ALLS

Chapter 6 - Liz

"Come on! It won't move." Sam screamed as she shoulder bumped the door for the millionth time. My door wasn't working either. None of the doors worked.

Despite our greatest effort to get as high up as possible, the water now reached up to our knees as we crouched on the seats, desperately trying to get out.

"Nothing's working!" Alyssa screamed. Her face was ghastly white.

"Keep trying guys, we can make it." I said and turned to Alyssa. She was having a massive panic attack, I could tell.

"OK Al, you need to listen to me." I looked her straight in the eyes. She glanced at Liti and Sam, trying their best to break something. 

"Al, look at me." I said firmly. "Look at me, Al, look at me."

She looked at me.

"Alright, try your best to steady your breathing, OK? You with me?"

"No, no, no, I can't, we're gonna drown, we're gonna die." 

"No, Al, nobody's gonna die, especially not you. OK? Now close your eyes and count to ten. You got it."

Sam banged her fist against the door. For a moment her face contorted with despair. Then she turned around and leaned back against the wall.

"Any last words, ladies?" she smiled.

"Sam!" I spat, giving her a dirty look as Alyssa opened her eyes and hugged her head.

The water was now chest level.

Liti was shivering like crazy. Sam hugged her tightly, with hopes of warming her up.

The water rose up to our necks now.

"Well, if we die, I just wanna say that I love you all." Sam sighed.

"Keep your heads up guys." I said and we all lifted our faces as close to the roof as possible.

There was only a small gap for us to breathe now. In one moment, our eyes locked and we all took a deep breath. The car was filled. I closed my eyes, feeling the pressure of the water push against my chest.

I can see his face, above the surface. I can see his eyes, black and malicious, like an enraged bear. I can feel his hands on my throat, pushing me down, drowning me, drowning his own sister. I know it wasn't him, but I just couldn't forgive him. Ever.

I opened my eyes. The blurred outline of Sam and Alyssa by the door. She'd somehow calmed Al down. Sam motioned towards the window and held up three fingers.

Three.

Two.

One.

They held onto the handlebar above the door, drew back and charged, feet first, into the window. The door miraculously swung open. How did it do that?

I lost my breath. Water rushed up my nose, my mouth and into my lungs.

Then I saw him, like a vivid dream. He smiled at me like he used to do every time he received one of my drawings, even though they were shit, and he swam backwards, downwards, his hands outstretched, beckoning me to follow. I let myself float towards him. I missed him. The brother I knew and loved.

A pair of hands wrapped around my waist. They dragged me away from him. I tried so hard to scream, to kick the hands away.

My head broke the surface.

"Hold her."

Someone hit me hard on the back and I coughed up about 10 litres of water.

"Oww." I groaned.

"It worked!" Alyssa exclaimed with glee.

"I'll go get Liti." Sam scowled and dived under.

Alyssa and I sat on the shore of a large lake, surrounded by trees and wild shrubbery.

"You were really hard to drag, you know." she said, smiling at me.

"What do you mean?"

"When I saved you, you were thrashing about like a fish out of water... or a human out of air."

"Really? Strange."

We sat in silence for a few moments, staring at the rippling water. Then they emerged, Sam with her massive hunting knife and Liti with a seatbelt wrapped around her right ankle.

"What happened?" said Alyssa, jumping to her feet.

"Her foot got stuck in the seatbelt," Sam replied, sheathing her knife, "I had to cut it off. She's lucky she can swim."

"It was horrible. That car is cursed." Liti sulked.

Sam reached out and ruffled Liti's long grey hair. It was smooth and soft.

I jumped.

"Wait..." Sam seemed to have realised it too.

Liti looked absolutely dumbfounded.

"What?" Alyssa asked, still oblivious.

Usually, we'd have mocked her for her ignorance for such obvious things. But now, things had changed. Something was off.

"Dear Mary mother of Jesus." Sam breathed.

"I'm dry." Liti said

As a matter of fact, we were all dry.