Jessica+G

=__ Haven __=



"Sweltering heat beat down on my back, making it difficult to clear the thick fog that clouded my mind."

=__Chapter 1 __=  Open Waters

 Something scurried by my ear. The sound made me alert. Rough, gritty sand was imbedded in my cheeks. Groaning, I opened my eyes slowly, focusing on my surroundings. I was lying face first in the sand on the shore of… an island. I could hear the soothing ocean waves washing up the beach over and over again, a calming and reliable sound. A tiny, dark red crab stood motionless before my face, and I studied the smooth underside of it. Sweltering heat beat down on my back, making it difficult to clear the thick fog that clouded my mind. My entire body was incredibly stiff and I could feel that my abdomen was scraped up. The hard, plastic seams of my life jacket were pressing into my jaw. I turned over onto my back, slowly brushing the sand out of my brown hair, and adjusted the jacket. My hands rose to my face, and I loosened the sand from my cheeks. Eventually my thoughts came together and I began to recall the alarming events from last night.

 “FIREEE!! FIREEE!” somebody bellowed from the top of their lungs, sprinting down the corridor. I had been just peacefully meandering around the boat, but suddenly every single evacuation procedure I’d been told vanished from my mind. What to do…what to do… The smell of hot metal, burning plastic and wood was intoxicating and overpowering. My head was swirling with the smell and the million thoughts flying through my mind. I felt like a small leaf in the fall, being tossed and turned in a wind storm, helpless and fragile.

 //I wish I was back safe at home in Cape Town, Africa, with my family. My father would react so much better in a situation like this. This overwhelming feeling of homesickness was not helping.//

 Without warning,an attendant thrust a life jacket into my hands. I was scrambling to put it on as I raced towards an area where others were lining up to get onto life rafts. Terror ran down my spine and spread throughout my whole body as I heard parts of the belly of the ship crumbling apart from flames. Everybody was in a panic. Shivering in the cool evening breeze, I tried to drown out the horrendous wailing of trapped humans burning to a crisp. A whimpering, little dark haired boy, about 6 or 7 years old, and all alone, stood near me. I could tell he was holding back tears as best he could. His green eyes flashed nervously about.

 Suddenly, somebody’s hand was wrapped around my arm and pulling me in the opposite direction of the child. “Let’s go onto that boat! There are a couple spots left!” the girl who had grabbed me said hurriedly. Her blue eyes were bright with the reflection of flickering orange flames in them.

“What’s your name?” she asked, “Mine’s Marissa.” She smiled at me once we had sat down in the boat and been safely lowered onto the water’s surface. “I’m Maddie,” I replied, forcing a friendly smile through my shock. When I’d decided awhile back to take my high school’s ‘life-changing adventures cruise ship’, I had no idea it would change into a ‘potentially life-ending cruise ship’.

 Marissa and I became friends as we made small talk and pitched in with the rowing of the raft. The others on the boat didn’t speak much; I suppose because we were all silently wondering about our fate now. Besides Marissa and I, there was an old woman, some middle aged adults, probably teachers from other schools, and a slim, dark haired man in his twenties, and a guy from my school. He was one year older than I, in band, and I couldn’t remember his name. I doubt he even realized we went to school together. I had noticed he had fine features, freckles that had been expertly sprinkled across his pale nose and underneath his bright, blue eyes.

 Throughout the night, everyone took turns rowing. We didn’t go in any particular direction, just continuously pushing forwards, fighting the tough waves. Finally, the morning tide helped bring us inland; we were grateful for it because we were exhausted. Once we hit land, I weakly climbed out of the boat, and collapsed onto the shore, overjoyed with the small delight of reaching this safe haven.

"The nondescript boat remained on the edge of the island, bobbing silently in the flow of the turquoise waves."

=__Chapter 2__=

Brisk, cool wind lightly swirled the tan sand off the beach into a flurry around me. Squinting my eyes, I rose to me feet and winced from a deep ache in what felt like every muscle. About ten feet down to the shore, to my right, was where we’d debarked from the life raft last night. The nondescript boat remained on the edge of the island, bobbing silently in the flow of the turquoise waves. Looking out beyond the raft, I spotted a sand bar. The sand grew paler as it dipped below the water and curved out to the left. Turning around, I studied several hundred feet of barren sand. A lush, dense, green forest began where the lengthy beach ended, and I could hear faint voices in that direction. Towards the forest, the island broadened gradually.

Suddenly, a bright blue object on the left shore caught my eye. My curiosity led me to go investigate. When I finally reached the blue lump, I discovered it was just a tarp. //Must have washed up from the shipwreck//. It was entangled on a group of sharp rocks a couple feet in from the water’s edge. Glancing down at my old black and white Converse, I stepped a foot into the ocean and made my way over to the rocky pile. As I crouched down, I gently pulled at the edges of the tarp, tugging so I could gather it all up. The heavy weight of the water that had pooled on the tarp made it quite a struggle.

Then I was wet. A wave had swelled underneath my feet, causing me to slip, lost my balance, and come crashing down on my hands and knees. Blinding pain surged out of my kneecaps, and I glanced down to see blood already pouring from the fresh scrapes. I looked up at the clear blue sky, blinking tears away, and took a deep breath. Perched on a fairly flat rock, I pushed salty water over the burning wounds.

Afterwards, I regained my balance and rolled the tarp up, tossing it onto the sand. As I turned around, my eyes fell on a horrifying sight. My heart was pounding in my ribcage. The hot humid air was suddenly suffocating. I felt light-headed and I could feel my pulse beating down my arms and into my fingertips. A small boy’s body was lying face down in the water, bumping up against the far side of the rock pile with each new wave. He was dead. He was most definitely dead. His soft, brown hair floated level with the water’s surface. My mouth hung open in utter shock and my throat was parched. A weak croaking sound escaped from my mouth. As badly as I did not want to go near the body, I also had a deep desire to turn him over in the shallows and look at the face.

Cautiously wading over to him, I noticed a couple of coconuts bobbing in the water surrounding him. I yanked my sweater sleeve down over my fist, which I then used to nudge him over. Immediately, I recognized the boy. He was my younger brother’s friend, David. He had been an incredibly sweet and well-mannered 10-year-old, quite a little gentleman. Tears rolled down my cheeks silently as fond old memories of him and my brother flashed through my mind, but I still noticed the odd shape bulging out of Dave’s shorts pocket. I fished it out: //a Swiss army knife! What luck!// The bright sun glinted off the silvery razor-sharp blade.

A while after discovering the blade, I also noticed an unnervingly swollen pink blotch with a brilliant red spot at its center, on his lower calf. My lungs seized up and I felt as if the hot air was strangling me. //Something poisonous has stung or bitten Dave…// Once again, my heart was pounding. I scrambled back to shore, with sudden fear and adrenaline pulsing through me. I had been sitting on the beach for some moments, looking away to forget the horrid images. My eyes settled on a very small island. All it consisted of were palm trees and tropical bushes, and it wasn’t too far out from the main island, perhaps twenty feet. Strange, how the only three palm trees were on this tiny island; only bananas and other fruit seemed to be growing in the thick forest of the large island. “I suppose the coconut water will be our only source of water”, I wondered aloud, “unless the others found something in the heart of the forest.” Looking over my shoulder back at the forest, memories of my childhood flooded back. I remembered re-enacting scenes of __Titanic__ on the playground. Never had I once imagined anything like that would become a reality for me.

"She sprinted ahead through the waves, ecstatic to get coconuts.'

=__Chapter 3__= Palm Tree Island

As I neared the thick forest, a teenaged girl whom I’d never seen before suddenly popped her head out of the trees. Her face became animated when she saw me. “Hey!” she called out, waving one arm frantically, a bundle of bananas in the other arm. I called back to her, warming with her friendliness, and quickened my pace.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Maddie!” I said, once I’d reached her.

“Nice meeting you too, Maddie. I’m Lauren.”

“Oh, it’s so much cooler in here than on the beach,” I admired, feeling a refreshing breeze caress my skin.

“Yeah, it’s lovely. And there’s a variety of fruit trees that we’re finding.”

“We?” I questioned. “How many others are in the forest?”

“Yeah, two life rafts washed up on this island. All of us got together and are just gathering resources. There’s about twenty of us, I’d guess, maybe less,” she informed me.

“Oh, I see. That’s clever.” Bright sunlight filtered down through the dark tree canopy, and I could hear some birds chirping away. The sound was both pleasant and eerie.

“Watch your step here,” she warned, pointing to a mossy patch of land which suddenly dropped a few feet down onto rock.

“Thanks,” I murmured, carefully making my way around the soft ledge. After a few minutes, we arrived at a clearing. Others were piling food and materials for shelters and fires. Walking over to a food pile, we added the bananas. Quickly glancing around, I took in my surroundings. Everybody seemed organized, all part of a team walking in from different points among the brightly lit green trees. Some of the fruit they brought was unknown to me, ranging from bland to vivid colours. My stomach churned and grumbled. “Can we eat some of it now?” I asked Lauren.

“Yeah, I think that should be okay. Try a banana; they’re perfectly ripe.”

“Okay, sweet, thanks!” I bent down and tore one off the bundle, although I was so ravenous that one banana may not be enough to satisfy me.

“Oh, I love bananas!” another girl near my age exclaimed. Her long brown hair was tied off in a side braid, which flew past my face as she eagerly grabbed a banana. I swallowed quickly before introducing myself.

“Hi, I’m Maddie.”

“Oh, hey! Angie,” she replied, a grin on her face. Her eyes were bright and cheery. Clearly, she wasn’t too badly affected by the shipwreck. Most of the other survivors appeared to be in ‘survival mode’, just mutely gathering basics and preparing for however long we might be trapped. Angie, however, was carefree and unbothered by others’ obvious fears.

“Hi there, guys.” Marissa had entered the clearing and was picking her way over to us.

“Hi,” the three of us replied in unison.

“So far, we’ve found a variety of fruits, but no coconuts. Too bad, because they’d be a great source of water considering the ocean is salt,” Marissa remarked glumly.

“There are a couple of palm trees on a smaller island not too far from this one,” I said slowly, the image of Dave’s floating body still starkly clear in my mind, “but I think it could be danger…”

“Well, that’s great!” Angie piped up.

“What’s the danger, though?” Lauren questioned me.

“I, well, I found a…a dead person. My little brother’s friend, actually.” I paused, inhaling some fresh air. “He was near the island.” Gruesome images flickered in my head. Immediately, remarks of consolation came with hugs of sympathy, although we needed to stay focused. Staying alive and hydrated was the top priority.

“Well, then, let’s figure out a safe plan to get them,” Marissa began. “Should we ask around? Find someone courageous to volunteer?” Her blue eyes shone with a hint of fear.

“I wouldn’t mind a little adventure,” Angie stated.

“You do realize it could be dangerous?” Lauren was biting her lip nervously.

“Nah, don’t worry! I can run; I’m on my school’s track team,” Angie grinned. We all came to an agreement that Angie would be the one to venture onto the smaller island, but several others would accompany her, myself included.

Shortly after exiting the shade of the forest, we waded into the refreshing blue water. The sunshine was brilliantly hot in contrast. As we made our way out to the island, I felt a weight in my jean shorts’ pocket. “Oh yeah! I found a knife in the kid’s pocket!” I quickly dug it out and handed it to Angie.

“Sweet, this is nice,” she said admiringly, turning it over a couple times in her hands. Then, leaving the safety of the group, she sprinted ahead through the waves, ecstatic to get coconuts. Lauren, Marissa, and I hurried to catch up. My shoes were creating a drag, and I wished I’d left them ashore.

Angie scurried up the trunk of a tree and it trembled with her weight. A few coconuts fell to the sand with a cushioned thud. For a moment, I thought I’d seen movement on the sand near their landing spot, but it could have been merely shadows. Squinting up at Angie, I shaded my eyes with my hands.

“Is that a crab over there?” Lauren asked, pointing to a fairly small, red-brown creature.

“I can’t tell; it’s hiding in the coconuts…” Marissa trailed off.

Angie suddenly jumped down from the tree, interrupting everyone’s focus. “Oh, ouch!” she exclaimed, rubbing her foot. I watched the Swiss army knife fall from her hand into the sand with an innocent plop. Sunlight glared off the blade.

“You okay?” I asked anxiously.

“Um, I think something bit me. It really hurts.” Her voice was strained, and she was staring at the ground.

“Scorpions!” Marissa cried out. Angie sprang up and over to us, as if all her pain was instantly gone. Small red scorpions were now emerging from the pale yellow sand of the island.

“Let’s get of here! Now!” Angie shrieked. Marissa was trembling, frozen. Lauren grabbed her hand, tugging her into the blue waves. My heart was racing. I didn’t know anything about scorpions; what was going to happen?

“C’mon, Angie!” I took her arm in mine, assisting her into the water and to the main shore as fast as possible.

“Oh, my foot…the pain…it’s burning and tingling,” she murmured. Tears leaked out of the corners of her blue-grey eyes.

“It’ll be okay. Don’t worry. There’s a first aid kit in with the supplies from one of the life rafts; there must be something in there.” I tried to soothe her.

“Okay,” she gasped, crawling onto the safer shore of our haven.

“Let’s get her into the forest; it’s cooler there and she won’t get sunburned. Maddie, you and Marissa carry her, and I’ll get the first aid kit from the life raft,” Lauren said before she hurried towards where the life boat was still beached on the sandbar.

Not too long after Marissa and I had gotten Angie safely to the forest and settled on the ground, she’d slipped into a coma. “Is she dead?” Marissa was panicking. “I…I can’t believe this is happening…” She choked back the rest of her words.

“I know,” I mumbled, trying to remain calm while I searched for Angie’s pulse. “Finally! I’ve found her pulse but it’s very faint.”

“Not a good sign.” Marissa groaned and hugged her knees to her chest, rocking slightly. Suddenly, we heard rushed footsteps; Lauren was back.

“I got the kit,” she panted, “but, I’m afraid, it won’t, be of, much, use to us.” She threw it on the ground before us. There were band-aids, tweezers, medical tape, acetaminophen, gauze, and a tensor bandage. Not helpful. We couldn’t even give her the medicine, because she was unconscious. “I suppose there’s nothing we can do,” Lauren sighed, flopping on the moss adjacent to Angie.

Nighttime and darkness came over the island. The air was still, and although I thought I couldn’t, I slipped into a restless sleep on the forest floor. I was woken by an orange glow burning through my eyelids. The sun had risen on another island morning, but yesterday’s events rushed back. I quickly looked over at Angie. She remained motionless. Her lids were closed, long dark lashes curling upwards. Placing my fingertips against her throat, I searched for a pulse. Nothing. I tried again. For several moments, I pressed my fingers into her cooling flesh, trying to feel a pulse.

“Angie, come on…” I pleaded quietly, my throat thick.

Nothing. I gave up. Sitting back on the ground, I cried. She was gone. Sobs shook my body, and the other girls were soon woken up. They’d seen her still body, faded pink lips, and immediately knew. Angie was dead.

“We’re all going to die…” Marissa recognized slowly, tears silently rolling down her freckled face. My eyes settled on Angie. She was too young…my vision blurred as more tears spilled out.

Without warning, the tree’s leaves began rustling. Confused, I studied the canopy closely. Something was overhead.

“A helicopter!” Lauren, Marissa, and I screamed joyously in sync.