The Rescue - Bondi Rescue

Prologue

"GIRL RESCUES DROWNING SWIMMER OFF ANNA MARIA COAST"

That is the headline that changed my life. Just a simple day off the island of Anna Maria Florida. I came down to visit my friends for a few days from Georgia to escape the cold. We were at the beach, listening to the waves and enjoying the sunshine. We had paddle boarded for several hours already, so it was time for a rest. I had just shut my eyes when I heard a faint, "Help!" After a glance at the ocean, I noticed a young girl caught in the large rip that runs the perimeter of the island. No one moved. She got more and more tired swimming against the strong current. I am a huge fan of Bondi Rescue and someone had to do something. I grabbed my board and ran down to the waves. I hopped on and paddled to the rip, letting it take me down to her. When I reached her, she was floating. I did what anyone would do and pulled her on my board and paddled hard for shore. I got there and picked her up running her to dryer sand. I checked for a heartbeat, nothing. My mind raced as I performed CPR. Someone called 911, but no one offered any assistance. I glanced up to see some one videoing me. I continued CPR until the ambulance got there a few minutes later. So much adrenaline was rushing through me. 

The rest of the evening, she was all I could think about. After a night of tossing and turning, I received a phone call from the Anna Maria paper asking if I would be interested in an interview. At first, I could care less, but my friends convinced me to go for it. I got to the interview and after tons of questions, I asked about the little girl. Turns out she is 7 years old and doing great. My quick CPR had saved her. I don't think the gravity of the situation sunk in until later. I saved someone's life. They asked me where I learned the rescue techniques and of course I said Bondi Rescue. And that brings us to today. I was eating breakfast when Lauren shoved her phone in front of my face. I could see myself running to the water and rescuing her. The video had gone viral.

"Oh my gosh. This is crazy. I didn't do anything spectacular."

"What are you talking about! You saved that little girl!" Lauren couldn't believe I didn't see how incredible it was.

"I just did what anyone else would do."

"That's just the thing. No one did. No one moved. YOU jumped in and saved her."

Someone tagged me in a newspaper article and I read over the interview. Words like "hero", "save", and "award." Popped out at me. No freaking way would I accept any reward. I hate having all the attention on me. My phone rang in my hand.

"Hello?"

"Hi. Is this Addison?"

"Uh, yes?"

"This is Carla Jacobs. You rescued my daughter the other day. We would love to meet you. Would you like to meet for ice cream?"

"Um, yeah sure. Where at?"

"Two Scoops in a half an hour?"

"Okay. Cool. See you there."

I couldn't wait to meet her. I needed to see that she was okay. I took a quick shower, put on some light makeup, pulled my long light brown hair into a loose braid, and ran out the door. Anna Maria is small, so I grabbed a bike. I got to Two Scoops and saw a short blonde girl standing with a tall skinny blonde woman. They spotted me and walked over. After a few pleasantries, we ordered our ice creams and sat down. I took a good look at her. Blonde hair with bright blue eyes, freckles, and a slight blush across her cheeks from the sun. She reminds me off a little girl I watch back home. We sat in silence for a while just enjoying the ice cream. Mrs. Jacobs broke the silence.

"I just wanted to thank you. My husband and I were tanning and we didn't know she was going down to the water. I c-couldn't see her. You caught my eye running down the beach and that's when I saw her. She was just floating there. I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought I lost her." A tear slipped down her face. She quickly wiped it away. "I watched you bring her up the beach and starting CPR. I was in shock. I just sat there not breathing as I watched. There was nothing I could do. When the ambulance pulled up, I got in with her. All the paramedics could talk about was she would be dead if it wasn't for you. S-she was dead. You saved her. And I could never thank you enough." Tears were pouring down her face as she spoke. All I could do was pull her into a hug. After several minutes, she pulled back and asked for a picture of us. We took the picture and said our goodbyes. I drove home and tried to spend my remaining vacation days relaxing. Before long, it was time to go back to Georgia. After a eight hour drive, I arrived back home. My phone had been ringing off the hook since that day. I turned it off to concentrate when I drove. Turning it back on, I noticed a new Facebook message.

"Hello. I saw the newspaper article and video of the rescue you performed. I understand you are a fan of Bondi Rescue and performed a Bondi ready rescue. Us at Waverly Council would like to offer you a traineeship position here at Bondi. Please call me at ********* to discuss details. Bruce Hopkins"

What the heck. I looked at the page and it was the Bondi Lifeguard page. I checked the time in Australia and called the number.

"Hello?" Hoppo's deep voice answered.

For a second, I was star struck. I'm talking to THE HOPPO. From my favorite tv show.

"Um, Hi. I'm Addison Hill. You sent me a Facebook message?"

"Of course. I was very impressed by the video. The rescue was identical to the ones we do here. You said you learned it from the show?"

"Yes sir. I couldn't just leave her there and no one else was paying attention. I just did what you guys do."

"That's why I wanted to offer you a trainee position here. We want to send you a plane ticket and get you here ASAP. We think you would be a great addition to the team here at Bondi. What do you think?"

"Um. I'd love that."

"So you will come?"

"Yes. I can't wait." I gave him my address and we said goodbye. I'm going to be a Bondi Lifeguard. Me. Addison Hill, A Bondi lifeguard. Woooohooo! 

A/N: THIS IS THE WORST. LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT ME TO CONTINUE.