Crash of Hearts

Chapter Two

Bright red flames licking at the interior of the plane; smoke billowing from underneath; the temperature so high it hurt; unconscious people coughing uncontrollably.

My eyes opened slowly, coming wider but searing with pain from the smoke and heat. I was coughing harshly, clutching my stomach as it hurt to breathe. It took me a few seconds to re-gather what had happened. It was all a blur; the wing glowing, disappearing, and the whole plane crashing into the hill. What made that all happen was a mystery.

The heart shaped locket was resting on my chest, inside my shirt and back to its normal color and cool touch. Gently, I picked up the locket from my body, noticing the beat red skin shaped like a heart. Another mystery was added to the list.

There was a warm, sticky substance on the right side of my forehead that had run down my cheek and came to my jaw. I wasn’t sure how long I had been bleeding for, but it gave me quite the headache and dizziness I couldn’t afford to have.

My heart broke, realizing I hadn’t considered Sammy’s condition yet. His eyes were still closed but otherwise, he seemed unharmed. Some bruises were starting to form on his arms and legs, and I could only assume there was a welt on his head from where he hit my chin.

I could see no other life in the cabin. I couldn’t be certain if anyone else was still alive, but the flames were already creeping closer to us. Some bodies were already enveloped in flames, making me wonder if they had already been dead or if being unconscious just helped the pain go away as they burned to death.

Vomit was already creeping up my scratchy and dry throat, making me cough. More tears sprang to my eyes. It wasn’t just from the smoke and flames; I was surrounded by death.

Sammy was breathing, and that’s all that matter. I hadn’t noticed before, but he must have inflated some of the life jackets before impact. There were two strapped on the aisle side of his chair, blocking anything that wanted to hit us from the compartments above us. Another was strapped above the seat in front of us to block anything from up front, and one strapped to the back.

Thank the Lord Sammy had listened to where the life jackets were.

All I knew then was that we had to get out at that moment. Flames had already swallowed the front half of the plane, leaving us the back to exit. Most of the people sat in the front to leave the plane first, but it ended up leaving them dying. The only other option was the back.

I unbuckled both our seatbelts and grabbed my brother under his back and legs. I carried him through the aisle like a baby, coughing and tripping at least a dozen times before making it to the back. My head was killing me, and I felt like I was about to pass out.

There was the emergency exit. With the most care I could, I placed Sammy on the ground and opened the door. An inflatable slide flew out, even though it didn’t have far to go. The plane was practically on its side from the missing wing.

I sent Sammy down first and tried to look for more survivors in the cabin. Gas started to fill my nostrils and I knew I didn’t have much longer. The flight attendant didn’t make it to her seat belt in time, having a broken neck on the floor. A suitcase had flown from the compartment and appeared to hit a man in the head, leaving him with no pulse. It wouldn’t be long before I was going to sob.

There was a young man, maybe in his early twenties with jet black hair splayed across his head. Black splotches were on his face from the fire, I assumed, and there was a deep cut on his bicep. He was breathing but it was shallow, and I didn’t know if there was another way to see if he was hurt other places.

It’s time to get out, a small voice inside my head told me. It was extremely difficult dragging the slim but muscular man through the cabin as I thanked him silently for sitting in the back, but it was all I could do from plopping down and crying myself to sleep. The cut felt like it had opened more from the straining causing blood to start coursing into my eye.