How long had she been swimming and tugging Brendan's body along?
It felt like hours had passed when they had only been lost at sea for a few minutes.
No doubt even the coastal guard should be searching for them, she hoped they found them in time for the arrival of the ferry.
Brian had said the next one would not be arriving until four hours later that day.
No way did she want to sit down and wax the public bench bored out of her mind.
All she wanted to do was shower and then curl up under the covers of clean sheets on a warm bed.
She wouldn't mind a room to herself but if she had a roommate she hoped they got along well.
Charm also hoped that they were respectful and liked to sleep with the lights off and weren't the noisy kind.
She wasn't asking for too much, was she?
Not only did she have the brunt of Brendan's weight to bear but the area she found herself lost in was polluted.
Charm's heart couldn't stop racing and her lungs felt like it would collapse any second but finally her foot could touch the sandy ocean floor.
A clear plastic bottle smacked her in the face, even though trash was in the water it was still pretty clear.
At least there were no oil leaks or anything that would muddy up the water and she prayed that nothing would cut her feet like corals or broken glass.
She truly felt like she missed her calling to be an Olympic swimmer.
Charm felt so much relief at the thought of approaching dry land despite the rain drops that started to fall.
A fog had descended making it hard for her to see behind her out to the sea so just kept pushing forward.
The cool rain against her skin made her shiver even more, though the both of them were already wet.
They were nowhere near the pier and when she looked around she saw that they were alone.
There was no one on the beach to call out to for help and no boat engines sounded in the distance.
Seaweed wrapped around her heel but she shook it off, she could see a school of tiny fish dart around her feet every time she took a step through the murky waters.
Too tired to swim any further and still hauling Brendan's unconscious body.
She pushed through with the last of her energy half walked and half pulled her excess baggage all the way up to the sandy shoreline.
When they were finally out of the sea, she collapsed on the sand with Brendan falling down beside her.
The tide was still reaching them but thank the merciful heavens they both were still alive.
Words of the flight attendant drifted to her mind, "in case of emergency take care of yourself first before you assist others."
Her lungs still huffed and puffed and when her breathing finally even out did she turn her neck to study Brendan's face.
She shot up instantly to hover over him, his face was a mottled purple, he was gasping for air like a fish out of water.
Her hands shot to his chest, she put the whole of her body weight into it, the last of her strength that she could muster.
Constantly repeating the same action over and over again as she pounded his chest like she had been taught to get him to cough up the water he had swallowed.
She checked his nose, felt no air, pounded his chest with her fist brought her lips down to his mouth and exhaled.
When she thought about having her first kiss with the opposite sex this was not how she envisioned it.
It was nothing like in the Baywatch movies, far from romantic as both their breaths were musty.
If he didn't survive would it then be labeled a kiss of death?
Would her lips be doomed for the rest of her life not if she could help it, "please breathe," she coaxed Brendan.
Suddenly he inhaled and then his entire body started to spasm, he started to choke and she brought him to an upright sitting position.
Had her voice reached him somewhere in the dark corners of his mind and brought him back to the real world.
Slapping him on the back as hard as she could until his eyes rolled in his skull.
Charm got the result she desperately craved when he coughed and retched repeatedly expelling excess water from his throat.
Saliva dripped from his mouth corners that had turned white in contrast to his lips that also turned a purplish red, when the blood rushed to his face from nearly drowning.
His eyes remained closed but that didn't bother her at all, as long as he was breathing.
He was the envy of many young girls with those long blonde eyelashes that naturally curled.
Full pouty lips that made many girls stay glued to their TV screen held her attention.
He was so handsome even at his worst he made drowning look good like a scene out of a movie.
Brendan's long blonde hair now partly covered his face, the rest was still in a loose ponytail that hung around his back.
All that hair must have been dragging him down in the water, she thought.
For a while she just listened to his breathing, even when it hitched as he coughed and coughed.
It went on like that followed by loud gasps before it eventually slowed down and he was almost as silent as her.
With just the sound of the tide rushing to hit their feet since neither of them had moved from the original spot.
That life guard course had really paid off, Brendan lived, a testament to its success in her eyes.
Suddenly he opened his eyes while she was still hovering and staring at his face.
Their circles were galaxies apart, he was a world renowned movie star and she was a virtual stranger, she could make dollars selling this story to social media.
Brendan's violet eyes filled with panic as he stared up at her face.