two weeks later - may 21, 2020

this is gonna be long

i press my foot against the gas pedal, watching the speedometer slowly rise with my speed. i turn the radio off and just listen to the rain pelting the roof of my car, a deep sigh leaving my lips as i realize that the rain was going to cloud my vision of the road.

the weather proved my point when hit a slight bump and my car leaned to the side slightly.

"fuck," i mumble to myself, immediately slowing the car to a stop on the side of the nearly vacant bridge. i step out of the car, pulling my black denim jacket over my head as i maneuver around the car, seeing the front passenger side tire was practically shredded. "goddamn it!" i shout, kicking the tire with my boot covered foot.

i get back into the car and pull out my phone, calling a tow truck before a sudden banging against my window pulls me out of my own self pity, the startling noise causing my phone to fall out of my hand.

"you have to help! he's gonna die! he's gonna drown!" a little boy, maybe six years old, screamed into the closed window.

immediately, i pull myself out of the car and kneel down to the boy's level. "who, sweetheart?"

"my brother, carter!" he shouts as tears fall from his eyes, mixing with the rain. "we were playing in the drain and the water just came so fast, and now he's stuck and the water just keeps coming - you have to help him!"

"whats your name, babe?" i ask hm, pushing the dark wet hair out of his face.

"weston," he says softly, looking at me with wide eyes.

"okay, weston, i need you to show me where your brother is." i tell him, giving him a reassuring smile. "i'm gonna get him out of there, i promise you."

he grabs my hand in his small one and from there, he pulls me through the flooded alleyway and to an old storm drain. the water was up tp my waist, and to weston's chin, so i pull him with me to keep him from being washed away with the rest of the water.

"he's in there!" he shouts over the rising water and falling rain, pointing into the drain. "you have to help him!"

i pull myself up onto the cement slab, turning to pull the small boy up as well. he goes into the spherical drain and i follow close behind, being careful with my foot placement so i wouldn't fall and be swept away by the water.

we step about twenty feet into the rain when i see a boy - no older than thirteen - trapped behind what looked like a barbed wire fence. one of his legs was sticking through the barbed wire, and his torso was pressed against the wore by the force of the rushing water.

"carter, my name is gwen," i say to him as i kneel in front of him, my hands working fast to try and pull the fence type thing from its hinges. "i'm gonna get you out of here."

his wide brown eyes strained on me. the poor kid's skin was as white as hospital sheets, and his lips blue. "please help me," he stutters through sobs, his teeth chattering so loud that i could hear it over the rushing rain water.

i look over at weston, he's sitting against the wall with his knees pulled to his chest. "weston, baby, i need you to go to my car and find my phone - you're gonna dial 911 and tell them that dr. dené is with your brother and that they need to send a rescue team - can you do that for me?"

he nods quickly before exiting the drain, my attention immediately going back to the boy in front of me. "carter, can you wiggle your toes for me?" i ask him, taking his tennis shoes off and tossing it to the side.

"i can't feel it," he tells me as the water slowly rises to his chest. "i'm gonna die, aren't i?"

"no, baby, you're not gonna die," i tell him, my fingers prodding at his leg. "you can't feel any of this?"

he shakes his head quickly, a loud sob leaving his lips. "i don't want to die!"

i leave his leg and reach through a small opening in the barbed wire, gripping his chin in my hand. "i'm not gonna let you die, kid, that's a promise." i release his chin and look around me, finding nothing to break the fence.

"okay, carter," i start, looking the scared boy in the eyes. "i'm gonna run to my car and i'm gonna see what i can find to break this fence - i'm gonna need you to pull your knee up to your chest as much as you can, just so you can stay warm, just curl into the smallest ball you can - and keep your head above water!"

"okay," he murmurs, pulling his body closer to the fence, his knee coming up to his chest as the other leg continues to stick through the fence.

"i'm gonna need you to sing as loud as you can, just so i can hear you and so you can stay awake." i tell him, noticing his eyes beginning to roll back. "you need to stay awake so you don't go under."

"i don't know any songs." he tell me, tears filling his eyes once again. "the only song i know is that one that's like take me out to the ballgame."

"thats fine," i tell him, my hand sticking through the fence to comb through his wet hair gently. "just sing it as loud as you can."

i stand up and nod at him as i make my way out of the drain and back to my car, opening the boot and rummaging through the supplies.

a jack.

a tire iron.

jumper cables.

a plastic bag from walmart.

a backpack filled with cd's?

the first two items seem to be the only useful objects, so i'll just take those.

i put the tire iron and the jack inside of the plastic bag and quickly make my way back to the boy.

"root, root root for the home team," he sang shakily, his small body rocking back and forth. "you're back!"

"i'm back," i say with a small smile, setting the bag of items beside me. "and i brought some things that might help us get you out of here."

"what are they?" he asks me, his head bobbing slightly in the water. it was up to his neck now, his mouth just barely filling with water as he spoke.

"lets see," i say as i pull the jack out first. "we have a jack - we're gonna use it to pry the fence open so you can slip out," i pull out the tire iron next and look at the small boy. "and were gonna use this to make a lot of noise while we try to break the fence, if the jack doesn't work."

he nods in understanding as he watches me place the jack between the spaces in the fence, the water slowly rising up to his nose. he tilts his head back slightly to keep himself from going under.

to be continued...

haha just kidding

ten minutes later

"you have to stay awake for me, carter," i tell the boy, lightly slapping his cheek as i use all of my strength to push the fence away from his broken leg. "keep your eyes open, goddamn it!"

the boy's eyes had glazed over and his body was freezing in the cold water. hypothermia would begin to set in soon, and his muscles would soon give in keeping his body above water.

"come on, baby," i tell him, squeezing his chin as my eyes fill with tears. "keep your eyes open - sing for me! sing for me, carter!" i shout over the rushing water, feeling the fence give in under my strength.

"i can't," he says weakly, his dull brown eyes staring into mine. "i'm gonna die, and that's okay." as he says this, his head falls underneath the water.

"no!" i scream, pushing my shoulder through growing face in the fence. "fuck!"

i move my arm under the water quickly, gripping onto the boy's shirt and pulling him up, just as the pressure of the water against the fence breaks the chain links.

suddenly, i'm under water. i can't open my eyes and i lose my grip on carter's shirt.

fuck.

i flail my arms around me, trying to reach the surface of the water, but my hands find nothing but the freezing water that seemed to keep coming.

i begin to give up and release the little air from my lungs, my body giving in to the exhaustion and lack of oxygen.

this is it. i'm dying. the last thing i ever did was try to save a boy from drowning in a storm drain.

i didn't even get to tell billie goodbye.

i feel my body completely relax under the water and my brain becomes foggy. carter is probably dead and now i am too.

A/N

yall...we're number one in #billie and im actually an emotional wreck I love you so much