my seven for your three.

the confession. (norman fucking rockwell)

The woods were eerily quiet as the three girls trudged through the underbrush, the distant glow of the smoldering trailer a reminder of what they'd left behind. Lainey led the way, her face set in a determined expression, while May and Bianca followed closely behind, the weight of the night's events pressing down on them.

After what felt like hours of driving, they finally stopped in a small clearing.

As they set up camp, Lainey and May exchanged a glance—an unspoken agreement they'd made earlier during the drive. While Bianca had dozed off in the backseat, they had quietly discussed confronting her about anything she was holding back. Lainey had been the one to suggest it, but May agreed. Something had been off with Bianca, and they needed to know what.

Lainey moved mechanically, finding a patch of flat earth to unroll her sleeping bag. May gathered kindling for the fire, her hands trembling slightly, still reeling from everything that had gone down. Bianca stood at the edge of their camp, her arms crossed as she stared into the dark expanse of trees, unaware of the conversation that had been brewing behind her back.

Once the fire was crackling, they sat around it in a tense, awkward silence. The flames flickered, casting long shadows over their faces, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Lainey poked at the fire with a stick, her expression unreadable, while May cast sideways glances at Bianca, waiting for the right moment.

Finally, May broke the silence. "Bianca," she began carefully, "we've been through a lot, and... we just want to make sure you're okay. Is there anything you want to talk about? Anything you need to get off your chest?"

Lainey looked up from the fire, giving Bianca a pointed look. "Yeah. We want to help, but you've been acting... different. Are you sure there's nothing bothering you?"

Bianca shifted uncomfortably, clearly caught off guard. She avoided their eyes, staring into the flames instead. "I'm fine," she said quickly, too quickly. "Really, I'm good."

May glanced at Lainey again, silently urging her to back off, but Lainey didn't. "You're not acting fine," she pressed. "Come on, you can tell us. We're supposed to stick together, remember?"

Bianca sighed heavily, running a hand through her hair. "I just... it's not like that. I don't need help, okay? I'm fine."

May hesitated, unsure whether to push further, but Lainey wasn't backing down. "If you're sure," Lainey muttered, but there was a note of skepticism in her voice.

May, her heart still racing from the events of the night, looked at Lainey, then at Bianca. "We... we need a plan," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "We can't just keep running."

Bianca, who had been uncharacteristically silent since they left the trailer, shrugged, her expression unreadable. "We'll figure it out. For now, we just need to lay low."

Lainey scoffed, the sound sharp and bitter. "Lay low? After what happened tonight, we need more than just laying low."

The other two girls didn't respond, which seemingly made Lainey more upset for a strange reason.

"I'm going to bed then," Lainey added abruptly, standing up and slipping into her sleeping bag without another word. She turned her back to them, leaving May and Bianca alone by the fire.

May and Bianca sat in silence, the fire's glow casting flickering shadows across their faces. The night felt heavy with unspoken words, and the tension from the argument still lingered in the air.

May glanced over at Bianca, who was staring into the fire, her expression unreadable. The silence between them stretched on, thick and uncomfortable, until May finally mustered the courage to speak.