3.15.2022
Welcome back:)
*This is Book 3 in the That North Carolina Summer series*
Jeremy, Derek and Austin take action immediately. They sprint into the water, diving below the surface to swim towards Rylie's board, floating upside down in the water. They swim fast, but it doesn't seem fast enough.
I watch helplessly from the shore, unable to move my feet that seem to be cemented to the dry sand. My eyes scan the water frantically, searching for any sign of Rylie. She still hasn't surfaced. Waves continue to crash, unaware of my internal screaming, begging them to stop so that Rylie can come back up for air.
She's okay. She has to be okay.
Jeremy reaches the board first and stops only briefly to take a breath before diving beneath the surface again. Derek and Austin soon follow. They each surface once more before going back under.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was incredibly grateful for their energy. Swimming that far out, that quickly, while fighting the large waves wasn't easy. I guess it was different when trying to save someone's life. Especially when that someone was Rylie.
After what feels like an eternity but could only be a few minutes, Derek breaks the surface with Rylie in his arms. I can see from shore that her body is limp and unmoving, and he carefully leans her head against his shoulder before swimming backwards towards shore.
"Austin! Grab the board!" He shouts. "Jer, help me with Ry!" Had he been closer, I would've heard the terror in his voice. Austin grabs her board and Jeremy hurries to help with Rylie, kicking his legs hard to propel them faster towards land. They reach the shore quickly and drag Rylie from the water onto the sand before kneeling beside her unmoving body.
It's immediately evident that she's not breathing. Her chest stays still, and I watch, frozen in horror as blood seeps slowly through her tangled, wet hair and into the sand.
"No..." I gasp, finally able to speak. Someone comes up beside me and takes my hand tightly in theirs, but I can't turn to see who. I cling tightly to them anyway.
Jeremy's eyes suddenly jump to mine before he begins CPR. They're wide and scared, and I can tell he's desperate to comfort me, but also desperate to save Rylie. "Austin, grab a towel and apply pressure to her head." He doesn't have to ask twice before Austin bolts off, quickly returning with a couple of towels. He slips onto his stomach and gently lifts Rylie's head to try and find the source of the bleeding before carefully setting her head back down on the towel.
Derek sprints back towards his things, returning with his cell phone pressed to his ear. "Yes, on the beach. Please hurry." He ends the call before dropping to his knees beside Jeremy. "I'll take over compressions. You take mouth to mouth."
Jeremy nods before moving up towards Rylie's head. They work as a team while Austin keeps the pressure on her wound, but I can see the blood quickly soaking that towel. His wide, terrified eyes meet mine for a moment before he carefully swaps the towels.
My eyes more to Rylie's face, and I feel the tears begin rushing down my own. Grains of sand cling to the pale skin of her face, arms and legs. Her eyes are shut with little bits of sand dotting the lashes, while her lips are slightly parted and slowly taking on a grey blue shade. Tiny drops of water periodically drop from her face to the sand beside her, only to be replaced by more drops from the strands of Jeremy's wet hair as he tries to give her the oxygen she can't breathe on her own.
One of his hands grasps her chin, holding her mouth open while the other plugs her nose. I can hear each time her blows air into her mouth. Each time he comes up, the hand on her nose moves to the top of her head, and he gently rubs his thumb on her forehead. "Come on, Ry. You're stronger than this." He says softly, but I catch every word.
"The ambulance should be here by now!" Derek grunts as he continues compressions. I can see the strong muscles in his arms each time he pushes down on Rylie's chest.
"Who is going to ride with her?" Austin asks quietly. Everyone's eyes jump to mine, and I glance between them all helplessly.
That should be me, right? But what if someone else can go, someone that can help her more than I can?
"Aspen," The person beside me speaks, and I recognize Ava's voice. "Do you want to go with Rylie in the ambulance, or would you like Jeremy to go?" Ava's voice is calm and gentle.
"I don't know." I reply as my voice breaks. I was completely helpless in this situation. What if me going just made things worse?
"How about you go in the ambulance, and we'll follow behind in the cars?"
"Okay." I respond quietly. Somehow, I manage to pull my keys from the bag still clutched in my fists and set them in Ava's free hand. Her other hand still holds mine tightly, and she studies my face briefly before turning back to the others.
In the distance, I can faintly make out the sound of a siren. Please hurry.
"Thank God." Jeremy says breathlessly as the siren gets louder. Moments later, the siren shuts off and three EMT's with a stretcher hurry onto the beach.
Jeremy, Derek and Austin move aside as the EMT's take over, and explain what happened. One of the male EMT's takes over the compressions while telling the female EMT to bag Rylie. Thanks to Grey's Anatomy, I knew what that meant. That thought almost makes me laugh. Almost.
The woman places a bag valve mask over Rylie's face and begins squeezing it. The other male EMT takes over for Austin, applying pressure to the still bleeding wound.
How can it still be bleeding? Shouldn't it have stopped by now?
For some reason, it didn't occur to me that head wounds bled more than other wounds. Much more.
The three EMT's quickly lift Rylie onto the stretcher and hurry towards the ambulance, gently setting the stretcher inside.
The woman turns back to our group. "Are any of you riding with us?" Ava nods before gently pushing me towards the open doors of the ambulance. The inside smells medical, like strong cleaning supplies and disinfectants. The smell stings my nostrils before I'm even inside.
"We'll be right behind you." She says reassuringly. I take the EMT's outstretched hand and climb into the ambulance before sitting and buckling into the hard seat she directs me to.
Jeremy's wide, scared eyes meet mine one final time before the doors slam shut, and I flinch. The ambulance begins it's quick drive to the hospital, with the EMT in charge driving, while the other two continue to work on Rylie.
My eyes study the interior of the ambulance, not wanting to see Rylie's face, void of her usual color. A row of cabinets line the wall to my left, filled with an assortment of machines, tools, and who knows what else was needed in an ambulance. An open window separates the cab from the back, and I study the driver as he weaves quickly through traffic.
Next, my eyes focus on the left arm of the EMT working on compressions, and the tattoo peeking out of his sleeve catches my eye. With each compression, his sleeve rises just enough that I can see the full picture. A sword takes my focus first, and next the pair of arms wrapped around the sword, with wings behind the arms.
Despite his focus being on Rylie, his eyes snap up to me, and he tracks my line of site to where I'm staring. "The sword symbolizes battle." He tells me, drawing my eyes to his. "The wings symbolize strength and the ability to rise above." His blond hair looks like it was neat and combed back earlier in the day, but now bounces against his forehead with each compression.
"Oh." I say, unable to find more words. He seems to understand that, and continues.
"I used to be an addict. Drugs." He explains. "It took my mom getting sick and nearly dying for me to see how precious life actually was, and that I was completely wasting mine. Once she recovered, we got matching tattoos. Hers is on her back."
"Thank you." I say softly, grateful for his distraction, and hoping he can hear the sincerity in my voice. His nod confirms that he does.
Suddenly, Rylie coughs, and the EMT's quickly turn her over as she throws up a seemingly endless supply of ocean water onto the clean white floor of the ambulance. My eyes, widen, jumping to her face.
"She's back!" The woman calls up to the driver, and he radios the update to the hospital. I clutch my bag in my hands tightly as relief flows through me. But as they gently lay Rylie back down, she doesn't move again. She doesn't open her eyes. She doesn't breathe.
"Why isn't she breathing? What's happening?" The questions spill from my mouth but neither of the EMT's respond.
"Okay, she's still not breathing on her own." The woman says.
"Heartbeat?"
"Weak and sporadic. Continuing bag valve mask."
"Hospital is ready for us, we'll be there in two minutes." The man up front calls. I tentatively reach out and take Rylie's hand as it sways slightly, hanging off of the edge of the bed, and I feel the cold from her skin seep into mine.
When we arrive at the hospital, things start moving very quickly. The doors are flung open and sunlight streams in, temporarily blinding me. The stretcher is pulled from the ambulance, it's long metal legs stretching to touch the ground to break it's fall. Rylie's hand slips from mine, and I feel the absence immediately.
The EMT's pass Rylie off to the group of doctors and nurses waiting just outside the hospital doors, and they quickly wheel her inside, calling out orders. I catch an all too brief glimpse of her face, and pray that I'm not imagining the small spot of pink on her cheeks, or the blue fading from her lips.
The nice EMT with the tattoo turns to me as the double doors shut behind Rylie, hiding her from my view. He stretches out a hand, and I take it as he helps me to the ground. His hand is warm and calloused, and I wonder briefly what made his callouses.
"She's in good hands." He tells me gently. "She had a heartbeat, which is a good sign. Don't lose hope." His voice is soft and reassuring. I can't form any words of my own for a moment, but quickly hug him. He's surprised for only a second before hugging me back.
"Thank you." I whisper.
He and the other EMT's hop back into the ambulance before pulling away, and I turn to face the hospital, finding a young nurse standing a few feet away. She wears light green scrubs, and stands with her hands tucked nervously into the front pockets of her shirt.
"I can take you to the waiting room if you're ready. Is she your sister?" She asks. She's kind, and I can hear the genuine worry and care in her voice.
I shake my head. "She's my girlfriend."
"I see. Does she have any family nearby?" I nod, and she continues. "If you give us their numbers, we can call them and let them know what's going on. Do you have someone that can come be with you?"
"Our friends were right behind us."
"Okay. I'll bring them in as soon as they get here." The kind nurse says before leading me into the waiting room. I collapse onto the nearest chair, suddenly unable to hold myself up.
The events of the past 30 minutes play on repeat in my mind. It was like my mind couldn't comprehend everything, and was over analyzing every single detail, trying to determine what had happened. This couldn't be real life.
It only takes a few minutes for the rest of the group to join me in the waiting room. "I am so, so sorry Aspen." The moment Jeremy's arms wrap around me, I give in to the emotions that had built up inside of me. The moment the tears start, I don't know if they'll ever stop.