We get on a boat, the captain is crazy and I nearly drown.
Yeah, but we went to the beach!
I hate the beach.
You never look on the bright side, do you?
No, because there's usually no such thing as  a "bright side".

*Celine*

Echo was dead to me.

Oliver told me about the video and the photos she took in the morning when she was looking for us, but tried to convince me she wouldn't use them for anything unless she wanted everyone to "Aw..." whenever she and my cousin glanced at each other.

He failed.

Look, I didn't really know what was going on between Oliver and I at the time, so I didn't want our personal moments to be known to everyone. They were, you know, personal.

Echo was invading that privacy, so if she kept that up I would have to invade her privacy too and she wouldn't like that, would she?

Ariadne and Damon woke up a good few hours after noon. Those sleepyheads stayed up late talking; I could hear them whispering while I was sleeping.

«Look at that! They decided to wake up!» Felix gasped when he saw them stretch.

«Save it for later, Taylor. I just woke up and I have every right to kill you.» Ariadne replied.

«Wow. Grumpy cat much?» Echo asked her. I don't know what grumpy cat they were referring to, but Ari seemed to get it, so I didn't ask.

«Grumpy cat is my spirit animal.» she yawned.

«I doubt that.» her boyfriend opposed as he sat up. We all looked away as they started kissing each other.

«Get a room, you two!» Echo yelled. They ignored her.

This went on for a couple days. We had fun in our little corner away from trouble, but we couldn't stay hidden forever. As much as we hated it, we had to fight back and fighting back meant problems, not only for Amon, but for us too. I had a bad feeling that this fight would not end well.

I mean, last time we didn't even know who we were up against and my parents died. Now that we are actually trying to fight the guy... Things were bound to be worse.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

That day we stayed in the barn. We were in no mood to go anywhere else because of extreme laziness and boredom. The following, though, we were in an adventurous mood.

We left for one of the surrounding villages. If you are still confused about those, imagine seeing a very dense forest from the sky and in that forest, there are small patches that "interrupt" the continue of the green. It's weird. I don't really know how to explain it. Imyrth is strange compared to Earth.

In short, Imyrth is a huge forest with small openings where people live. That's what they decided to turn into a country.

We woke up early and packed most of the money we had saved over the past two weeks. We were going to need some extra money to get swimsuits, because that village we were going to was next to a lagoon, so we were definitely going to go for a dive.

I was surprised to find out that Echo didn't know how to swim, so she wasn't going to buy anything or come swimming with us. She would just stay out and watch.

We arrived soon, as the village was just half an hour by car. It took us a bit longer on foot, but it wasn't as far as the center of Imyrth.

We immediately checked in in our rooms; one for the girls and one for the boys.

The rooms were bigger than we had expected. They were exactly the same, with two beds and a couch each. They were even connected through a door, but we couldn't find a key for it and it was locked, so I broke it with my powers (accidentally and in frustration).

That was added in our bill.

The next day we went swimming. Echo sat outside, fully clothed, with a ton of sunscreen and away from the sun, sipping sour cherry juice. Oliver kept mumbling that she owed him one of those.

We had lots of fun. We even threw a bucket of water on Echo while she was "shade-bathing", as she called it. She threatened that if we did that again she would burn our faces off. Literally.

At night we went over at a Seafood restaurant by the lagoon. We enjoyed the food there and went for a walk at the dock after.

When we were done we rented a boat and went out in the lagoon.

It was kinda late for that, but it was totally worth it. The stars, the water. Everything.

And then everything went to hell.

{Echo}

We were on the boat and it was freezing. Look, I don't know what Celine told you about the trip with the boat and how perfect it was, but it sucked for me.

First off, as I already told you, it was freezing and I was wearing summer clothes. Secondly, I can't swim.

Now, imagine you're in an emergency and you need to get of the boat because the boat itself fell on some stupid rocks. What are you going to do if you can't swim and there are no lifesavers aboard because you are the most unlucky person in the world? That's exactly what happened. Thank God for waterproof bags.

Now, there were a lot of things that happened before that and my brother would hate it if I missed an opportunity to embarrass myself (he would take the same opportunity later and make me look even worse), so I'm going to do him a favor.

You probably imagine I had a cheesy talk with Felix while we stared at the stars and the sea.

Not yet. That happened a while later.

Let's just say I had broken a couple rules when I brought food aboard the boat because the captain was all about having his vessel clean, whatever the hell that  means.

So, anyway, I'm sitting all my myself in the engine room, where no one can see me savoring this delicious chocolate, when suddenly the co-captain comes downstairs.

Hearing his footsteps, I eat the remaining chocolate and throw the paper behind me so he doesn't see it and tells his boss, because if he does we were to be in huge trouble.

As I walk by him to go upstairs, he has the great idea of having a small-talk with me.

Now, if I hate something more than Amon, that's small-talk.

It was awkward and I didn't really wanna talk, so it ended pretty quick and I was on my way, until he saw the crumbled chocolate wrapper.

«Were you eating aboard the boat?» he asked as I was about to climb the stairs. I stopped dead at my place.

«No...» I said hesitantly.

«Okay then. Must have been the previous guys.» he replied. That guy was dumber than he looked.

«Yeah, it must have...» I agreed and ran upstairs.

That dude was either very easy to fool or I was getting better at deceiving people. Either way that's a win-win.

I found the others outside. My brother was talking with Celine and Felix, while Ari and Alfred were making out a few feet later, making everyone who could see them awkward.

«Get a room, you two!» I laughed at them as I got out.

«Shut up, Waters.» Alfred interrupted their make-out session.

I approached the others.

«Was the chocolate good?» Celine asked me with a smirk.

«Shut up, they could hear you!» I replied.

«And do what? Throw you overboard?» Felix teased me.

«What's wrong with the fact that I can't swim, huh? A lot of people can't swim. I never got along with water, anyway. Even if I knew how to swim, I wouldn't. That's why I never learned how in the first place.» I ranted.

«We never said it was wrong! Why can't you take a joke?» Oliver laughed.

«Because if you take all the jokes they make of you, in the end you become the joke.» I replied.

«Wow. I never expect you to say something that deep!» Celine laughed too.

«See what I mean?» I asked my brother, pointing at Celine.

«Okay, little sis, you win this round.»

«I'm older.» I said seriously.

«Whatever helps you sleep at night.» Oliver replied and I burst out laughing. Not because of what he said, but because of Felix making faces behind my brother's back.

«What's so funny?» he asked faking being offended.

«Your face!» I said. That was meant for Felix, but Oliver didn't know that and thought I was talking about him.

«We bear a striking resemblance to each other, so you're laughing at your face too.» that made me laugh even harder, especially since Felix kept making faces.

Celine caught up too, and burst out laughing herself, so Oliver just stared at the both of us confused, while Felix managed to witness the entire scene, make faces and not laugh at us.

That's some great self-control right there.

Suddenly, the boat shook violently and we tried to keep our balance.

«What the hell was that?» Ariadne yelled at the captain.

«Rocks. It's dark and the sea is calm. It was hard to see them.» he replied shrugging.

«You were supposed to know your way around here!» Alfred told him.

«I do, I was just busy watching TV.» he told Damon. «I shouldn't have said that...» he added to himself.

«Yeah, don't try to go all Hagrid on us. At least whatever he said and wasn't supposed to, helped the gang out.» I argued.

The captain game me a confused look.

«Don't you have Harry Potter around here?» I whispered to Celine.

«We do. He must have not seen or read it. Magic is not that popular around here. It's not really considered fantasy...» Celine whispered back.

«Makes sense...» I shrugged.

«That's not the problem here! The boat is sinking!» Oliver yelled.

«Are there not any lifesavers?» I asked panicking at the thought of that.

«I'm sorry, but no. I left them  behind because I needed space for my laundry... My wife won't do it for me anymore.» the captain shook his head.

There weren't any lifeboats either. The boat itself was too small, and if I asked the captain, he would probably say that he left them behind because he couldn't find a parking spot at the dock. You never know.

My breathing quickened and my hands started shaking.

«What are we gonna do?» Oliver asked.

«I have no idea.» Felix replied.

Water was flooding the boat from everywhere.

And that, people, is why you need to know how to swim. Because you could get on a boat with a stupid captain at night, crash onto rocks and be left to drown with no lifesaver or lifeboat in the cold waters of a huge lagoon.

We had to jump off.

«Echo, come on. We'll keep you on the surface.» Oliver told me. I nodded, but as we reached the edge, I pulled back.

«The camera.» I whispered.

«What? Echo, where are you going?» Oliver yelled, but I was already getting into the captain's cabin, where I had left my bag. How convenient that it was waterproof!

Well, no. I always carry a waterproof bag whenever I go near the water. You never know what could happen. I don't want my stuff to be destroyed, so I keep them protected.

The cabin had flooded up to my knee. I looked around for the bag, but couldn't find it.

Now, you may ask, why did you risk your life for a stupid camera? Couldn't you get another? Didn't you already have one back home?

Well, yes. But this one had most of my memories from Imyrth. It was proof that I wasn't crazy or that it wasn't a dream. That camera kept me sane.

The water kept flooding in faster and faster. I found my bag and got out of the room. I was smart enough to leave the door open, so it wasn't stuck and I wasn't locked in.

The boat was sinking, so I had to jump in the water quickly. I couldn't see the others in the dark and I panicked.

I know what I did was stupid, but as wasn't thinking clearly; I jumped into the water. Alone. With no knowledge of how I would stay on the surface.

I struggled to keep myself above the water, but I kept sinking, much like the boat.

Soon, I was drifting into the darkness, unconscious, while I heard the others looking for me. I couldn't scream for help and I had given up all hope.