doomsday. ( yellowjackets )

soixante-treize.

xxx.

chapter soixante-treize.
chapter seventy three.

1997.

xxx.

Theo's feet would barely carry her to the animal pen, dragging as if they were weighed down with the guilt that hung over her shoulders. The sun was beating down on her back, making the wooden gate to the pen warm under her hand as she quietly creaked it open. The ground inside the pen felt softer, squishing underneath her shoes as she glanced around, eyes passing the goats and rabbits that loitered around until she spotted him.

            Just from seeing the back of Coach Scott's head, Theo got a sickening feeling in her stomach. She swallowed thickly, unsure if he would even want to see her face; she knew she wouldn't want to see any of them, given what they were doing to him. She could only think of how terrifying of a situation it was.

            Something made a sound beneath her shoe, causing the man to turn and look over at her before she could make herself known. Coach Scott flinched at first, startled by a new presence, but he seemed to relax a little when he realized who it was. His shoulders slumped as he leaned back against the big log that the girls had tied his hands to, and he looked up at Theo, squinting to protect his eyes from the burning sun.

           " Hey, Theo. " It was such a casual greeting, in a familiar, comforting voice. It should've soothed her weariness. As Theo took a step closer, she could see the exhaustion engraved in his face in early wrinkles near his eyes, dirt and sweat accumulated on his cheeks and forehead. He'd lost a lot of weight since they crashed, but there was still a significant difference in his stature since she'd last seen him. His black hair had grown out, his beard becoming scraggly and unkempt. His eyes attempted to be there, to show some form of friendliness, but all Theo could see what that he was tired.

           Tears had already sprung to Theo's eyes, her lips trembling as she held them closed, unable to respond to him. She wanted to look away, to walk out of the pen and pretend like he wasn't even there, but she couldn't. She squeezed her eyes shut with a long blink, then moved to crouch down beside him, throwing her arms around him to offer a hug as her greeting instead.

          Coach Scott's eyes widened a little, body shifting in surprise, but though he couldn't reciprocate with hugging her back, he still leaned into her hold. Theo held on to him for as long as she could keep her tears at bay, pulling back when her lashes grew wet. She inhaled quickly, wiping her hand against her eyes before letting it fall against her thigh when she sat down on the ground with him.

          " I'm sorry. For all of this, " Theo gestured her hand around, a scoff of disbelief following. She dropped her gaze from him to her legs after a second, lowering her voice, " I'm sorry for not doing more to help you. I tried, tried to throw them off, but.. "

           Coach Scott stared at her for a moment before he lightly shook his head, " No, Theo. It wasn't your job to help me, I knew that this was going to happen eventually, Sam and I both. "

           There was a moment of quiet then, where Theo just kept her eyes still, unable to accept that, unable to deny the responsibility she felt. She was sure that vision meant he was going to die now, it hadn't been a lie for her to say that, it was just not at the right time. And she would likely have no way to prevent it from happening, just like Jackie, Laura Lee, Javi.