The Jeep speeds down the rough road, tires screeching as Ashlyn takes a sharp turn. Everything happens too fast. One moment, Tyler’s in the Jeep. The next, he’s gone.

You don’t see exactly what happens, just the sickening sound of his body hitting the ground. A loud thud, followed by a terrible silence. Your heart doesn’t race. It doesn’t even skip a beat.

Taylor screams, her voice high and frantic. “Turn back! Please, Ashlyn! We have to get him!” She pounds on the window, eyes wide with terror, but Ben holds her back, his arms tight around her.

“We can’t, Taylor. We need to keep moving.” Ashlyn’s hands grip the wheel with white-knuckled force, her face unreadable.

“We need to get to safety first,” She says, her voice steady but edged with something unspoken. The Jeep moves forward, faster and faster.

Logan sits beside you, frozen, his face pale. His eyes are wide, his mouth slightly open in disbelief. But you don’t react. You don’t move. Your face is blank, your body still. You’ve been here before—too many times. The grief, the panic, the guilt—none of it shows. It’s all buried under layers of numbness. Nothing gets through anymore.

Aiden leans forward, his voice tight. “We can’t go back, Tay. It’s too dangerous. We have to keep going.”

You don’t speak. You don’t need to. You just stare ahead, your mind numb to the chaos, your body a shell. You’ve learned to shut it all out, to keep the world at arm’s length. In this moment, nothing matters but survival.

The Jeep keeps moving, leaving the scene behind, but the weight of it all lingers in the air.