LIABILITY ━━ until dawn.

chapter iii.

chapter three – butterfly effect.

As Sage exited the Cable Car Station, she saw the last person that she wanted to see at all. Which was Jess. Sage loved the blonde dearly, she really did. It was just awkward when Sage had been sleeping with Jess's boyfriend, Mike, for months until a week after Jess and Mike started dating. Mike and Sage were both keen on keeping their secrets to themselves at any costs.

" Hey! " Jess beams at Sage as she rushes to hug the girl tightly, Sage returning the hug quite awkwardly but Jess didn't notice at all. " I've missed you, S. Feels like I've barely seen you since I started dating Mike. "

" Yeah. . " Sage trailed off, her tone unsure as she stood across from Jess. The two had been friends longer than anyone else in their friend group, not without the struggles of the two growing distant over the years. Sage shakes her head and smiles slightly at Jess while forcing herself to get rid of any thoughts of Mike. " Sorry about that, J. Josh needed me and Sam a lot ever since Hannah and Beth disappeared last year. He's been struggling. "

" Of course. I completely understand, Josh has been your best friend for so long. " Jess quickly replied, frowning as she thought about the two most likely deceased girls. She hadn't thought about the two a lot for the past few weeks, wanting to push her dumb decisions behind her. " How's Josh doing? He looked way better than last time I saw him in the video that he sent. "

" He looked better and healthier the last time I saw him. " Sage nods as Jess smiles at that now known fact. " I think this trip is gonna be really good for him and the rest of us, you know? It's going to bring closure. "

" That's amazing! " Jess exclaims smiling before glancing over at where her phone and a book with her letter for Mike inside of it sat. " If you see Mike while you're walking to the lodge, can you remind him to come see me? I've seen Chris and Sam, but not him. "

" Of course, J. " Sage agrees immediately, seeing how upset Jess was quickly getting. It was obvious how much Jess liked Mike and that made Sage feel even worse about her and Mike's secret. She quickly hugs the blonde before bidding her goodbye as Jess went to sit back down.

Sage immediately sighs in relief, feeling tension leave her body as soon as she was out of Jess's eyesight. She had never wanted to be the stereotypical good friend that was sleeping with their friend's boyfriend, but she had been. It sucked.

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" Fuck. " Sage curses under her breath once again after a few minutes of complete silence and the cold seeping into her bones. " It's too fucking cold for this. Why did I agree to this? " Sage almost hits her head against a tree branch as she continues to curse at herself. " Because you are Josh's best friend, dumbass. Or you were. Who fucking knows? "

The nineteen year started walking even faster, causing her to almost trip over another unknown object on the ground and making Sage groan in annoyance. She bends down to pick up the object and quickly figuring out that it was another totem.

" Why are these all over the mountain? " Sage mutters to herself, trying to remember what kind of totem she was staring at. " Does Josh's dad have a kink involving totems or something? "

DANGER TOTEM.
found by Sage on the path to the
Washington Lodge.

" Ash, let us in! It's coming! " Sage shouts as her and Chris come sprinting towards the door that Ashley was on the other side of. Ashley only stared blankly at the two, remembering when Chris had shot her in Josh's sick mind games. This was her revenge and Sage was collateral damage.

Sage and Chris reach the door, with Sage banging on the door hoping to get Ashley to unlock it as Chris watched for the wendigo. Ashley wasn't budging at all. Were they going to die because of her?

" Boo! " A figure behind Sage suddenly shouts, causing the girl to scream loudly before falling backwards into the snow. Sage turns her head quickly to see Mike bent over laughing loudly at Sage's reaction. " Holy shit! That was the funniest shit ever! "

" Mike, you bitch! " Sage shouts getting up quickly to push Mike's shoulder. Mike continues to laugh hysterically at Sage's reaction as Sage frowns at him. She was atleast a few minutes away from where Jess was, why wasn't he there? Sage shakes her head, deciding to stay out of Mike and Jess's realtionship problems. It wasn't her realtionship, so it wasn't her problem.

" That was great! " Mike laughs as he straightens back up to look down at Sage. He shamelessly scanned the brunette from head to toe, all laughter gone from his face. " I missed you, Sage. Had to show my love for you somehow. " He teases the girl, who continued to frown up at him.

" By covering the back of my black jeans in snow? " Sage scoffs as she rolls her eyes at Mike. " Really feeling the love, Mikey. " She turns slightly to brush the snow off of her backside, feeling Mike's eyes watch her. Sage clears her throat as she finishes before bringing her hands together hoping to get her hands warm again.

" Your jeans look great covered in snow. " Mike grins as Sage just laughs at Mike and quickly forgetting about Jess waiting for her boyfriend just minutes away. He continued to watch Sage as she rubbed her hands together to create warmth. " I really wanna kiss you right now. "

Sage frowns, Jess quickly popping into her mind, as she looked up at Mike. " You can't, Mike. " Mike only continues to look at Sage and choosing to not speak. " You're dating Jess. " Sage mutters, not trusting her voice enough to speak louder. This was already hard enough. She clears her throat again before reaching over and grasping Mike's hand. " We're not. . whatever we were anymore. Okay? We can only be friends. "

Sage only squeezes Mike's hand before releasing it as she started to walk away, only glancing back to see Mike staring back at her. She continued to walk away, telling herself to not go back even if she wanted too.

Sage let out a shaky sigh, letting the tears brim her eyes before wiping them away. She liked Mike so much but nothing could happen right now.

It just couldn't.

━━━━
authors note:
surprise! mike and sage are my babies ya'll,
i swear.