The Jarhead

Chapter 4

I wake up to the beeping of my watch and my eyes dart open straight away. I slowly kick my blanket off me and look around, partially in a daze. I'm on the couch of the living room and my Xbox controller is sitting on my lap. I get up quickly and run up to my room, shower and get dressed into a pair of shorts and a shirt. 

Maybe we should go hiking. 

The thought literally pops into my head. It's that or waste away in front of the Xbox until Christmas Eve which is two weeks away. Nope, definately hiking is a great idea. I slide into my joggers and walk outside to the old rusty shed. I remember having some hiking stuff in here somewhere. I pull on a pair of gardening gloves so the rust doesn't cut into my hands as I dig around into the shed. I throw old pots and kettles that have rusted away to nothing but dust and handles. 

I find, hidden in the corner underneath all the crap, a few hiking backpacks. Sure they have a few holes in them but thats nothing I can't fix within a day or two. I dig out the first tent. Nope. It looks like a broken umbrella. The second has too many holes. I come across a third that isn't riddled with holes and seems big enough. 

I take that out and place it with the hiking backpacks. I find a water canteen slung into a leather strap. It hasnt rusted at all and still looks usable. Other junk in the shed either gets tossed in the trailer or will be fixed. I have no idea how much noise I'm making as metal clatters about because I hear yelling. 

"Do you mind?' Harry yells from his window, sticking his head out. His brow is furrowed in clear annoyance. 

"No, not really." I call back. He lets out a noise of irritation before closing the window. Well, my day just got a whole heap better. Pissing Harry off seems to be number one on my To Do list everyday now. I throw my gloves on the ground when I'm finished and carry my salvageable items inside. I set up the dinosaur sewing machine from the linen cupboard and attempt to sew up the holes in the packs. Needless to say, it looks bad but works perfectly fine now that things won't fall out. 

"Whats up?" Zayn comes up behind me and asks. 

"Hiking trip. It starts tomorrow." I tell him. 

"Let me guess, we're coming." Harry butts in. He is wearing a pair of shorts and a white shirt. I roll my eyes and look at him. 

"You're not staying alone in my house, that's for sure." I tell him. "Besides, you'll be in perfect hands. I've been hiking plenty of times." I tell him as I finish sewing the holes in the tent. The sleeping bags seem to be in perfect condition anyway so I leave them. Out of the top cupboard of the kitchen, I beign pulling out dark green cans of food with black labels on them and packing them into large blue plastic containers. 

"Might as well help." Harry groans as he begins helping to load things into the containers. Everyone helps. Harry packs the food with me while Naomi and Niall team up to arrange the packs and pack the bags with the clothes that everyone needs. The boys will share one bag while Naomi and I will share another so that we don't have anyone going through our things. Louis packs the first aid kit and Liam and Zayn drive into town to pick up other things. 

When Harry and I finish stacking the container it is sitting on the bench. "I'll do it." He groans. I push him lightly away. 

"Leave this up to me." I say as I pick it up with ease and carry it out to the Jeep. I push it into the trunk and dust my hands off. Naomi puts the bags in as well as the sleeping bags and tent and Niall finally loads the rest in. By now, the sun has begun to set and I walk back inside. I cook up some meat and we eat burgers. I groan inwardly as I walk upstairs and collapse on my bed, kicking my shoes off. 

By the next morning I wake everyone up at the same time as I do and I get changed into hiking shorts and a white shirt. I lace up my boots and reach for my dog tags again. The cold metal is pressed against my skin. As I jog downstairs, I see Naomi applying thick sunscreen to her pale skin. She is already dotted in freckles but her skin would be so easy to burn in the sun. I sit down next to her and begin applying a thin coat even though my skin is already a little tan. 

Harry begins walking up to me with his hands behind his back. "Again, what do you want?" I groan. He smirks as he slides his hand across my face and runs away. Without thinking I get up and start running after him. I caatch a glimpse of a white handprint on my face as I run out the door after him.

"HARRY I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" 

His long legs make him fast, really fast. But I know from experience I can keep this pace up for half an hour. Finally he loses his drive and I grip the back of his shirt mid stride and pull him to the ground. I watch as he gasps for air, his eyes wide. He starts laughing. White hot anger burns through my cheeks as I grab his ear and pull him to his feet. He yelps in pain. 

"ow, ow ,ow, ow, ow, ow, ow." I push him into the backseat of the Jeep and wipe the sunscreen off my face with my hand. He rubs his ear resentfully. Once everyone is in the car, I begin to drive through the dirt road, not bothering to care about bumping things. I'm still smouldering about Harry and feel like reaching behind the seat and planting a tight fist on his nose, hopefully shattering it. 

But I don't because Zayn is watching me cautiously with his dark eyes and if Harry is his friend, the least I can do it try not to break his nose. I drive for about three hours before I stop and park the car. 

"We'll walk from here." I announce as I open my door, walking around to the back. I swing my pack over my shoulder and grab the food container. I take the lead as we head up the mountain and deeper into the woods. We walk for about an hour until we come across a stream in a small clearing. 

The vantage point is perfect. Fresh water and everything. 

"Here?" Zayn asks. I nod and place the food container on the ground as we begin to set up the tent and sleeping bag. I walk over to the creek and pull out my water canteen, filling it up with the fresh water and placing two water purification tablets into it. I catch the glance from Zayn. 

"What?" I ask. "Old habits die hard." He shrugs and goes back to setting up the tent. I roll out the sleeping bags and help everyone set them up. Once that's done I stack dry wood up and light the fire. Once the camp is set up I take off my boots and walk over to the stream. Naomi and Louis jump in splashing about. I sit on the edge with my feet dangling in the water. 

I feel large hands grab my legs and pull me in. I come up gasping for air as I look into Harry's green eyes. He begins swimming away from me. 

"Do you have a death wish man?" I hear Niall ask him from the other side of the creek. 

"She's going to kill you." Whoever said that was right. He swims down further, letting the current pull him along the crystal clear water. I see his predicament before he does. I call out to him, trying to bring him to his senses. 

"Harry stop!" I yell out. He laughs. 

"And die? No thanks." He doesn't turn around as the current gets faster and faster. 

"Harry! Seriously you're going to get yourself killed!" I shout, my voice full of urgency. This gets his attention but it is too late, his head disappears underwater as he is thrust into the rapids. I hear a scream from behind me and swim to the edge. I run along the shore, soaking wet until I get past the rocks. I trip a few times on the sharp rocks but I barely feel the pain. 

I catch glimpses of a brown head  or sometimes an arm or a leg among the large boulders and a little bit of hope sparks inside me. But it doesn't last too long. Finally when the rapids clear I see Harry floating further downstream. The water is not as fast and I dive in, swimming over to his limp body. 

My arm wraps around him as I pull him to shore with fast, strong and even strokes of the water. Zayn is waiting on the edge and so is Liam and Niall. Louis is holding the first aid kit in one hand and Naomi in the other. Liam and Niall pull Harry out of the water and onto the rocky shore. I hoist myself up and crawl over to him. My fingers touch his lips.

No breathing. They grapple for his wrist and I dig three fingers into the wrist trying to feel for a pulse that is not there.