*
I never should've let them go alone.
I should've made them wait.
Or not bothered with our things.
I hurried down the pathway towards the Platform, a weird form of tunnel vision forming. All I saw was the path and in the distance the rock. The more I ran, the further away it seemed, the sicker I felt, and the faster my heart pounded out of sheer panic.
Altogether, I could see nine figures on the platform, their features indistinguishable.
Ava was several strides ahead of me, disappearing up the human-made steps and handrail seconds before I reached it. As I ran up the stairs, I could hear men talking.
"I'll keep reminding you until then, keep an eye out for them. You'll know what they look like." The thought sent cold pins and needles down my spine, momentarily paralysing me as I recalled the kidnapper's threat. Was this his doing? Is this his reminder? I hadn't given him a second thought in weeks.
I made it to the top step, Robyn holding a stunned Mia, Estelle clutching the cowering twins, each herded to the edges of the platform by men, one in swimmer trunks and a jumper, the other in jeans and a striped shirt. On the ground was shattered glass, and in the hands of one of the men was a crushed can of beer. Their faces flushed, and how they held themselves was heavy, dragging their feet or overcompensating their big gestures. They were drunk.
The man with the crushed drink advanced on Estelle, shouting offensive, drunken slurs as he latched onto her arm and yanked her forwards, calling her 'a pretty piece of ass' and to learn to accept a compliment. In a bout of fright, Estelle slapped the man, but he didn't let her go. "You little bitch!" he snapped, bringing his hand back to strike her with the can.
In a fleeting moment, I shoved him back, Estelle stumbling behind me with panicked breaths. The man had stumbled to the ground in a daze, a second later I heard Estelle crying behind me. Before I could aid her, my eye caught sight of Bonnie, who was arguing with a third man who, like Estelle, was closing in on her.
He relied heavily on her wheelchair for a sort of balance and was pushing her backwards because of this, her attempts to lock her wheelchair in vain as he continued to spit unintelligible insults towards her and poke a grotty finger in her face. In response, she was yelling at him, demanding he let her go and how dare he had the nerve to touch her as she periodically looked around her, clutching the helm of her wheels and once trying to climb out only to be trapped by the man's presence. Her flailing had turned desperate as the edge grew nearer, turning to wild punches on his knuckles to release her wheelchair.
"Hey!" I attempted, but whatever heated argument they were in drowned out my words.
The moment came so quickly. The man was turning her chair, forcing her to sit side on to the edge, as he placed his hands on the underside of her wheel. The colour drained from Bonnie's face as the drunken man started flipping the chair. Bonnie squealed, "No! No!" She attempted to grab onto his arm, to fix her balance, but the man was stronger and practically threw her off the Platform.
How could something so sudden happen so quickly? How could something escalate so rapidly I couldn't do anything to stop it?
I couldn't hear anything.
Aside from the suddenly slow beat of my heart in my ears.
I listened as it got faster, and faster, but everything remained at its slow pace.
Everyone had reacted. The girls yelling for Bonnie, the men surprised by their friend's sudden attack, but cutting through all of it, and what ultimately sobered me up, was the split moment where Bonnie locked eyes with me. A fleeting second of terror, of desperation, as the momentum flipped her body.
"Bonnie!" Ava's screech cut through the slow drone of everything as she sprinted to the edge, almost shoulder barging the man out of the way to throw herself near the Platform's edge. Her fingers grabbed the side of the wheelchair helm, but its weight forced it from her grip, and she couldn't reach Bonnie.
Ava crashed against the Platform, her chin impacting the rough edge as her arm dangled after Bonnie.
She froze, looking down with stunned eyes to the water below.
Mia broke away from Robyn and raced after her sister and, without a moment's hesitation, she leapt off the edge.
Ava, at first, watched Mia go, but in a bout of panic shot her arm out and snatched Mia's rashie mid-air, forcing her upper body over the edge as Mia hung from her grip. Ava managed to pull her up, despite Mia struggling, and latched onto her with arms and legs. "Oh my God, Mia!" she wheezed, her body trembling.
I made it to the edge and looked over, scanning the water for any sign of Bonnie or her wheelchair, but there was nothing but waves crashing against the rocks and upturning water. "Where is she?" I called.
Ava shook her head, Mia biting down on her arm to let her go, but Ava remained unaffected, and, quietly, said, "She just disappeared…"
I pushed myself to my feet and allowed myself a running start, pushing off the Platform to bound as far out into the water as I could as I dived, feeling the salty wind against my face and feeling my fingers crumble upon impact with the water thirty meters below.
The water was bitterly cold, a sharp contrast to the hot sun. It was also dark when I opened my eyes, and all I could feel was the pain, in my hands, across my chest, in my eyes, but I pushed through it and swam downwards, scanning with blurry eyes for Bonnie.
There was a moment where I couldn't tell which way was up or down, the currents throwing me in different directions, disorienting me as I barely caught myself from hitting a pillar of stone. My lungs began burning as I clutched the moss on the rock, desperately clinging to it as I looked around again for Bonnie.
I saw a blurry, pale image float below me.
I braced my feet against the rock and pushed myself down towards the blur. When I got closer, I saw a floating Bonnie, her eyes slowly blinking as the last of her air escaped her mouth in small bubbles.
In the water, Bonnie didn't weigh much, but the harder I swam with one arm, the more I felt like I was sinking, both physically and mentally. My focus on the bubbles short-lived as they out-floated me. My skin was growing numb with cold, but my insides continued to burn.
When we broke the surface, fresh air was a desperate need. I took in a great breath, and in my hurry swallowed a mouthful of water. I spluttered but was thankful to be able to breathe.
Bonnie was draped over my shoulder, coughing in my ear as she shivered against me. "Deep breaths, Bonnie…" I puffed, "Deep breaths…" I coughed again, pushing through the burning feeling in my muscles as I started swimming for the shore.
*
It took a lot of energy to make it to the beach, but once I was able to touch the ground and walk, I adjusted Bonnie, taking her from my back to my arms. She clutched my shoulders, pressing her face against my chest, as we slowly emerged from the water. My legs felt heavy, as if metal chains dragged me down, as I walked up the sandbank.
I was heaving, anything short not enough air for me.
I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to maintain focus as my heartbeat continued pounding, my chest throbbing in time with it. With each beat it continued to spread until it stretched down my arms as I carried Bonnie, making that simple act alone agonising. However, when I looked down at her, she stared up at me with perplexed eyes.
I made it to the edge of the sand, to the concrete path just beyond it, before I stopped. I wanted to throw up, but I didn't want to put Bonnie down. At this moment, she was at her most vulnerable and seemed acutely aware of it. She was soaked to the bone, her clothes heavy with water and her hair tangled. Now that she was out of the water, she didn't hold me; she curled in on herself, her hands scrunched into balls and her eyes slowly becoming glossier; she looked like a baby.
"You…" her voice sounded confused, "You can put me down now." It sounded like a question.
It was tough to think, to comprehend what was going on around me, but I heard the muted sounds sirens and, upon looking up, saw three ambulances and two police cars. People had ventured from the resort to the street to see what was going on. I saw the other girls, all running up to me in a whirlwind of yelling and talking, fussing about Bonnie or asking if I was okay.
Ava lingered at the back of the group, staring blankly at the ground while rubbing her fists.
I watched as two of the three men from the Platform got loaded into ambulances in stretchers, the third man, whom I managed to get a good look at, had his arm in a sling and was sucking on a green whistle. He seemed to be in great pain.
Someone had taken Bonnie from me, and I flexed my hands when I realised.
The weight of the situation dawned on me, my slowness turning into spiral panic as I pressed a hand to my head and the other to my chest. My heart was hammering, and every breath made me feel sick. I caused this.
I wasn't careful. I didn't protect my friends.
My muscles tensed, and my hands began shaking no matter how hard I pressed them against my body. I stumbled to a bush and vomited, the taste of bile and seawater re-assaulting my tastebuds. I felt a hand press against my back, gently patting it as I continued to retch.
I looked over my shoulder and saw Robyn.
Her usual absent expression was hardened by worry and tears, while she wasn't crying, she seemed close to vomiting herself.
Every time I coughed my chest pounded in pain. I shivered, I was sweating, my arms could barely hold my weight as I stayed hunched over the bush, gagging while nothing came out. "Is everyone okay…?" I croaked, forgetting whom I was talking to for a moment.
Robyn kneeled beside me and lifted my chin to turn my head to her. I remembered she wasn't wearing hearing aids. "Is everyone… okay…?" my eyes felt like a camera lens as her face went in and out of focus.
I could barely understand what she was telling me.
I managed to straighten myself, the pain making my left side numb. The chaos of the scene around me was confusing. The twins were under the wings of their Aunt, helping them speak to the police, while Estelle sat on the ground with a blanket draped over her shoulders with Ava standing next to her, also enveloped in a blanket, the pair sharing an unblinking, fragile expression. The paramedics had a new wheelchair for Bonnie, who was being checked out by paramedics. I couldn't see Mia.
Robyn placed a blanket over my shoulders, rubbing my arms against the soft fabric. "Where's Mia?" I asked looking amongst the paramedics, "And what happened to those men?"
Robyn either didn't understand or didn't know how to answer, as she placed a hand on my cheek, a sympathetic smile on her lips, before approaching Ava. Without an exchange, Ava threw her arms around Robyn, her eyes glaring blankly at the ground as her eyes slowly started to well up. I saw the bandages on her hands and knuckles, and one running up her left arm.
The pressure in my chest started to lessen, the once piercing pain how an uncomfortable tingle on my skin. I saw Mia squatted on the ground, drawing circles in the dirt with a stick. Despite her calm expression, her skin was glossy with sweat, and her other hand was screwed tightly into a fist. I walked over to her and came down to her level, "Hi Mia," I greeted with a weak voice.
Mia lifted her eyes and made a physical gulp, before returning to her circle drawing. I tried to keep my voice level, "Are you okay? You're not hurt?"
After a moment of consideration, she opened her clenched fist, revealing the shell she had shown me before they went to the Platform, the once beautiful whole shell was now in four pieces with cracks. I tried to sound calm, "Oh, you broke your shell," I said picking up some of the fragments. As I examined them, I noticed they were stained red, "Why is it red?" I asked.
She blinked, flexing her clenched hand before fully opening it palm up, revealing a large scratch diagonally across her palm. She held the shell so tightly she broke it. "Oh Mia," I lazily placed the pieces together, noticing how it could be done, "Maybe we can find some glue and stick them back together. How does that sound?"
Mia's passive expression shattered, replaced by a sudden glare of anger, as she snatched the shell part I held and tossed the handful back to the beach, droplets of palm blood staining the pavement as a result. She stomped away from me, apparently upset.
I pushed myself upright, feeling the tingle in my chest resurface as I staggered, "Oww…" I breathed, feeling it gradually subside as I breathed in. I couldn't hear my heartbeat in my ears anymore. I pressed my fingers against my neck, feeling around for my heart. It was usually instantaneous, me finding it in my throat, but I struggled, my fingers trembling as I searched blindly for it.
I looked at the scene around me, confused by why there was so much. Who had called the police? Why did we need ambulances? Why didn't I go with them? Why didn't I tell Bonnie to stay on the beach? Or ask Estelle to be patient? Why didn't I go after the man attacking Bonnie first? Why did I freeze at the bottom of the stairs? Why wasn't I quick enough? Why did I let this happen?
My heartbeat hammered against my fingertips, an endless, chaotic rhythm that aided the lightheaded feeling forming behind my eyes, as everything started swirling and started losing focus. A mixture of sickness and panic filled me, as I stumbled forwards, bracing myself against something, amongst my blinking, I recognised the uniform of the paramedic. "Umm… excuse me…" I breathed.
The woman turned to face me, a concerned expression on her face, as she asked me if I was okay. I felt sick. "Umm… I was the one who got Bonnie, that girl over there-" I pointed over to Bonnie, "-out of the water and… I have a heart condition called LQ… Long-Long LQ Syndrome." Staying focused on what I was saying was difficult. "I'm not in too much pain, but can… can I get checked by someone?"
The paramedic told me to hold tight, and she would take me to the hospital, letting me know none of the other girls had any severe injuries. I thanked her as I balanced on my own, turning all my attention to maintaining focus.
Suddenly, Alexis was in my face, her words a mindless babble to me as she held my face. Somehow, she started making sense; "Landon, what was that? Are you okay?" She had heard me speak to the paramedic. I never even saw her.
"Heart troubles," I whispered taking her hands in mine, she felt strangely warm in comparison, but I noted my hands were pale.
"My God you're freezing," she said, finding the edges of my blanket and wrapping it tighter around me. Her breathing was uneven when she spoke, "Are you going to be okay?"
I squeezed her hands, "Yeah. I'll be fine. Can you make sure everyone else is okay?"
She nodded, making an audible gulp as she tightened her hold on my hands. "Are you going to the hospital?"
I shrugged, "I'm not sure."
"What do I tell the others?" she asked, "Do I tell them about your heart problem?"
I considered this for a moment, a difficult feat given my light-headedness, and shook my head. "No, don't tell them. I don't want them to worry," I informed, "Just say I'm getting a checkup since I fell in the water." I felt so breathless as my chest pinged in pain again.
Alexis heard my change in tone. "What's wrong?"
I clutched her hand more for support now as I lowered myself to the ground. "My chest just hurts…" I confessed pressing a hand to my head. Alexis followed me to the floor, kneeling in front of me.
She only left my side when the paramedic returned, asking me a handful of questions before passing me a green whistle. The woman looked at Alexis, "Are you a relative or girlfriend?" she asked.
Alexis shook her head, getting to her feet, "No. Just a friend. Is he going to be okay?"
The paramedic nodded, "We'll do everything we can to take care of your friend." She noticed Alexis was blind and called for someone to aid her while she took care of me.
Everyone was so preoccupied with the police, or each other, or were still processing what had just happened, that only Alexis noticed when I was wheeled off into the ambulance and taken to the hospital.