Notoriously Beautiful

17

The Jellyfish Sting

(Several months later)
How is it already summer again? Time flies when you're spending it with good hearted people. There's a scientific reason to why we feel everything in time gets shorter as we age. It's not that complicated actually. When men and women are just kids, when they've only lived for a little, one hour is a much bigger part of their live time than one hour for an adult who lived for ages. One hour could feel like one minute to the old folk. That's what my Nonna said, once she got older, life got shorter. The day got shorter, then the weeks and years. But they only felt shorter, they weren't really.
I'm going with Simona to the beach, and she bringing her
best friend Salvina. It's the beginning of summer and we want to get an early start, on amazing beach days.
I met Salvina once before, she looks like Simona's twin. Same 5'9 height, same skinny built, black hair, brown eyes, darker skin, everything. I thought they were sisters or something. Turns out they are actually 5th cousins, I would have never guessed that. Their personalities are different though. Simona is more quiet and timid, while Salvina came off as outgoing and excited about everything. They're both extremely nice though. They have become friends of mine. I'm good at reading people, I see past smiles and charm, every good leader does.
I get in my car, open the window and drive. I like to drive, in silence. It is about 80 degrees, but there are some clouds so the sun isn't burning me. The beach today is beautiful. The water is calm, we put down our towels not too far from the water. We run into the refreshing cool water. I watch as about a hundred people throughout the beach go into and out of the water. If it was up to me, I would stay in the water all day, just floating around, talking to my friends.
I remember I bought a plastic one person canoe a few weeks back and I haven't used it yet.
I tell Simona and Salvina that I'd be back in twenty minutes, the time it would take me to walk home and back with a canoe. It would be easier to take the car but I have to burn those "gelato calories" anyway.
Walk, walk walk. This is a lot of walking. It's really hot, ugh. Exercising is really annoying. I mean, in New York I would go to the gym, but I never liked going. I'd see these big buff men, AND women, I admire how much they cared about their fitness, and health. Finally I come back with the canoe, Simona and Salvina keep it steady and straight while I try to sit in it. I get in and I start frantically paddling through the water. Wow, I just learned something, canoeing is not my forte! I flip over by accident but find myself not too far from the shore. I'm happy that Simona and Salvina are both still in sight though. I try putting my feet on the bottom of the water to see how deep it is. It is pretty deep.
I can swim, so I start swimming back to my friends, then when I get close enough to them I check again to see if I could touch the bottom, and I do.
"Ah," I feel a splitting pain on the back of my knee. It burns, "ahh". I'm not sure exactly what creature I just ran into, but it really didn't like me.
"Simona," I say.
I keep swimming through the sting. I get out, it's rather obvious once I get out of the water and take a look at the marking. It is a jellyfish sting. It burns so bad. Simona sees my face drained of color,
"Should we go to a doctor?" She asks.
"No, just some warm water," I say.
I feel terrible, I don't know what type of jellyfish it was but some can actually release fatal poison to humans. Of course this is the Mediterranean, and I'm not a marine biologist so I'm not sure whether or rather which spiece of jelly fish torture the tourists in these "neck of the woods". I'm just simply laying on the shore waiting for someone to bring me some warm water, something to sooth the pain.
"Simona, Salvina, I need warm water, it burns!" I say.
"I know, but, we're on the beach, I don't know where I can get warm fresh water," Salvina says.
(Five minutes later)
I'm still laying here watching as the small red irritated spot grows and swells.
"I think there's still a tentacle inside my leg," I say, I feel my head spin.
I hear Simona yelling for help. She was asking if anyone knew what to do.
"Simona, call Marco and tell him to come with tweezers and warm distilled water," I say.
I can't stand, I don't try to but I can tell I can't. I'm not dying or anything, it just burns really bad. Normally when people get stung by jellyfish it's just red and irritated. My leg looks huge, it was definitely not a normal type of jellyfish.
"I swear, where is Emma Carson Henny when you need her," I say.
Emma was my friend from high school, she studied marine life, to be honest I don't know where she is now.
Sadly, she's not here, but I AM a nurse. I guess I'll just have to settle for knowing how to take out the tentacle with some tweezers.
I lay here, I want to just remove my leg. Wait, there he is, the only person fully clothed on the beach. I see Marco, he came. He's not running or walking, it's an awkward skip that I can't describe perfectly. He's standing right in front of me. How he got here so fast is beyond me. I have no idea how he went to get tweezers at his house and then drove to the beach, and found us in five minutes.
"Give me the tweezers, please," I say, wincing in pain.
"Bella, oh my gosh, do you want me to take it out?" He asks me.
"No, I'm the nurse, it's fine. I'll do it," I say.
I take the tweezers into my hand and pull the tentacle out, it was partially covered under my skin, that's why it swelled so much.
When I took it out the pain didn't feel any better but I saw that the swelling is going down slightly. This is good.
"Can I get the water?" I ask.
"I think it's better if I pee on it, it soothes the pain. That's what I've always heard," Marco says.
"Are you kidding, that's a myth, it doesn't always sooth the pain, sometimes it makes the pain worse. Just give me the water," I say, growing impatient.
I open the cap with my teeth and douse the marking in it. It felt better finally.
"Did you know that ammonia in pee can actually sometimes release more venom from what was left of the tentacle," I say.
"Wow, I didn't know that. I'm sorry, are you better now?" Marco says.
How funny, Marco does not —I repeat does not— know what the words venom and tentacle mean. He plays it cool, like he knows what I'm saying but having to speak a different language with your girlfriend is 100% annoying him. I know it, he's never even hinted at any sign of annoyance but I just know it, I know him.
"Yeah did it work?" Simona asks.
"Yeah I feel better, and the swelling is going down, you see?" I say, pointing to the mark.
"You should put some, ehhh, antiseptic cream. Vero? E, antiseptic cream? So it doesn't get infected or anything," Simona says.
She says vero. Vero means true. She isn't sure about the word, but she did say it correctly.
"It should be fine, thanks for helping me guys," I say.
Then I look into the ocean and I see my canoe drifting away. I'm so upset because I can't go get it myself but my friends always got my back.
"What's wrong?" Salvina asks. She can clearly see I look upset.
"Does it still burn?" Simona asks.
"Yes, but that's not why I'm sad," I say.
"Whatever is making you sad, I'll kill it," Marco say, making fists, in an effort to make me laugh.
"My canoe is floating away, but that jellyfish is in the water, I don't want anyone to get it for me, because they might get stung too," I say.
It's not a big deal. I can buy another one, but I don't have to.
"That's funny," Marco says.
"No it's not funny, it was a really nice canoe," I say pouting.
"No, it's funny that you think I'm not going to go get it for you" he says, smiling.
I watch as he swims like a fish to and from where the canoe had drifted to. He brings it back to me.
"I guess the jellyfish like me."
"They're not the only ones."