an island tale » klaroline

one // the awakening

                                                 ~ ❖ ~                     

Since the commencement of time, the planet Earth has been prone to accidents. They are tragic, perilous, and mortifying, but we never seem to acknowledge just how lamentable they are until they transpire to us. On September 22nd of 2004, an airplane filled with strangers crashed onto an uninhabited island in the middle of Sydney, Australia and Los Angeles. Dozens of strangers, destined to become friends. For some of them, however, maybe even more. 

An eerily handsome man in an ebony and white suit laid on the jungle floor, silent like the night. Ironically, the world around him was anything but silent. Crickets chirped, their whispers aimed with the goal of waking him up. And so he did. With a great gasp, Stefan Salvatore's forest green eyes clicked open. Fear quickly swept through him as he took in his surroundings. Stalks of bamboo performed as his temporary shelter, until a rustling in the bushes made him aware that he wasn't alone.

Stefan was deathly frightened. All he wanted to do was call out his father's name. Unfortunately, he was well aware that if he moved, he was dead. So he remained on the ground, until an innocent yellow lab made his presence known. He chuckled to himself, knowing just how ridiculous of a situation this was. Then he gave the dog another look. It was staring at him, comforting him during his time of need.

Finally, the lab turned and plodded back into the forest, giving Stefan the sign that it was okay to get up. Slowly, he attempted to turn over, but there was a throbbing pain on his back that averted him from doing so effortlessly. He somehow managed to get to his feet, reaching into his jacket pocket for a miniature bottle of bourbon. For a moment, Stefan stared at his old friend, considering if he should welcome him, or deem him a demon.

Before he could make his decision, however, a frighteningly loud banging noise filled the air. Stefan, being the hero that he was, had to find out what it was. He ran with as much expeditiousness as he could, brushing through the thick green bamboo forest as he placed the bottle back in his pocket.

It was a truly magical moment as he brushed out of the forest and onto the beach. The ocean glistened resplendent blue and green colors if nothing in the world was wrong. A quick glance to the right, though, told Stefan otherwise. It looked like a warzone. Dozens of people, some of them injured, ran frantically around plane wreckage and scattered fires, screaming. He froze, too traumatized by the people who surrounded him.

All of a sudden, a man shouted, and Stefan turned towards the source of the loud noise. He was trapped under two rows of airplane seats, just ten feet away from the side of the malfunctioning engine. Without hesitation, Stefan knew what he had to do. He made his way towards the man as fast as he could, catching onto brief clips of other peoples' conversations.

A handsome Korean man hollered his wife's name breathlessly. "Sun!! Sun!!" Meanwhile, our hero zoomed past a strikingly beautiful twenty-year-old brunette. While her tears trailed on her baby pink zipped sweatshirt to her matching skirt, she screeched,"Matty!" at the top of her lungs.

Stefan finally reached the man under the seats. His eardrums almost bled from the deafening hum of the engine, but he refused to allow himself to be selfish. He couldn't be selfish. Not like his father, Damon, had been that day in the operating room.  As sweat spilled from his skin and his face turned a brilliant red color, he endeavored to push the row of seats off the man. "Damn it," he mumbled to himself, more frustrated than he had ever been on his many years in the world. Just then, a group of men passed by. "You there,"Stefan shouted to a balding old man and a redhead. "Can you help me..."

"Yeah, sure." Together, they lifted the chair up, and pushed the man to the side. Stefan ripped off his tie, and proceeded to tie it around his bleeding leg like only a doctor would. As he tied the leg, he looked around the chaotic scene and found dozens of other emergencies that deserved dire attention. A 60 year old woman laid unconscious on the sand, with a honey haired boy trying to revive her.  Across the field of debris, a pregnant woman leaned on her knees, struggling to stand. She was all alone. Stefan yelled, “Move him somewhere safe”, as he sped over towards the beautiful dark-skinned girl with greater speed than a fugitive on the run.