It had taken some convincing, but she had gotten Sammy to sit by the fire. Sammy was still crying away as they went around the circle, each of them offering a few words.
"He won't be forgotten," Darius promised.