It was 15 years ago on that fateful day when her world changed. She, however, did not know that it changed that day until now.
Mara was 14 when she took the family vacation to California to visit the beach and see her friend Amanda (though Mara always called her Mandy for short). She got up early that Friday morning, the one Friday her parents allowed her to skip school. Excitedly she packed her bags full of shorts, tank tops, and her favorite swimsuit, a two piece black bikini with a pentagram on one butt cheek.
Her friend Mandy had moved away from Vegas to California the previous year due to her parents divorcing, but Mara and Mandy kept in touch all the time and visited each other when ever they could.
Mara, a red head, freckled and pale girl grabbed her suitcase, ran downstairs to the car and threw it in the trunk, before her parents were even ready to go. She could barely hold in her excitement. She couldn't wait to get to the beach and show off her new body, seeing how she just became a woman not too long ago in her mind. She finally had some curves to show off to the boys. Mara hoped she'd meet a boy while she was there but of course she couldn't tell her parents if she did.
Friday afternoon rolled around and her family was finally ready to go on their adventure. Her parents allowed her to ride up front in the car to avoid getting car sick on the not so long journey. It really was only a four hour drive. As they drove to their destination in their beat up Subaru station wagon, Mara jammed to her favorite bands on her Walkman. Before Mara could change to her 4th CD, they were already there.
They pulled up onto a parking area which was made of wood. It was coated with sand and rocks. It felt to Mara like parking right on a dock. As she stepped foot onto the hot wood with her bare-feet, she quickly pulled back and yelled for her sandals from her mom. She never liked driving with shoes on.
Mara slipped on her sandals and headed out to the beach. As she was walking towards the water, she heard her name being called. As Mara turned around, she saw her friend Mandy running towards her.
"Yay!" Mara yelled "You made it!"
Mandy replied "Of course! Now lets go swimming. It's fucking hot out here!"
"You know I hate when you talk like sailor" Mara exclaimed.
"Oh get over it" Mandy ordered.
Mandy was a heavier girl with dark brown hair and eyes. Her complexion was much darker than Mara's but really anyone was darker than Mara. Mandy was the tough girl on the outside but on the inside she was the sweet sensitive puppy dog that everyone loved.
The girls headed out into the ocean. The waves were beating down on the beach hard that day. There was a section roped off with a warning sign that read "RESTRICTED SWIMMING AREA. DANGEROUS WAVES". The girls swam up to the ropes and waited.
"Lets swim under the ropes and go over there" Mandy said pointing off into the distance.
"I don't know" Mara replied "I don't think it's a good idea. We could get hurt or swept away."
"Oh my gosh, you're always such a worrier. Come on girl!" Mandy rolled her eyes and then ducked under the rope. She came up a few inches on the other side and laughed. "See? Nothing to worry about, come on!"
Mara hesitantly swam under the rope and followed her friend. She felt a rush of excitement knowing she was breaking the rules and being some what dangerous. Mara was the less risky type. Always full of anxiety, worry and very much a hermit. She preferred to stay inside and read books. She was a straight A student and what the world would call a Nerd.
The girls lingered in the danger zone for awhile before deciding to play Marco Polo. In the middle of playing something happened. Something they weren't expecting. A huge wave began to tumble down upon them. Mandy was playing the Polo part of the game so she saw it coming first.
"MARA!! WAVE!! GET OUT OF THERE!" Mandy screamed as she began to swim away frantically to save herself.
Mara slowly opened her eyes but when she did, she saw a blanket of water in front of her. It was too late. The wave crashed down upon Mara's head, forcing her under. She tumbled around beneath the ocean surface like a load of laundry in the drier. Mara struggled to come up for air every time she could but she couldn't get enough breath. Slowly she began to black out. Her life flashed before her eyes. She knew she was going to die this day.
As she began to fade out, she felt a tight grip on her arm. It was like a blood pressure cuff had been attached and it was pulling her through the waves. She gathered enough strength to open her eyes to see a blurry boy, around her age, pulling her through the water. He pushed her out from underneath the undertow of the waves. As she floated to the surface and closer to the beach, she looked back to see him floating there, looking back at her. His eyes glowed green like emeralds and she felt something come over her, like a warm blanket. She felt safe. She didn't believe he was real. She thought she was hallucinating but as she stared she watched the horror happen. As he was floating there, looking like an angel frozen in time, another wave crashed down upon him. It pushed his body into a sharp rock, piercing through his left shoulder. Mara began to struggle under the water. The safe feeling was gone but as she began to squirm, a number of hands began grabbing her and pulling her out of the water. It then went black.
Mara came to slowly. She could hear the whispers of her name from more than one person. There were bright lights above her and beeping noises. As she awakened she realized she was in the hospital, her friend Mandy was beside her along with her parents.
"Mara, Mara, Oh my god, You're awake! I thought you were dead!" Mandy cried. "It's all my fault, I'm so sorry!! I'm so sorry!!"
"Uhhhh...."Mara tried to reply but the words wouldn't come out.
"Some how you were washed back on shore" Her mother said. "We were able to get you out. Do you remember what happened?"
Mara coughed and said "There....there....was a boy. He dragged me out from under the wave. Did he make it?"
"What boy?" Her mother replied. "There wasn't anyone there Mara. Oh my, she's hit her head or something. DOCTOR!"
"Mom, there was a boy. I swear, he was there. He had green eyes.....he saved me." Mara said with her lasting breaths before she passed out again.
And that is all she remembers from that day, not realizing how her life had been changed forever.
15 Years later.....
TO BE CONTINUED...
-Note from the Author. I have had this story in my head for years now. This is a rough draft just so I can put my thoughts on paper. It won't be fully detailed and may seem rushed but I figured I'd share anyways. I'll post chapters here and there. Enjoy
