Winding Roads {A Creative Writing Journal}

Stranded: Part 1

14 survivors, the island of nightmares, 1 killer's game.

Archer Bastian wasn't expecting much when his class goes on a summer long trip to an island in the North Pacific. He was just happy to sit back, relax, and check "traveling out of the country" off his bucket list.

But when the plane that drops them off explodes before it can even leave the island, everything goes drastically wrong. It's no longer a vacation, but a test of survival as one by one, the people he knows vanish and turn up dead.

Someone is hunting them down, and there isn't much time to find out who or what is behind it, or if there is an even bigger scheme in play.
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   No one expects a plane to crash before it can even get off the runway, and yet, that's exactly what happened. I had just stepped off the last step and on to the asphalt runway, and I might've walked only a few feet forward when the small airliner burst into flames.

All of the noise around me became muffled, as if I had suddenly been dunked under water, only for my ears to start ringing. I covered my head with my hands, gritting my teeth as the heat rolled over me in waves. I was suddenly very thankful for the jacket I was wearing, or well, had been wearing. As I struggled to get my bearings, I could only think of one incredibly stupid thing.

This was not how I thought my summer vacation was going to start.

A pair of bulky arms pulled me away from the blast, and I had the great displeasure to meet the scowling gaze of a six-foot-six bulldozer of a guy named Gunner Heath, our school's football captain. He was yelling something at me, but all of his words came out muffled.

It was probably for the best, anyway. "Big G" wasn't exactly the gentle giant kind of guy.

   My "rescuer" was pushed out of the way, and our teacher and chaperone Mr. Hudson took his place. The ringing in my ears had dialed down a bit, so I could pick up bits and pieces of what he was saying.

   "Can...hear me? Archer...you...me?"

"Yeah!" I yelled back, "Sorta!"

"Are you hurt?!" he shouted back. I shook my head—a bad idea in retrospect.

"Nah, my jacket took the brunt of it!"

  I seriously hoped my hearing would start working again soon, because as far as I knew, neither of us knew sign language, and I was a terrible lip-reader.

   Mr. Hudson helped me take off my jacket and checked me for injuries himself. After he appeared satisfied, he helped me to my feet and gave me a moment to regain my balance. By then, most of the muffling was fading away, though there was a still an annoying ringing.

I was quickly pulled towards my class, who were acting as frantic as I felt. I didn't fault them, because how on earth does a plane just randomly explode?! Things like that don't just happen without reason.

We were quickly ushered away from the scene by one of the island's residential staff, though I couldn't help but crane my neck to take a last glance at the gruesome sight. Just to think, if I had been only a few feet closer, I would've barbecued.

The devastating scene was soon replaced by a thick jungle canopy, the only sign of human interference being the wide dirt road under our feet and the floodlights set up every few yards.

"Is the pilot okay? I don't think I saw him get out," Miranda asked our new guide, tossing her dark hair over her shoulder.

The man said nothing, and she slowed down, blending back into our small group of fourteen. A sick feeling rose up in my throat. I didn't even think about the pilot still inside the plane, and the whispers around me suggested that no one else had too.

Mr. Hudson moved closer to the brunette and said something, but she brushed him off and increased her pace, staying just within the ranks of our class while remaining mostly in the lead.

   She didn't talk to the others, just sort of stared ahead blankly. I let my eyes linger just a second longer before turning away, only to bump into my best friend.

"What a way to start our summer," Diego half-whispered as he handed me my backpack, "If that's not a bad omen, I don't know what is."

I may not be as superstitious as Diego Reyes, but I couldn't help but agree.

"Do you think we'll still be rooming together when we get to the house?" he continued. I shrugged, scratching my still-buzzing ear.

"Hope so. I doubt anyone else could stand your snoring," I smirked. Diego scoffed.

"I don't snore," he denied.

"Six years of sleepovers says otherwise," I countered, trying to lighten the mood.

   Diego leaned closer to me, forcing me to lean down so I could hear him. His words immediately shot down any hopes I had of improving our spirits.

    "How are we supposed to get off this joint if there's no plane?"

   "I'm sure they have more than one plane," I tried to reassure him...and myself. I really didn't want that thought in the back of my mind for the rest of our trip.

"But I didn't see any others back at the runway," he replied.

"Maybe they were sent to the mainland, or they have a boat docked around here somewhere."

"I really hope you're right," he mumbled.

"We're going to be here for a while anyway," I added, "That should give them plenty of time to figure something out."

Diego opened his mouth to reply, but he was cut short as we approached our new home for the summer—a three-story, plain yellow house with a flat, asymmetrical roof. It wasn't anything like the clean, modern building described in brochure handed to us at school.

  Besides the plane exploding, that felt like a major clue, but about what I still didn't know.

   Our guide stopped in front of the simple wooden door, causing the rest of us to pause and, for once, pay attention. 

    "Meals will be served on the ground floor," he explained in a thick Filipino accent, "Bedrooms are upstairs. The laundry and recreation rooms are both on the top floor."

"Thank you," Mr. Hudson replied. The man nodded and gruffly walked away, leaving us in front of the building with no idea what to think.

Our teacher chuckled awkwardly before he opened the door. "Well, come on, class. Might as well get settled in."

"Ew! I think I just saw a rat!" I heard one of the girls shriek, which, of course, caused a chain reaction with the other girls and even some of the guys. I couldn't help but sigh deeply.

Yep, this was going to be a long "vacation."
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List of Passengers
Archer Bastian
Gunner Heath
Evie Williams
Janet Quintana
Diego Reyes
Ren Tanaka
Frita Seagrave
August Madlock
Damien Hale
Miranda Frost
Chris Glynn
Clarissa Fairfield
Dallas Coleman
Mr. Josh Hudson
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A/N: So that's it for chapter one! I hope you enjoyed it. That was my first time writing in 1st POV; I usually write in 3rd. Don't forget to leave a vote and a comment if you're enjoying the story!