The Fall (Camren)

Down the Rabbit Hole

She felt disconnected from the moment, like it couldn't truly be happening. The logical part of Lauren's brain told her she was in shock, this was her minds way of coping but it all felt surreal, like she was in a dream or looking at a fractured reality through a looking glass.

The smell of smoke hit her just as she caught a glimpse of a hand. She crawled towards it over the uneven terrain, ignoring the now thick smoke billowing around her.

Camila came into view; she was face down and sprawled across the floor, unmoving and at an odd angle across the slanted seating area.

The smoke turned darker, burned Lauren's throat and lungs as she scrambled towards Camila.

'Camila!' She croaked through her sobs.

No reply came, no movement. The smoke had become dense around the seating area, it was acrid and black and Lauren struggled to breathe through it. She was dimly aware that smoke probably meant fire but her brain refused to act accordingly, not when the girl she loved lay motionless beside her.

Pushing Camila's hair away from her face, Lauren was able to properly look at her. There was no blood, no obvious signs of trauma. 'Camila,' She shook her shoulder, 'please, baby, please wake up.'

The girl did not stir. Lauren panicked. She was breathing heavily through the fear, chocking on the smoke. She was coughing uncontrollably. Two of her shaking fingers moved to Camila's neck, the smoke around them was glowing blue and red, she pressed her fingers to Camila's pulse point and prayed.

Relief flooded her when she felt the slow but steady pulse beat under her fingertips, she let out a cry of relief, but it was short lived. Camila, previously motionless, started moving uncontrollably. Her body convulsed and shook under Lauren's grip.

Lauren tried to keep her still and sobbed Camila's name over and over again. Some past first aid knowledge sprung into her mind and she turned Camila as best as she could onto her side. It was as she was doing this that she noticed the blood in Camila's ear. Her heart stuttered under her ribs, she didn't know what blood in the ear meant but she knew it was bad.

Suddenly, a hatch above their heads opened and some of the smoke flowed out in a rush, her vision cleared slightly and she could almost breathe in without coughing. She looked up at the opening, she now realised it was the door of the bus and watched as a man dropped down next to her, followed by another man, they were both in green. Paramedics, she realised.

'Are you okay?' The first paramedic yelled over the sirens Lauren previously hadn't noticed.

'She-she's having a fit.' Her voice shook desperately as she still clung to Camila's fitting body.

One paramedic dropped to his knees next to Camila and started pulling things out of his medic bag. The other paramedic, a blonde haired guy, attempted to pull Lauren out of the way, she struggled to stand on wobbly legs, he held onto her until she got her bearings.

'What's her name?' The paramedic on the floor asked.

'Camila.' Lauren answered, Camila was still now, her fitting had stopped and Lauren felt so helpless and terrified as she watched Camila's motionless body.

The blonde paramedic turned her away from Camila, 'Are you okay, are you hurt?' He asked.

Lauren shook her head, she really had no idea, she felt numb.

'Okay.' He nodded then yelled up to the open door above them. 'We have two casualties down here; I'm sending one up now!'

Lauren looked back at Camila, the paramedic had fastened an oxygen mask to her face, Lauren trembled, Camila looked so young and so vulnerable.

'Hey,' the blonde medical pulled her attention away again, 'I'm going to hoist you up to the policeman up there now, okay?'

'No! I need to stay with Camila, she needs m-me, and my friends are in the back, we need to get –get them out!'

'What is your name?'

'La-Lauren.'

'Okay, Lauren, your friends are already out, there's a fire exit door at the back of the bus and they're all safe.'

Lauren breathed a sigh of relief, coughed on the still acerbic air.

'But there's a fire blocking us getting you two out that way as well, so we need to use the door above you.'

'But Camila-'

'The best way you can help Camila is by getting out now, quickly, and then we can get her out safely.'

She looked down at Camila, pale and unrecognisable and nodded to the paramedic.

'Good,' He yelled up to the police, 'I'm sending one up!'

He knelt down and linked his hands ready to lift Lauren by her foot. She stepped onto his hands and looked up into the thick smoke above her; it was so dark that she could hardly see anything but blackness.

He hefted her upwards and she reached out with a desperate hand into the abyss and clambered her way back up the rabbit hole.

'mC3