The Bitter Truth

[jimmydalad]

((Cammy Davidson continued from First Page - Planning))

Cammy didn't like being alone. Owing to her status as a social butterfly, she had never been alone since she could just call up a friend to talk to them or use Facebook to chat with someone. Before, even if none of her friends or family were within her vicinity, she would never be alone. She never had to experience that feeling for a prolonged period of time and she had never been afraid of being alone.

Now was different though.

She didn't have a phone or any way to contact the outside world, so she couldn't talk to her family. She couldn't use the Internet, so she couldn't contact any long-distance friends who lived in other countries. She even pushed herself away from Naomi and strove off on her own due to how her friend changed. Right now, she started to truly realize what it was like to be alone. She was so afraid. The crossbow, the thing that had given her a shred of comfort before, was not making her feel any more calm or relaxed. She was on edge, constantly turning her head to take in her surroundings. She didn't want to be caught off guard, not where she was now.

She didn't even know where she went. If she had wanted to go back to Naomi and the others, she would have no idea how to get there. She didn't pick out any landmarks and she had no clue where she was right now. It didn't matter to her though. All she wanted to do at that moment was to get away from her. She couldn't see her face and she didn't want anything to do with her.

Cammy was getting exhausted. She needed to rest. Going towards a tree, she lied underneath it and fell asleep. At that moment, she didn't care about the dangers that could approach her. All she wanted was sleep. She could only hope that she wouldn't be attacked or killed in her sleep.

- - - - - -

Cammy was woken up by the announcement. She rubbed her eyes as she begrudgingly started to travel again. People were killing already. Naomi was right after all, not that she liked to admit it. The concept of her classmates killing each other was a foreign thing to the girl. Unfortunately, the announcements only served to thrust the truth right in her face.

Names drifted past, Cammy wasn't sure how to react. She was a bit shocked by the revelation and it highlighted how scary it was just being on the island. She refused to believe that her classmates were cold-blooded killers. She had spent at least two years with most of them. She knew that they were not the type of people who would go on mass killing sprees without good reason. They wanted to get home and they thought the only way to do that was to kill. She didn't agree with them, but she couldn't blame them. It was up to her to show them that there was another way.

She tried not to think about the people who were dead and didn't pay attention to the names. Cammy knew they were people just like her. She didn't want to dwell on how their lives were lost and the way that they died. She didn't want to hear their names. She didn't want to dwell too long on them. If she did, she would find it hard to do anything, too consumed by grief to do anything.

After a while, she found herself at an overlook. The floral arrangements were a welcome sight and she was glad that this place was not a danger zone. Her eyes scanned the place as she saw the bathrooms, the flower stand and then the railing.

"Oh god." Was all Cammy could say before she found her legs getting weak. The smell was disgusting, bringing her to the point where she nearly vomited. She recognized the person who was dead. After all, she had seen her only some time ago. Seeing her dead body was surreal. Seeing her dead was awful. Gabriella Parker was laid out on the railing before her, leaving Cammy to just stare at her, trying to comprehend it all.

She could feel the tears rolling down her eyes, the guilt welling up inside her. If she had stayed with Naomi and her before, if Naomi didn't scare her, she would still be alive. Why didn't she do anything before? If Cammy calmed her down, if she had done something to prevent her from running, she would still be alive and kicking.

"I'm sorry Gabby. I'm so so sorry." Cammy repeated, letting the grief take her. She wailed loudly, crying her heart out for a short while as she thought of the many things she could have done to save her. Yet, there was nothing she could do now. She was dead. That was all there was to it in the end. Cammy knew this, but she didn't want to believe it.

After she had finished crying, Cammy looked at the body. There must be something she could do. Gabby was a human, just like them. She didn't want to look at her draped over the railings like this. She deserved better. Cammy's eyes lingered at the floral arrangements. They were so pretty and they dazzled in her eyes. She came up with an idea.

She left her crossbow on the floor next to her. Then, holding her breath to prevent the smell of dead body from overwhelming her, Cammy grabbed Gabby's arms and started to drag her towards one of the floral arrangements. The girl was heavier than her so it took some time for her to eventually reach the flowers. It was times like this that Cammy appreciated her hoodie having long sleeves. It allowed her to not have her bare hands touch the body. She didn't want to feel her lifeless skin. It would be too much for her.

Once she reached the flowers, Cammy worked to lay her in the middle of them. In the middle of the flowers, she closed her eyelids and put her arms in a cross above her chest. It helped hide her deadly wound, but doing so meant that Cammy got a bit of blood on her sleeves. After doing that, she closed her legs together and then took a few steps back, appraising her body.

Cammy allowed herself to take a breath, causing the smell of dead body to come back to her. She held back her need to retch, trying to stay strong for Gabriella. The way that she was laid out, it looked like she was sleeping. It was calming and in Cammy's opinion, much better than just leaving her dangling on the railing.

"Rest in peace Gabby." Cammy muttered quietly, tapping her body in the sign of a cross and then praying. She had never really been religious owing to her finding church boring. She never really believed in god, but for some reason, it felt right doing this. It was odd. She could only wonder how her parents and sister were feeling right now.

She couldn't stay here. Cammy couldn't bring herself to constantly watch over the dead body of her classmate alone. It felt wrong.  Right now, Gabriella was probably in a better place than she was while she was still alive. If there was any justice or life after death, Gabby should be happy and better than she was while she was still in the game.

Cammy turned herself away from the dead body and took a brief look over the overlook. It looked so pretty, it was almost hard to believe that a game of death was occurring here. Sighing to herself, Cammy willed her legs to move away. She didn't want to dwell here. She had to find other people. She had to find life.

((Cammy Davidson continued in That's Crate!))