It was definitely worth it, they decided, when they marvel at their beautiful campsite. It took two long, grueling hours to arrive, but when they saw the falls, they had all but forgotten their annoyance.
The area was shaded, surrounded by lots of trees and flowers. Across the vast field, where they would be setting up camp, was a waterfall. It was loud and crystal clear, and most especially, looked cool. Everyone couldn’t wait to get into the water after spending all that time inside the van that spewed nothing but hot air.
They all run out to the water, forgetting about the stuff they have to unload from the van. The girls screamed with delight when the cold water nipped at their feet, while the boys swam across the bank.
For once, Xander’s death did not loom over them. They screamed and laughed and merrily exchanged stories in the water. They enjoyed the warm afternoon sun on their young skin, and had entirely forgotten about the haunting words that were told to them the other day.
Mharvin ran out of the water when his stomach grumbled with hunger. Time to eat, he decides, making his way towards the van.
“Where’s Mharvin?” Eliza asked her friends. They all paused in their merry making and looked around the area. Eliza opened her mouth to say something when someone gasped sharply.
It was Brittany, and she was pointing to where the van was parked.
The teens turned their attention to where she was pointing and were stunned.
Mharvin leaned against the van, out of breath. Did something hit him? He turned his head and saw the blood still oozing from his arm. He gingerly touched the area, and gasped at the pain.
“Guys,” he weakly calls out. “I think—I think something hit me.”
His voice would never have reached them, but they were at his side a few moments later. Mharvin looked up from his bleeding arm and met Joanie’s worried gaze. He was half expecting for her to break out into a grin and make some joke about the situation.
But she did not take it lightly. “We need to get him to a hospital. The wound’s really deep!” She yelled out
“Dude, what hit you?” It was Jeremy who asked. Mharvin shrugged before groaning at the pain that shot through his arm at the movement. “I don’t…know. I was just going to get some food then…I’m bleeding.”
The rest of his friends did not look satisfied with his answer, but what was he supposed to say? He had no idea how it had happened.
Everyone clambered into the van, keeping a watchful eye at Mharvin. They tightly wrapped the area above his wound with a cloth to keep him from bleeding out. Despite their efforts, Mharvin had gone pale from the loss.
“There’s probably one ten minutes away!” Ashley says to Zeke, who had taken the responsibility to drive. He nods, his lips pursed in a straight line.
“Does it hurt?” Brittany asked Mharvin in a soft voice.
“Of course you idiot!” Ashley snapped. “Why don’t I slice through your arm and see if you scream.”
“This is not the time, Ashley!” Kierra says in a snippy tone. Ashley’s heated gaze cooled when she noticed Kierra’s pallid face, remembering her fear of blood.
“Why don’t you sleep for now,” Jeremy, who was next to Kierra, suggested. He patted his shoulder invitingly, and Kierra gulped, nodding. She closed her eyes when she made herself comfortable on his shoulder, somehow managed to block the incessant argument between Brittany and Ashley and doze off.
Joanie carefully wiped the dried blood off Mharvin’s arm and stomach, making sure that she did not hurt him. Blood had finally stopped flowing, now a pathetic trickle that didn’t even reach his elbow. Too bad the same couldn’t be said to the pain.
“Are we there yet?” Jeremy asked, shifting a little to look out the window. It was as though there was no civilization, just trees. Great. They just had to pick a secluded spot that had no people within ten miles.
Zeke grunted in annoyance. “Look, it’s not my fault that there’s none yet alright. Now shut up.”
“I’m just asking, no need to bite my head off. Jeez.”
Jeremy understood though. The anxiety was getting to them. It had been a good five minutes and he was pretty sure that Jeremy hasn’t taken his foot off the gas for the past two.
“Zeke, we’re already on 60. I think you should lay off the gas…” Ashley quietly says. “We could—“
Ashley’s words were cut off when Zeke had hit her lips, leaving a telltale metallic taste in her mouth. The tense atmosphere was pierced by a sharp scream that grated on everyone, causing Zeke to lose his grip on the wheel.
They van swerved, nearly hitting a nearby tree. When the vehicle came to a full stop, everyone let out a sigh of relief
“What the hell was that!?” Zeke roared, turning around to Kierra. “You almost got us killed!”
Her terrified expression did not sway him. “I-I’m sorry. N-nightmare. I had another n-n—”
“A nightmare got all of us nearly killed!? You’re pathetic!” He spat out. Kierra started to cry at his harsh treatment, but no one comforted her.
“Guys…” Joanie rasps. “Mharvin. He’s…he’s not breathing!”
Everyone scrambled to move Mharvin out of the van. They laid him on the prickly grass of the roadside. Eliza leaned forward and checked his pulse. Everyone watched her face crumple.
No one drew a breath.
Kierra staggered and leaned against the van, tears streaming down her face. Oh God, it was all her fault.
She couldn’t bear to look at any of them. She tilted her gaze up into the sky, and through the tears noticed a plane pass by. Curiously, it resembled a fighter plane.
Dazed with sadness, she waved up at it and watched it fly out of her field of vision.
*
Please pa-edit po :) and umm kung sino yung kasama ko sa pag-edit, pakigo through nalang lahat ng naedit na. I can't see my mistakes kasi, so kung meron ichange niyo nalang ^^
- Tam (crazzy_hschickk)
