The Forgotten Island
I'LL NEVER LET GO, JACK

CHAPTER SEVEN:

I'LL NEVER LET GO, JACK

-Arya-

I sat there in shock, listening to the screams and sirens when a loud noise had me jerking my head to the side. The same entrance that Blake had used just a few minutes ago now slammed open to allow panicked crowds to pour out. I jumped to my feet just in time to be pressed against the side rail as people pushed by me. A familiar voice rose above the din, “Arie! ARYA!”. I saw her red dress first, and relief swept through me as she took my hand and squeezed up next to me on the railing. “What is happening?” I had to yell to be heard over the chaos “I have no idea! The alarms just started going off, and the staff said we needed to get to our emergency stations.” She screamed back. I briefly remembered the emergency drills we had to practice before the ship sailed. Our emergency stations were assigned by room numbers, with our station being on Deck 3. We were currently on deck 6. “How in the hell are we supposed to get three floors up in this madness?” She had no answer for me as we held on to each other to keep from being separated by the other passengers who elbowed and shoved past. I didn’t have a good feeling about any of this, we had to get out of here. I gripped Fish’s hand as I yelled one more time “FISH! We gotta move! Hold on to me and don’t let go!” Fish’s wide eyes stared back at me as I pulled us into the crowd.

As I pushed through the herds of passengers with Fish in tow, a familiar scent hit me. It smelled like the first time my sister tried to make my mother breakfast in bed, and she had burnt the toast to nothing but black bricks. Had something happened in the kitchen? I didn’t have time to finish that train of thought before an arm came in contact with my face, practically smooshing my nose into my brain. That same arm pushed me back and when I glared up at its owner I saw it was attached to a tall burly man barreling by. I flipped the bird at his back while wiggling my nose when I finally spotted the staircase; we were almost there. A short, assertive looking Hispanic woman was herding her two small children just ahead of us, her eyes shooting daggers into anyone who would dare get within arms reach of her kids. I got as close as I could to her, and as her death gaze swept my way they softened when she noticed me pulling my now noticeably shell shocked friend behind me. I thanked every deity I could remember as she gathered us into her protective circle and together we headed up the stairs.

One foot in front of the other, I chanted to myself, don't think about what's happening. The smell of something burning grew stronger the higher we climbed. The aroma clung to the insides of my nostrils, my nose clearly having its own nightmare of a night. Deck 5. People were getting more aggressive, encroaching on the small amount of space we had. Deck 4. I was having a hard time holding on to Fish’s hand, she kept stumbling on the steps. Almost there. The mother helping us had to pick up her smallest child, a little girl about the age of 4, who was so scared she refused to walk anymore as tears streamed down her face. This woman that had held such ferocity now showed traces of fear behind her eyes as she clutched her children close. Deck 3. It was somehow worse up here, hard to breathe and I could see traces of smoke in the night sky over the sea. It reminded me of the movie Titanic only I didn’t have a giant gemstone hidden in a jerk fiancés jacket over my body. I felt like I was drowning in all the sounds of panic and fear around us, threatening to take me under as I struggled to breathe and think straight. I looked behind me, and though I was still tethered with Fish, the mother and her children were nowhere to be found. I prayed they made it somewhere safe as I steered us towards our station.