Two dives, two deaths

“'Come on!' Jerry shouted at me, his laughter ringing through the woods 'Run faster! We better get back before our parents worry!'
I lifted up my long summer skirt and ran as fast as I could, jumping over fallen trees and brambles, hurdling all the branches and nettles.
'Wait for me!' I cried 'I wish I hadn't worn this skirt!'
'I do too, it's already getting dark!' Jerry stopped and waited for me, he was sweating and his dark brown hair was a mess. I had met him that summer, both our family's had been in the same hotel, which was just outside the wood, on the outskirts of town.
I was thirteen and he was fourteen and we got along well, I liked his twinkling eyes and strange freckles which looked like they were only there by accident.
I, at the time had had blonde curly hair and brown eyes with little swirls of blue in them and that day I was wearing a long green skirt with a frilly, blue top.

When we arrived at the hotel, all sweaty and hot, our parents were waiting, having just had a nice meal together.
They looked us up and down with startled faces 'Have you two been running in the woods?' My mother asked, with an amused voice.
'Errrm....Yes, I hope you don't mind Mrs Darmont, Carisa and I went for a walk and didn't see how late it was getting and when darkness fell we ran.....I'm going to bed, goodnight Mrs and Mr Darmont, Mother and Father, Carisa!' And then he turned and bounced up the stairs in his graceful way.

Later that night Mother said 'He's a nice young man...'
I blushed, understanding how she meant it 'Yes, he is, do you like his parents?' I asked.
'They're lovely people, I think we may have just found some new family friends Carisa!'
I cringe, I hated my name and preferred it when called me Carrie, I reminded my mother who said
'Oh, sorry Dear.....Anyway, it's sad we're going tomorrow, but me, your father and Henry and Jan have decided to meet up next year, because we had so much fun this summer!'
I smiled and said 'That would be lovely!' then I went to bed and dreamed about running through the woods with Jerry Menotte.

My family and Jerry's met up the next year and then the year after that and me and Jerry got closer
and closer until one night Jerry said 'Carrie? I like spending my summers with you....In fact I love spending my summers with you.....Like I love you....'
I just sat there in shock, as he lent over and kissed me, kissed me until I kissed him back, then I got up and said goodnight and went to bed thinking about what had just happened.

Our family's continued to meet up and soon I turned twenty and Jerry was twenty-one, but we still came with our family's.
We also sent love letters, which I tried to keep secret and I succeeded until Mother found a letter under my pillow and was overjoyed.

To my surprise that summer Jerry asked me to marry him and I just gapped at him for such a long time that he thought I was going to say no, until I hugged him and cried 'Yes!'

In the morning me and Jerry went for a walk and followed a path up to a cliff which sat right above a beautiful deep lake, we sat there talking for half an hour and then he said 'I fancy a swim!'
'But you can't climb all the way down there!' I answered, as I looked down and the steep wall of rock.
'I know that! But I could dive! The lake is really deep I can tell...'
'But what if you're wrong!' I argued.
'I'm not wrong! Look on can tell by looking at how deep it is at the edge of the lake!'
And then without warning he jumped, I screamed and watched as he splashed into the water and then surfaced with a grin, I scowled at him and cried down to him 'It's going to take you hours to go round and get back to the path!'
His grin faded as he looked up and saw how stupid he had just been 'I could climb......'
'NO!' I screamed down at him.
He swam around for a bit and then, without listening to me started climbing the wall which was eight meters high and looked very hard to climb.
I just sat there staring at him, how could he be so stupid sometimes?

It took him ages to get half way and I could tell he was really tired and as he almost got to the top I was sure he had made it, but then he fell and hit his head on a rock and before I knew it, he was floating around in the water.
I had to know if he was alive, I couldn't leave him down there, so with shaking legs and tears rolling down my cheeks I half dived, half fell into the lake.

I hit the water with a slash and it seemed to take forever for me to surface and when I did I gulped in some air and swam with all my might towards Jerry, to find he was still alive, just.
I grabbed him and started swimming to the edge, he was heavy and the lake was big but I just managed to drag him out.
Them I kind of went mad and started half carrying, half dragging him off into the woods, shouting for help.
I came to a steep drop, but I went down there, for it was the only way, I tripped and rolled down, with Jerry right behind me, then I hit my head and fell out of consciousness.

I woke up and with blood all over my face, somewhere comfy and warm, people all around me and I feel like I'm floating, I think my skull is broken and many other thing, manly bones but also my heart, because I was sure that someone who had been as badly hurt as Jerry could not survive a fall like that, because I knew I couldn't, in fact I was probably already half dead or dead....Well I couldn't really be dead or I wouldn't be thinking.
Well anyway that is how I died, trying save a very stupid young man.”

Signed

Carrie Darmont