Part 13.

Ten and Johnny came back when the sun was throwing its last rays up on the sky and Taeyong and Jaehyun were getting ready to settle down around the fire. Taeyong looked at their red eyes and for a moment he was struck by the shock; Ten had told Johnny. Soon Jaehyun would know too and tomorrow they’d probably go check it out and then all hope was lost.

Johnny and Ten fell asleep holding hands again and Taeyong stayed awake only to look over at Ten and see the other staring back at him.
It was as if Ten knew this was bothering Taeyong, as if he was just waiting to drop the bomb on them.

In that moment Taeyong knew he had to do something about it.

It was afternoon, close to dinner time but Taeyong found himself getting up from his seat in the sand and he walked over to Ten who was checking up on their rations. 

He went over to the other and grabbed his arm. Ten startled and pulled his arm to himself. “What the , Taeyong?!” He exclaimed and Taeyong shushed him, throwing a look over his shoulder. It was just the two of them there. Johnny was getting fresh water for them all and Jaehyun was probably on his way back from hunting. 

  “Show me.” Taeyong pleaded, but it also sounded as a command. “Show me what you saw.” 

Ten’s eyes widened before a shadow crossed them and he turned his head to look down at the food. He crouched down and started to pack it up. “Fine.” He said and Taeyong looked out on the water, but he didn’t feel relieved. He felt dread. 

  “Try not to commit suicide after you’ve seen this.” Ten said, clearly referring to Taeyong misunderstanding Ten and thinking he was going to jump off the cliff that night. Taeyong didn’t reply but got up in the trees when they reached the jungle and Ten and him met in the clearing where Taeyong made a long jump and rolled to his feet. Ten looked up in annoyance before going on the path he had pointed to and Taeyong decided to walk too. 

The sun’s light was low, yet it still managed to cast its rays into the clearing they stepped into. A small waterfall fell from a cliff and they faced a cave that dove into the mountainside. The waterfall had a stream that ran into the jungle and Taeyong guessed it ran towards Paradise. 

The grass was high, but there was a path and Taeyong hated that fact because it meant this person had been here for long. Ten leaned against a tree and crossed his arms, clearly telling Taeyong that he could explore on his own. 

For a moment he imagined Ten; the other had been devastated when he ran away and he must’ve been heartbroken at the sight of this. Taeyong’s mouth was dry as he walked forwards, noticing that there were tools spread around the area, a place to dry fish and meat and a place that would collect water from the fall. It had fallen over and Taeyong stood in front of it for a moment, he reached out a hand to let the cold water fall upon it. Something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and he jumped as he saw the figure of something close to a human being. He jumped away and fell into the fall only to get drenched. He crawled out gasping for air and looked up at what he had missed when he entered. From a branch that reached in over the area there had been tied rope around it and Taeyong stared up at the corpse that hung it. There were only bones left and the clothes were still clinging onto the skeleton. Taeyong covered his mouth as he looked at the clothes the person wore. It wasn’t necessarily old. This skeleton could be around a two or three years old. Taeyong glanced in Ten’s direction and noticed the other was just watching him. Taeyong got up but his hands were trembling. He made his way into the cave where the man had clearly lived only to eye a pile of bones. He walked over to see a cross and in the wood a name was carved into it. Olivia. 

Taeyong covered his mouth but he forced himself to go into the cave where there was a desk that had been made out of wood. It was nicely carved, Taeyong wondered how much time they had spent here. 

Ten was now standing in the middle of the clearing, looking up at the corpse that was hanging down like a decoration to the tree. Taeyong didn’t see any emotion in the other’s expression. Ten was definitely thinking but Taeyong had no idea of what the other was thinking about. He turned away from the other and walked over to the desk where a notebook lied. It had been read and Taeyong knew that Ten had read it. So he picked it in his trembling hands and started reading the front page. The man was called Nicolas and Olivia was his newlywed wife. Taeyong frowned. There was another name, a guy called Benjamin. Taeyong frowned as he flipped through the pages. It was all detailed and described very well until suddenly the inputs were shorter and Taeyong frowned at one alarming one.

  “Benjamin is acting weird. He has lost hope. Olivia needs extra care because of the baby, the future doesn’t look good.” Taeyong frowned as he read the next entry. “Benjamin just pulled me to the side. He says that without Olivia we will have a better chance at surviving. I fear he has become reckless. I fear for Olivia’s safety.” 

Taeyong read through again. “I fought him. He tried to slit but I pushed him off of her. He ran into the woods. It’s getting dark. I feel like I’m being watched. He’s gonna come back.”

  “She’s dead. She fled to save her and her baby’s life and I woke up to her scream. I woke up to the sound of her bones breaking when she landed. Benjamin told me she fell, but I know better. He must’ve knocked me out. We’re gonna eat her meat, we need meat, Benjamin says. I’m eating my wife.” 

  “I guess we humans really are monsters. I ended another person’s life. Took him to the other end of the island, where a cliff reached out towards the ocean. I pushed him off. He fought back but he still fell. Gravity dragged his body off the edge. The bones in his fingers got crushed beneath my boot. I heard his scream and saw the waves wash over him, devouring his body. Somebody I once called a friend. I’m sure he drowned, I stood there and watched him get thrown against the rocks. Benjamin is dead.”

  “I’m incapable of surviving this island. It wins. I’m starving and I’m hopeless. There’s not much to say, nobody is coming to save us. I might as well just end it. I’m sorry, Olivia.”
 

Taeyong sunk to the ground, the shadows were growing longer as the sun was setting but he couldn’t move. They had all killed each other and eaten each other.

Taeyong looked over at Ten who was re-adjusting the cross. There was a mere look of pity on his face, but it almost looked like he was adjusting a paiting on a wall and not the grave of a woman who was killed in cold blood. Ten was a ticking bomb. Ten was acting like Benjamin and Taeyong… Taeyong couldn’t let Jaehyun end up like Olivia. Johnny and Jaehyun still had hope. Ten did not. And hopelessness spread like decease.

It was the anniversary for Mark’s mother’s death and Johnny came home from school when he was let off earlier. Mark still wasn’t home from school and Johnny tried to study as his senior year would be the important year. He wanted to go to a good college to study. 

He made extra good notes that he had promised to give to Mark. He had once promised Oscar but over the summer the kid had found a family had sent a few letters to the orphanage telling them that he loved it there. Johnny felt a slight envy but during spring that year he had fought against somebody who had wanted to adopt him. He simply told the orphanage that it was too late and that he would turn 18 in college, but the woman was being persistent and Johnny’s power was slipping. Brooke had tried to talk to him and Johnny had left the kitchen in anger. The adoption was… it was going through and that meant that his idea of going to a college nearby was not an option. This family lived in Chicago and that was too far away from the orphanage for Johnny to visit Mark frequently. 

The latch opened and Mark threw up his bag before climbing up. Johnny was drumming on his laptop with his fingers and he waited for Mark to say something. Mark just kept his face turned towards the ground and he walked towards Johnny in a direct line. Johnny opened his arms automatically and Mark dropped into the other’s embrace. 

Johnny closed his eyes when Mark started crying. How could he tell the other that they would be separated very soon? How could he promise Mark that they’d see each other when that woman made it as if Johnny would never see the walls of the orphanage ever again? Johnny didn’t like her, and that’s why he didn’t even want to mention her name. She was a nobody to him, meaningless. So why give a name to something that didn’t mean anything to Johnny? 
Mark sat in Johnny’s bed that night as they watched the sun set. “I realized one thing today.” He said and Johnny looked at the boy who was bathed in the pink light of the sky. “Even if my mom left me, life gave me a brother.”

Mark smiled at him, and Johnny sheepishly smiled back.

A brother.

A brother who would be taken away.

Johnny hated being 16. 

Taeyong found himself avoiding Jaehyun that night and he only let the other kiss his cheek before they went to bed. Ten was smiling to himself and it was making Taeyong very angry. 

That morning Johnny woke them up by throwing water in their faces. 

  “GOD JOHNNY!” Ten screamed and Johnny laughed.

  “I miss making you guys annoyed.” He said and Ten got up before throwing punches at Johnny.

  “Annoyed?! More like furious!” He shrieked and Johnny only trapped Ten in his arms before pressing kisses to his face and Jaehyun laughed.

  “Look out, Johnny.” He told the taller. “We’ll come for you.”

Ten pushed himself out of Johnny’s embrace and it didn’t go unnoticed. Johnny acted as if it didn’t bother him but Jaehyun’s smile dropped. Taeyong just watched Ten walk over to start doing his chores. What could’ve been a fun morning was ruined. 

 

Jaehyun was worried. He could feel his forehead aching from all the frowning and he tried to smooth it out with his fingers. Johnny was out, Taeyong too and Ten had just come back from cutting liana that they could use for future projects. 

Jaehyun took some time to actually look at Ten and found the image shocking. Ten looked horrible, there were so many cuts on his arms and legs as if he didn’t care enough to avoid bushes and branches. His shoulders had wounds on them and looked scraped. Jaehyun knew it could only be from bumping into the trunks of the trees because of lack of focus on where he was walking. He felt a pain in his forehead and it was because he was frowning again. What was up with Ten? 

Jaehyun almost hit himself; it was obvious. The fear of dying on the island and being forgotten by the world. Picturing his friends torn apart by Kong or the panther or maybe somebody was as stupid as to go into the water and wash up on shore the next morning. There were so many things to fear and Jaehyun had always been the one to succumb to them and panic. Ten and Johnny had been so good at calming him down; Johnny with his all-knowing reassurance that he knew what would happen and what to do, Ten with his determination to be successful. These two were quite a match, but now it was as if some shadow was looming over Ten and he was getting sloppy, he threw down the lianas and dropped down on the sand without a word. Jaehyun got up, leaving the shells he had gathered to make some nice decorations for their camp. Ten peeked up at him through his hands when Jaehyun’s tall form covered Ten in a shadow. 

  “Hey,” Jaehyun said tentatively and Ten mimicked the smile.

  “Hi,” he replied and grabbed the liana with a loose grip, he got ready to braid it with another when Jaehyun reached out a hand to stop the other. 

  “What’s up?” He asked and Ten looked at Jaehyun, his eyes had looked lifeless but now emotions were shining through and Jaehyun prepared himself for the wave of emotions that would wash over him at any moment. Ten inhaled shakily. 

  “I’m just feeling a bit down lately,” came instead and Jaehyun didn’t really buy it. Ten faked another smile. “It’ll get better.” He lied and Jaehyun took himself in nodding, he had never been the type to pry. He let people come to him and if they didn’t want to he wouldn’t force them. He turned away to get back to his own work when Ten reached up to grab his wrist. 

  “Actually,” he started but he didn’t get to say more. From the trees came Taeyong and Ten spun around to watch the other drop to the ground. Usually Taeyong would slowly lower himself but this time his eyes looked wild. 

The two just watched him stand there for a moment before Taeyong started panting exaggeratedly. “Monkeys.” He said in explanation and then went over to Jaehyun to grab his wrist and drag him away from Ten as if the other was something to avoid. A danger to Jaehyun. 

Again Jaehyun never pried and so he just brought Taeyong over to the shells and showed him the different colors and the pearls he had found in the shallow puddles that gathered by the rocky area of the beach. Taeyong looked like he started relaxing more and more as Jaehyun spoke, but he wondered if he was missing out on something that was happening in the group. He thought he was good at observing, but he knew he was missing something when he caught Taeyong in glaring at Ten and the other glaring right back. Since when did this start?

 

And how would it end?