Daddy Faddy ~ Bondi rescue

Chapter 4.

Walking to work the next morning, all Mango could think about was how excited she was to spend another day with Faddy. Seeing as the Hoppo has assigned Mango as the main lifeguard who would be overlooking Faddy's first season, there was rarely many times that the two of them would be apart. It was a good job the two of them got along so well!

Today, Mango was focused on teaching Faddy the key skills needed for tower duty. She and the other lifeguards had already seen how good Faddy's water skills were and were now keen to see how he would cope in a busy and fast paced tower. It was just coming to the start of summer so more and more people were gradually coming down to the beach. Schools were nearly out for the holidays and tourists began to arrive, being drawn to the warm temperatures of the Australian summer. About an hour into their tower shift, there was a knock at the door, several teenagers had suffered cuts and scrapes due to daring flat rock. Mango decided this would be a great first chance to test Faddy. As there only really needed to be 2 lifeguards in the tower, they were alone. Mango decided that she would deal with the injured teens, leaving faddy to watch the beach.

"There you go buddy" Mango said, just as she had finished cleaning up the last teen. "All good, try and be more careful next time" she said as she waved them out of the door. She walked back around to the desk to help Faddy out. He had done a great job watching the water for the 20 minutes that Mango was treating people, directing lifeguards when needed, preventing any drownings. Mango admitted to herself that she did indeed quite like Faddy and showed this through light flirting. Others around her like Max and Chase began to pick up in this so teased them about it. Whilst Faddy was on his lunch break, Mango was sent to the south corner with Jake, where he began to quiz her about how she felt. "Look Jake ask me anything you want but just know that you'll never get it out of me" she laughed slightly punching his arm.

"Central to South rhino, you've got a few heads out the back there, might be worth a paddle out" Jules spoke over the radio. "Copy, Rudy will go out for a paddle" Jake replied. Mango was unsure at this stage what the situation was, she was convinced it was just a standard in out rescue. Once out the back, she realised that the situation was a lot worse than she has once thought. Upon arrival, she saw a girl being held up by surfers, informing her that the girl had severe neck and back pain, immediately alerting Mango that this was a suspected spinal. She knew that she would have to get the girl onto a stable platform to prevent any further damage. The only way to do this would require a board rolling technique. She demanded that one surfer held the girls head the entire time to keep her stable. The waves weren't too big that day but Mango wanted to be sure that she didn't have to risk a potential nose dive abs further harm to the victim. So, with this in mind decided that the only option would to be to go up the rocks.

At this point Jake had collected a spinal board and waited for Mango's arrival back to shore. Mango and the three other surfers with her completed a rock rescue resulting in them carrying the girl back up to the beach and off of the rocks. The rescue was intense and took them about 15 minutes to reach the shore so by this point the paramedics had arrived and so Mango was able to hand the girl straight off to the professionals. By this point, Faddy had finished his lunch break and was able to watch the whole rescue unfold.

During an interview with the Bondi rescue crew, Faddy said that he was glad he wasn't in that situation as he wasn't sure how he'd cope with it. He stated that he probably would've panicked and would've required assistance from another lifeguard. "Mango's made of steel honestly, nothing scares that woman, i'm so glad that I get to learn it from her". Some of the other lifeguards on duty heard Luke's remarks about the girl, saying it was sweet and that he should act on it, he just shook his head and looked back at the camera "maybe one day i'll have the courage too" he said whilst blushing.

Soon after Faddy had finished his interview it was Mango's turn. "I've never done a spinal rescue that far out and honestly it was a bit scary", she spoke "I wasn't sure if I would be able to do it, but had to block out any negative thoughts and trust in my ability and training that I would be able to complete the rescue". She continued with "i'm just so glad we were able to help her and limit her risk of further injuries".

After finishing the long day, it was finally time for Faddy and Mango to go home. Mango remembered that Faddy was coming round to see her apartment tonight so had a spring in her step as she walked into the tower for the end of shift debrief. Mango got a special mention for her composure during the spinal rescue and Faddy got recognition for his focus during his first tower duty 'alone'. After finishing up saying their goodbyes to everyone, Faddy and Mango started their walk back to her place. "Faddy as much as i'd love a roomie, don't feel pressured to move in, make sure you're comfortable with it too" she said just to make sure the boy was sure this was up to him.

Walking around her apartment, Faddy felt himself falling more and more in love with the idea of living with his best friend. "Oh yeah and look at this view" Mango said, directing him into the last room. "Woahhhhh" he said, being amazed at the beautiful sunset over Bronte beach. "Sooo" Mango said, "wanna move in with me?". The boy came running over to her hugging her, picking her slightly off of the ground. "I'd love to" he replied placing her body back on the ground. They stood there staring deeply into each others eyes, the moment felt so intimate. That was until Faddy's phone began to ring; it was his mum asking him if he could pick up some bread on his way home. They both started laughing, breaking any awkwardness that may have happened as a result to their first 'intimate interaction'.

"Well I guess I best be off" Faddy said, him and Mango had spoken about possible moving dates and finally decided that he could move in about a week and a half on the day they both had off work. Mango gave Luke one more hug before he left her apartment and started heading back home. She had butterflies in her stomach, replaying in her mind the moment that the two of them had just shared. Maybe Lachie will own Max that beer she thought to herself, slightly laughing.