[centre][color=coral][h1][b]Lavena Ó Faoláin[/b][/h1][/color]
[img]http://68.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mb1ahkGsGN1rexyxjo1_500.gif[/img][/centre]

The red haired woman rested quite comfortably in her seat, despite the fact the plane was full. She was of average height, and curled nicely in her seat, snuggled against the wall, looking out the window. She watched the clouds move by the plane, and let her mind wonder. Hopefully, her flight back would be filled with the joy of having successfully gained a long term job, and a grant. The money would be welcome, but she was more interested in the project… if she could pull it off… she’d change the world. So she was nervous, filled with anticipation and excitement as she went through the presentation in her hand, again and again, fiddling with a small cube more commonly known as a [i]Fidget cube[/i], which she’d had before the craze- honestly, why couldn’t people leave well enough alone when they didn’t [i]need[/i] the things? She absolutely refused to get a Fidget Spinner- they were for those that needed it, not for those that just had them cause they were “Cool”. She sighed to herself, rolling her finger over the ball, hearing the excited cry of a child, and the soft murmur of a voice, perhaps reassuring them. 

Lavena smiled to herself, shifting from her position to glance about her, just as things seemed to go pear shape. Turbulence rocked the plane, perhaps the most violent she had ever come across, and she immediately sat up straight, buckling her belt on, she gripped the fidget cube tightly in her left hand, feeling her heartbeat speed up. For the first time she realised just how [i]small[/i] a plane was. And that it was metal, flying in the air. Even though she knew how it worked, knew how a plane could fly, suddenly Lavena found herself utterly terrified, and she closed her eyes tightly. 

As it steadily became worse, Lavena dug her fingernails into the palm of her right hand, the nails cutting into her skin, warm blood flowing around her fingers, dripping steadily onto her leg, the ground. She shook violently, [color=coral]”It’s going to be okay”[/color] she whispered to herself, over and over again, as if by saying it and wishing it so, she could make it so. Then the plane made sounds that Lavena knew she never wanted to hear, ever again, had never wanted to hear on a flight. Groaning, creaking... was that breaking? Rattling- was her luggage going to fall? Was her prototype going to shatter? And why was she worrying about that? 

Her breathing came hard and fast, short and shallow, and she recognised that she was panicking, she could feel her heart beating furiously fast, as if it actually wanted to burst out of her chest, and the sickly powerful feeling of adrenaline, the need to run, but there was nowhere to run on this stupid metal box. As the explosion rocketed the ship, Lavena screamed, the raw, primal scream tearing through her throat painfully, and she drew in a breath to let out another one, but she was near sobbing now.

Each breath that she managed to get in was painful, and they were exploded out into sobs. This wasn’t something she could fight- there was no way she could beat the plane up and tell it to get its ass back into line. It just wasn’t possible. She couldn’t do anything, and she hated the feeling of helplessness, the feeling of fear nearly paralysing her. This wasn’t who she was, but she couldn’t get her body to obey her. 

She was huddled in her seat, eyes closed tightly, shaking, and hyperventilating. She couldn’t stop it. The thuds of the luggage falling jolted her into some semblance of action, as she searched for her own bag, her eyes, red and stinging, opened as she searched. She swallowed, her throat still painful- was it possible to make your throat bleed by yelling?- her fingers reaching for the clasp, to unbuckle herself, her blood making the buckle slippery. It took a few seconds, but she managed to do it, her need to make sure her prototype was okay overpowering the fear, for a moment at least. 

She fell into the lap of the guy next to her, the old guy probably thinking all his dreams had come true as she just about ended face up in his lap, before she managed to get back to her feet, stumbling towards the isle, she fell into the luggage, and in moments she had her black case in her hands, the waterproof case seeming to be alright. She huddled there, shaking and shivering, tears falling down her face, sobs still coming out violently. She rose to her feet shakily, and for a moment she didn’t think her legs would support her weight, they felt so weak. She was just about to get back to her seat, when the plane began to tear apart. 

She gripped the case with one arm, the other, dropping the fidget cube, snatched at the arm of the chair closest to her, as some girl was thrown out the plane, towards the darkness below. Within seconds, Lavena knew that she would follow the girl, her grip weakening on the chair by the sheer force of it, her fingers slipping. One last sob escaped her, as her hand was torn away from the seat, her body slamming into the chairs on the other side painfully, and she thought hard enough to crack a rib or two, before she was flung to the ground, sliding towards the tear in the plane, she tried to reach for something, anything else, to keep her on the plane, but it was impossible. 

She fell towards the ocean, another scream tearing from her throat, to end in a breathless cry in seconds, and then she plunged into the ocean, slamming into the water painfully, she dropped like a stone, still holding her case, now tightly against her, wondering if she was being a fool for doing so. If she was dead, what use was it to her? But she just couldn’t let it go. It was her life. It meant too much to her. 

As she seemed to sink forever, Lavena tried to orientate herself, but the pressing closeness of the water, the blackness, the way it enveloped her and seemed to want to drag her down… the way her lungs were burning… Lavena knew that she would probably die. She kicked wildly, hoping that she was going the right way, even as she recognised the hopelessness of the situation. 

She was going to die here. 

Her eyes stung, whether from the saltwater or her own tears, she didn’t know. She wanted to close her eyes, and to just give up… Fear clutched her, squeezing her heart, and for a moment, she couldn’t tell the difference between then, and the past. A silent scream of fear and rage escaped her. She was not a helpless child. Not anymore. 

Bags floated around her, handbags and other such bags spilling their contents, and Lavena tried to ignore the shapes of bodies around her, her lungs burning, she wasn’t sure if her eyes were going black from lack of oxygen, or if it was just water pressing on her. She kicked wildly, and held onto her case with one arm, using the air to try and propel herself up. She crashed into… something that was sharp, she didn’t know what, causing a swallow cut to appear across her brow, blood leaking into the water, the salt stinging it painfully. 

She was nearly ready to give up, her body refusing to work properly, and her mouth opened against her will, water filling the space, forcing its way into her throat. She tried coughing, which just made things worse. 

Her eyes continued to fade into blackness, even as she kicked feebly. 

Her body reacted instinctively as she broke the surface, bringing in great gulps of air that probably made her look like a fish out of water, gasping, and then coughing violently, watery blood falling into her eyes. The coughs racked her, her body shaking with the force violently, until everything in her stomach came up, purging itself into the water, she cried weakly, reaching up to wipe her mouth, tears rolling down her face, a horrible taste in her mouth. 

She could hear others crying, calling out to people, but she couldn’t seem to get enough air, enough energy, to call back. It took all her strength to hold her case, and stay afloat. 

She was alive. And that was something to cherish. She reached up with her free hand to press it against the wound along her forehead, grimacing, as she looked around, [color=coral]”H-hello?”[/color] she called weakly, hearing someone else shouting, asking if anything else had survived. She started to laugh wildly, uncontrollably, soon becoming breathless, her stomach hurting, her chest painful, until all she could do was gasp, as she fought to get her breath back. 

It took a few moments, but eventually she was able to call back [color=coral]”I survived”[/color]