Young Writers Society

"Cool," said Susan, "I've got two sisters and well, let's none of us could survive more than ten minutes out in the wild." She sensed a slight crack in Eliza's voice at the end. Before she could think further on that, the woman who was with them started laughing about the flamingo.

Eliza also looked like she was doing her best not to burst out laughing. Then the woman was hit by what looked like a piece of wall. Wincing for a moment in sympathy, Eliza watched as the conversation turned towards the raft, Jack taking charge.

He offered her the pool float. Susan took a good look at the pink flamingo and muttered a quick 'Thank you" that was probably too quiet to be heard by the man but she hoped her smile conveyed the message. If someone had told her that she'd be using a pink flamingo pool float as her raft of choice in a shipwreck she'd have either laughed at them, or it would have been Daph, back when she was four years old.

Jack seemed to be considering something before asked for the vines that were in Eliza's hands. She handed some over, and he walked over to the broken door boards and proceeded to quickly tie them together before declaring that they now had three usable rafts.

"Moira and I can take the big board. Eliza, take this one," he said. Susan made a mental note of what must have been he woman's name. He handed the vine he was pulling over to Eliza. "And Susan, you can use the float. Let's tie them all together so we don't lose each other."

Susan gave a quick nod and the two girls stepped gingerly out to the surf to meet them. The rafts were quickly tied together using the longer vines as securely as they could be with the plants and shaken around to make sure they weren't going to easily break. After that, the three rafts were pushed out, Jack out in front pushing any immediate large bits of debris out of the way.

Susan clambered onto the float, hoping that it didn't suddenly decide to spring a leak. The hastily filled float buckled and sank down a bit deeper than she would have liked but it held firm. She was floating.

They pushed off shore, looking less like a rescue team and more like a family having the most ridiculous costume pool party ever, featuring a Titanic inspired piece of board for the parents, a Bear Grylls's inspired raft for the former girl scout and a pink flamingo pool float for her, the nerdy sister that had been talked into joining them. She could almost forget that she still hadn't seen any signs of lifeboats. Almost.

Week 3 --- Post 5/5 --- 452 words

a crash and a bang- now what could that be,
a slew of new sailors, not one, two, or three.

the clouds had been roaring, all day and all night,
and cap' had not seen such a beautiful sight.

these weary young children had come from afar,
so lost and confused like the rest of us are.

not yet had they lost the wee shine in their eyes,
but soon they'd be in for a wicked surprise.

"My eyes must decieve me, these kids look so young. One small girl, one limping, one tall one, one strong! Oh my they are living! How could I not see. Alas it's the sky that's revealed them to me!"

The captain stepped out to where the grass met the sand. He wanted a closer look at the crew that had washed ashore. His twisted smile painted his face with an evil air that could scare little children from a mile away.

And now for the moment he'd planned long ago,
he raised his arms higher, and he screamed "Hello!"

word count: 176 words

Jack looked back at the beach they just came from, feeling the hairs of his neck stand up. He swore he heard the echoes of a quiet ghostly shriek emanating from the island, but that sounded ridiculous. He dismissed it as his imagination and turned back to the sea's horizon.

He finished tying the boats and together they all started to push the rafts to the ocean. They didn't have a compass, so he would have to make sure they didn't lose sight of the island by navigating and paddling along the way. Luckily it was high tide right now and they would be pushed towards the island. There was no chance a current could take them, even with vulnerable rafts.

Jack looked out at the horizon, and it was clear there were floating wreckage in the distance.

Furniture. Personal items. Things.

Bodies.

Many with their face towards the water.

Dead.

Jack froze, staring at all the bobbing bodies in the distance.

... This couldn't be everyone, though, right? Olivia couldn't be here... She couldn't. She was a survivor, like him.

Please don't be here, he pleaded in his mind.

Week 4 -- Post 1/5 -- 190 Words

Moira had carried the board over to the rest of the group. It may have been big, but it wasn’t heavy. Still, she was grateful for it to be out of her hands. Jack had quickly stepped up to become the leader of the group. He started to tie the rafts together, and then froze in his tracks.

After a moment, Moira saw what Jack was looking at, and it was bad. The wreckage of the boat. She thought she saw bodies in the distance too. Moira took a deep breath and looked back at the two younger girls. She wasn’t sure how old either of them were, but she knew she had a few years on each of them.

“Maybe,” Moira said, turning to Jack, “We should go and see what we find.” She didn’t want to condescend to the girls, but if she had to go in their place in case what was there was bad, she would do it. Besides, you didn’t really need four people to investigate a wreck anyway. It would become a too many cooks situation otherwise.

Week 4 — Post 1/4 — 183 words

Jack was frozen and lost in thought, unable to move or say anything. He knew there would be dead bodies, but it just occurred to him that he had no idea what to do if he saw Olivia washed up at sea. He tried to think of what would happen, but his mind drew a blank as if telling him, "This isn't even a possibility. Don't think about it."

"Maybe we should go see what we find," Moira said, breaking him out of his thoughts. He turned to her and saw the worry in her face. He recognized the look; it was the same face he made when Maxine came home late from school and when he realized he lost eyes on Sophie in the park.

She was concerned for Eliza and Susan, and Jack understood. He would be worried if his daughters were here and grown up like them; he would hate to see them be in anguish for days on end because they saw dead bodies of people they loved. His gaze fell back at the two of them, and suddenly a wave of fatherly instinct washed over him.

"New plan," he said, then pointed at Eliza's board and Susan's float. "I'm not so sure those rafts will make it when the waves are tougher. You both should stay in the shallower ends instead and find supplies."

It was a lie, but it was for their own good. He didn't wait for a response as he hastily untied the knot connecting his raft to theirs.

Week 4 -- Post 2/5 -- 258 Words

Eliza watched Jack untie the vines connecting their rafts together. A wave of protests built its way up to her mouth. Why couldn't she go? She could handle herself. She wouldn't become helpless at the sight of those bodies.

But Susan might. She was the youngest in their group, and she hadn't looked too well at the sight of the first dead body they saw. Eliza felt protective of her. So she bit her tongue and nodded.

"Be careful," said Eliza, and their raft floated back towards the beach. Jack and Moira continued floating towards the boat. Eliza turned back to Susan, trying not to laugh at her float.

"You heard the man; let's gather supplies," said Eliza, clapping her hands and smiling. Eliza eased herself off her raft. The water reached up to her chest. She sighed in relief as her foot stopped throbbing.

Eliza turned up clothing and shoes and even some silverware. She also found a first aid kit.

"This is perfect," she said. She put it on the raft with the other things she found.

"Susan, did you find anything?" said Eliza over her shoulder. Before Susan could answer, something bumped into Eliza's raft. Eliza lifted herself onto the raft to inspect it, and she leaned over the side.

She found a body. A body that was wearing a familiar blue sundress and had strawberry blonde hair.

It was Martha.


Week 4 -- Post 1/5 -- 234 words

As Jack untied the raft intended for the two of them, Moira found that she had to force herself to look ahead. Force herself not to vomit again. It had been unpleasant enough the first time.

The bodies meant that not everyone had made it. That the storm had been too quick for the lifeboats. At least for anyone stuck on a certain part of the ship.

She saw Eliza looking at something that appeared to be a body. She had a bad feeling about it, and took a deep breath. She'd worry about it later. For now, they had to focus on what they would find. Everything was so still, so quiet, and if anyone was alive at all, they would have known by now.

And the scenery was odd. In Titanic they'd been in the middle of the freezing North Atlantic. Here, the sun was only just beginning to set and it was still light out. They were in paradise. Stranded in paradise.

"So," Moira said to Jack. "Not exactly what you imagined when you booked this trip, huh?"

Week 4 -- Post 2/4 -- 179 words

Susan watched, half surprised and half relieved as Jack untied the vines connecting their rafts together. It meant she wasn't going to run into any potential dead bodies. She shuddered at the memory of the one she had encountered earlier. Eliza turned to face her,
looking like she was trying not to laugh at the ridiculous looking float she was one.

"You heard the man; let's gather supplies," said Eliza, clapping her hands and smiling and slowly making her way into the water. Susan nodded and gingerly entered the water, not wanting to accidentally capsize the float.

Susan began rummaging around, looking for something that would help. She located a few floating bits of clothing. Trying not to think about the fact that it belonged to someone that might be dead, she piled them onto the float, making the flamingo look even more ridiculous. She fished around near a few pieces of what looked like luggage.

As she did, she heard Eliza declare that something was perfect and ask if she had found anything. As she turned to reply she saw a body bump into Eliza. She immediately closed her eyes, mentally steeling herself to steal a glance at it.

There was a strange look on Eliza's face. It looked almost like recognition as she stared at the dress the corpse was dressed in. Susan couldn't fathom why until it hit here. What if it was someone Eliza knew?

"Eliza, you okay?" she asked, softly,

Week 4 --- Post 1/5 --- 246 words

Eliza almost didn't hear Susan as she stared at the corpse. The sounds faded, and the world darkened, but she only had eyes on the body.

No, it-it couldn't be, she thought. No,no,no.

Trembling, she bent down and turned the body over, blanching at the body's icy skin. She stared at the face-

And covered her mouth in horror.

"Oh no, Martha," she moaned. Martha's glassy hazel eyes stared at the sky, unseeing. "Martha...Martha. Oh, God, no."

It was all she could say as she dropped into the water, raft forgotten, and clutched her best friend. Hot tears spilled down her cheeks, and Eliza lifted Martha's hand with her own trembling one.

She could have stood there all night, but the others would be coming back.

"We-we have to bury her," she garbled. Eliza wiped her face and repeated her request. "I can't leave her here. It's stupid, but I couldn't live with myself if she stayed here."

Eliza tied the raft around her middle and grabbed Martha by the shoulders. She started swimming to the shore.

Week 4-- Post 2/5-- 184 words

Jack waved back at the two girls before wading away with Moira on the raft. He grabbed some random boards along the way and used it to paddle the boat, heading straight towards the bodies. He was so focused on rowing that the voices and presence of the others melted away...

That was, until Moira struck up casual conversation.

Jack glanced back at her, honestly not knowing what to say. He was always so awful at small talk, and in a situation like this, it was even worse. Was he supposed to fake a laugh? Talk about the weather? Mention how nice the water is?

"We're approaching the bodies. Let's have a look-out for survivors... or anyone we would recognize," he nonchalantly said instead, throwing away all possible conversation starters out the window and instead talk about the most gruesome relevant topic possible. Nice one, Jack, he sarcastically thought to himself, realizing how abrasive he must look right now.

Week 4 -- Post 3/5 -- 159 words

Susan watched as Eliza didn't seem to hear her. Eliza was starting to shake as the went ghost white, turning the body over slowly. By now she didn't have to be an expert detective to tell that whoever it was, Eliza clearly knew very well. All Susan could do was stare, not knowing what to say as Eliza cried out a name Martha, her mouth covered in sheer horror.

Eliza embraced the body, raft and the items she'd picked up all forgotten as tears streamed down her cheek. Susan felt like the worst person ever as she just stood there, not knowing whether to go and comfort her or let her grieve in peace. This was way out of her realm of expertise.

A trembling Eliza lifter her friends out the water before she seemed to finally find her voice.

"We-we have to bury her," she garbled. Eliza wiped her face and re. "I can't leave her here. It's stupid, but I couldn't live with myself if she stayed here." She moved with renewed vigor, tying the raft to her body and grabbing the body, no Martha towards the shore.

For a moment, Susan remained frozen. What if Eliza wanted to do this alone? Would she even know what to say? What if she said something wrong? What about her Dad? What if he was...NO...he is NOT. That's not a possibility I can consider. I'll try to help. She's been so kind so far to me. She needs a shoulder to cry on now. Deciding also that doing something would keep her mind off worrying about her Dad, she jumped on the float, paddling furiously with her hands to keep pace with Eliza.

Week 4 --- Post 2/5 --- 284 words

Jack didn't respond to Moira's question, but that was okay. He didn't have to. It was a poor attempt at a joke.

And anyway, they had something more to worry about at the moment. The wreckage and debris that lay in front of them. There was no possible way to avoid it.

Trying to prevent herself from throwing up was futile, it seemed. It happened when she saw the first dead body. She didn't even know who it was. An anonymous woman. Maybe in her early thirties. Moira was bad with ages, but she was young...

And then. The blonde hair. The powder blue blouse and denim shorts. Somehow, Jeff's ring was still on her finger.

No...

Not Anya.

Moira started screaming. She thought that they were still in relatively shallow water and she jumped off the raft, but only realized she could keep her head above water if she saw stood on her tiptoes.

Jack stared at her, bewildered, as took the ring and climbed back on. Jack almost fell in the water in the process.

"Her fiancé," Moira said breathlessly. "He's going to want it back."

Week 4 -- Post 3/4 -- 182 words

Eliza heaved Martha out of the water, throwing her over her shoulder, and she untied the raft, leaving it where the water met the sand. She heard Susan splashing behind her.

Without turning, she said, "I found some things on my raft. Will you please unload them onto the sand and organize them?"

Eliza limped away from the water to a small patch of grass, where orange hibiscus flowers were growing. She gently laid Martha down and closed her eyes. If Martha wasn't so blue and pale, she could have been sleeping. Eliza got on her knees.

Numb, she started hand-digging the sand. The sand burned underneath her fingers, but Eliza didn't feel a thing. She dumped sand to the side, worked around the edges, shuffled on her knees.

Night crept on the horizon. Jack and Moira must have been back by now, but Eliza continued to dig. Sweat perspired on her forehead, but Eliza kept working.

When she got a long and deep enough hole, Eliza picked Martha up bridal style and held her close.

"If-if John is alive," she whispered, choking on the word 'if,' "I'll take good care of him. Don't worry, I won't steal him." She chuckled sullenly. "He's like a brother to me."

Eliza laid Martha down in the grave, stroked her cheek, and placed her hands over her chest. She covered the body, patting the sand firmly.

"Goodbye," said Eliza, and she sat by the grave, closed her eyes, and felt the grief overcome her.

Week 4-- Post 3/5-- 251 words

Jack couldn't help but feel uneasy when they floated by the many lifeless bodies around them. Many faces were a deathly pale color and were either face-down on the water or looking straight up at the sky with glassy eyes. Jack wasn't particularly the religious type, but he'd like to think that them facing up or down was symbolic of which afterlife they went to.

He should feel like throwing up, or perhaps be permanently traumatized by this, but he just felt... nothing. He felt numb. Was he desensitized to this situation? Or was the adrenaline still blocking any fear and dread he may feel? He couldn't tell.

Suddenly Moira screamed like bloody murder, causing Jack's heart to skip a beat and reach back and make sure she was okay. However, that didn't do much good since she jumped off the raft. Luckily they were not quite at the deeper end of the water yet, so she was able to maintain herself as she took something from the dead body nearby and hastily climbed back on the board, causing so much turbulence that it even almost knocked Jack off into the water.

He found his balance again and then looked at the dead body she just pickpocketed, then at Moira's hands: it was a ring. A rather big diamond one, too. It must've been an engagement ring, and she wanted to return it to the woman's fiance.

The numbness and empty void in his heart seemed to slowly fade away as Jack also accepted the reality of Moira's situation and let the sympathy seep in. The dead fiance woman must have been her friend. He couldn't imagine losing someone close to a situation like this.

They began to drift away from the floating body, and he wondered if Moira needed more closure with the body. But as she sat there sobbing while clutching the ring, he figured she didn't need to see any more of her friend's dead face.

He put his arm around her, not sure what else to do. He was never good with dealing with uncomfortable topics like this, so he wasn't the one who usually comforted others about it. It seemed that he made the right move since Moira turned towards his chest only to burrow her head in her own hands so he wouldn't be able to see her sobbing face. "I'm sorry about your friend," he said softly, putting his other arm around her to complete the hug and let her cry in his arms.

But he was looking past her head and into the sea, fidgeting with his own wedding ring on his finger and praying to a god if it exists that he didn't find Olivia the same way.

Week 4 -- Post 4/5 -- 457 words

Moira let herself cry in Jack's arms.

In ordinary circumstances, she wouldn't have let herself act this way around a near total stranger, but these were no ordinary circumstances.

When she'd seen the wreckage in the distance, she had a feeling that things were bad. But there was a part of her that assumed that her friends had made it. As far as she was aware, Anya and Jill had been in their cabin when Moira was at the spa, when the captain had called for an abandon ship.

And if Anya's body wasn't there, why wasn't Jill's? Had they gotten separated somehow? Was Jill somehow still alive? Had anyone survived this wreckage at all?

"The trip," she said. "It was my idea."

Then, Moira started laughing. She had to. This situation was all far too ridiculous not to laugh.

"Anya said, I hope we don't sink," she repeated, remember the afternoon they'd booked the trip well. "And I said, ships are one of the safest way to travel. I convinced her. And our other friend too."

Then, she kept laughing.

They should have gone to Hawaii.

Or maybe, they shouldn't have gone at all.

Week 4 -- Post 4/4 -- 190 words