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“Okay, add fifteen,” I muttered as I started the timer.
As soon as I did, I returned my attention over the side and waited. It wasn’t long before I’d reached an estimated thirty seconds, then forty-five, then sixty. I inched forward, peering over the side of the boat.
Even though the water was clear, I could only see down about ten feet or so. Gabe said it was at last twenty feet in this spot so straining to see much further probably wouldn’t do me any good.
At one minute, fifteen seconds, my stomach sank.
Glancing at the timer, I muttered, “Gabe, what the hell are you doing?”
Where the hell was he? Oh my God. Oh my God.
But just as I’d reached a state of near paralysis, I heard a splashing sound to my right. Just then Gabe surfaced, thrashing his head and slinging his long wet hair away from his eyes.
“Gabe!” I screamed. “Oh, my God!”
As I spoke, Gabe started to swim back in the direction of the boat. Soon enough, he arrived and gripped onto the side with his fingers.
“You had me worried sick!” I said.
Gabe laughed. “You seem pissed right now.”
“That’s because I am pissed! I thought you drowned!”
“Okay, okay…” Gabe replied, interrupting me. “Calm down. I’m fine. No luck yet, though. Just came up to grab air, then I’ll go back.”
“What!” I exclaimed. “No, Gabe. No! I don’t care about the bracelet. I don’t want anything to happen to you. Please. Just get back in the boat.”
“Aww,” Gabe said with a wink and ill-timed smirk. “So you do care. Huh, Fiona?”
I thinned my lips at him. “I’m not in the mood, Gabe. Please just get in the boat with me.”
Gabe shook his head and pushed himself away from the side. The movement of his body created a small wake around his upper torso, swallowing it in foamy blue.
“Back in a minute, babe.”
“Gabe! No!”
But before I could get a second word out, I lost sight of him as the last part to submerge, his toes, vanished beneath the water’s surface. I glanced around the immediate area as soon as Gabe disappeared from view.
“Where the hell did everyone go?” I stammered. “Where are all the boats?”
In fact, as I scanned the entire area, I didn’t see a single living soul. What the hell was I going to do if something happened to him?
Before I realized it, nearly the same length of time Gabe had been down before passed by once again. With each second past the time when he ought to have resurfaced, I fretted.
Nearly to the point of panic, I stood in the boat, reaching above my head and grasping the sail to steady myself. I traced the top of the water, following each whitecap as it dissipated into foam.
“Gabe!” I screamed. “Gabe!”
All of a sudden, from behind, I heard the sound of a great gasp for air. Spinning in place, I caught Gabe as he surfaced once more. I scrambled across the boat to the other side and knelt down near the edge. Gabe gulped for breath as he swam back up to the boat.
“Gabe, please,” I begged. “You are terrifying me. Please, just forget about the bracelet okay? I’m begging you.”
Gabe heaved several more breaths.
“Fiona… Don’t… Worry… About it.”
“Well I am going to worry about it. I don’t want you risking your life over it. This is crazy! Please get back in the boat.”
Gabe shook his head. “I think I know… where… it went. There’s a huge patch of sand… down there. There’s nothing covering… any of it. I’m gonna go look.”
I felt tears begin to well up in my eyes. “Gabe, no. Please don’t, I…”
But as I begged, Gabe’s head vanished beneath the surface once again as he submerged.
“Goddamnit!” I yelled, slamming my hand on the seat beneath me.
Enraged and filled with dread, I reached for my cell phone once more and started the timer. By now, I’d grown accustomed to Gabe being submerged for a couple of minutes at least, so unless a passing shark decided to have an early lunch, I assumed he’d be back.
With that, a sudden wave of exhaustion came over me. I placed my phone down next to me, and after propping my elbows on my knees, I dropped my head into my hands. I tried to calm myself, taking a number of deep breaths. After several inhales and exhales, the muscles in my neck and upper back began to relax a bit.
After a final exhale, I licked the salt air from my lips and lifted my head up. My hair hung in front of my eyes for a moment, and as it did, streaks from the sun flickered amid the strands. I blew a puff of tension out from between my lips and pulled the strands back behind my ears, clearing my line of sight.
Just then, I turned a bit and reached for my phone. Flipping it over, I did a double take when I noticed the time… three minutes and nineteen seconds! The calm that had descended upon me stripped away, as panic once again took its place.
“Oh shit!” I said, as I lurched towards the side of the boat nearest to me.
For several anxious seconds, I scanned the surface of the water as I had twice before, but I didn’t see any sign of Gabe. Frantic, I scooted across to the opposite side, hoping he might appear there, as he had the last time. As before, I glued my eyes to the undulating currents and subtle whitecaps.
Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God!
He’d never stayed down this long before. What if something happened to him? What if he’d gotten attacked or worse, what if he was trapped on the bottom somehow? I grabbed my phone once more.
Almost four minutes!
Without another thought, I stood and began to strip my clothing away. I’d never been so terrified in my life, but I wasn’t about to lose him… not like this. Overwhelmed with fear, I ambled to the side of the boat, taking one last peek over the side as I did.
I had no idea where to even begin looking for him, but as the seconds raced by, I realized I had no choice but to take the risk. If I didn’t, Gabe could die and I’d never be able to live with myself.
I grabbed hold of the railing on the side of the boat, and my hands shook so much they vibrated. I groped at railing, hoping for a moment of clarity, and after a quick prayer, I began the countdown.
“Okay Fiona, on the count of three. Three… Two… One…”
