𝕮𝖎𝖌𝖆𝖗𝖊𝖙𝖙𝖊 𝕯𝖆𝖞𝖉𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖒 - Teen timeline

𝕿𝖍𝖎𝖗𝖙𝖞 𝕱𝖔𝖚𝖗

Veronica held onto her torch tightly in one hand while holding onto Natalie's hand with an even tighter grip.
She had tight coils of anxiety burning in her stomach, it help like it was wrapping around her lung tighter and tighter with each passing moment.
She knew that there would be no good outcome to this.
She knew whether or not they found Coach Scott shit was going to go down and it wasn't going to be pleasant.
She can practically feel the anxiety radiate off Natalie too.
As fucked as Veronica felt she was if they did find Coach Scott, she knew Natalie would be way more fucked than she was.
After all, Natalie was the one who dismissed every possibility of him being alive.
She was the one in charge, not Veronica.
But Veronica would rather die than let Natalie go down by herself.

Veronica watches as Mari's step stagger, she looks around anxiously.
Mari lets out a shaky breath, making Veronica question whether or not Mari actually knew where she was going.
"For fuck sakes," Taissa groans, "Really?"
Veronica whips her head around, "Give her a fucking minute, Tai," she hisses.
"A minute? We've been walking for fucking hours and we're lost-"
"I'm not lost, okay?" she pauses, looking around, "I'm just remembering."
Veronica gives Mari a small nod, but it's Shauna who provides Mari with a small amount of reassurance.
"Hey. It's fine. Take your time. You got this."
Mari looks at Shauna for a moment, studying her face. Veronica and Natalie both share a confused glance at Shauna's sudden softness.

Mari gives a small nod before continuing, the rest of the group following closely behind.

~~~

"That's it!" Mari calls as the group finally finds the cave. "Over here!"
Veronica's eyes widen as the reality of the situation rest on her shoulders.
She looks over at Natalie, who refuses to meet her eyes.
Shauna is quick to already attempt to enter the cave, but Misty is quick to try and stop her.
"Shauna, wait!" Misty freezes when all the attention falls on her. "Are we really just gonna go in?"
Natalie moves to stand beside Shauna and Veronica, "What did you think we were going to do? What do you think happens when we go inside? You guys, we really don't have to do this."
Akilah nods, "Yes. We do."
Veronica shoots her a conflicting look, "Right. Because going into a dark cave with someone who probably tried to burn the cabin down is the smart choice. Guys, we aren't prepared enough for this, what if we get attacked or shit hits the fan?"

Shauna opens her mouth to respond, but a loud, intense growling causes everyone to jump. Veronica flinches and her instincts cause her to reach for Natalie's arm, her hand having a tight grip on her forearm.
"What the fuck is that?" Veronica whispers as the growling and screeching only grows louder.
Natalie gently shakes Veronica's hand off her, firing her gun up towards the sky.
Veronica flinches, her hands covering her ears as the gun fires right beside her head.
"Jesus, what the fuck, Natalie?" she hisses. "A little warning would have been nice before you burst my ear drums open."
"Christ, sorry," Natalie pants, running her hand over her forehead. Natalie takes a breath, trying to compose herself and flick back on her leader mode.
"Fine." Natalie glares, "I'm going in first. You two stand guard. If you see anything, just scream your asses off, okay?" she says pointing to Robin and Britt, already taking the lantern.
Veronica feels her stomach drop at the reality of her actually having to walk into that cave. She feels fear crawl up her throat and a painful ache in her head and her stomach. She clenches her hand around her lantern tightly, taking a deep breath.

She sticks close to Natalie's side, taking steadying breaths to try and ignore how she feels like she is in a live fucking horror movie.
There are loose roots hanging off every rock, making them look like creepy shadows when the light from the lantern reflects on them.
The cave's walls are tight, tighter than Veronica's comfort. The brunette had always been a little claustrophobic. She was feeling it more than ever, each step she took made it feel like her ribs were closing in on her lungs.
Veronica however swallows down her nerves, trying her best to put on her brave face.
"Natalie," she whispers, moving closer to her girlfriend, "Are we sure this is a good idea?"
"Well," Natalie scoffs, "It's not like we can turn back now."
Veronica rolls her eyes, but continues to follow Nat, the others following closely behind.