Into The Shadows

Chapter 1

“Let’s go!”I squealed in excitement. We flung off our shoes, and sprinted down to the beach. I glanced over my shoulder and saw all of the boys doing the same. The teachers were still walking down the hill, smiling and shaking their heads at us. I heard shrieks from the girls around me, and when my feet met the water, I understood why. The water was freezing! I quickly jumped back onto the sand, and all of the other girls did the same. We heard some of the guys laugh behind us.

“What a bunch of wimps,” one of them yelled. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see one of my best friends Melanie whip around to face the boys, but I stared at a rock in the distance. I let my gaze wander to the sky, as a flock of seagulls went by. The gentle sound of waves lapping at the shore made me completely calm. Too calm. I wasn’t prepared when Brice, the school asshole, grabbed me around the waist and chucked me up onto his shoulder. I was glad I did sit-ups each morning, making my abs stronger, otherwise he would surely have winded me. I pounded my fists on his back, but I was doing more damage to myself. Unfortunately, I haven’t taken up karate yet.

“Let go of me!” I screamed at him, rage bubbling up inside me. He walked towards the water, and in a matter of seconds it was up to his thighs. He was bald, had big muscles and a broad build. He was wearing a pair of blue board shorts. “Brice, stop it! It’s not funny! Put me down!”

He smirked.“Put you down?” He pretended to drop me into the water and managed to get my feet wet. I shrieked, and he put his hand over my mouth. He laughed cruelly and kept on walking so the water was up to his waist. I struggled to get his hand away from my mouth, but my efforts were discouraged with a slap to the face. I felt my eyes tear up and was enraged. His hand slid off my mouth a few seconds later anyway, and I let him have it.

“Brice! How dare you hit me! You-”

“Lillian, Lillian, Lillian.” He said over the top of me. His voice was far more overpowering than mine, so I stopped to save my breath for when he was finished. “Do you know what I do with things I don’t want to hear?” He waited for an answer but I didn’t give him one.

“I drown them out.” I saw an evil glint in his eyes as comparison dawned on my face. He must have seen it, because a wide grin spread out on his ugly face.

“Brice, please don-” He didn’t let me finish. My mouth, eyes and nose were flooded with sea water. I saw a shadow, almost like a drop of ink had been thrown into the water in front of me. The ink started to swirl and there seemed to be a hand shape forming. It was reaching towards my face. The sharp nails were getting closer and closer to me as if it wanted to rip my face to shreds. I panicked, couldn’t breathe and was running out of air. I could still feel Brice’s grip on my waist and I tried to get free. He was too strong for me. I thought I was going to drown and I accidentally swallowed some water. I gaged and clawed at the arms holding me down.

He must have got the signal, because I was lifted up above the water’s surface, but I could still see the hand searching for me in the water. I sucked in a few gulps of air before I coughed out the water that entered my lungs. I looked up into Brice’s amused face, and was about to spit at him, when I felt his muscles tighten once more. I sucked in one last breath of air before getting submerged in water again. I had more oxygen in my lungs this time, so I knew I could last longer, but not too long. I opened my eyes and, past the inky shape of the hand, I saw the faint outline of someone’s green board shorts.

There was someone coming towards us. Towards me. Coming to my rescue? Or to help Brice? I tugged at Brice’s arms to make him let me resurface, but he didn’t budge. The person was almost upon us now and I desperately needed air.

The hand was coming for me, making me panic even more. The hand was just about to reach my face when I heard the muffled sound of someone talking. It must have startled Brice because he let go of me completely, and the hand disappeared. I didn't think anything of it because I was in need of oxygen. I resurfaced and took a deep, shuddering breath of air. I wiped my eyes and looked up to see who had come to my rescue. He had light brown hair, and emerald green eyes with flakes of gold that sparkled in the sunlight. I had never seen him before.

“Leave her alone.” I heard him saying. He turned to me, “Are you ok?” His emerald eyes looked generally concerned.

“I think I’ll manage.” I tried to stand up, but lost my balance and fell over with a splash. I felt my cheeks heat up, and my head start to spin.

“Whoa, take it slow. Let me help you.” He held out his hand and helped me stand up. I was still very wobbly on my feet, and I swayed a bit.

Before I knew it, his arm was around my shoulders, and he was scooping my up into his arms. I flinched away from him when I saw the inky looking shadows forming in the air in front of us. My breath quickened, and my whole body went tense. The shape took a while to form this time and I was expecting the hand to come back to try and claw my face. To my surprise, I saw a blue bird appear and start flying around. The bird was created in black, more like a 3D silhouette, but somehow I still knew it was a bluebird. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his eyes follow the bird around and I could tell he could see it too.

He whispered in my ear, “I’m not going to hurt you.”

I realised I was still tense and the look in his eyes told me that he was telling the truth. I decided to trust him and relaxed. When the wind picked up I started shivering, and he pressed me closer to his body. I continued to stare at the bird feeling to amazed to ask any questions. I could feel his muscles work effortlessly as he carried me away from Brice. I listened to his heartbeat, matched my breathing to his and felt my shivering subdue.

When we got to the sand, he carried me over to a pile of towels. He lowered me gently onto one and wrapped me up with another. The bird had followed us for the whole time, never straying far from the boy. He lingered before letting go of my hand, making sure my eyes were on the bird. The moment he let go, the bird disappeared. Without another word to me, he walked away. I tried to go after him but my knees were still weak and my head still spinning.

“Thank you,”I called after him. I didn’t get a reaction.