Off The Map

January 6, 1999

"Jack hurry the fuck up and go!" Charlie jokingly shouted. It was 4 am and Jack, Ellie, Charlie and Liv were tow surfing sand dunes in some beach in Sydney- they weren't even sure of the name. "I'm going! jack retaliated as he pulled the rope out of Liv's hand and stood on the finless surfboard. Ellie began driving and made it two metres before jack faceplanted in the sand creating significant hysteria amongst the group. Any normal person would have thought the were a bunch of teenagers off their heads at the way they were laughing, tears ran down Charlies face as ellie came out of the car, laughing so hard she fell to her knees, but these impressions would be wrong. The group didnt drink or to drugs of any sort- this was the blissful appearance of pure happiness. "Yeah no i'm going next go Ellie" charlie managed to say inbetween laughter.
Without missing a beat, Charlie was on the board being towed beautifully. He gracefully carved up the sand dune and down into the ocean, even managing to catch a wave, much to Jack's dismay, he was still claiming that Ellie towed him on a funny angle to start off. That's just who these teenagers were, quite possibly the most alive, happiest people on the earth.

November 9, 1999

Young, wild, and free.
Ellie and jack Cromwell were the carefree, happy people that the general population aspired to be. Two beautiful blond twin surfers from Manly Sydney Australia with shockingly striking blue 'ocean eyes' ;as they had been described by numerous people their entire lives and a tightly-knit bunch of best friends that meant the world to one another.
Ellie and jack were small town celebrities in Sydney- they chased adventure and experiences to the ends of the world. "It's better to die happy and young, than of old age having lived your life waiting for the perfect moment, only to realise you lived it a thousand times and did not grasp it."

Poetically happy teenagers - until their world was flipped and turned.
Jack was injured in a car accident- not quite the way he had envisaged dying- not the way ellie had envisaged their parting, but today's the day Ellie visits the hospital for the last time to pull the plug on his life support.

The weather was miserable as she drove through the busy Sydney traffic, there was almost always traffic on rainy days despite the less cars trying to make their way through the windy streets.
Eventually, Ellie pulled into the carpark of the large building, however to her it was not a relief to be out of the car; this was the part she was dreading. She had been to visit Jack in hospital every day since his car was totalled by a drunk driver but today was the last, and the hardest visit. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion from Ellies perspective, however from just outside her small bubble of the universe today was just a normal day to do normal things and see normal people and eat normal foods. But Ellie was struggling to comprehend any of that. Today was the hardest day of her life.
Upon entering the hospital, Ellie assumed she must have looked like she was on her way to the psychiatrist, timid and shaking, unable to make eye contact or present any form of facial expression. Her usual tanned complexion was now pale, and her usually beautiful blonde hair was rough and messy but her piercing blue eyes were bluer than ever.
Ellie slowly stepped out of the lift and made her way down the hall, beds full of lively patients and families faced with hope were lining the walls. Doctors working in the paediatric facility covered in happy coloured ribbons and pink scrubs only made ellie feel more disconnected from the world. Her steps slowing one by one, knowing that the faster she walked, the sooner she would have to face the inevitable. She reached room c71, a small silver rectangle just below the window on the door with C71 engraved was the focus of Ellies attention for a good minute, finally, a without overthinking it ellie took a deep breath and opened the door.

A large part of her hoped that she would open the door to Jack asking how her day was, sitting up with his eyes open reading a book or literally showing any signs of not being as brain dead as the doctors had assured Ellie that he definitely was.

She laid eyes on him, his pale skin as lifeless as ever and his eyes- you guessed it- closed. The doctor was already in there, had his cloth all laid out and was ready to begin. Ellie panicked. She was definitely not ready. This is when everything hit her like a rough shore break, as much as she could pretend she was strong and okay with this she was most definitely not. Losing her twin brother? Her best friend of 18 years?
She made sudden eye contact with the doctor and began rapidly shaking her head. Tears spilled from her eyes "n-no.. no".

The doctor made his way over in an attempt to calm her, he began talking and reached out his hand to her shoulder, but in a quick moment involving not a lot of actual thought, almost as though a reflex action Ellie slapped his hand away and began running towards the door and down the stairs so that the doctors could not catch her. She slammed down into her car seat, shaky hands stretched out onto the steering wheel and placed the keys into the ignition.

This was the last time Ellie Cromwell was seen; November 9 1999

August 26, 1998

"I don't know what do do Jack"
Charlie brushed his hand up through his messy blonde hair in frustration, slightly confused as to why he had chosen jack, of all people, to confide in.
Despite jack being his best friend for as long as he could remember, it was a bit of a weird choice to tell your best friend that you were head over heels in love with his sister. "It feels like everything inside of me is burning and i don't know what to do with that"
Jack didn't really know what to say. Charlie and ellie had been friends since before kindergarten, and until this moment- charlie believed that he and Ellie had a very brother-sister relationship.
"Tell her man, you never know" Jack responded, despite the fact that he was aware whether ellie currently knew it or not she was also in love with Charlie. You could see it in the way she talked about him, the way her eyes lit up at the mention of his name or that she subconsciously became more energetic when he was around.
"I can't- if she doesn't feel the same way it will ruin what we have, for all four of us"
"Mate, don't worry about Liv and I, this is about you"
"I don't want to lose her, what if she's only ever seen me as a friend" This was true, Jack thought. She has confused genuinely caring for someone with being in love with them for a long time. Jack had never asked her simply because he knew she'd laugh and deny it.
"Charlie, Liv and I have been talking about this for years" jack said, finally finding his voice "the only people who didn't know you Loved Ellie and Ellie loved you were you and Ellie, I know it, Liv knows it, our parents know it"
"But i've only felt this way for about a year" charlie retaliated. But it was true. The only people who couldn't see that Charlie and Ellie belonged together were Charlie and ellie.
"Have you? Or have you only known what you were feeling for a year?"

This was the first of many moments where Charlie had began to accept that had been and always will be in love with his best friend.

He talked it out with jack about the benefits and issues that could arise from telling Ellie for hours and hours until the sun began rising through the window and the two boys' eyes were beginning to involuntarily droop closed.
Eventually they both fell asleep sprawled across the in positions that did not look very comfortable to the onlooker. Charlie's head was almost on the floor and .his arm was draped across the mattress almost appearing to have more joints than one would consider normal.

It was now 10 in the morning, Ellie and liv stood above the sleeping boys wondering what the worst possible way would be to wake them up. Liv wrapped her arm around Jack's neck and yelled in his ear. He jolted awake instantaneously the shock caused him to fall of the bed with a thud, taking liv with him. The noise woke Charlie up, he opened his eyes to see Ellie sitting next to him laughing and couldnt help but think to himself how beautiful she was, her blonde hair cascading down her back, her tanned skin glowing even in the dimly lit room. Charlie even suspected her eyes could literally shock someone solely based on appearance. She wore a yellow 'thrills' tshirt with blue mom jeans finishing at her ankles. She turned her gaze to him, still laughing at the antics of her brother. Charlie just smiled. The most beautiful girl in the world was sitting right infront of him.