The Summer Reunion (unedited version)

50| Do or Die

"Tosh!"

I searched the water for where she would resurface. We were surrounded by pitch black water and no light. She was barely visible as she floated on top of the water, facedown. 

Without hesitating I jumped into the lake after her. The icy chill of the water sent a shock through me as I submerged. It felt like all the blood in my body was constricting in my veins until I was run cold. 

I grabbed onto her shoulders and flipped her over, trying to keep her head in the air. My legs kicked to keep us afloat but I struggled to support the two of us. The water pulled me down by the weight of our clothes. It was hard to keep upright against the waves hitting us every second. It's like there was a weight tied to my shoe that wouldn't relent until I was dragged down. My head went under as I pulled us towards the dock. Tosh still wasn't moving in my arms and I couldn't stay up in the water long enough to shout for help. 

I could feel us both going under more and more each second. It was too deep and I was struggling to fight against the harshness of the water. I wasn't sure how we were going to get out of this, but I knew there was no chance of me letting her go. 

I tried to call for help but my throat was sore and filled with water. My feet kept kicking to keep us above water. My hold on Tosh slipped and my head went under trying to push her back up. My lungs were fighting for oxygen I couldn't get. I pushed back to the surface and dragged in a breath of air. 

Heavy steps bound down the dock and I felt a surge of relief. They dove into the water and swam towards us. Grayson's hand grabbed onto Tosh's arm, taking the majority of the weight off of me. All I wanted to do was stop swimming. The two of us dragged her to the side of the dock where we clung to the cold metal. 

My throat stung from the water I was still coughing up. I tried my best to keep myself upright, fighting against the heaviness in my head. Grayson held Tosh up with one hand and used the metal bars for support with his other. The dock was too high for us to pull her up on our own. I looked around for another way. 

"Use the ladder on the back of the boat." I pulled myself up enough so I was sitting on the edge.

He swam over with Tosh in his arms and together we pulled her up. 

My fingers felt numb from the cold. I could barely feel Tosh as I held onto her hand. She laid unmoving on the floor of the boat, too still to be okay.

"She's not breathing." My hands were shaking. I wasn't sure whether it was from the chill of the wind or out of fear.

He put two fingers on her wrist. "I can't find her pulse. If it's there it's weak. We need to do CPR."

Another rush of panic surged through me. It was hard to look at her now, unconscious and cold. Such a stark contrast from the brightness she exudes. A tear fell down my cheek, blending in with the droplets of water on my face. It seems impossible the things we've gone through this summer have led us here. 

"The cops are here Andie, you should go. Whoever gets caught is probably going to get fired. You won't get the bonus if you stay." He lifted her chin and tilted her head back.

I looked between the harsh features of Grayson's face and the cold stillness of Tosh's. Everyone else had ran from the backyard. We were the only ones left. 

I put both hands on her chest and began the compressions. "I don't care about that. I'm not just going to leave you guys like this."

 Strands of my damp hair clung to my shoulders as I repeated the rounds of CPR. Each time I restarted the panic in my chest grew.

"Come on Tosh, come one," I mumbled to myself more than her. Or maybe it was to something greater than myself. Anything that could spare me an ounce of hope.

I counted the compressions in my head one after the other. Her shoulders shook with every one. Just the sight of her made tears stream down my face. All I could think of was her smile. She was always smiling, even if she didn't mean it.

"Andie, I can take over," Grayson watched me with worry.

"No," I didn't let up for even a second, unwilling to give up. "I can do it."

I repeated another round of CPR. Beginning with a little less hope than I had before. The only sound around us was the wind mixed with my heavy breathing. Tosh's chest heaved and her eyes fluttered open. She coughed and sputtered out water.

"Tosh!" I looked up at Grayson to see him sit back in relief.

We helped her lean back against the wall of the boat. The three of us sat on the damp floor, exhausted with effort.

Tosh coughed and dropped her head. "That's not the shallow end," her voice was hoarse.

Tears welled in my eyes as I laughed. "You bitch," I grabbed her and kissed her on the forehead, still smiling.

The corners of her mouth turned up. "You can't get rid of me," she said, her eyes closed in exhaustion.

Grayson let out a huff and shook his head. "At least we know she's okay."

We didn't get up right away. We gave her a moment to recover and took it for ourselves too.

"We should take her inside. She needs to change into dry clothes and we should probably call an ambulance," I said. 

When she was ready Grayson pulled her into his arms and onto the dock. My limbs felt heavy with every step we took closer to the cabin. I kept glancing over to Tosh to make sure she was still responsive. Each time she drifted off I woke her up again. Grayson didn't say anything as we trudged along the grass.

Loud shouts came from the other side of the back door. My hand hovered over the doorknob. I looked back at Grayson holding Tosh, and then turned the knob.

Mr. Clearwater was standing at the threshold of the front door as blue and red lights flickered behind him in the driveway. 

                  -----------------------------------------------

I don't know if any of you noticed but we have a new book cover! The old one bothered me every time I looked at it so I made a new one lol. 

As for this chapter, I hope you liked it! Don't forget to vote and follow me if you haven't already. 

And if you think this story is over after this...it's not. We're just at the beginning of the chaos that is this ending. 

See you Thursday <3