"You should have gone and seen him last night." Isla said as she pulled on her wetsuit. We were at the beach, waiting for Isla's competition to start. We had gotten here early to secure a perfect viewing spot, but the crowds of people coming to watch were already starting to form.

"Why? I can wait until tonight. There's nothing that could come up that would make me ditch our Friday night tradition." I told her as I pulled off my sundress before digging in Bella's bag in search of sunscreen.

"We broke last tradition last Friday, when we went to that party." Bella reminded me from below, she was stretched out on the blush pink beach towel she had taken from my house.

I rolled my eyes. "That was different. We were together. What was is that Isla said the night I broke up with Evan?"

"I don't know, I barely listen to either of you." Bella muttered, causing Isla to shoot her a dirty look.

"She said, 'it's the three of us. Together. We don't need anyone else." I reminded them.

"So what? We're going to be married with kids and still sneaking off to watch movies together on Friday nights?" Isla joked.

"That's if you can manage to find someone who will marry you." Bella teased, flicking her head up from the towel and grinning at Isla.

"Well I'd gladly ditch my future husband for you two for a movie night. Do you guys remember the first Friday we spent together?" I smiled to myself at the memory. We had just met each other that week. We were all new in school and ended up sitting together at lunch.

"Yeah, when you lured us to your house with the promise of unlimited cotton candy and then failed to deliver?" Isla smiled as she nudged me with her elbow.

"In my defence, I didn't know twelve year old Isla could consume so much sugar at once." I scrunched my nose remembering the copious amounts of cotton candy she had consumed. "Anyways, we vowed that night that we would be friends for life."

"I remember. I thought who the hell is this girl pledging her allegiance to me already? Your intensity freaked me out." Bella joked, pulling herself up into a sitting position.

"Shut up." I swatted her arm, and I sat down on the towel beside her. "You knew it as much I did."

"Knew what?" Isla asked.

"That we were soulmates." I reminded them, shooting them both a smile.

Isla crouched down in front of us so that she reached our eye level, she grabbed my hand and held it tightly before taking a hold of Bella's and doing the same.

"Soulmates." She confirmed. We smiled at each other before Bella shook her hand lose.

"You guys are sappy today. You both need to get laid." She muttered as she collapsed onto her back, pulling her sunglasses down from where they were perched on her head.

I laughed at her. "That's your solution for everything."

"Because it works." She said with a lazy swish of her hand.

I turned back towards Isla, "are you nervous?" I asked her, steadying her face.

She bit down on her lip, glancing down before she gave herself a shake. "A little. If I do well today, I could be invited on tour. My life would literally be changed, and I could live my dream."

"You're going to do fine." I assured her. "You're amazing."

The sound of a loud whistle came from judges table, indicating that it was time for the contestants to gather. Isla quickly picked up her board from the sand. "I'll see you guys after." She told as as she began to walk towards the table.

"Kick those blonde bitches asses!" Bella shouted at her, causing Isla to turn around with a scowl on her face, before gesturing to her own blonde hair. "Oh, right. I mean those other blonde bitches." Bella laughed out, as Isla rolled her eyes and turned back around as she started to jog away.

"Why are all surfer chicks blonde, anyways?" Bella muttered as she eyed the dozens of blonde girls walking in the same direction as Isla.

The sun was at its peak now, and my skin was startling to flush as we had been sunbathing for about an hour. I sat up and began to apply another layer of sunscreen, wishing I could cool off in the water. I glanced at Bella, who hadn't moved in a while, and I noticed that she had fallen asleep.

"Bella, wake up." I said as I nudged her side. "Isla will kill you if she knew you were sleeping."

Bella groaned before slowly sitting up, grabbing her water bottle and taking a sip. "We've seen Isla surf like a thousand times."

"I know, but look at how happy she looks." I watched as Isla raced towards the shore on top of her board. She had a wild smile on her face as the wind swirled her hair around her.

"Am I a bad friend for wishing she would bail right now? You know that tour is four months long, right?" Bella asked as her eyes followed Isla.

I sighed as I thought about Isla not being here for four months. We had barely spent a week apart since becoming friends, and it would be hard without her. "Yes, but I'd be lying if I hadn't thought the same thing."

We both watched Isla in silence for a few moments before Bella spoke again. "I think I like Asher."

"Yeah, I think we all knew that already." I giggled at her.

"I mean, I think I really like Asher." Bella faced me with pursed lips. "I haven't felt like this since Anthony."

I grabbed Bella's hand and smiled at her. "You deserve it, Bells." I pulled her into a tight hug, gently rubbing her back. "Oh, look!" I exclaimed as I pointed over her shoulder. Bella pulled away and turned to face the water.

There was a huge swell forming, and we watched as Isla turned her board towards the shore, paddling with her arms as she periodically glanced over her shoulder at the wave. There were two other girls close to her, one slightly in front of her and to the left and one behind her to the right who were doing the same. I watched as Isla jumped to her feet, catching the wave expertly and gripping her feet down on her board. She looked so free as she rode the wave into the air, and for a second I was jealous that I couldn't experience the high she was always talked about getting while she surfed.

I couldn't pinpoint when my perspective changed, it happened so quickly. One moment everything was happening normally, and the next it was like time had slowed and I was watching everything unfold through a slow motion filter. The girl who was behind Isla was falling backwards off her board, flapping her arms as her body hit the water. Her surfboard launched forward, propelled by the pressure of the water behind it. I watched with a breath trapped in my chest as the board hurdled towards Isla, making contact with the back of her neck. The blissful look that Isla was wearing on her face just a minute ago was gone, as her expression went blank and she fell into the water.

Bella and I were on our feet at the same time, running towards the shore as the collective gasps of the crowds met my ears. I didn't know what I intended to do, but my body was acting on its own as I pushed my way through the people on the beach. I watched as lifeguards in the red uniforms entered into the water, diving into the waves and swimming towards her now empty surf board. I waded into the water, desperate to see Isla.

I felt a strong grip on my arm as the water reach my knees. I shook against it, trying to shake their grip and go further into the ocean.

"Indie, you need to stay here. Let the lifeguards help her." A soft voice said into my ear as their arms wrapped around my chest. I vaguely felt a pinch of familiarity when I heard the words, but I didn't turn around to see who it was. I couldn't focus on anything other than the sheer panic that had taken hold of my chest. It was like a white hot ball of fire, paralyzing me.

I couldn't understand time right now. I wasn't sure if I had been watching the waves, praying for any sight of Isla for seconds or minutes, all I knew was that it was too long. I felt my legs collapse under me, and the arms that were wrapped around my shoulders dipped down to my waist to support my weight. I felt as they dragged me back to beach, away from where I wanted to be, until they placed me on my knees in the sand. I saw Bella to right of me, she was standing motionlessly, her eyes fixated on the water. Asher was standing beside her, stroking her hair and whispering in her ear. Asher's presence meant that more than likely it was Chase who was rubbing his hands soothingly up and down my arms right now, but I didn't care.

All I cared about was that any minute, Isla would emerge from the water. I pictured her in the arms of a male lifeguard, winking at us and subtly pointing to his muscles, raising her eyebrows. She would laugh and tell us that we made a scene for no reason. She would tell us we knew better than to think she would ever leave us. Time ticked by, and I couldn't tell if the silence that had filled my head was real, or if I had tuned everything out. I closed my eyes, taking in deep breaths and trying to calm myself.

"Oh my god." I heard Bella whimper from beside me, and I forced my eyes to open. My heart fell through my chest as I finally saw Isla, in the arms of a lifeguard as I had just imagined. She wasn't smiling, she wasn't winking. Her head was bobbing in the air below her shoulders, her body was limp, and her normally olive tanned skin was tinted with pale blue. I felt the tears well in my eyes I tried to jump up and run towards her, but Chase held me back.

"No, stop. Let me go. Isla!" I yelled, "ISLA!" I needed to get to her. I needed to hug her and tell her it was going to be okay, and I was here for her. I'll always be here for her. Chase's arms were steel around me as I thrashed against him, fighting for freedom. He didn't say anything, he just buried his head into my neck.

The lifeguard carried Isla onto the shore. People were calling out, shouting words I couldn't process. I turned and watched as the man gently placed Isla on the her back on the sand, tilted her chin up on an angle before pressing two fingers on her neck, and hovering his head over her chest, his head tilted so that his ear was almost touching her.

Bella broke lose from Asher's grip, running towards Isla, reaching out to her. Asher caught her as she approached, pulling her down to the sand and wrapping his arms around her as she collapsed onto her knees. She was yelling, but I couldn't hear her. I couldn't hear anything.

Two paramedics were with Isla now, replacing the lifeguards hand's which were pushing rhythmically on her chest. Why were they doing that? Don't they only do that when someone's heart isn't beating? Isla's heart was beating. It had to be. Any minute now, Isla was going to sit up and spit out a mouthful of water, like in the movies, right?

"No." I whispered as I watched the paramedics slow their movements, glancing at each other with a look of defeat in their eyes. "No, no, no, no." I felt the tears roll down my face. I pinched the skin on my arm, willing myself to wake up from this nightmare. I watched as they loaded her onto a gurney, picking her up and carrying her towards the ambulance that waited in the parking lot. I tried to stand again, I needed to go with her, but Chase didn't release his hold.

I noticed Bella beside me now, I wasn't sure when she got there. She was following Isla with her eyes, her lips slightly parted. Tears were freely falling down her face.

"Is there anyone I can call?" I looked up to see a police officer looking down at us with pity in his eyes. When did he get there? "I'm sorry, girls. They have to take her to the hospital to officially call it, but unfortunately she's gone."

I stared at him. Gone? I watched his mouth move as he continued speaking, this time looking at Chase and Asher behind us. I didn't care what he was saying. My body felt like every ounce of warmth had fled, it felt empty. It felt numb. I watched as Bella's face fell, and she became hysterical. I heard the shrieks coming out of her mouth that accompanied the sobs. She was screaming Isla's name. Why was she screaming her name? She wasn't here. The policeman said she was gone. I watched her with an empty expression as Asher pulled her into his arms. I felt myself being pulled into a warm chest, but I didn't react. I allowed my body to fallback, and I closed my eyes.

"Indie? Come on. You have to stand up." Chase said gently, after some time. I don't know how much time. There's no such thing as time right now. I didn't move, I didn't open my eyes. I heard him sigh as he moved his hands under my thighs, and I felt myself being lifted into the air. I still didn't move. He was walking, carrying me somewhere. I didn't care where, should I care? My eyes didn't open until I felt my feet on the pavement. I was standing at an open door of a white car, Bella was sitting in the back seat. I climbed in, not caring who's car it was. A woman with espresso coloured skin faced me from the drivers seat. Bella's mom? I don't know, but that makes sense. She looked sad. I watched her mouth move, but I didn't hear her words.

Once the car stopped, Bella's mom pulled us both from the backseat. She guided us into the Bella's house and up the stairs into Bella's room. My body acted of it's own accord, I neither guided the movements nor halted them. I watched Bella climb into her bed, and I followed, not questioning anything. I closed my eyes, and welcomed the darkness that overtook me.

Someone once told me that you never know what days are going to change your life, that they're always a surprise. Sure, you have your wedding, or graduation, but those days don't really change your life. It's the days that you meet your soulmate, the days that you receive the worst news of your life, they day you find out you're pregnant, those are the days that you never see coming. I woke up this morning, thinking about a boy, worrying about my grade in History class, angry about my parents. I thought today would be like any other day, instead it my best friend was torn away from me.

Isla woke up this morning thinking that today would be the day her life changed, but it ended instead.