CHAPTER ONE JUNE 5, 2020   “What the hell?” Russell balked in disbelief.   Getting out from the driver's seat of the rented SUV, Russell’s eyes were immediately drawn to the girl wearing a mustard maxi eyelet sundress and Salvatore Ferragamo stilettos with an oversized pair of Chanel sunglasses perched on her head. Bianca was sitting on top of her large suitcase, talking animatedly to Amelie and Jason, the two new friends she had easily made within the short span of five minutes.   “Can anyone tell me what’s up with her?” Russell stopped beside the Singaporean exchange students and questioned, gesturing towards the fashionista with his eyes, “Does she know that we’re going to hike today? I’m pretty sure I sent out the itinerary to the group.”   Leon only shrugged.   “Her tiny ankles are gonna snap in those heels.” Russell shook his head and sighed.   “I do have a first-aid kit in my luggage,” Vanessa mumbled distractedly as she scrolled through her phone. “Oh, by the way, Nellie is running late. Rowan messaged the group saying she’s still packing.”   “What?! She’s still packing at this time? What is she even bringing? Her entire house?” Russell spluttered as he glanced down at his watch.   “Hey Russell, thanks for the invite once again,” a calm voice sounded from behind, causing Russell to turn.   Clad in a floral midi dress and sporting a flawless face of makeup, Estee walked over with a bright smile, pulling along her own small, rose gold suitcase. Russell’s annoyance was thrown to the back of his head as he hurried to introduce his friends to one another.   “Guys, this is Estee, my childhood friend who was born in England and is currently studying full-time at USC. Estee, this is Nessie and Leon. We came to USC for spring exchange together.”   “Hi, I’m Vanessa. You can either call me Nessie or Van, or whatever floats your boat. Russell has told us a lot about you and it’s really nice to finally meet you in person.” Vanessa smiled cordially as she stuck out a hand instinctively, a habit she has developed as a business student.   “Why so formal, Ness?” Leon teased before turning towards the new girl. “I think I’ve seen you around before.” He then paused for a moment before adding, “Oh, you were the mediator at that restaurant downtown! Thanks for helping me and Seth diffuse the argument that time.”   “Ah, no worries at all.” Estee smiled shyly, recalling the restaurant brawl that she had stepped in to stop before it had gotten out of hand.   True enough, after another agonising ten minutes, Chanel came running towards the group in a white baby doll dress and her newly purchased Timberland boots—she had been eyeing Vanessa’s Timberlands for the longest time and had to get those iconic yellow boots for herself as well—while dragging her medium-sized suitcase and yelling out strings of apologies. Rowan, her roommate, followed her while donning a look of clear exasperation.   “Uchi, you’re finally here!” Lani gasped dramatically as he immediately reached for Rowan’s hand and took her duffel bag from her.   “You’re late,” Russell said crossly. “You wasted fifteen minutes of our precious time.”   “Don’t be a killjoy, Rusty. It’s called being fashionably late and I apologised, didn’t I?” Chanel slapped Russell’s back with a -eating grin plastered on her face. “Stop frowning! Aren’t you excited? We’re finally going on a road trip!” Chanel reached up and pushed the ends of Russell’s mouth upwards, forcing him to smile.   Chanel continued her spiel, not caring if anyone actually paid attention to her, “Oh my gosh, you don’t know how much difficulty I had in packing. I actually woke up at four this morning and there were just too many clothes I wanted to bring on this trip, but I also wanted to leave some space for our Vegas shopping spree. At first, I planned to just bring a duffel bag, but my duffel bag isn’t structured enough and I was worried that my clothes would all get crumpled. But I don’t have a small suitcase, so I had to drag Uchi out of bed to borrow one from her. Guess what, her suitcase filled up too quickly before I could get everything in. I ended up having to use that middle-sized suitcase I got—”   “Okay guys, everyone’s here. Let’s go. We’ll stop at Pappy & Harriet’s first for lunch,” Russell announced over Chanel’s rambles while clapping for everyone’s attention as he headed towards his SUV to open the trunk.   His eyes then swept over the row of suitcases lined up and he exhaled slowly in disbelief.   “What on earth happened to light packing?” Russell glared pointedly at the girls in his carpool, specifically at Bianca, Chanel, and Vanessa. “I already thought Nessie was being ridiculous when she was packing, but look at both of you!”   “Wait, why are you targeting us three only? Estee brought a suitcase as well and she isn’t getting lashed out at,” Chanel noted unhappily. “You are ing biased!”   Estee managed a stiff smile, clearly at a loss on what to do or say.   “Don’t mind them. It’s normal for them to fight. The sun will rise from the West the day they stop bickering.” Vanessa chuckled in amusement, shooting Estee a warm smile while trying to lift the biggest suitcase into the trunk first before Leon wordlessly reached forward and took it from her.   “I did pack light.” Bianca blinked innocently.   “You’re one to talk,” Russell shot back, jabbing his index finger furiously at the only gigantic suitcase that was taking up almost half the space in the trunk.   “Trust me, I would have brought a bigger suitcase if not for my self-control!” Bianca countered quickly, sticking out her tongue.   Russell gaped at her. “You have self-control?”   “Oof, burn!” Leon snickered.   “Shut up, Leon! This doesn’t concern you!” Bianca scowled.   “C’mon, guys, stop flirting and help us with the luggage,” Leon finally said, not realising that Lucas’s face had started to harden.   “I swear these won’t even fit!” Russell frowned again as he took a second look at the suitcases and duffel bags.   “Ever played Tetris?” Bianca rolled her eyes as she moved forward to rearrange the suitcases before freezing up when she realised Lucas was beside her, quietly putting in his own duffel bag.   “Exactly! When there’s a will, there’s a way! You gotta believe,” Chanel said, backing up Bianca immediately.   “You guys are horrible! I’m the one who’s gonna have to suffer driving this car. I hate y’all!” Russell cried out in frustration.   “Stop whining! I’m one of the drivers too and I’m not complaining,” Bianca replied while moving away from the trunk briskly, trying to avoid any eye contact with her ex-boyfriend.   “Okay, guys, everything is fitted in nicely now and we still have some extra space left!” Estee exclaimed shortly after she and Vanessa had managed to successfully rotate everything to fit.   “See, what did I tell you?” Bianca said smugly.   “Get your in the car, so we can start moving! The other cars have already left,” Russell responded hotly.   “Don’t tell me what to do!”   “Oh god, I swear they’re worse than you and Russ,” Vanessa whispered to Chanel while shaking her head.   “Bianca is definitely gonna become my BFF,” Chanel claimed with a proud wink.   The first thing Russell did when he entered the large vehicle after igniting the engine was connect his carefully curated road trip playlist downloaded from Spotify to the car stereo. “Are we ready, guys?” he yelled from the driver’s seat while loading the GPS.   “Ever ready!” Chanel squealed.   “Yes! Let’s go!” Bianca boomed.   Vanessa, who was currently sandwiched between the two screaming girls in the second row of seats, flinched and closed her eyes instinctively at the loud volume before chuckling weakly at their enthusiasm. She had kindly given up her usual passenger seat to Estee and was made to take the center seat by Chanel since, according to the younger girl, Vanessa was the smallest out of everyone.   “Seriously, Bianca, are you legit gonna wear those stilts to hike?” Russell questioned dubiously, driving off at a steady speed.   Even Lucas, who was sitting in the last row with Leon, looked a little concerned.   “Ever heard of the phrase, ‘Beauty is pain’?” Bianca blankly stated as she played with her manicures she had gotten just for this trip. “I’m gonna look like the hottest Bohemian princess in the desert. Anyway, I did my research. The hiking trails are all relatively flat and with me living in heels for as long as I have, I’m a pro even in the wildest of terrains.”   “Gosh, just pretend I never asked,” Russell scoffed as he reached forward to turn up the volume of the car stereo.   Soon, both Chanel and Bianca were screaming to the lyrics of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody, severely butchering the high notes of the song. At the back, Lucas exchanged uncertain looks with Leon, totally unprepared to witness the chaotic sight unfolding in front of him.   Leon lightly chuckled, patting the other boy’s shoulder. “Just wear your earphones, close your eyes, and sleep.” While speaking, Leon crossed his arms and shut his eyes.   “Look at Nessie’s face!” Russell laughed out loud when he caught Vanessa’s winces through the rearview mirror. “The choir girl is judging!”   “Nessie, that’s not very nice! You know we aren’t professional singers and who said we have to even sing in tune?” Chanel frowned and playfully slapped Vanessa’s stomach, causing the older girl to bend over from the impact.   “Hey, I’m not!” Vanessa defended. “I’m legit not judging. I’ve heard you sing so many times that I’m used to it by now.”   “Wait, how about we let Vanessa sing a song?” Estee suggested after a pause from the front.   “Ooh, a solo? Sounds good to me!” Bianca agreed wholeheartedly, looking expectantly at Vanessa.   “Yes, yes! You go, Estee! Nessie sings really well!” Chanel yipped excitedly, shaking Vanessa’s arm. “Can I choose a song for you?”   “Huh? I-I was only in choir during secondary school days and that was like five years ago?” Vanessa muttered uncertainly with widened eyes at Estee’s proposal.   “Come on,” Chanel urged with her signature puppy eyes that were always used when she was begging someone for something.   Defeated by the anticipated looks from everyone, Vanessa finally relented with a small nod, albeit reluctantly.   “Yay!” Chanel shot a fist up in the air and chanted, “Sing Speechless! Sing Speechless! Sing Speechless!”   “Nessie is supposed to choose a song, not you,” Russell pointed out with a shake of his head.   “Nessie is indecisive as . If we let her choose a song, she’ll take ages and end up not singing instead,” Chanel retorted.   “That’s very true,” Russell chortled. “Maybe that’s her tactic. Waste enough time until we reach our destination. Okay, Speechless it is!”   Vanessa just sighed. The instrumental started playing as Chanel’s phone, which was showing the lyrics, was shoved into her hands. Vanessa carefully took in a deep breath and started the first verse with an apprehensive heart. Bianca’s eyes widened upon hearing the clear and rich voice.   “Wow, I’m definitely recording this!” The brunette fumbled with her phone in excitement.   What surprised the entire group was when a male voice joined in the chorus from the back, the two voices forming a beautiful harmony. Bianca swallowed at the familiar voice she remembered clearly from years ago as she averted her gaze to the grey highway outside of the car window. Vanessa spun around and saw Lucas casually singing along with her. Lucas had long ago removed his earphones and had been nodding along to the Disney song. He gave Vanessa a sheepish look to which the girl returned with a small smile, silently encouraging him to take the second verse. The four-minute song ended shortly with stunned silence.   “Oh my ing god, I didn’t know you could sing as well!” Chanel broke the silence unceremoniously as she turned around sharply, slapping her palms on the headrest and leaning towards the male sitting directly behind her.   The said boy flinched backwards and managed a cautious smile.   “You’re scaring him,” Leon muttered with closed eyes.   Chanel waved off Leon’s accusations and continued, “We can have a singing session over a campfire tonight!”   “Uh, I brought my guitar. I guess we can use it tonight too,” Lucas said.   “Awesome! Campfire under the stars with music, how romantic!” Chanel clasped her hands together and cooed, before turning back to face forward.   Soon, they reached Pioneertown, a small, rustic Old West town located east of Los Angeles.   “Holy ! This place is giving me total cowboy vibes,” Bianca cried out, winding down the car window.   “Yes, I feel like I’ve stepped back into the 1800s,” Estee agreed, offering one of her few opinions.   After a quick lunch stop at Pappy and Harriet’s, the twenty-member group dispersed back into their respective cars and set off to Joshua Tree National Park. Perhaps it was due to the filling lunch they’d had earlier, but the ride to the national park was quiet this time with almost everyone dozing off in their seats. Russell stifled a light yawn and popped a mint into his mouth, fingers tapping on the wheel as he stared at the never-ending straight highway ahead. Taking a glance at the backseat through the rearview mirror, he snickered at the sight of Chanel sleeping with agape. Bianca was snapping photos of the unglamourous Chanel, hiding her giggles behind her hands before she locked eyes with Russell. He smirked and mouthed, “Send me,” to which Bianca gave a subtle “okay” sign. Vanessa’s head, on the other hand, was rolling in all directions due to the absence of a proper headrest in the middle seat. Russell’s lips twitched upwards into a knowing smirk when he watched the male in the last row carefully fit a neck pillow onto her. Russell returned his attention back to the road, mentally wishing that he could take an afternoon siesta as well.   Half an hour later, Russell eagerly announced, “Wakey, wakey! We have reached Joshua Tree!” as he switched off the engine. “Time for a short hike to stretch our legs!   The SUV had stopped in the car park leading to the Hidden Valley Trail, a must-see place at Joshua Tree National Park. Everyone slowly filed out of the car, some still laced with sleep and others feeling thrilled to have finally stepped onto the grounds of the national park. Once all three cars arrived, the big group officially set off for the short one-mile hike, making stops now and then for photos.   “Oh my god, poor Nessie, not only have you been displaced from the passenger seat, you’re now also fired from your photo-taking job.” Chanel threw her head back and laughed as she pointed at Estee, who was helping Russell take Instagram-worthy photos with the Giant Burrito as the background.   “Sorry, Nessie, but Estee does have mad photography skills and she can get the angles I want,” shouted Russell when he overheard Chanel’s loud comment.   “Walao, stop insulting my height! It’s a real pain in the trying to take photos for you too. I have to lift the camera over my head to get those angles you want,” Vanessa shot back and mock-glared at Russell. “Come on, Nellie. I’ll help with your photos instead. I would rather bend down than tip toe.”   “Thank you, but I already have Bianca to help me with that.” With that, Chanel bounded off towards Bianca and linked arms with the older girl, sticking her tongue at Vanessa.   Vanessa’s jaw dropped at the unexpected betrayal, staring at Chanel in complete disbelief. Russell cackled evilly from a distance at the pure rejection.   “I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” Chanel jested as she ran back to Vanessa, side-hugging her. “Come, come, we can take a photo together!”   “Go away, don’t come near me. I don’t want a photo with you,” Vanessa huffed with a pout, leaning away.   “Oh my god, did y’all see that!” Bianca suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the rock. “There are people rock climbing! Damn it, I wanna rock climb too!”   “In those heels?” Russell asked skeptically.   “Why didn’t you tell me that we could rock climb here? I even brought my own harness to this trip!” Bianca frowned deeply.   “Apparently someone insisted on being fashionable in the desert and that someone also proudly declared that she did her due diligence before coming,” Russell deflected easily.   “You bastard!” Bianca lashed out, causing the male to erupt into another heap of cackles.       Only a few hours in and Chloe was already regretting her decision to join this road trip.   Even with her earbuds in and her own music turned up as loud as possible without blowing out her eardrums, she could hear Karter and Alexander screaming behind her while the vibrations from the upbeat music playing from Kallie’s portable speakers pulsed throughout the vehicle. Just her luck that she had ended up in the car with the two loudest, craziest boys in the group. On their own, both were already too wild and too talkative for Chloe’s liking. Put together, they were a cacophonous duo that seemed to be bent on destroying everyone’s sanity with their non-stop antics.   It was like a nightmare that she was unable to wake up from, no matter how hard she pinched herself.   She couldn’t even attempt to nap, since Karter and Alexander kept yelling about who-knows-what at the highest decibels conceivable. It felt like the two boys hadn’t paused to breathe for even one second ever since the group had met up at the USC Village earlier that morning and split into their respective carpools. Chloe didn’t know how they did it and she could feel her mood slipping with every minute that ticked by.   The bare scenery surrounding them didn’t help either. The Joshua trees themselves were admittedly quite interesting to look at whenever they passed by the occasional one rooted along Queen Valley Road, since she had never seen a yucca palm until now. Otherwise, there was nothing but drab mountains, boulder piles, and dry vegetation dotting the expansive flat plains.   Karter suddenly stuck his head out of the open window, his dark hair whipping in the wind, and shouted at the top of his lungs, “Go faster, Kale!”   “Yeah, there’s no one here but us!” Alexander crowed, following suit and sticking his head out the other window.   “Oh god, please don’t,” Chloe muttered under her breath. Since she was sitting in the passenger seat, she was able to see the upcoming bumps in the dirt road and she had no desire to feel the SUV fly over these mini hills.   Kallie shot Chloe a sympathetic glance. “Don’t worry, I won’t,” she reassured Chloe while steadily maintaining her current speed. Kallie then barked over her shoulder, “Shut up, you two! And get your heads back inside! Otherwise I’m dumping you both in the middle of nowhere and you’ll have to walk to the next stop yourselves.”   “Aww, c’mon, Kale, don’t be such a wet blanket!” Karter wheedled as he maneuvered his arms over the driver’s seat to place his hands on Kallie’s shoulders and gently squeeze them. “We’re on this road trip to have fun! A little speed isn’t gonna hurt anyone,” he said as he moved back when Kallie’s right hand briefly let go of the steering wheel so that she could swat him away.   Chloe grimaced and shrunk in her seat, her small hands gripping the armrests even tighter. Maybe Karter didn’t mind bouncing around like a pinball in his seat, since he clearly had no sense of self-preservation with the top half of his body currently flailing outside of the large vehicle. But she personally had no desire to experience a quasi-rollercoaster ride and hear the two boys shriek even louder with glee.   This was supposed to be a calm, peaceful summer road trip. But right now, it was the complete opposite and Chloe decided that she was never going to travel with strangers ever again. Especially if the strangers were named Karter Tsui and Alexander Yu.   “It’s a lot bumpier in the back though,” Lucy called from the third row where she was cuddling with Elliot. “And it’s probably not great in the front either, na.”   Even though she was too far away to see the couple in the backseat, Chloe was grateful that there were some level-headed people in their SUV as well. If Lucy and Elliot were as wild as Karter and Alexander, Chloe would’ve jumped out of the car and called an Uber to take her back to campus. At least the Uber driver would most likely be considerate enough to stay quiet during the ride, if only to secure a five-star rating.   “Karter’s right. Y’all need to relax and live a little,” Alexander said, raising the volume of his voice several notches so that he could be heard over the whistling wind, which Chloe thought was completely unnecessary. “Maybe we should drink to loosen up.”   “Let’s do it!” Karter cheered.   Chloe blanched. These two were crazy enough without the alcohol. They were bound to be infinitely worse once inebriated from whatever Alexander had stashed in his drawstring bag. She remembered hearing the distinct clink of glass bottles when he had dropped the bag next to him after climbing into the SUV that morning.   Luckily, Kallie noticed how Chloe was becoming increasingly uncomfortable and starting to fidget in her seat, so she firmly told the boys, “Not now. There’s no way I’m letting you monkeys destroy the rental car on the first day. The road is way too bumpy and you’ll definitely spill.”   “No, we won’t,” Alexander protested, his left hand already reaching into his drawstring bag. “I’m a pro at drinking. There’s no way I’d ever spill.”   Chloe couldn’t help but snort after hearing his weak rebuttal. He sounded like a borderline alcoholic, wanting to drink in the middle of the day.   “Why don’t we play some games to pass the time instead, na?” Lucy piped up from the backseat. “Maybe a word association game or something like that.”   “That’s a much better idea,” Kallie immediately agreed.   “Yeah, let’s do that,” Elliot added.   Karter huffed as he withdrew from the window and settled into his seat. “Alright, fine.” His eyes glinted as he added, “But if I win, I get the first pick of alcohol when we drink tonight.”   “Not if I win and call dibs first,” Alexander challenged with a devious grin.   As the two boys playfully bickered, Kallie slightly angled her head towards Chloe and kindly asked, “You feel like joining?”   “No thank you. I think I’ll pass,” Chloe mumbled as she adjusted her earphones.   Kallie smiled and nodded in understanding. “That’s fine. I’ll try to keep the boys in check. I know they’re pretty annoying right now.”   “Thank you,” Chloe quietly replied. With that, her eyes glazed over as she tuned out the others’ voices and stared out of the window, the repetitive scenery soon becoming a blur. Chloe was so mentally checked out that she didn’t notice the landscape gradually changing until the horizon was suddenly filled with large sculptured rock formations. The SUV turned right and passed several campsites before coming to a stop next to a giant granite boulder.   “Okay, time for a hiking break,” Kallie announced while turning off the ignition and pushing open the car door.   Chloe sighed in relief when the deafening music from her friend’s portable speakers paused as well. That was one source of noise now gone.   “Finally!” Karter swung open his door and jumped out of the vehicle before stretching his arms behind his back. “Where are we, Kale?”   “Jumbo Rocks Campground,” she answered as she also stepped out of the SUV. “But we’re not camping here.” Kallie then pointed to a sign that read Skull Rock Nature Trail. “We’re gonna walk to Skull Rock for some sight-seeing and photos!”   “How long is the hike, na?” Lucy curiously asked as Elliot pushed down Karter’s now-empty seat to create an exit route for the couple from the back row. She carefully followed her boyfriend out of the large vehicle, grabbing his proffered hand when he exited first and helped her step down. “Thanks, Hoon,” she murmured, pressing her lips against his right cheek in a light kiss.   “Any time, Ru,” he replied with a soft smile.   Kallie checked her phone, which had the itinerary that she and Russell had created weeks prior, before telling Lucy, “It’s a little less than two miles. We should be able to finish it in an hour or two, depending on how long we stay at the rock.”   The longer they delayed getting back to the car, the better. Chloe didn’t think she could stand listening to Karter and Alexander spout nonsense for another second. Hopefully this hike would help the two boys shed some of the excess energy that seemed to be powering them all day. After carefully wrapping the wire of her earphones around her phone and placing the electronic device in her purse, Chloe hopped out of the SUV and closed the door after her. When she looked up, she found herself staring at Alexander as he sprayed sunscreen onto his face, arms, and legs.   He soon noticed her watching him and paused before asking, “You need some?” Alexander then slightly shook the bottle of sunscreen while adding with a wry smile, “I don’t know about you, but there’s no way I’m letting myself get burned in the desert.”   Chloe pursed her lips into a straight line. Despite how much the Chinese-American boy had annoyed her during the drive, he did have a point. And her own sunscreen was buried deep in her duffel bag, which was squished between everyone else’s luggage in the trunk. Since she didn’t want to bother Kallie by asking her to dig through the trunk, especially after driving for several hours, Chloe let out a small sigh and nodded.   “Use as much as you want,” Alexander lazily said as he tossed the sunscreen bottle to her.   “Thank you,” Chloe mumbled before letting out a tiny squeak when the bottle almost dropped from her hands after just barely catching it.   “No worries. You can just throw it onto my seat once you’re done,” he answered over his shoulder as he walked around the SUV to join the others who were waiting in the shade of the gigantic granite boulder.   While Chloe was carefully spraying sunscreen over her extremely pale skin, another SUV pulled up next to her with the windows down, showcasing Jeremy in the driver’s seat and Jason in the leftmost middle row seat. “We’re here!” Jeremy cheerfully greeted as he waved through the open window.   Chloe sent the younger boy a slight nod in acknowledgment before quickly averting her gaze and keeping it focused on the sandy ground as she finished applying the sunscreen. Luckily, Jeremy seemed to be satisfied with the short greeting and had already turned away to poke Ripley’s shoulder to rouse her from her nap. Chloe could soon hear the doors of the other SUV opening and voices chattering as the passengers stepped out.   Feeling her heart begin to race from suddenly being surrounded by so many unfamiliar people who all seemed to know each other already, Chloe hurriedly opened the middle car door and stepped into the vehicle again. Once she was inside, she froze as she listened to everyone else greet each other and discuss how they had passed the time during the long drive. Her hands clasped even tighter around the bottle of sunscreen as she willed herself to stop being such a wimp.   She couldn’t hide like this forever. She couldn’t continue avoiding the group for the rest of the trip. It just wasn’t feasible.   However, just as she was about to step out of the SUV, Chloe heard loud singing and yelling from another vehicle that drove into the empty space that was on the other side of Jeremy’s car. The Korean-American girl gingerly turned around, and dropped open when she watched Bianca and Chanel climb onto the hood of the SUV while Russell shook his fist at them. He then flipped them off when they pointedly ignored him to continue taking pictures.   Vanessa stepped out of the SUV as well and managed to convince the other two girls to climb down before they got sunburned, and the rest of the passengers from Russell’s car followed him to join the rest of the crew.   Chloe wondered if she should even bother leaving the vehicle at this point. She was in no hurry to put herself in the company of Karter and Alexander again after enduring hours of chatter. She could also finally get her much-needed, long-overdue nap.   And it wasn’t like anyone would miss her. No one here knew her. No one would care if she didn’t end up joining them. She was practically invisible, which was…fine with her…   “Yeah, I—I,” Chloe fumbled for an excuse, not wanting to needlessly worry her friend on the first day of their trip, “um, I was just looking for some, uh, water to bring. Uh, you said the hike will take at least an hour, right?”   “That’s a great idea!” Kallie said, eyes shining brightly. “Let’s give everyone a bottle before we leave. We don’t want anyone fainting from dehydration in this heat.” She then made her way through the SUV and threw open the left middle car door. “Kai, I need you to help me as Seth’s replacement.”   Karter immediately walked over and held out his hand for Kallie to grab as she hopped down from the SUV. “What’s up, Kale?”   Kallie gestured to the trunk of the SUV and said, “We’re gonna pass out water bottles to everyone.”   “Yes, ma’am!” Karter straightened up and saluted while grinning down at Kallie, who laughed as she walked to the back of the SUV and unlocked the trunk.   Chloe joined them to help distribute the water, since it was technically her fault that Kallie and Karter were suddenly doing extra work. Once everyone had a bottle, the crew began walking to Skull Rock. Chloe kept to the back of the group, especially since the most energetic people were leading in the front and goofing off. Kallie stayed behind with her and the two friends were soon joined by Estee, who luckily had a much calmer temperament that Chloe felt more comfortable being around.   The winding sandy trail was paved by hundreds of thousands of people walking the same path to Skull Rock, occasionally lined by large rocks and desert plants. There were also some small signs detailing the nearby shrubbery and geology that three girls paused at for several minutes, so Estee could snap a few pictures. The trail was mostly flat, save for some shallow dips and low hills every couple of yards. Chloe was grateful that the hike was so easy to walk, since the heat was causing beads of sticky sweat to form on her neck and arms, especially.   The group soon arrived at the majestic Skull Rock, Karter and Russell shouting their arrival first with Bianca and Chanel screeching after them to call dibs on taking photos first.   “Estee, can you help us take photos please?” Russell called, waving to the three girls who were leisurely walking behind everyone else.   “Yeah, of course!” Estee called back.   Russell sent her a thumbs-up before turning around and slinging an arm around Leon’s shoulder as they watched some of the girls climb onto the gigantic rock formation.   Once the last three girls reached the group, Estee politely excused herself and joined Bianca at the front to take pictures. Karter came by to drag Kallie into posing for photos with him and Chloe stepped back when he did, shrinking her presence so that he wouldn’t think of inviting her as well. She had no intention of getting caught up in any of Karter’s shenanigans, no matter how harmless they actually were.   As she waited for everyone else to finish their photo shoots, Chloe busied herself with committing the image of Skull Rock to memory. It was an interesting rock formation and aptly named with two hollowed out sections in the lower half that formed the “eyes” of the giant skull-shaped boulder and a narrower hollow in between at the bottom that formed a nostril-like space that Amelie was currently standing in.   Chloe couldn’t help but smile wryly when she noticed how Amelie was posing with her hands planted on her waist and her body leaning back, knees bent at a forty-five degree angle. If she were being honest, it looked a bit outlandish and somewhat uncomfortable. But Amelie looked like she was having fun and Bianca was happily screaming, “Yes, you look absolutely fabulous, darling! Gorgeous, magnificent, sensational! Vogue-worthy! Gigi Hadid be quaking!” as she snapped away.   There wasn’t much shade in the desert and the nearby Joshua trees didn’t provide much cover either, but Chloe managed to find a spot that was decently shielded from the scorching sun and she waited there while everyone else took turns taking solo shots in front of Skull Rock. She didn’t realize she had begun daydreaming and staring off into space until Kallie suddenly grabbed her hand, which jolted Chloe back to reality.   “It’s your turn to take pictures,” Kallie cheerfully told her. “C’mon, Estee’s ready for you.”   “But wait—” Chloe tried to protest. However, Kallie had already dragged her to the base of Skull Rock before she knew it and Estee smiled at Chloe, camera already poised.   “You can pose however you’d like,” Estee said. “A simple peace sign will work. Or we can do some candid-like shots instead.”   “I’m more comfortable with candid shots,” Chloe quietly answered.   “Alright, go ahead and look at the side of the rock while relaxing your shoulders. Just pretend I’m not here,” Estee directed as she began adjusting the camera lens.   That was easy enough. Chloe imagined herself melting into the background as she fixed her gaze on a particularly jagged section of Skull Rock and tried to ignore the clicking sounds of the camera shutter.   “Perfect! These look great!” Estee declared moments later.   A light pink blush tinted Chloe’s pale cheeks as she stepped away from the giant rock formation. She knew that Estee was just being nice, since there was no way her solo shots were any good when she wore such a wooden expression. But it was nice to hear and pretend that the praise was true, even just for a bit.   “Before we go back to Jumbo Rocks, let’s get a group photo,” Russell proposed.   Estee and Bianca lent their cameras to a nearby older couple, who readily agreed to take their picture, and Chloe suddenly found herself squished between Kallie and Vanessa in the front row.   “One, two, three, cheese!”   Chloe mustered up a half-smile as she stared directly into the camera lens. She felt incredibly awkward and out-of-place amongst all of these beautiful girls. But she couldn’t shrink back either, otherwise she’d accidentally bump into Lucas who was standing directly behind her.   Once the couple finished snapping pictures, Chloe let out the breath she had been unconsciously holding and quickly stepped away from the rock formation. That was enough for one day.   After Estee and Bianca thanked the couple for taking their photos, the group hiked back to Jumbo Rocks Campground and piled back into their respective SUVs. Kallie announced that they would drive to White Tank Campground, where they would be setting up camp for the night, and then going on another short hike to Arch Rock. Chloe wasn’t sure if she wanted to hike again, even though this upcoming one was only around a mile long, but she kept quiet since the other four cheered enthusiastically after Kallie’s briefing.   Luckily, it wasn’t as hot during the walk to Arch Rock, now that it was late afternoon, and Chloe relished the feel of the faint cool breeze against her bare skin as they traversed a similar sandy trail and cut through a granite boulder field to reach the remarkably scenic Arch Rock.   Chloe stood back again, watching the others pose for pictures in front of the massive rocky arch. She mildly noted how the rock formation reminded her of the long neck of a brontosaurus and she was trying to imagine what it would look like if there were an actual brontosaurus standing in place of Arch Rock when she was pulled from her spot in the shade again to join the rest of the crew for photos.   Once they finished taking group pictures at Arch Rock, the crew began making their way back to White Tank Campground. Everyone’s pace was relatively languid now, even the most lively members of their group, now that the sun was beginning to dip in the sky and their stomachs were starting to rumble in anticipation for dinner. Chloe was completely drained by now and her feet dragged along the sandy path, kicking up tiny clouds of dirt and dust behind her.   Kallie stretched out her arms behind her and said with a laugh, “I can’t wait to get back to the campsite. I’m starving. How about you two?”   “Yeah, I’m pretty hungry too,” Chloe mumbled in response.   Estee, who was poring over the pictures she had taken earlier, cheerily answered, “I’m just excited to sit down and start editing these.” She held up her camera to show the other t