I study the map in my hands, wondering how I’m going to survive the long trek with Alexa, who is currently complaining her head off about how cold it is.
  “We have to go west,” I show Alexa the map and point to where our safehouse is located, “It’ll take a while to get there, though. Can you survive?”
  “Just start walking,” Alexa crosses her arms, “And while you’re at it, stop talking to me.”
  I shrug, “Sure.”
  Folding my map, I place it back into my backpack and stride confidently westward. Alexa hesitates, glancing back at the glass doors that let us through. Fear flashes over her face for a moment, but she just sighs and follows me through the deep snow. We walk in silence for a while. I occasionally glance at the map to make sure we’re going the right way. I eventually find a loot box, which contains a flashlight, a sword, a long rope, some food and water (which was frozen), and some pen and paper. I give Alexa the pen and paper along with the flashlight and carry the food and rope in my own backpack. After asking if she wants it, to which she rolls her eyes and says ‘no!’, I strap the sword to my waist and continue walking.
  “Help!” Alexa’s scream pierces through the dark night.
  Whipping around, I find Alexa’s body dangling above a deep hole as her hands grip the ledge to hold on. I rush over to her, and with a lot of effort, manage to pull her out. Alexa lies there, gasping for air dramatically. Giving her a quick once-over, she seems perfectly fine except for being covered in cold snow.
  A loud howl urges me on as I pull Alexa to her feet, “Come on, we still have a long way to go. And…” Looking back over my shoulder, I see multiple pairs of glowing eyes staring at us, “Wolves.”
  Alexa shrieked and starts running faster than I thought possible. It takes me a second before I realize I'm alone, so I run after her. Breathing heavily, I manage to catch up and keep pace with her. The thudding of the wolves’s paws behind us match the beat of my thumping heart.
  Suddenly, Alexa, who was in front of me, disappears. My eyes widen, I stop just before I run inside another deep hole. Alexa must’ve fallen in. Wolves growl behind me. There’s no way I can outrun them now. It’s either dying by the hole or dying by the wolves. Making my choice, I jump.  “Emma?” A voice asks from somewhere above me. Blurry shapes fill my vision as I slowly open my eyes. Alexa stands above me, blood running down her wrist from a rather large cut.
  Sitting upright, I’m aware of a sharp pain in my left ankle as I try to stand up. It’s sprained. Great. There’s no way I'll be able to make it to the safehouse now.
  “It’s a long way up.” Alexa sighs, looking up at the hole. It’s a long way up. Not to mention we’re surrounded by rocks that seem non-climbable.
  “The rope!” I say, digging through my backpack. Sure enough, it’s there. It’s there and long. Just long enough to get us out of this hole.
  “Can you climb this?” I ask Alexa, staring at her bloody hand.
  “Yeah,” Alexa digs through her own backpack and pulls out a pair of dainty white gloves that she slips on her hands.
  I resist the urge to roll my eyes at the fancy gloves. I tie a large loop at the end of the rope, close one eye, and fling it up through the hole. It takes a couple of tries, but it finally catches onto something.
  “Here’s the map. Hope you make it to the safehouse. I can’t climb, or walk, with this foot.” I sigh. Guess this is the end for me.
  “No way!” Alexa protests, “I can't read a map… and wow this thing is dirty. And no way I’m going by myself!”
  “Is that the only reason you want me to come?” I ask suspiciously.
  “Of course it is! Nothing’s going to stand in the way of me being rich and famous. So, suck it up, climb the rope, and lead me to the safehouse! Annnnnnnd… go!”
  Well, it appears that Alexa’s still… Alexa.
  Taking a deep breath, I hobble my way over to the dangling rope. Grabbing hold, I use all the strength I have to launch myself up the rope. Almost halfway up, I dig my hands in the cord as I struggle the rest of the way to the top. If the rope’s an inch longer, I won’t have made it, but, sure enough, I do. Taking deep breaths to calm my beating heart, I look back down the hole where Alexa’s also struggling up the rope. Unlike me, though, she looks like she’s going to fall… and she’s barely a quarter of the way up.
  Is she really worth it? I ask myself. Maybe, I guess. This will be my second time saving her. She owes me. Sighing, I grab the rope with my bleeding hands and start pulling it up. It takes a while, I almost let go quite a few times, but she finally scrambles to the top.
  It’s early morning, and only the slightest bit warmer than it was last night. Getting Alexa to her feet, I practically start dragging the protesting ‘princess’ through the snow. Grumbling, Alexa finally gets on her own two feet. She doesn’t bother waiting for me, going much slower because of my ankle, so she marches on ahead.
  “You’re going the wrong way,” I call, glancing down at the map.
  “No, I’m right, You’re wrong,” Alexa calls back.
  Ignoring the pain, I rush up to her and drag her back westward. Since I’m much stronger than her, she stands no chance.
  “Okay, okay!” Alexa cries, “Let go of me!”
  Rolling my eyes, I let go of her. Alexa mumbles something I would never repeat, then starts following me again. I eventually pull out my journal and start to write in it as I walk, only glancing down at the map once in a while. Does it matter if we’re going the right way? Probably, but we most likely aren’t going to make it there anyway.

January 15th,
Emma’s journal entry, Day 7

Alexa is driving me insane! As soon as this round is over and we can switch our partners, I’m so ditching her. The worst part is when we get to the safehouse, and I have to spend DAYS, stuck in a “house”, with her.
I know a dirty secret about Alexa. Her backpack? Full of makeup. In fact, she’s literally doing it right now. How she does makeup while walking, no idea. But I have to admit, it looks good. Surprising.
Speaking of the end of this round, maybe Samuel would be willing to come on my team with me. Or, rather, I can go on his team with him. But, you know what? Anybody, any team, anything, would be better than Alexa.
Well, if I don’t survive this (and by this I mean Alexa. This competition is a breeze compared to her) hopefully someone will find this and I will be remembered.

Emma
♥
Froom's Author Notes: Well this has been out of commission for a while. Whoops. How's y'all's days going? Well, I hope. And if not, I hope this chapter at least makes you feel at little bit better. Good news! I've been talking with a counsellor! Exams are coming up, but G and I have quite a few chapter queued up, so don't worry (we're working on Chap 17 as I write here). Cya in two weeks!