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Mary isn't exactly built for wilderness living. In her opinion, AC and plug points are as essential as walls and a roof, no matter what any eco guru says.
Still, as she drags her suitcase into the foyer of the cabin in the middle of Hocking State Forest, she has to admit that it doesn't seem too bad. It's cosy-feeling, and though the staircase leading up to the individual rooms is going to be annoying to traverse with luggage, at least it means any woodland creatures are less likely to make their way inside.
In front of her, Dave turns around to face this gaggle of teachers and students, grinning from ear to ear.
“So- this is where you'll be staying for the next couple nights! Pretty groovy, huh? I told you this trip was going to be good!”
A quick glance behind her reveals that the group of students staying in this particular cabin don't seem overly thrilled with the idea- Anthony is attempting to text somebody already and Sarika is looking warily at the beams above like she thinks they're going to collapse any minute.
Mary gives Dave a polite smile instead.
“This is… great, Dave. We’ll get settled, rooms arranged, etc, and we'll meet you and the others outside in… an hour?”
“Uh, okay! Great! Happy camping, everyone!”
As their leader departs, Mary visibly deflates a little, turning around to properly face her group. Well, it's the group being supervised by her, Stef, and Jack, but Stef is on a pilgrimage to the main cabin to ask about WiFi codes (she's probably not going to get very lucky), and Jack? Jack headed into the nearest restroom as soon as the coach pulled up, and he hasn't yet rejoined them.
“Alright…” Mary begins, crossing her arms as she surveys those she can see. Luckily, there aren't that many students per cabin- seven or eight- and she's been given a fairly easy group: Sarika, Anthony, Heather, Marissa, Victor, Eduardo, and Marcus. Dave undoubtedly placed them this way because they're most familiar with their currently-absent biology teacher. “There are three student rooms up there, two with two beds, one with three. Get yourselves arranged into groups and head up there, okay?”
The students look at her a little uncertainly, but soon chatter amongst themselves and start to ascend the stairs with their luggage. As they do, Mary hears the door behind her swing open. She turns expecting to find Jack and is instead greeted by a frustrated Stef.
“Goddamn mountain man at the desk said there's no connection here.” She huffs, scowling as she drags her suitcase through the door violently. “I ak-sed him whether he meant for now or permanently, and he had the gall to raise his eyebrow at me like I'm stupid…”
Mary sighs. It's hardly unexpected, but it's a bummer all the same.
Stef glances around, then fixes her gaze on Mary again, confused. “Where’s Jack? He still not back from the bathroom?”
And, as if on cue, he appears.
A complete contrast to Stef’s rage-filled entrance, Jack's is subdued, exhausted. He holds the door to the cabin open shakily with one hand, and gradually rolls his suitcase through it with the other. His hair is messed up from the wind. His cheeks are rosy, presumably thanks to the chilly weather, too.
“Woah.” Stef says, frowning. “You look like hell, Jack. What happened? Run into a bear in the restroom?”
He attempts a small smile, but it comes off as disingenuous. “Nothing… this the cabin?”
His voice sounds rough, almost like he's been crying or shouting. Mary does her best to move past it, nodding and gesturing upstairs.
“The kids are already up there, but there should be two unoccupied rooms. You can pick one, and Stef and I will share the other.”
She expects Jack to offer something in response, but he only nods again, pulling his suitcase further in, clearing his throat, and beginning to ascend the stairs. He barely gives a passing glance to the rooms occupied by the kids on his way to the empty ones, and the first unoccupied room he sees, he slips into, closing the door behind him.
Stef turns to Mary.
“What the hell is that about? Is he mad about something?”
Mary shrugs. ‘Mad’ isn't exactly the vibe she was getting from him, but who knows? Jack's emotions are hard to interpret at the best of times.
“Maybe he's just grumpy from the ride over.” She suggests, an idea which lightens some of the worry forming in her chest. “Too many kids, Principal Durbin leading sing-alongs- it would drive anyone a little bit crazy. I'm sure he just needs a few minutes of alone time.”
She and Stef settle into their room, talking for a while and getting things unpacked until it's time for their group to join the others outside. No doubt Dave has the whole evening planned out to make the most of their first night in the forest. She rounds the kids up, ushers them out, and urges Stef to go with them while she checks on Jack.
When she knocks on his door, it takes a few agonising seconds to get any response, but then he's there, standing in the doorway, looking about as rough as he did when he first entered the cabin. Mary gives him a small smile.
“Hey- everyone's heading out. You gonna join us?”
He shakes his head, one hand blearily rubbing at his eyes. “Uh, no thanks. It's… it's been a long day. I think I'd rather just stay here."
Behind him, Mary can just about see that the comforter on top of the bed is rumpled, as though it's been recently disturbed. It strikes her suddenly that she's woken him up from a nap, and the guilt of doing so momentarily dwarfs her concerns about him. Plus, Jack takes naps all the time, right? She's probably just disrupted his very usual daily routine.
With a quick nod, she steps back, gesturing for him to enter his room again.
“Right. No problem. See you later, then? At dinner?”
Jack gives her a weak smile, but doesn't say anything. Instead, he only retreats back into the room and closes the door behind him. Mary hears the slight creaking of the bed within a matter of seconds.
Of course. He's just taking a nap.
Reassuring herself that nothing is out of the ordinary at all, Mary steps away from the door and moves towards the stairs.
She doesn't see him at dinner. She doesn't see him at the activities after dinner.
Consequently, by the time she and the others are back at the cabin hours later, Mary feels a creeping sense of dread. She knows it's probably nothing- he's just tired, or tired of people (overstimulation being a likely candidate)- but she can't shake the anxiety which comes with not being sure about any of these options. As the day draws to a close, therefore, she tells Stef she's going to check on him, and slips out of the room to the one next door.
Her first knock is tentative, and she awaits with bated breath his frustrated expression and reasonable explanation. Instead, there's nothing but silence. She knocks again.
Waits.
Nothing.
“Jack?” she calls, her knuckles hovering over the door. “Are you alright?”
When this too yields no response, she tentatively pushes down on the handle, wincing a little and preparing an apology that never leaves her lips, interrupted as it is by the sigh of concern that replaces it.
The curtains of the room are drawn, and Jack is asleep in the bed, curled on his side facing the door (though he doesn't wake up at the noise or the light from the hall). His hair is as mussed as it was before, perhaps even more so, and his skin is definitely paler. A trash can is pulled up right next to the bed, and the slightly sour scent of sickness fills the air.
Shit.
“Jack?”
She walks cautiously over to him, crouching down and moving the trash can gently out of the way so she can get close enough to touch him. Her hand meets his shoulder.
“Jack? Wake up.”
His eyes flutter open, but it takes a few languid blinks for any recognition to enter them.
“M-mary?”
“Yeah, it's me.” she soothes, instinctively moving to stroke his sweat-damp hair. “You're sick, huh?”
His nostrils flare briefly, eyes a little watery. It looks like he's barely holding back tears- is he afraid? How long has he been feeling so terrified and alone?
“N-not… not feeling well.”
There's an unfamiliar vulnerability in his voice. It breaks Mary’s heart.
“I’m sure. Have you taken your temperature?”
He shakes his head, and this small motion looses a tear that comes rolling down his cheek unbidden.
“Alright… I'll go see if I can find a thermometer, okay? You stay right here, Jack.”
She knows how rough he's feeling because if he weren't, he would undoubtedly shoot back some kind of reply about it being impossible for him to go anywhere even if he wanted to. As it is, he remains oddly quiet, pale and shaky.
Reluctantly, she hazards a few more glances in his direction before she exits the room and slips into the one next door instead- hers and Stef’s. The latter is sat on her bed, and she looks briefly up from her phone as Mary enters.
“Hey, I managed to find some signal out here! I swear to god it's a miracle- it's not a great one but-"
Mary wanders over to her luggage, rummaging through it with a sigh.
“You didn't happen to bring a thermometer, did you?”
“Uh, there's probably one in my bag, but-”
“This one?”
“Yeah… why do you need a thermometer?”
For a few seconds, Mary only focuses on retrieving the little instrument from the bag, but as she pulls it out, she directs her gaze to Stef at last.
“It's Jack. He isn't feeling well.”
Stef sets her phone down immediately, brow furrowing. “He's sick?”
Mary nods sadly. “Poor guy's tucked up in bed already, and he's pale as a ghost. I think he might have the flu, or maybe some kind of stomach virus, so I want to see if he's running a fever.”
Sighing heavily, Stef gestures for Mary to exit through the door. “I’ll be right behind you.”
When the two of them arrive at Jack's bedside, Mary for the second time, he's in the same position, eyes closed again, muscles tense as he shivers. Stef pauses while Mary crosses the room, crouching down in front of him and gently rubbing his shoulder.
“Jack? I’m just going to take your temperature, okay?”
This time, his eyes don't flutter open. Instead, Mary is left to take the digital thermometer and gently press it into his ear, her thumb absently stroking against the stubble on his cheek as she does. The moment it beeps, she retrieves it and checks the reading.
102.6
She sighs, turning to Stef. “Fever. And it'll probably get worse before it gets better.”
Stef, now moving towards him, takes a seat on the edge of the bed, one hand brushing back and forth over the covers atop his leg.
“Good thing we're here, then, huh?”
Mary smiles softly. “Yeah… good thing.”
She turns back to Jack, reaching out to card her fingers through his hair like she'd done before. He stirs a little, but doesn't wake, and she feels a surge of protectiveness inside of her.
“It's okay, sweetheart.” She whispers. “We’re going to take care of you, I promise.”