THRIVE: Book One

Chapter 31- Jerks

"Hey, jackass, I missed you today." Amy jokes as Brian and Chris come up the front stairs with a wooden bucket full of fish. Us girls had all been waiting outside for them to come back for over an hour at this point, and we were all starving. Brian and Chris laugh at Amy's comment, and as they came closer, they suddenly saw that her eyes were red and puffy.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" Brian asks nervously as he runs to her, nearly tripping up the stairs. Carmen had been holding Amy since we came outside; they needed to bond again more than ever.

"We had a rough talk a little bit ago, but we're better now." Carmen explains, and Amy smiles and nods.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Brian asked, holding Amy's hand.

"I will be." She smiles as she leans in to kiss him. Once Chris makes it up the rest of the stairs, he sets the bucket down, gasping out of breath.

"Who wants to help cook tonight?" Chris asks exhaustedly. Curious, Chloe crawls over and looks in the bucket, smiling at today's catch.

"I'm thinking tonight would be a good night for a stew, and I think we have some tomatoes and peppers we could throw in." She suggests as she stands up, taking the bucket. "Victoria, why don't you join us?" Chloe asks, waving at Victoria, who had been sitting a little further off by herself. She shrugs and doesn't seem interested, but Chloe doesn't seem like she is going to take no for an answer. Determined, she hands the bucket back to Chris, making her way over and reaching both of her hands out to her.

"I don't know." Victoria sighs skeptically.

"Oh, come on. It'll be fun." Chloe smiles. "You don't even have to do any of the hard work; you can just stand in the corner and make fun of Chris the whole time if you want. You in?" She asks again, holding her arms out hopefully.

"Hey!" Chris shouts, and everyone starts to laugh. Victoria tries to fight a smile but gives in and starts to giggle.

"Alright, I'm in." Victoria laughs as she takes Chloe's hands.

"Yes! Let's go, Viki!" Chloe shouts excitedly, pulling Victoria by one arm inside. Chris sighs as he follows them inside, preparing himself for the ridicule that is undoubtedly about to happen. We all laugh as we watch them go, glad to see Victoria smile again.

"How is Chloe so good at that?" Brian asks curiously. We all turn to him, and Carmen and Amy seem just as confused as I am.

"Good at what?" Amy asks.

"Being a people person. Victoria has been really closed off lately, and somehow, she was able to find a way to get her up and moving without having to try that hard." Brian explains. I'm still not sure what he's getting at; Chloe is an upbeat person who was happy to have friends, so why wouldn't she try to get close to all of us?

"She's just really nice." Carmen begins, "I don't see how that's confusing." Brian sighs and looks at all of our faces; it's clear that he realizes we don't see what he is aiming at.

"It's not that; there's just something off about her." Brian tries to explain, "Before we showed up, she was alone here for literally years by herself. Isn't it strange that she could socialize and act normal the minute we showed up here?" He explains, and it sounds like he has been thinking a lot about this lately.

"I would probably be really upbeat and happy if I were in her shoes, I don't understand what you're trying to say." Carmen explains, seeming offended. She had gotten incredibly close with Chloe over the past month or so, and she was the first friend she had ever made that wasn't because of Amy.

"What I'm trying to say is that she should have been going crazy on her own here. Have you ever heard of isolation madness? It's a real thing that can happen when someone is alone for an extended period of time. It's why that guy made friends with a volleyball in Castaway; he needed someone to talk to." Brian explains, pausing to look at Carmen, who seems to be becoming more upset, but he keeps talking anyway. "She didn't have anyone to talk to for years; what kept her sane after all this time?" he asks, concerned, and we all stay silent for a minute. Frankly, I'm waiting for Carmen to blow up at him, but it looks like she's actually thinking about what he said. Chloe was a stable person despite a challenging sociological situation. The minute I met her, she could have easily seemed like a feral creature, but she was not only composed, she was strong-willed.

"She wasn't alone," Carmen states, her voice coarse. "Think whatever you want, but we aren't alone in this place; it's full of stories from the past. Knowing they were here might have been enough, and if you dive deep enough into what they left behind, it almost feels like they're still here. Of course she didn't lose it; she never felt like she was truly alone." she explains angrily, standing up and storming off. Carmen was having a rough day, and I don't think she had fully recovered from the argument with her sister. Brian's face grew pale and riddled with guilt as he realizes he may have crossed a line.

"Carmen's right; she wasn't alone here." Amy tries to explain, "Studying and learning about the past connected her to other people, and it may have even saved her life." Amy sighs, suddenly turning to me, looking just as guilty as Brian. "I think I understand what you three have been doing now. It's what's helping you feel at home here, and I'm sorry I didn't see that before." She apologizes.

"Hey, don't mention it. We're all handling things our own way, after all." I smile as I scoot over and sit beside her and Brian.

"I feel like I've been a jerk to everyone." She says sadly as she rests her head on my shoulder.

"Ditto." Brian sighs.

"Face it; we're all a bunch of assholes." I sigh but start to chuckle. "So, how about we stop being jerks and go inside and help with dinner?" I suggest. Together, Amy, Brian, and I head inside and make our way to the dining hall. Carmen is sitting at the table twiddling her thumbs as we come in, and it takes her a minute to realize that we're here. Embarrassed, she puts her hands in her lap and sits up straight.

"Hey." She says, her voice sounding nervous.

"Hey," Brian says nervously as he leads Amy to the table, sitting beside Carmen. She looks uncomfortable, but at least the anger seems to have subsided. "Look, I'm sorry I said something stupid. I shouldn't judge Chloe without getting to know her," he explains apologetically. Carmen suddenly looks surprised by his apology.

"Same goes for me; I should never be mad at you for making friends just because I don't know her very well," Amy adds. Carmen smiles and stands up from the table, leaning between them and putting her arms around their shoulders.

"Thank you, guys, that means a lot to me," she says happily, and I can hear the relief in her voice. "Honestly, if you guys are interested, there are some things I would love to show you."