Tide

Chapter 14

Isaac and I managed to get a ride to the hospital. I'd asked Piper to come with us, but she was tired and hadn't slept all night, so I decided to leave her be. As we drove away, I gazed at the rows of rotting bodies laying on the ground. I noticed a woman cradling the lifeless figure of a small child. A man yelled someone's name, observing each and every corpse with dread. An innocent toddler covered his eyes as his father held his hand. Together, they walked through the remains of the victims of 2004.

I felt tears beading in my eyes, but quickly hid the evidence of them by wiping them away.

"I'm sorry about Piper," I muttered as we got closer to town. I figured maybe if I spoke to Isaac, it would distract me from my surroundings.

"It's fine," he said. "I don't take it personally."

I opened my mouth to say something, but then quickly closed it. I felt a lump growing in my throat. "W-What," I began, struggling to get the words out. I took a deep breath. "What do you think happens if we never find our family?"

The question seemed to catch him off guard. For a minute, he just watched the view as we drove along the road without saying anything. I waited for him to reply.

"I don't know," he said finally. "I... I guess you'd have to find someone to take you in and live with them until a proper solution is found, right?"

"Yeah," I sighed, looking away from him. "I guess so."

As we got closer to our destination, something caught my eye; a small kid was wearing a blue swim guard - the same colour Mason had been wearing the day the wave had hit. He was running around and then disappeared behind a corner. I'd only caught a glimpse at him, but suddenly my heart was racing. Mason, I thought. That's Mason.

I was sure of it.

My tremulous fingers met the buckle of my seatbelt, quickly unclasping it.

"Stop the car!" I shouted, my heart pounding like a drum. "Stop the car!"

The driver obeyed and slammed on the breaks, sending me lurching forward. Without thinking, my hands connected to the door handle, yanking it open.

"Ava, what are you doing?" Isaac said.

"Mason! I saw him!" I pranced from my seat and bolted into the streets, immediately heading in the direction I saw him.

When I got there, there were a few children in sight, but no signs of my younger brother.

"Mason?" I said, my eyes scanning the area. The children stared at me, confused expressions on their faces. "Mason?" I said a little louder, my throat tightening as I spoke. I spun in all directions, my eyes darting to every corner, observing each and every child and hoping to catch a glimpse at my brother. Please, I thought. I need to see him. "Mason!" I screamed. Wherever he was, that scream could have been loud enough for him to hear anywhere in the world. I was desperate, now. I just wanted to see my little brother. I'd give anything to see him one last time.

At the corner of my eye, I could see Isaac jogging towards me.

"Ava, are you all right?" he asked. "What happened?"

"I-I saw him!" I said, choking on my words. "I saw Mason!"

I was crying now, shaking and clinging to Isaac's arm for support. The memories came flooding back again. I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing they'd just go away.

"Where?" Isaac asked me.

Then I saw the kid who was wearing the blue swim guard. He was about five or six, and he had dark brown hair. It wasn't my little brother.

I fell to my knees, my heart sinking to the pit of my stomach. For a moment I just sat there, staring blankly at the ground, unable to breathe. It felt like there was a weight on my chest - a weight of guilt so unbearably heavy I wanted to scream. Instead, I ran my hands through my hair and stayed silent. I remembered the day at the beach; how I had lost sight of Mason and couldn't warn him about the wave. This was all of my fault.

Isaac kneeled down next to me. "Ava?"

"I could have saved him," I breathed.

"What?"

"I could have saved him," I repeated. "The day it all happened; I lost sight of Mason minutes before the wave hit. When I turned back around, he was nowhere in sight."

Isaac said nothing.

"It was too late," I continued. "I-It was too late! T-Time was running out, and the wave was getting closer, and I couldn't... I couldn't find him!"

"Ava..." Isaac said calmly. "There was no way you could have known."

"If I hadn't lost him... Maybe he could have gotten to higher ground. I don't know what happened to him after, Isaac. He was only five! He didn't know how to swim. It was the first time he'd ever even seen the ocean. Seeing a huge wave like that... H-He wouldn't have known... Oh god, Isaac. I wish... I wish I would have--"

"Ava," Isaac cut me off, taking my hands and running his thumbs over my knuckles. He stared at me, his voice coming out soft. "There was nothing you could do. Everyone tried to get away from the wave, Ava. Everyone wishes they could have done something differently. But there's nothing we can do to change the past."

"Isaac, I could have--"

"No, Ava. Listen to me. Don't you dare blame yourself."

"H-He was--"

"There's nothing we can do now, Ava. I'm sorry. It's hopeless."

A/N: Thank you for reading! Once again, feel free to comment any feedback or requests:)

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