(TW maybe. Just to be safe) Part 1: The snow was cold. She didn't like the snow, but today, right now, it was all she wanted. The snow was cold, but it felt good underneath her weary, exhausted body. The snow was cold, but it was the only thing keeping her burning skin cool. The trees surrounded her. Every which way, the trees never ended. Though the sun was rising when she had entered, the further she had run into the forest, the darker it grew. Every turn she made, the thicker it became. And now, even just staring above her, there were trees. Never ending, ever growing. And then there were the sounds. The howling of the wind, the thumping of a snow rabbit, the whooshing and thudding of snow falling off the Evergreen needles and onto the forest floor beneath, the crunching of snow under deer's hooves, and the occasional soft padding of various other forest creatures. They were all around her. She was disoriented. She was exhausted. She was hurt. She tried to get up, but her body wasn't cooperating. She lay in the snow, frozen in place. Something trickled down her hand. Her eyes drifted to the spot where her hand was glued to her side. Blood flowed from her body and through her fingers, spilling onto the snow underneath and staining it crimson. She needed to keep going. She needed to find medical attention. She needed to find her friends. She needed to confess to what she had done. But she didn't want to. She just wanted to stay here. Rest, sleep, leave it all behind. The pain, the suffering, the doubt, her stupidity. Everything. Something caught the corner of her eye. By some unimaginable force of nature, a tiny sliver of sunlight had managed to slip through the giant branches. And it was right next to her. Mustering up all the strength that was left in her body, she managed to make her other hand crawl towards the light. Only her fingertips made it, but it was enough. Though the cold snow felt good right now, it was nice to feel some warmth. It wasn't that much warmer than the snow, but it was warmer nonetheless. Wait. Sunlight. That meant it was daytime. If it was still the same day, it would probably be the afternoon at this time. If her friends made it, if they weren't captured, they would probably be looking for her right now. She could be saved. Hopefully sooner rather than later. But if they were captured, or worse, she - she... She couldn't think straight. She was numb from the cold and lightheaded from the blood loss. She was going to die here before anyone could find her. She was going to die alone. Dishonored. Forgotten. Delirious, the world around her began to spin and blur. Her eyes grew heavy. She lost her hearing, and her breathing became shallow. The last thing she saw before she blacked out - or at least, the last thing she thought she saw - was a pair of big blue eyes. (TW) Part 2: Flashback. "This was a spectacularly bad plan!" Clara yelled at Tommy, "Robbing from a National Park Outpost? In the middle of winter? First thing in the morning?!" she huffed, "I never should've let you pressure me into doing this!" VVV
"I never pressured you into doing anything!" Tommy yelled back, "I simply informed you of the facts! You decided for yourself to come!" "You told me it was going to be an Ocean's Eleven style heist! Not World War 3!" "Well, plans don't always go according to plan, okay?" Tommy retorted, "You, though? You had the easiest role to play: the getaway driver. And yet you blew that up! How - how does someone blow something so simple?!" "I heard gunfire and a cop was starting to pull up behind me. I panicked! I know it's not smart to run towards gunfire, but I didn't want to deal with the cop because we're not even supposed to be here! What else was I supposed to do?!" "Guys! Shut up!" Harry hissed from beside the doorway, "Do you WANT us to get caught?" "And plus, you're blowing my eardrums out." Gina said as she leaned against a shelf, chewing a piece of gum. Tommy opened his mouth to argue, but nothing came out. Clara hung her head back. "We need get out of here," Gina said, "I swear, the four of us plus the chemicals is suffocating me." The 4 teens were crammed into a small cleaning supplies closet. Harry and Gina each wielded an AR. Tommy, dressed as a Park Ranger, carried a revolver, a pistol, a taser, and a baton on him. Clara carried a Swiss Army Knife in her pocket. The weapons (or at least the big ones) made the already tiny space even harder to move in. Harry cracked the door open slightly and peaked out. "The front door is maybe 30 yards ahead. It's our only exit. The coast is clear of life, but security got the cameras running again. We can't make it without being seen." Tommy ran a hand through his hair, "Can't you just hack back into the system?" "My laptop was left behind in the security room. Even if I had it, it got busted during the gun fight." The closet fell silent, everyone trying to come up with a plan. Eventually, Clara spoke up, "How about we just turn ourselves in?" All heads turned toward Clara. "What? We get out of here. No more harm done. We can fix this mess we made." "And let all our hard work go to waste?" Tommy asked, "Not a chance. We're going to make a run for it." "What?! You can't be -" Clara started. But it was too late. Tommy had already pushed Harry out the door and pulled Gina with him. Clara had no choice but to follow. "What if there's security behind those doors?!" Clara shouted as they ran. "We have guns!" Tommy shouted back. Clara huffed. "You know what? I'm starting to think you didn't even have a plan to begin with! You're just winging everything!" Tommy shrugged with a cheesy smile, "Guess I'm caught." Clara gaped at Tommy, but before she could say anything, they burst through the doors... And met a small troop of security guards. "Keep running!" Tommy shouted. Against all instincts, Clara kept running, following her friends, who were heading to the snowy forest. The security guards pursued the kids. Harry and Gina slowed down to take the back so that they can shoot at their pursuers. "The sun is starting to rise." Harry noted. "And unless we get a snowstorm in the next two minutes, those guards will be able to track us! Clear footprints and all!" Gina commented. "Agreed. We gotta split up," Tommy said, "Rendezvous at the car at 0800!" "But, the cop!" Clara protested, "They probably called it in! The car may not even be there anymore!" "The car, the general area, whatever! You know what I mean! Now split!" Tommy shouted. "Are you sure -" Clara started, but again, she was too late. Her friends split up, each on their own, leaving her alone. Before she could process anything, she was hit with a force that knocked her over. But it didn't keep her down. Fear mixed with adrenaline, she quickly got up, her hand involuntarily going to her side. She ran deeper into the forest. She didn't know where she was going. She didn't know how far she went. She just kept going. Deeper and deeper. Until... Warmth. Not a shallow, external warmth. No, it was the kind that penetrated through your body. The kind that was everywhere. The kind that makes you think of a warm, cozy cabin with a fire built in the fireplace. That's what she felt. Then there was the smell. Spice. Cinnamon, or nutmeg. Maybe allspice. She wasn't sure. But it was a sweet spice. Comforting. Delicious. And then there was the peace. It was quiet. Not the kind she had when she was laying on the snow. This was different. It wasn't the dying peace she felt earlier. This was a... Calm peace? That was the only way she could describe it in her current state. Was she dead? Was this what death felt like? Maybe to her. Maybe everyone experiences something different when they die. Maybe this was how she wanted to experience it. She could accept this. But it only lasted a few seconds. Something wet slid across her face. Something wet and rough that left slobber all over her nose and cheek. Coming back to her senses, she slowly opened her eyes. And the first thing she saw was a pair of big blue eyes.
