Desolation, J. B. Everett [reading a book txt] 📗

The first thing that I register is the blazing sun burning on my skin. It is hot. Like over 100 degrees hot. But this is not the most shocking thing that I observe. What I register next is this; I am tied up in a tree.

Daring to look down, I see that I am a good 25 feet above the ground. My heart begins to pound in my chest like a hammer and beads of sweat roll down my face. Where the hell am I?

When I try to recall where I am, my mind is foggy, like a swirling mist. I can't remember anything. Sheer panic floods throughout my body when I comprehend that I am trapped up in a tree high above the ground. Thick tawny ropes bind my arms and legs to a branch jutting out from the trunk of the tree, and I am extremely uncomfortable.

"HELP!" I call out, my voice ragged. The only reply I get is the twittering of birds. Helpful. I twist my head around, looking for any sign of help, and realize that I am in some sort of tropical jungle.

"Please someone, HELP ME!" I cry out again desperately. But no one is there; I am alone.

"Shit" I mutter under my breath. My shoulders are beginning to throb with the pain from being twisted backwards. What the hell am I going to do. I suddenly begin to hysterically cry, out of the fear, pain and confusion that I am experiencing. I know that crying won't help me at all, but there is nothing else that I can do. The tears stream down my face and free-fall 25 feet down to the ground. Then suddenly, there is a noise that makes me stop crying immediately and freeze in utter terror.

Crrrrack.

It's the tree branch, bending down from my weight.

Holy shit, I am going to die. The branch slowly begins to dip down. Panic floods throughout my body like ice; I can't move or cry. All I can do is pray. Hard.

I squeeze my eyes shut, bracing for the moment when the branch will completely snap and I will plunge to my death. I continue to pray, even though I know that I am doomed.

Then, a miracle happens.

I hear a boy's voice shout from below. At first, I think I am just imagining it, but then I know it's real when I hear it again.

"I'm coming up to get you!" it yells.

The only thing is I will probably be dead on the ground by the time he reaches the top of the tree. Somehow, the branch hasn't snapped yet, but it is hanging on for dear life. I pray some more, my eyes still squeezed shut. Then, I hear the sound of the boy quickly climbing up the tree. How the hell can he climb a tree that fast?

"I...I don't think you can get me out of this!" I cry, my voice shaking.

Even if he does make it in time before the branch snaps, how will he cut me out and not have me fall?

"Yes, I can. Don't panic" His voice is now very close.

"How?" I ask.

"I'm going to pull you towards me then cut the ropes. Don't worry, you won't fall. I promise"

Something about the confident tone of his voice assures me that maybe, I might make it out of this.

"Just stay as still as you can" he says.

I feel his hand reach out and grab the ropes around tied around me. He then gently pulls me closer towards him. I precariously slide along the branch, praying to God that the branch doesn't snap now, when I am so close to being rescued.

"Okay, now I'm going to cut the ropes" he says.

"With what?" I ask, my voice shaking.

"With my pocketknife" he replies.

He then begins to cut the thick ropes, which takes some time. Somehow, the branch still hasn't snapped. Finally, all of the ropes are cut.

"Now, on the count of three, get up and come right into my arms"

"How is this going to work, aren't we both going to fall?" I asked, panicked.

"No, I'm standing on a sturdy branch. I'm going to count down now. One..."

"I can't do this" I say.

"Yes you can. Two..." This is not going to work.

"THREE!"

Bracing myself for the worst, I jump up and fly forward towards the boy. I feel his strong arm wrap around me, pulling me close to his side. There is the sound of a deafening crack, then the branch that I was on just a moment ago falls to the ground. I am panting and my heart is still thundering inside my chest, but I am alive. I look up into the face of the boy who saved me and my heart skips I beat. He is extremely handsome, with blue eyes and dark hair.

"Thanks" I whisper breathlessly, my eyes still locked with his.

He smiles, his flawless jawline curving into a perfect smile. I know that I shouldn't be thinking about how hot this guy is while I'm dangerously standing at the top of a tree, but I can't help it.

"Let's get down" he says.

Right. I completely forgot the fact that we still have to get down from here. Great.

"Um...how are we going to do that?" I ask uncertainly.

"The same way I came up, just going down. I'll go first, and you follow. Just hold on tight to the branches" he says, then turns around to begin climbing back down.

Holy shit, I cannot climb down trees. Especially ones that are 25 feet above the ground.

"I don't think I can do this" I blurt out, my nerves taking the best of me.

He turns around, looking back at me, then says, "How about this; I'll go down first then I'll wait right at the bottom when you come down. So just in case you fall, which you won't, I'll be there to catch you"

"Okay" I whisper, nodding.

The boy nods back, then begins climbing down the tree with ease. I'll never understand how some people are so daring. About a minute later, he reaches the bottom, then looks up to me and shouts, "Your turn!"

Shit.

After taking a deep breath, I take a slow step forward then stretch out my right leg to the branch below. Fear pulsates throughout my entire body, making me feel stiff and rigid.

"I really don't think that I can do this!" I cry, after wobbling slightly.

There's a pause, then he shouts back, "Trust me, you can! I'm right here in case anything happens, I promise"

After taking another deep breath, and lower my left leg down onto the branch below. Woohoo, I have officially descended 4 inches. All this time, I have completely forgotten the question of "Where the hell am I?". That's something that I need the answer to, but right now my only focus is getting to the ground not via falling.

Surely but slowly, I continue to scale down the tree. A few times I lose my footing and scream, but then I regain my balance by wrapping my arms around the tree trunk.

"You're almost there!" he shouts.

Thank god.

Then, to my relief, my foot touches the ground. I hop down, then turn to face him.

"See, you made it" he says, smiling.

I nod breathlessly, smiling back.

"What's your name?" he asks.

"Tessa" I reply. That's about the only thing that I can remember. I also remember that I am 17 years old.

"I'm Tristan. Nice to meet you Tessa" he says.

Then, it finally kicks in. Where the hell am I?

I slowly spin around, looking at the surroundings. We are in the middle of a dense jungle, and I have no recollection at all of where I am or how I got here.

"You're probably wondering where you are, right?" Tristan asks

I nod. Yes, it's not your common, everyday situation that you wake up with no memory, tied in up in a tree in the middle of some tropical jungle.

"Hate to tell you this, but we have no clue where we are or what's going on either. We all woke up here with no memory except for our names"

"We? There's others?" I ask, looking back at him.

"Yeah, with you now that makes twelve of us on this island" Tristan says.

"Twelve?" I whisper.

"Yeah, twelve teenagers. Six girls, six boys. We all woke up here today"

"Where are the others?" I ask

"Everyone else is on the beach right now. I went into the jungle to check this island out when I heard you screaming for help. It took me a little bit to find you, but then I did" Tristan explains.

"Did everyone else wake up tied up in a tree?" I ask

"Some did, but some others woke up in other places. I woke up on the beach" he says

Hah. I would of much rather woken up on a beach than stuck up in a tree 25 feet above the ground.

"Well let's go back to the beach" Tristan says.

It's taking my mind some time to process all of this. I am confused. Why can't I remember anything? And why are there twelve teenagers all on this island with no recollection of what happened?

"Do you think that there's others that we haven't found yet?" I ask

Tristan shrugs. "I guess we'll find out soon enough. C'mon let's go" he says

We begin to walk through the thick jungle. The only noise is the loud chattering of exotic birds perched up high in the canopies of the tall trees. Minutes pass by as we continue walking. Somehow, Tristan knows his way through the jungle. If it were me on my own, I would be completely lost. Everything looks exactly the same.

"Here we are" Tristan finally says. We have finally arrived at the beach. The sun blazes down on the white sand beach that stretches for miles along the shore. Crystalline royal blue water laps up on the shore. It's the bluest, clearest water that I have ever seen in my life.

"There they are" Tristan says, pointing to the right. Farther down the beach, there is a group of people. We begin to walk towards them and my heart beats faster. When we are close, they see us and turn around. I can already hear them murmuring amongst themselves.

Then a girl shouts out, "Who the hell is she!?"

A blond haired girl stands up, glaring at me.

"Where'd she come from?" she exclaims

The rest of them