[hr][hr] [center] [h1][color=Deepskyblue]Rhett Beckett[/color] and [color=#665B5D]Nadia Reyes[/color][/h1] [img]https://i.imgur.com/zyIkdZk.gif[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/BuocvV1.gif[/img] [b]Location:[/b] The Lighthouse; Atlantic Ocean. [sup][b]Interacting With:[/b] Each other.[/sup][/center] [hr][hr] The groaning grew louder, and with it, Nadia leant herself further over his body, her grip tightening as she felt them slipping, the plane tilting at an unnatural angle causing them to fall from the aisle, and into the icy cold depths below them. This-... This wasn’t happening… this couldn’t be happening- not to them; not now. There were so many things they still needed to do together… travel around and see the world… get married- oh God, their wedding was in only three days time..! No; she couldn’t lose him- she loved him..! Shutting her eyes tightly as they plunged down into the dark waters together, she held her breath, her lungs burning with a searing pain she had never felt before in her life as she tried to make sense of it all. She couldn’t… what was there to make sense of..? None of them wanted this- they never deserved this fate. So why was it they had been forsaken like this..? Refusing to let the ill thoughts of fate consume and panic her, she shifted her grip, her arms leaving his body for only a few moments before they were wrapped back around Rhett once more, though this time from behind. She wasn’t going to leave him- no matter what he said; she wasn’t about to let go so easily. Doing what she could to remain as calm as she could possibly manage through the fear dancing behind her eyes, she hurried to look about through the water; the gentle orange glow of what she assumed was flames catching her attention, and immediately, she was on the move, forcing her searing and tired limbs to work overtime as she kicked through the waters, slowly though surely dragging the both of them up until they were able to break through the surface together, her lungs viciously protesting against her as she sucked in a large breath of fresh salty sea air. Rhett inhaled a deep breath, only to sputter and cough as what remaining water seeped down into his windpipe. Air - that was all he could comprehend. He was breathing (albeit painfully and with a lot of salt in his lungs) and alive. The plane had not killed them. But as soon as that thought registered, unimaginable pain ripped through his entire core, sustaining around the entry and exit wound of the shrapnel that had impaled him back on the plane. He wasn’t clear yet - and his fading vision started to make sense once more. [color=Deepskyblue]“N-Nadi…”[/color] Rhett was wheezing, air suddenly very hard to come by after his first few breaths after breaking the ocean’s surface. She was all that mattered - he had to know that she was safe - that she would make it. But as his mind slowly came to terms with things going on around him, he was then very aware of a pair of arms wrapped around him from behind. Nadia. She refused to give him up, despite his words. She was a fighter and he loved her for it. But the second she started to struggle… Where were they, anyway? Reason told him that any moment, the amount of blood he was spilling into the ocean would alert any shark within three miles of their location. And… their location was where? Even with the light of the fire from the plane illuminating through the dark, Rhett could see nothing. So if he was not to be doomed by impalement or a plane crashing down from the sky, then it was to be by drowning. She had to get him out of the water- she wasn’t about to lose him; not to anything. Nadia’s fear-filled dark eyes shooting wildly around them for a moment, she paused, allowing her mind to wander back over the safety instructions that had been issued by the stewards on the plane… something about life rafts, follow the lights on the ground; bracing yourself in your seat with your head on your lap, or as close to it as could be- [i]none[/i] of that was going to help her now..! Letting out a hoarse yell of frustration, she turned her head away, her gaze falling upon a few of the seat cushions that had come loose during the crash- they were floating… the small though unmistakable sense of hope filling her body, she once more adjusted her hold around the man she loved, making sure that he was laying on his back as she began to pull them towards the cushions, her hand reaching out, straining for a moment before she was able to get a hold of one, dragging it over them and slipping it down and under him as she moved to grab the next one. [color=#665B5D]“..almost-... almost there baby- just, please… please hold on…”[/color] The salt water against his wounds was excruciating. Rhett grit his teeth, refusing to cry out in pain knowing that it would only worry his fiance even more. He was beginning to see spots in his vision - both black and white though he was never able to concentrate on one of them long enough to identify their color at their precise moment. He was a doctor, sure, but he didn’t have to diagnose himself to know that it wasn’t particularly a good sign. Clutching onto the floating seat (though now somewhat submerged due to his weight), Rhett tried to relax his body as best as he could - struggling would only bleed him out faster. She wanted him to hold on. To what, he didn’t know. But if it gave her hope, he would endure. He would endure every last painful breath he could take into his body for her. So long as she lived. She had to live. A bark - Rhett lifted his head, his heavy eyes scanning through the darkness towards where he thought he had heard the sound. Over all of the screaming and pleadings for help, a single bark stuck out to him enough for him to expel enough energy to want to seek it out. There was a pause, another bark and then a series of whines and splashing. [color=Deepskyblue]“Boris…”[/color] Their dog he had brought on their trip with them. He had been issued to the undercarriage - sedated and easily transportable. He didn’t even think about him until now. Sure there may have been other passengers transporting their dogs, but Rhett knew his dog enough to know what Boris sounded like. It was definitely him. He survived, just like the rest of them. But to what end? Turning her head back as the sound of the familiar bark hit her ears, Nadia searched the waters surrounding them for any sign of their beloved dog. Boris was just as much part of their family as any other, and if anything was to happen to him… she knew that Rhett would never forgive himself… Shutting her eyes tightly for a moment as if to shove the very thought from her mind, she let her attention draw back around to her fiance as she felt him move over the cushions, her hand automatically lifting to press lightly over his chest in an effort to try and still him. She had to keep calm… for him; she had to be the strong one right now… [color=#665B5D]“..I-I’ll get him… try not to move…”[/color] Her voice was soft… weak. It hurt to talk, but she had to let him know that she wasn’t going to be giving up anything, not without a fight. [color=Deepskyblue]“N-Nadi, no…”[/color] Pushing away from him, she turned in the water, her face scrunching up in concentration as she strained her ears, once more searching for the bark as she fought against the waves, her body pushing through them as she forced herself to swim in the direction she could hear Boris struggling against the current. Rhett could only watch as Nadia swam away from him, determined to rescue the third part of their small family. Without Boris, they had nothing to remind them that they [i]could[/i] be a happy family - one even without children. But still, Rhett didn’t believe that the dog was worth her risking her own life. [color=#665B5D]“..Boris..!”[/color] At the sound of his name, the canine looked over, his terrified whimpers causing her heart to sink as she pushed herself harder… faster through the water, eventually managing to wrap her arm around his middle- by God, he was heavy… since when had he gotten this heavy..? That was it; the minute they managed to get home (if they ever got home), he was going on a damn diet. Struggling for a moment as the dog squirmed against her body, she groaned, her legs kicking back and forth to keep her up as she lifted him over her shoulder, holding him in place with a single arm as she began the tiring swim back to where she had left Rhett laying over the cushions. As much as he wanted to be impressed, all Rhett could see was her struggle. She was getting tired and weak - the one-hundred plus pound, scared dog not helping her in the least. While he knew she was a fighter until the very end, if she died because of that damn dog... [color=Deepskyblue]“Nadia… please…”[/color] He could taste blood in his mouth - a very metallic-bitter taste combined with the salt water that washed up into his face with every pulse the ocean fought back from the plane crash with. It was getting harder to go on; but she had to. She didn’t have a choice; or at least, not one that she was ever going to be happy with. Her whole body practically screaming at her in protest to all she was doing, she fought on, pushing herself forward until she once more reached his side, her eyes closing and her free arm lifting up onto the cushions beside him to help keep her above the surface while her legs began to slow underneath her. She was tired… so very damn tired… but she couldn’t give up; not like this… [color=#665B5D]“..Rhett… I’m gunna-... I’m gunna find a way to get us out of the water, okay..? Please… please, just hold on baby…”[/color] Taking another moment to just rest, Nadia forced her head to lift back up, her dark eyes opening allowing the reflection of the flames to dance lightly over the surface of them as she looked around them, searching for something she could use- anything that would get them out of the water. Her head dropping slightly as the cold winds changed direction blowing the smoke and ash towards them, she narrowed her eyes, her legs kicking slowly back and forth under her before a glint of pale yellow caught her attention through the grey smoke. No way… was that..? All the way out here, in the middle of the ocean..? Her eyes shutting completely, she buried her head into the inside of her elbow, her coughs coming out spluttered… chesty; causing her already pained throat to hurt even more. Turning her attention back to where she thought she had seen something once her small bout of coughing had come to a rather painful end, Nadia once more narrowed her eyes, squinting through the smoke in an attempt to see, [color=#665B5D]“..I think-... I think I see something… a lighthouse…”[/color] Rhett slowly lifted his heavy head up from the somewhat submerged seat cushion that was acting as a floatation device. A… a lighthouse? All the way out here? Rhett tried to see what it was that his fiance was seeing, but was unable to. Was his vision getting blurry? Or was it getting darker? The fact that he couldn’t tell began to worry him some. [color=Deepskyblue]“I… I need to lay down…”[/color] [color=#665B5D]“Soon baby… soon- and then we’ll get you all fixed up; I promise…”[/color] Things were becoming worse; and it was more than obvious that she had to make a choice sooner rather than later. But that was the problem… what if she made the wrong decision..? Things could get worse than they already were; but if she didn’t choose soon-... She didn’t even want to think about it… Scrunching up her face in a silent prayer that she wasn’t wrong, Nadia forced her tired legs to move fast back and forth, her attention lifting to where she could see what she hoped was the looming structure of a lighthouse as she began to move the three of them in the right direction, her movements slower than ever before due to being weighed down by the dog and having to push her fiance; though she didn’t care, [color=#665B5D]“..I’m not about to lose you, Rhett…”[/color] He could feel his body gliding slowly through the ice-cold water, though the reason behind why he could no longer feel his legs was uncertain anymore. He was forgetting things - why they were on a plane and where they were headed. Really there was only one thing he was absolutely certain of. Turning his head with great effort, he watched as Nadia pushed them all forward through the water, Boris even too scared and cold to whimper anymore. He smiled. [color=Deepskyblue]“I love you, Nadi.”[/color] That smile… it was heartbreaking, and as much as she had been trying, the tears she had been fighting back once more began to well in her eyes, only helping to blur her vision as she maneuvered them slowly through the flames and debris of the crash, the once hazy figure of the lighthouse eventually coming into focus as it towered over them. [color=#665B5D]“I-...”[/color] She wanted to say it- to tell him that she loved him too, but she just couldn’t. It felt too much like a goodbye. Tearing her gaze away from his for a moment, she let her terrified dark eyes flick up to the lighthouse as they approached it, the waves slowly calming down to almost nothing with each inch they drew closer, [color=#665B5D]“..I was right… Rhett, I was right- it’s a lighthouse. We’re going to be fine- [i]you’re[/i] going to be fine…”[/color]