Claire & I

Chapter Thirteen: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

 The day started slow. When I awoke, I felt slightly dizzy. I shrugged it off. We had been going place to place for a week now. The exhaustion would have caught up to me sooner or later, I thought.

Thankfully, it was quickly gone. I kept telling myself that the Caribbean was going to be a relaxing day. We would be sitting on the beach and tanning. Claire and I would be sipping down on tropical drinks, and we would indulge in small talk the entire day. I just needed to hold off until then.

I was extremely excited as we came to the airport in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The humidity hit me first as we exited the plane. We all put on our shades to block the intense heat from our eyes. The atmosphere was simply beautiful.

On one side, there was the city. Houses were on top of each other and clustered together in a mad masterpiece. On the other side was the beach. People were swarmed around volleyball nets, soccer balls, and the sea. A large amount of forestry was dispersed on the outskirts of the city along with mountains. On top of one of the larger hills was Christ the Redeemer, his arms outstretched like he was ready to hug Rio and all of its inhabitants.

"Can we chill at the beach for a while before we have to catch the train?" I asked my mother. Everyone stared at me with question. "It's something fun we can do before exploring," I explained.

Everyone looked at each other, but no one disagreed.

***

The sun shone down on my skin. Sweat trickled down my forehead. "Hey, Keira," Claire called my name. I turned to my right to see that Claire was holding a volleyball. Her body glimmered in the sun, and her black bikini helped the effect.

"Ever play volleyball?" she asked. As I stood up, I felt slightly fatigue again. That's normal, I thought. I was sitting in the same position for what felt like forever, and the heat glued me down. "Sure," I said, standing.

We were able to find an empty volleyball court, and Claire went to the other side. I faced the sun, setting me at a disadvantage. Claire served the ball to my left. The sand made it harder to run, but I was able to punch the sphere back over the net. Claire created a loud smacking sound as her hand made contact with the ball, and it flew to my right. It was too far away to reach, causing me and the volleyball to land in the sand.

I realized that my body was soaked in my own sweat. It was too hot. I slowly raised myself from the ground, "I think we should go before it gets dark."

***

We were going to take the bondinho to travel to the hill in which Christ the Redeemer was located. However, when we came to the line, I realized that it wasn't a train...or on the ground for that matter.

"We're going on a cable car?!" I asked. No one else seemed to be fazed. I started to breathe in a way to calm myself down, but it came out rapid and sharp. "Relax," Claire told me, wrapping her arm around me to give me comfort, "They operate these things all the time."

I smiled, but her words didn't help.

The cable cars were white on the top and bottom, and the walls were clear in order for people to see the outside world. The entire structure was rounded at the edges, and the whole thing dangled on wires.

When we entered, my heart pumped loudly. "There's a lot of people on here," I told Claire as I glanced around the bondinho. "This is no different from a plane," Claire stated. "This is completely different from a plane," I corrected. As the doors closed, a computer said something in Portuguese. The cable car ascended into the air, and I held in my breath and closed my eyes.

After a few seconds, Claire poked me. "Hey, look," she instructed. I hesitated to open my eyes, but then I remembered that I probably wasn't going to see this view again, so I followed her orders.

I didn't realize until I peered outwards that I was clinging onto Claire as though my life depended on it. Slowly, I moved away from her and to the window.

The city outstretched before me. People walked underneath us in the streets, in the sand. This is completely different from a plane, I thought to myself. I could actually see buildings and Earth in more detail. I could see exotic birds fly in the trees below and soccer balls hitting the shore.

Unfortunately, the ride was too short, and we were on top of the mountain in which Christ the Redeemer was waiting. The associates at the Wishes for Dying Kids Association thought that it would be good for me and my family to visit the structure. As we ascended up the stairs, I looked up to the artwork. Christ was staring down at me as I looked up to him.

His face was expressionless, and I realized it looked like he was looking everywhere at once. Still, the longer I watched his face, the more it felt like he was watching back. I stopped in front of him, my head still tilted upwards. I also didn't have an expression. I wasn't sure how to react.

"Keira?" Claire asked. I turned to her as she said my name, snapping out of it. "Hm?" I asked. "Nevermind," she said, turning back to the sculpture.

The atmosphere was calming but crowded. I gazed around to notice that people were praying to themselves as well as taking souvenir pictures. Glancing to my parents, I realized that their eyes were closed. Were they praying about me? I turned to Claire again. She wasn't praying, but she looked lost in thought. Did she believe in Christ? That didn't matter at the moment.

I didn't want to pray for myself. I looked upwards again to Christ. He stared back with an almost uncomfortable intensity as though he knew who I was and that he expected something of me. I breathed and closed my eyes, unsure on how to pray,

I um...pray? wish? No, I pray that you help the people who are at the hospital at the moment. I pray that you give mercy to the ones who can not be in my shoes now, and I pray that you make someone a genius, and they find the cure to cancer and become a millionaire or something. Don't help me, please. I'm already going to die, so...

I wasn't sure how to wrap up a prayer, so I just left it like that. When I was done, I realized that Claire was looking at me. I gave her a smile, but she didn't return the gesture.

***

Our hotel wasn't too far away from Christ the Redeemer. Night had fallen when Claire told me she was going to flirt with the receptionist. If we had met yesterday, I would have believed her, but we didn't, so I nodded. When she left, I followed behind shortly after.

I followed Claire outside of the hotel and down the street. She wasn't... I continued to shadow her until finally, she came to the statute of Christ the Redeemer. Lights flashed upwards, so he could be seen in the night.

When she walked up the structure, I stayed behind in the darkness. Why hadn't she just told me she was going to see a piece of art? I waited.

I noticed that Claire was doing something with her hands. Was she talking? I couldn't hear her. I needed to get closer. Slowly, I moved furtively around in the darkness until I was relatively closer to Claire. She was indeed speaking, but what was surprising was the fact that she was praying.

She wasn't doing it traditionally. Instead, Claire was talking to Christ the Redeemer as though she was engaging in a sad, desperate conversation.

"-come to you. I don't know what to do, Lord. I thought everything was going to be fine, but I was wrong. Ashley is not better. I thought...just please, help her be strong to get through this. I met this girl too... She's dying, and I need you to spare her too, please. Please, don't fail me, Lord."

Ashley? Who was Ashley? Suddenly, I couldn't breath. Surprised, I held to my chest as though it would help. Through the suffocation, I spat up a dark, red liquid that spread across the pavement. Claire noticed my presence when I fell to the ground. The taste of metal was sweet and thick on my tongue. On the pavement, I couldn't move. I was sweating profusely, and the world started spinning around me in a maddening ride. My lungs burned for the desire to breathe.

Claire was upon me, but I was so much in shock, that I couldn't say anything. I spat out another layer of blood. She looked slow moving, and when she spoke into her phone, it echoed in my brain. The sky spun around me. I turned to see Christ the Redeemer, staring at me with his forever expressionless face.

I spat blood once again on the pavement.