Warzone {Dunkirk H.S.}

4: Meeting You

GWEN

It had not even been a full day of sailing for Gwen and Vivian, yet it had turned out to be far more eventful than they could have ever expected. With a storm brewing they did not think their luck could worsen, but it just about did late in the night when they were both tired beyond belief and half asleep, straying from their path of travelling. Vivian fell asleep below deck, and Gwen was on her own, barely able to stop her eyelids from drooping shut. She was positively sure that she was going to get them lost, but nevertheless she persisted.

It had become difficult to see things as the night went on, the light of the stars and the moon was hardly enough to guide her. Because of that, Gwen almost did not notice the body which floated towards their boat. She had been gazing out into the distance and just hoping that her sense of direction was correct, and if she had stared at the dark horizon any longer then she might have just missed it. But it caught her eye and she had approached the edge of the boat apprehensively, unsure to what it was, but still curious. She had been so shocked when she realised it was a body that she had almost fallen overboard. She had no clue what to do at first, feeling sick at the sight of it as she realised that it could have been a dead person floating into oblivion. But she swallowed her fears and tried to get a closer look, soon finding that it was a solider when she saw the uniform. Her racing heartbeat echoed like a drum and her wild thoughts and optimism got the better of her as she raced to grab the body, reaching out from the boat desperately to grab the unconscious soldier. He was laying on his back and Gwen thought she saw his eyes open for a moment, her mind may have been playing tricks on her but it was enough to fuel her. She tried and tried to reach out and save him, she even threw a rope hoping that he was alive enough to hold it but to no avail, he did not move, only was pulled further from her reach by the selfish current. She tried calling for Vivian but she did not answer, still asleep, and Gwen did not want to leave and go below deck.

She got so frustrated from the lack of progress that she threw herself forward, hoping to just reach the body, her arms outstretched, but she got herself off balance and tumbled into the freezing waters with a surprised screech. Her head was submerged for a second before she panicked and struggled to stay above surface, yelling for Vivian to help her, terrified by the darkness and the piercing cold. She took the opportunity to swim and retrieve the soldier, holding him tightly to her and struggling to keep them both above surface, his limbs being longer and stronger than hers. His head lolled forward and her stomach tightened when she realised she could have just been holding a dead body. But before she could panic further or cry, let him go, Vivian was suddenly awake, calling out for her and on deck with a torch and was throwing a rope to pull them in, rescue them.

Vivian helped a drenched and shivering Gwen onto the boat, but before she could ask any questions Gwen rushed to lay the soldier on his back and seemed confused for a second, like she was trying hard to remember something, before pushing down on the soldier's chest and attaching her mouth to his, performing CPR. Vivian watched with wide eyes, shining the torch on them as she wondered how Gwen had been brave enough to go and save this stranger, and was astonished at how she did not even take care of herself first before trying to save the young man's life.

With a gasp and a splutter, the soldier coughed and appeared to breathe again, Gwen moving away and letting out a sigh of relief as she stared down at him, crouched next to him. His eyes were open for a mere moment - he looked deeply confused, as Gwen noticed the unique green colour of his scared eyes but mentally scolded herself for admiring such a thing as his eyes when he had almost died. Before she had a chance to ask him anything, his eyes were shut again. Gwen almost panicked, thinking they had lost him, and pressed her head against his chest to check his heartbeat, and when she felt his pulse she breathed out a sigh and sat up, feeling her entire body shake and her heartbeat throb, tasting the salt on her lips from the ocean and from the soldier, before looking at Vivian, who was holding the torch with a shaky hand.