Don't Go Out In The Woods Today

Chapter Seven

Part seven

Mr Bates curiously stood up and looked over to where the sound came from.

“Oh my God. Charlotte?!” a shocked voice came from the other side of the classroom. I inspected the floor until through the group of chairs I saw some motionless legs lying on the floor. I shot up from my stool and rushed over to Charlotte as the room buzzed with muttering and panicked voices. I gently supported her head as I rolled her over onto her back I had only been in that area for less than twenty seconds but the smell very noticeable.

“Shhhh,” I tried to hush everyone around me.

“Everyone be quiet!” Mr Bates shouted. The room fell silent.

I shuffled closer to the science desk and that’s when I discovered an almost unnoticeable noise, a soft hissing noise like a snake. Springing up from the floor with everyone’s gaze on me I ran over to the bookcase at the front of the classroom where a small black gas detector sat, the little light was flashing red indicating the room had dangerously high levels ofpropane in it. A high proportion of the people in the room were coughing unaware they are suffering with high levels ofpropane inside their bodies, me included.

I didn’t know what to do. It’s not like I could shout ‘gas!’ and everyone would know what I was talking about. I hurried over to Mr Bates and was forced to look at him.

“You need to get everyone out of this room and outside to get fresh air also call an ambulance. This classroom is full with propane.” I tried to keep my voice low “and get the windows open,” I finished then walked away not giving him chance to question me.

“Stay calm. I want you all outside sitting on the grass over there.” Mr Bates announced as he pointed out the window “Under no circumstances split up,” he said as he ran towards the windows and opened them as instructed by me. Everyone started to look at each other confused, some clutching their head and most of them looking a little paler than normal. On the way to Charlotte I struggled to pick up a stool and using the leg I smashed it into the fire alarm, breaking the protective glass and sounding the high pitched alarm. The sound of the screeching bell echoed in my head making me feel even worse. I kneeled back down to Charlotte and checked if she was breathing…she wasn’t, she had a small gash on her head I’m assuming the THUMP I heard was her smashing her head against the desk on her way down to the floor.

I felt drowsy like I wanted to go to sleep, my chest felt tight like my ribs were caving in. Unable to concentrate on the task ahead I clumsily stumbled over a chair leg and ended up bashing my head on the chair next to it, I felt so weak lying on the floor my heartbeat pounding in my head. A cold feeling ran down one side of my head it’s only after I used by hand to wipe it that I realised I’d just smeared blood all over my face however I couldn’t worry about my health…not yet anyway, not until Charlotte was safe.

I fell to her side and checked her airway again and her eyes, her pupils were constricted and she’d stopped breathing. I knew what to do because I’d practised on plastic dummies at a first aid course but I had never done it before on a real person, ‘she could die if you don’t do this’ I told myself. Still petrified I made my mind up and I didn’t waste any more time before I started CPR.

“Come on Charlotte!” I growled as I done chest compressions I had done about four presses on the chest when I felt something crack under my hands, I heard it too. I tried to remember back to my training and pictured the woman who trained us in my head ‘It’s very common when performing CPR for you to break the patients rib’ she said that but it still doesn’t make me feel any better ‘I’m sure the casualty would rather wake up with a broken rib than not to wake up at all’ the first aiders voice echoed in my brain. I felt like someone had put a pillow over my face trying to suffocate me, my head felt heavy like I wanted to drop to the floor.