Inhale

3rd Person.

3rd Person.

A jolt went through Amy, her stomach dropping sickeningly as her stylish but inappropriate sandals slipped on the slime covered rocks.

Her ankle twisted painfully and her arms flailed in a desperate attempt to stop from plunging into the dark, swirling waters.

Amy’s whole body immediately went into shock on impact. Dark salty water closed over her and the strong current instantly dragged her down into the freezing depths until she could no longer see any light, only darkness.

She fought uselessly against the current. Carbon dioxide built up in her bloodstream and her lungs ached from lack of oxygen, making her body scream for release.

As the pain grew, pressure increasing, she still fought, desperately trying to find out which way was up as she was tossed about the darkness like a ragdoll.

The scene unfolded before Gavin in slow motion.

The young girl, inching her way across the uneven rocks, foolishly not paying attention to the crashing waves practically at her feet. A horrible sense of foreboding gripped him even before she slipped, falling with alarming speed into the angry waters.

He moved without thinking, pulling free of his shirt and kicking off his shoes as he sprinted to where she had fallen.

Stupid.

Even in full sunlight those rocks were extremely dangerous, and now, with the last of the light almost gone, they were treacherous.

There was a reason why the locals hated the tourist season. Too many accidents occurred that could have been prevented.

Gavin’s bare feet gripped the rocks, an instinct built from a lifetime of exploring. He ignored the sharp pain when his foot came down on an edge sharp enough to cut, still searching for any sign of the girl.

His muscles tensed with the need to dive in, but that could prove fatal. Even with his experience there were no guarantees he’d be able to fight the current.

Amy fought; using legs and arms to push towards what she hoped was the surface.

Was that a glimmer of light?

Or were her eyes just playing tricks?

Stiff fingers breached the surface, just as Amy’s body began to fail. Her reserves were gone and her perception began to narrow, limbs unresponsive.

Her last thought as she began to sink, pushed by the insistent, aggressive waves, was that she had been so close. It didn’t matter, though. Nothing mattered anymore.

Impenetrable, ceaseless darkness enveloped her like a warm embrace, and the painful, throbbing pressure in her head began to ease.

Then, she slipped away and knew no more.

As the last rays of sunlight disappeared behind the craggy cliffs, leaving only a smear of orange in the sky to the west, Gavin was sure he’d seen something break the surface – if only for an instant.

Without any hesitation, Gavin dived, arrowing into the water in a graceful arc, his limbs immediately stiffening with the cold. Ignoring the creeping numbness and the salt stinging his eyes, Gavin swam deeper. Each movement was spurred by the knowledge that the girl must be close to losing consciousness by now.

In the depths of the ocean, Gavin was rendered practically blind, but habit had him straining his eyes anyway, searching for anything that didn’t belong.

There. Was that a flash of something?

Unsure if he had imagined it, he reached out, grasping a cold, limp hand. As he pulled her towards him, she didn’t respond.

They were running out of time.

Wrapping an arm tightly across her chest, Gavin kicked up towards the surface. With each length, he became increasingly aware of the lack of oxygen, her weight seeming to grow exponentially, dragging them both down.

Blowing out the last of the air in his lungs in a burst of bubbles, Gavin gritted his teeth and used every ounce of his strength to push them those last feet until his grateful mouth was able to break the surface, sucking in massive gulps of air.

The current had pushed them east, into calmer, safer waters. Shouts rang through the still air, and Gavin saw flashes of light not too far away. He guessed someone had seen what had happened and had called for help.

He forced his exhausted body to heave the girl’s dismayingly limp and unresponsive form up into his arms as he stepped out of the water. In the pale light of the moon, he could see she was older than he’d previously assumed – probably in her early twenties. Unconsciousness left her delicate features slack and her eyes tightly shut; skin a translucent white, tinged with deathly blue. Whatever colour her hair was when dry, it now hung in dark strands, plastered to her face and shoulders. She was so tiny.

When they reached dry sand, he collapsed to the ground, just as aid arrived. He was unceremoniously pushed aside as paramedics began to frantically try to revive her.

All Gavin was do was lie there and watch, hoping that his efforts hadn’t been in vain. That somehow, she’d be alright.

From within the solitary darkness, Amy felt an insistent pressure thumping down on her chest in a distracting rhythm. She tried to ignore it, wanting nothing more than to drift back into the nothingness, where there had been no pain, no fear.

The pressure stopped, and just as she began to become untethered once more, it started again – more insistent this time. She tried to frown but couldn’t seem to make her lips do what she was telling them to. Instead, a fiery path of pain travelled with speed up her throat and into her mouth.

Amy coughed and spluttered, expelling what seemed like endless amounts of liquid from her lungs. Her body was turned onto its side by strange hands as she continued retching. Her whole being seemed to throb and her head felt like it might explode.

With effort, Amy forced her eyelids open, just as she was bombarded with the memories of where she’d been, why she’d been there, and that terrifying moment when she’d realised she was about to fall into the water and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it. Her frame was wracked by violent shivers as she remembered the cold, unforgiving power of the ocean.

A warm and wonderfully dry blanket was draped over her and she finally took in her surroundings. A man and a woman in uniform crouched over her, lit by flashing blue lights. Paramedics, she realised. That would explain the pressure she had felt on her chest – they must have been administering CPR.

However, it was the person lying next to her that drew her attention, even as she was strapped onto a stretcher.

He watched her, his forehead wrinkled in concentration and worry. He was soaking wet, wearing only a pair of jeans, his feet and chest bare. He stood, taking the proffered blanket from another man Amy hadn’t noticed, as the two paramedics lurched to their feet, her pallet carried between them.

The man – her saviour, she realised, followed along after them without a word. Amy felt a wave of gratitude overwhelm her, followed closely by exhaustion as that peaceful blackness tugged at her once more. She moved her lips, wanting to express her thanks, but nothing came out. The man smiled though, as if he knew what she was trying to do.

He reached out and grasped her hand tightly in his. Even straight from the sea, it felt much warmer than hers.

As she was loaded into the back of the ambulance, she kept a hold of his hand, using it to anchor herself in the world of the living, even as sleep called her.

“Don’t let go” she managed to croak, her voice a painful rasp.

He smiled again, wider this time.

“I won’t. I promise.”