Petals On The Water

By Rachel

 

 

 

“Did you find her?” Pacey asked as he and Jack met outside the library.

“No,” Jack looked around. The school was deserted by now.

“I wonder what the hell Chris Wolf wanted with her?”

They had seen Chris follow her out of the building earlier after bumping into her in the hallway, and Pacey had gotten a bad feeling. Now he and Jack, and Jen, who hadn’t checked back yet, were looking for her.

“She probably went home,” Jack said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

“No, she didn’t…” They turned to see Jen standing behind them. “I called her house…Bessie hasn’t seen her yet.”

“Something’s going on…I can feel it.” Pacey mumbled, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Where can she be?” Jack spun around as some members of the water polo team trickled out through the front doors towards the student parking lot. “Think she’s out back by the pool?”

“We didn’t check there yet,” Pacey said, looking at Jen. She shrugged, nodding her head no.

“I also haven’t checked the cafeteria…”

“Jack and I will check out back, you check the cafeteria…meet back here if you don’t find her.”

“Okay,” Jen said starting to turn away.

“Oh, and if you find Chris…you tell him I want to speak to him.”

 

 

“Where the hell can she be?” Jack asked as he and Pacey ventured around the building to the back of the school. They were now in the staff parking lot where Joey had been only twenty minutes before.

“I don’t know,” Pacey said. “I’ll feel better once we find her…I don’t trust that asshole.”

“Yeah, Chris is a real dick.”

 

“Hey, Dawson.” Jen said, finding him studying at one of the cafeteria tables.

“Oh hey,”

“What are you still doing here?”
”Um, my dad is working late…grading papers. And I thought I’d just study here for a while…you know, it beats walking home in this heat. By the way, what are you doing here?”

“Oh,” Jen said, suddenly frowning. “Honestly…I’m looking for Joey.”

“Oh?” Dawson asked almost hopefully.

“Yeah…I guess after school, she kind of disappeared, and Pacey—” She held her tongue; suddenly remembering that he was a touchy subject.

“What?” Dawson asked audaciously. “What about Pacey?”

“Well,” Jen said, smiling nervously. “He saw Chris Wolf follow her out and got kind of nervous about it.”

“Chris Wolf?” Dawson asked. “I’d be nervous too…”

“Tell me about it,” Jen smiled. “That guys a walking penis…he’s a leech. Any girl who gets stuck alone with him is in definite danger of sexual harassment.”

Dawson closed his books. “I agree…I’ll help you find her.”

 

“I don’t like the way things have been,” Pacey sighed as he and Jack walked towards the pool. “The way she’s been acting…the way she goes off, all alone all the time…and now Chris!”

“But we have been kind of giving her the cold shoulder,” Jack said guiltily.

“I know…” Pacey lowered his head. “It’s just that she hurt me and I didn’t know how to handle it. But Dawson hasn’t done a lot to help either…shunning her…”

“I know.”

Pacey suddenly stopped. “Wha—” Jack followed his gaze. “Shit!”

They ran to the edge of the pool where the form floated face down. Pacey dived in; his clothes filled with water and weighed him down. He swam to the figure and grabbed her, turning her face up. It was Joey, and her lips were blue. As Pacey looked down into her lifeless face, his heart skipped a beat.

“Jack! Help me!” He said breathlessly as he brought her to the edge of the pool. Jack gritted his teeth and with all his strength and will, plucked her from the water and laid her out on the concrete. He reached over and grabbed Pacey’s arm, helping him out after her.

A flood of water splashed to the ground as it fell from Pacey’s clothes.

Pacey leaned forward, putting his ear to her face. “She’s not breathing…I’m starting CPR.”

“I’m going to call for help.” Pacey nodded to Jack between breaths. Jack rose to his feet and took off.

 

“What the hells going on?” Dawson asked alarmed when he saw the look on Jack’s face as he passed them on their way to the pool. His face was as white as a ghost.

“Joey was in the pool! She unconscious! Pacey started CPR, I’ve got to call for help!”

“Oh my god!” Dawson gasped. Jen followed him to the gate.

 

“No!” Dawson cried when he saw Joey on the ground. Pacey looked up at him breathlessly, his cheeks flushed. “Let me take over!” Dawson cried, going to her side.

“No,” Pacey said cupping her mouth to give her another breath. “Start compressions!”

Dawson reached down, pulling apart her shirt and sending buttons flying everywhere. He started counting out the compressions on her chest.

“One one thousand…two one thousand…three one thousand…four one thousand…five one thousand, breath!”

Pacey leaned over and passed his breath to her again. He watched her chest rise and fall with the air.

Nothing.

“One one thousand…two one thousand…three one thousand…four one thousand…five one thousand, breath,”

 Pacey watched Dawson almost lost in a daze, but then on cue, breathed into her again and again.

“Oh no!” Jen cried. “Oh no, oh no, oh no!” The tears ran down her cheeks as she bit her nails, and tried to look away.

They heard the gate clang open again as Jack rushed back, out of breath.

“The ambulance…they’re coming!”

Dawson and Pacey kept working together, fighting to bring the girl back to life, trying to make her breathe.

“Dammit, Jo!” Dawson cursed, pressing harder and harder against her chest.

“Please Joey…please.” Jen whispered. “Please wake up.” Jack said nothing, but came up behind and wrapped his arms around her, holding her while they looked on helplessly.

 

Pacey was so tired but he wouldn’t give up.

“How long as she been down?” Dawson asked, still frantically pumping her chest.

“I—I don’t know…”

“It’s been about three minutes since we pulled her out of the water,” Jack said.

“Damn!” Dawson hissed. “She could’ve been in there for hours! She could be dead!”

“Shut up! Shut the fuck up!” Pacey screamed.

“No!” Jen said, suddenly coming aware. “The water polo team just left! She couldn’t have been in that long!”

“Wake up, Joey!” Pacey whispered desperately. “Wake up!”

They grew quiet as things began to feel hopeless. The only sounds were that of Dawson gritting his teeth as he pushed down on her chest, and Pacey’s breath as he breathed into her.

Finally, they heard the sirens in the distance.

“Thank god they’re coming,” Jack whispered as he held Jen against his chest. She closed her eyes tightly, clutching him, wishing none of this was happening.

The gate clanged open again as the paramedics rushed in. Mitch Leery came in behind them, alerted after hearing the commotion. Two policemen arrived, and instructed the other teachers and what was left of the water polo team who had gathered into a crowd to stay back, gawking from behind the gate. Dawson turned to his father, covering his face with his hands. Exhausted, Pacey slumped back on the concrete and watched silently as the medics tried to revive Joey.

 

 

End Part 2