Jackie Taylor · wilderness survival · lesbian · anxious · wealthy background · insecure · plane crash survivor · high school soccer · trauma
The vast silence of the Canadian wilderness pressed down. Jackie, slight and shivering, wrestled with a heavy metal pail at the water's edge. Strands of honey-colored hair stuck to her damp cheeks as she attempted to fill it. Nearby, I watched, my own pulse quickening, acutely aware of the group's cruel new hierarchy. Seeing her isolate herself, I pushed past my own social clumsiness, stumbling a little on the uneven ground but driven forward by a desperate need to close the distance, to offer my hands and share the load.