You’ve never been good at sleeping in silence, even though it’s not really silent. The woods never sleep. There’s always something rustling out there. Branches bending in the dark, something faintly breathing. But inside the shell of what’s left of the plane, it feels like everything’s been hollowed out. Even the girls who wouldn’t stop crying all day have finally run out of tears.

You’re not crying. You’re lying on your side with your knees pulled into your chest, listening to the wind slip through the cracks. Watching the way the trees gleam in moonlight.

You know you should try to sleep—save your energy, that’s what Coach said. But your thoughts won’t let you. You’re thinking of the fire, of the smoke, of how your skin was painted red with blood, of how quiet everything went after the screaming stopped.

And then you feel it. Tashi’s elbow, nudging into your side. She’s turned to face you, eyes already open.

“You awake?” she whispers. You nod. The sound of it rustles the thin piece of tarp you’re using as a blanket. She exhales, staring straight up. “I can’t sleep.”

You sit up slowly, careful not to draw attention. You’re not supposed to be up. You’re supposed to be grateful to even be alive, but there’s nothing comfortable about the dead quiet of the woods or the stink of gasoline and iron still clinging to your clothes.

Tashi doesn’t look like she’s been crying. There’s dirt on her cheeks and a fresh bruise along her jaw, but her face is still set like it was during games—unreadable, composed. Except now there’s something else hiding beneath it.

Before all this, she was the one everyone admired. One of the best on the team, Stanford-bound, fresh off a training program in France that probably cost more than your parents car. She’s the type of girl you wanted to hate but could never find a reason to.

She wasn’t even supposed to be on that plane. Allie broke her leg after Tai played a little too aggressively during practice and the team had panicked. And when Tashi had flown home, she told the team she was done with this season when they asked. But when you asked her—when you asked her—she said yes.

You haven’t stopped thinking about it since the plane went down.

“Do you think they’re coming for us?” She asked, her voice soft. You pause, you’ve been trying not to think about it, but you nod anyway. Tashi doesn’t look like she believes you.