Discoveries | TMR | Three

2:9

She can feel the sunlight scorching her head, shoulder and chest whilst her lower half is engulfed in a refreshing coolness she has never yet been submerged in. Her hair is doused; her fiery red curls rough around her face for mere moments before flowing freely through the salty ocean when she dives. Relentless splashes of water propel onto her face, beading and trickling down her face and neck; magnifying each golden freckle on her skin and forcing the heat to be just that little bit more searing.

Never in her wildest fantasies did Adeline think she would ever find herself spending the afternoon swimming with two Gladers, yet here she is; splashing around in a rocky pool below the garage, half her time spent teaching Chuck how to swim, and the other half spent trying to stop the foolish boy from drowning.

"Chuck!" she laughs heartily when the young boy begins struggling once more. "Chuck! The water's not that deep, kid, stand up!"

Through his struggles and gurgles, the young boy manages to catch his bearings, and he feels completely and utterly idiotic when he does finally stand, and he realises that the water goes only to his torso. ''Oh.''

Both Frypan and Adeline chuckle at the dramatic way in which he was flailing before. Frypan wades towards him, the ocean level reaching his hips and no more, and he pats his shoulder. ''It's alright, bud,'' he assures, though his features still flash with amusement.

''Yea,'' Adeline chimes in, shrugging. ''You just panicked, no big deal.''

She can sense that Chuck is deflated with the constant failing. "I know it's not, but-." He cuts himself off.

"But, what, man?" Frypan queries. "Go on, you can tell us."

Chuck takes a second, then huffs. "It's just that, Vince was saying once we get to the safe place that they'll be lots of water. I don't want to be the only one that doesn't know how to swim," he admits.

Adeline and Frypan share a look, but her eyes swiftly dart back to the young boy. "You think that you'll get left out."

He nods.

"Nobody's gonna leave you out, Chuck," Frypan assures. "And besides, Olly can't swim either, so you won't be on your own with it."

Adeline listens intently to the way Frypan reassures the boy, and she feels a slight pang of jealousy whistling through her veins. Jealousy over the fact that the only thing Chuck has to worry about is whether or not he can swim. She wishes that were all she could worry about too. "You wanna go again?" she soon asks, raising her brows and tilting her head forward. "Me n' Fry are right here."

Chuck deliberates for a second, then nods his own head as he sniffles and wipes the water from his face. ''Yea.''

''Okay, let's do it then!'' the young girl exclaims. She steadies her feet on the rocky ground beneath her, holding the underside of her arms out in front of her and waiting for Frypan to do the same. Once he does, she motions for Chuck. ''Try it on your back this time,'' she gently commands. ''It's much easier to swim on your back.''

''You guys been in there all morning?'' Chuck is just about to lay backwards over their arms when Nick's voice calls from above.

All of them flinch and look up, though between the three of them, it is Adeline's smile that shines the brightest; she had been looking forward to his return. "When did you get back?"

"About ten minutes ago," he tells her; his hands in his pockets and an expression of immense seriousness on his face, she notes. "Matt's called a meeting, need you and Fry."

Adeline's brows furrow; worry overcoming her. She darts her head to Frypan, yet only for a moment before locking back to Nick. "Is everything alright?" she asks, gradually beginning to make her way through the water and to the stepping stones that lead back up to the Harbour.