if the end of the world was near | C. Berman.

scarring the soil

She grabbed her hand and pulled her through. Cindy reached for Alice's hand and yanked her through, too. They made it back to the room with the names and looked around.

"Over here, help!" Cindy moved towards the bookshelf and began pushing it, with the help from Alice and Y/n it fell over and they slipped inside that tiny crawl space they were looking at earlier.

"Go! Go!" Cindy called. Y/n went in after Alice, Cindy came behind them. Y/n heard Cindy screamed, something grabbed hold of her ankle. Cindy kicked and kicked and screamed. She kicked Tommy so hard he hit the wall. Rocks started falling down. Y/n yanked Cindy through before a rocked crushed her head.

She collapsed on top of her. Panting, she waiting until the rocks finished falling. Cindy started sobbing. Y/n sat up and rested a hand on her back.

"Wait," Alice muttered. "Do you hear that?" The three of them listened. They could hear the heavy breathing.

"He's still alive."

He can't... He can't get us," Alice reassured. Y/n left her hand on Cindy. Alice rested her head against a rock.

Cindy fall into Y/n's side, in turn she just wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her towards her. "He can't," Y/n mumbled. "He left. I heard footsteps. He going for the camp."

"We can't possibly know that," Alice said.

"If this stupid fucking curse is right," Y/n started, "then we know Shadysiders are the targets. I.E why he killed fucking Arnie. He didn't grab for me, he grabbed for Cindy."

It was quiet for awhile. Y/n fall asleep against a rock. Cindy slipped from her arm and walked around. "It's some kind of cavern. I don't know. It seems to just.. go on forever."

"I don't care," Alice muttered, defeated. Y/n egan to wake from the sound of rocks shifting.

"Alice, can you please just..help me?"

"What you're just gonna pretend that everything's OK?"

"Alice, I just.." she sunk back down next to Y/n.

"Tommy split Arnie's head in half. Do you realize that?"

"I'm sure she does," Y/n said. "It's not her fault. You wanted so badly to come out here."

Cindy was crying. "Please, can you just help me?"

"With what?" She stood up. "This shit weights, like, a million pounds. I thought you go an A in physics."

"We have to get out!"

"Well, tough shit," Alice said, flashing the flashlight in her face. "Because we can't. We're gonna die down here. Just like Arnie." Y/n pushed her away.

"Shut up," Y/n said, stumbling.

"No, no. We have to get out!" Cindy stood up and followed them. "We have to! Those names on the wall, they didn't stop with one murder. Seven, nine, ten. Fifteen people. Those were serial killers. The campers...My...my sister, they're up there."

"And now, so is he," Y/n mumbled. She stepped forward. Her hands cupped her face and she wiped the stray tears away. "Here's the plan. No tears."

"I thought you didn't believe in the witch."

"Yeah, I don't! I... The...There must be some...some explanation."

"Oh my god, you are fucking unbelievable, Cindy. Ok? He was possessed!"

"Maybe he took a pill or--"

"No!" Cindy flinched at the volume of her voice. Y/n had let go of Cindy and walked around. "No! Cindy, no! It wasn't the fucking Tylenol, alright?" She grabbed hold of her. "It was the witch."

"Will you let go of her," Y/n called. "Let her believe what she wants to believe."

"You aren't in any danger!" Alice called. "You're a Sunnyvaler."

Y/n walked back over to them. "Shut up, Alice. We don't know that."

"Every name on that rock! It's the witch. She's possessing people. This is real." She held up the book. Cindy threw it out of her hands.

"This isn't real!" Cindy snapped. They were inches away from each other now. Y/n looked away.

"You want an explanation. Will here it is. She looked for the hand bone to fucking stop the curse, to save Shadyside. But she didn't find it. But, you wanna know what she did find. Your boyfriend's name in that fucking wall."

"No," Cindy whimpered. She looked at Y/n.

"So she tried to kill him." Y/n's head shot towards them. This could've been avoiding.

"Stop!" Cindy cried.

"Which I also would've done if I knew there was a chance that Tommy fucking Slater would fucking ax my boyfriend in the fucking head!"

"Listen! Shut up!" Cindy screamed, pushing Alice against a rock. Y/n immediately grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into her. Cindy pushed and fought with her until finally giving up and collapsing in her arms.

"There we go. That's the Cindy Berman I knew." Once she gained her composer she began walking away, grabbing for Y/n's hand. "Hey, where are you going?"

"To find another way out. Don't follow me."

"Well then don't come back here, alright!" Cindy stormed off, dragging Y/n with her. "Alright, do you hear me? Don't come back!"

Cindy flashed her flashlight against the stone walls. She was breathing very heavy, and she let go of Y/n's hand leaving her a few steps behind. "You're find, you're fine," Cindy whispered to herself.

"Boo!"

"Jesus, what the hell?" Cindy mutterd, pushing Alice. "I told you not to follow me."

"I didn't. You went in a circle." Y/n emerged from the same side Cindy came through.

"She's right. It's a circle."

Cindy looked around, the notebook on the floor was open and she gasped. "One, two, three, four." She repeated that twice, Y/n watched her curiously.

"What are you doing?" Alice asked.

"This symbol, it branches off here. Four times." Y/n was putting two and two together as she was explaining it. "Three there, one there." She pointed with her flashlight. "One there. Just like this cave. It's the same."

"The symbol is a map," Y/n said.

"Yes! Yes, exactly," Cindy said. "We can use this to get out."