SEASON TWO,
CHAPTER 34:
TWO LOVERS FLOATING AT SEA
"Welcome to the land of the living."
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DENMARK TANNY'S ANCIENT cross is currently airborne while onboard of the large ship (which has halted in the middle of the ocean). The artefact has continued to rise up in height through the tense air while using the thick rope that's still attached to the hook of the crane. Everything that's taking place in this moment of time is to ensure that the cross remains safe and untouched of scratches or dents. Pope is the person that's specifically making sure of this, still seated at the controls as he listens to Cleo cheer for him.
Meanwhile, Delilah and JJ are running through the narrow hallways of the ship as fast as they their legs can take them, trying to hurry with their actions. The pair remain side by side to avoid accidentally leaving one another, but are also trying to keep an eye out at the same time — just being precautious in case any employers that didn't make it into the hull. Delilah and JJ have specifically completed their side of the plan with helping Pope retrieve the cross, and now it's time for them to find John B to escape the ship.
As the teenagers make their way outside and run up the metal structure, they're hit by the strong gust of wind drifting on top of the oceans surface. It whips against the articles of clothing that they're wearing, instantly cooling their skin down in comparison to the sizzling heat that the container has. But the two just ignore this feeling and keep running forwards.
"I don't see John B." JJ informs as he peaks over the ledge. "Where they hell is he?"
Delilah is unable to respond. The girl has come to an abrupt stop in her tracks, body tensing as green eyes stare ahead. A man is standing in front of them both and has made her completely freeze, not expecting to see someone. The adult isn't much taller than JJ but has much broader features, which makes him appear more muscular in comparison to the two teenagers. Facial hair has grown on the man's face and is a mix between brown and grey/white hairs, showing that he's much older than them in age. A machete is also gripped firstly at hand and rests closely by his side.
"Uh, J?" Delilah quietly calls, instantly grabbing the boys attention. "Slight problem."
"Of course there's more of you." The Captain, whose name is Eberhimi, says. "Get down on your knees."
"Yeah, no. That's not gonna happen." JJ tells him.
Angered, the grip on the machete tightens before the blade then suddenly slices through the thick air with the intention to stab JJ. But the blond is quick to see this action coming and swiftly ducks down to avoid being hit with the weapon. Then, JJ grabs a handful of Eberhimi's shirt and proceeds to slam him against the closest wall. The forceful impact ripples through the air with a loud bang, followed by the groaning of pain. As this happens, Delilah pins the man's wrist against the wall to prevent the machete from being swung in the air once again.
JJ's hand curls into a fist before a punch is thrown straight at Eberhimi's face and only causes his head to smack against the wall. The man barely has time to react to this violent action, let alone process what has even happened. Eberhimi's body is ripped away from the wall at the same time as Delilah opens the door to a hidden compartment, slamming it directly against his face. A loud clang echoes from the metal object at the harsh collision and only sends Eberhimi crashing down to the floor.
"Where's John B?" JJ asks as he peaks over the side once again. "John B!"
The captain has risen from the hard flooring and has stumbled back up to his feet with the machete firmly gripped at hand once again. He doesn't want to allow the teenagers to get away with their actions, let alone for even managing to sneak onto his ship in the first place — especially for turning a paid employer (Cleo) against him. A pair of stern eyes settle onto them as Eberhimi turns to face the two, rage bubbling in his blood and racing throughout his body.
"JJ, watch out!" Delilah warns.
With the redheads help, JJ is able to duck down and avoid yet another hit of the machete being swung at him. Delilah then leaps forwards and jumps onto the adults back, using her arm to snake around his neck to pull him into a chokehold. All of the girls weight is applied onto Eberhimi's back before she purposely slams him down to the ground. But the man pushes through the harmful impact and scrambles back to his feet. He kicks Delilah in the stomach and causes her to stumble backwards, tumbling to the floor and hitting her head against the metal.
Everything around Delilah starts to rapidly spin as a dizziness from the hard collision to the head tries to take over. Black spots begins to cloud her vision that she desperately tries to blink away, fighting back the weak feeling. A low groan slips past her lips as agony shoots throughout her body and creates a headache. The metal is cold against Delilah's back as she rests against it, slowly slumping down to the floor.
"Don't fucking touch her." JJ threatens.
The machete is raised into the air as an attempt to swing it at the fallen girl, intending to injure her. But JJ lunges forwards to protect her from further harm, not willing to just stand around and watch the action unfold. He firmly grabs ahold of Eberhimi's wrist to prevent the blade from causing harm to Delilah. The two males struggle against one another's grip as they start to fight, the younger boy trying to desperately stop the weapon from being slashed at himself or his girlfriend. However, an elbow is harshly jabbed into JJ's stomach as the adult breaks free from the firm grip. This only causes JJ to double over in pain and stumble backwards slightly.
"Ly, watch out!" JJ warns.
Feeling faint, the redhead manages to shift her gaze upwards to see that Eberhimi's dark eyes have now locked onto her. The girl rolls from her place on the hard floor to avoid the blade, and is able to do so just in time. The machete slams down onto the floor and lands next to where Delilah's head lays, showing that Eberhimi's intentions were to directly cause harm to the teenager. A loud clang is heard as metal is then slammed against more mental, which leaves a rough indent on the ship.
Delilah scrambles back up to her feet at a rapid pace, ignoring the black spots threatening to fill her vision at the sudden fast movement. Eberhimi proceeds to swing the machete through the tense air in another desperate attempt to inflict harm onto the teenagers. But as Delilah ducks down to dodge this action, the blunt end of the weapon collides against JJ's temple. This causes the boy to trip over his own two feet as he stumbles backwards, only to receive an elbow to the stomach.
Jolts of shock spreads throughout the blonds body as he instantly falls weak from the mere impacts of the collisions. Vision becomes blurred as blue eyes shut, falling unconscious and being unable to control his actions. Unsupported by the small fence of the ship, JJ finds himself falling overboard and soaring down through the thick air. A large splash of the deep blue water rises up into the cloudy sky as the unconscious boy falls into the ocean.
"No! JJ!" Delilah screams.
The redhead spins around on her heel as her hand is curled into a fist, feeling nothing but pure rage at the man for harming her boyfriend. A harsh uppercut is made directly at Eberhimi, which creates a metallic taste of blood to fill his mouth that he has to spit out onto the floor of the ship. But Delilah doesn't choose to stop with that; another punch is thrown directly at Eberhimi stomach and causes him to feel winded of breath. Del watches as he doubles over in pain while trying to desperately gasp for air.
Without missing a beat, the teenager turns around to climb onto the ledge of the boat where she stands on top of it and attempts to remain steady. Delilah dives into the deep blue water, instantly being submerged right next to where JJ's unconscious body is floating. A short gasp of breath is heard after Lila manages to swim back up to the surface of the ocean. Arms wrap around JJ as she pulls him closer towards her body, holding him close. Legs desperately tread water to keep the both of them afloat and stop them from drowning within the deep waters.
The ocean is chilling. The temperature alone sends a cold feeling flooding throughout Delilah's body, only causing goosebumps to rise up on her icy skin. Teeth chatter together loudly as lips slowly starts to change in colour, shifting from pink to blueish-purple. The oceans wildlife continues to swim around in the deep depths of the cold water, deciding against swimming above to mix with the humans. But it's still terrifying to know that a variety of creatures are lurking below and can cause problems at any second.
Black spots have started to take over Delilah's vision once again — each sudden movement only seems to be making it worse. Head is still pounding with pain from the harsh collision earlier as everything around her starts to spin like it previously did. A faint feeling threatens to take over her weak body, which will only cause her to slip into an unconsciousness if she gives into this feeling. However, Delilah pushes through it all and continues to hold onto JJ's body with the aim to save him.
"J! Stay with me." Delilah begs, gently pushing wet blond hair out of his face. "Please!"
Tears are streaming down the redheads cold cheeks. The saltiness of the tears mixes in perfectly with the oceans water, droplets intertwining with each other. A sickness settles in the pit of her stomach that only threatens to churn and intend for her to throw up. A small lump in Delilah's throat is swallowed back as she desperately tries to prevent this from happening. Green eyes are focused down onto an unconscious JJ as she carefully watches him, making sure that not a single thing can cause harm anymore.
"Please, I can't lose you." Delilah whispers. "J, baby, wake up."
Shouts begin to leave the girls mouth as she urgently calls out for her group of friends, each of their names exiting her mouth. Desperation is laced in Delilah's voice as she repeatedly yells, not wanting to give up trying just yet. Legs still continue to tread the water in order to keep their heads above the waters surface so that the don't drown. But that weak feeling only spreads throughout the teenager's body.
"Come on, JJ." Delilah pleas. "Don't leave me. Please don't leave me, baby."
A tiredness starts to take over as the redhead slowly gives up, no longer having the energy that will keep them both alive. The last thing that Delilah wants is for JJ to die (let alone it be her fault), but she's just unable to continue fighting back the feeling. A final strained yell slips past Del's lips as her throat grows sore from the amount of shouting that's been done. Water is spat out after it started to seep into the girls mouth, head struggling to float above the surface.
"I'm sorry." Delilah apologises, voice barely audible and weak. "I love you, J."
Meanwhile, the Pogues are all situated onboard of a lifeboat after managing to escape the violent grasps from the individuals on the ship. The group faintly heard the calling of their names in the far distance, instantly recognising it to belong to Delilah. Actions become frantic as panic strikes through each of their bodies, wanting to find their best friends as soon as possible — if anything were to happen to the pair, they would never forgive themselves.
The lifeboat sails across the ocean, looking small in comparison to the large ship that's anchored directly beside it. John B steers the small boat around one of the sharp corners to then see two bodies are barely staying afloat within the cold water. The friends all call out to them both as a way to reassurance them that they're coming to help. Picking up with speed, the boat travels in a straight line towards the blond boy and ginger girl.
Delilah can faintly feel JJ's frail body being removed from her grasp. She fights the feeling of drowsiness to open her eyes and see who has taken him, calming down at the sight of the group of friends. But this is enough to allow Delilah to peacefully welcome death with open arms while knowing that JJ is safe; if she drowns in the cold ocean then she's okay with that, as long as it means that JJ gets to survive.
The girl becomes limp with the dooming feeling of tiredness applying pressure onto her shoulders. Her actions completely stop altogether, no longer having to weakly tread water to stay afloat. Green eyes then flutter shut as she slips into an unconscious state. Ly finds that her body is sinking lower into the ocean so that the cold water now submerges her, chilling her skin down to the bone. It's almost as if the teenager has been swallowed whole, essentially dragging her body under like she's a prey to the oceans wildlife.
"Delilah!" Sarah exclaims.
Without a second thought, John B rises to his feet to dive off of the lifeboat with the intention to save the girl — he views Del as a sister, and will refuse to let anything bad happen to her. JB's body submerges in the cold water before swimming down to where she's still sinking. Arms wrap around Delilah's limp body so that she's not being held bridal style, keeping her close to his chest. John B desperately kicks his legs so that the both of them can be on top of the waters surface once again. A gasp of breath can be heard in the air as he resurfaces with the unconscious girl.
Both Kiara and Pope lean over the edge to help take Delilah out of their friends grasp and carefully haul her into the boat. The redhead lays beside JJ, who's still unconscious, as their fingers almost touch from the way that they've been sprawled out for the time being. Three out of the four teenagers immediately start to tend to them both with panic racing through each of their bodies, desperately trying to wake them up from the unwanted slumbers.
"Lila! JJ!" Kie calls as her vision becomes blurred with tears. "Come on, you need to wake up."
John B is left to continue driving the lifeboat so that everyone is doing something that'll help their awful situation. This also allows them all to sail across the ocean and get as far away from the large ship as they possibly can, needing to put a fair distance between themselves and the Cameron's (excluding the eldest daughter, Sarah). But the plan of escaping suddenly fails and crashes down onto the group, sending even more panic through their bodies; the lifeboat's come to an abrupt stop in the middle of the deep waters.
"What's happened?" Sarah asks.
"We're stalling out." John B replies.
"We gotta go. We're sitting ducks." Pope states.
"I'm trying!" John B exclaims in frustration.
Meanwhile, from the large ship thats still anchored nearby, Rafe is standing there with his body tensed as a gun is gripped firmly in his hands. Icy blue eyes stare down the zoom lens of the lethal weapon as the barrel is pointed directly at the still lifeboat. The aim is to fire a bullet at the small boat so that it'll deflate and leave them stranded in the cold ocean. However, for some odd reason, Rafe just can't seem to bring himself to do so. A low huff leaves the Kooks mouth before the gun is lowered back down to his side as his chest heaves up and down.
"JJ, wake up, man!" Pope pleas.
Pope is shaking at the blond boys body, making sure that his actions are only gentle and can't be causing any further harm. And it appears to work; JJ's eyes snap open as water spills out of his mouth, which is followed by coughs that tickle against the back of his throat. Blood is resting on one of JJ's temples after he took a harsh hit from the blunt end of a machete, which is the sole reason as to why the teenager was unconscious to begin with. Relieved breaths leave each of their mouths at the mere sight of their best friend regaining consciousness again, thankful that he's still alive.
"There you go." John B encourages. "Cough it all out, buddy."
"Welcome to the land of the living." Pope tells him.
"No CPR needed, huh?" John B comments.
Wrong.
"Guys, help!" Kie cries.
The boys heads whip around to look in the direction that the girls are seated in. The three instantly notice how the two are crowded around a still unconscious Delilah. Tears are streaming down Kiara's cheeks as a mixture of emotions swirl around in her stomach. Sarah is trying her best to remain as calm as possible in the stressful situation, but it's still clear that she's internally panicking.
"Ly?" JJ mumbles in confusion.
"She's not breathing." Sarah states.
"You need to give CPR right now." Pope informs.
"How?" Kie exclaims, frustrated.
"I can." John B replies. "I was told how to in the Bahamas when... when—"
"When I was shot." Sarah interrupts, noticing how he was struggling with the memory. "The doctor told him how to perform CPR."
"Then do it." JJ urges in desperation.
John B shifts closer towards Delilah's limp body as he hovers his hands against her chest. He begins to repeatedly pushes up and down to get the girls heart pumping once again, being careful to not break her ribs. JJ is sitting beside the long haired boy with his hand gripped tightly in Delilah's as he simply stares down at her face. Tears start to cloud the boys vision that he has to blink back, failing to do so and having them roll down his cold cheeks. Panic floods through JJ's body at the sight of his girlfriend looking like all of the life has been sucked out of her.
"Angel, wake up." JJ pleas. "You promised. You said that I wouldn't lose you."
John B stops with his actions to save the girl, hands shaking as he removes them from her chest. A faint sign of Delilah waking up can be seen, hence why he stopped performing CPR. But the others didn't see this and only turn to face JB with frowns upon their faces with confusion as to why he's easily given up.
"You can't leave me." JJ whispers, pressing his head against her hand. "Please don't leave."
Coughs erupt into the depressing atmosphere as the girl sits up, allowing the water to rise up her lungs to then spill out of her mouth. Delilah heaves for air as her green eyes open and adjust to the sudden bright lighting of the sun. Supporting hands are resting on her shoulders and back as the group of friends help Delilah slowly regain herself again. JJ's head snaps up where his gaze instantly lock onto hers. The boy doesn't waste any time in letting go of her hand and pulling her in for a warm hug.
"Thank fuck." JJ mumbles, relieved. "I thought I lost you, Ly."
"I thought I lost you!" Delilah tells him.
"Always looking for attention, huh?" John B jokes to the pair of them.
Delilah grins. "Whatever it takes."
"Try to stay awake next time." Cleo comments.
"Thanks for the advice." Delilah replies, sarcasm laced in her voice.
"This shit ain't over." Pope states.