Preknowings: Success Always Fails (PUBLISHED ON AMAZON)

On the Water

We stood on wet pebbles as we looked for a way to get across. In the distance, I could see a helicopter. Pauline hauled herself along the riverbank with her crutches and called to me, "Birche! Over here! There's a boat!" Ralph and I went over to Pauline, and sure enough, there was a boat. Specifically, it was the boat from my dream. It was wooden and smooth and even had oars for us. I helped Pauline into the boat and made sure she was okay. Ralph had gotten in just before her to check things out. Finally, I pushed the boat off into the water and jumped in, just before the water could hit my ankles. "Be prepared to fall in soon. This is exactly what my dream showed." I warned. "Okie dokie!" Ralph chortled. Pauline nodded. As soon as we got to the middle of the lake, we heard a splash. My head jerked around just in time to see a hand plunge underneath the surface of the water. It was impossible. No one could have jumped into the water way out here, there were no trees in the middle of the lake. Nothing was in the sky except for clouds. It looked as though there would be a storm soon. Pauline looked at where the splash sound had come from, but she was too late to see anything except ripples. Suddenly, the boat rocked, leaned way too far to the left, then way too far to the right, then back to the left again. We leaned to the right too late, so the boat capsized and we all fell in. Once I was underwater, I scanned the depths for any sign of the person that may have owned the hand. Something caught my eye, and I looked over. A swirl of something just a bit darker than the depths below. Hair. A girl's hair. I looked at her face. Her eyes were closed in a peaceful way and she seemed to be asleep. She wore a green tank top and jean shorts. I was losing air. I gasped as I broke the surface of the water. My chest heaved with the greed for air. As soon as I had caught my breath. I took a huge lungful of air and threw myself back under the surface. I forced my eyes to stay open, even though the water stung. There she was, floating down, down, down.... It looked like it would take forever for me to get to her, so I just propelled myself as fast as I could in her direction. I couldn't see the bottom until I reached her. It looked welcoming, the soft, silken sand. No. I couldn't give up now. I have people to look after. My lungs alerted my brain that I didn't have much time left before I couldn't hold my breath any longer. I took the girl's arm in an iron grip and tore to the surface, struggling all the way. I was worried, was I carrying a dead girl? Would I find out that she was working for the enemy? I ignored these thoughts because my instincts told me this was the right thing to do. I fought for my breath, choking as I reached the surface. Everything was blurry. "Birche!" I heard in the distance. "Birche!" It sounded urgent. Should I reply? My eyelids dropped and I seemed to be losing consciousness. It was Pauline, I realized. My senses switched on and I dragged myself towards the shouting. "Pauline," I panted. I realized I was still carrying the girl somehow. She was still underwater! I pulled her up and out of the water as Pauline's blurred figure appeared in my vision and guided me to the upside-down boat. We lifted the girl onto the top and then climbed up ourselves. I rubbed my eyes. The girl looked to be about seventeen years old. I checked to see if her heart was beating. I couldn't tell. I began to to the Heimlich Maneuver. After two pushes of the chest, she coughed water up all over herself and shot up, rocking the already capsized boat violently. "Where am I?" She asked in a panic. "Don't worry," Pauline said, "we got you out of the water. You're okay. Try to stay still. Our boat is upside down. Who are you?" "I'm Gwen. Gwen Peterson. How did I get here? Who are you?" The girl replied. "We don't know how you got here. We saw a splash in the middle of the lake and then our boat capsized. You were drowning. I brought you back up here." I said. "My name is Birche and this is Pauline." "Hey, don't forget about me!" Ralph shouted, swimming towards us. "And that is Ralph. He's a Horned Walapus." Gwen widened her eyes, shut them tight, and then opened them again. "How is that even possible?" She asked. No one answered. "We need to get moving," I said, changing the subject, "Mitchell will be on us soon." "Who's Mitchell?" Gwen asked. "He's a bad guy. You've heard of the war, right?" Pauline spoke up. "Of course," Gwen replied, "It's been happening for months now. I came out here to escape the chaos. Now I remember....  I just got over the Great Wall.... And then I.... I think I blacked out. Somehow...." She looked very confused. "Oh," Pauline said, "I wonder how that happened." Gwen nodded. We found our oars floating a few yards away and swam out to get them, then all of us got in the water and pushed the boat right side up. I boosted everyone into it and then climbed in myself. "Look!" Pauline shouted with excitement, "The helicopter!" It was almost here! We cheered. We were so happy that this would be over soon. We were almost at the edge of the lake when we saw the machine gun pointing out of the helicopter.