Left for Dead

My head popped out of the frigid waters, immediately gasping for air the second my face hit the surface. Before thinking about doing anything else, I just know I had to get the hell out of these waters. My hand reached up and grabbed the closest patch of dried grass that I could reach before pulling my entire body over the small cliff, wincing at the pain caused by the scraping of the sharp rocks lining up the side of the cliff.

Once I had managed to pull my entire self over, I laid back to catch my breath and try to remember how this all happened in the first place. The last thing I remembered was the impact the plane made the second it hit the ground. Soon after, I was being pushed down the cliff straight down into the freezing water below.

"Carla!" I shouted out, hoping my girlfriend was nearby to call out.

Silence.

"Carla!" I tried once more.

My eyes took in the environment around me. The ground was covered in loose hay and the grass looked as if it hadn't rained in years. The trees surrounding the area were all frail and sad-looking, with bare branches that looked almost naked as they swayed in the wind. My body let out a shiver as feeling began to reenter my body. I began to realize just where I had just been. The soaked material of my clothing pressed against my skin, sending chills throughout my entire body each time the wind would blow through.

I felt around my pockets to pull out an old candy wrapper and my phone. I pressed the power and home buttons simultaneously to try and turn it back on but the screen remained black. Of course. It wasn't as if I had been submerged underwater for God knows how long. I sat myself up and began to undress. First off were my shoes, then my socks. There was nothing I hated more than the feeling of wet socks pressing up against the skin of my feet. Next, I pulled off my shirt and yanked my legs out of my pants. Soon enough I sat next to a pile of wet clothing in just a white tank top and a pair of boxers, regretting everything I had just done as the wind grew stronger across the island.

"Carla!" I shouted once more. If I fell off the edge of the cliff on impact, she should've been right around here. Was she okay? Is she alive? Did anyone survive that crash? For a small flight, I do remember how they managed to cram so many of us into a tight space. I had a bad feeling about it but Carla had reassured me that they all knew exactly what they were doing. Stupid me.

I fell back against the ground and stared up at the sky. My eyes began to grow heavy and soon they began to close. "C-Carla," I whispered to myself, "Please be okay, C-Carla."

The flight attendants walked up and down the aisle, double checking every passenger who came onboard to make sure we were safely, and correctly, buckled in our seats. I couldn't help but notice my seatbelt being wedged in-between the seats of Carla and I.

"Are you alright?" Carla placed her hand on my forearm the way she does when she feels like something's wrong.

"I think I might need a little help," I gestured to the seatbelt between the seats, "it's jammed down there."

"Don't worry about it."

"Carla," I chuckled, "I need to buckle up."

She threw her jacket over my waist, "There. Just stay silent. They are clearly busy and the plane's already late as it is."

I leaned back in the seat and scanned over the many heads that filled up the tiny plane. "Are you sure this will be fi-"

"Logan," Carla sighed loudly, "You're going to bring the attention all on you and we will never get out of here."

I took a slow breath before shutting my mouth. I knew I probably should've called out for a flight attendant's attention, but I just didn't feel the need to start an argument with my girl.. especially not here on this very crowded flight."

"Alright passengers of Fight 2906.. we will be getting ready for lift-off pretty soon. Just sit tight and we should be heading up towards the sky real shortly." A flight attendant said into the intercom.

I took a breath.

**

The plane began to shake. Turbulence. That's all it is. It's got to be. What else would it be? I turned over to see Carla snoozing in the seat next to me and locked my fingers in with hers.

"Mm." She groaned out.

The plane dipped suddenly. The lights flickered for a second before completely shutting off and the oxygen masks fell out from their closed compartments. What the hell?

"Carla." I whispered to her. I shook her hand, but she didn't wake.

"Alright folks," A flight attendant spoke out over the intercom, "Don't be alarmed. We just hit a bit of turbulence. Just put on the oxygen masks and sit tight till we find out more information."

Without thinking, I immediately grabbed Carla's oxygen mask and attempted to put it over her head.

"What the hell are you do-" Carla woke up, "Oh my god. What's going on?"

"Put this on."

"Logan."

"Put it on!" I nearly shouted at her.

"Okay. Okay."

Once she began to finish putting her on, I grabbed my mask and went to put it over my head when the plane fell into a direct straight line forward. Everyone began to freak out now. Some people tried standing up, only to slip out of their seats and fly forward. I grabbed ahold of the handle attached to my seat. It only just hit me that I never actually got my seatbelt fixed.

"Carla." I looked over at her, who was hyperventilating into the bag attached to her oxygen mask. "Carla, I think I'm going to die." I took ahold of her hand as we plummeted straight down towards the Earth at full speed.

"Carla," I said once more, "Promise me that you won't let go."

**

The second the plane hit impact, the screams grew louder. Peoples' cries became more dominant. Heat started to takeover as flames began to grow. People had gotten piled on top of one another.

"My legs!" someone shouted from across the way where part of the plane had landed on top of someone's bottom half.

"Help my baby!" another woman screamed as she knelt down over her young child who had hit her head against the wall of the plane.

My eyes fell upon Carla's hand who had still been interlocked with mine and I let out a sigh.

"Logan?" Carla moaned out. She had a red gash spilling down the side of her face as her eyes were widened in terror, "L-Lo-Lo-Log-Logan."

"I'm okay." I squeezed her hand.

"Logan, don't look down."

What? My eyes shifted over to the waves crashing against the rocks below me. The plane must have split on impact because half of plane had sunk into the water below and there had been people screaming for help in the water. Some were trying to swim to some kind of safe zone, while others just floated on their stomachs in the waves. Oh my god. I tried to pull myself up but I couldn't figure out what part of the plane had been safe to grab without breaking off.

"Carla, please."

She stared at me in silence. Frozen.

"Carla." I begged. I squeezed ahold of her hand even harder as a way to gesture for her attention but nothing.

"I'm so sorry, Logan." She said to me.

"Carla, just help me up. I think I can make it if I-"

Her hand unlocked from mine.

"Carla?"

"I'm so sorry."

I tried to hold on but couldn't find a proper grip, falling straight down into the freezing cold water below. The second I hit, I realized just how many people had fallen in after the impact. Pieces of the plane surrounded us as the rest of it barely hung on to the cliff above us.

My eyes shot open immediately. "Carla." I said out loud.