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We’re in the middle of the fucking lake.
“Hazel,” I groan as I keep moving. The wind is cold, whipping rain drops straight into my eyes and onto my now sensitive skin, feeling like knives slicing across my exposed limbs.
Suddenly, she gasps in air, her eyes flying wide, her makeup smeared down her face as her wet eyelashes stick to her skin. She starts choking, coughing hysterically as she glances around in a panic.
“What? What the hell?” She spirals into hysteria, kicking against me, away from me, trying to escape and get closer at the same time.
She can’t fucking swim.
“Help me! Oh my God!” she shrieks, her arms flapping like mad.
“Hazel. Hazel, stop!” I roar, my legs quickly becoming numb as they move in a trance. Back and forth, back and forth.
She grapples toward me, her fingers gripping my shirt, and she pulls.
My head immediately goes under, and I push her away from me, coughing out a mouthful of water. “Don’t fucking do that!” I roar.
“I can’t swim!” she cries, panic holding her in its clutches.
“I fucking know that! So stop panicking so I can hold on to you!” I scream.
Her body shudders, but she slows down, her hands going to my shoulders as she literally becomes dead weight against me.
I kick harder, fighting for the both of us.
“Just relax your body, pretend to float. It’ll be easier to carry you if you aren’t fighting me every second.”
“I can’t help it. And it’s so fucking cold,” she whispers, her teeth chattering.
I nod, not saying a word. I know she’s right. It’s fucking freezing. Lake Superior is not a lake to swim in. It’s filled with many unknowns, but right now I can’t think about that, because I’m stuck in the middle of it, and the shore still seems so damn far away. I need to save us. Both of us.
Hazel cries softly beside me as I pull her. It takes a while, the rain never letting up as it pounds against our skin in heavy, oversized drops. The icy blue, nearly black water curls over us. The wind and fog make it nearly impossible to see, but eventually, the small strip of land grows larger, until the toes of my shoes brush the ground. My shaky legs lock as I stand, lifting Hazel into my arms.
“We survived,” she gasps, her body going limp in my hold.
I nod, gasping out a breath as I walk out of the water.
My clothes are heavy on my body, my skin popping with goosebumps as I head up the street and back toward my car. It’s just as we left it, not a thing different, though I remember so much. I remember everything.
We don’t say a word. I open the passenger door, setting her inside the seat. She seems a little in shock, to be honest. Blank face, paled skin. Absent eyes.
Rounding to the driver’s side door, I pull it open, my sore body screaming in pain as I finally sit down and let out a breath.
Fuck.
The keys are still in the ignition, and I turn the car on, pulling a U-turn and driving away from her house.
I’m going to mine.
She might fucking complain, but I’m not finished with Hazel yet. I need answers, a whole hell of a lot of them, before we can move on. But right now, we’re both so fucking exhausted, I can’t find the energy to open my mouth and speak to her.
We both stay silent during the drive, all the way up until I pull into my driveway, punching in the code to lift the gate. I drive into the garage, parking the car and getting out all without a word.
I’m so fucking thirsty.
I unbutton my pants, dropping the cold, heavy fabric in the doorway. My sopping wet shirt comes next, and it falls on top of my pants before I head into the kitchen. I can hear Hazel come in behind me, the sound of her wet shirt slapping against mine.
Pulling out two cups from the cupboard, I fill them to the brim. Hazel turns the corner, walking into the kitchen naked, her arms folded over her chest as she shivers. She’s still in shock as she stares at me blankly.
