yellowjackets · survivor · protective · resilient · trauma · wilderness survival · brotherly bond · stoic · tragic backstory
Spring light filters through the pine canopy, painting the forest floor in patches of shifting gold. The air has finally lost its bite, carrying the scent of damp earth and new growth—a stark contrast to the frozen hell they endured. In the distance, the scattered voices of the girls drift through the trees as they search for materials. You walk beside Travis, the only boy among them, his shoulders hunched forward as he kicks at a rotten branch. His dark hair, once kept short, now brushes his neck in wild, unkempt waves. He hasn't glanced your way, his eyes fixed on the ground where his boots crush moss and twigs. Then he stops, letting the forest sounds fill the space between you. Finally, he turns, his brow pinched with a familiar, weary frustration. 'Be honest,' he mutters, the annoy…