doomsday. [ yellowjackets ]

trente.

xxx.

chapter trente.
chapter thirty.

xxx.

            It hadn't been long after Natalie, Tara, Sam, and Travis set out when the group sat outside, basking in the sunlight that shined down on the sparkling snow that covered every inch of ground. Crystal and Misty were reenacting some death scene from a play, apparently, Van was sitting next to the fire, clutching the bone necklace Lottie had given her, a far off look in her eyes. The others were doing mindless tasks, like Taissa, who was chopping wood.

            And Alex, who's task was supervising Taissa's work. She was a bit more interested in the dishes she was washing with a ratty washcloth and a bucket of water between her knees than the splitting of wood. Taissa would slam the axe down into the log, cutting it in half before discarding the pieces into a pile, but her gaze was elsewhere.

             Alex lifted her head an inch to look at Taissa, her brows knitting together for a second before she lowered the plate in her hand, squeezing the water from the rag, " Tai, you alright? "

            Taissa didn't respond though, she just let out a noise of acknowledgement; Alex dropped the clutch into the bucket too, causing Taissa's head to actually turn towards her that time, an expectant look on her face.

            When Alex didn't say anything, despite meeting her intense eyes, Taissa raised her brows, " What, Alex? "

           " How's the sleepwalking? You don't seem as irritable. " Alex asked almost instantly, making the Turner girl press her lips together. She must've caught her off guard, a rare occurrence for someone like Taissa.

           Taissa had agreed to tell Alex about her sleepwalking issue about a month ago, after a bit of convincing from Van, but Alex hadn't really mentioned it. She knew that Van had started sleeping in the attic with Taissa, she even knew that she was tying herself to Taissa in order to keep her from getting up in the middle of the night, but she didn't know the extent of it. She didn't know that Taissa would seemingly wander into the woods and find trees with symbols on them, and maybe, if she did know, she would regret it.

           " It's better. " Taissa answered, whether it was the actual, honest answer, Alex couldn't tell. Taissa avoiding her eyes made her think it was a lie, but she did end up looking at her when she felt Alex's uncertainty. Taissa just repeated herself in a more serious tone, " It's better. Seriously, Alex. "

           " I didn't say anything, Taissa. " Alex pointed out, giving her a halfhearted smile before she shook her head, returning her attention to the dirty dish.

           Shauna suddenly walked past the two of them, the shed door squeaking softly as it closed. Taissa's head perked up again as her analytical eyes trailed the brunette, watching her join the group around the fire briefly; Shauna didn't hang around the others much, and when it was, it was only for a little bit at a time, and she usually just listened to the conversations around her rather than participate in them.

            It had been no secret that Taissa didn't like Shauna spending so much time in the shed. She'd been the one actively against it, mentioning that the group needed to band together and prevent Shauna from rotting away in there with her dead best friend. There were a few agreeable people, like Natalie, who figured the last thing a pregnant person needed to be doing was sitting out in the cold for hours on end, but it seemed like the rest of them didn't care enough to say anything.