The Survival Experiment
Small Game
"Does anyone have anything to drink?" Tiffany pleaded, looking sweaty and tired beneath the willow tree under which the two of us sat. "Anything at all. I'm so thirsty."
Wade, who was standing with Finn against a nearby rock, "Well, there's all kinds of swamp water if you're interested," Wade said.
She looked at him almost apologetically. As one of the people who had mistaken it for water, she may have thought she deserved to drink from the swamp.
Suddenly a small brown hare darted out from behind our tree. Tiffany shrieked and jumped a few feet into the air. Finn shouted, "FOOD!" and tried to pounce on it, but it was much too fast and had disappeared before Finn even hit the ground.
"Rabbit?" Darian asked from the other side of our little camp.
"Oh, yeah," Finn answered, his eyes wide, a demented grin on his lips.
"Let's go," Darian said. "We've got a family to feed." Laughing, he reached into his inner coat pocket and pulled out a revolver. Of course, I thought, the black guy has a gun. I wasn't a racist, but this man was making preconceptions hard to avoid.
As Finn and Darian raced off after the animal, Jada hurried to catch up with them, holding a small knife in her hand. When she realized that Jesse was trailing her, she stopped him. "Stay here," she ordered. Jesse didn't make a complaint although he looked as if he wanted to make several. "I'm leaving you in charge of these imbeciles." Without another word, she ran off, leaving Jesse in her dust, bummed about missing out on the thrill of the kill. Boys.
"Aren't you going?" I asked Wade.
"I have a weak stomach," he admitted. "In fact, if whatever they kill is still recognizable by the time they're done with it, I'll probably starve tonight."
"Ditto," Tiffany said. "Morgan, can I count on you to force food down my throat if you have to?"
"Of course, Tiff," I replied. "Expect nothing less."
"Can I get in on that deal?" Wade asked. "Somehow I trust you more than I do my twin brother."
"That's totally understandable," I laughed.
A few moments of silence ensued as I took time to notice that the sun was starting to descend behind the horizon. Rubbing my forearms, I said, "It's getting chilly, isn't it?"
"We should gather wood and build a fire," Wade suggested.
"I'm game," I said, standing and brushing dirt off my jeans. I turned to my friend and extended a hand. "What do you think, Tiffany?"
"Why not?" She allowed me to help her up. "Where should we go?"
"How about the opposite way everyone else went?" I said. "For some reason, I really don't want to run into Jada."
"Understood," Wade said. "Maybe we should get some extra hands," he added, looking around at the four others who sat idly on rocks along the swamp.
"Guys!" I shouted. Everyone looked up, including the Japanese woman who couldn't understand my words. "If you're not too busy, why don't you come out with us and collect some wood. It's going to get pretty cold tonight."
"Sure," Giorgie said, setting down her sketchbook.
"Mona?" I asked the mousy girl who appeared to be very captivated by the book she was reading.
"Actually, I am quite busy," she insisted. "I'm reading about swamp climates. And when I'm done with that, I'm going to start on desert climates." She spoke with such conviction that I did not question her further, but something told me she was bluffing. After all, who carries around books on desert climates?
"How about you, Jesse?" I tried. "Not many imbeciles left to keep track of anymore."
He hesitated for a minute, then I heard him speak for the first time. "You probably shouldn't leave at all." His voice was very quiet, as if it had been shushed frequently in the past. I suddenly felt a great deal of pity for him.
"Someone has to get a fire started," I said. "Jada's only human; she can't be in two places at once."
Jesse's face changed at my last statement, in such an eerie way that I almost wished I could take it back.
"What are we supposed to do, man?" Wade cut through the tension. "Eat it raw?"
For a moment, he appeared to reconsidering, then he said, "All right. I'll go."
I thought about asking Setsuna to come with us but decided against it. The tiny old woman would be no help carrying wood and would probably only slow us down. I left her to her knitting.
"Let's get going," Wade said, leading us onward. Jesse took one last look at Ramona, as if to say, "Please, don't get me in trouble." Then he turned and followed the group out into the woods.
Wade, who was standing with Finn against a nearby rock, "Well, there's all kinds of swamp water if you're interested," Wade said.
She looked at him almost apologetically. As one of the people who had mistaken it for water, she may have thought she deserved to drink from the swamp.
Suddenly a small brown hare darted out from behind our tree. Tiffany shrieked and jumped a few feet into the air. Finn shouted, "FOOD!" and tried to pounce on it, but it was much too fast and had disappeared before Finn even hit the ground.
"Rabbit?" Darian asked from the other side of our little camp.
"Oh, yeah," Finn answered, his eyes wide, a demented grin on his lips.
"Let's go," Darian said. "We've got a family to feed." Laughing, he reached into his inner coat pocket and pulled out a revolver. Of course, I thought, the black guy has a gun. I wasn't a racist, but this man was making preconceptions hard to avoid.
As Finn and Darian raced off after the animal, Jada hurried to catch up with them, holding a small knife in her hand. When she realized that Jesse was trailing her, she stopped him. "Stay here," she ordered. Jesse didn't make a complaint although he looked as if he wanted to make several. "I'm leaving you in charge of these imbeciles." Without another word, she ran off, leaving Jesse in her dust, bummed about missing out on the thrill of the kill. Boys.
"Aren't you going?" I asked Wade.
"I have a weak stomach," he admitted. "In fact, if whatever they kill is still recognizable by the time they're done with it, I'll probably starve tonight."
"Ditto," Tiffany said. "Morgan, can I count on you to force food down my throat if you have to?"
"Of course, Tiff," I replied. "Expect nothing less."
"Can I get in on that deal?" Wade asked. "Somehow I trust you more than I do my twin brother."
"That's totally understandable," I laughed.
A few moments of silence ensued as I took time to notice that the sun was starting to descend behind the horizon. Rubbing my forearms, I said, "It's getting chilly, isn't it?"
"We should gather wood and build a fire," Wade suggested.
"I'm game," I said, standing and brushing dirt off my jeans. I turned to my friend and extended a hand. "What do you think, Tiffany?"
"Why not?" She allowed me to help her up. "Where should we go?"
"How about the opposite way everyone else went?" I said. "For some reason, I really don't want to run into Jada."
"Understood," Wade said. "Maybe we should get some extra hands," he added, looking around at the four others who sat idly on rocks along the swamp.
"Guys!" I shouted. Everyone looked up, including the Japanese woman who couldn't understand my words. "If you're not too busy, why don't you come out with us and collect some wood. It's going to get pretty cold tonight."
"Sure," Giorgie said, setting down her sketchbook.
"Mona?" I asked the mousy girl who appeared to be very captivated by the book she was reading.
"Actually, I am quite busy," she insisted. "I'm reading about swamp climates. And when I'm done with that, I'm going to start on desert climates." She spoke with such conviction that I did not question her further, but something told me she was bluffing. After all, who carries around books on desert climates?
"How about you, Jesse?" I tried. "Not many imbeciles left to keep track of anymore."
He hesitated for a minute, then I heard him speak for the first time. "You probably shouldn't leave at all." His voice was very quiet, as if it had been shushed frequently in the past. I suddenly felt a great deal of pity for him.
"Someone has to get a fire started," I said. "Jada's only human; she can't be in two places at once."
Jesse's face changed at my last statement, in such an eerie way that I almost wished I could take it back.
"What are we supposed to do, man?" Wade cut through the tension. "Eat it raw?"
For a moment, he appeared to reconsidering, then he said, "All right. I'll go."
I thought about asking Setsuna to come with us but decided against it. The tiny old woman would be no help carrying wood and would probably only slow us down. I left her to her knitting.
"Let's get going," Wade said, leading us onward. Jesse took one last look at Ramona, as if to say, "Please, don't get me in trouble." Then he turned and followed the group out into the woods.