Three

1 – Bryan

   The day’s travels were coming to an end. Bryan smiled, bringing the bottle of alcohol to his lips, breaking his oath of sobriety for the day. It was a time for celebration, a celebration that Scott gladly partook in himself, giggling crazily like a maniacal super-villain. Scott, thankfully, wasn’t as theatrical when he wasn’t surrounded by an audience to goad him into doing things.

   “Ladies and gentlemen, I want to propose a toast,” Scott said, standing to his feet in-front of the large fire, momentarily stumbling. Bryan had to assume he wasn’t the only one worried that Scott was about to catch himself aflame.

   Scott laughed, although, perhaps not because of his near-death experience. “I know, I know, toasts are sappy sitcom wedding bullshit, but this is the end of an era for us. The very second, I was out of high school, I went to Southern Jalint University. That means for the last fifteen-something years I’ve went to school. That part of my life has ended.” Scott said.

   “Everyone’s except Rachel’s,” Shaun jested, bring a small pit of laughter.

   Rachel, who feigned being offended, was a dark-haired girl in thick glasses. Her haircut was bunched up at both ears, creating a look that resembled something from a different era. Her teeth and facial features sometimes came together in such a way that reminded Bryan of a squirrel or a rabbit, especially when she laughed.

   “Yeah, fuck Rachel and her Doctorate in fucking Neuroscience, fuckin’ overachiever,” Scott piled on, creating an uproar of laughter from most of the group.

   In case it couldn’t be inferred by her glasses, Rachel was smart.

   Bryan laughed at the spectacle, as did K.J., who appeared to be enjoying herself, even though she opted against drinking any alcohol herself.

   “This is where I and many of you squeeze our obnoxious, snot-nosed faces straight into the work force.,” Scott smiled. “Cheers.”

   “Cheers!” They all said in unison.

2 – Shaun

   “The role depends on the genre of the film,” Shaun said to Jessica, who had just finished asking him what role she would be capable of. In the back of his mind, Shaun’s immediate thought was that she would make a wonderful extra, and that was about it.

   “I always wanted to be an actress,” Jessica Nicole announced, “I’ve always wanted to have my name on marquees, be able to have millions of fans, I’d be so kind to them!”

   “Cool,” Shaun replied, hiding his lack of any real encouraging insight in how one became an actress.

   “So, who would I play if I was in one of your movies?” K.J. asked Shaun, herself, not drunk, but seeming to have loosened up quite considerably.

   “Rebellious teenager that listens to punk-rock music and fights against the form,” Shaun said, with less than a second needed to think about it.

   K.J. laughed loudly, perhaps excessively in-order to prove herself a good sport. Although the first day on the Mountain didn’t lead to as much interesting footage as he would have liked, it did, however, lead to a couple choice shots. Shaun knew better than to push his luck though, and frankly, he owed it to himself and Melissa to try and enjoy the mountain and each other’s company as much as he could. It was the little moments Shaun had learned made the best of life. Nobody ever laid ill on their death bed, reminiscing about how stylish their camerawork might have been.

   Unless it was a great shot.

3 – Bryan

   “Jessica seems nice,” Bryan said, sitting in the dirt, watching while K.J., Shaun, and Jessica all spoke back and forth with each other.

   “She’s a bitch,” Scott replied, catching Bryan off-guard.

   Scott’s candidness never surprised Bryan, however, the way his voice amplified was something different altogether. Had Jessica not been distracted, it would have been easy for her to have heard him.

   “Doesn’t that seem a little harsh to you?” Bryan asked, looking on at the fire in-front of them and not directly at Scott.

   “Then, tell me, Bryan, what do you think of Jessica, honestly?” Scott threw a look to Bryan that suggested he thought he already knew the answer. Something had changed between Scott and Bryan over the years, but Bryan could never distinguish exactly what it was. Maybe Scott’s drunkard brain had sailed off to faraway land once and for all, but it brought with it a tension that occasionally layered itself over their banter.

   Bryan looked at Jessica, who had, already on one occasion, found a way to stick her foot in her mouth, citing the certain “endowment” Shaun’s skin-color must have entitled to Melissa. Jessica might not have been a “bitch,” but she was inappropriate and rude, lacking the filter that kept her from making inappropriate remarks.

   “Jessica seems nice,” Bryan replied, although, it must have been apparent to Scott the significant pause he took in his response, as Scott laughed momentarily in-response to it.

   “Jessica knows what this is, it’s cool,” Scott assured. His eyes wandered over to the others.

   “What about K.J., you seem to be hitting it off with her.”

   “She’s, uh, she’s great,” Bryan said, but, once again, it was the pause beforehand that made Scott assume what was on Bryan’s mind.

4 – Scott

   “Mmm,” was all Scott said in-response to him.

   Bryan acted the part of a timid and insecure introvert that only wanted to be given a chance. And, maybe, maybe there was a lot of truth to that. However, the truth was also that Bryan had a rap sheet for having sex with girls and breaking up with them straightaway. Figuratively speaking, Bryan curled up into a little ball and shut down, end of scene. It was because Bryan, in truth, was the same type of womanizer he accused Scott of being. The only difference between them is that Scott was way better at it. That’s the way Scott saw it.

   “What do you think was the happiest point in your life, … ever?” Scott asked, looking over to Bryan with as serious of an expression as he could muster in his inebriated state.

   Bryan shrugged his shoulders in a moment’s notice.

   “Well, think about it.” Scott reasserted.

   “Childhood, probably. Back when everything wasn’t always so needlessly complicated. Back when everything didn’t have an added debt that came with it. Back when everything felt new and I didn’t feel jaded by the sight of monotony.” Bryan answered fondly.

   The sound of an animal ruffling through the forest sounded next. It was abrupt, but it didn’t particularly startle either Bryan or Scott. They did, however, take notice of it.

   “You’re too cynical, Bryan. You’ve seen the cup as half empty even when it was full.” Scott bottom-upped another bottle of alcohol, then, continued: “Look around you, there is nothing but trees and the journey up a particularly large hill. No complications. No debts. Everything you see is new. They’re things you’ve never seen and will probably never see again. Choose now to be the best time of your life.”

   “I think I’ll need more alcohol in my system before I’ll be able to share your optimism, buddy.” Bryan jested, watching K.J. while she began walking her way toward them.

   K.J. smiled at Bryan.

   “Having fun?” Bryan asked.

   “Of course, are you?” K.J. replied, having a seat beside him. Bryan dropped his arm over her shoulders, pulling her in with an embrace.

   “A blast and a half,” Bryan deadpanned, then smiled to emphasize his playfulness.

   “The stars are beautiful tonight,” her voice sounded taken by it all.

   “Yeah,” Bryan said, always a man of few words, but K.J. didn’t seem to mind that at all. They worked together, even though they probably shouldn’t have, like a corner piece that, for some reason, was able to fit in the middle.

   Scott smiled to himself, trying to feel happy for his friend. The thought that he was, at least, pretending on the surface to be in love was a silver lining. This wasn’t how Scott thought he’d be spending his trip to the mountains, having sex with someone he barely knew. He wanted the sentimental, sappy experience of taking pictures of the mountains and making love in the moonlight.

   Looking at K.J. and Bryan, at Melissa and Shaun, and then, at Jessica from afar, a person with whom, he had no connection, it was difficult not to snarl and growl at the moon like an angry, bitter werewolf. But it was his own fault all the same. He was to blame, nobody else, just himself. He lost Chelsea on his own.

   It meant he didn’t deserve nor have the right to wallow in his pity. Scott felt the cloudiness of his mind start to allow the numbness he yearned so badly. The intoxication would allow him the chance for this to be the happiest time of his life.

5 – Bryan

   Bryan felt uneasy about his relationship, a sentiment he didn’t feel comfortable sharing with Scott. Scott was the type of person that wasn’t hesitant to jump into things. He wasn’t deterred by his emotion like Bryan was. Bryan, on the other hand, knew himself not to be cut from the same cloth, the mere insecurities that swam through Bryan’s head were almost enough to cripple him. What did K.J. think of him? How did he stack up in-comparison to someone like Scott? Did seeing the chemistry that Shaun and Melissa had with each other cast doubts to her about their own relationship? Bryan did his best to bog the anxious questions down. It wasn’t as if there was anything, he could do about it.

   Scott trudged on ahead of them, ahead of them all, in-fact, with Shaun and Melissa, the runner’s up, being a far second and third.  

   “If I’m right, the last ‘you are here’ sign says that there’s a pond only a couple miles away from here.” Rachel announced, herself, only a little way ahead of Bryan and K.J., a certain heaviness behind her tone that told how much she yearned for a break.

   The sun beamed down at them. Over time, the heat worsened and felt more concentrated. What was once playful banter among them had shriveled up and been reduced to the mere unison strike of their footsteps, passing through leaves and tall grass, or breaking twigs and tree branches beneath the weight of their shoes.

   It was a comfortable silence, one that Bryan at least, felt at ease with. That is, if blistered feet and sweaty armpits could ever be seen as at all comfortable. It was a group all focused intently on a singular objective.

   Although, in some moments, someone, usually Jessica would fill the silence with attempts at banter, usually strings of conversation with her at the helm, regarding things that Bryan assumed, nobody else cared about. Or sometimes someone, usually Melissa, would stumble, breaking the momentum. Otherwise, it was a well-oiled machine.

   They hadn’t encountered many other tourists on their journey so far. The mountain was enormous, after all, and many of the fellow college students had arrived before or after them. It was by chance they had all even met up like they had.

6 – Seth

   The back of Seth’s head throbbed, a dizzy suffering that made it feel like he was either about to throw up or like he had a wooden baseball bat cracked over his skull. His eyes widened with panic the very second his thoughts started to circulate again. It was pitch-black. There were no stars, no moon, and not a single sound to be heard. It was clear he was not outside from the stillness in the air, as well. It was cold. He hugged his body and shivered.

   They’d been attacked, or, at least, he had been. Seth didn’t know for certain whether Joule or Mack were able to run off. The memories of the attack were foggy at best. Seth didn’t get a look at the attacker.

   “What the fuck,” Seth said beneath his breath. His fingernails gouged into the soft powdery dirt he rested upon, taking fast breaths, unable to be thankful he wasn’t restrained as a result.

   Seth climbed to his knees. The back of his neck was caked with crusty, dry blood that ran down the back of his neck. He tried to find some semblance of explanation, to find a logic he could grab onto. He found nothing at all. His hands felt around the blackness, until contacting the cold touch of a wall, it felt like rock. Could he be in a cave? He had to resist the urge to yell out in search of an echo, not sure if it might alert his attacker. Instead, he simply climbed back to his feet, moving one foot in-front of the other; barefoot. As he began to find his bearings, he was able to remember more about the attack.

   They were in their tent sleeping when the loud, behemoth sound of something shrieking outside awoke them, Seth could feel his heart-race quicken when he thought of how frightening it had been. The tent shook, but that was all he could remember, and that the sound was of no animal he’d ever heard prior.

   A small flicker of light shone through, showing the cave’s end, and in Seth’s disarray and confusion, it brought some relief, but did not amply ease his mind. The screen of his cellphone had a large crack in the center, resembling a large spider-web that covered-up everything useful, not even providing enough light for him to see. He made attempts at pawing his fingers at the screen, as if he’d miraculously hit the right button and make a call, but it was a wasted effort. Even if it did register his gestures, that assumed his phone even had the reception to make the call.

   The only thing Seth could do was walk forward and make it out into the open. Thereafter, he’d run like hell. That was the first idea going through his mind.

   That is, until the sound of a baby’s cries changed those plans for the worst.

   Seth ran. It was a knee-jerk reaction and one that, for some reason, saw something threatening in the sound of an infant’s sobs. The logic in it didn’t matter, the terror had taken away anything reasonable that would have otherwise went on in his mind. The sound increased, not amplified, it didn’t simply become louder, but, rather, a second, maybe third cry were soon apparent to him. Adding to that, at times while he fled, it appeared like the sound was coming from above him.

   The cave’s entrance neared him, only a few feet away. The sweat dripped down his brow and he knew his breath would be loud enough to alert anyone that was nearby.

   The fleeting pain of something grazing his ankle caught him and left. It had been enough to rip through flesh, but it wasn’t enough to take him off his feet.

   Whatever it was that attacked him had done so from inside the cave, but he didn’t stop to investigate any further than that.

   Outside was before him now. His freedom, to some extent, and with it came the unnerving suddenness of normality, where was once the sound of infant’s sobbing out while they suffered, instead, was the sound of the mountain’s wildlife. It was the sound of frogs, a vague dripping, the splashing sound of a nearby creek, and of bird’s singing their loud, abrasive tunes. The sunlight that bled out was a faint, twinkling light that suggested morning would soon come. Seth’s breathing calmed, but his mind and its racing thoughts did not. He looked the forest and all he could think about was of how none of the surroundings were familiar. He had no reason to think going one way or the other would help him. Trying to make sense out of his predicament only deepened his sense of desperation and despair.

   “Heh,” Seth said, less a word and more a guttural grunt, trying to stall his mind long enough to plan his next move.

   His next move … should he be considering some place to run, or should it be somewhere to hide?

   Then, behind him, he heard something that sounded like a fishing line retracting out over a lake. The sound was strange, but he was given no time to ponder it, succumbing to a wooden stake as it stabbed him in the back of his leg.

   The blood spat out an ugly dark-red color, but it didn’t immediately begin to gush, the wooden stake acting as a cork for his wound. It was as faint and as anticlimactic as a dart hitting a wooden board, but the pain that followed was certainly appropriate for the visual. Seth fell forward, an act he regretted when the wooden stake was aggressively forced to adjust. He screamed out in pain, holding himself in agony, but could think of no way to help himself.

   He felt himself being tugged at from behind, realizing the wooden stake was, in-fact, a harpoon, pulling him back toward the cave’s confines.

   His thoughts were incoherent. All he could think to do was dig his fingers into the ground, feeling his nails bend, unable to make a different in his predicament.

   Seth yelled, with an ugly cry, fluids poured out his face like a faucet, but, in a matter of seconds, he once more disappeared into the darkness of the cave, leaving behind nothing except the tranquil sound of birds singing, of cricket’s chirping, and the dripping sound of water. Everything remained as it was before him.