A Close Call

- "The passion of rescue reveals the highest dynamic of human soul" -

~ Kurt Hahn

The lake was a serene oasis, a beauty to behold, like a silver mirror. The water was clear and calm, reflecting the blue sky and the green trees. The sun shone brightly, creating sparkling ripples on the surface. A gentle breeze caressed the shore and washed their skins. Engulfed by the enchanting sounds of nature and birds chirping their late afternoon song, the teens were in awe.

"Don't you just love the sound of nature?" Francesca squealed with enthusiasm, cupping her face.

She plopped off her shoes and marched onto the dock with bare feet, filling her lungs with the refreshing cool air.

The lake was approximately three buildings away from the school and was used regularly by fishermen and locals within the area as a source of fish. Thus, it didn't take a lot to get there and once they were, everyone found a good enough tree and hung their bags, hurrying to join Francesca on the dock. All except Emma. As a matter of fact, her heart was pounding though she showed no signs of such. She felt out of place. The thought of dropping her standards was stifling. Why was she here in the first place? It was unlike her, she thought. She had to find the opportunity to politely decline before it was too late. After all, she was only there, playing the role of class representative, not as a 'friend' or 'classmate.'

"I didn't think Emma would be here to join us at all! So nice to see you Emma!" Hailey mentioned happily.

She had short black hair in a pixie cut and bright apple green doe eyes which sparkled with innocence.

Emma, who remained at a distance, made a small smile. "Only for a few minutes and then Sanchez and I-"

"... will go for a swim with you guys soon!" Liam interrupted.

She gazed at the boy with thunderous gray eyes and swallowed hard. She made fists where no one could see them, burning inside with fury.

"No," she declined, "I cannot afford to."

Unfortunate it was, that no one had heard her. Ian, well-built with defined chiseled muscles and a ladder of defined abs, pierced the calm waters with a splash that drowned out her voice and left her gazing in silence.

"So handsome, Ian!" Francesca gazed in awe, "Wait till I join you."

The dock was littered with shirts, skirts and pants, lying around like dead men. The boards grew damper and damper from their vigorous water games and never-ending splashes.

"Liam. Are you not joining?" Francesca enquired.

Her bangs clung to her face and the stray hairs dangled with water. He watched as the water droplets from the distance climbed down her skin, the exposed skin that was staring at him. He swallowed hard.

"In a minute-"

Just then, he heard the crunch of leaves below heavy feet and noticed that Emma was walking away along the shore.

"Noah. Emma is one of the greatest swimmers, I was told. Can you believe it?"

"Even with one leg? How impressive! Why isn't she on the swimming team then? We'd love to have her for sure!" she overheard Noah say.

She began to walk faster. Their remarks seemed only taunting.

"Why doesn't she show us some moves? I've never seen another side of her except class rep and student council vice president."

Francesca's voice sent a pang of annoyance crawling down her legs. She clenched her teeth and continued walking away.

"Emma!" Liam called out after her.

She paid him no heed. His eyes lingered on her escaping figure with apprehension. Hurriedly, he rushed past her and stopped abruptly in her way with outstretched arms. His eyebrows caved about his eyes. He fixed his eyes on hers. Her eyes were as gray as the clouds during a hurricane.

"Get out of my way," she snarled without a hint of warmth, "I have business to attend to."

"Why are you running away from your responsibilities, huh?" he grunted, folding his arms.

The conversation was a waste of time, she thought. What could an imbecile like himself possibly understand. She tried to walk around him, but he moved with her, keeping her from escaping.

"I am running to my responsibilities, unlike you. You might as well join."

"Emma, you fail to understand," Liam said with assertion, "Enjoying yourself even for a little, treating yourself once in a while, coping through fun even for a little, is a responsibility too."

"If you don't get out of my way right now, I will make you," she glared at him and snapped maliciously. She shoved him out of the way and stormed past, hoping that the lad would realize that she was serious and let her be. But she was wrong. He only grew more annoying.

"You just don't know how to have fun, don't you? It's been just math, math, math and math! Boring!"

She made tight fists. Ignore him, she told herself, just ignore him. She kept her eyes connected to the ground and breathed deeply.

"You're like a robot. Made to do work. You're such a scaredy cat! Scaredy cat!"

She tried her best to remain calm, displaying her best rendition of tranquility but he had done it. He drove her up the wall and she had had enough. Emma stopped in her tracks abruptly and spun around to face him. She wore a look of pure cynical intentions. Her stare seemed to render his soul bare and strip him of all bravery he once beheld. Slowly, she advanced towards him.

"If I'm such a robot and a scaredy cat, made to do work, then why don't you just die already?" she exclaimed.

Within a fraction of a second, she did the only thing her brain could muster to think of to put away the disturbance. Her arms did what they wanted and pushed him out of the way. She intended to only allow herself a chance to escape but the moment he became off balance, he reached out for her collar and pulled her down along with him.

They both plunged into the water and disrupted it's calm appearance. Everything looked blurry, a mess of merged outlines and poorly mixed colours like abstract art. It all happened without thought. She was dumb, she thought. Things could have gone differently. The water filled her ear holes, stifling her hearing and she was struggling to stay on the surface. The air was running away from her. She was certain that she was going to die.

"Emma, stay calm. It's alright," came Liam's voice.

Like a saviour from the abyss, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her out of the waters embrace while laughing like he had never laughed before. Emma wriggled in his grasp as the water ran down her clothes endlessly. Her body used all the mechanisms it could muster to rid the water which infiltrated her respiratory organs. He put her on the shore and watched her wriggle in the grass as if she had just had a taste of death. Her uniform was drenched and clung to her body, revealing how slender and delicately shaped she was. The stray hairs clung to her face and her ponytail began to resemble that of a black snake. Seeing her hair swept back brought out the true beauty of her face. She was coughing her lungs out.

"We only fell on the shore, Emma. It was so shallow yet you were beating around, looking like you were about to die! You're alright!" Liam laughed.

She gave him an icy glare. Her heart was pounding in her chest from fear. Her mind was blank and her face rinsed of emotion. Now she understood. Is that how 'she' had felt when she was about to greet death? Was it like the way Teresia explained to the little one? How then could he just laugh? She could not understand what the joke was about.

Liam was also drenched. His brown hair glimmered in the sunlight and his smile was bright and boyish.

"You almost killed me," she muttered, still in shock.

"Don't be so dramatic. You're the one that pushed me in the first place. Besides," Liam continued, "I won't let you die on me. You may be arrogant and weird but I think you're still a good person."

"You- could have killed me."

The loud splash broke the stillness of the air and alerted the others. They swam as fast as they could in their direction, enquiring endlessly about their wellbeing. Francesca kneeled at Emma's side and hugged her, grateful that they were alright. They seemed to have even forgotten all about Liam's lie.

"You two had the audacity to play without us! Hmpf! That's what you get!" Francesca wailed.

Emma watched on in silence. She was too stunned by reality and her own stupidity to speak and huddled her knee to her chest. Everyone else except the two, packed up and got ready to leave and go their separate ways.

"Need a ride? You both don't have any dry clothes even. What were you all thinking? I guess it was all Francesca's fault for dragging you guys here then, isn't it?" Hailey exclaimed.

Emma smiled lightly, dusting her wet clothes and folding her arms. "That's quite sweet and kind of you, Hailey, but no need. We'll be alright. I will let members of the higher-ups of the student council know how you've been so kind so that marks can be added to lift your current status!"

Hailey's heart melted. "Emma, you're truly so graceful and lovely. Thank you!"

Soon, the two of them were alone once everyone else was gone. Emma returned to stoicism and fell on her knees, searching through her wet backpack. Everything inside it was soaked. She clenched her teeth. Her eyes then lingered on her wet clothing and she remembered the way Liam grabbed her by the waist. It provoked feelings of anger, hatred and embarrassment.

Liam gazed far off in the distance before breaking the silence.

"Do you want to come to my home for some warm, fresh clothes? I'm pretty sure my mom would have something that can fit you."

She rose to her feet with fury. Her gaze burned a large hole in his back. Before she could even think of a response, Liam spun around and pushed her against a nearby tree and drew closer, cupping her face and placing his cheek against hers. The second their skin touched, her breath hitched and her eyes dilated. It was unexpected. She could feel his heartbeat against her chest, his breath against her ear, his moist clothes against her delicate skin and frozen with tension, she stared blankly up at the blanket of blue above them.

"I know it seems confusing now but please..." Liam begged, whispering, burying his nose into her wet hair, "-pretend to kiss me."