Intrinsical - Lani Woodland [1]
I kneeled in front of a complete stranger, as if somehow I had the power to save him. I knew the basics of CPR, and although I had never done it, I now steeled myself to try, fumbling for the information I had once learned. Tears streamed down my face and I took his hand in mine. “Hey!” I shouted. His brown eyes met my hazel ones and I could see he knew what was happening, knew he was moments from death. He stared back at me, and in his expression I could see he was pleading desperately for help. I was sure that the horror I saw in his eyes was mirrored in my own.
Dropping his hand and rising to my feet I circled behind him and wrapped my arms around his body. Leaning in close to his ear I promised, “You are going to be okay!” My shaking hands clasped together as they found the correct placement. I repeated again, “You will be okay.” It was a promise to myself as much as to him.
Leaning forward, my hair, tears, and necklace fell in a silky puddle across his cheek. I could feel the warmth from his skin on my face, and my heart started beating faster at what I was about to do. The air around me shifted as I thrust my hands under his ribs. With a violent blast, the intruder that had entered his body withdrew. The freezing vapor encircled us both before vanishing with an anguished scream. Brent instantly took a deep, painful-sounding breath, and began coughing as soon as the fresh air filled his starved lungs. He turned toward me and his eyes locked with mine.
“Breathe with me,” I instructed, trying to help his ragged breathing normalize. Slowly, the panicked look in his eyes quieted but his hand clutched mine as if it alone were tethering him to life.
I knew there were people around me, that someone was recording the whole thing on their phone. I was even aware of some of them trying to get our attention, but I couldn’t make out anything they said. I didn’t care about any of it; all that mattered was that he was alive.
A pair of hands grabbed me forcefully from behind, moving me out of the way. The movement broke our eye contact and I lost my grip on Brent’s hand. The world tumbled back to life around me, and now I could make out the conversations that were happening in the crowd. I could see the larger group of onlookers frantically rehashing what they had just seen.
I didn’t care. None of it mattered.
He was still watching me, but the nurse slid between us, checking his pulse and making sure he was okay. The crowd began to thin as everyone realized the action was over and lost interest. His friends stood off to the side waiting for him, shuffling around nervously. I dug my shoe into the grass, trying to fade into the background, unsure if I should stay. Shaking my head, I tried to clear away the intensity of the moment.
“I need you to come to my office, just to be sure,” I heard the nurse instruct him as he stood with a slight balance check. Looking up, I watched him nod, but he wasn’t looking at her, he was looking at me. When he turned to walk toward the infirmary, I followed for a few steps before I stopped myself. What was I doing? He didn’t need me anymore. Instead, I headed towards my dorm.
I had only taken perhaps three steps when someone caught my wrist. I knew it was him before I even turned around. I looked back, blinking stupidly, wondering if this was even real. I could feel the strong pulse from his fingers that slid down to my hand.
Boldly, he lifted my hand and placed it on his chest over the steady thumping of his heart. I stifled a gasp as I felt my own heart shift to beat in rhythm with his.
“You saved my life,” he stated in a raspy voice. “I’m in your debt.” Despite the twinkle in his eye, there was a weight to his words that made me shiver. He opened his mouth to say more, but the nurse, a formidable woman, caught hold of his elbow and steered him towards her office.
I stared after him until the reality of what had happened hit me and my whole body began to tremble. His near death hadn’t been an accident; something— a ghost? —had tried to