Anarchy [ Watty's 2016 ]

XXI: Alex

I'll be one hundred percent honest. I might have shrieked like a banshee flying straight out of hell. Might have. My initial reaction was, No way. This can't be real, before I realized it was real, and my friend was very much in-no pun intended-deep water. I ran forward stupidly; luckily, Will and Mordekai held me back, or else I would've ended up in the river, too.

When they let go, I made my way to the hole in the ice as quickly as possible and kneeled over, trying to detect any movement. Dread settled in my stomach, as I didn't see anything at first; it wasn't helped by the fact that the water had already formed a thin layer of ice. After a few horrible seconds, Taylor pointed and shouted, "There!"

I followed her gaze and saw a watery shadow under the ice. As soon as I noticed it, I also saw something strike against the surface from below. The thinned ice cracked and fell away with the help of the rest of us. I pulled up my sleeves and plunged my arms into the freezing water, unsuccessfully withholding a gasp at the shock. A tug at my arms nearly sent me headfirst into the river, but I managed to pull back hard enough for Jade to break the surface. Taylor and Mordekai helped me drag her out of the water and to shore, where she sprawled on the ground, wheezing and gasping for breath.

When a few moments had passed, she managed to sit up, shivering violently. Her soaking-wet clothes clung to her body, and the cold wind made her shiver more. "N-n-n-next ti-time I w-w-want to g-go f-f-for a swim wh-when it's below fr-fr-fr-freezing, go ahead and l-l-let me know I'm an i-i-idiot," Jade managed, her teeth clattering. Her lips were tinged blue.

Taylor draped her jacket over her, which she drew around her shoulders, still trembling. "Hey, kiddo," she said soothingly. "It ain't your fault. Nobody realized the ice was thin until it was too late."

We all nodded, but she didn't seem to be comforted. "Wh-where's my b-b-bag?" she asked, trying to get up; she staggered backwards, landing unceremoniously back on the grass.

"Don't worry," Will said, "I got it. Must mean a lot to you, considering you tossed it as far as possible." Normally, that sentence would've sounded sarcastic as hell, but he was being genuine. He handed her the bag.

"But the bag isn't as important as your health," I said. I sounded like a sappy idiot, but I really did care. "Are you all right? Do you think you could walk?"

She nodded numbly. "M-m-maybe. I m-might n-need help, th-though." As if to prove her point, when she did stand, she swayed unsteadily. I wrapped my arm around her, and she leaned against my shoulder for support. "M-maybe we won't be g-going to M-Milton," she said.

There was a weak collective chuckle. "Yeah," Mordekai agreed. "Maybe that isn't the best idea. We're in luck, though. We're right next to Valley Road station. And I'm pretty sure there's a pharmacy nearby, so you can get some warm clothes. I think it'd be good for all of us, actually."

Nobody argued. As we followed Mordekai to the pharmacy, I tried not to focus on the fact that I could feel Jade's heartbeat as she leaned on me-at one moment beating erratically, the next so slow it was barely discernable. She stumbled and slipped, mumbling incoherently under her breath. I held my own breath, hoping we would get there soon.

Fortunately, it didn't take too long to arrive at the pharmacy. There was an astounding total of two people inside, both of which were employees. When we walked through the door, the one at the counter looked up, spotted Jade, and seemed to recognize the situation instantly. He ran over to us and helped settle Jade onto a bench, asking, "What happened?"

"We were, uh, messing around on the river, y'know, because it was frozen over, and the ice cracked and she fell in," fibbed Will.

"Damn," the pharmacist muttered. "Hey! Brooke! We got a, uh," he paused and looked Jade over, "we got a mild-to-moderate hypothermic, from the looks of it. Can you get the supplies?"

The other pharmacist-the one called Brooke-nodded and ran to the back, returning a few minutes later with two blankets and a thermos, which she supplied to her coworker before disappearing again. He wrapped the blankets around Jade and handed her the thermos, which she sipped at gratefully. "Thanks," she murmured.

He bowed his head and stood up, addressing us. "I'll check back in about twenty minutes to see if she needs any stronger treatment, or if it's just a mild case."

As soon as he left, Jade mumbled, "Nice guy. Good hot chocolate," and took another sip from the thermos. "Next time I want to go swimming when it's below freezing, let me know I'm an idiot," she slurred, echoing her exact words earlier. I caught a concerned glance from Mordekai.

After a somewhat worrying fifteen or so minutes, the shivering had died down to an occasional shudder. "Who the hell came up with the brilliant idea to go on what might as well have been an impromptu ice-skating trip without being prepared in the least?" Jade complained, taking a drink of hot chocolate.

"Uh, it was you," I said. Another worried look, but I ignored it-I wanted to see where she was going with this.

"Well, I'm officially one of the stupidest assholes I've ever met," she grumbled. "Because now my plan is shot, we have to go to Valley Road instead of Milton, CORE will probably catch up, and I'm freezing my ass off."

I laughed awkwardly, relieved. "There's the Jade we all know and love," I chuckled.

At that moment, the pharmacist returned, checked Jade over, and declared, "This is great news. She'll be fine. I'd prescribe a daily dose of anti-ice-botics," he joked. We all nodded, and I could tell that everyone was relieved.

Ten minutes later, we all walked out of the pharmacy, dressed in new, warmer clothes, and made our way to the station.

Ten minutes later, we all walked out of the pharmacy, dressed in new, warmer clothes, and made our way to the station. We were lucky to catch the 8:45 departure. The sub was nearly empty; we all sank into our seats with relief.