The memories are still vivid - December 26th plays like a movie in my mind.

I flew in the afternoon of December 24th, with my best friend, my parents, and my younger brother. The plane ride was long, tiring and seemed to drag on for hours and hours. I remember how my five-year-old brother, Mason, had his nose glued to the window as the plane flew over the Indian Ocean, his eyes filled with wonder. Never had he ever seen anything like it. He'd been begging my parents to bring him to the beach all month. 

When the plane landed in Thailand, he looked up at me and beamed. "We're here."

Then he unclasped his seatbelt, jumped up, and spent the rest of the day asking to go to the beach, tugging at our shirts and trying to get our attention. "Can we go now? Please?"

"We have to get to our hotel and unpack first," my parents told him, "and tomorrow's Christmas. We'll go on Boxing Day."

And so on December 26th, everyone woke up early. By the time I got out of bed, Mason had already put on his swimsuit. His face white with sunscreen, he looked up at me and grinned. "Come on, Ava! Go and put on your bathing suit! We're going to the beach!"

--

December 26, 2004

The beach was quiet.

Mason planted his feet into the ground, a smile spread across his face. The sun glinted against the ocean, the pale sand stretching across the beach, puddles of shallow water scattered along the ground. The tide seemed oddly low.

"I'm gonna go look for fish," Mason grinned. I smiled to myself and watched him run off, his small silhouette sprinting towards the ocean.

There was this couple. They were smiling and filming videos of each other, laughing. I looked at them and flattened out a towel against the sand, lying down on it and spending the next few minutes letting the sun press its heat against my skin.

"Ava," said a familiar voice. I turned in the direction the voice came from, the sun hitting my eyes. My vision slowly coming into focus, I saw the view of the sky. Mason stood in front of me, a blue bucket in his hands. "Come build a sandcastle with me!"

I smiled a little and shook my head. "No thanks."

"Come on, Ava. Please? You promised!"

I had promised. I sat up, squinting. "Yeah, you're right."

"So can you?"

"Can I what?"

"Build a sandcastle."

I glanced at Piper, my best friend, and smiled at him. "No. But you can ask Piper."

"No." He frowned, crossing his arms tightly. He glared at me for a few seconds, but after a while of me just smiling and not saying anything, he realized I wasn't going to budge. He quickly replaced his expression with a pleading look. "Please?"

I shook my head, lying back down on my towel and closing my eyes. "No means no."

There was a long pause until finally he sighed and said, "Fine."

"Did you see any fish?" I asked him.

"No," he muttered, "but I guess I'll go continue looking."

"Sounds like a good idea."

He breathed out another sigh. "See ya."

With that, I heard his small footsteps walking away, drifting off into the distance. I let the sun stare down at me, listening to the calming sound of the waves crashing onto the shore, accompanied by the laughs of the couple beside us. Then I heard small giggles, followed by a cold liquid hitting the surface of my skin. I flinched and opened my eyes, only to see the shadow of a small child tilting over a heavy pail.

"Mason!" I shouted. He laughed, his toes curled deeply into the sand.

I stood up from my towel and planted my feet into the ground, wiping off the water from my skin. He darted away, giggles escaping his lips as he sprinted across the beach. "Race you!" he snickered.

I breathed out a laugh and followed him, my legs moving as fast as they could.

Then something caught my eye.

The sky; it grew darker. The wind strengthened. I stopped in my tracks and heard someone yell something in a language I didn't understand. I looked over my shoulder and glanced at my family. They were gesturing for me to come over. I caught a glimpse of the couple that was sitting beside them. The girl pointed towards the ocean. My gaze followed. My blood froze.

A wall of water came charging from the distance; the tide coming back all at once.

I don't know how to describe how I felt in that moment; it was a mixture of fear and denial and doubt. All I could do was keep staring at the enormous wave, unsure of what to do. Was I supposed to run? No, I corrected myself. The wave wouldn't make it that far onto the shore.

I looked around, catching sight at people evacuating the beach. Others just stood, like me, staring blankly as the wave approached the beach.

I spun around in search for Mason, but he was nowhere in sight. My eyes darted to every corner, but distance had swallowed him into its path and he had disappeared. I needed to find him. I needed to get him off of the beach.

The next thing I knew, someone grabbed onto my hand. I twirled around and saw a familiar face attempting to pull me away. It was Piper, her eyes swarmed with worry. "Come on, Ava. We have to go."

"No. Wait-"

"Everyone's leaving. It's obviously not safe. Come on, let's go!"

"No!" I said again, this time raising my voice. "We have to find Mason! He kept running, and now I don't know where he went and-"

"Your dad's gone to look for him. Come on. We have to go."

I yanked my arm away and backed away from her, my heart beginning to race.

"Mason?" I shouted. No answer.

People ran. People screamed. Others just stood in fear.

The wave was getting closer, and I didn't know what to do. My heart pounded inside of my chest, anxiety crawling inside of my stomach. I could feel sweat beading at my forehead, stress swelling inside of me, spreading through my entire body. I couldn't breathe. I heard an ear-splitting noise from behind me, seemingly getting closer and closer. Screams, cries, objects being slammed and crushed... The wave crashing onto the shore. Closer, and closer, and closer.

"Mason!" I screamed, before turning around and catching a glimpse at the tidal wave just inches away. I gasped, squeezing my eyes shut before the impact hit me.

--

It took me a while to process the fact that I was under water. Every time I tried sucking in a breath, liquid filled my lungs. I attempted coughing it up, but found myself swallowing more water each time I tried. I reached upward, waving my hand back and forth in an attempt to find the surface.

With a loud thud, something heavy hit my head. I saw a flash of light and found myself not being able to think clearly. Pain spread through my body and my vision blurred. I was in a blending machine, being tossed and turned with sticks and stones and water.

One of the things I remember thinking about was my brother, wondering if he had been able to outrun the wave. Maybe he had made it to higher ground. Maybe someone had saved him.

Then I thought of my father, wondering if he had found Mason. Maybe he did. Maybe when Piper had said he had gone to look for him, she was telling the truth, and he had really found him and I was just being melodramatic. Maybe they were both okay.

I thought of Piper, wondering where she was. She had been trying to help me, but I had denied it. Now she was stuck in the same situation, because of me. Or maybe not. Maybe somehow she'd made it out of the water and she was safe, with the rest of my family.

I thought of my mother, wondering what had happened to her. Maybe she had gone with my dad to go find Mason. Maybe all four of them were safe.

Finally, my face hit the surface. A breeze of coldness struck me as I gasped for air, coughing up the murky water that had made its way down my throat. I was a little dazed, but I remember seeing the sky, a million thoughts spiraling through my head so quickly I couldn't focus. Heavy objects rammed straight into my body; sticks and stones, scratching and stabbing at my skin - but strangely enough, I couldn't feel anything.

When I realized how much danger I was really in, I dived forward, grabbing onto a chunk of wood. I clung to it, floating past a building that had not yet collapsed. A boy jogged along side of me and extended his hand. I grabbed onto it, pleading that he'd help me.

"Help!" I yelled, "Get me out of here!"

"Hold on!" he said, his face contorted with fear.

"I'm trying!" I shouted. I tried keeping a firm grip, but my fingers began to slip. A scream ripped out from my throat. "Help!"

A worried look filled his eyes. "Shh, calm down! Just... Hold on. It'll be all right."

"Please!" I sobbed.

The current grew stronger, and I could feel the boy's grip tightening. The current kept pulling me away, objects stabbing into my skin. My fingers continued to slide down his hand. "No!" I cried.

"Hold on!" he repeated.

A heavy object crashed directly into my arm, causing an awful sound. It pulled me away from him. My hand let go of his and the wave carried me away, leaving me screaming and struggling to grab onto things.

I let out a cry, pain crawling up my arm as I crashed into a tall, skinny tree. I did everything in my power to cling to it - used all of the energy I could find. Don't let go, I told myself, don't you dare let go.

I feared the tree would collapse, but still, I hugged onto it tightly. I squeezed my eyes shut, listening to the sound of messy waves splashing around me. I tried to ignore the screams of the people surrounding me. In an attempt to muffle the noise, I buried my face into the tree, screaming until my lungs ran out of air. This was how I was going to die.

I tried thinking of something else, but couldn't. The water roared and the screams were impossible to drown out.

Then, after what seemed to be forever, the water calmed.

Carefully, I took a deep breath and used the time to observe my surroundings.

Wreckage of buildings invaded the streets. Everything had become part of an everlasting current; one in which it seemed to be impossible to escape from. Objects, cars, and even people floated past me. I closed my eyes tightly, trying to convince myself that what was happening wasn't real - that I was dreaming.

I heard the gut-wrenching sound of people yelling in different languages. I cried for help just as everyone else did, but I knew very well that there was no one that could save me.

"Mom! Dad!" I screamed. No answer. "Piper! Mason!"

My fingers began to slip, and the roughness of the bark scratched against my palms. I felt helpless, weak. Yet still, I told myself not to let go.

"It'll all be over soon," I whispered to myself, breaths shaky, hands trembling. It'll all be over soon. But little did I know, this was just the beginning.

A/N: First of all, thank you for clicking onto to this book. I really hope you enjoyed this first chapter :) If you did, feel free to leave comments, questions, etc. I love reading and replying to your feedback c: Updates coming soon!

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