Survivors (Stranded) by Jeff Probst, Christopher Tebbetts Page B

in for a better look. There were eighteen of them in all. A few of the grubs had died on the way, but most of them were wriggling around, trying to get back on their feet.
    Buzz plopped down next to Carter, as did Jane and Vanessa.
    “What are they?” Carter asked.
    “You mean besides totally disgusting?” Jane asked. “They’re grubs. Buzz says they’re pure protein.”
    Buzz couldn’t help feeling a little proud. Maybe the grubs
were
the grossest possible food source, but it was better than the alternative: no food at all.
    “Who wants to go first?” he asked.
    “I think you do,” Vanessa said.
    It was hard to argue with that. “Yeah, all right,” he said. He picked one up and stared at it. The grub fidgeted back and forth between his fingers.
    This is food ,
he told himself. Nutrition. Protein . The stuff my body needs .
    Before he could think about it another second, he stuck the whole thing in his mouth and bit down hard. It sent a thick greenish liquid spilling over his lips and down his chin.
    “EWWWW!” all three of the others groaned at once.
    “
That
 . . . is the grossest thing I’ve ever seen,” Jane said.
    Buzz knew he couldn’t stop now. He tilted his head back, fighting the urge to spit the whole thing out. The grub tasted like dirt and chemicals. It didn’t help that it was so chunky, either. But he kept on chewing, as fast as he could.
    Finally, with one very hard gulp, it went down. He opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue to show he’d done it.
    “I can’t believe you just ate that,” Carter said.
    “It wasn’t so bad,” Buzz lied, and downed half a bottle of water to wash away the taste. He could still feel bits and pieces on his tongue, but he tried not to think about that. “Who’s next?” he asked.
    “Go ahead, Vanessa,” Carter said. “I dare you.”
    “I dare
you
,” Vanessa said.
    Carter picked up two of the grubs and held them out on his palm.
    “Let’s race,” he said.
    Vanessa grinned uneasily as she took one from him. “Yeah, all right.”
    “Ready?” Jane asked. “One . . . two . . . three!”
    Buzz watched as Vanessa tossed the grub onto her tongue, clapped both hands over her mouth, and started chewing.
    “Carter!” Jane said. “That’s even . . . grosser!”
    When Buzz looked over, Carter was unclenching his fist. His hand was covered in pieces of squished grub and the greenish liquid. He held it up to his mouth, scraped the mess off with his teeth, and swallowed it all in one pass.
    “Hey!” Vanessa said. “That’s not fair!”
    “Says who?” Carter asked. As if to make his point, he scooped up a second grub, squeezed it into a mush, and got it down before Vanessa had finished her first. All without a sip of water.
    It wasn’t such a bad idea, Buzz thought. At least it got rid of the need for any chewing. He picked one up for himself, closed his eyes, and squeezed. A soft, warm goo filled his hand, but he didn’t look at it. He kept his eyes closed and downed the whole thing as quickly as possible. His stomach churned as he reached for the water bottle.
    Vanessa was still struggling with her first one, but now that she’d started, she seemed determined to get through her share. She took a swig of water, picked up another grub, and kept going.
    The whole time, Jane watched them as if she were sitting in front of a horror movie. Her hands never came down from her mouth, until finally, she scooted forward and looked down at the remaining wriggling grubs on the deck.
    “What do you think, Jane?” Carter asked. His grin showed several little legs still stuck in his teeth, but he didn’t seem to mind. In fact, the change in him was amazing. With even just a tiny bit of food, he was more alert than he’d been all day.
    “Mom always says you should try everything once,” he added. “I’ll even mash it up for you.”
    “Don’t bother,” Jane said. She took a thin stick from the pile of kindling near the fire. Then she