Short Story

Author Note:  Wirting this short story was a lot of fun.  I wrote about a boy friend and girl friend who have been going out for all of highschool.  They are having a peaceful and beautiful date ice-skating on a frozen river when all of the sudden the unthinkable happens as their once peaceful night, turns into a horrorific nighmare demonstrating how anything can happen.  I hope you enjoy.

A chilling breeze rushed over my body as my girlfriend Carlene and I slid onto the ice.  Hand in hand together I waited patiently along her side attempting to teach her how to skate.  This was her first time on ice, and I could feel an uneasy yet excited vibe inside her.  We slowly inched are way across the iced surface of the river one foot at a time.  Her shaking hands squeezed mine tightly, cutting off the circulation.  The fear of falling had instantly overwhelmed her, and I assured her that I would always be here to catch her.  The relationship that we shared together was special and like no other.  It was one based on trust, honesty, and commitment.  Love between us was strong, and it could not be separated; it was as if we were destined to be with each other forever. 

That night, as we stared into each other’s eyes, the whole world around me froze.  Her smile made the moon seem dull and her deep brown eyes twinkled along with the stars.  A warm feeling tingled throughout my body, giving me butterflies in my stomach.  This moment that we shared together was perfect; it was something that I thought was only possible in dreams.  As I held her tightly in my arms a light snow began to fall.  Looking up into the sky, we began to dance over the frozen river as we let ourselves wonder off into the beauty of the night. 

Carlene had become more comfortable in her skating as she attempted to do it on her own; instantly she fell with a smack.  Her laughter erupted into the night, echoing throughout the trees.  As I quickly skated over to help her up I heard a noise that made me sick.

CCRRRAAAACCCKKK!

                My heart stopped.  The joints in my body locked up making me stiff as cold sweats streamed down my back.  I could not believe what was happening.  The smile and joy on Carlene’s face quickly turned into fear and disbelief as her laughter shrieked into cries.  She plummeted beneath into a cold icy river.  As her body entered the water and she immediately began gasping for breath due to the frigid temperature.  The raging current beneath the ice swept her body right into the ice.  Holding on for her life with just her arms Carlene was screaming for help.  The whole in which she had fallen through was now twice as big and I knew it would be impossible to reach her. 

                Laying flat on the ice, in order to spread my body weight around, I slowly crawled closer to Carlene.  The ice around the whole was extremely fragile and I could hear it slowly crack beneath me.  I crawled rapidly but swiftly, consciously observant of my safety.  The fear of losing Carlene flooded my mind.  The time it took me to reach her seemed endless.  Questions on the situation poured into my head.  What am I going to do?  Is she going to die? God, what did I do to deserve this?  Is this a dream? Why? Why? Why?! I did not believe any of this was happening

                With outstretched hands I was merely fingertips away.  From this close, I could see Carlene’s face.  She was pale and her breathing rate had decreased dramatically.  It seemed as if she had almost given up hope to live.  She was no longer crying or talking to me.  I did not believe what I was seeing, so I screamed at her to keep holding on and to reach forward.  The freezing cold water emitted her into shock and hypothermia was taking place.  She was dying right there in front of me. 

Finally I reached out my hand and grabbed hers.  This implied hope, but she needed solely rescue.  If I did not get her out of the water and soon, she would did.  With all of the energy left in my body I tried to pull Carlene up onto the sheet of ice.  It was useless, I needed her help but she was too weak.  I did not give up though.  I pulled and pulled and pulled, the whole time hearing the ice break beneath me.  I looked into Carlene’s eyes at this moment fearing the end.  Tears began to roll down my face as I watched the pain coming from her as she mouthed her final words “I Love You”, and then slip out of my hands into the flowing river.  “This can’t be happening to me!” I screamed at the top of my lungs as I was now bawling in agony.  The love of my life is dead.  The girl I had spent the last four years together with is now dead.  Could this be real?

“I was supposed to be with her forever.” I screamed as I hit the ice with my fist.

CCCRRAAACCKK!

“I loved her!”  Hitting the ice with both fists now.

CCCCCRRRRAAAACCCKKKK!

“I want to be with her.” I whispered as I sunk head first into the frigid water, underneath the ice, following Carlene down the river and into darkness.