She shifted from her uncomfortable position on the rock that was at the moment cutting into her butt and lost her balance suddenly finding nothing but air underneath her.
She fell into the river, cold water rushed at her quickly and she immediately began to turn numb.
The force of the water caused her to move with the current and slammed her into a rock, she tried to scream but her mouth filled with water and she instead gurgled.
She slammed into another rock, and it all went back. "Think she's okay?" someone asked.
"I'm not sure, but Damien has been giving her CPR for the past few minutes." She fluttered her eyelids and was surprised to find a guy bent over her, his lips pressed to hers.
She shoved him backward and sat up, coughing up water. "Whoa whoa whoa buddy, not on the first date," said Valerie. "Are you okay?" asked Damien, looking concerned.
"Yes, I'm fine, no thanks to you, you almost crushed me." she said irritably.
"I'm sorry, next time I'll be more careful when I'm saving your life."
"There won't be a next time,"
"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed," said the other guy. She glared at him until he shrank back behind Damien, out of sight.
"So, do you even have the decency to give me a lift?" she asked with a sneer.
"I don't see why I should give you a lift when you are being so rude."
"Come on now, lets not be children." He said from behind the protection of Damien.
"I'm not sure you should be talking when you're the one hiding behind your momma." Damien growled, looking angry.
"Uh oh, looks like I've woken the momma bear."
"You know what?" said Damien.
"Your not worth the trouble, you can walk home,"
"Fine," said Valerie with a sniff. Suddenly, a third person that Valerie hadn't noticed laid a hand on Damien's arm gently, Damien calmed down immediately.
Definitely his girlfriend, thought Valerie.
"Damien, just give her a lift, look at her, she's all wet and cold," she said.
Valerie automatically looked down, she was soaking wet and her clothes clung to her. She hadn't even noticed.
Damien nodded and said, "Okay fine, but she better not pee in the car." Valerie glared at him, and the guy behind him laughed.
"Oh shut-" "If you don't have anything nice to say than don't say it," said Damien's girlfriend. Valerie closed her mouth and chose to glare instead.
They walked out of the forest and into the nearby parking lot. They stopped by an expensive looking blue sports car and Damien unlocked it.
Valerie angled into the passenger seat and someone cleared their throat. "That's my seat," he said.
"Stan," warned Damien's girlfriend. "But I always sit there," Stan whined.
"Stan! Just sit in the back; you are giving me a headache." Valerie grinned, until she saw Damien looking at her, then she sobered up immediately and glared.
Damien's girlfriend and Stan slid into the back seats. Valerie gave Stan directions and sat back, aware that it had gotten completely silent.
She leaned into the chair and almost jumped through the roof of the car when Damien's girlfriend yelled, "I knew I recognized you from somewhere!" "Aren't you in that one movie…umm…Don't you dare?"
"I don't know what you are talking about," Valerie mumbled. "Yes! Now I remember! You're the one who survives then goes crazy in the end! I can't believe it took me that long to figure it out."
"We're in the presence of a real movie star," she turned to Stan, whose eyes shining in excitement. "Can we have your autograph?!" they yelled.
"Oh god," Valerie groaned. She had gone to the river for peace and quiet, to be away from all of her crazed fans, and now she was stuck in a tiny sports car that was full of fans.
"Please! Please! Please! Please! Please!" yelled Stan.
"No, you know what? This is where I draw the line," she turned to Damien. "Stop the car!"
"Hey I'm not a taxi driver; you can't just boss me around like that." "Dammit! Stop the fucking car now!" She reached over and pulled the shift into park.
"What the hell do you think your doing? Are you crazy?!" yelled Damien. He swerved to a stop. Valerie hopped out of the car and started to run, her house was just right up the hill.
She panted and leaned against the gate, then pounded in the code, hard, and the iron gates swung open and closed after her.
She pounded on the door, "Kaaaaaaaaaaaarla, let me in!" Karla was the house keeper.
Karla opened the door, "What on earth happened to you?" she asked, looking Valerie up and down. "I went for a swim." said Valerie.
"I honestly don't understand how you get yourself into these kinds of messes." Valerie looked at the floor sheepishly.
"Well come in come in!" "Let's get you cleaned up," Valerie stepped inside and bathed in the comfortable air conditioned room. Karla dragged her into her room and grabbed some jeans and a t-shirt from the closet and handed them to Valerie.
"Look at all of these cuts," said Karla examining Valerie's arms.
"Oh my god, your head, its bleeding, we should get you to a doctor immediately, you could have a concussion, let me see,"
"I'm fine, I'm fine, seriously, you worry too much." Valerie winced when Karla touched the tender wound.
"We are going to the hospital immediately, I don't care if I have to drag you there," said Karla.
"But I have a photo shoot in two hours," "No buts, come on," said Karla.
Karla shoved her into the passenger seat and stuck the keys into the ignition. She made a call to Valerie's doctor and told him to be ready because Valerie was coming.
They drove in silence for a while until Valerie mumbled, "This is totally pointless,"
"Oh stop complaining, we're almost there," Karla was right, they parked a few minutes later and Valerie stepped out of the car and stretched, she was sore all over.
Then all of the sudden, a girl recognized Valerie and screamed, "Look over there, it's Valerie Carpers!" All of the sudden, a swarm of people came out of nowhere, rushing towards Valerie.
Valerie ran inside the hospital and was immediately met by her doctor, who quickly led her to a sealed room and shut the door behind them, pulling a sheet of construction paper out and taping it over the window on the door.
The blinds were already closed. He motioned for her to sit down on the bed covered in tissue paper. It crunched under Valerie's weight.
"Back so soon?" he asked, smiling warmly. "What did you do this time?" "I fell into a river," said Valerie with a sigh.
He tisked and said, "Valerie, you just got out of your cast," "And I'm ready to get back into a new one," Valerie joked.
"I don't know how you manage to get hurt so often." "It's a talent of mine," said Valerie. "It's a miracle that you have actually survived this long."
Valerie smiled and said, "Hey at least I'm giving you good business," He smiled then said, "Okay, lets look at the battle wounds," He examined her head, and touched it gently, "Ouch!" "Sorry," he said.
"Well it looks like you lucked out this time, it doesn't look like you have a concussion, but you should lay low for now, make sure nothing else happens to your head or else you won't have anymore brains left."
"Ha ha," said Valerie. He handed her some kind of tube of cream, "You should put this on everyday for a week and you should be fine. Nature will do the rest."
"Okay, thanks doc," said Valerie, then she slid off the bed, tearing the tissue paper. "Oops," said Valerie, some of it stuck to her jeans and she pulled it off with a grimace.
"Sorry," "It's okay, I expected worse, I was luck this time and-" Just as he said it, Valerie turned and knocked over the plastic skeleton he had which tumbled, and knocked over some books that he had on his desk.
He flinched. "I uh-" Valerie bent over to pick something up and the seat of her pants made an awful tearing noise.
She jerked up and covered her butt, turning red.
The doctor was hunched over, laughing, and wiping away tears. Then she shuffle/crab walked and shut the door quickly behind her. "What took you so long?" asked Karla.
Then she saw the state of Valerie's pants and burst out in laughter.
Valerie turned red again and glared at her, growling, "Stop laughing!" and waddled quickly outside.
Unfortunately, there were paparazzi waiting for her outside.
She sprinted while awkwardly holding the back of her torn jeans together. "Valerie! Valerie! Don't be shy! Show us your panties."
Someone laughed and she yanked at the car door frantically with one hand, while holding her butt with the other. "Karla!" she yelled.
Meanwhile, Karla was fumbling with her keys, then finally, she found the right one and unlocked the car.
Valerie yanked open the door and slid in, and they roared away in the car.