Littleton

Chapter 1: Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel

The sun beats down over Oceana Shores beach with its bright glare. There isn't a single cloud visible in the blue skies this fine afternoon. But despite the hotness, there are a lot of people present to enjoy the sunny day. Summertime has just begun, and the white sand beach is only one of the many destinations in my old town of Littleton.

I survey the place from an elevated sand hill spot, the red parasol umbrella protecting me from sunlight. A bead of sweat rolls down the side of my head, and I absentmindedly wipe it off with the back of my hand.

People are milling about, happy to be walking on the warm sands. Most of the kids are enjoying the cool water of the bright blue sea while some of the adults are content with staying on the shore.

Not far from where I am, a rowdy group of eight teenagers are playing volleyball. There are four people on each team, and all of them are wearing big smiles on their faces. I watch as the ball bounced back and forth over the net until a lithe teen manage to score against the enemy team with a fantastic spike, earning his team a point.

I let out a sigh. I wish I was part of their fun or any fun for that matter! It would've been nice if Alex was here, but he won't be back for a couple of days. This leaves me with no other kid to play with but it doesn't mean I can't surf all by myself.

I jump up and stretch my limbs. I might as well ride the waves while the sun is still high up. Equipped with my swim goggles, blue whistle necklace, and my trusty surfboard, I head towards the ocean to try my luck. Hopefully, I get to meet someone interesting before the day ends; anything to make this day any less boring.

...

The sun dipped down over the horizon, painting the sky with a shade of blue, orange, and purple, casting a serene spectacle of lights that dances on the water's surface. I can't help but be mesmerized by it. Whenever my legs start to grow tired of the sea, I go and find a nice spot for me to enjoy this beautiful sight. Because even though I've seen this view countless times, it still takes my breath away.

My revelry is suddenly broken when I catch sight of something out in the sea. There's another kid still playing in the water, perhaps he's trying to enjoy the last few minutes of the sun because people usually leave the beach around this time due to the high tide.

The high tide...?

I do a double-take and squint my eyes at the boy. From this sandy hill, I can tell that something about his movements doesn't sit right with me. Now it's clear to me that he's in the deep part of the water, and he's flailing a lot. Way too much. My eyes widen at the realization that this boy is struggling to stay afloat. He's drowning.

My heart leaps up to my throat. Without hesitation, I jump down my spot and go into full sprint across the beach. There are so many things running through my mind, but I don't have the time to process all of them. But one thing keeps repeating inside my head, something my dad likes to continuously remind me of: "If you're in trouble, just blow the whistle."

Time is of the essence here. I grab the whistle around my neck and blow it with all the air my lungs could muster. A loud, high pitched sound tears through the air, attracting the gaze of the few beach goers who are still present in the area. One person finally notices what's happening and he yells, 'there's someone drowning!'

I rush towards the water, put my goggles in place, and take one last deep breath before plunging into it. Adrenaline courses through my veins as I swim towards the drowning boy. I get close enough to the kid, who's thrashing violently now, his blonde hair bobbing up and down the water.

"Hey, grab my hand!" I yell and extend an arm to him.

He grabs my whole arm, his nails digging deep through my skin, and threatens to bring me down with him. I grit my teeth at the sharp pain and pull away. He's panicking way too much to follow my instructions! I try to go from behind him to get my other arm around his body but without warning, he drops beneath the surface and vanishes into the water.