Sitting opposite to him is a couple, Tim and Jane, with
morbid facial expressions. Jane is using a purple handkerchief to clean her eyes,
while her husband looks like he will murder whoever dares to speak to him.
The man trembles as he looks at the couple. His mind drifts
back two days.
…
He recalls someone splashing water frantically. He was on
the shore and recognized the pink bracelet. Without thinking, he jumped into
the water. It fought back with icy slaps on his mouth, nostrils and ears. As the
waves punched him, the saltiness poked his eyes and blurred his mind. He could
sense his muscles protesting with every stroke of his arms, reminding him that
he had come back from the hospital just four days ago.
After what seemed like
eternity, he saw the golden locks of hair that reflected the midday’s sun. Half
of her face was under water. He reached to the child, pulled her by her tiny
fingers into his chest. It felt like he was pulling an inanimate piece of log. A
closer look showed that the girl’s face was reddened and covered with
snot(tears).
“Emily! Where is Chloe?! Emily, are you ok? Where did Chloe
go? Was she with you?”
The girl was choking water incessantly, only stopping briefly
to gasp for air or crying her parents’ name.
“Emily, Answer me!” He roared. The saltiness came back on
his tongue again, this time it was not sea water.
Her red eyes met his and there was a mix of fear and guilt.
Her lips parted as she uttered sounds while shivering: “Uncle! Help! Please!”
A wave, white with foam, tried to devour them. He made a
quick dive. Nothing was there but the still, endless sand blanket and a couple
of seashells. His head hurt and something blocked his throat, forcing him to go
up again. He started scanning the surface. Every sight of empty water killed
him a little bit inside.
Seeing his daughter Chloe made his heart started pumping
blood again. She was about 15 feet away from Emily, being drifted further away.
Her pink headband and flower-patterned swimsuit bobbed up and down in distress.
“Dad!” Chloe shouted. Her arms were pushing down water and
her legs kicking, but in a little more controlled motion than Emily’s, thanks
to the mediocre swimming lessons she had taken. She tried to lie flat on the
water, facing the sky and then float the rest of her body, but every time a
wave would come and hammer her down.
The man carried Emily – who was still crying – on his back,
her hands wrapping around his neck, and prepared to swim to his daughter. He
even forgot to be mad at Chloe, although he knew it was her who disobeyed him
and dared Emily to go to this dangerous part of the sea.
As he kicked the
water, a sharp pain stunned his legs. It felt like his skin was ripping apart
and was not part of his body anymore. The after-effect of the surgery started
kicking in. He could not take both of them back to the shore.
“Dad, help me!” The shrill voice was drowned by the rumble
of angry sea.
He cursed god for giving him the car accident. It made his
family, especially Chloe, sacrifice their weekend to take care of him. Now he
wanted to pay the debt by taking Chloe and her niece Emily for a trip to the
seaside.
Another wave hit them, this time whiter, higher and
stronger.
The sun was beautiful that day.
…
The scene of Chloe starting to drown keeps replaying in his
mind.
“Please… Tell…us what…happened.” Jane’s shaky voice,
disrupted by hiccups and tears, brings him back to reality.
“I’m so sorry. I saw Chloe first, but could not find her
anywhere. When people found her it was too late. Emily had swallowed too much
water.” The man said while looking at his feet and the floor.
His lips and eyes were drooping, the
wrinkles on his face stiffened. Next to him, Chloe looked down too, sobbing. Jane burst into tears, and Tim was not in the mood to comfort
her.
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