Hey everyone. This is chapter 7.
I think the story is shaping up nicely.
There is still quite a bit left to this one.
Also stay tuned for a new one I've been working on.
I'm also working on a short oneshot idea that I am really excited about.
I just want to thank the new people who took time out to read this. It means so much.
Now, please read and review. Thanks.
I was in the hospital for a few more days. My mom had visited me every one of those days. So did Carly, Gibby, Spencer and even T-bo came to visit. He
brought me an entire ham on a stick, which I gladly accepted and ate, even though it didn't have the same fulfillment as it used to. The only person that
didn't visit was Freddie. On my last day Carly told me that he had to miss the rest of his tech trip to come see me. I hadn't asked her, she just told me. I was
still numb from everything, but the monster hadn't bothered me since that first night. I knew that he would be back and I wasn't sure if I would be alone for
that. I prayed that I would be alone. One thing I did know was that I owed Carly an explanation that was long over due. And the fear of her thinking I was
crazy, wasn't really relevant. I was positive that she already thought I was crazy.
It was Friday when I packed up and was released from the hospital. I felt better but not healed in the slightest. If anything, this was the beginning of a
rocky road. I had decided that killing myself wasn't the appropriate response. After I had some time to think it over, I realized that I would only be doing
more harm than good. They loved me. It would destroy them if I had ended my life. I knew this now. After seeing everyone surrounding me at the hospital, I
knew that I was loved unconditionally. I didn't want to think of them as friends anymore. They would forever be my family.
I stepped out the front doors of the hospital and walked across the parking lot to Spencer's car. Carly helped me put my stuff in the trunk and we both slid
into the backseat. I looked out the window the entire time, trying to think of how I was going to approach Carly with my…problem. The car ride was much
too short in my opinion and so was the elevator ride to the Shay apartment. In no time at all I was sitting on Carly's bed and she was unpacking my stuff to
be washed. I watched her. It felt like years had gone by. I felt older. Like I had lived a full life and was now ready to tell the tale.
She was throwing my stuff into a basket and only glanced up when I gave a loud sniff. I hadn't realized it, but I was crying. She stopped and dropped what
she was doing.
"Sam, what's wrong?" she said softly, walking over to me and stopping right in front of me. I looked into her chocolate brown eyes. So much concern there
was in them, so much love…
"I have to tell you something." I said in a small voice. My heart began to pound, my very skin was pins and needles. She sat down next to me.
"Sam, whatever it is, you can tell me."
"I know…I'm just…afraid." I said, fresh tears falling. She gripped my hand and squeezed it gently. I had to tell her…she deserved to know.
"Carly…I have a…mental illness." I spoke the words as if I had just told a crush that I loved them. I thought that she was going to ask me to elaborate but
instead she just pulled me into a hug.
"Carly…please don't think differently of me…"
"Sam." She looked right into my eyes. I had never seen her look so serious before. "I don't care if you were a murderer. I will never give up on you." If I
could scream…I didn't. But I did cry my eyes out again. Was it possible to have that much love inside one person? She didn't rush me. She waited for me to
stop crying and dry my eyes, drying her own as well, and then sit for 15 more minutes in silence, waiting for me to speak when I was ready. I finally spoke,
the words just seemed to fall into place.
"Remember those dreams I told you about? The ones with the monster that kept eating my soup?" she nodded, I continued. "Well, I never got over them…"
"I thought Spencer helped you with that?" she said. I shook my head.
"No…it didn't work. Its much bigger than what I had originally thought. I just thought it was a nightmare. But then when Spencer said that it could have
been from something in my childhood. Well at the time, I didn't really think much of it, but then, the other day, something you said to me triggered a
realization."
"What did I say?"
"When you said that I wasn't a monster. That made me think about those nightmares. And then I realized one thing in the dream that stuck out more than
the other things."
"What?" she asked.
"In the dream the monster eats my soup, but that isn't the only thing he does. He usually hurts me. And at the end, he usually…kills me. But it wasn't just
random…Those are memories." I paused. She just looked at me with large eyes.
"Carly, the nightmares are a memory of my dad…when he…" I stopped. Carly put her hand on my shoulder.
"Sam, it's ok. If you don't want to continue, you don't have to."
"NO! I have to finish!" I said, panic in my voice. I knew that the easy part was over, now for the impossible part.
"My whole life, I have lived believing that I could always get what I wanted if I just made people fear me…but…all that changed when…I kissed Freddie." I
choked out.
"After I realized that he didn't have the same feelings, I have been haunted by the fact that if I would have been a better friend to him, a better person,
that he would feel differently about me."
"Sam…I don't want to make you feel bad. And know that I say this out of love, but it could just be that Freddie just doesn't have feelings for you…"
"I know…I considered that. But then, I realized, and even in the past few days, that I am loved by so many people and I…don't." I said, balancing tears on
my eyelids.
"Sam…don't feel this way…please." Carly gently begged. I shook my head again.
"Sam. We've been through this. You are not a horrible person."
"OK! I know that I can love. I get that! But loving the right way. Loving unselfishly. The way you do."
"That's not really fare, Sam. I'm not perfect, we've been through this before too. I make mistakes like everyone else. I only try to love unselfishly because, I
know that true love is not going to look at me and say that I am not worthy of it."
"Carly. But there is one flaw in that, at least for me…" I took a deep breath. But Carly cut me off.
"Sam, you are capable of this love. Don't act like you can't do it. Remember that I told you that I would help you? I aim to keep that promise." I felt
frustration take over. She didn't understand. But I had to get her to, before it was too late.
"Carly…what do you remember that morning?" I asked in a shaky voice. She glanced out toward the fire escape. Her eyes became glossy.
"Sam…"
"Carly…please." She looked back and then at me, eyes swimming.
"You were…standing outside, leaning over the railing. I saw you and got up to tell you to come back in. I stepped out and…and…" she swallowed hard but
continued. "I asked you to come inside and you said you…you…"
"I was going to kill myself. Yes, what else did I say…" she looked at me for a few seconds, the memory causing pain to show on her face.
"You…Sam…I can't…" she said, tears falling now. I grabbed her hands tightly.
"You have to! Please, Carls." She nodded, wiping her tears away. When she spoke again, her voice was shaky.
"You…you were…saying things. Oh, Sam…I was so scared! I had no idea what you were talking about!"
"Do you remember anything else, anything that I said?"
"Um…I'm not sure. Uh…I remember you saying that you were being….controlled. A-and that you would do something that you would regret if you couldn't
get away." she said, tears still sliding fast down her face. I squeezed her hand.
"Please, Carls…I need you to remember."
"The only other thing that I remember is that…you said something about being twisted around and that you used to believe in…um…me? Uh, and that you
had to d-die so th-that the ones you love would be safe…that's all I remember." She said, sobbing. I reached up and wiped the tears off her cheek. She
looked at me, her lip quivering.
"Sam…what…happened?"
"I wasn't talking to you,that day." I said in a soft voice. She seemed to be frozen, every tear on her lashes quivering with her whole body. I took another
deep breath.
"I was talking to…him." I didn't want to look at her, so I just stared at my hands.
"W-what does that mean, Sam?" she asked, and her voice was a lot higher than normal.
"Carly…I don't know when it started to happen. I just assumed that this was normal, but its different, I guess. I grew up learning about a conscience but
this was like…the opposite of that."
"It wasn't that bad at first, but lately…" I stopped, my hands shaking. I could tell that Carly was scared, but she slid her trembling hand into mine. I closed
my eyes, pulling my hand away from her. I threw both over my head. I sat there like that, squeezing my eyes shut and gritting my teeth. I couldn't take this
any more. Why was this happening? Why was I the one who had to have this problem? I could have been born normal, just like everyone else…I suddenly
jumped up off the bed and began pacing around the room.
"I can't get him out of my head! He is just there at all times, listening to everything I'm thinking! He-he's not just in my dreams, he's in every part of me!" I
frantically explained. Carly looked worried but stayed where she was.
"He has been…telling me to do things, Carls! Things that I don't want to do…I can't…I just…" I fell to the floor, my body convulsing with sobs. Carly got up
slowly and made her way over to me and sat down in front of me. I continued to sob. I let my tears taper off, and then slowly raised my head to look at
Carly. She wasn't crying. She was only looking. I sighed loudly, pulling my hair out of my face. I felt…calm.
"You think I'm crazy, don't you?" I asked softly. She looked down and then back up at me, new tears in her eyes. She reached over and grabbed my hand,
holding it in her own hands. She slowly turned it over and back again, like she was examining it. Then, slowly bent her head down and kissed it.
"Sam…" she began in a low voice. " Let's say I give you an apple. Now what would you do with that apple?" I looked at her, confused but it seemed she
wanted an answer. I thought for a second, thinking that this was a trick question, but since I couldn't think of anything I gave her the only answer I could
think of.
"I would…eat it?" I said, shrugging. She smiled.
"Ok. Good. Now, what do you have left?"
"Um, the seeds." I said, I really had no idea where she was going with this…
"Right. Ok, so now I want you to go plant the seeds, what do you think would happen?"
"An apple tree would grow."
"Right. So you have an apple tree. Now how do you take care of apple trees?"
"I'm…not really sure. I guess you water them and prune them and make sure bugs don't eat them and stuff like that." I assumed that was the right answer.
She smiled again.
"Exactly. So you spend all your time and take care of this tree, and you get the best, sweetest, most amazing apples ever. You love the apples so much that
you decide to plant more trees. You plant tree after tree, until you have an entire orchard. So you spend your whole life running the best orchard in the
world. You make millions of dollars selling your apples to groceries and super markets all over the world. You become famous. You are the one to go to when
people want to learn how to raise an orchard." She explained, but continued.
"So at the end of your life, I come back to you. I look at the orchard. I see how famous you have become because of your apples. I congratulate you on all
your success. I even try an apple and agree that it is the best apple in the world. How would you feel about that?"
"Um, I would feel really good." I said, truthfully. "I mean, I don't think that I would ever grow an orchard, but that would be amazing to become so
successful." She nodded and smiled.
"Good. But then I remind you that the seed that you started the orchard with was mine to begin with, so technically, I own your entire orchard." She said
bluntly. I looked at her, confused.
"Wait. No, it's my orchard. You gave me the apple. It was a gift."
"Right. But that apple was from my own orchard, I just wanted you to have an apple because we are friends. So I go to the authorities and they test the
apples and see that they are the same. They take your orchard away. They rip up every apple tree and replant them in my orchard. Now you have nothing
and I have two orchards." She said, staring at me.
"But, that's not fair. I worked really hard on the orchard, I invested my whole life into it." I complained.
"True. But it doesn't make it yours." I just stared at her.
"Is there a point to this, Carls?"
"Yes. But I want you to tell me what it is."
"I have no idea…"
"Sam, I know you know. Just think." She said, getting to her feet. "I want you to stay up here and think about it. Ok. I have to go down stairs and start
preparing for iCarly."
"Wait, how come I'm not…" I began.
"Sam…I don't think you should be doing anything too crazy right now. Don't worry, we know what we're doing." She smiled, and turning, she exited the
room.
I just sat in silence. I sighed loudly and got up off the floor, walked over to the bed and flung myself on it, landing on my back and staring at the ceiling. Why
on earth was Carly making me solve this stupid riddle?
Ok. I got an apple from Carly that wasn't my own, even though she said that it was a gift. I thought that "gift" meant that it is yours to keep… so I plant the
seeds and grow the best apple tree in the world. I covered my face with my hands. I guess the point is that I should have asked if the apple was mine? But
the apple was mine. She gave me the apple. It wasn't like I stole it.
Wait.
The apple was mine, but how I chose to use it was not my choice to make. So what did that mean? I thought about it for several minutes but I couldn't
come up with a conclusion. I ended up falling asleep.
I was walking through a woods. The smell of dirt, pine and fresh air filled my nose. I didn't know where I was but it was a beautiful woods. The trees were
tall and full of life. I heard birds chirping and small animals scrambling through the brush. I kept walking for what felt like miles. I didn't think it would ever
end, but then I suddenly came to a small pond in the middle of a clearing.
"Oh, good." I said to the breeze. I was tired and hot and I could use a dip. I took off my shoes and socks and waded out into the water. I hated it when
people would take all day trying to let there body adjust to the temperature of the water. Carly was like that. I would always splash those people. I took a
deep breath and plunged my head underneath the glassy surface. I swam for a little bit under the water and by the time I came back up for air, I wasn't
touching the bottom anymore.
I floated up on my back and looked up at the setting sun shining through the branches of the trees. I closed my eyes. I floated like that for hours, letting the
rhythm of the water send me into a trance. Everything was perfect. Nothing could have been better than this. It seemed all the troubles I had been
stressing over just washed away with the waves.
I heard sea gulls over head and felt the sun warm on my face. I ran my fingers through the sand underneath me. Wait. I opened my eyes to see that I was
laying on a beach. To my right was the massive blue sea, the waves crashing, the smell of salt stinging my nose. I looked to my left to see a white sand
beach and a tropical forest going inland. I stood up and looked around. How did I get here? Last thing I knew I was floating in a pond in the middle of a
woods. I looked back out at the horizon and saw dark clouds accumulating. A storm. I needed to find shelter. But exactly where that was, I had no idea.
I started walking inland. I winced as the scorching sand seared my feet. I walked through the wild brush. It was mostly hot and filled with mosquitoes. I
kept smacking my self like an idiot every time I would feel one bite. I would love to see myself in a mirror right now. I continued to walk until I couldn't
anymore. My stomach growled. I looked around for something I could eat, but I had no idea where to even look. I remembered watching those survival
shows on TV. and thinking that if I was ever in a situation where I needed to use the land to live, I would know exactly what to do. Well, that didn't really
help me know…
Suddenly the wind blew through the trees and the most mouth watering aroma filled my nose. It was coming from deeper in the trees. I weakly stood up
and walked toward it. I had no idea what I was going to find, but I really didn't care; I just needed some food. I walked for miles, until I was so weak and
my bare feet so beaten that my legs were numb. The sun had set and it was dark when I finally came to a clearing, where my legs gave out underneath me.
I collapsed on the sandy floor. I laid there, feeling the cool sand against my cheek. I couldn't go on. I closed my eyes, preparing to die.
I was floating. I saw the sand and dark trees moving even though I didn't feel my feet moving on the ground. I moved like this for several minutes, fading in
and out of consciousness. When I opened my eyes again, I was wrapped in a blanket and felt a warm fire flickering against my skin. I was in a small room. It
looked like a hut, made from sticks and palm leaves. I looked around the rest of the room slowly. In the middle, there was a small fire and over it was a
cooking pot. On the walls there were animal furs and in the corner was a small bed roll. I had somehow ended up in someone's home, but how I had gotten
here was a mystery. Well, a mystery for about three more seconds. I heard movement outside and suddenly in stepped a hairy beast. I screamed in fright.
The beast jumped in surprise and dropped the fire wood that it was carrying. I continued to scream, trying with all my might to unwrap myself from the
cocoon of blanket surrounding me.
"Please, please! Don't shout!" the beast said in a calm, but frantic voice. I immediately stopped. How could he speak? I looked at him with a more focused
eye. Now that I was looking at him in the light, and not screaming my head off, I could tell that he was just a man. He was clothed in what looked like a fur
suit. And he wore a mask of fur and skins wrapped around his face, a lot like a ninja mask.
"Why am I here?" I asked in a threatening voice.
"I brought you here. I thought that you were dead when I saw you collapsed in the forest. When I saw that you weren't, I brought you back here but you
hadn't woken. I left to get wood for the fire, but I didn't think that you would be awake so soon, if at all. You look like you could use some food and water."
He said in a raspy, but soft voice. There was something in his voice that made me feel like he could be trusted. I looked up at his eyes, even though I could
barely see them, his hair was so shaggy that it fell in front of them.
"Well, since I really don't have a choice, I will trust you." I began. " But, if I think that you are up to something, I will do things to you that will make you wish
you would have left me to die out there!" I said, threateningly. He nodded and immediately started picking up the wood that he had dropped. When he
finished, he stacked it in a corner and put an few pieces on the hot coals. My stomach suddenly gave a horrible growl. He smiled, or at least I think he did.
"Hungry?" he asked, turning his great fur covered head in my direction. I nodded, smacking my dry mouth.
"And thirsty." I said softly. He nodded and grabbed a brown skin pouch off his belt and handed it to me. I just held it, staring at him. He chuckled and took
the pouch back. He grabbed the skinny end in one hand and put it to his lips ( well, he put it under the flap of animal skin that was covering his nose and
mouth) and held the larger end with his other hand, then, tilting the fat end to the ceiling, I heard a jet of liquid shoot into his mouth. He finished and
handed it back to me. I mimicked what I had seen and took a swig of the most refreshing water I had ever tasted. After that he took the water pouch and
handed me a bowl of steaming…something. It smelled really good but looked like something you would expect coming out of you, not going in. He laughed
again.
"It's a lot better than you think." He said. I looked back down at it. My stomach gave another growl. It looked like it could have been a piece of chicken in
some kind of broth, but everything was brown. And it wasn't a spoon or fork he had given me, but a sharp, pointed stick. I picked up the stick and poked it
through the piece of "chicken" and raised it to my mouth. I slowly let my teeth sink into it, tearing off a piece and pulling it into my mouth. Suddenly an
amazing flavor danced across my tongue. This was the best stuff I had ever eaten, even better than ham and that was saying something. I hastily
swallowed the rest. I herd him laughing again, but I didn't care.
After two more bowls I was stuffed and warm and cozy. I sat with my back against the wall, still wrapped in my massive blanket. I watched him. He didn't do
much, just stoked the fire every few minutes or put another log on it. I tried to picture what he looked like under that mask. He seemed like he could have
been anywhere between 25 and 35 years old. He was more stocky built, but I wasn't entirely sure, because of the massive amount of fur that he wore.
From the little skin that I saw, I could tell he was Caucasian. But even then I wasn't entirely sure. Whoever he was, I was grateful for him. He saved my life.
I awoke to find that I was still wrapped up and couldn't seem to Houdini my way out of it, which now that I thought about it, not even Houdini could get out
of this. I looked over to see if he was sleeping , but found his bed vacant. Where was he? Why would he just leave me here wrapped up like this and no
way to get out? I was just about to scream to see if he was outside when I heard heavy foot steps outside. He stepped inside with what looked like two
pretty large fish on a rope slung over his shoulder. The smell was intoxicating. I coughed and he looked down at me.
"Is there some sort of secret to this, because…" I said, frustration making my face red. He chuckled and quickly set down the fish and bent down to unwrap
me. The smell of fish was still strong on him. I held my breath as he unwrapped the blanket burrito and I fell out of it. I felt a lot better today than
yesterday. I stood up. I was always a short person. But his height made me feel like I was level with the floor. I only came up to his chest. I looked up at
him, and he was looking down.
"Thanks." I said. "I need to use the bathroom, is there anywhere I can do that?" He looked at me for a second and then walked out side. I followed. The
sun was bright and the breeze was cool. It was actually quite cold. My attention was turned back to him when he handed me what looked like a giant shell.
He then gestured his arm in a sweeping motion and walked away. Wait, what did he think I was going to do?
"Hey!" I said loudly. He stopped and turned. " I asked to go to the bathroom and you handed me a shell and waved your arm in the air. I'm a little new
around here so, if you don't mind explaining…" He looked at me again, chuckled, and walked back over to where I was standing.
"The shell is for digging." He began, a little amused. "And this,( he waved his arm again) is gesturing to where you would like to start digging. I really don't
care where as long as its not at camp." He finished, chuckling and shaking his head. He turned again and walked back inside the hut. I couldn't believe that
"this" was going to the bathroom. But as much as I hated it, I really had to go. I walked a ways away, until I found a clump of big, leafy plants. I walked
behind it and began digging.
"I can't believe I have to do this." I whispered to myself. How in the world had I got here? And why was a man living out here on this island? And more
importantly, how was I going to get home? I finished my business and trekked back to camp, where I smelled an amazing smell coming from the hut. I
walked inside to see him cooking the fish he had caught.
"That smells amazing." I complimented.
"Well, it's always been my life long dream to be a master chef." He said.
"Really?" I asked, but then realized he was joking. He just laughed. He did that a lot.
He pulled the fish off the flame and set them on a wooden plank. He handed me one and took one for himself. I looked down at the fish. It didn't look like I
remember fish to look. This was an entire fish, head and all. I looked back up to see him already digging in. He looked like he had somehow removed the
head and was cutting meat away from bone. He looked back at me and saw that I hadn't take a bite yet.
"What's wrong? You don't know how to eat it, do you?" he said and reaching over, he handed me a pointy stick and a shell. I took the utensils and began
poking and cutting randomly at the steaming flesh in front of me.
"Just remove the head. Its easier that way. Use your shell…that's it. Now watch out for the bones, they are small and sharp." It took a few minutes but I
seemed to get the hang of it and was soon enjoying the sweet white meat of the fish. It was really good and I finished the entire thing. Well, everything
except the head. I watched him devour the head of his fish, eating the brain and eyes. I looked back down at it.
"If you don't want it, then hand it over." He said. I looked at him and then back down, disgusted. I handed it over to him. He laughed and took it from me.
"Maybe you will try it one day. Trust me, you will love it." He said, cracking open the fish head and digging out the brain.
"I seriously doubt that." I said. Cringing as he popped the brain in his mouth like candy. I pulled my mind away from that and directed it towards some
questions that needed answered.
"So I just need to know where we are." I said and he looked up and stared for a minute and then looked back down at his meal.
"You are on a deserted island. Usually the sand and ocean give that away…"
"I know that. I mean, what island is this exactly. Or at least tell me what place we might be close to."
"I think you should be more worried about where you are, and not about where you're going." He said, solemnly. I just stared at him. We stared at each
other for a few minutes in silence, but then suddenly he burst out laughing. He laughed for several minutes. I looked at him. Who is this guy? I guess you go
a little loopy being on an island by yourself. He laughed for several more minutes and when he finally finished, he had tears in his eyes.
"I'm just kidding! Man, you should have seen your face...but seriously you shouldn't worry about trying to leave this island." He said, and he sounded
serious.
"What do you mean? Why not?" I said, my heart beating fast. He shrugged and looked into the fire.
"This island is uncharted."
"What does that mean?"
"It means that this spec of land doesn't exist. It means that ships never come this far. And it means that there is no way off it." He said, and his voice
sounded rough. I looked down. How did this happen? I don't even know how I got here, I was just…wait…I can't…remember!
NO! Ok, I had to get somewhere…no, no…that's not right! I drifted here…yeah! That was it! I breathed a sigh of relief. I looked back up at him.
"So…how did you get here?" I asked. He looked up at me and his eyes seemed to go out of focus, as he revisited a past that only he could see. He quickly
refocused and looked at me, chuckling.
"How could I possibly do it justice? It was so long ago, anyway." He said, but it seemed he said it more to himself than to me. Before I could even begin to
figure out what he meant, he stood up and exited the hut. I stood up too and followed him out.
"Wait, wait." I shouted. He turned around so fast that I almost ran into him.
"If you want to get off this island, then I suggest you start swimming. I've been here for twelve years and I've never seen a ship come in any range of
here." He spat. And turning he walked toward the beach. I just stood there. How was I going to get off this island? How was I going to get home? I
crumbled to the sandy ground and wept. I couldn't give up. I had to keep going. There had to be a way off this island. I refused to end up like a fur wearing
lunatic who ate fish brains…
I stood up and started walking toward the beach. It didn't take long before I found him. He was standing out at the shore, just standing. I continued
marching. I was going to convince him to help me get off this island if it was the last thing that either of us did.
"HEY!" I shouted. He didn't turn. "HEY! I'm talking to you! I don't care if you want to live on this tiny island for the rest of your life, but I have some things
that I still have to do! And I cant do them trapped on an island. I need to get home and you are going to help me!" I finished my speech. He continued to
look out at the storm on the horizon.
"Hey! Did you even hear what I said?"
"How could I not?" He said softly, his back still facing me. My patience was wearing thin.
"So are you going to…"
"Have you ever heard that patience is a virtue?" He asked, cutting me off. What?
"Um, noooo, but I would love to hear about how you are going to help me!" I was out of patience.
"When I was young, my father would whip me for talking like that!" He said abruptly. Wow, that had nothing to do with anything…
"Well, your not my dad, so can you just answer me?" I said. He didn't say anything. Ok, now I think he was just ignoring me. I sighed loudly.
"Ok! I'm sorry! There, are you happy? Look, I just need to get home. Please, please help me. Please." I said weakly, tears appearing in my eyes. He took a
deep breath and slowly turned toward me.
"I will help you, but my help comes with a price."
"Ok, and what is that?" He looked at me and chuckled.
"Well, if I told you, that would defeat the purpose." He said, cunningly. I really didn't care what the price was, I just wanted to get home.
"Fine. I don't care, just help me, please." I said throwing my hands up in the air. He chuckled again and stuck his hand out in front of him, staring me
straight in the eye. I threw my hand out and we shook. Suddenly a huge gust of wind blew across the water and hit us. It blew our hair right out of our
faces. I looked up at him and caught a glimpse of his eyes. His piercing blue eyes.