Survival Of The Fittest

((Sophie McDowell continued from There Will Be a Short Stopover on the way to Disney Land))

Days earlier, Sophie was packing her bags for the school trip to Disney Land. As she looked over the materials she planned to take with her, it occurred to her to bring more than one pair of shoes. She was going to wear her sandals on the plane ride, just since she knew she wouldn't be doing a lot of physical activity and would have the chance to go barefoot on the flight to California.

Sophie did have a pair of sneakers to wear when the weather was less agreeable and she knew she'd have more strenuous activity in her day. She didn't like them as much as her more open-toed shoes, so she merely stashed them away in her suitcase to be later dug out at the hotel.

However, she never considered she would be kidnapped and put in a life or death game. Had she known that, she would have ensured the sneakers were in her carry-on. Then she wouldn't have to struggle when her only footwear were left behind in a danger zone.

Having regrouped with Alex, they agreed to move to the Shopping Center to find some new shoes for Sophie. There had to be at least one shoe store there, and hopefully there would be plenty of stock left. The walk over was annoying though, as Sophie had to feel her feet burn on the asphalt, which was bumpy and broken. She was sure her feet were extremely dirty and probably a bit bruised when they finally arrived at the mall.

Sophie pulled her bandanna out of her bag and wiped her brow with it.

"I really hope they have some shoes left," she said as she walked inside. "I normally like going barefoot, but not like this."

((Alexander de Gaulle continued from There Will Be a Short Stopover on the way to Disney Land))

After leaving the hotel Alex had been alone for a while, but he had managed to find Sophie and group up again. It was a happy moment for him since he hadn't found any other friends on the island yet and he really didn't want to lose the only one that he had.

Sophie had lost her sandals back when they were fleeing and had been left without any footwear. The plan they had come up with was to go to the shopping center to find her some new shoes, and they were there.

Alex looked at Sophie's bare feet again after she spoke and cursed himself, "Hey, until we do find some shoes for you, you can borrow mine. It should be ok for a little while, sorry for not offering them to you sooner."

"Oh, you don't have to do that," Sophie said to Alex. "I'm sure I can handle it a little longer. All we got to do is find a store that sells shoes and socks. Then we'll be fine."

Sophie made her way further into the Shopping Center. There had to be a directory of some kind to tell them if any shoe stores were inside the mall. Maybe there were a few different department stores as well.

Man, it's weird being in an abandoned mall. The temptation for thievery is replaced with a necessity to loot. Who would have ever thought they'd find themselves in such a situation?

Sophie continued to look around the area as she used the bandanna to tie her hair back in a ponytail. She'd need to be able to see clearly if she was going to find a shoe store.
 

Alex heard Sophie's rejection of his offer to let her use his shoes. He felt dumb because he had offered it so late; the floor of the shopping center wouldn't likely be a problem because of the smooth linoleum. He watched as Sophie then used a bandanna to tie back her hair.

"I hope we can find shoes for you soon, since we're in a shopping center I would like to be able to search for some better supplies. This is going to become a high risk area soon enough so it would probably be best if we didn't need to come back here."

Alex wasn't too used to being inside of shopping centers; it just wasn't his usual place to hang out. It normally gave him a slight feeling of anxiety because he knew just how many people were around him and just how many stores there were. This was the first time he had ever been in one where it was empty, and it would probably be the last.

"It's kind of peaceful in here without the chatter of many young teens on dates and in groups discussing what to do. Now that I think about it, if you get rid of all of the circumstances surrounding why we're here, this is kind of like a date since we are going shoe shopping," Alex chuckled as he thought about it.

Sophie began to scan the area they were in. It looked like this floor was mostly a grocery store and a Linens and Things. The grocery store probably didn't have shoes, but a department store was probably more likely to have what she needed. They'd probably be able to find some other items as well and take a cart with them as they moved around the island.

Alex noted how strange it was to be in an empty mall. He then noted that it was like they were on a date since they were here looking for shoes. Sophie blushed at the statement and turned away from Alex.

"Y-yeah," she said, "but I wouldn't really go shoe shopping on a date. That sounds really dull to me, and I can easily do that on my own. I'd rather we do something like go to a cafe or see a movie."

Sophie cleared her throat.

"So yeah, I say we check the department store."

Alex looked around at the stores as they passed by. Most of them seemed to have broken or faded signs so that it was difficult to make out what they were. He hoped that they might pass a book store that had manga so that he could get something to keep his interest in the rare even that he had down time on the island.

Alex heard Sophie's response to his comparison of their venture to a date. "Oh, well I wouldn't know too well. I always kind of figured that there would be more time after school was done," continuing Alex then looked down and whispered to himself, "I guess I was wrong."

Sophie then suggested that they check out the department store. "Sure, that sounds like a good idea. While we're there I might get some lighter clothes, I've been sweating pretty hard inside of this hoodie. And the shirt underneath is dark, so it will just trap the heat." As he said so he took off his hoodie and put it into his bag to reveal his hard rock café shirt.

Walking a little quicker Alex stopped and stared at what he guessed was at one point a game store. He stopped there and lamented, "Guess there won't really be any more time for things like this."

Sophie stepped into the department store and began to look around. Linens and Things seemed to be more about home decor and comfort than clothing and shoes. She didn't need a large selection of shoes to choose from, but she needed something that could at least stay on her feet if she had to run and was around the right size.

Still, she figured that kind of item would be completely in stock. Perhaps she could get the chance to look in the storeroom if she had to. There was probably a key lying around somewhere if it was locked.

"Okay, I guess we begin our search," she said.

Sophie began to move through the store, moving down the aisles until she found one that might carry footwear of some kind.

((Megan Emerson continued from: The Real Folk Blues))

The scene from the stairs at the school played in an endless loop, each time getting more distorted. The push became a shove. The stairs became caked with blood. But, most importantly, the accident became a murder.

Megan was both a sinner and a hypocrite, breaking one of the Ten Commandments right there when she killed the mockingbird. Oh, right, and a coward who couldn't face what she had done; can't forget that.

She buried her sunburned face in the pillows of the plush bed, stifling the tears that were streaming down her face.

What was she supposed to do now? Francis was murdered by her hands, she broke her promise to Bella, and come tomorrow everyone on the island would know the skeleton in Megan's closet...but if Survival of the Fittest was being broadcast, then everyone in the world would know. Hell, they probably knew already, including her family.

In any case, her life was dead. Even if everything turns out hunky dory when she got home and no one thought of her as a murderer or player or whatever, she was going to have to live with her mistake...s. Her mistakes.

All she cared about now was isolating herself on this bed at the Lin-

Megan's head jerked up from the pillow as the sound of people talking coming from the other side of the store. With time, an audible and continuous footstep appeared, getting louder and louder as the owner approached the part of the department store Megan was hiding in.

Maybe she could sneak out through one of the aisles and book it for the entrance. She pushed herself off with her hands, causing the springs in the bed to squeak. Loudly. Shit shit shit shit shit.

She quickly laid back down to her original position, forcing her weight down on the mattress. Maybe they didn't hear that. Maybe they would just leave her alone.

Alex turned to the sound of Sophie's voice and walked into the Linens and Things. It certainly seemed that it would be hard to find shoes in there, but it wouldn't be impossible. At the least they would have slippers, and probably some pretty comfortable ones. Shoes didn't really interest him so Alex headed off to where there might be blankets.

He wanted to find something that would be compact but would be able to provide warmth if they ever needed to camp out. He figured the best thing would be a down comforter, he remembered having one at home and it kept him warm with just one even on the coldest night.

He found a few sets and then shouted across the store to Sophie, "Hey, do you want a down comforter? I'm getting one and we could either share it or we could each have our own." Regardless of the answer he would receive Alex began to open up one of the sets and look for the comforter and packed it away specifically into his bag.

Sophie continued moving down the aisles of the store. Alex announced that he was looking for down comforters, asking if Sophie wanted to share one. Sophie let out a quick chortle.

Wow, first he wants to take me shoe shopping, now he wants to share a blanket with me. Alex is moving fast. Ha ha ha.

"I'm fine with my own," Sophie shouted. "Just find me one that looks cute."

Sophie then heard a creaking sound nearby. She quickly turned to the source of the sound. It didn't look like there was anyone else in the area, not that Sophie could see at least. If someone wanted to hide or sneak up on her, they'd probably try to be quieter. She figured it might have been something else. The store was pretty old, and so there had to be some weak parts of the structure.

Or maybe it's a rat... oh god I hope it's not that.

Sophie then found herself approaching the bedroom section of the store. She then saw a display of some bed slippers. Sophie found herself grinning and clasping her hands in front of her chest.

"Hey, I think there might be some slippers near the beds! I think I've got my shoes!" she shouted to Alex.

Sophie made her way to the display, eyeing the slippers available. Her feet were starting to get a bit cold from the store floor, so it would be nice to put some warm slippers on.

oh god they were getting closer why her why now all she wanted to do was to keep to herself and die alone like the miserable piece of shit she was and just die alone in this store shit why shit goddamn it why did she ever get talked into this field trip she could never have come here and murdered francis like that dammit dad it's your fault for being a hardass and-

Wait, what? "Sheets...and slippers?" Megan muttered under her breath as her arms wrapped around the pillow. Da fuck? Were these people planning a sleepover or some shit?

Her own disbelief at the anticlimactic words gave her the courage to speak up (more accurately, the will to outburst). They were going to find her out soon enough; plus, they couldn't be insane psycho killers if they were just looking for house shoes...that was her logic, anyway.

"What the hell do you think you're going to do with slippers?" Megan scoffed at the approaching feminine voice.

The space in Alex's duffel was a bit tight with the addition of the comforter, but it would be worth it when they had to stay out in the cold somewhere. Sophie had asked for her own so Alex began opening up another one of the sets and pulling out the blanket.

A few moments into the process he heard Sophie's exclamation of finding shoes and then replied back, "Great, you might want to grab two sets in case they wear out." He then went back to taking out the blanket and upon completion he heard the introduction of another voice that he wasn't familiar with.

The voice nearly made Alex jump out of his skin as he dropped the blanket and began to hide. It wasn't a particularly menacing voice but any unfamiliar voice could mean an enemy of the island. After a few moments of trying to calm down he realized that a question had been asked and that they might not be dangerous. With the realization he stopped trying to hide and picked up the blanket he dropped.

In an attempt to fake confidence in the unexpected situation Alex broke out sarcasm to the question, "Well you see, the slippers are an integral part of a bomb we are making." It wasn't the friendliest of things to say, but a random person had just appeared out of nowhere.

Sophie began to examine the slippers. Alex was right about picking some extra pairs of slippers to take, just in case they wear out quickly. She knew she'd need some that could fit to her feet. She didn't need them to be really loose and fly off.

"Well, let's see..." Sophie muttered to herself as she looked over the slippers.

Before she could do anything, a voice shouted to her. Someone was apparently in the store and had concern over Sophie's shoe shopping. Sophie froze in place when the voice first shouted and began to look around.

Wait, what?

Alex shouted that they were using the slippers to make a bomb. That made Sophie giggle a bit.

"Yeah," she said to the voice. "But seriously, I lost my shoes and need new ones. That's all."

"Ha ha okay, MacGyver." Megan dismissed the attempt at humor, but this was good. Now she knew these people were all right, whoever they were, at least for the time being. "You sure slippers are going to be good to wear, though? This mall probably has a Payless or something you could get actual shoes from; every mall ever has a Payless. I think it's, like, in the law or something."

She flopped over on the bed, causing the springs to squeak again. "You know what? Do what y'all want; I don't care," she said, feigning a matter-of-fact tone. "Everything I say bites me in the ass at some point, which is why I'm staying put riiiiight here on this bed.

"Seriously, go crazy; take your blankets and your slippers," Megan threw one of the pillows over her face as if she were doing a poor job smothering herself.

"Domft minff me."

"MacGyver? No, I don't have nearly enough paperclips handy to be him."

Alex looked for Sophie and then began walking over with her new down comforter in hand. As he closed the distance he heard a few more snippets of dialogue from between her and the voice. The last thing said was simply something that couldn't be done now that Alex knew there was someone else in the room.

Once next to Sophie, Alex extended his hand to hold out the blanket and said, "Here you go, sorry about it just being white, not much selection in abandoned stores." Alex then whispered a question so the voice wouldn't hear it, "So, should we do as the omnipresent voice tells us to do and ignore it, or should we peek behind the curtain and reveal the Wizard of Oz?"