004
out damned spot

"Okay," JJ nodded within the group huddle. "There's seven of us, one of him. You know my vote. We storm the cockpit."

"No- who's going to fly the plane, dumbass!?" John B whisper-yelled.

"I've seen Pope fly simulators," JJ shrugged with widened eyes.

"Great, JJ's seen Pope fly simulators so we're all going to die," Bianca scoffed sarcastically.

"Do you have an idea?" JJ challenged.

"Something safe?" Kiara offered in that know-it-all kind of way the blond boy despised so much.

"Something that's not going to get us killed," Bianca bit back.

"I've- I crop-dusted for my uncle last summer," Pope offered between the bickering couple. "But this is not the same thing."

"We don't have time to pretend that's a real option," Kiara scolded, panic brewing behind her eyes.

"Why don't we just wait until the plane lands somewhere safe," Pope began to which Sarah nodded frantically, trusting the only logical one in the group. "And then we sneak out. And if somebody comes to mess with us, we mad-dog 'em."

"Okay," Kiara and Cleo agreed at the same time.

"I like the mad-dogging part," JJ clenched his jaw but didn't refute it.

"Of course you do," Bianca rolled her eyes. "Just put that back-" She grabbed the book and handed it to JJ to stash back in the bag.

"Put it back," Kiara whispered as he opened the bag flap. "Be cool."

The Pogues tried to remain as still and nonchalant as possible meanwhile John B continued to distract the pilot, "Hey, Jimmy? Is that Burning Man? Right there?"

"Yeah! That's burning man, alright," Portis chuckled. "That was my first time."

"How many- how many times you been to burning man?"

"Oh, I started going when I was eighteen. GTs, baby, GTs!"

"Yeah, I've heard a lot about it," John B laughed uncomfortably. "I've- I've never been West."

Suddenly, Portis glanced over his shoulder right as JJ snuck the novel inside his satchel, "Hey, man!" His thunderous voice boomed. "What the hell are you doing!? That's mine!"

Portis shoved the boy's shoulder and without anyone steering, the plane nosedived at breakneck speed straight to the ground. The Pogues fell into each other again as Jimmy grabbed onto JJ's shirt who was desperately trying to pull him off.

They were losing altitude rapidly, the harsh winds causing the turbulence to grow with each passing second. The group grappled onto anything they could reach so they didn't go flying face-first into the windshield. John B tried to pull Portis off JJ while the others clamored for them to stop.

"Who are you really!?" JJ shouted, clawing at Jimmy's wrists where his fingers gripped his collar.

"Fly the plane!" Bianca shouted but her voice was drowned out by the incessant alarms beeping through the plane, telling them if they didn't do something fast they were all going to die.

"Fly the plane!" Sarah tried to interrupt but she was too far away.

"It's my book! Give it back!" Portis argued despite their wails.

"Please fly the plane! Please fly the plane!" Pope cried, his eyes squeezed shut.

His words finally reached Portis' ears and the man whirled back around to face the controls. He began pulling at the steering wheel and pressing his foot on the brake. The plane lifted, only slightly but they were still plummeting at a rapid pace, "Come on, come on, Fish. Come on!"

The Pogues braced for impact as the plane shuddered against the wind. The debris and equipment Portis kept in the back with the others rattled and fell around them. It became like a game of dodgeball, trying not to be flattened by the flying scraps.

"Come on, Fish! Come on, Fish. Come on!" That was all Portis kept screaming.

"Woah, woah, woah-" JJ yelled as the plane spiraled out of control.

There was no time for last goodbyes or longing looks. Their shouts were deafened by the plane's engine revving in its final attempt to slow the inevitable crash. From the window, the Barbados coastline was approaching faster than they could stop it till all that could be seen was blue.

The moment the water rudders hit the ocean, the rough impact threw the Pogues forward into the cockpit and each other. The plane bounced once, then twice before the propellor plunged below the surface. The cabin of the plane was a flurry of limbs and rising water as they submerged deeper and deeper.

The freezing waters were a wake-up call from the crash, pinching and nipping at their skin. Bianca's teeth chattered whether it be from the shock or the cold, she couldn't tell. All she could feel was her head throbbing so violently as though her ears had their own heartbeat.

She must've hit it during the crash although, she couldn't tell from where. Her entire body ached, each bone protesting more than the next but she was more concerned with making sure her friends were okay, "JJ? Guys- hey-" Her voice sounded shaky and distant.

The others coughed and spluttered out water which was quickly reaching their necks. The pressure in their ears was agonizing, most likely from falling from such a high altitude so rapidly.

Kiara pulled Sarah from below the water, "Guys- guys-" She tried to get them up. "Guys?"

"Is everybody good?" Pope panted loudly, heaving for air.

Bianca choked on her breath, turning to JJ who didn't seem to be answering her, "JJ?" Her chest seized with panic, lifting him above the water. "JJ-" Then his eyes fluttered open and she felt her shoulders sag, "Wake up, come on."

Pope was at her side in an instant, helping the boy to get up, "JJ! Wake up, man. We gotta get out," He grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the exit. "We gotta get outta here."

John B was the first to climb over all of them and kick open the plane door with all the strength he could muster at that moment. The others followed his lead, half swimming after him with how ceaselessly the water rose.

Bianca's breath hitched, glancing over her shoulder at Jimmy Portis whose body hung limply over the controls, not yet submerged under the water. Her eyes flickered back to the Pogues just as Cleo jumped out of the plane and the rest followed suit.

"Shit," Bianca cursed under her breath and waded toward the cockpit. When she neared the unconscious man, she shook his shoulder, trying to rouse him, "Portis? Hey! Portis-"

The man didn't respond so Bianca placed two fingers against his neck to check for a pulse. It took a few moments but when she felt the thrumming of a heartbeat against her fingertips, she let out an exhale of relief.

"We gotta get out before it sinks," Bianca could hear JJ informing the others from the back of the plane.

"Oh no-" John B panted heavily, glancing over to where tall, burly men were running toward the shore wearing padded vests with guns in their pockets. "Oh no, no, they don't look friendly."

"No, they look very unfriendly," Pope's eyes widened from behind him. "We gotta go."

"We gotta go- come on!" John B ushered the girls out first. "Come on!"

"Jump!" JJ told the others who did as instructed and landed in the icy Caribbean water with a splash. "We gotta get out! We gotta go now, come on."

"Come on, hurry!" John B helped Sarah out who joined Cleo beneath a concrete bridge. "Go, Pope!" The others followed suit and one by one, they began swimming away. "Bianca, let's go!"

But Bianca was too busy trying to haul Portis out of his seat even as his seatbelt refused to budge. She grunted from exertion, his dead weight dragging her down with him. Her chest burned and she quickly came to the realization she couldn't do this alone.

Bianca glanced over her shoulder, still clinging onto Portis to keep his head up, "Kie! He's still alive!"

Kiara's breath hitched, tearing her gaze away from John B who jumped off the plane, "What?"

"He's..." Bianca trailed off, staring down at the stranger she was so desperate to keep alive. She couldn't let another person die. She couldn't run. She couldn't leave him here, "We have to help him."

Kiara's eyes flickered between hers in a moment of hesitation before conceding, "Shit- okay. Hang on!" She told the others before swimming back to Bianca.

"Kie! Bianca! Let's go!" They could hear John B yell from outside.

"B! Get out before it sinks!" JJ called back, his clenched fist punching the water when he realized she was still inside. "Come on!"

"Go!" Pope shouted at them to follow Cleo. "They're headed this way! Hurry!"

"No, no, no- Bianca- Kie! Come on!" John B shouted as the others tugged him further away from the sinking plane.

"Get over here- get to the pier!" JJ commanded. "Bianca!

"Bianca! Kie, come on! You gotta hurry!" Sarah's voice was a distant echo now.

"Here- grab his legs," Bianca ordered Kiara who did as instructed while she hooked her arms around under him. "On three, ready? One- two- now!"

The two girls heaved the pilot's unconscious body through the plane's seatbelt, still refusing to budge. When they were finally able to pull him free, his weight began sinking them like an anchor.

"B, this is insane!" Kiara cried, spitting out some of the ocean water filling her mouth each time she spoke.

"I know, I know. Look, the window- this way," Bianca nodded toward the broken windshield, trying to haul Portis' body along with her. "We're nearly there. Just keep his head up-"

Before Bianca could get another word out, she abruptly dropped Portis' body, forcing Kiara to cling onto his dead weight, "B, what the hell!?" She let out a pained groan.

But Bianca couldn't hear her, the white noise in her ears drowned out any sense of urgency she felt. Because right there in front of her, Jimmy's body was no longer his own but replaced by her father's instead.

And suddenly, the water around them wasn't clear cobalt but turned murky and mottled with deep hues of claret. Bianca's breath shuddered, lifting her trembling hands to her face only for them to be doused in blood as well.

The girl submerged her hands beneath the water, frantically trying to wash it off but each time she brought them up to the surface, the blood still lay embedded underneath her nails. She could feel the gooey, sticky substance cling to her skin like oil in water and once the first tear fell, the rest followed like a stream.

Bianca choked back a sob and tried to scrub her hands desperately with the salt water, hoping it could wash away the evil— wash away her sins but no matter how raw her hands felt, the feeling stained her conscience like a bloody rag.

"Bianca!" Kiara's distressed cry tore through her thoughts. "What are you doing!? Help me!"

Bianca gulped down a hefty breath, her chest rising and falling with panic, "Kie- did you-" She stuttered. "Did you see that? My dad- I mean, Portis- he-"

But when she glanced down to show Kiara her bloody hands, there was nothing there. Bianca blinked once, then twice, frozen in place. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, lost for words.

"B..." Kiara voiced gently, eyeing the girl with a weary look. "You're losing it."

"No, I saw..." The girl trailed off unsurely and her heart sank. She didn't know what to say. She couldn't tell Kiara she was hallucinating her dead father, that would make her sound even more insane.

"There's nothing there, Bianca," Kiara's voice was gentle but there was a frustrated lilt to it. She wanted to be kinder but they were in a sinking plane for god's sake!

Bianca's breaths were shallow, unsure how to defend herself. If she even could, "Sorry... I-"

"Just-" Kiara strained, squeezing her eyes shut. She heaved Portis' body through the water, "Just go with the others, I'll meet you guys at shore."

Immediately, Bianca shook her head, "No, I'm not leaving you," Her eyebrows drew together at the prospect of abandoning her best friend.

"We're wasting time!" Kiara pleaded, eyes widened with desperation. "There's no point in both of us getting split up. I'll be there in a second, just go!"

By then Kiara had dragged Portis out of the window, already backstroking both of them toward the coastline. Bianca's heart pounded, still hesitant to leave. She could hear the distant rumbles of jeeps grow nearer and the local crowd's gasps at the plane crash.

"Kie-"

"Now, B! Go!" Kiara finally snapped.

Bianca's insides twisted but the firmness in Kiara's tone was too strict to ignore. Reluctantly, she turned and swam toward the exit of the plane which was already fully submerged beneath the water.

Bianca held her breath before diving down to the still-open door. She gripped the metal walls to pull herself outward into the sea. Her eyes stung with saltwater but she forced herself to keep going, only rising to the surface when she was sure she cleared the plane.

Bianca's head broke the water with a gasp, frantically glancing around for the others until she heard JJ's distraught voice, "B!"

Bianca recognized the others ducked beneath the pier where menacingly bulky vehicles were parked. The slamming of car doors alerted her to the drivers getting out and peering over the edge to search for the wanted castaways. Bianca dove down again to avoid being spotted and tread carefully below the surface in the direction of the Pogues.

By the time Bianca reached them, her chest seared from holding her breath for so long. When she rose to the surface, the others cried her name, guiding her over to hold onto the rocks beside the pier.

"B- hey, breathe," JJ whispered to the girl as she gripped the rough surface, inhaling deep breaths. He watched her trembling hands struggle to hold on, her eyes flickering around unsteadily as if she'd seen a ghost. His eyebrows furrowed, "Deep breaths."

"Is she okay?" Sarah propped herself up on the rocks, holding onto John B's shoulder who was peering over curiously.

"Yeah, yeah, we're fine," JJ waved them off as he drew the girl into his arms and pressed his lips against her temple. She clasped his shirt, head resting against his chest, "Wait, where's Kie? You guys- B, where's Kie?"

"We went back for Portis," Bianca explained between pants, her throat alight with flames from the amount of seawater she swallowed. "She went the other way."

"You did what?!" JJ's eyes widened, glancing down at her.

The Pogues craned their neck toward the shore where Kiara could just be made out dragging Portis' body. As soon as they touched the sand, the girl got onto her hands and knees while Jimmy slowly came to and the locals dragged him further onto the beach.

Kiara and Portis appeared as though they were arguing but their conversation was too far away to make out. Before she could get any information out of him, more burly men sped toward them on ATVs, raucously revving their engines.

"Get her! Get her!" They were shouting as Kiara began sprinting to hide from them.

"Oh my god," John B panicked as they gained on her. "Oh my god."

The others watched helplessly as black four-wheel drives surrounded Kiara on the beach with too many to outrun. All they could see was the girl being dragged by two brawny men on either side of her.

"Let me go!" Kiara cried, still kicking and screaming.

"Damn it..." JJ cursed under his breath, his arms winding tighter around Bianca at the thought that it could've been her. "What are we... what are we gonna do?"

"We have to do something," Bianca pulled away from JJ, guilt clawing at her throat. She never should've abandoned Kiara. Maybe then, together, they'd have a better chance of escaping.

"We're going after her, right?" JJ echoed to the Pogues, not tearing his gaze away.

"What... what can we do?" John B voiced hopelessly.

"Where are they taking her?" Sarah's eyes narrowed in the distance as they threw Kiara in the back of a pickup truck and bound her hands together.

"Over there!" They could hear the guards shouting from the pier above them. They were still searching the area and if the Pogues didn't leave, they'd be caught too.

"They're all right there," JJ whispered, gesturing for the others to lower themselves further into the water to avoid being recognized.

"They're looking this way," Cleo huffed and began swimming toward the other side of the beach. "We gotta go."

"We gotta go, JJ," John B instructed and followed after her and Pope.

"Bianca, come on," Sarah panted tiredly behind them. "We can't save her if we get caught."

"Shit," JJ swore again, taking Bianca's arm and guiding her with the others. "Come on, B."

The girl cast a lasting glance over her shoulder where she could make out Portis conversing with Kiara in the back of the truck. The pilot was alright but in Bianca's urgency to rescue him, she dragged Kiara along only for her to get kidnapped.

This was all her fault. Kiara was gone because she wanted to satiate her guilty conscience.

Saving Portis wasn't going to bring her father back. It wouldn't change the facts— that she abandoned her father just like she did Kiara. She ran, like the coward she was.

It was selfish. Bianca hated the guilt. It made her question herself at the very moment she needed certainty. If she hadn't panicked when she did, things may have turned out differently.

Whatever happened to Kiara, Bianca couldn't help but hold herself responsible. Now, all she could do was hope that her best friend wouldn't become another bloody stain on her hands.

author's note. hi my loves ! what did you think of this chapter ? im drowning in assignments but writing this story is one of my fave parts of my day hehe <3 i've gots lots of exciting things planned !