After the Crash, They All Needed Me

Chapter 006

“I heard someone coughing, Elsa. I hope you’re alright?” Yvonne asked when we got back to the fire.

“Yes! Yes, I’m fine,” Elsa retorted hurriedly, clearing her throat a few times. She turned away to gather up the remaining firewood around the fire, but I was still thinking about the raspiness of her voice. It sounded like someone had just fucked her throat, and I felt my chest swell a little in pride. It had been me. I, Forrest Chaplain, had fucked her mouth until her voice had turned husky.

“Let’s get to the cave now,” Elsa commanded imperiously, pointing in the general direction of the cave with her other hand on her hip. I picked up the backpack with the knives inside and handed it to Yvonne, whose amused smile did not escape me. Shit. I hope she doesn’t mind that Elsa’s giving me… favors, I thought. It seemed like she did not, from the way she questioned me on the way there.

“You found a cave? What is it like?” she began asking, clutching the backpack and the first-aid kit to her chest as she trotted along.

“There was a wolf inside,” Elsa butted in. “Forrest and I killed it.”

“Really? You killed a wolf?” Yvonne asked excitedly, her voice going upward in pitch. Elsa huffed, sensing that Yvonne didn’t believe her. Since I was carrying Euphie on my back, my ability to respond was limited. Thank god she’s still breathing. She had better wake up soon, though. Carrying her around is really getting tiring.

“I got lucky,” I grunted, pausing to suck in a quick breath. “It lunged. I managed to wound it.”

“That’s so amazing!” Yvonne gushed, turning to look at me admiringly. “I’ve never seen a real wolf before. Maybe I’ll get to see the corpse later!” I met her admiring gaze with one of incredulity. Who on earth wanted to see a corpse, even if it did belong to an animal?

Euphie’s breath was warm on my back, and her little inhales and exhales made me hope that there were no surprises waiting for us in the cave. If I’d been a little less lucky, I’d have been dead by now, I thought. If there’s another wolf waiting for us, I don’t think I can keep us all safe. Elsa and Yvonne might make it, but there’s no way I’m going to be able to fend off a wolf with Euphie on my back.

Once we arrived, Yvonne headed straight for the carcass, using a piece of lit firewood she had carried all the way to inspect it. “Wow,” she marveled. Elsa, however, merely snorted in exasperation as I put Euphie down.

“It’s just a dead wolf. Nothing special,” she scoffed.

“Cool it, Elsa. I need you to help me start a fire so we can keep warm. It needs to have a tight circle of rocks around it, otherwise the grass we’ve put down on the floor of the cave is going to catch on fire and we’ll be barbecued,” I warned. She seemed to be very possessive, and I wanted to give her a task to redirect her attention. I don’t need any conflict between Yvonne and Elsa - if they get into a cat fight, it’s going to hurt our chances of survival.

“It’s really a wild wolf,” Yvonne murmured, her voice full of astonishment as I squatted next to her, having pulled out the knife.

“Of course. A tame wolf’s just a dog,” I teased, making her laugh. Conscious of Elsa’s presence, though, I did not continue. “I need you to go help Elsa make a fire while I gut this wolf. Since it’s dead already, we may as well get something out of it.”

Grabbing the wolf, I headed out of the cave. Never had I been so glad that I had grown up in a rural village as a child, as I was going to rely on my knowledge of pig butchery to butcher the wolf. It was significantly larger than a fish, and I was just hoping that the knives I had were up to the task. I was covered in sweat by the time I had managed to gut and skin the wolf, and my leg was on fire once more from squatting down to complete the task. With a quiet groan, I hoisted the meat I had prepared into my arms, before stopping to squint into the far distance.

Was that a light?

What appeared to be a flickering flame danced in and out of my vision. It was a long way away, and I couldn’t be sure of it. It looked like it was on the beach we had just left, but it was not the fire we had left behind. The fire we had left behind was still belching white smoke, since Yvonne had made good on her promise to feed the fire with wet twigs. The tiny light I had seen was on the other end of the beach.

There were just under a hundred people on that plane, I thought as I turned around and began hobbling back to the cave. I saw quite a few bodies and quite a few severed limbs, but I don’t think everyone died. There has to be others who have survived, too. That thought made me hasten toward the cave, recalling the book I had read as a student. The Lord of the Flies by William Golding was about a plane crash that marooned a group of school boys on a deserted island. Over time, the boys revealed their true base natures, resulting in some truly horrific acts that no one could have foreseen. I don’t think Elsa and Yvonne will turn on me, but what about the rest? Who knows.

“I’ve never had wolf kebabs,” Yvonne chirped enthusiastically, holding out the skewers I had made for the fish. Grinning, I speared some of the meat and handed each of them a skewer to hold over the fire. I was glad that she was still her cheerful self.

“Just how long are we going to be staying here?” Elsa asked mournfully, resting her cheek on her arm as she held the skewer over the fire half-heartedly. I could tell from the wistful expression on her face that she was probably missing the creature comforts she had enjoyed at home. A meal made by someone else, hot showers, warm towels, and a soft, luxurious bed - the thought nearly made me break down, too.

“We could be rescued as soon as tomorrow. There’s no use thinking about the worst case scenario now. Dinner’s going to be ready soon, so let’s stop crying and enjoy it while we can,” I encouraged, striving for a mix of firmness and kindness in my tone.

“Who’s crying?” Elsa demanded indignantly, but the effect was spoiled by the way her voice wavered. Nevertheless, neither Yvonne nor I teased her about it. Being marooned was no joke at all.