Chapter 3
July 12, 2019
It was your first time in Europe and it was better than you could’ve ever imagined. Admittedly, you hadn’t wanted to come at first, but coaxing from your friends led you to go and you were glad you hadn’t backed out of it this time.
The coast of Italy was beautiful and being able to see all the new places and immerse yourself in the culture had been your favorite part. The way the sea breeze flowed through your hair, gently hit your face, and how you could taste the salty water on your lips. This was the life and you couldn’t have asked for a better vacation. You took in the days you spent on the beach and looked forward to the next part of your trip.
The city of Venice was incredible and it was much more stunning in person. You stood in front of your hotel, just marveling at everything that was around you. From a distance, you could hear one of your friends calling your name and you turned around to see what they wanted.
“Come on! Let’s put our stuff in the room so we can see the rest of what Venice has to offer.”
You oblige reluctantly, seeing as you would have been content just staring out into the city for however long as possible. Rolling your suitcase in, you meet your friends and take the elevator up to your floor.
Once in the room, you settled in and put away some of your clothes in the drawers.
“Hurry up! I really want to go exploring.” You hear the voice of your sister, Ally, coming from the bathroom.
“Okay, okay I’m ready! I’m waiting for you now.”
Your sister came out and took your hand and whisked you out the door in no time. You struggled to keep up as it almost seemed as though she was running down the hall at this point.
“You have to slow down. Seriously! Who can keep up with you.”
She huffed in return. “Don’t you want to have fun, see the city, and all the beautiful men it has to offer?”
You playfully smiled while you waited on the elevator to come.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Wouldn’t wanna waste my time looking at boring old buildings or anything.”
You were finally outside and Ally was staring at her phone trying to find one of the places she wanted to see.
“Ah, that’s it! It’s called the Rialto Bridge. I wanna go see that first, you up for it?”
Not waiting for a response, your sister starts heading in the opposite direction that you thought you were going in. You had to nearly sprint to catch up to her with how fast she walked.
“Why are you almost running? It’s not like the bridge is going anywhere.”
“Who knows! Better see it soon though before it gets crowded.”
Finally, you arrive, and it is a gorgeous view of Venice.
“Okay, I’ll be the first to admit it. Maybe you were right about this.”
“See, I told you. Your sister knows best!”
You turn to look over the bridge on the other side and by the time you look back to your left, your sister is gone. She had walked over to the street vendors and was attempting to buy souvenirs you guessed. Oh well. At least it wasn’t a bad place to wait for her.
All of a sudden, you feel the bridge beneath you start to shake and you look around and people are running from your left. You try your best to get off the bridge as fast as you can before it breaks but end up falling directly into the canal below you.
The water is surging and all you can hear is people yelling. You’re scared because of the chaos around you and try to swim to one of the edges so you can get out. This is nearly impossible due to the waves swelling around you. You’re panicking and absolutely freaking out. This wasn’t supposed to happen. It was supposed to be a fun trip to Europe and you were supposed to have enjoyed it.
Your head keeps bobbing up and down with the water and you worry that it’s too strong of a current that you won’t be able to make it out alive. With one last attempt and using all your energy, you try to swim to the edge again but you’re pulled back under by the current once more.
You muster out a cry of “Help!” before passing out completely.
You came to and it felt like you were floating in the air. Guess you didn’t make it out alive? Or did you? The last thing you remember was fighting the water but it seemed like you weren’t in it anymore.
Barely opening your eyes, you see that you’re being carried. Wait no, whoever is holding you is flying? No, that can’t be right.
You see the reflection of your face in what seems to be a fishbowl on a man’s body. Wait, the man who’s holding you is wearing the fishbowl? At least, you think it’s a man.
“Oh, thank goodness you’re alright.” You hear the voice coming from the fishbowl.
“Am I alive? What happened?”
“It seems like you got stuck in the current, but I saved you and pulled you out.”
“Uhh, thanks I guess. Thought I had died for a little bit there.”
“No problem, just making sure that you’re alive and safe.”
He sets you down on the pavement and hovers slightly above you.
You cough out the remaining water in your lungs as you sit on the ground. By the time you look up, the man is nowhere to be found and you’re alone.
What the hell just happened, you think to yourself.
Your mind begins to clear and you immediately think of your sister. Where is she?
You look around and you’re not by the bridge anymore, you have no bearings and no idea where you or your sister could be.
Scanning the area, you see a local shop and walk towards it, hoping to find some way back to your hotel and hopefully your sister.
Once you walk in, the shopkeeper is an older woman and she seems worried about your disheveled appearance as you approach her. She greets you kindly despite you being dripping wet in her store. You explain what just happened frantically in broken Italian and ask if she knows how to get back to your hotel.
She nods and motions for you to come over to her. As you get closer, you see that she has a phone and a phonebook sitting on a desk. You search through the book and see if you can find the name of your hotel. You finally do and are grateful for the kindness of the woman.
You get through to your hotel and again, frantically explain what happened and ask where your sister is, hoping that someone would know. The employee on the other line says they will send someone to get you from the shop and to wait until they come. You hang up and smile graciously at the woman.
“Grazie.” You tell her once you leave the store with the hotel employee. She just gives you a gentle smile as you wave goodbye to her.
Finally, you’re back at your hotel and you race to your room hoping Ally is there. You enter your room and thankfully your sister is sitting on the bed. She rushes to you and grabs you tightly into a hug.
“Oh thank god, you’re alright.” She mumbles into your shoulder while letting out a sigh of relief.
“I thought I was done for, and once I got rescued, I was so worried something had happened to you.”
You break apart and sit down on the bed next to her. Recounting all the horrible things that had just happened to you.
*************************************************
While fighting the elementals, Quentin had noticed something in the water. A figure of some sort. No, it was a person thrashing around, trying to get out of the canal.
He rushed over and saw you go under, and dove under the surface of the water to get you. You were passed out in his arms and he was worried that you had died.
He hears a small cough and looks at you, seeing that you had begun to open your eyes and look around your surroundings. He had to find someplace safer to get you to. He takes you away from the bridge in an inland area so that you don’t risk being near the water again.
He hears you mutter out a few words and he tells you that he’s glad you’re alright. He sets you down, making sure that you’re alright and asks if you need help. Another cough and it seems as though the last of the water comes out of you. He sees you’re alright and whisks off to finish what he had started.
Once he was done, he tried to find you again. Make sure you’d made it out alive, safe, and back to wherever hotel you were staying at. But, he never did.
He thought that would be the last time he’d see you, so imagine his surprise on that day in New York. Spilling coffee all over you. Wondering if maybe this was his chance to start something with you.
The beautiful woman he saved who he couldn’t get out of his head no matter how hard he tried.