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Outer Banks, the Beach July 11th, 2020 8:35pm
I stood there, watching the waves crashing against the shore, goosebumps growing over the surface of my body. The wind was howling, the rain was pouring, and the waves were towering over me. Something attracted me, as scared as I was, but I simply couldn't take my eyes off the dark grey paradise in front of me. Holding my surfboard under my arm, I tried to plug off my brain and ran to the gigantic waves. A tiny part of me tried to walk back to the sand, reminding me what happened months ago.
As I paddled in between the waves, trying not to lose sight of the shore, I couldn't help but think of my dad. He must have been so scared, when the waves submerged his boat, and that he fought against death in the depth of the ocean. I knew that, if the authorities were right and he did drown, he never gave up, for John B and for me. He was tough, brave, and knew how to survive in any situation, as complicated as it seemed.
I surfed waves, knowing that if the Pogues saw me they'd kill me right away. I was aware that surfing in those conditions was dangerous, but it felt so relieving, that I somehow managed to forget about the risks. The weather was still as stormy as it had been on the previous day and rain poured hard on me, which didn't matter at all. I rode waves for lasting minutes, entering them, bending my back and my legs not to fall down.
I was about to jump off my board, when a bigger wave coming from behind hit the tip of the material and threw me meters away. Before I could even scream or get scared, my head hit something and I fell into unconsciousness, leaving all my worries behind, or carrying them with me underwater. I accepted my fate and my body and soul both drifted off to places I didn't know.
(...)
???, ??? ??? ???:???
My cheek was hurting so bad, when I landed back on Earth, and heard desperate screams reaching my eardrums. "Wake the fuck up!" I heard, which made me open my eyes as soon, the feeling of their palm against my cheek, slapping it.
I didn't believe what I was seeing was true when I perceived Rafe Cameron, soaking wet, rain pouring down on him, while he was holding and slapping me, to bring me back. I immediately sat up, pushing him away and vomited a bit of salty water on the sand, coughing like hell, my lungs burning. Everything ached in and out, and I felt so out of breath that I didn't have the strength to push Rafe away when his hand travelled up and down my back.
Rain was pouring even harder on us and when I looked up at him, I struggled to even create a sentence. "I'm here- wh-what's- what are you doing here?" was all I managed to ask, when it wasn't even what worried me the most.
"Jeez, I fucking thought you were dead," Rafe's hoarse voice complained near my ear while I sat up, my head pounding. "You were laying there, half-drowned"
