"If only it were heaven, don't move now, I will save you to the shore," Rosendo gasped. He was severely exhausted at this point, relying solely on his strong determination.
Johanna realized she wasn't dead when she saw the river water. She had been saved by Rosendo. Although she didn't turn around to see who saved her, from the voice alone, she could be certain that it was Rosendo - the boy who had repeatedly hurt her heart.
"Why did you save me? Weren't you supposed to dislike me?" Johanna asked calmly.
While desperately swimming towards the shore and panting heavily, Rosendo replied, "I never said I disliked you. You misunderstood."
After finishing his sentence, a gust of wind brought another surge of river water towards them. With a swoosh sound, just as Rosendo was about to reach the shore, he was swept away by the current again.
Rosendo really wanted to get a good sleep right now; he was truly exhausted and in need of rest. However, for Vanessa's and Johanna's, he couldn't give up like this. He continued struggling towards the shore and shouted loudly to people on land: "Quickly find a rope and tie it around something buoyant!"
There are still kind-hearted people out there. Upon hearing Rosendo's words, an middle-aged man quickly turned around and ran towards a nearby store by the riverbank. He bought a large bundle of ropes from a grocery store and then rushed back to the riverside where he picked up an empty plastic bottle carried by the river water - probably used for oil storage.
After securely tying the bottle with rope, the middle-aged man shouted loudly at Rosendo: "Hey! I've already tied this bottle with rope! I'm throwing it over now; make sure you catch it!" With a strong throw, the bottle with the rope landed about ten meters away from Rosendo.
Rosendo is now exhausted to the point of collapse. His body was already weak, and he has been busy making money in this century without time to exercise. Seeing a bottle floating on the river surface ten meters away, Rosendo musters up his last bit of strength, determined to grasp onto a glimmer of hope.
Since Rosendo embraces Johanna from behind, she cannot see his expression. However, she can feel his fatigue as Rosendo's swimming speed slows down.
"Rosendo, let go of me! If you take me with you, neither of us will survive. But if it's just you alone, you can definitely make it back to shore," Johanna cries with tears streaming down her face.
"If I chose to save you, I won't abandon you halfway. It's my principle not to give up halfway in life. Did you see that empty bottle floating on the river? You must grab onto it later, understand?" Rosendo gasps for breath as he earnestly advises her.
"Yes," Johanna responds emotionally. She feels guilty now for how she treated Rosendo before; he wasn't even angry at her and is sacrificing himself to save her. She starts considering becoming Rosendo's girlfriend if they manage to overcome this danger.
When they are only two meters away from their destination, Rosendo becomes immobile; his limbs have lost all strength.
As Rosendo comes to a stop temporarily without diving underwater yet, Johanna curiously asks him: "Rosendo, what happened?"
Looking at the bottle tied with a rope two meters away from them,Rosendo sighs softly and says: "I saved your life so promise me that you'll live well.Listen carefully,I'm going to push you forward with all my might.You must grab on to the empty bottle."
"Ahh!" Suddenly,Rosendoroars loudly.His body is instantly filled with strength.He quickly pushes Johanna towards the empty bottle two meters away.
Then, Rosendo slowly submerges into the water. He had just used a special method to stimulate his body, giving him a momentary burst of superhuman strength. This power is Rosendo's last bit of energy. Now with no strength left in his body, he can only leave it up to fate as he gets swept away by the river.
Johanna successfully caught the empty bottle. After catching it, she immediately turned her head and said, "Rosendo, I caught it! Come over here quickly." However, Rosendo had already been washed away by the river, and there was no sign of him.
"Rosendo, Rosendo..." Johanna began to shout his name in anguish. Cheryl was also calling out for Rosendo just like Johanna. While Johanna didn't see how Rosendo disappeared, Cheryl stood on a high bank and witnessed Rosendo slowly submerge into the water and get carried away by the river. She had just seen Johanna being swept into the river by the water moments ago, and now she saw with her own eyes as Rosendo slowly sank into the water and got washed away. The impact today was truly devastating for her.
Johanna was pulled ashore with help from others while police officers arrived with a rescue boat. They carefully searched for Rosendo using the boat. An hour later, they left because a violent storm was approaching. If they continued searching under such conditions, it could potentially endanger their lives.
Johanna and Cheryl were forcibly taken home by their families while those citizens who were watching waves caused by strong winds at the riverside also left.
In a luxurious villa, Johanna lay on her bed crying uncontrollably as tears streamed down her face. She kept pleading with her family to find a way to save Rosendo: "Dad, I beg you... please save him! He got swept away by the river trying to save me! You must save him; otherwise I won't be able to live anymore..."
"Sigh... Do you think I don't want to save him? Not only do I want to save him but I also wanted him as my son-in-law! But nobody dares go out in this weather! Just like how he saved you but couldn't save himself... sigh... we can only leave it to fate and hope he's still alive," Tyson, sitting by Johanna's bedside, sighed.
Cheryl sat on the sofa in Johanna's room, hunched over with her hands covering her face. She buried her head between her knees and sobbed softly while her frail shoulders trembled uncontrollably.
The water stains on the floor indicated that Cheryl had been crying for a long time and was deeply saddened. Besides feeling heartbroken, Cheryl also felt guilty; she blamed herself for letting Rosendo go to save Johanna which led to this unfortunate incident.
"Johanna, don't worry. Rosendo will be fine. As soon as the storm stops, I'll immediately send out a large number of people to search for him," Willie comforted Johanna.
In a small village not far from New Mountain University, at the entrance of a simple tiled house, a girl stood there blankly looking outside at the incessant rain. Worriedly she said: "Rosendo hasn't come back yet?"