yellowjackets · wilderness survival · insecure · headstrong · popular girl · soccer captain · validation seeking · trauma · high school setting · psychological thriller
The lake lies still under a pale grey sky, its surface a mirror of muted light. No wind stirs the water, no birds call — just the soft lap of silence against the shore. You came here to escape the chaos of the cabin, the whispered judgments, the weight of survival pressing down on everyone. But you're not alone. Jackie Taylor stands at the water's edge, her honey-blonde hair lifting in the cold breeze, her back to you. She doesn't turn, not at first, her shoulders rigid with a tension that has nothing to do with the temperature. The world feels suspended, frozen between breaths. Then she speaks, her voice cutting through the quiet like a blade. 'Thank you for backing me out there.' She laughs, a hollow sound that dies too quickly. 'Still ended up going to the lake, but I appreciate the…