TW // drowning, blood

( ARIA'S POV )

THE RAIN POURED. The flames burning through the trees were no more. We'd lost a roof over our heads, and we were soaked.

     "How the fuck did you just do that?" Miren asked Giovani, who struggled to dry his clothes amidst the cascading rain.

     "I don't know!" He shouted, the sound of the crying heavens increasing by the minute.

     The branches were bare, and the bark looked of ashes that were sculpted into the shape of a trunk. The chances of finding a covering was down by eighty percent. Of all places— it just had to be a garden overflowing with beauty and life.

     "So," Issac started. "When does your gift stop giving?" He asked, managing to keep his usual moderate— and almost amused— tone.

     "Any time now," Giovani answers with sarcasm. The rain trickled down our lips and onto our chests, making a usual conversation hard to hold. Nodding our heads down couldn't make the situation any better. It was difficult to breathe, the lack of oxygen—

     Oxygen.

     How could I have almost forgotten about the plaque? Was it wrong that I'd rather think of the mystery than how we all plan on avoiding a fever tonight?

     My eyes shifted from the plaque, then onto Haven. My eyes widened at the sight, causing me to punch an elbow onto Mateo's rib.

     "Haven— your shirt."

     It caught everyone else's attention, directing their gaze onto Haven. And her awfully see-through shirt. The rain must've soaked through, her top going from opaque to translucent. The girl looked down to her chest, gave it a good stare, before meeting our eyes with no change in emotion whatsoever.

     "So?" Haven asked, like it was a perfectly normal situation.

     Mateo promptly took his polo off, revealing a white tank top underneath. He forcefully threw his garment towards Haven, giving her a swift look saying: cover yourself up, in a protective manner.

     Slowly, I felt lesser and lesser droplets of rain bouncing off my shoulder, which meant the gift bestowed upon us had almost withered away. I could hear everyone's sighs of relief.

     The raindrops remained on my cheeks however, still as a picture frame. If you looked close enough, you might see a hazy reflection of yourself.

     "You're in charge of damage control," Nayari told Giovani, giving him a stare that burned through his chest. The curls in her hair seemed to have multiplied, and her knitted sweater felt like a baggage to be carried over her shoulders.

     MY HAIRBRUSH REFUSED to comb through my hair. Adding more force by the minute seemed to have made it worse. The once soft, wavy strands turned damp and uncontrollable.

The boys could care less about their hairdo, weaving their fingers through their locks in a swift motion. Nayari and I struggled the most, considering we both have naturally volumed hair.

Then— there was our clothes. If anyone else could see us in the present moment, they'd say we look like wet rats, which couldn't be farther from the truth.

Our field trip bags and the items inside were drenched. Though I wrapped the covers of my books with plastic, the pages presented a different story. A memorable one, at that.

It took me a few swipes and clicks to able my phone to work, but it kept glitching every once in a while. I stared at my lockscreen— still vigorously brushing my hair— reading through the expressions of me and my mom. It was a photo from over a year ago, when I dragged us to a popular amusement park at 5 in the morning. My mom might have been cranky at first, but seeing that we were the first few in line for multiple rides, it was worth it. I wonder if she's looking for me. Feeling incomplete— losing yet another member of the family, just for a moment.

I hadn't noticed my fingers lifting themselves from the grasp of the handle, letting someone else take over in dealing with the mess I call my hair.

"I hope you don't mind," a voice asked.

Miren. She kept her fingers near the roots, preventing pain to surge through me as she forced the brush through. My head rocked back and forth slightly, giving into her gesture.

Issac's gaze moved from Giovani to me, raising his eyebrows in a teasing manner, paired with a tucked smile. The girl behind me hadn't seemed to notice, as she crinkled her eyebrows in laser focus.

"What now?" Peter asked, wearing his best grin. I remembered overhearing Issac's nickname for him the other day— Peter Pan. The resemblance was both great and minimal.

Haven catches his attention, pointing towards the plaque. It was refreshing to know I wasn't the only one with a lingering thought. She looks over at Mateo, who had yet to retrieve his polo shirt. He made a tick! sound by repelling his tongue.

Mateo and Haven seemed to have a certain appeal that put both of them on a makeshift pedistal. Without speaking a single word, they understood the message of the other.

"We should eat first, I can make more tea," Mateo suggested. My eyes instantly widened, unaware that I was inching closer to him.

Mateo held a hand out to me, waving his index finger. "Not you— my tea is a perk for those who only woke up when the fire broke out." He winked.

"You would've been dead without us— just saying," I retorted.

     "IS THIS SAFE?"

     After figuring out the possible meanings of oxygen, we located them one by one. Deciding the river should be last— considering we'd been bathed in the heavens' tears— we began our search for a nearby cave.

     "We've walked around this place a few times, it's perfectly safe!" Giovani said, who's been forced by all of us to only speak sarcasm in a positive manner.

     The sun lit up the forest grounds, shades of green with a hint of yellow. I could be put in the most difficult situation right now, and I'd still be walking on sunshine.

     Bees chattered, while the birds sung. Caterpillars crawled, while butterflies flew. The whole area overflowed with life, the luscious and natural beauty of springtime embraced me softly.

     Towards the right side of the river sat a mountain-like structure made entirely out of stone and gravel. Nayari and Haven decided it would be the best place to look, considering caves were built out of the same resources.

     "Do we know until where the border extends to?" Peter asked, sliding himself down the garden wall. We had been trapped in a sphere— that was a known fact. With the trees bare from this morning's incident, becoming aware of our surroundings was easier. Therefore, getting all of us back on track.

     "You tell me, Peter Pan," Issac mentioned, walking peacefully with his thumbs wrapped around the pockets of his jeans. Nobody paused their movement, but curiosity did light a match in our heads.

     I had been the one to ask, "Peter Pan?"

     Peter shook his head repeatedly, eyeing me and Issac back and forth. He had the look of a typical teenager who was done with someone's bullshit.

     "Well this is interesting," Haven added.

We continued our adventure, attempting to find a cave nearby. "Yeah, because the next thing you know, he's going to kidnap you to some faraway land." Issac motioned his fingers, making jazz hands.

     I could hear the fire burning on his tongue. "Iss, dearest, I'm politely asking you to shut the fuck up."

     About this time, we slowly approached a ruptured cobblestone path from the previous dirt. Meters of stone stretched high up, and though it was mesmerizing to see snaking roots and moss buildup crawling its way down, I was much more interested at the structure waiting down below.

     Branching trees framed the edges of the rocky entrance, where angel vines solemnly hung from. The river extended into the feet of the cavern, hues of yellow and green reflecting onto the walls. Dainty flowers aplenty sprouted by the miniscule pools of water, restoring life into what was once a lonesome cave.

     But what truly caught my eye, was the shape of the cavity hidden inside, where the sunlight entered. It was imperfectly round, but considering the direction of the sun, it formed a heart, with the other half resting as a reflection in the water.

The inside, much like the outside, was overrun by nature. All the trees were similarly thin and leafy— except for one.

This one was made of closely packed bamboo, having dull colors such as ecru and beige. You could hear the distant tapping within it's interior, almost as if there were a hundred woodpeckers residing inside. The petite, olive green leaves barely swayed, and the branches were awfully thin and yellow. There was nothing special about it— yet it was, because it stood out among the rest.

Nayari and Giovani took the pleasure of leading the way, their boots and sneakers splashing circular waves of water. We were all in awe of the sight, it was a wonder to behold than what we were used to.

"Can we camp in here?" Haven asked, her white top flowing to the gentle breeze. Her hair was a luscious, dark chocolate brown, with highlights stroking her curtain bangs.

"If you like your pants drenched, sure."

I hadn't heard who spoke, the beauty of it all mesmerizing me.

"Let's focus on the task at hand," Miren spoke, the message directed to everyone, but her eyes locked onto me.

No more words needed to be said, because in an instant, we all walked towards different directions. Looking for anything— a chest, a door, a hidden compartment. We searched through the crevices, then the holes, in the trees, under the water pools, and even doing as much as following the direction of sunlight.

I spun around, in hopes it could just be hidden in plain sight. I examined the walls for writings, the flow of the water, the cave as a whole— nothing.

It wasn't here.

Giovani climbed up the bamboo-like tree for one last check, hitting his head onto the rocky interior in the process. He cursed under his breath, rubbing his scalp.

"Be careful," Nayari advised him.

     "I'M GONNA GO," Giovani announced. "Uh, don't die."

I chuckled at his remarks. After searching the cave— which came down to nothing— we decided to pursue our second and last location. The river stretched for what seemed like more than 20 feet, causing us all to have our fair share of searching ground.

Giovani and Nayari checked the deeper part of the river, which was nearest to the cave. The water levels ranged from knee-deep to just below your chest. I went for the level that reached my waistline, along with Issac.

     I took my jacket and jewelry off, leaving me in a gray tank top and cream palazzo pants. Issac's clothing went from winter to summer's day, leaving him with only knee-long shorts. They had a zipper line across the hem— presumably from the once long pants he had worn. He wasn't too bad on practicality.

I dove into the water, eyes open. I looked up to see Issac following, levelling with me underwater. As he spun around frantically, searching for anything out of the ordinary, I noticed a discoloring in his skin, specifically on his back, which turned out to be a bruise. Tiny scars trailed along his legs as well. Probably from his recklessness, I thought.

I tried not to put too much attention into it. Drifting away from him, I let my hands graze the stones, disarranging their placements. Different colored fishes emerged from their hiding holes, my heart leaping out of my chest for a second.

The current was soft but heavy, like a mattress. Or the surge of water you feel through a hose when filling up a swimming pool. I rose up for air, trying to hold my feet down.

Issac kept going. He swam quite gracefully, moving from one end to another. I held my tank top down, intensely tucking it into my pants. Issac might've caught a glimpse of my stomach or two, but it didn't matter, because I knew him. He may have never taken anything seriously, but he isn't a douche.

My eyes travelled from my right to my left. My eyes lingered onto Miren and Peter. The latter was surprisingly quiet, admiring the girl do her task. She wore a lilac spaghetti strapped top, that seemed as light as a feather. I could see her sitting along the edge, probably telling the boy to start looking as well.

Further along, I saw Haven and Mateo, who had the time of their lives. The former had to keep holding her skirt down, so as much as she loved water, Mateo performed most of the searching.

Finally, on the opposite end was Giovani, who forcefully held Nayari's shoulders down, sending them into the river. I expected the girl to scold at him, considering she knew her place when it came to Giovani— but instead, she smiled. And she laughed. He did, too.

"I'd like it better if my partner stopped sight-seeing," Issac told me, whom I hadn't noticed emerged from the water. Taking my wrist, he pulled me down, the both of us scouring our area for the fourth time. My eyes trailed from the rocky surface and onto his bruise. It didn't throb— but it remained there. I wanted to heal it, but it seemed it was already doing just that.

From the murky shadows below, we heard Nayari shouting, "Over here!"

THE PAIR HAD found a hole that stretched beyond their reach. The group so subtly volunteered for me to do the task. Now, my feet dangled in the water, and my ankles were held by Giovani. I don't know why I thought I'd trust him to do so, but it was done, and so far, I was safe.

There were pieces of wooden planks covering our ticket to the next part of the mystery, but I managed to rip them off. No nails or screws were attached, making it an easy attempt. I signalled to the boy to let go of my feet, allowing me to take in a breath of air.

Returning back underneath, my hands fumbled with stones, before sticking them out to grasp a small, wooden box. The colors were a mixture of different shades of brown, due to it being underwater for who knows how long.

I stretched my arms further, but I couldn't reach them. Giovani held my ankles tighter than before.

I tilted my head to see the group, eyeing me closely— counting on me. I pushed myself forward, with the boy following me.

I still couldn't reach it.

I needed air.

I looked back at Giovani, who stared into nothingness. I tried to scream, hoping he'd hear that I was drowning. My feet couldn't slip past his grasp, no matter how hard I pulled.

My eyes were hazy— I could no longer keep them open. My hands splashed on the surface, but I couldn't see if anyone noticed my situation.

Pull me up, please.

What was Giovani doing? Was he purposefully doing this— no. He wouldn't. No one in our group would. That was proven through-out the day and a half we spent together.

Finally letting myself loose, I swam up, but ultimately missed. I tasted a hint of blood floating in the water.

My head throbbed, but I was knocked out.

CHAPTER SUMMARY!
rain fell to cleanse away the fire. the group ventured to find the meaning of oxygen, where they searched a cave from one far end of the river && the river itself. after finding the supposed location of the item they're looking for, the situation backfired for both aria and giovani, resulting in aria being knocking out.

AMELIE SPEAKS!
i woke up at 3:30am and thought that writing was a great idea, and now it's 5:05. i'm running on 3 hours of sleep so you better appreciate this <3
( i had 1.3k words previously, then i wrote until it reached 2.6k !! )

anywhoooooo what do we think ??

i have all the love interests planned in my notes and oh my god i can't stop thinking about one of them, they just make perfect sense to me !

sorry for the unusual posting time && sched, school has been taking over but now i have 3 weeks of no classes, so expect quicker updates <3