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The fire is flickering as the yellowjackets are standing in a circle. Everyone is hungry, no, they are starving. Shauna pulled the Queen of clubs; Jackie lets out a breath of relief. They look at each other and Jackie smiles but not for long since it’s her turn to draw next.
She pulls slowly from the deck, looks at Shauna and then the card in her hand. She freezes the queen of hearts staring back at her. She can hear everyone around her breathing, eager to find out what card she had pulled.
This is stupid there is no wilderness, there’s just hunger and some fucked up girls stranded in the woods. It’s pure luck and Jackie got unlucky. She looks around the circle until she makes eye contact with Shauna. “It’s the queen of hearts.” Her voice cracks and tears escape her eyes, rolling down her round face. “The wilderness has chosen.“ Lottie whispers and steps closer to Jackie. Jackie is still frozen in place. “No!” Shauna screams, „We have to pull again, Lottie, please!” Mari holds down Shauna’s arms before she can punch Lottie. Lottie steps closer to Shauna. “It chose Shauna.” Shauna tries to pull herself loose from Mari’s grip with no success, so she spits into Lotties’ face. Lottie doesn’t react at first, then she wipes Shauna’s spit from her cheek and turns around.
“Natalie” Lottie says signaling to Nat. She knows what to do, they have discussed it earlier. Nat grabs the gun which is lent on the wall of the cabin and slowly points it at Jackie. Nats hand is shacking, she won’t do it, right?
“What the fuck Nat.” Jackie whispers she is too shocked to panic so she’s just standing there facing the gun. “What the fuck are you doing!?” she screams not just at Natalie but at all the others as well. She looks around “Thai? Van, please!” She screams but Tai and Van avoid eye contact. This is who they are now. This is what the wilderness has made them.
Lottie steps closer to Natalie. “Shoot.” Natalie is sobbing, but her gun is still pointed at Jackie. “Jackie I’m so sorry” Nat closes her eyes. “No!” Jackie yells, „You better look at me while you do it!” She has stopped crying now, she knows she’s surrounded by monsters. Theres no empathy left in them. Natalie opens her eyes her body is shaking but nobody says anything because the girls know they couldn’t be in her place. “We can set up more traps or, or I don’t know but there must be another way.” Jackie is talking softly now, her only chance of surviving is if she manages to talk town Nat.
Jackie isn’t sure if they had really been standing there for long, but it truly feels like time has stopped. If she can stretch this out a little longer Nat will break down but Lottie is getting impatient. “Natalie, shoot.” Lottie says again but Natalie shoves the gun into her hands. “I can’t I’m sorry, I really can’t do it Lottie.” Lottie doesn’t respond she takes the gun out of Nats hands and points it back to Jackie again. It’s over for Jackie, it really is. She looks over to Shauna who is still kicking and fighting. “I love you, Shauna.” Then she closes her eyes and tries to make peace with the horrible situation she’s in. If she wasn’t the one who was chosen, she would probably have done the same as the people around her.
“No!” Shauna screams and finally manages to get away from Mari. She launches at Lottie pushing her to the ground. She holds her down. “Run!” Jackie doesn’t have to be told twice. She pushes Natalie to the side and runs outside into the Snow.
Jackie doesn’t have time to decide where she’s going to go because she can hear that a few of the girls have started chasing after her. She cuts a few corners to throw of the girls and drops her jacket, this way her white shirt blends in with the snow. She can’t go to the cliff because she could get cornered but maybe if she runs to the lake, she can run over the ice without anyone noticing her. The snow has made its way through her clothes and her thin shoes, she’s freezing. But the biggest danger is still Lottie and the girls. Her friends, how could they do this?
Jackie throws a branch on the ice to test its thickness. It seems strong enough, but she needs to hurry because the lake is an open area where people can spot her. She tries not to slip but can’t go far before she hears a familiar voice.
“Jackie!” She turns around to see Shauna. Shauna runs towards her and hugs her tightly, she isn’t wearing much, and Jackie knows that she’s cold. “I’m glad you’re ok.” She cries into Jackie’s shoulder. “Thanks for saving me” They pull apart and look at each other, Jackie wipes the tears from Shauna’s face and kisses her on the forehead. “I need to go.” She says. “I’m coming with you” Shauna tells her and she can thell by her voice how serious she is. “No Shauna you can go back its still safe for you.“ before Shauna can protest They hear someone approaching.
“I found her! Shes here!” Its Mari shes carrying a knife with her. “Drop the fucking knife Mari!” Jackie yells at her. Mari steps onto the ice and it cracks a little. Jackie grabs Shauna’s hand and starts backing off. “Well run of three, ok?” Jackie whispers to Shauna not braking eye contact with Mari. Shauna nods. “One” Shauna steps back “Two” Mari takes a step and the ice breaks even further “Three!” Just as Jackies about to start running she gets yanked backwards onto the ice.
She’s still holding Shauna’s onto Shauna, but her hand is in freezing water now. Shauna has fallen into the ice and is trying to pull herself out. “Shit! Hold on Shauna don’t let go.” Jackie gets on her knees and tries to pull out Shauna but the edge of the hole she’s in keeps breaking off. Shauna’s lips are slowly turning blue as Jackie tries to save her. “Mari help! Oh my god!” A few other teammates have made their way down to the lake, but they just stand there and watch. Shauna is still kicking and trying not to drown but her movements are getting slower. “Don’t give up Shauna please I can save you.” Jackie sobs and looks up where Mari stood earlier Lottie is standing now. Jackie isn’t worried about herself anymore, she just needs to get Shauna out of the freezing water but the weight of her clothes are pulling Shauna down. “Please somebody help her! You fucking Monsters.” She is right, they are monsters Natalie covers her mouth as she’s crying by the sight of her friend drowning. But she doesn’t help, and neither do the others. If they don’t eat soon they’re all going to die. Jackie feels Shauna getting heavier. She has stopped moving. Jackie is lying flat on her stomach with her arm fully under water, with Shauna fully under water.
Lottie goes over to the hole in the ice and kneels next to Jackie. She reaches inside the water and together they pull Shauna to the surface and onto the ice, but it’s too late. Jackie screams louder than she had ever screamed before, but it doesn’t change the fact that Shauna is frozen. “She’s not breathing! She isn’t breathing.” Lottie hugs Jackie. “The wilderness has changed its mind. It wanted you to live.” Jackie tries to push Lottie into the water. “There is no wilderness stop with your with your bullshit Lottie!” When she fails to push in Lottie she turns back to Shauna. She looks beautiful, her eyelashes have crystalized, and her mouth is slightly open. She froze in time. She takes off Shauna’s necklace which she gave to her before the plane crash and puts it around her own neck. If Jackie would have let herself be killed Shauna still be alive. If she had gone anywhere but the lake she’d still be here. It wasn’t the wilderness, it was her. This is her fault.
Van walks over to her and gives Jackie her jacket. She helps her stand up and hugs her. Jackie is still sobbing, her face is red from the cold and she can’t feel her arm.
Jackie can’t remember the walk back to the cabin, she has completely blacked out but she’s inside now with a cup of tea in her hands. She was the one who pulled the card. She was the one who was supposed to die.
also heres som Antler queen Jackie Taylor art I drew bc the Title is kinda klickbait:P