Chapter 4

There was an… endless space between them and the island. Yixing thought bitterly. He missed the safety, comfort and monotony of life on the island. He blamed himself for even thinking of leaving the island, and eventually making that thought turn into a reality. Even as he inwardly blamed himself, a voice of reason niggled at him at the back of his mind, telling him that the warmth and stable life back there would’ve been broken by the problem of food soon enough anyway.

After the three of them had left that accursed island with the strange animals and hazardous mountains, they had lapsed into a silence that was only broken by the munching of fruits. They hadn’t even been able to collect any food while they were there, and their food store had now dwindled to its last three fruits. Now, they ate the cores and spat out the seeds, unwilling to waste even the rotten portions of the fruits. Yixing promised Luhan that the last apple was for him, since the other two were guavas, which Luhan was hardly fond of.

With hardly any supplies, Yixing wondered how long they would be able to last on the sea. So far, the days they had been afloat had been relatively calm, but now the skies were a nasty silvery-grey, and lightning lashed across the sky every now and then, followed by a deafening crack of thunder. The clouds rolled ominously above them and Yixing felt extremely exposed and vulnerable out on the open sea in a small fishing boat with only a flimsy canopy for shelter. To make matters worse, Yixing wasn’t feeling too good either, with feverish chills racking his body every few moments or so. Maybe it was because of the exhaustion, or maybe because it was from the shock he suffered from his afternoon, but Yixing knew that he was having a bad case of the ‘Hot Skin’, as the witch doctor back on the island called it. He could feel Kris’ and Luhan’s worried eyes on him, but he kept quiet and he was grateful for their silence in return.

Yixing was overly bothered by the fact that they didn’t know where they were heading, and that he was just steering the boat aimlessly. It unsettled him that he couldn’t tell whether they had been here before, and it worried him not knowing where the nearest inhabitable island would be. The previous island was an immense disappointment, exhilaration turning to frustration and sheer horror in a matter of hours. He prayed that their next encounter would be a good one. If… they had a next encounter, that is. One could never tell when the sea stretched one endlessly before him with nothing else but the horizon in sight…

Yixing wiped his cold sweat on the back of his sleeve and continued steering the boat to nowhere.

Luhan was homesick, incredibly homesick. He even missed Hanwen and his wee little son. If only they could go back, but he could imagine the surprise on the villagers’ faces when they arrived back. Of course, they wouldn’t be angry at them for returning, but then the problem of starvation would be staring angrily at them in the face once more. Besides, there was no way they could make their way back. He never knew the world was this big. It had always been him and the island since he was little. His world consisted of fourteen other people, and maybe the palm tree that he secretly talked to every night when he was sick, pretending that there was a kind fairy living in the core of that gentle, swaying tree. He knew how to count, he knew how to speak to other people although he couldn’t read-but that was considered normal. He knew how to cook, but he didn’t know much about the world. And stuck in the unknown, Luhan was at a complete loss for what to do.

Kris found the both of them to be very worrying. One tried too hard at everything for other peoples' sakes, and the other looked as if he couldn't fend for himself alone. He didn't know how to manage the both of them at the same time. But he would try his best, he promised himself, to keep the both of them safe and sound.

Yixing first noticed the light drizzle when it stung his heated skin. Suddenly, he noticed Kris behind him, gesturing to him to rest under the erected canopy. Instead of going to lie down, which was what his weak mind told him, he fought against the pounding headache of his and shook his head no. He would steer the boat tonight and he would steer it well.

Frowning, Kris reiterated his argument to make Yixing rest, but the stubborn boy wouldn’t let the taller, older boy take over no matter how much he insisted. Finally, defeated, Kris went back to keep on the lookout for any signs of danger. Luhan sighed loudly under his breath, but his sound of frustration was drowned out by the loud howling of the wind as it whipped at their hair and clothes.

The cold bit at Yixing through his thin garments. Back on their island, it felt like summer all year round, so they never saw the need for wearing thick clothing. This chill was foreign to them. Never had they felt a cold as sharp as this one that dug into their skin and straight to their marrow. Yixing’s arm muscles twitched uncontrollably for half a minute as the sickness ate at him with a vengeance once more. Gritting his teeth, he fought with his body for control, and eventually won after that half minute. But that short span of time was enough to throw the boat off balance in the strong wind. They were tossed around carelessly by the darkening waves and everyone gripped tightly onto the boat to keep upright. Unable to remain standing, Yixing fell over on one of the last three fruits, crushing it under his hipbone due to its softened state after rotting for a few days. Yixing moaned and cursed under his breath as the headache got worse, like a knife hilt being at his temples repeatedly and rhythmically. The dull pounding in his head dotted his vision with black patches for a minute or two, before he up righted himself and gripped the boat’s wheel tightly, pale and shaking. His knuckles had turned white from the pressure that he was exerting on the wheel. This time, neither Kris nor Luhan had noticed his short moment of weakness as they were busy enough trying to keep themselves from being thrown off the boat.

Large raindrops began to fall at a rapid pace, soaking everyone and splashing loudly into the seawater. The raindrops were so fat; they were painful as they hit each boy after falling from the heavens. Lightning continued to light the sky, momentarily turning night into day, and thunder cracked in a painfully loud manner.

All of a sudden, something whipped Yixing across his back, causing him to collapse against the helm. He cried out in surprise, his back smarting from the skin that had been split open. The sharp stab of agony caused his vision to go white momentarily. Luhan gasped as he watched blood blossom on the shirt and as the stain spread from his right shoulder to the left of his lower back. Wincing, Yixing turned around with one hand gripping the banister of the boat to support himself and saw that the thin rope securing the sail in place had snapped under the stress when the wind had strained hard at the sail. The sail now lay limp and wet at the bottom of the boat, clinging to the wooden planks that held the boat together.

Kris immediately bounded over to check on Yixing, whose shirt was now completely soaked with blood. The dark red liquid had already trickled down his back and dripped steadily onto his feet, forming a pool of blood. Weak from the blood loss, Yixing’s knees buckled and he slumped against the bottom of the boat. With the combined help of Kris and Luhan, Yixing managed to get to the canopy and rest. This time, he accepted the help without complaint and lay on his belly in the corner of the boat. The canopy kept the water from beating directly on his wound, but the heavy downpour splattered into the shelter area and continued to soak Yixing to the bone.

From where he lay, he could still see everything going on outside on the deck. Kris had taken control of the steering while Luhan tried and failed to fix the sail back up.

The boat lurched violently and Yixing was forced to roll over onto his back by the momentum. A particularly sharp wood splinter jabbed at his wound and he arched his back and hissed sharply at the sudden sensation. His head spun once more and he gritted his teeth before inhaling and exhaling slowly. When he was in the midst of calming himself, he heard a piercing yell, and then one of them started to shout with a ringing note of urgency.

Yixing summoned up his strength and pulled himself to his feet, grimacing as the skin on his back was pulled apart by the effort it took for him to get up. “What happened?” He questioned immediately the moment he hobbled out of the sheltered area. His eyes scanned the deck, but only one very tall figure had his back to him. Kris was bent over the railing, yelling at the top of his lungs, but Yixing couldn’t hear what he was saying due to the storm’s own angry sounds.

“What happened?” Yixing asked again, worry intertwining with his voice. “Where’s Luhan?” His eyes searched Kris’ face.

Kris’ expression was not one Yixing expected, eyebrows drawn together with fear and utter terror evident on his face. And wait, was Kris crying? Yixing couldn’t tell, with the heavy rain and all, but Kris’ eyes had definitely taken on a reddish tinge. “What happened?” He repeated for the third time, but Kris continued to shout, seeming to ignore Yixing.

“Kris! Tell me what happened!” Yixing commanded, shaking Kris by the shoulders, and finally slapping his face to make him come to his senses. Kris’ eyes seemed to finally focus on Yixing, and shock registered in his expression when he eventually acknowledged Yixing’s prescence.

“Luhan, he…” Kris mumbled, apparently going into shock. The strong, steadfast man Yixing knew was so crazed with terror that he had become incoherent. Fear gripped Yixing’s heart, and he forgot about the pain that ate at him and the illness that sapped his spirits.

“What happened to Luhan? Where is he? Is he somewhere getting rope for the sail?” The moment those words left Yixing’s lips, he knew that something was terribly wrong, and he could guess what it was. The boat was small enough that standing from anywhere on it, you would be able to tell where everyone was, provided that the canopy was rolled down. Rushing behind the canopy, Yixing’s suspicions were confirmed when his eyes took in an empty space.

He dashed to the railing and scanned the choppy waters for any sign of Luhan, but there was no indication that the boy with the honey-brown hair had ever fallen into the water. Every direction looked exactly the same, and Yixing choked back a sob as he continued to scan the black surface.

At that very moment, he spotted a familiar silhouette bobbing up and down in the water, hands waving in the air.

“Luhan!” Yixing’s eyes widened at the sight of Luhan bobbing around helplessly, thrown around like a rag doll as the waves crashed down on him continuously.

And then he snapped into action.

Yixing gripped tightly on the wooden pole beside him for support as he heaved himself up onto the banister. And he rolled back his shoulders and took a deep breath and trained his eyes on Luhan’s silhouette.

And then he was crouching and he was breathing in quick, short bursts, and he was bending his knees and he had gotten to the balls of his feet to jump and everything seemed surreal and all he knew was that he had to jump as far as he could and that he-

And then he was on the ground.

Struggling.

Shaking, but restraining, hands pinned him to the ground. He struggled some more. Luhan, he needed to save Luhan. Luhan was getting further and further and further away, nearly a speck in the distance.

His back was throbbing worse than ever, and he was pretty sure that his shirt was soaked through with his blood by now. But no matter how weak he felt, he continued to fight against Kris.

“Let go!” Yixing bellowed.

Kris’ face was a pale milky white and he gripped Yixing so hard, he seemed to be drawing blood from where his nails pierced Yixing’s flesh. But the two of them didn’t seem to notice.

“Hands off!” Yixing roared, desperately trying to break loose. Finally, he stomped down hard on Kris’ foot, and shook off his grasping fingers. He stumbled over to the side and Kris whirled around and pulled him back again.

“No!” Yixing cried out in frustration. “Let me go! I have to save him!” He fought against Kris with all his might, but his weakened state didn’t let him win this time round.

Kris was sobbing too, but he continued to grip Yixing with an iron grip. “It’s too late.”

Yixing screeched as he lost sight of Luhan. The older boy had no longer trashed around as violently against the waves as he had earlier, and had been floating facedown in the water, the last Yixing ever saw of him.

“Luhan!” Yixing cried out, searching the surface of the sea with terrified eyes the moment Kris had let go of him. “Luhan!”

His heartbroken wails coupled with Kris’ muted tears disrupted the night even long after the storm was over.

And that night, Yixing continued to call out till he was hoarse, for a friend who would never come home. 

This chapter was... hard to write, to make an understatement. I spent the most time on this chapter out of the all of them. I didn't know how to write all these emotions without making it soun overly-cheesy or something. In any case, I hope it's okay, and not... cringe-worthy.

Well, the chapter title is in first-person, but pay no heed to that! It's just to dramatise everything. XD