CHAPTER FOUR
They assembled down on the beach, with the water almost lapping at their ankles. Allison distributed snorkels and flippers alongside a strong suggestion that they all spit into their masks and swirl water around them before donning them. Stella worriedly brought up that it was stinger season, and there seemed to be an absence of stinger suits for them to use, but Allison assured her that their bay was protected by netting that would keep the jellyfish out.
"But," Allison added, "don't go swimming anywhere else at this time of year without a suit on. When we go out on the reef later in the week, they will be compulsory."
Hex looked dubiously at his snorkel, a rather Fluro green number that he was sure would serve to scare away the fish that they were supposed to be trying to see. "Do you make a habit of getting people to spit in these masks?" he asked.
"I insist on it." She nodded pointedly at Hex, raising her eyebrows, and the hacker reluctantly did as instructed.
With the teenagers assembled before her, Allison lay down the ground rules. "Most important," she said, eyeing them seriously. "Buddy system. No one is to put a toe in the water without a buddy with them and being aware that they are, in fact, also a buddy."
The teens considered the expanse of clear, still water stretching before them, sheltered by the surrounding land. It was flat as a piece of paper fresh from the ream. Not even a faint ripple shuddered across the surface, there was barely more than a light breeze, and the waves breaking against the shoreline weren't even worthy of the word- or the verb.
"No exceptions," Allison added, noting the somewhat skeptical look everyone seemed to be sharing.
Her stipulation served as a cue, and the teens shuffled into pairs, some more reluctantly than others. Li and Paulo were quick to buddy up, and Stella sidled up to stand beside Alex, noting he seemed the most capable of the options remaining. The other four didn't move into pairs quick enough for Allison's liking, so she took charge.
"Justin, Ruby," she said, pointing them out one at a time as they happened to be closest to each other. "Amber, Hex. Sorted. Alright, in the water."
"Think I'd be better off without a buddy," Amber said as the teens waded in after Allison. She jerked a thumb over a Hex. "He can't even keep a bag from drowning."
"Solo swim is fine by me." He shrugged.
Allison shot them both a frown. "Enough," she ordered. "Enjoy the experience."
"Of being her buddy?" Hex snorted. "Not likely."
"The snorkelling," Alison grated. She rolled her eyes, then added, as Hex and Amber opened their mouths simultaneously to continue protesting, "Another word out of either of you and you'll be the kitchen clean up team, by default, for the rest of your stay. Capiche?"
She didn't wait for an answer, biting onto her mouth piece and slipping into the water as the floor sloped away beneath her feet. The teens followed in their pairs, masked heads down, hands behind their backs, flippered feet propelling them forwards. They followed Allison's swiftly moving figure as she struck out across the bay towards the wreck and the coral oasis it boasted. Treading water in a wonky circle once at their destination near the wreck, they were treated to their last briefing before being unleashed to explore.
"Don't touch anything," Allison warned. "That's even more important than the buddy rule. Coral is delicate and definitely not your friend. Stay out of the wreck. It's old and sharp and completely out of bounds. You can go near it, but keep at least a couple of body length's back from it at all times if you dive down. Stay with your partner. Stay within the reaches of the reef; don't wander off, don't go over the sandbar. Stay alert, stay focused, and for crying out loud exercise basic common sense."
The conduct checklist outlined, the pairs split and headed for different sections of the wreck, leaving Allison to patrol the perimeter like a blonde shark.
Li dipped her face into the ocean, her mask providing a portal to the world beneath them. Still treading water, she marvelled at the ecosystem below before raising her head and turning to Paulo who was mimicking her actions beside her. They grinned at each other around their mouth pieces.
Off to their right, Alex and Stella slowly glided across the surface of the bay, faces submerged, heads swivelling left and right as they surveyed the aquatic wonderland. Brightly coloured fish darted just metres below their bodies, completely unfazed by the large, ominous shapes cutting across the surface of the water above them. Just another day, just another group of tourists.
A tap on Alex's shoulder had him twisting his head to check in with Stella. She pointed below them and he nodded, pulling a final breath of air before they dove, slipping beneath the water and heading for the wreck below.
Amber and Hex swam as far away from each other as possible without inciting a lecture from Allison about the importance of sticking with their assigned buddy. Although still not enjoying each other's company, and both still irritated they'd ended up paired together, the majesty of the reef had them momentarily putting the mutual grudge to the side of their minds.
Along with Ruby and Justin, Paulo and Li followed Alex and Stella's descent to the sandy, coral strewn floor of the trench. They swam around the wreck, ensuring to not touch anything but with Li looking longingly at the sunken yacht, imagining what sorts of wonderful secrets it would surely hold inside its forbidden hull.
His lungs burning and brain demanding oxygen, Paulo tugged on one of Li's fins as she moved slowly through the water ahead of him. His cheeks bulging, he stabbed a finger upwards and, at her nod, he ascended at rapid speed, covering the few metres of water in an instant. As he broke the surface, he squeezed the last breath of air left in his body out, clearing the snorkel in a spout of seawater. Spots danced in front of his eyes and he pulled his mask up to rest on his forehead, letting his head drop back as took in some deep breaths.
Li bobbed up like a cork beside him, clearing her own snorkel with a far more leisurely puff. She spat her mouthpiece out and kicked her legs up, easing herself onto her back to float, flippers and hands paddling the water around her. A chuckle escaped her lips as she listened to Paulo's almost asthmatic breathing beside her.
"Do not laugh," he said, and his hurt didn't exactly sound feigned. "How do you make that look so easy?"
"Because it is. Practice," she added to soften the blow as he looked rather downcast. After a moment's thought, and a quick check to make sure their supervisor and her stickler for the rules attitude was occupied elsewhere, she took her mask off and removed the snorkel before settling the goggles over her eyes. "Free diving's a lot more fun than snorkelling. Or scuba diving. It's just you and the ocean, lake, swimming pool…" She grinned. "Whatever."
Paulo looked apprehensively between her and the snorkel now clutched in her hand.
"Oh come on," she said, poking him. "It's exactly the same, just without this thing in the way." She waved the snorkel. "Three normal breaths, one deep, then dive. Go slowly," she added as Paulo started to heave air in like it was about to run out of the atmosphere. "Breathe slowly, dive slowly, swim slowly, come back up slowly."
"That easy?"
"That easy."
Paulo detached the snorkel from his mask, but it was with obvious apprehension.
"This is a bathtub," Li said as her final parting words of encouragement. She clapped Paulo on the shoulder. "Now breathe."
Paulo breathed, copying Li's casual thrice in and exhalations before gulping as much air into his lungs as possible and sinking below the surface. While Li moved with a well practiced ease, Paulo had even less success than he had still with the snorkel attachment, something he was sure had to be psychological because there was nothing else different about the picture. He resurfaced after a matter of seconds, and treaded water solo until Li popped up beside him a minute later.
She gave him a reassuring smile. "Easier with weight belts," she offered as a consultation for his rather abysmal effort. The comment seemed to ignite an idea in her mind because she immediately whirled, searching for Allison.
Just as she found their supervisor, the question escaping her mouth was drowned out by a sudden, blood curdling scream. The calm, quiet bay erupted into an explosion of splashing as the other teens scrambled to get their heads above water, panic written on everyone's faces. Even Allison looked deeply unnerved as her blue eyes scanned her charges, searching for the one who'd unleashed the heart stopping sound.
As the initial shock stated to fade, only one pair was left floundering in the water: Justin was writhing like he was being boiled alive, thrashing the ocean into a churning, frothing mess. Ruby was holding onto him in a death grip, but upon a moment's longer inspection it wasn't out of her own fear; like a bull rider, she clung to Justin with a fierce determination, her teeth gritted against his aimless flailing blows accidentally landing on her, trying to keep him above water in his blind panic.
"What happened?" Allison powered towards the pair.
"His leg." Ruby just about shoved Justin at Alex and Stella, the closest duo who'd rushed over to help. "He cut it on some coral."
Echoing her words was the faintest tinge of red starting to stain the water as the thread of blood coursing from the gash on Justin's leg spiralled to the surface.
"Shit," Allison snapped. She'd had the kids in her care for less than twelve hours, and already one of them was injured. With Alex's help, she supported the still writhing Justin, releasing Ruby from the incidental abuse she'd been copping. "Everyone back into the beach," she ordered, turning to address a stunned Li, Paulo, Amber and Hex. "Activity's over."
Out of the water, and with some of Justin's hysterics toned down, the gash on his leg proved to be more of a cut. Allison gave the wound a quick once over, and opted for a trip up to the doctor, just because it had been inflicted thanks to coral. She left the others in the apparently capable hands of her colleague Charlie who had finally turned up while they were snorkelling, diminishing any hope the teens had in his suitability as a supervisor by then adding, "But act like adults, and like Charlie isn't keeping an eye on you- because he probably won't." With his earphones back in and his attention returned to his surfboard once the impending crisis had been downgraded, they could more than understand the truth behind her warning.
As Allison's ute bumped up the sandy track to the road, the teens opted to return to the beach. Although still in their swimmers, they'd more or less dried off thanks to the afternoon sun. Allison had expressly forbid them from returning to the wreck- or even venturing into the water up to their ankles- ("And no," she'd added tersely when Hex had tried to stir the pot with a comment on the water safety system, "not even with a buddy") but Li and Paulo had raided the rec room and found what they'd dubbed 'the jackpot'; under their arms they had a volleyball net and a mostly inflated ball respectively.
Once on the beach, further down the stretch of golden sand where the area was larger and flatter than out the front of the house, they set it up with Alex's help and Amber's interference.
Stella, with a wrinkled nose, considered the activity being assembled before her and decided to opt out. "Might give it a miss," she said, then added, before anyone could attempt to persuade her otherwise, "That'll give you even teams, anyway."
With a bit of convincing, she was talked into keeping score, and settled on the far side of the court with a board drawn in the sand and a pile of hastily collected shells and stones.
That left six players, with no wriggle room for anyone else to get out of the game, despite the grumbling a couple of the more reluctant participants tried on.
Li and Paulo, seeing as they'd located and then carted the equipment down, took one side of the net each as team captains. Li barely let Paulo reach the opposing side before, having done a quick once over of the four remaining team members for selection, she enthused, "Girls versus boys!" and started beckoning wildly for Ruby and Amber to join her.
There were no complaints from the boys, and a competitive glint started to shine in everyone's eyes, some more obviously- and determined- than others.
"Our serve," Amber said, holding her hands out for Alex to toss her the ball over.
"How do you figure that?"
"Li carried the net."
Alex shrugged and lobbed the ball over. Amber caught it on the full, rocked it back and forth between her hands, squinted up at the sun, and served.
It quickly became clear that Li's team had the upper hand, despite the boys' hitting power, and thanks to a surprising wild card. Once the first match point went to the girls after a spectacular spike from Ruby that had Alex ducking for cover, the quiet South African revealed that her mother used to be a professional player and she'd spent most of her early childhood amusing herself beside the court while her mum had trained. Ruby herself had picked up the sport competitively at just eight years old and was now well on the way to following in her mum's footsteps. What Li and Amber lacked in experience they made up for in dogged determination to wipe the cocky smirks off the boys' faces.
Paulo didn't lose heart at any of this, continuing to lead his team in a positive- if misguided and inexperienced- assault in return. The game became more and more heated as the sun dipped lower towards the horizon. Even Amber was starting to really catch onto the insanely focused attitude that Li and Ruby shared. She spiked the ball over after Li had set it and then hollered for someone to get the hell in there and help her. Amber's aim hadn't been taken into consideration, more or less all of her concentration going into smashing the ball down with all of her strength while avoiding the net at all costs.
Unfortunately for Hex- who'd by far been the most consistently lack lustre participant of the whole game- his face happened to be sitting directly in the path of the hurtling ball. He hadn't been expecting such a vicious return and could do little more than gape as the ball shot back down over the next and landed squarely on his nose like it was the bull's eye on a target. He dropped like a stone, landing on his knees in the sand, ball forgotten, hands pressed over his face and head bowed.
Amber stood where she'd landed, not quite sure what she'd done and even less sure of what to do from there, and no one else really had a clue either. Hex hadn't made a sound; it had happened in an instant, and it was almost like they were all questioning whether the ball had even connected with Hex at all.
Paulo squatted in front of Hex, gently prising the other boy's hands away from his face and peering at him critically. Any doubts that anyone might have had about the ball connecting disappeared about two seconds later, when blood all of a sudden started to rush out of Hex's now uncovered nose. He gave a low groan, leaning further forward so the droplets of blood fell to the sand rather than onto his board shorts.
Amber winced, edging closer, her eyes on the damage she'd unintentionally caused. "Whoops," she said.
With one eyebrow raised, Hex looked up at her with just his eyes, keeping his head still bowed. "We're definitely even now. I actually think you might owe me."
She just rolled her eyes, the momentary guilt she'd felt over seeing the state of him vanishing in an instant.
"Hold still," Paulo instructed, still gripping Hex's wrists so he could have a clear look at the injury without interference.
"I take it you know what you're doing?"
"It is a blood nose, not a broken back."
The veiled assurance was lost on Hex; he heard the word 'broken' and squeaked out, "It's broken?" His eyes shifted back to land on Amber again, much harder than before, and suddenly he didn't seem quite so keen to call it quits.
"No, not that I can see. Just bleeding."
"'Just bleeding'," Hex repeated, tacking a scoff onto the end. "Great."
"You will be fine." Paulo released Hex's wrists, patting the Londoner on his shoulder then taking hold of his arm, just above his elbow, and helping him to his feet. "Keep your head down. You can pinch the bridge of your nose if you want. It will stop soon."
"Will it?"
"It should."
Hex scowled. "Real comforting, doc."
"Sit. Head down." Paulo deposited Hex off the court, gave him one more critical once over and nodded, satisfied with how things stood. He considered Stella, sitting next to Hex but leaning as far away from him as possible like she'd run the risk of catching his blood nose. "Care to fill in?" he asked her.
She didn't, and with Hex still fussing about his nose, another unanimous decision called the game to an end. They left the net set up- although convincing anyone of a rematch after such a sudden, violent ending might have been unlikely- but Alex tucked the ball under his arm to take back to the house.
Not keen to waste their effects in the game, Li carefully collected the shells awarded to the girls' side of the tally board and Stella took the boys' on their behalf, Paulo busy helping Hex's slightly impeded progress back up the beach and Alex in charge of carrying the ball.
Allison had returned just moments before they reached the house. She went to wave a greeting, pausing with her hand raised as she caught sight of the blood decorating Hex's face. "What on earth-"
"Just a little blood nose," Paulo assured the paling supervisor as they drew level. "He got a bit too close to the ball."
"I got a bit too close?" Hex spluttered, incensed. "It was served into my face!"
"Unintentionally," Amber said, just as hotly.
"Right. Sure."
Allison gave Hex a quick once over, tutting as she did. "One afternoon, guys," she said wearily. "You've been here one afternoon…"
The passenger door of the ute opened and Justin, complete with one bandaged shin, limped out, just to round out the total destruction of their first few hours on the island.
"Bloody hell," Allison finished. "What sort of a start is this?"
Hex's priorities were of a more personal and immediate nature. "Paulo said it wasn't broken. He's right, right?" An edge of panic had crept into his voice.
"No. Hang on, yes," she added when Hex blanched. "I mean… I think he's right, yes. It doesn't look broken."
"I wish people would stop saying that. I don't want to know whether it looks like it is or not- is it broken?"
"No, it's not broken." Allison sighed, although it wasn't entirely clear whether that was about Hex or from her still thinking about her previous remark about the morning's incidents being an indicator of the fortnight to come. "Come on. There's a first aid kit in the rec room. Somewhere."
Charlie's head suddenly appeared around the corner of the front door frame. "Lunch is served," he announced, blissfully unaware of the daggers that Allison was shooting at him. "Woah." He recoiled, seeing Hex's face. "What the heck have you lot been up to?"
"Ah!" Li crowed suddenly, looking up from where she'd been hunched over the shell pile she'd brought back from the beach. "Just in case anyone was wondering, the girls won the volleyball game. By a mile!" She grinned at the weary faces looking back at her. "Not a good time?" she asked innocently.