Forces of Nature

Shattered

My legs gave out three feet from the sliding door and I landed with a dull thud on the deck. My lungs burned, desperately trying to suck in enough air to stop the black spots from invading my eyesight. Christ, not one of my best ideas then, running flat out like that. I must have broken the world record for fastest mile, not that I'd live to get any sort of recognition. I coughed and flopped onto my back, thinking laying flat would provide more room for air. Yeah, no.

I was definitely going to pass out, or throw up, maybe both. And then there was the insistent throbbing in my hand... My hand! I brought it up to my face and gasped. There was a little trail of blood running from the ruined flesh the crab had latched on to and sliced in its attempt to get away.

Oh, God. Oh God, ohGodohGodohGod. I was going to die from crab rabies! The little sucker had pinched me and now I was going to die from exposure to whatever nasty diseases it carried. That they weren't poisonous creatures wasn't consoling in the least - wait, they weren't poisonous, right?

I sat bolt upright and heaved in a big breath to moan in despair, only to have the sound come out as a screech when the sliding door crashed open with such force it bounced back and almost hit the person trying to dash outside.

Courtney's cry of alarm joined my own to create a disturbingly harmonised sound as she staggered out onto the deck, and a second later the porch light turned on, glaringly bright and momentarily blinding us both. She lurched forward, blinking rapidly and tripped over my outstretched leg to land with a much louder thump than I'd accomplished.

"Noah! What the fuck is going on?" she hissed, worry giving her words a sharper edge. Her fiery green eyes were wide and darted in all directions, probably searching for the reason I was laying in an undignified heap beside her.

"I've got crab rabies!" I wailed, showing her my hand.

"What the -" she stopped when I thrust my hand into her face, then leaned forward and squinted. "What is that? I can hardly see it."

I blinked, rationality returning with resounding clarity. If she could hardly see it under such great lighting, that had to mean it wasn't nearly as bad as my befuddled mind thought it was, right?

"Really? It's not that bad?" I asked, not daring to look at it myself.

"That's what you were screaming about? That's what all this fuss was about? For God's sake, I thought you were out here with an axe murderer with the way you were carrying on!"

She clambered to her feet, scowling down at me. Definitely landed on her right hip going by the way she was rubbing it vigorously.

"I cannot believe you're out here waking up the entire neighbourhood over a speck of a cut that's hardly bleeding. And what was that thump?" She paused to regard me curiously, then groaned. "It was you hitting the deck wasn't it? Your clumsiness never fails to astound me - hey. Where're Drew and Quinn?"

I rolled my eyes, not bothering to respond. No doubt they were on their way back, taking their merry time and guffawing at how ridiculous my mad dash to the house looked. Flopping backwards again, I couldn't even muster up any irritation at banging my head on the wooden panels.

"Do crabs have rabies?" I asked, though now that I was cool, calm and collected it sounded like a stupid question.

Courtney snorted, moving to crouch over me. "Do you really want me to answer that?"

"Not if it involves the word moron, idiot, dumb ass, or anything of similar meaning," I said.

Some serious shuffling noises came from the house and I got the sense that it wouldn't be long before we had company in the form of Ash and Tyson.