Survival Of The Fittest

Now Sophie could hear the two people better. It sounded like a boy and a girl, and luckily, it sounded like neither wanted to play. Alex was willing to make it sound light and fun inside Linens and Things, something that made Sophie relax a little. They needed to relax a little, and if it involved making jokes, then so be it.

Alex then noted that she and Megan had the chance to leave or make themselves known. Sophie didn't have to think about it. She wasn't going to leave Alex, especially while he was still alive. She figured it would be easier to make herself known.

"Yeah, we're trying to see who can tell the best joke!" she shouted to the newcomers. "Come in and see if you can beat us!"

Oh wait, I don't know many jokes. Uhhhhhhhhhhh whoops.

...Woahkay, these jokes was starting to get a little too weird. Alex's suggestion of getting out of there was tempting, but Megan decided against it. She was getting tired of running. Besides, she couldn't leave. Not now.

Megan recognized one of the voices...or at least, she thought she did after a familiar male English voice called out. Eighty-seven percent sure. Maybe. She narrowed down the possibilities while Alex and Sophie bantered. Or rather, she worked up the courage to take the stab in the dark.

"G-...Gavin, is that you?" Megan called out to the party outside of the store. She held her breathe and waited for the answer.

Oh god a comedian. Kill it. KILL it.

The initial bevy of responses Gavin received from the store were not the most encouraging. The male voice struck a certain cord in his memory, if only because he knew it belonged to somebody who shared a name with another of his friends. Not wanting to be burdened by the weight of a flashback at the moment, Gavin pushed the knowledge to one side and took several steps closer to the entrance of the Linens and Things store in order to conduct the conversation more coherently.

That was when he heard Megan call out to him. Her words were faint and stuttering, but there was no mistaking the voice.

Time seemed to slow to a gradual halt around Gavin. He could feel his breathing getting heavier, the tension building up in his limbs. He had thought about this moment, planned for this moment. But Megan Emerson had this unique ability to make all his plans disintegrate the moment she opened her mouth.

Suddenly, Gavin was terrified. More terrified than when Ruby or Grace had pointed a gun at him, more terrified even than when he'd woken up on the island. Everybody got scared, even a practiced stoic. But before Gavin had been able to drown out the fear with serenity. Or, failing that, replace the fear with more constructive emotions.

Yet now he was absolutely terrified. Terrified of meeting the one girl in his life that he thought that he genuinely, sincerely loved. Even worse, he wasn't sure why he was terrified, only that his hands were shaking and his knees trembling as if he'd just spent an hour slamming back the best the liquor store had to offer. In that moment, Gavin felt like turning tail and running away as fast as his quivering leg-muscles would propel him. He didn't know why, and that scared him all the more.

But Gavin Hunter was not a man to let fear rule him, even this mindless, nameless fear that seemed to have no end and no beginning. He had frozen like a rabbit caught in the headlights of a car when he had first heard Megan call out to him, but now he forced himself to move again. Step after step, he walked towards the storefront where he had heard her voice. He would not let the fear rule him. He would face it like every other challenge he had ever faced; head on, never backing down until he understood every facet of the problem and had gained mastery over it.

"Megan, I'm here. I'm coming towards you." He called out, completely oblivious to the other people still in the store with him. "Don't go anywhere, please. I'm here now. Don't run from me."

He hated how pleading his tone sounded. He hated how it seemed impossible at that moment to pay attention to anything other than her voice. Most of all, he hated how utterly enslaved he was to her, despised the sensation with all his soul. He should be in control, riding out this tempest of emotions with a calm and logic that would have impressed a Vulcan. Instead his vaunted self-control was so much chaff being blown before a gale. It was, he reflected, quite pathetic.

But that didn't stop him walking.

"What." Grace's statement wasn't meant for anyone, simply noting that she couldn't make heads of tails of the... joke? It was supposed to be one at any rate. Another voice had chimed in, devlarimg a joke competition.

"A hundred bucks for one joke. Really. Is humour that hard to find on this island?" she shouted backat the voices. But her statement was soon forgotten as a third voice called out from within the store. And whoever it was, she knew Gavin.

That in itself wasn't to surprising, given that everyone in school "knew" Gavin, but she had only heard his voice. The two of them must have been rather close.

She turned to Gavin to see what he would do, whether he wanted to play it safe or to move in. After all, Gavin was the ideas guy. She could trust him to do the best thing. But Gavin didn't seem like his usual self all of a sudden, his composed manner wasn't entirely there and his words didn't contain his usual rational  calm. It was only when he said the girl's name that she understood. Megan.

All of sudden,  Grace felt like giggling. "It's complicated, huh?" Grace quickly caught up with Gavin. " Let's go see what your girlfriend's like."

It didn't really seem like Alex was going to be getting his jokes. What he had hoped would be a friendly meeting with possible new allies quickly turned into a very emotional one. Megan and the guy of the other group, Gavin, seemed to know each other.

Alex thought to himself about the name Gavin and thought that it sounded familiar. For a moment he tried to ponder how well he knew him, but it didn't really matter at the moment. What did matter was how Megan and Gavin knew each other, as it seemed to be a very close relationship by how they greeted each other.

Alex backed up to allow space for the reunion between the two. He didn't have much left to say and since the other group seemed to be friendly he figured it would be best for them to enjoy their meeting in peace.

Sophie was surprised to hear Megan call out to the guy. Apparently, the guy was named Gavin, but more importantly, he was someone close to Megan. He sounded very excited to see her, something that made Sophie wonder how close he was to Megan.

Sophie clasped her hands together and grinned. It looked like their little party was growing larger and larger. Perhaps they'd be able to find more friends and maybe survive the game together, or at least until the military saved them.

Wow, it's like everything is suddenly coming up sunny. This is just what we need.

Megan closed her eyes and sighed. This was really happening, a dream come true in a nightmare.

The only thing is that she had no clue how to feel at this moment. Was she supposed to be happy, because her best friend forever found her before it was too late? Angry, because he didn't find her sooner? Guilt, because Bella would never find Garrett? Or maybe nothing, because nothing should surprise her at this point?

How was she supposed to feel?

She had to see for herself; had to see that it wasn't a mind trick. Megan threw her duffel on the bed and walked past Alex towards the front of the store.

In one of the aisles, Megan saw that damn coat. She continued to walk towards the approaching party until she could see their faces clearly. She recognized the girl, Grace, from passing by her in hallways at Aurora and from English classes or something, but Megan's attention was completely spent on the boy.

Megan never thought of what she was going to say when she found Gavin. Obviously a simple "Hey, how's it going?" would be way boring, but was she supposed to break into a run and embrace him like it was an ending to a cheesy romantic comedy? Of course, even if she planned anything out, her mouth would find a way to screw it up anyway.

Megan eyed him over, over the ugly stubble growing on his face, over the scars that glistened with sweat beads, over the disheveled hair under the...fedora? It was a lot different from when she last saw Gavin on the plane ride.

"Dude, you look bad," snickered Megan with a wavering smile.

Gavin's heart skipped several beats when Megan stepped into view. It hadn't been a mistake. Megan Emerson really was there, standing before him and looking as if she couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry.

When she spoke, it was as if he was hearing her voice through a sheet of water. White noise filled his ears, the air felt hot and oppressive all of a sudden. He felt as if he was about to faint. The terror he had felt earlier had gone, replaced by an unfathomable expanse of churning emotion that Gavin couldn't even put a name to.

Is this what being in love feels like? He thought distantly, doing his best to keep his gaze level on Megan and not give the impression that he was roughly one eighth of a nanosecond away from collapsing to the floor in an insensate heap. This was worse than when he'd spilled his heart to one of the cameras; worse than when Ruby had chewed him out over not going after Cassidy.

It all came down to one fact; Megan Emerson could break him. Gavin could accept his fate on the island, but he could not accept her fate. She was the one person on this entire island whose life or death could truly make him lose hold of himself. The death or rejection of others could sadden him, but Megan's death or rejection would shatter him. Confronting that reality was almost as painful as confronting the reality of the island itself. It did not compute.

Why. Why did I ever allow myself to be drawn into this?

There was no easy answer, aside from the big one; human nature. He tried his best to deny it at times, but Gavin knew he was just as vulnerable to petty emotions as the next person. The triggers might be different from those possessed by so-called 'normal' people, but they were still there, still just as intense. If not more so.

With a huge effort, Gavin wrested himself back to the same level of reality that most people normally occupied. His hands still trembled and his breathing was still uneven, but somehow he found the energy to speak.

"Y-yeah, I know I do." He finally managed. Then all of a sudden he was moving again, striding towards Megan to wrap his arms around her in a bear-hug, clutching her considerably shorter body to his chest. The sudden sense of intimacy was like a draft of strong liquor, burning away his insecurities in a hot, heady wave of sensation. Without really thinking about it, Gavin kissed Megan on the forehead. He was tempted to kiss her on the lips, but that would have required him to let her go, and he had no intention of doing so just yet.

"I might look bad," he whispered softly to her. "But I feel wonderful, and so do you."

To Grace, finding Megan this fast was a little surprising. The island was large enough that even a hundred and fifty students wouldn't meet that often. Even less since they were probably all travelling in groups. But it was a good coincidence and Gavin knowing Megan made it much easier to talk to the other group.

She ignored Gavin and Megan for a second, deciding to let them have enjoy their reunion, instead plopping down on a bed near the other two. Alex was clearly recognisable; his white hair gave him away instantly. The other girl, Sophie, was less familiar to her, but making conversation shouldn't be too difficult.

"So what are you guys doing here anyway? I wouldn't think that shopping for beds would be a great plan for survival."

Alex watched the heartfelt scene between Megan and Gavin until he was snapped back to reality by the sound of someone else's voice. It was the girl that had been with Gavin asking what they had been doing there. Alex's feeling to need to use jokes went away with the reunion he witnessed.

"We're just looking for some shoes for Sophie. The bed sheets are just a bonus." With the sense of danger gone Alex flopped back onto the bed. Reaching his hands backwards he pulled one of the pillows under his head. He then angled his neck so that he was looking at the other girl.

"So, mind telling us your name?"

Sophie was completely awestruck. Gavin and Megan's reunion was so adorable she found herself quietly giggling to herself and grinning from ear to ear.  Sophie really did enjoy romantic stories and movies, and what was happening before her was something straight out of Dirty Dancing or West Side Story and she was loving every moment of it. The two then joked about Gavin's appearance, which Sophie didn't find as bad as Megan made it sound. Sure, wearing a heavy trench coat in a tropical setting would make anyone look sweaty and exhausted, but she found a certain aesthetic appeal to the look.

Then Gavin kissed Megan on the forehead and said he felt wonderful and so did she. Sophie found herself letting out a small cry of joy and hopping in place.

That was so flippin' adorable. Oh my god, this is awesome. Wait, did Gavin say he feels wonderful, and so does Megan? Did I hear that right?

Sophie was pulled away from the reunion when Gavin's friend addressed her and Alex, asking what they were doing. Sophie realized the girl was Grace Faraday, someone she wasn't too familiar with. Alex explained the shopping trip to her.

"Yeah," Sophie added.

Sophie raised her right leg in the air and grabbed it with both her arms. She held her foot towards Grace and began to wiggle her toes. Sophie began to hobble in place and tried to keep her balance.

"I left my one pair of shoes in the hotel, so I need some new ones."

Sophie dropped her leg to the floor and chuckled. This was the kind of atmosphere she lived for.

Megan never felt safer than being wrapped around by Gavin's everlasting arms. For a moment, it was just the two of them. No Alex, or Sophie, or Grace. No Bella, Juhan, Takeshi, Francis, Aria, Theo, or Hansel. No terrorists, the rest of Aurora High's senior class, the people eavesdropping, or the other 6 billion people on Earth. It was just Megan and Gavin in their own world, their own bubble.

She still didn't deserve this.

And then Gavin kissed her.

Stop it.

And then Gavin told her he felt wonderful.

Please. Stop.

And then Gavin told her she felt wonderful.

Megan couldn't take it anymore. Her eyes closed. Her fists clenched. She bared her teeth. Her body shook. Hot tears streamed down her face and pooled on Gavin's chest.

"S...st-st-stop..." Her mouth wouldn't cooperate, being snuffed out by the crying. She shook her head, burying it deeper against Gavin's body.

"I-I...I..."

Megan was crying, her tears staining the beautifully tooled leather of his expensive trenchcoat. Gavin wasn't surprised by this; he was on the verge of tears himself. But these were not tears of joy, not the kind of tears he had expected.

Something is wrong. Terribly, terribly wrong.

For a moment, Gavin was paralyzed with indecision. He almost panicked; almost shoved Megan away and demanded to know what was wrong. But cold logic wasted no time informing him of the stupidity of such an action. Instead he drew a deep breath and continued to clutch Megan to him, lifting a hand to cradle her head against his chest.

She seemed to want to cling to him, her body trembling as it was held in his arms. The feeling of intimacy between them was physically intoxicating, but Gavin knew the sensation was invalidated by her obvious distress. He pushed it to one side, drawing on his reserves of concentration to present a calm facade, free of emotion. He would not let Megan down, not now, when she needed him the most.

"It's alright," he whispered gently to her. "Let it all out, I'm here for you."

It was a pretty cliché line, all things considered, but that didn't mean Gavin meant it any less seriously. If Megan wanted to cry her eyes out, then he was quite prepared to stand here until tomorrow's announcements if need be. It was simply the right thing to do. In his view, at least.

"Oh. I did forget to introduce myself, didn't I? I'm Grace Faraday," she said a little absent mindedly, giving an awkward smile to Sophie's actions.

She stole a sideways glance towards the lovers reunion. Megan was sobbing into Gavin's arms and Grace felt a slight twinge of jealousy towards the pair. Romance, actually even normal friendships  were a struggle at times for her and there the two of them were together in each others arms. Maybe one day, if she got off this island she might find someone like that. That was a big if.

"I wouldn't expect to find any shoes here." Grace tried to hide the wistful on her face. It wouldn't do to make them wonder why she looked upset. "But there must be a shoestore around here somewhere. Why did you walk here barefoot anyway?"

Alex listened attentively to the conversation as he stared at the ceiling. He heard sobbing over from the direction of Gavin and Megan but figured that it didn't concern him. Even the conversation he was currently in could be held without him. He found out that the girls name was Grace and that was all that was really important to him at the time so he just started daydreaming.

"I don't think I'm useful in this conversation so I'm just gonna kind of doze off. I won't be asleep, so if I'm needed for anything just say something." The feeling of the sheets against the exposed skin of Alex's arms felt great, it reminded him of home. He figured that normally at a time like this he would be on his computer reading manga or something similar.

This island had fucked up his life and would quite possibly end it soon enough. He was looking forward to the school trip so much; he was planning some kind of funny picture on Splash Mountain, possibly pretending to play cards or something. Perhaps if he pretended long enough he could feel the water on his face.